Would you believe it? The BBC is in the process of producing a documentary highlighting the work of our Bermuda Police Service and the Royal Bermuda Regiment Coastguard (previously our Marine Police Department) as reported in the Royal Gazette on 1st July 2024.
As a young lad in England in the 1950’s I grew up watching Jack Warner playing P.C. Dixon in the TV series “Dixon of Dock Green” set in East London, and from vague recollection P.C. Dixon was an older constable who embodied what we all thought a policeman should be - firm but kind, always polite and a person to be respected.
For those of us raised on Dixon of Dock Green, it was a major culture shock when the BBC introduced a new police series in 1962 by the name of Z Cars which can only be described as a “gritty drama” set in the fictitious Newtown near Liverpool or Manchester. Z Cars had a really raw edge compared with Dixon of Dock Green, and having joined the Staffordshire County Police in 1961 and being stationed in Bilston near Wolverhampton, Z Cars was the first series I can recall that showed life as it really was in the 60’s and what it was like to be a police officer. Whoever wrioe the scripts must surely have liaised very closely with real police officers because we could clearly identify both with the policemen in the show, and the side of life it portrayed.
I have a personal reason for never forgetting Z Cars! Shortly after arriving here in Bermuda patrolling the streets of Hamilton, I was confronted by a Bermudian officer who had recently attended a police course in the UK - Edward “Boxhead” Foggo. “Boxhead’” took one look at me and exclaimed in his dulcet tones, “Sweet Pea! You’re Sweet Pea on Z Cars." He was referring to young P.C. Ian Sweet, played by the actor Terence Edmond who apparently decided to leave the series to seek his fortune in the US, so his character met a tragic end when – to the best of my recollection - he dived off a bridge into a canal to save a drowning boy not realizing the water was less than 2 feet deep, and he died as a result.
Bermuda being what it is for nicknames, “Sweet Pea” became my nickname from then on, and I even named my first boat “Sweet Pea”. CLICK HERE for our extensive list of nicknames of Bermuda police officers. If you had one and it isn't recorded or if you know of someone else who had one (and it's fit to print) please pass it on to on our website at info@expobermuda.com
According to the Royal Gazette article, written by Stafanin Ausenda:-
(The) new documentrary series will highlight work of the Bermuda Police Service and Royal Bermuda Regiment coastguard.
The 15-episode series, tentatively titled Policing Paradise, will be shown on the BBC in the UK.
According to a police spokesman, a producer from British television production company Spun Gold Studios visited Bermuda earlier this year to explore the possibility of making the series.
The film crew arrived in Bermuda last week and will mostly document “feel-good” stories for the next seven weeks, according to the spokesman.
They are also working with the Bermuda Tourism Authority and Method Media while on the island.
The spokesman added: “This TV programme is designed to show Bermuda, the BPS and the RBR coastguard in a good light, while encouraging UK citizens to consider visiting the island.”
CLICK HERE for the full article.
We've come a long way since the days of Dixon of Dock Green. It should be fascinating to see this BBC documentary on policing in Bermuda. Will keep you posted.