Fighting The Phone Snatchers
Fighting The Phone Snatchers
Fighting The Phone Snatchers
Synopsis
Synopsis
Synopsis
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October 2025
This investigative documentary gains behind the scenes access to the Metropolitan and City of London Police fighting against phone theft and reveals how criminals are staying one step ahead of the Police and Cyber security.
This was a collaboration with The News On iPlayer and the BBC London investigations team. This programme also received a feature cover on the 6 O’clock regional news for BBC London.
This investigative documentary gains behind the scenes access to the Metropolitan and City of London Police fighting against phone theft and reveals how criminals are staying one step ahead of the Police and Cyber security.
This was a collaboration with The News On iPlayer and the BBC London investigations team. This programme also received a feature cover on the 6 O’clock regional news for BBC London.
This investigative documentary gains behind the scenes access to the Metropolitan and City of London Police fighting against phone theft and reveals how criminals are staying one step ahead of the Police and Cyber security.
This was a collaboration with The News On iPlayer and the BBC London investigations team. This programme also received a feature cover on the 6 O’clock regional news for BBC London.
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[001]
Titles
The title card for this programme mimics the style of graphics used for quick turnaround News and Current Affairs documentaries, with a more abrasive animation and visual style to emphasis the story and to make the programme more engaging.
To introduce the audience to the programme and to fit the editorial brief, I used real footage of one of our Contributor’s having her phone stolen, which was also later shown in the documentary.
You can find similar title cards on many of Channel 4’s News and Current Affairs programmes, especially Channel 4’s Untold, which is a Current Affairs TV series aimed at young adults and young teenage audiences. Untold was one of my sources of inspiration as I feel some of their programme’s graphics give a programme a layer of paint which don’t feel old-fashioned or uninteresting.
iPlayer is also a great platform to try and engage younger audiences compared to linear TV, so creating a visual style which would appeal to them felt right as younger audience are a focus demographic for the BBC.
[001]
Titles
The title card for this programme mimics the style of graphics used for quick turnaround News and Current Affairs documentaries, with a more abrasive animation and visual style to emphasis the story and to make the programme more engaging.
To introduce the audience to the programme and to fit the editorial brief, I used real footage of one of our Contributor’s having her phone stolen, which was also later shown in the documentary.
You can find similar title cards on many of Channel 4’s News and Current Affairs programmes, especially Channel 4’s Untold, which is a Current Affairs TV series aimed at young adults and young teenage audiences. Untold was one of my sources of inspiration as I feel some of their programme’s graphics give a programme a layer of paint which don’t feel old-fashioned or uninteresting.
iPlayer is also a great platform to try and engage younger audiences compared to linear TV, so creating a visual style which would appeal to them felt right as younger audience are a focus demographic for the BBC.
[001]
Titles
The title card for this programme mimics the style of graphics used for quick turnaround News and Current Affairs documentaries, with a more abrasive animation and visual style to emphasis the story and to make the programme more engaging.
To introduce the audience to the programme and to fit the editorial brief, I used real footage of one of our Contributor’s having her phone stolen, which was also later shown in the documentary.
You can find similar title cards on many of Channel 4’s News and Current Affairs programmes, especially Channel 4’s Untold, which is a Current Affairs TV series aimed at young adults and young teenage audiences. Untold was one of my sources of inspiration as I feel some of their programme’s graphics give a programme a layer of paint which don’t feel old-fashioned or uninteresting.
iPlayer is also a great platform to try and engage younger audiences compared to linear TV, so creating a visual style which would appeal to them felt right as younger audience are a focus demographic for the BBC.
[002]
Map China & Algeria
Map showing two stolen phones, both traveling to China and Algeria. Many viewers may already be aware that many stolen phones travel to China to be sold for parts, or second-hand devices on the black market.
However, this programme also reveals how Algeria is also becoming a hotspot for the stolen phone trade.
The map was designed to fit within the visual style of the rest of the graphics and pass WCAG AA Norrmal Contrast for accessibility reasons.
Picking an appropriate colour palette to work with from the beginning of production was vital, as we needed a colour palette which would be legible, versatile and look elegant.
[002]
Map China & Algeria
Map showing two stolen phones, both traveling to China and Algeria. Many viewers may already be aware that many stolen phones travel to China to be sold for parts, or second-hand devices on the black market.
However, this programme also reveals how Algeria is also becoming a hotspot for the stolen phone trade.
The map was designed to fit within the visual style of the rest of the graphics and pass WCAG AA Norrmal Contrast for accessibility reasons.
Picking an appropriate colour palette to work with from the beginning of production was vital, as we needed a colour palette which would be legible, versatile and look elegant.
[002]
Map China & Algeria
Map showing two stolen phones, both traveling to China and Algeria. Many viewers may already be aware that many stolen phones travel to China to be sold for parts, or second-hand devices on the black market.
