Warning: This article contains spoilers about series six, episode six of Line of Duty that some readers may prefer to avoid.

Gregory Piper has paid tribute to the cast and crew of Line of Duty after his character Ryan Pilkington was killed off in last night's episode.

The actor appeared in the first ever series of the BBC drama at the age of 13 and made a shock comeback in series five with Pilkington having become a fully-fledged member of the OCG.

Pilkington killed undercover officer John Corbett before successfully infiltrating the police force, enabling him to pull the strings from the inside.

After a Mexican standoff with Kate Fleming, however, Pilkington was killed in last night's episode - and posting on social media after the broadcast, Piper admitted that he "had it coming".

"What an experience. It's not lost on me how lucky I am," he wrote. "(Show creator) Jed Mercurio gave me an absolute gift with Ryan, his scenes and character journey have been the stuff of dreams and I'm so grateful."

He continued: "This show meant so much to me and changed my life and if I could go back and tell little Greg what his life had in store his mind would explode!

"Thank you to everyone who has watched and supported. I'm completely overwhelmed by the response and couldn't be more proud of the whole team.

"OD has the best fans (who also make brilliant detectives). Stay tuned because you're in for an absolute corker of a last episode next week.

"If only they had got him a Big Mac. PC Ryan 'The bent bastard' Pilkington' over and out."

Following his Line of Duty exit, Piper, 23, is reportedly now wanted for a turn on this year's edition of Strictly Come Dancing.