By Phil Coleman

Last updated at 12:20, Thursday, 24 January 2013

Specialist police officers from Cumbria are poised to become stars of the small screen after taking part in a fly-on-the-wall documentary about their work.

Paul Brown, left, and Colin Dunn from Cumbria Police’s tactical support group

The hit Channel 5 show Police Interceptors spent five months filming with Cumbria Constabulary, gathering material for a new series.

They focused on the work of officers within three specialist units – Roads Policing, Tactical Support and Dogs.

The series gets underway later this month.

Chief Inspector Kevin Greenhow, who leads Operational Support – the department that oversees these units – said the show provided a valuable opportunity to reach out to young drivers, underlining vital safety messages.

He said: “Our aim for filming with Police Interceptors was to be involved in a show which engages a varied audience, and in particular targets a younger audience.

“It’s a sad fact that a large percentage of collisions on our roads involve younger drivers and by highlighting the incidents we attend, and covering some of the preventative work that we do, We hope we may just prevent some collisions from occurring by making people think about their driving and the risks involved.

“We also wanted to show how officers with a variety of specialist skills contribute to general policing activity by supporting other officers and teams to make Cumbria the safe place that it is,” added the chief inspector.

“In this time of increasing scrutiny and need for efficiency, it’s important the public know that the role of teams such as these are making a difference. We’d like to thank our partner agencies for their help and patience while the filming was taking place.”

James Coldwell, the series producer, said: “It has been a privilege to work alongside this dedicated and hard-working police force.

“While making the series we have witnessed these brave men and women working in truly challenging situations as they strive to protect the people of Cumbria.

“We have seen the police effectively tackle a wide variety of crimes and criminals. We also witnessed the important work that the units carry out when they attend life-threatening road collisions,” added Mr Coldwell.

“With the backdrop of the breathtaking national park and the equally colourful characters who live in this county, we are hoping that this is going to be the most exciting series yet.”

The show starts on Monday, January 28 at 8pm on Channel 5.

First published at 12:19, Thursday, 24 January 2013
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk