A who followed in his late footsteps, has shared the lasting impact of his father’s death on duty over four decades ago. PC Brian Bishop was fatally and killed while apprehending an armed robbery in Frinton, Essex, in August 1984.
Known as a gentle giant, Brian “Bill” Bishop stood at a towering 6′ 7″ and earned his nickname ‘Bill’ during his cadet days due to his hairstyle resembling that of folk hero Wild Bill Hickok. He formally joined Essex Police as Police Constable 389 in August 1966. After stints in Colchester and as a handler, he became part of the Force Support Unit (FSU) and later a firearms instructor.
Bill Susan, a fellow Colchester officer, in June 1967, and their son Dave was born in 1974.Dave described his father as a “very caring Dad” who devoted his life to his family. Known for his sarcastic sense of humour, Bill was also a sports enthusiast, often playing tennis and cricket with Dave and encouraging his pursuits in running and judo.On a summer day in 1984, Dave was enjoying his holidays at their family home in Chelmsford when his father, Bill, briefly returned before heading out for work.
The FSU had received reports of a man who had robbed two post offices with a sawn-off shotgun and stashed the money in Central Avenue, Frinton.Bill, who was the acting sergeant, along with his colleagues, planned to ambush the robber when he came back for his loot. However, things took a tragic turn when Bill confronted the robber and was shot in the head with a gun hidden in a carrier bag.
PC Brian Bill Bishop at Stansted Airport in 1983 (Image: Essex Police)
His colleague, Mervyn Fairweather, was also injured in the incident.Dave recalls the events that unfolded afterwards: “It was a warm night and our house backed onto a school playing field where there was a party going on. Because of that I couldn’t get to sleep.
“At half ten at night, there’s a knock at the door. Being a nosy 10 year old, I’m at the top of the stairs. I just hear crying and lots of voices. The lounge door was shut. Then our neighbour came to get me, and mum was taken off. For the next five days, I was at a family friend’s house in Southend. I was being sheltered from it. I only came home when dad had passed.
“I vividly remember a colleague of Dad’s, Monty Montgomerie, explaining that when a car’s engine stops, it’s the brain of the car and the car doesn’t work anymore. He said Dad’s engine had stopped and he wouldn’t be coming home. Dave returned to school between the murder and the funeral. He was not offered any counselling or additional support, and recalls his new teacher complaining that Bill’s funeral procession at Chelmsford Cathedral had made her late for work.”
Dave shared: “Suddenly everyone in Chelmsford knew who I was. It was on the news, in all the papers. My face was on everyone’s coffee table. Everyone at school knew about me and my family. It was surreal.”
Dave joined Essex Police in 2001 and is currently serving with the Colchester Community Policing Team. (Image: Essex Police)
The shooter, Colin Richards, was shot by one of Bill’s colleagues and paralysed from the waist down. He was sentenced to life in prison in 1985 but was released after 17 years.For Dave, the memory of the last time he saw his dad was a source of bitter regret and pain well into adulthood.”
He said: “On the day it happened, dad had come home to get changed and I’d seen him cycle off when I was playing in the back garden. I beat myself up and I blamed myself for many years because I never said goodbye. That’s why I always make sure I tell my children I love them before I leave the house.”
Dave was interested in joining the police after he left school but his mum who continued to work in policing and became involved in the Police Memorial Trust dissuaded him from it. He said: ” Policing looked after mum incredibly well and she stayed until retirement, but she wasn’t keen on me joining. She’s lost her husband and didn’t want to lose her son as well but once she retired, I put my application in.”
Father and son on the beach at Frinton just two weeks before Brian’s death (Image: Essex Police)
“One day I told her I had a new job and she smiled and said, ‘You’ve joined, haven’t you? After that, she took a massive interest in my career.”
Some of Dad’s colleagues were still with the force when I joined. They’d tell me I was just like Dad, which I can only take as a compliment.
After a career that has seen Dave work as a detective in Clacton CID and spend twelve years as a Field Intelligence Officer, four years ago he went back to his first love of neighbourhood policing when he joined Colchester Community Policing Team.He said what happened to his dad means he’s never complacent about safety and he believes there should be greater recognition of the potential threat to officers.
The memorial stone on the spot PC Brian Bishop fell was unveiled in 1986 (Image: Essex Police)
Dave said: “I don’t think the public always appreciate the danger that police officers are in on a daily basis. Every house we go to, someone could open the door with a knife. Every person we stop search could have a weapon. What happened to dad and Ian Dibell (who was shot dead in Clacton in 2012) is tragic and incredibly rare, but it could happen to any of us at any time.”
Four decades later, with Bill’s generation of officers having long since retired, Dave expressed his appreciation for the relative anonymity he now enjoys within the force. However, his dedication to serving the people of Essex remains unwavering.He maintains connections with his father’s colleagues and, in a twist of fate, now resides just 30 yards away from Mervyn Fairweather, the other officer injured in the incident.
Dave said: “Mervyn told me that dad would be proud I followed in his footsteps, and that means a lot.”