Truncheon, Pocket Note Book, Film Crew
I was watching Traffic Cops again this week. I know, I can’t help it, it’s like a burger flipper at McDonalds going home & watching Ready, Steady, Cook.
And to make matters worse, I get really involved in it all. When they’re chasing the baddies my heart rate increases, I’m willing them on to box them in & drag them out through the quarter-lights. It’s like being at work only you’re in one of those old World War II RAF control rooms trying to push pieces around the maps on the TV screen before you. I suppose it’s a way of taking part in some of the things I no longer do, like chasing baddies. Being in the control room and assisting with pursuits is all well good but you can’t beat being out there & doing it.
The thing which came to me though was how many times can these film crews make programmes about Traffic Cops. We used to have traffic cars all over the place. You couldn’t eat an apple at the wheel for want of BMWs & Volvos queueing up to pull you over & issue a ticket.
These days the story is somewhat different. They’ve taken all the traffic cars away. Road Safety & Education is no longer a priority & there are easier targets to be met. So decimate the traffic departments & send the troops elsewhere but that means there are only so many crews the BBC can go out with. I’m not sure how long Traffic Cops has been going but it must be a few years, they’ve done a few forces too and then there’s Nightwatch & the same programmes on the other channels.
There can’t be many traffic officers who haven’t had a camera crew with them.
So if you’re a BBC producer & you need a rather handsome, fine looking & experienced copper to drive a big white traffic car around for a few days, give me a call.
Time For Change says:
This extract from a Local Government website
could explain why you are paying so much tax:
How much Housing/Council Tax benefit can I get?
Can I get backdated benefit and how can I make a claim?
How long will my entitlement continue?
If I rent from a relative will I be able to claim Housing Benefit?
I’m thinking about renting privately – will Housing Benefit cover all of my rent?
If someone comes to live with me will this affect my Housing Benefit/Council Tax benefit?
I’m claiming benefit – will someone come to visit me about my claim?
What happens if I’m overpaid?
May 1st, 2008 at 5:05 pm
Tony F says:
It infuriates me in that a 14 year old scrote, who has put umpteen lives at risk, finally crashing the Jag onto a railway track (which is busy) then having to be rescued by the police AT THEIR OWN RISK, gets a driving ban for a year?????? I was hoping they would drag the little twat out of the wreckage and tie him to the tracks for the next train.
Justice..? Not for scrotes, but just you do what he did and see what happens.
And the one that crashed into camera 8…Laughing! I would have got a noose from the back of the car, strung the driver up there and then, and see if his mates still want to laugh…But no, we can’t do that. They have ‘inhuman rights’ the couple on their honymoon/children/old dears that their act of stupidity and greed could have killed have NO rights whatsoever, except their kin would have to pay for the funeral…
May 1st, 2008 at 8:38 pm
Straker says:
Ahh the joys of Traffic Cops.
Somebody correct me if I’m wrong but aren’t most of the recent series based in Humberside.Who by all accounts abolished advanced trained area cars in favour of a enlarged traffic department who deal with the jobs the area cars used to deal with along with traffic stuff?
Hence “Traffic” Cops is much more about general policing than it used to be. Although the ARV segments are quite good and something a bit different. Reminds me of a early-mid 90’s programme that followed an ARV unit in Manchester (possibly or Liverpool), showed them doing armed challenges etc.
May 1st, 2008 at 10:09 pm
Annette says:
I love Traffic cops as well. The one that made me laugh was when a police woman stopped a man when he was driving all over the place, never in a straight line.
He got out the car and made a funny little “ooohhh” noise and dropped to the floor. Saying he was having a heart attack. He was making so much noise, yelling and shouting, the officer realised no way was he having a heart attack.
After a while when the officer got him up, he got into the police car and walked calmly into the station.
His ‘heart attack’ wasn’t mentioned again. He was done for drink driving as he was over the limit.
So was his acting.
May 2nd, 2008 at 10:49 pm