When I signed up to StarNow.co.uk, I planned on using it to help my so far fruitless search for a new band, but when I saw an advert looking for extras for a show on BBC3 I stuck my application in anyway.
Nobody was more surprised than me when I got an email back saying they wanted me to turn up and play a casino extra for a show I'd actually heard of, The Real Hustle.
When I got to the hotel (nearly 2 hours across London at morning rush hour - ouch!) I had a release form to sign, saying that should any part of me appear on screen, they would henceforth own my soul and everything attached to it. So I signed, since I gave that up ages ago.
The ballroom we were assigned was moderately sized and decked out using a mobile casino as the prop providers. Makes sense really, since they know the rules and can set-up and take down quickly. We were introduced to the director and the hustlers (who I may or may not have recognised) and pretty much told that as long as we didn't look at the camera or block a shot, we could move between tables as we wanted. I was hoping for Poker, but had to settle for Blackjack instead. The director told us to keep talking, since they wanted background noise, but to be careful it didn't get out of control. I was impressed that it didn't, although I bet it would have had we been playing for real money!
So I played Blackjack, and I won some and lost some. At one point I was just over £2000 up, but that situation was quickly remedied. We were moved around during the day, and I also ended up with £10700 at one of the Roulette tables, and I think I could have made more if I had kept to the whole "small wins/small losses" style of play. Of course it wasn't my money, so I went crazy and lost it all!
There was an almost endless supply of Coke and crisps to keep us alive, and I thought this was all we were getting. Sadly, that meant I had stuffed myself by the time our proper lunch arrived (in the form of triple-deck sandwiches and potato wedges - tasty they were too), so I couldn't take advantage of a free lunch.
The afternoon was a lot of the same thing, and my feet were killing me by the time I was done. They were apparently planning to continue filming until about 7pm, but I wanted to make a move before that and headed out just after 5:30. I was given £10 to cover my travel, so I technically made a profit and therefor consider this my first professional acting job. Shush you!
It was good fun, and I made sure Charlotte knew I was interested in doing more work like this, which she said she'd keep me in mind for. Networking, y'see? Getting my face out there and in front of people.
And with that, we see that I am actually capable of posting something that's not miserable!
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