The Discovery Channel recently started airing its first Eastern European reality crime show, which was filmed in Poland, Romania and Russia. The new program 'Ultimate Cops' follows elite police units in Bucharest, Warsaw and Moscow as they don SWAT style gear, arm themselves with high tech gear and assault rifles to go on real life action film like missions. Discovery Romania aired the first episode of the show on Monday, October 8.

The program includes footage rarely seen, as well as elite cop training. All six episodes show footage from all three locations where the program was filmed.

Discovery Channel isn't bashful about the visceral aims of the new program, "Ultimate Cops is a new six-part series packed with real-life action, car chases, guns and explosions,” is how the media company describes the new show. The shows is be crime theme based, following the teams as they tackle particular types of crime in the three cities, including robbery, homicide, organized crime, gangs, drugs, human trafficking and terrorism.

The new show is part of Discovery Channel's ongoing strategy for the Central Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa region (CEEMEA). “It’s our first commission for CEEMEA so we have high hopes, and I think the model is one that really will work for us. I’m confident that moving forward we’ll adopt a similar strategy across the CEEMEA territory,” said senior VP and head of channels for Discovery Networks CEEMEA Paul Welling, quoted by non fiction television and film news service realscreen.

The show is produced by UK based company Atom Productions International. A member of the production team told realscreen that the authorities had been cooperative during the making of the series and described the people and institutions they worked with in the three countries as open and welcoming.

Liam Lever, liam@romania-insider.com

(photo source: Discovery Romania)