PA Life Editor Colette Doyle interviewed representatives from the Association of Celebrity Assistants at last year’s Office show in order to get an in-depth look at the role of a high-profile PA. Molly Dyson reviews the key points of this revealing session
PA Life Editor Colette Doyle began the interview by asking the participants, Deborah Shaw, former President of the Association of Celebrity Assistants in the UK (ACA-UK), and board member Stephen Lockyer, how they got started as celebrity PAs. Deborah says her mother made her do a secretarial course because it was something she could always fall back on. “I then headed for London, where I trained to become a buyer for Harrods.” However, she was picked out to be the assistant to the managing director because she was the only one on the course who could type. “After I started in the store they hired publicist Lynne Franks, who is the inspiration for cult TV show Absolutely Fabulous, and I worked with her as an in-store point of liaison. I was organising fashion shows and photo shoots, which made me realise my days of arranging till rotas wasn’t so exciting.”
Deborah went on to work as Lynne’s assistant until moving to Los Angeles, where she landed a job with Charlton Heston. This role brought her face to face with many movie stars and Charlton recommended her as a talent manager when she moved on. One day she received a call from a lawyer who said he had a talented young man called Shia LaBeouf they’d be interested in. “This kid blew us out of the water, so we immediately got him on a Disney TV show called Even Stevens. The rest is history.”
Stephen had a slightly different introduction to the world of celebrities. He started out as a PA and chauffeur for a London-based public relations company. “I previously supported the royal family of Dubai when they visited the UK,” he explains. “If a prince comes over with a group of his friends, he needs a driver who can set up dinners, hotels, nightclub visits and a whole list of other things, so I branched out on my own.”
Then Colette asked what the strangest request was that Deborah had ever received as an assistant. “One of my bosses in LA really liked Marks & Spencer’s white cotton underwear and there wasn’t any online shopping back then. I had a friend coming over to visit me, so he asked if I could have my friend bring over a pack of briefs. He agreed on the condition he could come to the house and meet my boss!”
Stephen has to deal with lots of requests for privacy – but these aren’t always as simple as arranging late-night dinners and shopping trips. “I once had to arrange for Windsor Castle to be closed so my clients could have a private show round.” How does he handle demanding requests? “I have a lot of contacts through the ACA,” he comments. “It’s always handy to get to know people on a first-name basis and have their mobile numbers.”
Next, Colette was interested in the difference between working for a private individual and for a company. Deborah says all PAs share the same skills. “What sets us apart is that celebrity assistants often work out of their boss’s house, so there isn’t a support system. You have to be self-reliant and able to think on your feet. There’s added pressure, depending on how well known your boss is. Confidentiality is key and some of us can’t tell people whom we work for. That’s where the ACA comes in. If I have a crazy request, I can ask for help. When somebody says no I have to find a way to make things happen. It’s a very proactive job,” she notes.
Stephen agrees, adding that private PAs often end up working long hours. “My clients operate on Saudi time, which means I have to be flexible. I visit a lot of places in my spare time and read loads of magazines and newspapers to find out which restaurants all the VIPs are currently going to.”
The nature of looking after high-profile clients means that PAs can often find themselves isolated. Deborah believes it’s essential to build a support network. “The first thing I do in any job is make friends with the other people who work at the house. Meeting and networking with other PAs, even if it’s online, is the shortcut to everything. They understand the pressure you’re under and can lend a helping hand.”
Anyone who has read a gossip magazine knows how demanding celebrities can be. How does an assistant ensure, therefore, that their boss knows what they will and will not be prepared to do? “Most private PAs tend to be older because you need life experience to be able to set boundaries,” Deborah comments. “You just have to figure out what you’re comfortable doing and be polite about it.”
Is the life of a celebrity PA really as glamorous as it might seem? Deborah admits that she has had some amazing experiences, such as travelling to a private island ahead of her client. “I also go to a lot of smart restaurants and hotels and get nice presents, but I have to do some extraordinary things. We all work incredibly hard. At the end of the day, it’s still a job.”
Deborah says one of her biggest challenges came when she was working for an actress in LA whose pet boa constrictor went missing after a trip. “A couple of weeks later I had to take her car for servicing and discovered a very hungry snake coiled under the driver’s seat. I called a friend to help me get the car to the garage and then I had to pay the mechanics to free the boa.”
Stephen tends to view all of his last-minute requests as a challenge. “When the new iPhone came out, I was tasked with finding 100 of them for a prince to bring home to his friends,” he says. “We paid people to stand in queues, but ended up not getting any. Luckily, he was very understanding.”
With so many demands on their time, how do Deborah and Stephen manage their work-life balance? Stephen’s hectic schedule means that he sometimes works for days on end, but he tries to plan time off when he knows he doesn’t have any important clients visiting. “I consider myself quite lucky in my current role,” Deborah says. “I do have to be flexible, but it’s not difficult. I’ve turned down jobs in the past because the client expected me to be available 24/7 and I knew I wouldn’t be able to cope with it.”
So what kind of advice does Stephen have for those aspiring to become assistants to the rich and famous? “Get in the mind-set of your clients. Understand etiquette and how to approach people, especially if there’s a cultural difference. Read newspapers and magazines every day to keep up with the trendiest places to eat and drink.”
Homing in on the jet-setting lifestyle of many celebrities, Deborah believes that a fondness for international travel is vital. “If you possibly can, try to experience flying first class so you know what it’s like. Find a common interest with your boss and get into the things they like. Make contacts wherever you can because you never know when you’re going to need to ask for a favour.”
She finishes the discussion with an interesting statement that sums up the life of a celebrity assistant perfectly. “You have to be proactive rather than reactive, but you still need to be able to handle situations as and when they come up. Most importantly, remember your status as a PA. Your relationship is a close one, but you’re not their friend. It’s a job.”
Meet the interviewees
Deborah Shaw
Deborah has had a varied background. After training as a buyer for Harrods, and working as a publicist at Lynne Franks PR, Deborah relocated to Los Angeles. There she became the personal assistant to Charlton Heston before moving to John Crosby Management as a Talent Manager, representing numerous clients. These included Charlize Theron, Rene Russo, John Hurt, Orla Brady, James Denton and Shia LaBeouf, whom Deborah discovered when he was just 12 years old.
In 2003, with a wealth of experience under her belt and already a BAFTA member, Deborah returned to London where she met founding President of the Association of Celebrity Assistants in the UK, Joy Montgomery.
Soon after, she was invited to join the founding board for a two-year term as the first treasurer of the ACA-UK. In April 2011 she became Vice-President and in April 2012 took over as President. Deborah stepped down from the position in September last year and has since been succeeded by Thomas Trautmann.
Stephen Lockyer
Stephen initially worked at a London-based PR agency as part-PA and part-chauffeur before moving to work with a leading fashion retailer. Stephen now works in a private capacity for international talent and VIPs when they come over to the UK. Having worked with royal families and many well-known faces in the music world, such as Taylor Swift, Liza Minnelli and P Diddy, he uses his connections to help others within the Association of Celebrity Assistants in the UK.
