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 athletes competing on it.

You'll discover:

• What an Ice Manager actually does
• How ice is carefully created and maintained
• Why temperature and timing matter so much
• The surprising science behind the perfect rink

It's another reminder that while most of us are walking across the ice... someone else has spent hours making sure it's ready.

🎙️ Listen now, and if you know of a strange or unusual job I should feature in a future episode, I'd love to hear from you. [email protected]

If you enjoyed this episode, hit Follow on Spotify so you never miss another strange job. New episodes every Friday.

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 cathedrals simply couldn't function without it.

You'll discover:

• What a Cathedral Verger actually does
• The surprising history of the role
• The skills needed to keep everything running smoothly
• Why this centuries-old profession still matters today

It's another reminder that while most of us are sitting in traffic or replying to emails... someone else is making sure a cathedral is ready for thousands of visitors.

🎙️ Listen now, and if you know of a strange or unusual job I should feature in a future episode, I'd love to hear from you.

Email the show at [email protected]

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 exists, how competitive it is to land, and whether it really is the dream job it sounds like.

Would you swap your office for Antarctica?

If you want to contact the show, reach out at [email protected]

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 professionals combine science, creativity and an extraordinary sense of smell.

You'll also discover:

👃 Why there are fewer than 500 Master Noses in the world.

🧪 How one laboratory accident helped create one of the most iconic modern fragrances.

🧠 Why our sense of smell changes as we get older.

🌹 What it really takes to turn a simple idea into a signature perfume.

It's another job hiding in plain sight... until you stop and think about it.

🎙️ Enjoying the podcast?

Please follow This Is Someone's Job and leave a rating—it really helps more people discover these incredible careers.

And if you have an unusual job, or know someone who does, I'd love to hear from you.

📧 [email protected]

⚠️ 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 snakes. Their work helps create life-saving antivenom that saves thousands of lives every year.

You'll discover:

🐍 How venom is safely collected from deadly snakes💉 Why this dangerous job is essential for modern medicine🇦🇺 The incredible work of Australia's Reptile Park🇮🇳 The remarkable story of India's Irula tribe, whose expertise has helped save countless lives🧪 The extraordinary life of Bill Haast, who survived 172 venomous snake bites and lived to the age of 100

It's another incredible reminder that some of the most unusual jobs in the world also happen to be some of the most important.

🎙️ Enjoying the podcast?

Please follow the show and leave a rating—it really helps more people discover these incredible jobs.

And if you have an unusual job, or know someone who does...

📧 [email protected]

You might just feature in a future episode.

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 impossible obstacles and testing components until something eventually breaks.

It might sound destructive...

but every failure helps build safer, stronger and more reliable machines for the rest of us.

You'll also hear:

🚜 How companies intentionally destroy brand-new tractors⚙️ Why failure is the most important part of engineering💥 The surprising science behind destruction testing👋 A special thank you to Jolyon, whose suggestion inspired this episode

It's another reminder that some of the world's most fascinating careers are the ones you've never heard of.

🎙️ Enjoying the podcast?

Please follow the show and leave a rating—it really helps more people discover these incredible jobs.

And if you have an unusual job, or know someone who does...

📧 [email protected]

You might just feature in a future episode.

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 in bed with your head tilted down, you might think differently.

Because while most of us are setting alarms to wake up for work...

someone else is getting paid to close their eyes.

If you have an unusual job—or know someone whose career sounds completely made up—I'd love to hear about it.

📧 [email protected]

Follow This Is Someone's Job for new episodes exploring the strangest ways people make a living.

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 murky water most people wouldn't willingly enter, it's a profession that turns one golfer's frustration into someone else's business opportunity.

Because while most of us are trying not to lose our golf balls, someone else is making a living finding them.

And somewhere, at this very moment, a golf ball diver is about to discover that the most dangerous thing in a water hazard isn't always the water.

If you have an unusual job—or know someone whose career sounds completely made up—I'd love to hear about it.

📧 [email protected]

Follow the show for new episodes exploring the strangest ways people make a living.

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 management, a pitch curator's decisions can influence how an entire match unfolds.

Because while thousands of fans are watching the players, someone else has already spent days making sure the stage is ready.

And sometimes, as one remarkable story from South Africa proves, a groundsman can become just as important as the cricketers themselves.

If you have an unusual job—or know someone whose career sounds completely made up—I'd love to hear about it.

📧 [email protected]

Follow the show for new episodes exploring the strangest ways people make a living.

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 situations, someone else is navigating funeral small talk for a living.

And somewhere, at this very moment, a professional mourner is being asked the one question they were hoping to avoid:

"So... how did you know them?"