This Is Someone’s Job

Imagine telling people your job is to ride water slides all day. Sounds too good to be true... ...except it's a real job. In this episode of This Is Someone's Job , we're diving into the world of the Professional Waterslide Tester . From testing brand-new attractions to checking safety, speed and the all-important splash factor, it's a career that turns childhood excitement into se...

Who decides which potatoes end up on supermarket shelves? It turns out... it's someone's full-time job. In this episode of This Is Someone's Job , we're exploring the surprisingly complex world of the Professional Potato Buyer . Behind every bag of potatoes is someone choosing suppliers, checking quality, negotiating prices and making sure the right potatoes arrive at exactly the r...

Have you ever wondered who makes sure an ice rink is perfect before thousands of people step onto it? In this episode of This Is Someone's Job , we're taking a look behind the scenes at the fascinating role of the Ice Manager . From maintaining the perfect sheet of ice to preparing for international competitions, it's a job where tiny adjustments can make a huge difference to the athle...

Have you ever wondered who keeps a cathedral running when everyone else has gone home? In this episode of This Is Someone's Job , we're stepping inside one of Britain's oldest professions to discover the fascinating role of the Cathedral Verger . From preparing for royal visits and state occasions to looking after centuries of history, this is a job that most people never notice—but ca...

Imagine living on one of the most remote islands on Earth... Your nearest neighbours are thousands of penguins. Your job? To sort the post, welcome visitors, and count the local wildlife. In this episode of This Is Someone's Job , Jonathan heads to Antarctica to uncover the fascinating role of the Penguin Postmaster . Discover what life is really like at Port Lockroy, why this unusual job exis...

What if your sense of smell was your career? In this episode of This Is Someone's Job , we're uncovering the fascinating world of the Professional Nose —the highly trained experts responsible for creating some of the world's most recognisable fragrances. From years of training and memorising hundreds of individual scents, to helping develop perfumes worth millions, these remarkable pro...

⚠️ Warning: This episode contains discussions about snakes and venom. Would you willingly handle some of the world's deadliest snakes... knowing one mistake could be fatal? For professional snake milkers, it's all part of the job. In this episode of This Is Someone's Job , we're exploring the remarkable people who carefully extract venom from some of the world's most venomous s...

What if your job was to break brand-new machines... on purpose? Most companies spend millions building tractors and heavy equipment. Someone has to find out how they fail. In this episode of This Is Someone's Job , we're diving into the world of professional destruction testing—where engineers deliberately push brand-new machines beyond their limits, smashing through mud, climbing impossib...

Somewhere in the world, there are people whose job is to sleep. In Episode 5 of This Is Someone's Job , we explore the surprisingly real world of professional sleepers—from NASA bed rest studies that help prepare astronauts for life in space to mattress testers whose job is to help us all get a better night's sleep. It might sound like the easiest job in the world, but after 60 days lying...

Somewhere in the world, there are people whose job is to recover golf balls from the bottom of lakes. In Episode 4 of This Is Someone's Job, we explore the surprising world of golf ball divers, where lost golf balls become treasure, water hazards become workplaces, and a bad golf shot can accidentally support an entire industry. From recovering thousands of golf balls at a time to working in m...

Somewhere in the world, there are people whose job is to prepare a 22-yard strip of grass for international cricket. In this special episode of This Is Someone's Job, recorded during England's Test Match summer, we explore the world of the pitch curator—the person responsible for preparing one of the most important surfaces in sport. From mowing and rolling to weather watching and moisture...

Somewhere in the world, there are people whose job is to attend funerals professionally. In Episode 3 of This Is Someone's Job, we explore the surprising history of professional mourners, from Ancient Egyptian wailers to modern-day ceremonial traditions, and the unusual career built around helping people say goodbye. Because while most of us spend our lives trying to avoid awkward social situa...

Somewhere in the world, there are people whose job is to stand in a queue for somebody else. In Episode 2 of This Is Someone's Job, we explore the strange world of professional line stand-ins, where patience becomes a profession and waiting around is a billable skill. Because while most of us are staring at our phones and wondering why the queue isn't moving, someone else is standing there...

Somewhere in the world, there are people whose job is to make ornamental fish look their absolute best. In the very first episode of This Is Someone's Job, we explore the strange world of professional fish presentation, luxury koi culture, and the surprisingly serious business of making a fish look shinier. Because while most of us are replying to emails and pretending to understand spreadshee...