Water Rats - the brass

The brass are the people in charge - often thought of as people who sit behind desks and push paper. However they are vital in the running of a police station. They keep things organised, they keep their staff in line, they know what they are doing. They are sometimes feared, occasionally regarded with contempt, but often they are just another colleague, another friend.

Helen Blakemore

Helen Senior Sergeant Helen Blakemore was the smart and organised Intelligence Officer and duty sergeant for the Rats. She could often seem brisk and stern, but she really cared for her colleagues and her friends.

Helen didn't have an easy path for her life. She got married when she was young simply to please her father. She later got divorced and was then cut off by her family when she announced she was gay. Healing the rift with them began when her favourite niece, Tayler, turned up as the new constable for the Water Police. They slowly began repairing the hurt that had built up over the years.

Through the years Helen had quite a few relationships with other women, but all of them fell by the wayside. She confessed to always feeling on the outside - in the cop world because she was gay, and in the gay scene because she was a police officer.

Helen was particularly devastated by Rachel's death as they had been close friends and confidants. There were many times she considered throwing in the job and doing something else, but in the end she loved what she did.

Jeff Hawker

Chief Inspector Clarke Webb was the patrol commander when Water Rats began. He was firm, yet always fair and he ran the station well. When he was slow in coming forward with information on a murder case because he had had an affair with the victim, Clarke's career came to and end.

Jeff Hawker

Jeff Chief Inspector Jeffrey B. Hawker was originally a senior sergeant and tactician, but took over the top job of patrol commander when Clarke Webb left. He was married to Gail and they had two children, Rick and Erin, but their marriage broke up. Jeff worked very hard to keep the station running, he was often there early in the morning and worked late into the night. He was ambitious and sometimes worried that Helen might be fast-tracked past him; and as Helen was the backbone of the station, he also worried that she might be promoted elsewhere. Jeff always liked to be in control - one of the reasons why Frank was always a headache to him.