OUT OF THEIR COMFORT ZONES
Why did you want to do this show? JAMIE LAING, 30:
I always wanted to be a stuntman! I think the inner child in me couldn’t say no. I got to be a police officer and go on a massive adventure.
KATIE PIPER, 35: For obvious reasons I’ve got big respect for the police. I was really interested to get an insight into what life is really like as a police officer.
How did you feel ahead of your first day?
KP: A bit terrified! JL: I wasn’t nervous, I was excited. But I can’t tell you how weird it was to walk into a police station with a camera on me. I was a special constable and I just had to get on with it. Though what were the chances of us being at Peterborough police station where I was arrested [back in 2014]? It was for the serious crime of speaking too loudly on my phone in a quiet [train] carriage.
You were warned that taking part would be “a massive shock to the system”?
KP: I was very out of my comfort zone. There was a lot of the unknown – and it’s a genuine documentary; nothing was planned. We didn’t know what we were going to do, all we were given was our uniform and we were told to remember our training…
JL: There were a few times that were quite scary.
Jamie, you caught a criminal! [A man threatening people with a snooker ball in a sock…] JL:
I chased him down and rugby-tackled him! I caught up to him and thought, “Holy sh*t. What do I do now?” It was intense, but I was so chuffed!
And Katie, you were warned you’ll be putting yourself at risk of physical assault?
KP: I was putting myself in danger again, which is something I swore I would never do. Prior to the acid attack, I’d been raped and beaten. I was a 999 call so I was definitely coming at this from a survivor’s point of view. I will never walk on the streets in the dark, ever – anywhere.
Did doing this give you more confidence?
KP: I was attacked so I am intimidated and frightened by violence. I’d like to know how to stand up to people when, really, they are scaring me. Jamie’s story about the man with the snooker ball and the sock filled me with dread, but I did think, “I’ve got to get some guts, I’ve got to stop being so scared.”
How did it feel to wear the uniform?
JL: I was worried I would be a very small policeman; I’m 5ft 9 – they were all so big! Some of the others said they felt wearing the uniform made them a target, but I felt like I was wearing armour, I felt a lot safer – and I felt proud.