Colchester policeman remembers father who was shot in Frinton

PC Dave Bishop’s father was shot in August 1984 when apprehending an armed robber in the seaside town. 

Sadly, PC Brian Bishop died five days after the incident in hospital. 

His son, who joined the force in 2001 and is part of the Colchester Community Policing Team has spoken about his father’s tragic death and the impact it had on his family. 

Gentle - Brian Bill Bishop is fondly remembered (Image: Essex Police)

Brian “Bill” Bishop was known as a gentle giant and was nicknamed a cadet after officers said his hairstyle reminded them of American folk hero Wild Bill Hickok. 

Bill joined the force in 1966 and served in Colchester as a constable and dog handler, before joining the Force Support Unit and becoming a firearms instructor. 

He married Susan, a fellow Colchester officer, in 1967 and welcomed his son Dave in 1974. 

On August 22, 1984, Bill was called to Central Avenue in Frinton, following reports that a man had robbed two post offices with a sawn-off shotgun and hidden cash there. 

Lying in wait for the robber to return for his money, Bill, the acting sergeant, confronted the robber when he returned, but was shot in the head with a gun concealed in a carrier bag. 

Bill’s colleague Mervyn Fairweather was hit in the groin. 

Dave remembers the moments after the tragic incident clearly, saying he was sheltered from it at a family friend's house in Southend. 

He said: “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.” 

Unfortunately, he did not receive counselling or additional support and felt uncomfortable being known all around Chelmsford. 

“On the day it happened,” he said, “Dad had come home to get changed and I’d seen him cycle off when I was playing in the back garden.  

Constable - PC Dave Bishop (Image: Essex Police)

“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.” 

He waited to join the force until his mother’s retirement, as she was not keen on his intentions to become a part of Essex Police. 

He said: “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.” 

Dave has been working as a detective in the Clacton CID and spent twelve years as a field intelligence officer, but four years ago he went back to his first love of neighbourhood policing when he joined the Colchester Community Policing team. 

After what happened to his father, Dave believes there should be more recognition of potential threats to officers. 

He 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.”