Night Visions

A radiophonic journey into the extraordinary world of an aerial crime fighter, peace invader, beholder of night visions and all-seeing eye.

Poet Paul Farley takes a journey into the London night aboard the Metroplitan Police helicopter. From its base deep in Epping Forest the city lights can be seen twinkling in the distance.

Once the crew is scrambled and the helicopter takes off, the illuminated metropolis begins to move beneath him as the the Air Support Unit dashes through the air from task to task.

Be it searching for a missing person on a railway siding or a burglar hiding in gardens, taking on car pursuits or watching a house well out of earshot whilst an armed unit lays siege, it observes London and its inhabitants through thermal image cameras which turn night into day.

What the naked eye sees, however, is a vision of sublime beauty as the electric city lights up.

Farley reflects on this world of transformation and in his poem, The Asset, the helicopter takes on a life of its own.

Producer: Neil McCarthy

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2012.