"Okay nobody knew she worked for a newspaper, but that doesn't change the fact she became a colleague and a friend."
- Reg Hollis after Andrea's death
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Andrea Dunbar is a character in The Bill, who appeared from 2004 to 2005. She was played by Natalie Robb.
Andrea arrives at Sun Hill, seemingly the ideal mould for a probationer with a zest for the job and a willingness to learn.During her time at Sun Hill, Andrea begins an affair with the married DI Neil Manson. This, and the fact that she finds herself surprisingly good at the job, compromises Andrea's position. It is later revealed that Andrea is a journalist, placed undercover at Sun Hill by her editor. She had undergone training at Hendon, in order to go undercover in the police force and write an investigative piece on whether or not the Metropolitan Police Service had become too politically correct post Stephen Lawrence. It is her most challenging job to date, a story which is guaranteed to make her name, and she is determined to do it well.
Initially, Andrea is very popular among the relief, serving as a close friend and confidant to PC Kerry Young among others. There are many times when she acts as an inside scoop, providing stories to her editor such as Kerry's rape and details on The Sun Hill Serial Sniper. When Inspector Gina Gold asks her if she has anything to do with the stories, she points the finger at her much distrusted colleague PC Gabriel Kent.
As her deadline gets closer and closer, she finds that she has become attached to her position as a copper, and she is now unsure whether she should run with the article she had set out to write. Sensing her uncertainty, her editor blows the whistle on her and her position to Superintendent Adam Okaro. With her role now out in the open, her past work comes back to haunt her when she gave evidence at the trial of serial rapist Alan Kennedy, the case against him ultimately collapsing after her undercover role is revealed.
Desperate for a chance to redeem herself, she makes one last effort to gather incriminating evidence against Gabriel, investigating his link with the serial sniper and attempting to tie him to the events. In the end she succeeds, only to end up being held hostage in a store room by the crazed copper. However, the station goes up in flames when disgruntled ex-PCSO Colin Fairfax drove a petrol-laden van into the reception, and Gabriel chooses to leave her there to die, along with all the evidence she has against him.
Family and Relationships[]
- DI Neil Manson - Boyfriend (affair)
- Sgt. Dale Smith - brief fling
Major Storylines[]
- 2004 - 2005: Undercover work at Sun Hill
- 2004 - 2005: Love affair with DI Neil Manson
- 2004 - 2005: Investigation into PC Gabriel Kent
- 2005: Exposed as an undercover journalist and death in 2005 Sun Hill Fire
Wrongdoings committed by Andrea Dunbar
- Joins the Met as an undercover journalist
- Leaks information about cases to the press
- Unlawfully searches PC Kerry Young's home (takes a newspaper clipping implicating Dunbar)
- Allows PC Kerry Young to be posthumously declared as the Sun Hill press leak
| Preceded by: PC Cathy Bradford |
Sun Hill PC 2004-2005 |
Succeeded by: PC Dan Casper |