late '70's Motorway cops
Discussion
These old school Yorkshire cops are amazing.
Dodging across live lanes to pick up debris, generally putting themselves in danger for the sake of keeping traffic moving...lifting damaged cars by hand, removing stakes of wood from webasto roofs, commenting on lane hoggers, etc.
I have been driving motorways since 1986. No doubt the additional reactive warning signs on gantries added over the last thirty years have improved safety and prevented many pile ups.
Even though removing the hard shoulder is a step backwards, they 100% have got a lot safer. Not really many cops doing stuff like this now. Lower paid Highway Safety Officers I guess?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvw9DNQWymo
Dodging across live lanes to pick up debris, generally putting themselves in danger for the sake of keeping traffic moving...lifting damaged cars by hand, removing stakes of wood from webasto roofs, commenting on lane hoggers, etc.
I have been driving motorways since 1986. No doubt the additional reactive warning signs on gantries added over the last thirty years have improved safety and prevented many pile ups.
Even though removing the hard shoulder is a step backwards, they 100% have got a lot safer. Not really many cops doing stuff like this now. Lower paid Highway Safety Officers I guess?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvw9DNQWymo
courty said:
Dodging across live lanes to pick up debris, generally putting themselves in danger for the sake of keeping traffic moving...lifting damaged cars by hand, removing stakes of wood from webasto roofs, commenting on lane hoggers, etc.
And we still do every one of these things today (Apart from the webasto roofs)Only saw the first ten minutes but what immediately struck me was how the coppers did not play to the camera, try to be funny, try to be the focus of it or try to lecture/patronise those they spoke to or the viewer.
To be fair to the cops/officers on reality shows today, I do often feel they are told to be infantile and 'funny', rather than choose this off putting style.
As such it was educational and I hope to find time to watch it all.
To be fair to the cops/officers on reality shows today, I do often feel they are told to be infantile and 'funny', rather than choose this off putting style.
As such it was educational and I hope to find time to watch it all.
Brilliant! I especially like the part where the copper is railing against the imposition of a 30mph speed limit on the motorway in arctic conditions because "you wouldn't tell people not to put their hand in fire, so why do we have to tell them not to drive fast in the snow?". That would never happen in 21st century Britain, where packets of nuts contain warnings that they may contain nuts...
Aged 4 or 5 in the late '70s, I'd kneel on the rear seat of her bronze, black vinyl-roofed Mk.2 Capri and look out of the rear window, hoping to see a police car. On the occasion when I did, I'd shout "Look mum, a dado car!". I called them that in reference to the sound of the two tone horns, which I've just twigged were just two differently pitched but otherwise normal car horns rigged to sound alternately. I wonder when the police started using actual sirens rather than those horns?
Aged 4 or 5 in the late '70s, I'd kneel on the rear seat of her bronze, black vinyl-roofed Mk.2 Capri and look out of the rear window, hoping to see a police car. On the occasion when I did, I'd shout "Look mum, a dado car!". I called them that in reference to the sound of the two tone horns, which I've just twigged were just two differently pitched but otherwise normal car horns rigged to sound alternately. I wonder when the police started using actual sirens rather than those horns?
Edited by LunarOne on Tuesday 25th January 23:30
These docs are great (I think they've been posted before)
ETA: Here's the other one
Canon_Fodder said:
Pretty much everything was better in the '70s apart from perhaps the trousers and the internet
70's internet was brilliant!ETA: Here's the other one
Edited by VSKeith on Tuesday 25th January 23:31
Great programme, the utter stupidity and 'there by the grace of God i go' was similar when i finished 'on road 10 years ago after several years.
Absolutely loved the job and the people (mostly) but working under overly onerous 'H&S'
bull and under the camera ready to be reported by the next backslider looking for a promotion was a PITA, even more so when the 'water fairies' showed up to turn a drama into a crisis or 'training exercise' on the M6 on a Friday afternoon
Always reminds me of these nutters when you see daft stuff and the consequences https://youtu.be/6agXn3fVnRs
Absolutely loved the job and the people (mostly) but working under overly onerous 'H&S'
bull and under the camera ready to be reported by the next backslider looking for a promotion was a PITA, even more so when the 'water fairies' showed up to turn a drama into a crisis or 'training exercise' on the M6 on a Friday afternoon Always reminds me of these nutters when you see daft stuff and the consequences https://youtu.be/6agXn3fVnRs
VSKeith said:
These docs are great (I think they've been posted before)
ETA: Here's the other one
Nothing wrong with the old telex machines - - used 'em regularlyCanon_Fodder said:
Pretty much everything was better in the '70s apart from perhaps the trousers and the internet
70's internet was brilliant!ETA: Here's the other one
Edited by VSKeith on Tuesday 25th January 23:31
jondude said:
Only saw the first ten minutes but what immediately struck me was how the coppers did not play to the camera, try to be funny, try to be the focus of it or try to lecture/patronise those they spoke to or the viewer.
To be fair to the cops/officers on reality shows today, I do often feel they are told to be infantile and 'funny', rather than choose this off putting style.
As such it was educational and I hope to find time to watch it all.
Nowadays, if it doesn't look good for TV, they'll ask the Officers to do it again. To be fair to the cops/officers on reality shows today, I do often feel they are told to be infantile and 'funny', rather than choose this off putting style.
As such it was educational and I hope to find time to watch it all.
courty said:
These old school Yorkshire cops are amazing.
