Andy Peelman is an inspector of training but is best known to the general public for programmes such as The Neighbourhood Police and Andy Op Patrouille. With Roadtrippers of the Sun he had a frank conversation about his experiences abroad. You can read it here.
Andy On Patrol
Peelman was given the opportunity to work in various police forces abroad thanks to the Andy Op Patrouille programme. And that was a dream come true as he was able to combine his two passions – policing and television making. He went to Israel, Cambodia, Georgia, America, Colombia, Barcelona and Aruba. There he found that each country tries to guarantee the safety of its citizens in a different way. And that unfortunately not every country is doing the right thing.
He explains, for example, that Cambodia was a special experience in hindsight. Not all police officers are equally sincere. Unfortunately, there is a lot of corruption. He’s had to experience that himself, and that’s not nice. It wasn’t always easy to shoot there. The team was sent off very fiercely in what they were allowed to film and were not allowed to film, but Peelman is firmly opposed to that. Peelman thinks it is extremely important that he shows the situations as they are and therefore he guards that there is no propaganda from the host country. It shows that the program is credible and real. Nothing was staged.
Unique view
Peelman also wants to remain as neutral as possible in the destinations he visits. However, finding a balance between putting a country in the spotlight and not taking sides, for example in conflict zones such as Israel, is not easy. Although Peelman would have liked to have been at each destination a little longer, he has acquired a unique view of some countries. He came to places where a tourist would never normally come. He sees the real facets of the country. And not so much the tourist regions with luxurious hotels.
VTM is currently investigating whether a second season can be made given the current situation. If there is a second season andy Op Patrouille, Peelman would like to be able to give even more individuality and experience of himself. He wants to uncover the truth even more. His mission is successful when he can warm interested parties to the program and that they genuinely like it. For us, he has already more than succeeded in this mission!
Bucket list vAn aNDY pEELMAN
When we ask about Peelman’s bucket list, he stresses that mostly unknown places are able to delight him. He doesn’t really have a big wish list. Peelman likes to be busy and lying at the pool or the beach for too long is less his thing. He says that he went on his honeymoon to the Maldives, but that there is little to do outside of beach life. It was a very nice and relaxing trip but he still likes to do some more activity and adventure on holiday. He hopes to find it in namibia, Russia or Australia in the future. All beautiful destinations that he would like to visit one day.
Recommendations
The most beautiful trip Peelman made with his wife was America. He went there on a tour and lost his heart there. Granted, Americans are special people who can come crazy out of the corner, but they are hugely welcoming and open. The landscape and climate are everywhere else so you can make different trips to the country and discover new things all the time. This is also something that we experienced during our tour of America. A fantastic country that has a lot to offer.
His favourite place in Belgium? His own garden at the moment. Furthermore, he likes to sail on the water. There it is quiet and he can do his own thing. As long as there’s peace, that’s the most important thing for him. The Ardennes and the Belgian coast also know how to charm him. Although he will more quickly choose the Ardennes over the coast because of its anonymity and silence.
Anecdote
In America, Peelman also had a good relationship with Jimmy Wiygul, the police officer who also starred on Andy Op Patrouille in Mississippi. In fact, their first meeting took place three years ago when Peelman was working as an animator in a holiday park. Wiygul had contacted Peelman via Instagram because he wanted to see a policeman working with dogs. Peelman, however, was no longer working as a police officer at the time, but arranged one and the other so that Wiygul was helped. When the idea for Andy On Patrouille came, the first contact abroad was quickly made. Since then, Peelman and Wiygul have had an incredible bond and keep in regular contact. Peelman says he sometimes 10 000 people care about Wiygul’s fate as a police officer in such difficult circumstances. (nvdr. You could see in Andy Op Patrouille – Episode 1 that the Sheriff’s Office has to make do with modest means).
New projects
Secretly we hope very much that a second season andy on Patrol will be possible as soon as it is allowed back to travel. What is already certain is that Peelman is currently working on a new VTM program. Unfortunately, he can’t tell us anything about that yet. This summer normally the recordings of this new program start and in the autumn it will be shown on VTM. Something to look forward to!