An Out of Court special
The first of two programmes 'We can't pat kids on the head one day and shoot them with plastic bullets the next. ' On the day of the royal wedding, police marksmen on the roofs of Whitehall watched with loaded rifles for threats to Prince Andrew and his bride. Those same riflemen are the men who will fire the plastic bullet guns if or when they are used in a riot on mainland Britain. This film follows a group of those special policemen, who are trained to kill yet at the same time expected to be ordinary beat bobbies. It tells the inside story of the Metropolitan Police's struggle to maintain public order - at ceremonials, demonstrations and riots - and expresses the apprehension the police feel about their changing role in keeping the peace. Reporter Ed Boyle
Film editor TONY HEAVEN
Series producer ALAN BOOKBINDER Producer STEPHEN LAMBERT
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