By day, I’m the Business Readiness Manager for Southern and Gatwick Express. By night, I’m a question writer for some of the nation’s best-loved TV quiz shows. Two jobs that might sound worlds apart, but for me, they’re united by the same passion: a love of puzzles.
My railway work sits in the unseen world behind the timetable. In my previous role, I amended the diagrams (the schedules given to train drivers and onboard staff) to make sure they work around engineering changes, major events, and crew requirements. The knock-on effects can be huge: move one train by one minute, and it can affect schedules across the whole country. Passengers just see a diversion on their journey, but rarely realise the months of planning that have gone into it.
Some of my proudest projects have been amending diagrams for Epsom Derby, Brighton Pride, and the Eastbourne Airshow. The work is heavily problem-solving focused. It involves constantly balancing rules around driver hours, crew changes, and where trains end their day so they’re in the right place for the morning. It’s like a living jigsaw puzzle, and when it all comes together, it’s deeply satisfying.
I started as a Trainee Planner in 2022, and through my work on major events, I’m now the Business Readiness Manager. What I love most is meeting the people behind the railway. I enjoy the freedom to get out, visit depots, and build relationships across the company.
Before the railway, I worked in an escape room, which in hindsight makes a lot of sense. One of the most memorable moments was when a team got so disorientated they walked straight back out the entrance and barged into an entirely different game, thinking it was part of the storyline. Even then, I was hooked on puzzles, and hooked on how people think.
That puzzle-loving streak has carried me into my exciting side hustle: writing questions for TV quiz shows. I was a quiz-obsessed child. At school we staged our own version of University Challenge. The year I wasn’t captain, my house lost miserably. The year I was captain, we won by a landslide. I applied to appear as a contestant on The 1% Club but I didn’t get through, so I sent in some sample questions. They didn’t put me on screen, they hired me to be a question writer instead.
"I’ve written questions on everything from the rapper Drake and Formula 1 driver Lando Norris to the Women’s Institute and Sydney Harbour Bridge"
Since then, I’ve gone on to become a specialist subject writer for Mastermind. I’ve written questions on everything from the rapper Drake and Formula 1 driver Lando Norris to the Women’s Institute and Sydney Harbour Bridge. My question sets are now broadcast regularly, and I still get a thrill when I see my questions read out.
The first time my questions were broadcast, I was watching with my mum, answering along as usual. She turned to me, suspicious: “How do you know so much about Drake?” I kept quiet until the credits rolled, then paused the screen. “Do any of those names look familiar?” Her face was priceless.
Writing quiz questions isn’t just about trivia. It’s about balance: crafting the right mix of questions that most viewers can answer, and a few that only one percent can. It’s about accessibility too. I studied maths at university and now tutor it, so I especially love writing questions that make maths fun and engaging. My dream is to join the question writing team at Only Connect. I already have a bank of 150 questions ready, just in case.
The side hustle has grown. I’m now launching a podcast with some fellow writers, called How To Question Everything, a space where we talk about quizzes, puzzles, and what goes into making them.
When I’m not puzzling over timetables or quiz sets, I love travelling by train. I visit Ely for walks by the marina, roller skate around Cambridge (badly, but happily), and take Southern to Eastbourne when I want the seaside without the Brighton crowds. One of my favourite routes is along the Arun Valley Line, where the scenery is endlessly beautiful. I’d recommend a lovely walk on the Southern network: the St Leonard’s to Hastings area is one of my favourites.
What links all these worlds - railway timetables, escape rooms, quiz shows - is that satisfying click when a puzzle comes together. Whether it’s making sure a train has the right crew at the right time, or watching a contestant nail a question I’ve written, it’s the same rush.
You don’t often see people like me, the ones behind the scenes of your train journey or your TV quiz. But we’re there, puzzling away, making it all work.