When Security Goes Mad...

Today I was out in the freezing cold in central London, making a video for a client’s Website.

As a member of the NUJ, I know photographers and TV cameramen have been questioned by police while going about their legitimate business, on the grounds they may be planning a terrorist attack and are engaged in covert surveillance of public buildings, and joked we’d better be careful but in all honesty didn’t think the three of us involved, being middle-aged, middle class people clearly engaged in genuine work would have any problems.

In fact, we were questioned three times while filming on the Embankment. On the first occasion, three police constables approached us, one female WPC giving me a particularly hard and suspicious look. One of her colleagues asked whether we had permission to film? I have to confess I immediately saw red and replied that as it was a public place we didn’t need permission to film. They still insisted on ID nonetheless, although when my colleague had produced his NUJ card, they didn’t push for mine. The two subsequent approaches were rather more informal and friendly, but the fact is I see no reason why we should have been challenged at all.

Big Brother is not only ubiquitous, he is also sometimes very stupid and prejudiced. On the last flight I took, I was asked at security to remove my long shirt. I refused very politely on the grounds I was wearing very little underneath. This got me a jolly good frisking and the third degree. Yet as I was held up for what seemed to me a sufficient length of time to make me think twice about refusing requests to publically expose my underwear in future, a woman in a burkha sailed through completely unquestioned. Why? Well you can reach your own conclusions just as I have reached mine...