A film portrait of a busy Metropolitan Police station in West London and of the men and women who work there.

The police only make front-page news when crisis strikes - an accident, a major crime, the heroic policeman or the bent cop. Now, for the first time, cameras have been allowed behind the scenes in a police station - following police on the beat and in the charge-room - dealing with lost kittens and bomb scares - interrogating the suspects - coping with the tragedy of a serious fire. And we have a chance to compare make-believe thrillers with genuine police work.

Esther Rantzen meets the policemen and policewomen who tackle violence, face danger and fight crime in real life. They talk to her about the life they lead and their attitudes to it - about crime and punishment, the public and the police.