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GENERAL ENGLISH · GENERAL ISSUES · UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

RUNNING
ERRANDS
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1 Key words

Study the sentences below. Match the underlined words and phrases with the definitions.

1. According to recent revelations, the government is monitoring our phone calls. Nobody knew about
this before.
2. The scandal was in all the headlines. Everyone was talking about it.
3. Asking me to cook him dinner at 2am was a ridiculous request.
4. His book was so popular, it became a bestseller.
5. If you are a doctor, you sometimes have to be on call 24 hours a day.
6. Joe is a personal assistant – she has to run errands for her boss all day.

a. a book that sells more than other books in its class

b. available and ready to work or do something at any time
c. extremely silly or unreasonable
d. make short trips to collect or deliver things, usually for someone else
e. surprising and previously unknown facts
f. the titles of major newspaper stories

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2 Before you read

You are going to read an article about what it’s like to be a famous person’s personal assistant. Which
seven tasks below do you think are mentioned in the article? Read the text and check if you were
right.

answer phone calls in the middle of the night

make sure there is food in the fridge

sleep in the same bed as the boss

take care of children

cook meals

park the boss’ car

reply to fan mail

run errands

entertain guests

write emails

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UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)
RUNNING ERRANDS
What’s it like to work for somebody famous?
Post a letter, entertain my Aunt Sylvia and boil me 72 eggs. According to recent revelations, working
for somebody famous can be an almost impossible task.
1.
If you believe the newspaper headlines, it seems that
being a personal assistant to a famous person means
middle-of-the-night phone calls, ridiculous demands
and getting hit by a flying BlackBerry.
2.
And the complex role of the PA has recently captured
the public’s attention. According to recent stories,
celebrity cook Nigella Lawson had her assistant make
sure the fridge was stocked with boiled eggs, while
businessman and art collector Charles Saatchi got
his assistant to buy copies of his book to boost its
position in the bestseller list.
3.
Predictably, the media loves stories about a star’s
strange demands – stories like the news that Lady
Gaga made her former assistant sleep in her bed
because she hated being alone.
4.
But aside from all the horror stories in the media,
what is it really like to be a celebrity’s personal
assistant? And what are the benefits?
5.
Deborah Shaw, a former personal assistant to the
actor Charlton Heston, says that salaries "depend
on who you’re dealing with". An assistant who is
expected to be on call around the clock can enjoy a
salary of around £75,000 to £100,000, while those
who work more regular hours are looking at £35,000
to £50,000.
6.
Diversity in your working day is also one of the major
benefits, says Donna Coulling, an assistant to Helena
Bonham-Carter and Rachel Weisz. "Every day is
different and I love not knowing what I’m doing from
one day to the next. Only a certain type of person
can do this job."
7.
After working with her clients for more than 11 years,
Coulling claims it is easy to switch between managing
a celebrity’s lifestyle and returning to her own more
normal existence. "There is some confusion, I
suppose. I sometimes think, ‘I really need to get
my teeth whitened, too’. And then I realise I don’t
because I’m not in the public eye."
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8.
And while some people think that assistants receive
endless gifts, in reality it’s usually just a nice present
for birthdays and Christmas.
9.
Both Shaw and Coulling agree that the details of your
tasks should be clear before accepting the job. "There
are people that do get abused, but honestly, I think
they let it happen," Coulling says.
10.
"I always tell people to be sure of what they’re not
going to do. If you don’t want to take care of children,
you need to be clear about it."
11.
Discretion is the key. Most assistants have
confidentiality contracts with their employers.
Harrison Cheung, who worked as an assistant to
Christian Bale from 1993-2003, obviously had no
such agreement. In 2012, Cheung published a book
about his time with the actor.
12.
Typical tasks included organising the gardener,
replying to fan mail, and running errands. But Cheung
also received 2am phone calls and was forced to
entertain visiting family members.
13.
"He enjoyed making me call him ‘governor’," Cheung
recalls. Now working in internet marketing for
IBM, Cheung advises wannabe celebrity assistants to
separate business and pleasure.
14.
However, Coulling and Shaw insist that most personal
assistants enjoy their jobs and get on really well with
their employers. It can also open doors to bigger and
better things. For example, Madonna’s assistant later
became her manager.
15.
"I guess it’s the same with any industry," Coulling says.
"There are a couple of horror stories and it tarnishes
the whole industry."
16.
It seems that being a personal assistant is just like any
other job: if your job is like a horror story, then you
can’t wait for the weekend – if your boss allows you
to have free weekends, of course.
Adapted from The Independent, 15/1/14, by Gillian Orr
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3 Checking understanding
Answer the questions below.

