We used to patrol the streets on our own. In the dead of night, and armed only with a wooden truncheon, (which had to be tucked away in a suitably designed inside trouser pocket), we were vulnerable.
The public knew this and respected us for doing a job that they most certainly would not sign up to.
Add to this a freezing winter gust that would chill to the bone, or driving rain that would eventually penetrate our raincoats, it was always a source of huge relief when a pro-police and kind-hearted soul invited you indoors for a warming cuppa and a natter.
If all of this sounds very Dixon of Dock Green or Heartbeat, (Look up those shows please Kids!), well it was, and it happened, and in the greater scheme of things, it wasn’t that long ago.
Contrast the above to the appalling nonsense brought to us this week by Britain’s biggest police service, the Metropolitan Police, an organisation once respected by law enforcement around the world.
Honestly, it was! They sent five - yes, five - armed officers to arrest a 57-year-old comedy writer who looks to me like he spends more time deciding what pudding to enjoy than he does in the gym.
Graham Linehan was returning to the UK from America in order to face charges previously brought against him.
He was clearly respecting those legal proceedings about which I make no further comment, other than to say he clearly does not present a flight risk.
A policeman used to wield a truncheon in the dead of night. Now he chases ghosts - Peter Bleksley | Getty Images
This latest arrest was in relation to postings that Linehan made on the social media platform X some months ago, and his detention this time around might well be found in the future to have been unnecessary and even unlawful; either way, it certainly did not warrant the deployment of five officers.
If the police continue to hunt in packs, is it any wonder that the public has the same amount of affection for them as they have for scavenging hyenas?
Ultimately, these officers are led by their Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley. Before he took the top policing job in the country, he had a sojourn away from the job, during which he co-wrote a novel.
In a pathetic effort to shift a few copies, Rowley got the former Conservative Home Secretary, Amber Rudd, to write an endorsement for the front cover.
Choosing a disgraced former politician like Rudd to contribute a soundbite showed a staggering lack of judgement in my opinion, which should have disbarred him from ever becoming the head of The Met.
Regardless, this week Rowley joined the Linehan fray in a pathetic attempt to defend the indefensible.
He released a statement so risible, and so lacking in an understanding of the laws of the land and how they should be applied, that his call for changes in legislation and more guidance, displayed a lack of knowledge and appreciation of the fundamentals of free speech, and what does and does not constitute a crime, that he should be falling on his sword.
But he won’t, because he’s an establishment figure, a knight of the realm, and we all know how those types sneer at us and cover one another’s backs.
So, brace yourselves, because autocrats like Rowley are on the march to keep those of us who challenge the status quo firmly in our place.
His officers and others around the country will continue to abuse their authority, misapply the law, and throw us into cells should we ever get ideas above our station, upset those in authority, or tell a joke that flaky types get offended by. However, we must not bow in front of this tyranny.
We must fight the good fight, speak our minds, and relentlessly highlight how abysmal our ruling classes are, until they either start to act in our best interests, or get sent packing. Vive la revolution!
One more thing before I go: Graham Linehan is usually introduced in media articles as the creator of Father Ted; however, his CV stretches far beyond that.
The other day, my son was watching a show on TV that Linehan contributed to in the 1990s, which aired on Channel 4, and was called Brass Eye.
Go and find it through the On-Demand service. It is a satirical take on the news coverage of that period in our history, and it’s edgy, irreverent and frankly hysterical. This type of show would never get commissioned today.
Treat yourself to a watch of it, because let’s face it, we all need a laugh these days before plod comes knocking.