Trigger Point recap: What happened in season 1 and 2 ahead of new series?

Vicky McClure is back in action as EXPO Lana Washington for the third series of the hit show Trigger Point. The gripping drama follows a team of bomb disposal officers, known as EXPOs, who are committed to protecting London from explosive threats and terrorist attacks.

In the upcoming series, Lana and her squad will be faced with a bomb threat that soon unveils itself as the beginning of a chilling vendetta: someone is out for revenge, targeting specific individuals.

Fans will be thrilled to see many familiar faces returning for the third series, including Eric Shango (On The Edge), Nabil Elouahabi (Blue Lights, Unforgotten), Natalie Simpson (North Sea Connection) and Maanuv Thiara (DI Ray, Landscapers), along with guest star Jason Flemyng (Gemma Bovery, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels).

The first series debuted in 2022 and quickly became a staple among crime drama enthusiasts. The momentum continued into the second series, which aired in 2024, attracting an average of 8.1m viewers and was streamed 30m times on ITVX, making it the second most watched drama on ITV1 last year.

But what unfolded in series one and two of Trigger Point? Here's a recap ahead of the new season.

The inaugural series centred around the far-right extremist group, The Crusaders. As the season concluded, it was unveiled that Lana's old friend and former military colleague Karl Maguire (Warren Brown) was behind the terror attacks on London.

The shocking revelation came after Karl was discovered with a bomb strapped to his chest during a by-election at the University of South London. He justified his bombings, stating that a concealed ambush attack occurred in Afghanistan and he wanted to retaliate against the system and those he believes assisted in hiding it.

Karl met his end just before he could trigger the bomb. The first series also witnessed the demise of Lana's colleague and best mate Joel Nutkins - portrayed by Adrian Lester - within the initial moments of the show following a call to a bomb factory.

Lana also mourned the loss of her brother Billy (Ewan Mitchell) after he was befriended by The Crusaders only to be targeted and killed later.

In the second series, Lana faced off against another terrorist group, The Wave. During the second-to-last episode, Lana was tasered and abducted by group leader Hope (Bethan Cullinane), while her parents Jeff and Val were also held captive by the same group.

Audiences discovered that The Wave had taken Lana hostage because they intended to topple the Government, and wanted her to transport a bomb to Counter-Terrorism HQ, where the Home Secretary was expected.

However, in gripping scenes, Lana managed to use her expertise to swap the bombs at the last moment, causing the van carrying the terrorists to explode instead. She is initially arrested but is cleared when the police uncover the truth.

Series two also witnessed the tragic demise of Lana's former partner, DCI Thom Youngblood (Mark Stanley), with whom she was reigniting a relationship despite his relationship with DS Helen Morgan. Youngblood met his end after being pushed down a lift shaft, plummeting to his death.

The series concluded with Lana attending Danny's wedding.

Discussing her character's journey in the third series, Vicky revealed: "She's not coping. Lana is a strong individual, and she prides herself on perfectionism, but I believe we quickly see that facade beginning to shatter. We're aware from the previous two series that she has endured significant loss, which was inevitably going to catch up with her, and this is the onset of it.

"So we will be addressing PTSD, alongside her struggle with tinnitus, and her reliance on medication for support. She's quite an isolated character at the start of the series."