AN ARTIST has filmed the creation of an incredible portrait of Line of Duty boss Ted Hastings – made using “gaffer” tape.
Nathan Wyburn, known for his unique celebrity portraits, created the spectacular image at Cardiff’s Morgan Arcade as part of a live exhibition yesterday.
The 30-year-old former Britain’s Got Talent semi finalist brought Adrian Dunbar’s AC-12 character to life using black and grey tape on a white canvas.
The portrait took Line of Duty fan Wyburn four hours, with the final image showing Superintendent Hastings giving his trademark stare in AC-12 police uniform.
Wyburn’s previous portraits include Prince Charles, Dame Shirley Bassey, Mariah Carey, Catherine Zeta-Jones, The Jacksons and Keifer Sutherland.
The video has received praise from Dunbar’s fellow Line of Duty cast and AC-12 colleagues.
Vicky McClure, who played DI Kate Fleming, retweeted the video this morning, with DI Steve Arnott actor Martin Compston commenting: “class”.
And Line of Duty fans have also shown their admiration for Wyburn’s work.
@crazyGGlady commented: “As Ted would say – mother of God! That’s amazing!”
@Daryl_Gerard replied: “This is awesome. Great work.”
@Nav815 added: “Fantastic!!”
Speaking today, Wyburn, from Ebbw Vale, South Wales, said: “People were loving watching it come to life.
“Eyes are always trickiest, that’s why I always start with them. If I get them right I know I’m on my way.
“Ripping apart the gaffer tape in the correct direction is surprisingly easy.
“But once it’s stuck down, it’s down otherwise it would rip the paper.
“So although the video shows me being super fast, it took a lot of patience to get accurate.
“I just think Adrian’s a legend. A great actor and a brilliant character.
“I create work based on current events and every time I heard the team say gaffer in the last series… my mind instantly went to gaffer tape! That’s how my head works.”
He added: “Approval from the cast is always awesome.
“I’m a big fan of Martin & Vicky too. Huge respect for them and their friendship is awesome to watch in all the interviews. You can see they really are great ‘mates’.
“However, I open up the question to anyone reading this, what would I make them with?”
