THERE was drama at the Anderton Boat Lift when a detective was thrown from the top of the iconic structure.

Fortunately the incident was a scene from Paranoid, ITV’s Thursday night conspiracy-thriller, which is set in a fictional Cheshire village.

In a dramatic scene in the second of the eight-part series, one of the film’s key characters, Dino Fetscher, who plays detective Alec Wayfield, was thrown from the top of the lift into the water.

The thriller focuses on the murder of a woman GP in a rural children’s playground.

Detectives embark on what seems to be a straightforward murder investigation, but as they delve deeper they are drawn into an ever-darkening mystery.

The situation is made more sinister when the detectives start receiving mysteriously-worded notes from a ‘Ghost detective’.

A dramatic and dangerous journey to Europe to hunt the killer also forces the team to come to terms with their own demons.

Paranoid has a star-studded cast, including Robert Glenister, Lesley Sharpe, Dino Fetscher, Indira Varma and Neil Stuke.

Graham Wood, duty manager at the boat lift, said: “Through the years the Boat Lift has featured in filming, but rarely anything so dramatic as this.

“Red Productions was on site for three days shooting this difficult sequence, which involved night filming, stunt men and lots of equipment and staff.

“I had a chance to meet most of the actors, some of who made a point of asking about the story of the world’s first successful boat lift. “Most were astonished that the Lift still works and that visitors are able to take a boat trip through it.

“Regarding the storyline, we have been under a strict confidentiality clause not to say anything that gives the plot away.

“It feels good to be finally able to tell people what happened when ITV were on site.”

The Boat Lift will be staging its annual firework spectacular on Saturday, October 29. Gates open at 6.30pm and the display begins at 8pm.

Advance tickets can be bought at a reduced price online at DiscoverCheshire.com or by calling 01606 786 777.