1. What is the media’s attitude towards the stories of celebrities’ personal assistants?
2. What are the benefits of working as a celebrity’s personal assistant?
3. How often do personal assistants typically receive gifts from their bosses?
4. What advice does Donna Coulling give to people who want to become personal assistants?
5. What is the most important aspect of an assistant’s relationship with a celebrity?
6. What typical tasks did Christian Bale’s assistant have to do?
7. What advice does Harrison Cheung give to people who want to become personal assistants?
8. Which example mentioned in the text shows that being a celebrity’s assistant lead to ‘better
things’?

4 Find the word

Find a word or phrase in the text which means:

1. improve, increase (verb, P2)

2. 24 hours a day (phrase, P5)
3. a very large number of (adjective, P8)
4. trying to be like someone else (informal adjective, P13)
5. have a good relationship (phrasal verb, P14)
6. damages the reputation of (verb, P15)

5 Grammar - Causative structures

A causative structure is used when one thing or person causes another thing or person to do something.
Look at the following sentences from the article. Put P (permission) or O (obligation) next to each
sentence.

1. Nigella Lawson had her assistant make sure the fridge was stocked with boiled eggs.
2. Charles Saatchi got his assistant to buy copies of his book.
3. Lady Gaga made her former assistant sleep in her bed because she hated being alone.
4. ... if your boss allows you to have free weekends, of course.
5. There are people that do get abused, but honestly, I think they let it happen.
6. Cheung also received 2am phone calls and was forced to entertain visiting family members.

Study the structures in bold. Which verbs are followed by ‘to + infinitive’? Which are followed by an
infinitive without ‘to’?

Which structure expresses a strong obligation?

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The structures with ‘make’, ‘allow’ and ‘force’ can be used in the active or passive. Look at the table
below.

Active Passive

She made me work late. I was made to work late.

He allowed me to have a free weekend. I was allowed to have a free weekend.

She forced me to entertain the guests. I was forced to entertain the guests.

6 Practice 1
Complete the sentences with ‘get’, ‘have’, ‘let’, ‘allow’, ‘make’, or ‘force’ in the correct form. Think about
the context and the structure. In some sentences, more than one answer is possible.

1. It was a military area – they didn’t anyone to enter.

2. It was a fancy-dress party, so we were to wear costumes.
3. They didn’t him smoke – it was a non-smoking area.
4. I don’t like it when my boss me call him "boss".
5. My neighbours are playing really loud music. They won’t me sleep.
6. When the police caught the thief, they him to empty his pockets.
7. They are not welcome here. Who them enter the building?
8. When I was a child, my parents were very strict. They didn’t even me to watch
television.
9. When I was a teenager, my parents were very relaxed. They always me stay out
late.
10. 100 years ago, women were not to vote. Now, they have much more freedom.
11. My boss me work late almost every evening. I feel exhausted.
12. Julia talks so much. She doesn’t anyone else to speak.

7 Practice 2
Work with a partner. Choose a topic from the list below and make sentences like in the example.

In my childhood, I wasn’t allowed to stay up late.

1. your childhood
2. your work
3. your studies
4. your country
5. your culture

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TEACHER MATERIALS · UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

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Key
1. Key words

Students can work individually and check in pairs.

1. e 2. f 3. c 4. a 5. b 6. d

2. Before you read

✓ answer ✓ make sure ✓ sleep in the ✓ take care of ✓ reply to fan ✓ run errands
phone calls in there is food in same bed as the children mail
the middle of the fridge boss
the night
✓ entertain
guests

3. Checking understanding

1. The media loves stories about a star’s strange demands.

2. diversity, salary
3. for birthdays and Christmas
4. Be sure of what you’re not going to do.
5. discretion
6. organise the gardener, reply to fan mail, run errands, receive 2am phone calls
7. Separate business and pleasure.
8. Madonna’s PA became her manager.

4. Find the word

1. boost 2. around the clock 3. endless

4. wannabe 5. get on 6. tarnishes

5. Grammar - Causative structures

1. O 2. O 3. O 4. P 5. P 6. O

allow/force/get + to; let/make/have + infinitive without ‘to’; force sb to do sth = a strong obligation

6. Practice 1

1. allow 2. forced/made 3. let 4. makes/has 5. let 6. forced/got

7. let 8. allow 9. let 10. allowed 11. makes/has 12. allow

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