Wednesday 10 September 2014

"We are on high terrorist alert"....local beat policeman.

On Monday of this week (8th September) Roy West was engaging in his film and photography hobby (A hobby which has seen his work being used by the BBC's "Caught Red Handed" programme) when he was approached, twice, by police officers asking what his was doing. Having determined from them that he was not acting illegally he told them he was engaged in his hobby of filming.

This satisfied the  police on both occasions. One of them even volunteering the information "We are on terrorist alert". But he was warned that he could be stopped again if he was seen photographing anything.

I have heard nothing publicly about a high terrorist alert though it is on various Government web sites. But if photographers are now suspects, should we not be told? Should we not be on the alert for suspicious clickers?

The problem is the growth in digital technology and mobile phone cams. In the past, unless you had your own darkroom, you sent your films off to be developed. The police alerted developers to report any suspicious pictures. Amazingly people DID send "sensitive" film to Max Spielman and Boots,  but no longer. A cable to the computer and a button pressed and there you are. Now the would-be terrorist can do their own recce. And risk being spotted and arrested. Or, worse still, mistaken for Roy West.

In some respects this is a shame. Paranoia over child abuse means that many parents cannot take photos of their youngster at school, in concerts etc.....though this does not appear to have saved the youngsters of Rotherham from abuse. On the other hand  I recall a local news story some years ago telling of how a Tameside CCTV watching  security guard focused his camera on an ATM and tipped off his confederates when money was drawn out and where the person was headed, thereby enabling their robbery. The story was swiftly dropped.

It is understandable that the state is concerned for it's survival against "terrorism". I just wonder to what extent "Terror" is used as an excuse to restrict our freedoms even more.


*And if you are reading this Roy, only joking at the end of paragraph four.

32 comments:

Anonymous said...

TC There's a good reason to point out a few facts here.
There's a good posibility that Roy West was reported to the police by a person/persons working in the new charter building near the metrolink line in Ashton.
Roy was seen filming the in coming trams outside the new charter office at Cavendish.
He then moved onto Ashton West tram stop to film the trams, then came back on himself to Burlington street to take pictures of the Catholic church that's when the police stop him.
Please not that Mr Ivan Wright reported Roy West to the police for issue's relating to the internet.

Anonymous said...

"engaging in his film and photography hobby"

LOL, you means his daily obsession of filming mundane things and then uploading them to YT which gets him laughed at all over the place? Sorry TC, but if anyone films that much then inevitably a tiny trickle will be of interest but only by chance.

The reason he caught the police's attention is because it is (quite frankly) bizarre behaviour (except in the eyes of the local ex-BNP for whom the man is a genius, a persecuted messiah and a bit of a Steven Spielberg all rolled into one).

Anonymous said...

West is known locally, people, including police officers regularly recognise him. Makes you wonder why he gets stopped so often.

astley street Dukinfield in Tameside by John Taylor said...

10/09/2014 18:39 well he's not on his own when filming mundane things when you look at this John Taylor video (follow link)
@10/09/2014 18:39 now you tell me what is the point of that video?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3LnKiBU9pc said...

@10/09/2014 18:39 lets be faIr and up front about all this talk of (quite frankly) bizarre behaviour.
John Taylor (deputy leaders) is hardly a bit of a Steven Spielberg himself and (quite frankly) is trying with a great deal of success to out do roy west in the youtube, bizarre film making hobby.
Filming cars in the street, filming people in a cafe ect.
I suppose you don't see this to be a little bit strange @10/09/2014 16:38 againg follow link and have a real laugh.

Anonymous said...

TC Important thing to note, the police have had roy west's laptop and two camcorders,and a phone in their possession since January of this year.

Anonymous said...

@ 18:39 still he's got you looking in

Every Kinda People said...

Someone's looking for a lead
In his duty to a King or creed
Protecting what he feels is right
Fights against wrong with his life

Anonymous said...

@ Anonymous 18:39, explain what's 'bizarre' about filming local buildings, landmarks etc. People have been doing it for over a hundred years.
West might be seen as weird by some, but the police should be occupying themselves by catching criminals instead of oppressing the law abiding engaging in harmless hobbies.

Anonymous said...

John Taylor has about 66 videos on his channel, Roy West has 7000.

'Nuff said.

Kicked in the balls said...

Powers gone to his head.

SerpentSlayer said...

Roy films the world around us at what will one day be an interesting bit of history.
Remember, what is mundane from one viewpoint is fascinating from the other.
Think about the kind of lives we leave now, as boring as they seem, to someone a thousand years before now or a thousand after, what is boring and ordinary to us will be strange and fascinating to them, as would be their lives to us.
Him and Taylor must find some fun in it, not sure I would but there are plenty of things people like that others dont. I can't for the life of me learn to enjoy cricket but I do enjoy bbc4 documentaries, I imagine there are plenty who dont (seeing as how bbc3 somehow exists)

Huddersfield In Pictures Focus By Roy West said...

From the 11/9/2014

Royston West Be Gone said...

I complained to YT several months back about Roy West clogging up the website with thousands of videos. He literally wrecked the website for anyone wanting to search up local stuff, because everyone else who might actually have something with a bit substance was having their vids buried beneath a sea of sameoldfitup drivel.