However, this programme also reveals how Algeria is also becoming a hotspot for the stolen phone trade.
The map was designed to fit within the visual style of the rest of the graphics and pass WCAG AA Norrmal Contrast for accessibility reasons.
Picking an appropriate colour palette to work with from the beginning of production was vital, as we needed a colour palette which would be legible, versatile and look elegant.
[003]
Map Finsbury Park & Shenzhen Part 1
Map showing the location of where one of the programme’s contributors had her phone stolen.
[003]
Map Finsbury Park & Shenzhen Part 1
Map showing the location of where one of the programme’s contributors had her phone stolen.
[003]
Map Finsbury Park & Shenzhen Part 1
Map showing the location of where one of the programme’s contributors had her phone stolen.
[004]
Map Finsbury Park & Shenzhen Part 2
Map revealing the contributor’s phone travel to an address in Shenzhen, China.
The location was tracked using “Find My iPhone”, a security features available on all modern iPhone devices.
[004]
Map Finsbury Park & Shenzhen Part 2
Map revealing the contributor’s phone travel to an address in Shenzhen, China.
The location was tracked using “Find My iPhone”, a security features available on all modern iPhone devices.
[004]
Map Finsbury Park & Shenzhen Part 2
Map revealing the contributor’s phone travel to an address in Shenzhen, China.
The location was tracked using “Find My iPhone”, a security features available on all modern iPhone devices.
[005]
Social Media Post
This was a real Instagram post from one of our contributors. She posted a video of the CCTV footage of her phone being stolen.
The graphic later reveals some of the real comments and direct messages she receives from other people sharing their experience. All users were made anonymous.
[005]
Social Media Post
This was a real Instagram post from one of our contributors. She posted a video of the CCTV footage of her phone being stolen.
The graphic later reveals some of the real comments and direct messages she receives from other people sharing their experience. All users were made anonymous.
[005]
Social Media Post
This was a real Instagram post from one of our contributors. She posted a video of the CCTV footage of her phone being stolen.
The graphic later reveals some of the real comments and direct messages she receives from other people sharing their experience. All users were made anonymous.
[006]
Digital Wallets
This graphic illustrates what was stolen from another contributor’s phone. The thief gained access to this contributor’s PayPal, Bank Account, Crypto Wallet, Apple Pay and Uber Eats.
To keep the graphic editorially correct, values are constantly counting down along with a fake Crypto Currency to represent all the assets in the contributor’s digital wallet.
[006]
Digital Wallets
This graphic illustrates what was stolen from another contributor’s phone. The thief gained access to this contributor’s PayPal, Bank Account, Crypto Wallet, Apple Pay and Uber Eats.
To keep the graphic editorially correct, values are constantly counting down along with a fake Crypto Currency to represent all the assets in the contributor’s digital wallet.
[006]
Digital Wallets
This graphic illustrates what was stolen from another contributor’s phone. The thief gained access to this contributor’s PayPal, Bank Account, Crypto Wallet, Apple Pay and Uber Eats.
To keep the graphic editorially correct, values are constantly counting down along with a fake Crypto Currency to represent all the assets in the contributor’s digital wallet.
[007]
Phone Theft Graph
Simple graph showing the amount of phones reported as stolen in Greater London since 2020.
The same typeset for “Phone Thefts” was used from the titles and thumbnails, for consistency and also to emphasis the topic of the programme.
[007]
Phone Theft Graph
Simple graph showing the amount of phones reported as stolen in Greater London since 2020.
The same typeset for “Phone Thefts” was used from the titles and thumbnails, for consistency and also to emphasis the topic of the programme.
[007]
Phone Theft Graph
Simple graph showing the amount of phones reported as stolen in Greater London since 2020.
The same typeset for “Phone Thefts” was used from the titles and thumbnails, for consistency and also to emphasis the topic of the programme.
[008]
Cross Platform Promo
Animated version of the poster used for the promotional trail graphic which featured on the 6 and 10 O’clock news for BBC London.
The poster was animated as using the graphic would make finding the programme on iPlayer easier for the audience.
I decided against using the footage of our Contributor’s phone being stolen in the background, as it would be too much movement, distracting from the title and “Watch on iPlayer” CTA.
Instead, I did a extremely subtle glitch effect using a displacement map as I felt it would be appropriate to have a little bit of movement in the background.
[008]
Cross Platform Promo
Animated version of the poster used for the promotional trail graphic which featured on the 6 and 10 O’clock news for BBC London.
The poster was animated as using the graphic would make finding the programme on iPlayer easier for the audience.
I decided against using the footage of our Contributor’s phone being stolen in the background, as it would be too much movement, distracting from the title and “Watch on iPlayer” CTA.
Instead, I did a extremely subtle glitch effect using a displacement map as I felt it would be appropriate to have a little bit of movement in the background.
[008]
Cross Platform Promo
Animated version of the poster used for the promotional trail graphic which featured on the 6 and 10 O’clock news for BBC London.
