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In my experience of working in a very competitive, very male-orientated place, it was not the men who held me back
Aifric Campell foundation lead to a career in The City in London? It was a pure accident. I applied for 40 jobs and I got called for two interviews. I got into it through a graduate training scheme, so they took on me and a philosopher and an engineer It was a tremendously interesting place to work and I really enjoyed the job. You were at the forefront of global news and you worked with people from all over the world. It was very challenging but I liked doing difficult things. Im a great trier. Aifric, who lives near Brighton with husband Ian and son Oscar, has been writing since she was a child. As well as writing novels and newspaper columns, she teaches writing at Imperial College, London. Considering the world financial crash and the vilification of bankers nowadays, the author admits she didnt know if it was a good or bad time to bring out a novel set in the world of high finance. I actually started writing versions of the book years ago but everybody hates bankers now, she says. But the vitriol thats directed at financiers ignores the important role of politicians and regulators. Cheap money and let the good times roll helps you get re-elected. The politicians both in Ireland and Britain have conveniently been able to exit stage left while the financiers remain in the firing line. Aifric says it was important that none of On The Floor comes across like a financial textbook. I didnt want to write a book that only insiders could read or one that insiders would read and say thats ridiculous, that could never happen. So I wanted it to be plausible and to capture the concepts behind the business, rather than the specifics. Fiction can go anywhere and can describe anything if its done well enough, so that was the challenge. I believed it could be done, so readers will decide for themselves.

THURSDAY MARCH 22 2012

I AUTHOR: Aifric Campbell

I Continued from P35 Closed worlds are interesting and I always felt it would be a challenge to write about that and to try to make it accessible. Despite the male-oriented world she moved in, Aifric insists she didnt see it as a sexist men only club. People always talk about glass ceilings and about men who want to hold women back, she says. In the book, Geri is smarter than her boss and her clients and most of the people she meets. The fact that shes not maximising her success is down to her. In my experience of working in a very competitive, very male-oriented place, it was not men who held me back. It took me longer to get promoted and theres no doubt that I was paid less than men. But in the male hierarchy you have a mentoring system, so people go out and play golf and go out for drinks and that kind of camaraderie, man-to-man, can help in the early stages of your career and youre not going to get that from male bosses to female employees. Theres a difference between sexist talk and sexual harassment. When large groups of men work together, they can be very childish and puerile but you just get on with the job. Aifric says there wasnt a lot of solidarity between herself and her female colleagues. There wasnt much camaraderie amongst women and that was disappointing, she reveals. I dont think that women are always terribly supportive career-wise. My biggest advocates were men. Id say it took me an extra two years to be made managing director, but I wanted that recognition. You cant sit around complaining; you just make it impossible for people not to promote you. And while being a woman in the finance world was one thing, being Irish in London in the 1980s and 1990s brought its own complications thanks to the IRA. I started working in London in the eighties and it was at the height of the IRA bombing campaign, Aifric says. I remember going into work the morning after the Harrods bomb [in 1983, when six people died] and basically being called to account. It was really difficult at that time. Aifric had first wanted to be a vet, applied unsuccessfully to study in psychiatry in Dublin and then moved to Sweden to study linguistics. So how did this

From supporting roles in a host of movies to playing Mike Baldwins dad in Coronation Street, Belfast-born actor Sam Kydd notched up 500 film and television appearances. Joe Cushnan looks back on the actors career and explains why he should be a role model for aspiring performers
NORTHERN Ireland has produced a significant number of talented actors and actresses. Of course, not everyone can be a James Ellis, Kenneth Branagh, James Nesbitt or a Liam Neeson. Only a few have that extra special something that carries them beyond character roles and supporting parts to top billing. Some names survive in our fondest memories, but sadly many are forgotten as time marches on. Sandwiched somewhere between these two notions is Belfast-born Sam Kydd, whose career coincided with a wonderful era of evolving British cinema and television. Many people of a certain age will recall Sams face (if not necessarily his name) with affection. He was one of many supporting players, unsung in many cases, that British cinema and television should be grateful for. During his 35-year career, Kydd was cast in nearly 300 different productions, amassing nearly 500 appearances in total a phenomenal workload in a fickle business. His distinctive features could be spotted in shows like Dixon of Dock Green, Z Cars, The Dick Emery Show, Crossroads, Man In A Suitcase, The Persuaders, Sykes and even Coronation Street, in which he played Mike Baldwins father. Kydd died on March 26 1982, aged 67, from a respiratory problem. As the 30th anniversary of his passing approaches, its the perfect time to reflect on this homegrown actors career and contributions to the big and small screens. Born in Belfast in 1915, Sams father was an army officer and, as is inherent in military life, nomadic by career choice. However, although the family moved to England when Sam was a child, Belfast has fair claim to him as one of ours much like the Titanic and the DeLorean. In the 1930s Sam was an entertainer, warm-up man and master of ceremonies in dance halls before joining the army. He was posted to France but was captured by the Germans and ended up in a concentration camp. Later, he wrote about his time as a POW in a book called For You The War Is Over. Here, amongst other experiences, Sam recalled his efforts to keep inmates busy and amused by organising theatrical events and variety shows. After the war, he was able to use his

Sams still our man

producing, directing and performing experience at the camp to find work in films. These days, anyone at home in the afternoons will often see Sam popping up in various small parts in black and white movies (inbetween ads for price comparison websites, pension plans and insurance schemes) Look out for him in The Cruel Sea, Cockleshell Heroes, The 39 Steps, Carlton Browne of the FO and others. He played soldiers, sailors, policemen, sentries, ticket clerks, truck drivers, mechanics, postmen, engineers, milkmen, taxi drivers and all sorts of other roles as an almost never out of work journeyman actor. In the early 1960s, Sam landed a decent television role as Croaker Jones in around 40 episodes of Mess Mates, a cargo ship sitcom also featuring Archie Duncan, Fulton Mackay and Victor Maddern. His biggest break came in 1963 when he was cast as Orlando OConnor in the television series Crane, starring Patrick Allen. The location scenes were filmed in Morocco and the plot involved a businessman, tired of the rat race, who opts for a beach existence running a cafe with a little bit of smuggling on the side. Sam played Patrick Allens sidekick and confidante. It was a major success in its day, combining intrigue, glamour and comedy. The series lead to a spin-off with Kydd reprising his Orlando role in a show of the same name aimed at children. It became so popular that twice as many episodes were made as the original Crane. Kydd was the classic example of an actor as a working man: not a big star by any means, but a grafter who brought warmth and humour to the screen through his personality, professionalism and very distinctive facial features. Remember Orlando OConnor? As homage to his place of birth, Sam chose to use a broad Belfast accent in his portrayal. He may have left the city as a child but he nailed the voice perfectly. Sam Kydd should be a role model for aspiring actors and actresses. From his long and varied career, they can learn that while they might not become big stars, they can still keep working and earning a decent living if their ambitions are realistic. As a son of Belfast, we should be proud to include Sams name on the list of the great and good from this part of the world.

I ACTOR: : The career of Belfast-born Sam Kydd coincided with a wonderful era of evolving British cinema and TV

I On The Floor is out now, published by Serpents Tail.