YT responded and said they were aware of such issues and would improve the search facility. Now all a person need do is enter -sameoldfitup in the search box and hey presto - Roy West the pest is deleted from youtube existence.

Anonymous said...

Then you won't mind if he uploads 7,000 more youtube videos then?

popular Dukinfield videos said...

Sorry but he's still there

Anonymous said...

Also his channel's had 153,099 views so someone's looking in.
I suggest that you grow up and stop concerning yourself with Roy West's youtube videos......

Still there said...

TC Again, the poster is trying to mislead people into think roy west has been banned from youtube (check out link)

Anonymous said...


Sameoldfitup Tameside
Partner Verify
Community guidelines Good standing
Copyright Good standing

Roy West said...

Films Ukulele Night At The Head Of Steam In Huddersfield on the 11/9/2014

Anonymous said...

OMG, allow me to spell it out for you Roy in the simplest possible language. I know you're a bit slow on the up-take, but I'm sure with a bit of perseverance even you will get your head around this rather complex bit of nuclear physics.

Thanks to you, any search on YT relating to local matters was infested with endless sameoldfitup videos, over 7000 as it happens (with another 7000 no doubt in the pipeline). Now I fully appreciate that Roy West Productions Inc. are the only local videos that count for ex Tameside BNP, a point emphasised more than once by your young gentleman friend serpentslayer. But for most enquiring minds, trying to search for something worthwhile in a vast ocean of sameoldfitup inanity kind of makes the job hard work.

Anyway, it was on account of the antics of people like you that YT enhanced the search facility, meaning not only that video titles could be omitted, but videos by certain uploaders (like you) who spam the website daily.

And yes, I am obsessed with RW, in the very same way I have the complete Laurel & Hardy DVD collection. The problem is the titbits of light entertainment he provides are a needle in a haystack. As for his channel's video viewcount... well as I recall, he used to spend all day every day sending out friend invites and then spam people's accounts with his videos (incl. me). I recall that his channel had 50,000 'friends'.

Anonymous said...

@ Anonymous 13:13, West might be occasionally be a nuisance but he's sometimes took more stick in one day of campaigning for the BNP than some of the trivial minded empty heads on here.
And for what, because he wants his country to survive, as do millions of his fellow Brits. The difference is they're too apathetic or lack the guts to do anything about it.

Anonymous said...

Yes he's got 7,246 now your giving him what he wants attention.

Anonymous said...

@ 13:13 get a life and stop worrying about roy wests youtube uploads have you got nothing better to do than stalk people on the internet?

Anonymous said...

@13:13 you sound like a complete numpty going on repeat, repeat, repeat, mode.

Northwest of England On High Terrorist Alert said...

TC Roy West was taking pictures of this church on Burlington street Ashton (see link)
When this police officer stopped him (see same link)
A conversation took place between roy west and the police officer.
Police officer "what are you doing"
"Can I film you asking me this"
Police officer "no"
roy west "I'm taking pictures of this church it's my hobby, I also take videos of buses trams ect"
Police officer "but i've just seen you taking pictures of those people"
roy west "no just the church I take videos of planes as well"
police officer "oh you take videos of planes as well but that's not a plane"
roy west "I know it's a church"
Police officer "well because you seem to think you know the law I'm going to educate you, we are on high terrorist alert in the northwest"
roy west "so can I carry on filming and taking pictures"
police officer "Yes but be on you gaurd you'll probably get stopped again"

Tameside Citizen said...

@8:03
This is indeed a beautiful church. Over the two days 12 to 13 September it was open to the public to enter and view as part of European Heritage celebrations. Many people did enter and a number took photographs.

The Police did not appear I am led to believe.

Anonymous said...

@0739....

"get a life and stop worrying about roy wests youtube uploads have you got nothing better to do than stalk people on the internet?"

Says the man who spends all day every day filming and uploading the utterly banal, (that is) when not receiving court injunctions for obsessive compulsive stalking both on and offline.

The Filth said...

no its just pure and out right harassment against this man

Anonymous said...

This is lazy bullying policing, which of course since Thatcher politicized them in the 80's we are getting used to.

Most police officers are not well educated and as such lack the ability to analyse the training they receive around what is know as 'Hostile Reconnaissance'- Where terrorists use image and video to help plan attacks.

In reality any security expert will tell you that 'HR' is easily done via web searches of both still images and video.

Most terrorist know that mobile phones produce high quality still and video capture and are almost invisible to the the police who have been briefed to speak to anyone with "professional looking camera equipment" , again poor education and lazy policing .

As for child molesters about 90% of them are known to the child they are abusing and all though you get the odd offender trying to film children , most of them get their kicks by looking in the children's wear section of a Gratton catalouge...

Bottom line is most beat police officers are no more than note takers , even their CID colleagues call them "wooden tops".

So there you have it, while they are harassing us honest citizens- crime goes on undetected.

But then again , if they stopped all crime they would be out of a job ... !

Anonymous said...

@ so is it harming you? if that's all you've got to worry about is roy west's youtube videos who really is the sad one?

Anonymous said...

@ 09:52 or maybe roy could take up the hobby of hunting with dogs, rather than getting enjoyment out of taking pictures of Churches?