SUN HILL EXPOSED (23/2/04)

This information from Teletext on new character PC Andrea Dunbar...

An undercover journalist is set to blow Sun Hill wide open this spring.

The Bill story has been inspired by the recent BBC documentary in which a reporter exposed racism in the service.

Scriptwriters thought it was too good an opportunity to miss and the story begins on March 10 when PC Andrea Dunbar arrives.

She is determined to prove that Supt. Okaro is to blame for a soft line on racism when she arrives at Sun Hill as a probationer fresh from four months training at Hendon Police College.

PC Dunbar, played by Scottish actress Natalie Robb, quickly learns the station's secrets and is determined to maintain her cover despite befriending the other officers.

Last year BBC reporter Mark Daly pretended to be a trainee police officer and as a result of his findings six officers resigned.

No charges were brought against Mark Daly after he was arrested for obtaining a pecuniary advantage by deception. He has since been short listed for a young journalist of the year award.

A spokeswoman for The Bill admitted the new undercover reporter story is a case of fiction following fact.

"A lot of our stories are inspired by real events. I cannot say whether this has been directly inspired however," she said.