ITV viewers stunned after recognizing detectives in TV series John and Anne Darwin

ITV’s The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe aired its final episode on Wednesday, as John and Anne Darwin confronted the officers.

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The Thief his Wife and the Canoe: Fans spot familiar faces

Viewers of ITV’s new drama The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe couldn’t believe it when two familiar faces appeared on the show.

As the film based on true events ended on Wednesday, John and Anne Darwin were questioned by police about their fraudulent plot – which led to John faking his death in 2002.

During the scenes, detectives try to figure out exactly what the pair had planned, and whether Anne was aware of the plot the whole time.

While Anne initially denied knowing her husband John had faked her death, John showed he had no clue about Anne collecting money from his life insurance policy.

As the interrogation continued, and in other earlier scenes from the film, fans were quick to recognize two familiar faces.

Detectives who are killing both Anne and John are none other than Coronation Street and The Bill’s Andrew Lancel, and comedian and actor Karl Pilkington.

Taking to Twitter, viewers were quick to point this out, with many calling for the duo to band together in the reboot of ITV’s cop drama The Bill.

One viewer said: “I realized the interviewer was in Bill. Not Karl Pilkington. The other one.”

Another tweeted: “This just reminds me I still miss The Bill and why isn’t the @AndrewLancel character called Neil Manson? I mean, he will always be Manson… maybe now as Chief Constable….”

The third added: “Omg did anyone else find out DCI Neil Manson was interviewing John Darwin? Or am I just a die-hard fan of The Bill?”

The comments continued to come in, with another tweet reading: “No way, Bill and Karl Pilkington are in there, and Karl trying not to laugh?!”

A fifth viewer tweeted: “Thoughts about the CID scene: seeing Andrew Lancel back in his chair gave me strong flashbacks of The Bill… then ‘it was Karl Pilkington!'”

The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe is now available to watch on ITV Hub.