Exclusive – Line of Duty viewers predict Ryan Pilkington is dead after cliffhanger shoot-out

Two gunshots were heard as the episode cut to credits, but we don't yet know exactly where those bullets went and who was caught in the crossfire.

With fans reeling from these shocking new developments and social media abuzz with speculation, RadioTimes.com asked you, the readers, who you think will have died after the climactic stand-off, if anyone.

In total, more than 8,500 votes were cast in the poll by avid Line of Duty fans and the results are decisive: almost half of participants believe that Ryan Pilkington's reign of terror is over and he will not survive episode six.

The character was introduced all the way back in series one as a boy who had fallen onto the wrong path, but an attempt to steer him out of trouble by PC Simon Bannerjee (Neet Mohan) proved unsuccessful.

Ryan was reintroduced as a member of organised crime in series five and has since murdered two police officers, as well as threatening the lives of both Jo Davidson and Terry Boyle.

A whopping 41 per cent of respondents believe that Ryan will be killed off this weekend, but that is by no means the only possibility.

Another 17 per cent of fans think that Jo Davidson will be the person fatally wounded in the shooting match, as she was stood dangerously close to the scene as it unfolded.

Meanwhile, more than a fifth of voters believe that writer Jed Mercurio is pulling our leg and that nobody at all will be killed in the incident, which would certainly subvert expectations.

There's some comfort to be found for fans of Vicky McClure's no-nonsense Kate Fleming, as only nine per cent of viewers think that she's due a tragic exit from the show – but we won't know for sure until Sunday night.

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Here are the full results of the poll investigating who you think will die in Line of Duty episode six:

1. Ryan Pilkington - 41 percent
2. Nobody - 22 percent
3. Jo Davidson - 17 percent
4. Kate Fleming - 9 percent
5. Jo and Ryan - 5 percent
6. Ryan and Kate - 4 percent
7. Jo and Kate - 2 percent

RadioTimes.com readers have had a good track record of predicting Line of Duty storylines recently, having correctly guessed that Jo Davidson's surprise blood relative is ex-OCG boss Tommy Hunter.

If you're looking for more on Line of Duty, check out everything we know about James Nesbitt's character Marcus Thurwell or find out why it's so troubling that Jo Davidson has "unusually high" runs of homozygosity.

Line of Duty continues tonight at 9pm on BBC One. The previous episodes are available to stream on BBC iPlayer. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.