Dodging across live lanes to pick up debris, generally putting themselves in danger for the sake of keeping traffic moving...lifting damaged cars by hand, removing stakes of wood from webasto roofs, commenting on lane hoggers, etc.
I have been driving motorways since 1986. No doubt the additional reactive warning signs on gantries added over the last thirty years have improved safety and prevented many pile ups.
Even though removing the hard shoulder is a step backwards, they 100% have got a lot safer. Not really many cops doing stuff like this now. Lower paid Highway Safety Officers I guess?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvw9DNQWymo
Traffic police still do a lot of it, us Highways traffic officers have a lot of resources to allow us to do a lot of things to assist the police.Dodging across live lanes to pick up debris, generally putting themselves in danger for the sake of keeping traffic moving...lifting damaged cars by hand, removing stakes of wood from webasto roofs, commenting on lane hoggers, etc.
I have been driving motorways since 1986. No doubt the additional reactive warning signs on gantries added over the last thirty years have improved safety and prevented many pile ups.
Even though removing the hard shoulder is a step backwards, they 100% have got a lot safer. Not really many cops doing stuff like this now. Lower paid Highway Safety Officers I guess?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvw9DNQWymo
GT03ROB said:
Canon_Fodder said:
Pretty much everything was better in the '70s apart from perhaps the trousers and the internet
....and the strikes....and the 3 day week.... and the blackouts..... and the cars.... and the...........the 70s were s
t!i love this one on reps and their badge envy from the 90s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQsMFQZa8os
having worked with 100s of people just like this at the time
guy comes in beaming "i have just been upgraded to a ghia" me (as a contractor) "nice, i'm still stuck with my 4 month old HKS tuned ST205"
lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQsMFQZa8os
having worked with 100s of people just like this at the time
guy comes in beaming "i have just been upgraded to a ghia" me (as a contractor) "nice, i'm still stuck with my 4 month old HKS tuned ST205"
lol
Dave Hedgehog said:
i love this one on reps and their badge envy from the 90s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQsMFQZa8os
having worked with 100s of people just like this at the time
guy comes in beaming "i have just been upgraded to a ghia" me (as a contractor) "nice, i'm still stuck with my 4 month old HKS tuned ST205"
lol
Hilarious. I wonder where they are now!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQsMFQZa8os
having worked with 100s of people just like this at the time
guy comes in beaming "i have just been upgraded to a ghia" me (as a contractor) "nice, i'm still stuck with my 4 month old HKS tuned ST205"
lol
What about "X Cars" from the 90s? I'm sure some of the coppers could be characters in a Peter Kay comedy...
https://youtu.be/fu3Qd-pfv7o
One of their own cars gets nicked and burnt out after being seen "racing around like a lunatic with the blue lights on".
At 18 minutes in they're using the in-car video system to watch a footy match while on duty.
At around 23 minutes in they're excited about hitting "one three five!" in their sapphire cossie, and thinking about how "if he pulls out, we dead..."
https://youtu.be/fu3Qd-pfv7o
One of their own cars gets nicked and burnt out after being seen "racing around like a lunatic with the blue lights on".
At 18 minutes in they're using the in-car video system to watch a footy match while on duty.
At around 23 minutes in they're excited about hitting "one three five!" in their sapphire cossie, and thinking about how "if he pulls out, we dead..."
PorkInsider said:
What about "X Cars" from the 90s? I'm sure some of the coppers could be characters in a Peter Kay comedy...
https://youtu.be/fu3Qd-pfv7o
One of their own cars gets nicked and burnt out after being seen "racing around like a lunatic with the blue lights on".
At 18 minutes in they're using the in-car video system to watch a footy match while on duty.
At around 23 minutes in they're excited about hitting "one three five!" in their sapphire cossie, and thinking about how "if he pulls out, we dead..."
https://youtu.be/fu3Qd-pfv7o
One of their own cars gets nicked and burnt out after being seen "racing around like a lunatic with the blue lights on".
At 18 minutes in they're using the in-car video system to watch a footy match while on duty.
At around 23 minutes in they're excited about hitting "one three five!" in their sapphire cossie, and thinking about how "if he pulls out, we dead..."
LunarOne said:
… and the wallpaper. But a 3 day week would suit me just fine!
How apposite! I was at a mates business premises last night, he’d bought the old house next door and it’s being knocked through and converted into office space in there. At the top there’s a room with this magnificent 70s (maybe even 60s) wallpaper…
Very Jason King.
Dave Hedgehog said:
i love this one on reps and their badge envy from the 90s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQsMFQZa8os
having worked with 100s of people just like this at the time
guy comes in beaming "i have just been upgraded to a ghia" me (as a contractor) "nice, i'm still stuck with my 4 month old HKS tuned ST205"
lol
Love me a bit of Alan Partridge!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQsMFQZa8os
having worked with 100s of people just like this at the time
guy comes in beaming "i have just been upgraded to a ghia" me (as a contractor) "nice, i'm still stuck with my 4 month old HKS tuned ST205"
lol
Wait, this is real...
Dog Star said:
LunarOne said:
… and the wallpaper. But a 3 day week would suit me just fine!
How apposite! I was at a mates business premises last night, he’d bought the old house next door and it’s being knocked through and converted into office space in there. At the top there’s a room with this magnificent 70s (maybe even 60s) wallpaper…Very Jason King.
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