1 week Ago
The label ‘hero’ is banded freely these days, but this country lost a real one last week and few under fifty will know anything about him. PC Trevor Lock, who died last Sunday, was an ordinary Metropolitan Police officer who had recently transferred to the Diplomatic Protection Group, reportedly for a quieter life. On the morning of Wednesday, April 30, 1980, he was assigned as the sole police officer guarding the Iranian Embassy building in London, his only added protection a Smith and Wesson .
38 calibre revolver worn covertly under his coat. At 11.30am however, his yearning for serenity was ripped away when six heavily armed terrorists overpowered him and stormed the building, setting in motion the infamous Iranian Embassy Siege.
Nothing could have prepared him for what would become six days of hell but, in the true tradition of UK policing, Trevor clicked into survival mode, first for his twenty-five co-hostages, then for himself. When the terrorists attacked, he was unable to draw his gun but on being frisked, the gunman failed to find his weapon. Incredibly, Trevor kept it concealed throughout, refusing to remove his coat by explaining that this was to “preserve his image” as a police officer.
He also refused offers of food during the siege for fear that the weapon would be seen if he had to use the toilet under escort. Trevor became the hostages’ de-facto leader and used his guile to build relationships with the hostage-takers, prompting them to trust him. When the insertion of surveillance equipment created noise and, on one occasion a wall to bow, Trevor found ways to explain it away.
When he had opportunities to speak to negotiators, he instinctively knew what information they needed and how to provide it without arousing suspicion. He warned them that a press officer was about to be executed, which happened shortly after, triggering the famous SAS raid on the building. During that assault, Trevor saved the life of an SAS soldier by shoulder-barging a terrorist as he was about to kill him.
The raid lasted a matter of minutes during which the gunmen killed one hostage and seriously wounded two others, while the SAS killed all but one of the hostage-takers, who had concealed himself amongst the rescued hostages before being identified to the SAS by journalist Sim Harris. I remember the raid well, seeing it, like most of the country, unfold live on television; a first for its time. I had already planned on joining the police but Trevor’s story of composure, heroism and understated cunning inspired me further, although it did bring home what policing in its most extreme form can demand.
Were it not for Trevor’s calm yet steadfast leadership and his exceptional people skills in the most terrifying of circumstances, it’s highly likely that more hostages would have died – Trevor included – and terrorist groups around the world would have used this as a further boost to their wicked campaigns. Other than receiving the George Medal for gallantry, Trevor faded into the peaceful life he’d planned. He rebuffed any notion that he was a hero, keeping his medal in his wife’s knitting bag rather than on display before donating it to a police museum.
Despite the many lives he saved, Trevor took to the grave his regret that he was unable to do more to protect the murdered press officer. He once told journalists that he declined invitations to the hostages’ annual reunions as he did not feel those dreadful days were anything to celebrate. Instead, he settled into a gentle retirement in Essex.
Criticism is piled on the police day in, day out, sometimes with justification but Trevor’s story, the values he exhibited, the courage he showed and the humility he lived by is far more aligned to the police culture I recognise than the relatively few rogue officers and teams that steal the headlines nowadays. PC Trevor Lock, GM, was a hero in every sense. Whilst he is in a tiny minority of police officers called upon to react in such extreme circumstances, he would no doubt say he was just doing his job; a job that calls all those holding the Office of Constable to embrace danger and put others before self.
RIP Trevor, you are an example to us all and will never be forgotten. Former Brighton and Hove police chief Graham Bartlett’s Brighton-based Jo Howe crime novel series continues with City on Fire which is now available in paperback..
