Mandle Currie, a zoo-keeper, spent the day in the offices of the magazine Marie Claire.

‘Choosing What to wear for my day at Marie Claire was tricky because normally I wear a uniform at work. first I went to a still-life photo studio, then to press previews, all before lunch. The zoo is such a tranquil, peaceful place—and here I was rushing around when I could be sitting quietly giving an animal a cuddle. Some of the members of the fashion team seemed quite stressed—my job doesn’t really get pressurised. At a fashion shoot in the afternoon, it made me laugh to think that I’d usually be cleaning out cages or handling rats. I’m fascinated to see how magazines work, but I really enjoy my job at the zoo so I’ll stay put.’

Alice Cutler a fashion assistant at Marie Claire, spent the day at London zoo.

‘I arrived at the zoo in my leather boots and dark blue trousers. The zoo gave me a green T-shirt instead to work in, which was just as well as I got very dirty. While I was bathing one of the elephants, I thought Mandie would probably be packing up clothes in the cupboard. By five o'clock, I smelt terrible but Td had such a brilliant day when I retire from fashion, I could see myself working with elephants—but maybe in Africa.’

Karen Hodson, a nurse at Hammersmith Hospital, went on location with the television gardening programme Ground force.

‘I was extremely excited about meeting the team, and Alan Titchmarsh, the programme presenter, was really nice. One of the things I liked was the chance to be in the fresh air Depending on my shifts, I sometimes never see daylight. Even though it was hard work, it was great fun. I thought I was pretty strong but I felt weak compared with the rest of the team. My romantic vision of landscape gardening had not included physical hard work or careful planning. I was more an enthusiastic than effective gardener, so I don’t plan to give up my other job.’

Charlie Dimmock, landscape gardener with the TV programme Ground Force, worked a shift at Hammersmith Hospital.

‘I made beds and handed out tablets. I expected to faint when I was doing some jobs, but I amazed myself by finding that it didn’t bother me. The friendship among the nurses is great, and it felt tremendously ‘girlie’ compared with my normal male environment. I feel my job is a real waste of time compared with nursing. My day at the hospital was not exactly pleasant but it left me with a great sense of satisfaction.’