Categories: just-life
Date: 14 September 2009 09:16:05
This weekend I had an interview up in London town and I think it went pretty well.
The interview wasn't for a job or anything as mundane as that... oh no, for I can think of much more fun things to get interviewed for... such as the BBC gameshow 'Total Wipeout'. To be honest, I was slightly surprised to get an interview, they had something like seven thousand applications for series three, of which about seven hundred got to the interview. Of these only one hundred and sixty (eighty guys and eighty gals) will eventually get to go to Argentina and get to compete for a first prize of £10,000.
The really nice thing about this show is that though it's a help to be really fit if you wish to win, Endemol realise that it's much more fun to see a whole range of abilities give the course a try. This was really quite handy.
You see, in my interview group I was the second shortest and by far the unfitest of the guys there. I kid you not, they were all lean, mean, gym-going machines. I am certain that the world is a safer place that I decided not to wear any of the fluorescent spandex that a lot of the guys turned up in. Or the twins who turned up in dresses, the guy dressed as Indiana Jones (but with a riding crop instead of a bull whip) or the guy in a cow suit.
However, we were split into two groups, the first was to do the physical exercises first, followed by the minute-to-camera interview, while the rest of us headed upstairs to fill in medical and CRB forms. Then what happened was that one guy failed to get through the physical checks without getting injured and require ambulance attention. (This added a slight delay to the rest of the procedures which meant that the last of us didn't finish until two hours after we were supposed to)
The physical wasn't too bad, mainly running around and jumping to show that we could... there was then a pull up competition which I would have won if getting the least number of pull ups was the aim. There was then a small obstacle course involving a balance beam, a small leap down, a short run and a low bar. I managed to fall off the beam, slip over on my run and failed to clear the beam... but it was a lot of fun!!
Then came the interviews. They did provide a small list of things that you could talk about, such as name, age, where you're from, occupation, hobbies, etc, etc. As I, if I have to, can ramble on about all sorts of things I was quite looking forward to this part... especially as I had decided, even though I was the penultimate interviewee, to have some fun, therefore my interview went something along these lines...
"Hi, I'm Bimble, I'm twenty-nine and I am from the Aldershot area. If you like walks along the beach and
candlelit cuddles then I think...." turns away from camera and looks at interviewer, "Hold on, this isn't that type of video is it...??"
This got the girl doing the interview laughing, and having the interviewer on your side is always a good thing,
turning back to camera, "Oh well, if there is anyone watching this who does like those things well just ask me." points to name badge, "You've got my details on the application form."
With a start like that there was no going wrong with the interview and it went really well, to the point that when we had finished the interviewer who'd had a broard smile across her face for the whole interview thanked me for brightening up her morning... that is the sign of a good interview.
Now I realise that there might be some people who have never seen the show Total Wipeout here's a short clip of 'The Eliminator' which is the first course that is used to cut down the numbers of competitors.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00yTIg1bTMk[/youtube]