Flying Squad (TV series)

Flying Squad was a documentary television series broadcast in 1989 on the British ITV network.[1] Flying Squad was a joint production between Argo Productions and Thames Television. The series followed the elite unit, known as The Flying Squad. The unit is a branch of the Specialist Crime & Operations section, within London's Metropolitan Police Service.

Flying Squad
GenreDocumentary
Directed byRobert Fleming
Narrated byAlexander John
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original language(s)English
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes8
Production
Producer(s)Robert Fleming
Editor(s)Roger Shufflebottom
Running time30 minutes
Production company(s)Thames/Argo
DistributorThames Television
Release
Original networkITV
Original release8 February 1989 –
16 January 1990

Episodes

The series consisted of 8 thirty-minute episodes broadcast in February and March 1989,[1] however one of the episodes was delayed due to legal reasons and broadcast in January 1990.[1][2] Each episode followed a particular Flying Squad operation in a fly-on-the-wall format through its planning stages to the final conclusion. Many of the episodes featured suspects under police surveillance, planning and carrying out armed robberies, culminating in a pavement ambush by armed officers whilst offenders were in the act of committing the crime. Other episodes featured Flying Squad officers carrying out their daily duties.

The episodes were:[1]

  1. Operation Boxer, originally broadcast 8 September 1989.
  2. Operation Pelican, originally broadcast 15 September 1989.
  3. Operation Jackdaw, originally broadcast 22 September 1989.
  4. Operation Turkey, originally broadcast 1 March 1989.
  5. Operation Night-Hawk, originally broadcast 8 March 1989.
  6. Operation Admiral, originally broadcast 15 March 1989.
  7. The Team at Tower Bridge, originally broadcast 22 March 1989.
  8. Operation Dachshund, originally broadcast 16 January 1990 and delayed due to legal reasons.

Operation Turkey

One of the most memorable episodes, Operation Turkey, featured the theft of £10'000 in wages from a Bejam supermarket in Hare Street, Woolwich on 23 November 1987. The robbery was set up by a police informant named Seamus Ray. Following the raid, robbers Ronnie Easterbrook, Tony Ash and their getaway driver Gary Wilson drove to Sunbury Street, Woolwich to swap cars. Flying Squad officers were already waiting there and ambushed the gang. In the gun battle, which took place close to Woolwich Fire Station, Tony Ash was shot dead by police, Ronnie Easterbrook and Gary Wilson both suffered gunshot wounds. One of the officers was wounded in the leg by shots from Easterbrook's gun.[2][3][4]

Easterbrook was sentenced to whole life imprisonment. In 1997 and 1999, Easterbrook went on hunger strike over what he believed to be a miscarriage of justice in the shooting of Tony Ash by armed officers, suggesting the armed officers who arrested him had operated a shoot-to-kill policy.[3] The hunger strikes continued and Easterbrook started several legal appeals through his solicitors and refused to accept the legality of his conviction. Despite these legal challenges, Ronnie Easterbrook died in Gartree prison in Leicestershire on 10 May 2009.[2]

Theme Tune

Flying Squad was as much known for the haunting melody of its theme tune during the opening and closing credits as it was for its programme content. The opening sequence featured a blue and black monochromatic animation of the wings of a bird of prey superimposed over real programme footage.

Production Team

The series was produced and directed by London born director Robert Fleming and narrated by Alexander John.[1] Archive footage from the series is held in the archives of FremantleMedia.[5] Some of the footage from the series was used in the 2010 series Flying Squad: The Real Sweeney, broadcast on the National Geographic Channel including the footage of the shooting during Operation Turkey in 1987. The series was produced by the same production team who produced the television series Murder Squad.

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References
  1. "BFI Film and Television Database". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 23 December 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  2. Allison, Eric (20 May 2009). "Ronnie Easterbrook Obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  3. Taylor, Diane (27 December 1999). "I will win posthumously". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  4. "Gunman dies in robbery shootout". Evening Sentinel. 23 November 1987. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
  5. "Fremantie Archive - Flying Squad". Fremantle Media. Archived from the original on 23 January 2013. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
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