Frontline Britain (2 Parts)

Synopsis

A two-part documentary looking in the deepening divisions in society and the emergence of an ‘underclass’.
1: Some senior police officers now see a connection between crime and poverty. Notes confrontations in Conventry, Bristol, Oxford, Burnley, Huddersfield, Luton and Britain. Some of Britain’s poorest communities are found on run-down council estates, and there deprivation and crime are increasingly concentrated. With policing of ethnic minorities a highly sensitive area, follows an undercover Metropolitan Police squad targeting street crime as part of the ‘Eagle Eye’ operation to capture criminals without alienating their communities.
2: Focuses on the fight against drugs at street level. Cameras follow the arrest of a drug addict during a police rade in Glasgow, a young man who later committed suicide in a police cell. Shows how Britain’s poorest areas have fallen prey to violent drug dealers and examines the growing violence and gang warfare resulting from the prohibition on drugs, spotlighting large-scale heroin use on one large estate in Bristol.

Series

Network First, Series

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Medium

Video; Videocassette. Standard formats. col. 2 x 52 min.

Year of production

1996

Availability

out of distribution; 1997 sale: £25.00 (+VAT +p&p) each

Notes

Broadcast on ITV from 27/2/96.

Subjects

Sociology

Keywords

crime; drug trafficking; poverty; urban communities

Credits

Director

Stephen Scott

Contributor

Ivan Rendall; Marion Bowman

Production Company

Name

Zenith North

Sponsor

Name

Carlton UK Productions

Distributor

Name

Carlton UK Television Ltd

Web

http://www.carlton.com External site opens in new window

Phone

0115 986 3322

Fax

0115 964 5202

Address

Video Resources Unit
East Midlands TV Centre
Lenton Lane
Nottingham
NG7 2NA