PSNI goes ‘Beyond the Badge’ with first-ever podcast series
Adam, Jade, Nigel and Lata
Wednesday 07 October 2026
The people behind the uniform are taking centre stage in a new podcast series giving the public a more personal insight into policing in Northern Ireland.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland has launched its first-ever podcast, ‘PSNI Beyond the Badge’, with a 10-part series featuring officers and staff speaking directly about their experiences, challenges and lives beyond policing.
Officers from BBC’s Peelers open the series
The opening episode reunites three familiar faces from the recent BBC documentary ‘Peelers’, with Constables Jade and Adam and Sergeant Nigel discussing the reaction to the programme and what it was like allowing cameras into their day-to-day work.
Hosted by presenter Lata Sharma, the first instalment of a two-part conversation also explores why the officers agreed to take part and the response they have received since the documentary aired.
Adam said the reaction both “on duty and off duty” had been “insane”, joking:
“No-one wants to work with me anymore as it’s a meet-and-greet. Though we wanted to put a human face to what we do.”
Jade said members of the public “can’t believe” what officers actually do, while Nigel said that although there would always be some negativity towards policing, “it’s been really positive and there’s been a lot of positive feedback”.
Nigel also discusses the enthusiasm among student officers at Garnerville following the documentary and describes its overall impact as “forceful”.
Stories beyond the uniform
Across the 10-part series, the PSNI says it wants to open up conversations about the realities and challenges of modern policing and allow officers and staff to tell their stories in their own words.
The launch also comes ahead of a new PSNI student officer recruitment campaign, expected in the coming weeks, and as the organisation approaches its 25th anniversary.
Deputy Chief Constable Bobby Singleton said:
“We’re really excited to launch our first-ever podcast series. As we approach the launch of our student officer recruitment campaign in the next few weeks and our 25th Anniversary, we wanted to use this as an opportunity for our officers and staff to tell their stories in their own words so that the public can see that our officers are mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, sons, daughters and members of their local communities.
“It gives us a further opportunity to have a different kind of conversation with communities – one that goes beyond the traditional channels, and will allow us to interact with those involved.”
Where to watch and listen
The first episode of ‘PSNI Beyond the Badge’ is available now at https://psni-beyondthebadge.podbean.com/ with further episodes set to continue the focus on the people and experiences behind policing in Northern Ireland.
