Children's TV Stars Face Anti-Terror Quiz

Children's TV Stars Face Anti-Terror Quiz

news.sky.com

Two children's TV presenters have revealed they were held by police under anti-terrorism powers after being stopped while running around with hairdryers in London.

Anna Williamson and Jamie Rickers, who front ITV1's hit show Toonattik, were filming a sketch for the programme on London's South Bank wearing combat gear and armed with children's walkie-talkies and glitter-covered hairdryers.

Their fake fatigues aroused the suspicions of patrolling police, who stopped and questioned them.

(visit the link for the full news article)

This is laughable, and maybe a heads up for anyone who likes to wear fatigues in public.

Any officer with an ounce of sense would have laughed this off and sent them on their way once the truth of the situation was established, but hold them under the terrorism act?

I did like this bit...

"Rickers, 32, added: "We were stopped, not arrested, but they had to say 'we are holding you under the Anti-Terrorism Act because you're running around in flak jackets and a utility belt', and I said 'and please put spangly blue hairdryer' and he was, like, 'all right'."

CX.



news.sky.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 26/1/10 by CX]

Fear and paranoia breed a police state mentality.
The police state mentality breeds fear and paranoia.

Together, they breed true and the self-supporting cycle repeats in perpetuity.

Or the police know that terrorist are getting clever and are using cunning disguises like film crews packed with explosives

At least Rikers was quick enough to mention the "spangly blue hair dryer"... LOL That would be a hilarious scene if it wasn't so scary. Keeps bringing up the movie "V for Vendeta" in my mind. Doesn't seem so far off these days.

Although, they try to make it sound like the duo was apprehended by some officers on patrol, this being London they were more likely profiled from CCTV and the police were sent there.

I mean don't any of these officers have kids...everyone knows Toonattik ;0


[edit on 26-1-2010 by Game_Over]

This has got to be one of the most STUPID uses of police powers. It seems that almost everyone is stopped and spoken to under the Anti-Terrorism Act !!!

I'm fairly sure that they didn't need to actually stop them at all! Just one look at them and it would have been fairly clear that a) they were armed with plastic hairdryers and b) they had a film crew in tow.

Fairly sure that would have been a give-away if nothing else!

Come on British Police - start cracking down on the serious crimes taking place and stop worrying about the blue spangled hairdryer wielding TV presenters!!!