The Medway custody suite in Gillingham, Kent is one of the busiest in the country. The first programme in the series joins its staff, who process 40 suspected criminals every day.

From burglary to shop-lifting and assault to drugs possession, Custody Officer Sergeant Sean O'Conner and his team have seen generations progress through their criminal careers and witness a never-ending cycle of deprivation, drugs, crime, violence, and - for some of the women they meet - prostitution.

With frustration, resignation and sometimes anger - as well as flashes of frequently dark humour - ordinary police officers offer a raw insight into the harsh realities of policing modern Britain.

The series takes to the fast lane with Cambridgeshire's traffic cops: the petrolheads who are happiest racing to the rescue, or nicking drink drivers, and like nothing better than 'giving out love' (issuing speed tickets) with their 'love scope' (speed gun).

'I love nicking people,' says PC Leigh Fenton. 'I'd lock everybody up all day if I could.' The film reveals the close bonds that develop between the officers, and the banter they use as a shield against the part of the job they all dread: informing the next of kin when someone dies as a result of a traffic accident.

PCs Terry Sharpe and Stuart Appleton have spent three years sharing driving duties in their Volvo V70: 'People have said we're like an old married couple. We bicker and we argue. We have a laugh,' says PC Sharp.

But, despite the training and camaraderie, informing the next of kin after accidents never gets any easier: 'Saying the words that 'I've just been to an accident and it's my duty to tell you that your wife has died.' And there's no beating around the bush. You've got to tell them in no uncertain terms, that 'your wife has died.' And the reaction you get after that... that's the thing you think about,' says PC Appleton.

mergency calls to the police have risen by 50 per cent over the last 15 years, although recorded crime has dropped by a third over the same period.

The series follows the police responding to emergency calls and reveals the incredible things people choose to call 999 about: from mobile phones running out of credit to arguments about whose turn it is to have a go on the Nintendo Wii.

Kent constabulary receive a quarter of a million 999 calls every year, with 80% classed as non-emergencies and many seen as 'nuisance calls'.

'We're seeing a generation divide,' says Chief Inspector Nicola Faulconbridge of Kent's Force Communications Centre. 'Whereas the older generation won¿t call us for almost anything, even in an emergency, the younger generation are much more willing and ready to call us about almost any issue.'

Police officers are spending much of their time acting as counselors, settling petty squabbles and relationship problems.

'Sometimes you just want to bang people's heads together and go 'Come on, look at you - you're 40 and you're acting like you're 12!'' says PC Neil Cronin.

Another issue prompting an increasing number of calls to 999 calls is Facebook. When virtual threats get out of hand, the police have no choice but to treat it as a real emergency, sending cars racing to the scene.

The series joins police officers on the Saturday night beat, where drunks, abuse and violence - as well as marriage proposals and requests to urinate in your helmet - are all part of the job.

The final programme in the series takes viewers to the heart of a riot.

With exclusive access to Greater Manchester Police's Tactical Aid Unit, cameras accompany officers as they police violent clashes between thousands of opposing demonstrators.