In our new regular staff blog we chat to our Head of Visitor Services Jonathan Thompson, about the weird and wonderful things he has seen in his impressive time here and how he once had to find a customer’s expensive diamond ring in our huge auditorium…

How long have you worked at the Hippodrome?

I’ve been here almost 15 years – it’s my anniversary on the 28 December this year!

What made you want to work here?

I have a major love of theatre and when the role became available I was so excited to be able to work in the best theatre in the country! The reputation of the Birmingham Hippodrome is worldwide and I wanted to be a part of that team.

How would you describe your job?

It is something that everyone says but literally no day is ever the same! I can be on duty covering the main auditorium and welcoming customers to the theatre or being a first aider, to attending a meeting to arrange special events or standing on the red carpet outside the main front doors waiting to escort VIPs. All this adds variety each day and makes the job so enjoyable and keeps me really busy, as well as making the role so exciting. Don’t get me wrong it’s not all showbiz – it can be very LONG hours and a bit unsociable but that all comes with the role. I don’t know what working Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm is!

What’s the most unusual aspects of your role?

This can be anything, like arranging a special evening or occasion for someone. Last week I had to write “will you marry me?” in the lid of an ice cream tub for someone who was proposing to his fiancée in one of the boxes (she said yes!). I’ve also had to get down on my hands and knees with a torch and find the £10k diamond that had fallen out of a lady’s wedding ring in the auditorium – the light from the torch made it dazzle – it was a real shiner!  It also amazes me some of the lost property that we have left behind. This can be anything from a pair of false teeth, to a wallet with £2k in it, to a teddy bear that was part of the family for 40 years, to a lady who was convinced that she had lost her husband – she was at the Hippodrome and he was at another theatre!

What’s the favourite part of your job?

Meeting people and being able to make their visit the best possible experience that I can.  Believe it or not I love people complaining, if we have got something wrong, I want people to tell me so we can ensure that we can turn this round and also so that they leave having a great impression of the Hippodrome and the team here.

What are you most proud of achieving here?

Starting and working with our Hippodrome Volunteers – people give up their time to come and work with us! We have over 75 Volunteers assisting us and we really couldn’t run the theatre without them.

Which show/event are you most looking forward to in the coming season?

Miss Saigon is my FAVOURITE show and I really can’t wait to see it! I think I have seen it 5 times already! I also love Matthew Bourne’s productions so Red Shoes I’m sure will be fantastic.  I’m really looking forward to seeing Sheridan Smith in Funny Girl, I saw her in London and she was AMAZING – so really looking forward to seeing the production on our stage here.

What’s your favourite show?

Anything musical – we get such an amazing variety of shows here, from ballet to opera, but I am a real musicals fan!