Introduction
In recent times several people have mentioned that I should write down my stories and experiences of a Lifetime working in The Arts, and Lockdown seems an ideal time to do this, and here is page 1 ! If you would like to support me in this process so I can make time to do this, in exchange of a credit as we go then please click on the tip Jar link below. There are many stories I have collected over the years and this will be a great opportunity to share these.
Tip jar link - https://www.paypal.me/GSMC874
A Lifetime Working in The Arts (Page 1)
“I am sorry but we don’t sell geese.”
So commenced my first day of what was going to be a lifetime working professionally in the Arts. Like so many people, I initially became involved by volunteering at my local Arts Centre, where I regularly helped out: stewarding, working on the bar and, my passion, organising music events.
Growing up in the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead there was very little to do as a teenager, apart from visiting the local cinema and pubs, where I spent a large part of my youth. As I grew older I would routinely walk past ‘The Court’, home to Windsor Arts Centre, intrigued by the frequent comings and goings of long-haired Bohemian types. But I never had the courage to go in as I never really understood what it was that they did; until one evening, on a quiet weekday, I took the plunge and wandered into the bar, little knowing that this would change my life for good.
What I discovered on walking into the venue that evening, was how welcoming and diverse everybody was, and I was soon engaged in conversation and debate with a group of people. This was totally different to what I was used to and, soon after, I became a regular and started helping out. About six months later I was offered a full-time job on the bar.
My first night as Assistant Bar Manager of Windsor Community Arts Centre was a big deal for me, and I was determined to do a good job. I would be working the bar on my own and the event that night was to be a foreign language film in the cinema to about 80 people. Back in those days the films were shown on reels and, because of the length of the movie, there needed to be an interval so they could change the reels over, which was always good for the bar takings. I knew I would only have twenty minutes to serve everybody, so preparation was key. Once the film had started I got ready for the rush, stocking the fridges for cold drinks, topping up ice buckets and slicing lemons for G&Ts: this was Windsor after all!
The first sign that the interval was commencing was the sound of footsteps in the stairway as the audience made its way from the cinema. This was the big moment for me, and I took a deep breath in anticipation of serving everyone as quickly as possible: the door opened and the first customer came to the bar.
I uttered my prepared speech, “Good evening and welcome to Windsor Arts Centre. What can I get you?” to which the customer replied in a heavily foreign accent, “I would like to buy a goose.”
I could see the queue forming behind him and I said, “Sorry, what did you say?”
He repeated, “I would like a goose.”
At this point my previous excited anticipation rapidly evaporated and I looked around for any clue as to what he might be looking for. No clue materialised, so I said, “We don’t sell geese.”
He was getting as frustrated as I was and started pointing behind me, saying in a louder voice, “A goose, a goose.”
I turned around and spotted, with relief, what he was looking for. “Ah, a ‘Famous Grouse’ whiskey!”
“Yes, a Famous Goose.”
So started my career in the Arts, a world of creative and sometimes slightly crazy people, some of whom feel they don’t quite fit in with the rest of Society. But thanks to the wonderful venues that exist across the country, all different in their own way, these people have somewhere to congregate, and express themselves.