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The Underwater Gendarme

The Underwater Gendarme: Episode 3

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Episode 3

BBC Radio 4 - The Underwater Gendarme, Episode 3

Horatio Clare discovers how the River Seine inspires lovers, writers and river policemen.

Horatio marvels at the diversity of people who are irresistibly drawn to the banks and quays of the Seine - from musicians, dancers and lovers to dog walkers and drinkers.

In The Underwater Gendarme, writer and former lifeboatman Horatio Clare joins the Brigade Fluviale, an elite team which for over a century has been saving lives and recovering bodies from the River Seine in Paris, along with murder weapons and criminal evidence. 

This week, Horatio is back out on an evening patrol with the Brigade. As they work their way downriver through the heart of the city, Horatio marvels at the diversity of people who are irresistibly drawn to the banks and quays of the Seine - from musicians, dancers and lovers to dog walkers and drinkers. And as the evening progresses, it's the drinkers who keep the Brigade busy, including one who prompts a call-out when he decides that a bridge parapet overhanging the river would be a good place to sleep!

Horatio also asks why the Seine which has attracted generations of writers. He explores the river's role as a source of literary inspiration with the proprietor of a bookshop which has become a Parisian institution and with a journalist who lives on the Seine and has written the river's biography.

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Horatio Clare joins the Paris River Police, the Brigade Fluviale, on patrol on the Seine

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