The poster was animated as using the graphic would make finding the programme on iPlayer easier for the audience.
I decided against using the footage of our Contributor’s phone being stolen in the background, as it would be too much movement, distracting from the title and “Watch on iPlayer” CTA.
Instead, I did a extremely subtle glitch effect using a displacement map as I felt it would be appropriate to have a little bit of movement in the background.
[009]
iPlayer Thumbnail
Phone theft is a serious and rising problem throughout the UK and especially in London, I want to project this in the design by using a tiled CCTV motif in the background of the design to illustrate the chaos that is happening on our streets.
The background also opened a clean method to ensure the title text could be legible, through darkening some tiles as if they were dimmed CCTV screens to ensure the title was legible. This avoided any gradients or drop shadows which can sometimes taint a design to feel murky.
Using the tiles motif for the background allowed me to have more control over which tiles I could darken, and which tiles I wanted the audience to focus more on through brightening the tile, such as the shot of our contributor having her phone snatched from her hand.
I also wanted to emphasis the vibrant red colour palette used in the design so the graphic would stand out on an iPlayer rail and symbolise danger, as many of these crimes involve threatening behaviour or violence.
A key piece of inspiration behind the design of the thumbnail was the Netflix documentary What Jennifer Did. This generated the idea to use the supplied CCTV footage as a motif for the design.
The programme’s thumbnail of course wouldn’t feel right without a phone; an ambiguous phone was added along with a lock screen on the device to symbolise a stolen phone which has been snatched and locked. The documentary also explores preventative ways to ensure your personal information is not stolen if your mobile is stolen.
[009]
iPlayer Thumbnail
Phone theft is a serious and rising problem throughout the UK and especially in London, I want to project this in the design by using a tiled CCTV motif in the background of the design to illustrate the chaos that is happening on our streets.
The background also opened a clean method to ensure the title text could be legible, through darkening some tiles as if they were dimmed CCTV screens to ensure the title was legible. This avoided any gradients or drop shadows which can sometimes taint a design to feel murky.
Using the tiles motif for the background allowed me to have more control over which tiles I could darken, and which tiles I wanted the audience to focus more on through brightening the tile, such as the shot of our contributor having her phone snatched from her hand.
I also wanted to emphasis the vibrant red colour palette used in the design so the graphic would stand out on an iPlayer rail and symbolise danger, as many of these crimes involve threatening behaviour or violence.
A key piece of inspiration behind the design of the thumbnail was the Netflix documentary What Jennifer Did. This generated the idea to use the supplied CCTV footage as a motif for the design.
The programme’s thumbnail of course wouldn’t feel right without a phone; an ambiguous phone was added along with a lock screen on the device to symbolise a stolen phone which has been snatched and locked. The documentary also explores preventative ways to ensure your personal information is not stolen if your mobile is stolen.
[009]
iPlayer Thumbnail
Phone theft is a serious and rising problem throughout the UK and especially in London, I want to project this in the design by using a tiled CCTV motif in the background of the design to illustrate the chaos that is happening on our streets.
The background also opened a clean method to ensure the title text could be legible, through darkening some tiles as if they were dimmed CCTV screens to ensure the title was legible. This avoided any gradients or drop shadows which can sometimes taint a design to feel murky.
Using the tiles motif for the background allowed me to have more control over which tiles I could darken, and which tiles I wanted the audience to focus more on through brightening the tile, such as the shot of our contributor having her phone snatched from her hand.
I also wanted to emphasis the vibrant red colour palette used in the design so the graphic would stand out on an iPlayer rail and symbolise danger, as many of these crimes involve threatening behaviour or violence.
A key piece of inspiration behind the design of the thumbnail was the Netflix documentary What Jennifer Did. This generated the idea to use the supplied CCTV footage as a motif for the design.
The programme’s thumbnail of course wouldn’t feel right without a phone; an ambiguous phone was added along with a lock screen on the device to symbolise a stolen phone which has been snatched and locked. The documentary also explores preventative ways to ensure your personal information is not stolen if your mobile is stolen.
[010]
iPlayer Thumbnail Experimentation
Other hero images were also explored, but none felt right or as Ronseal as a phone in someone’s hand. I also an image of a phone in someone’s hand is a nice play in the title, “Snatchers” which helps make the thumbnail feel more engaging.
[010]
iPlayer Thumbnail Experimentation
Other hero images were also explored, but none felt right or as Ronseal as a phone in someone’s hand. I also an image of a phone in someone’s hand is a nice play in the title, “Snatchers” which helps make the thumbnail feel more engaging.
[010]
iPlayer Thumbnail Experimentation
Other hero images were also explored, but none felt right or as Ronseal as a phone in someone’s hand. I also an image of a phone in someone’s hand is a nice play in the title, “Snatchers” which helps make the thumbnail feel more engaging.
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