OPINION
TeesTalk
In our Tees Up ! feature ( page 48 ), Durata director Alison McGee reveals she spends her spare time playing shoot-emup computer game Call of Duty or singing karaoke .
We asked local business leaders to reveal the guilty pleasures that help them escape from the pressures of work …
BRUCE SLATER , CEO / CREATIVE DIRECTOR , RADICAL FORGE Being in front of a computer for most of the working day , I do everything I can to go outside . If it ’ s kayaking or skateboarding , it doesn ’ t matter . Something kinetic is the best thing I have found to relax and get away from work .
Having said that , nothing beats a really good TV show and the sofa . I guess it depends on if it ’ s raining or not .
HARRIET SPALDING , ESTATES MANAGER , MANDALE GROUP Anyone who knows me knows that I like life on two wheels – the manual kind ! To me , there ’ s nothing more peaceful than getting out on the road when it ’ s quiet , be that early morning or on an evening .
Even as the nights draw in , I ’ m equipped to continue in my garage , on Zwift , the interactive training and racing platform . It concentrates the mind , gets the blood pumping and gives you a kick of endorphins , all at the same time – perfect !
NIKKI SAYER , CASPER SHIPPING My guilty pleasure is history . It ’ s one of those subjects that bored you silly at school but the older I get the more fascinated I am with “ the olden days ”. I will watch everything on the TV , either documentaries or dramas , and I love to read historical fiction .
I am fascinated with how people used to live . My husband and I went to the Rivoli Bar at the Ritz and the 1930s ’ décor in there is absolutely beautiful .
GLENN BARTLETT , MANAGING DIRECTOR , CLOSE PROTECTION SECURITY I always make time to box an hour a day at my gym with my friends and staff , to help with our mental wellbeing and physical fitness .
There is nothing better for stress release than boxing or any form of training . I ’ d welcome anyone from the Teesside business community to come and join us at Close Protection Security ’ s gym .
DALE SMITH , CEO , SDDE SMITH GROUP Most of my spare time is spent with my young family – my wife Rachel , three-yearold girl Arete and one-year-old Etta-Rae , but with a number of football commitments at Middlesbrough , Sheffield Wednesday and now Redcar Athletic , football is usually on the agenda every weekend for us .
Outside of that , I would love to say that you ’ ll find me on the golf course , but not as much these days ! Hopefully , I ’ ll manage to get back out there a lot more sometime soon though .
HELEN WRIGHT , DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS , THIRTEEN I wouldn ’ t say this is a guilty pleasure , but it certainly scratches an itch of mine – I ’ m a one-woman version of borrowmydoggy . com because I love to look after other people ’ s dogs .
I love dogs but don ’ t have one of my own because I love having so much flexibility with my free time . So dog-sitting – for free because I ’ m a fool ! – gives me the flexibility and the freedom , gets me out in the fresh air , gives me exercise , clears my mind … and gets me unlimited cuddles .
LAUREN BYWATER , GENERAL MANAGER , HIGH TIDE FOUNDATION I suppose my guilty pleasure depends on what kind of mood I ’ m in . Like Alison , I ’ m a gamer at heart , and love an evening playing Red Dead Redemption on PS4 .
But I ’ m also very creative and love spending time sketching or colouring in . Although I ’ m not a huge fan of reality TV , another guilty pleasure is watching any of the Real Housewives .
CHRIS GARBUTT , SALES MANAGER , TEES BUSINESS I don ’ t know if I ’ d call it a pleasure , as for the majority of time it ’ s painful , but following Boro takes up most of my time away from work . It ’ s something I ’ ve done every weekend since I was a young lad .
I do allow it to consume me , unfortunately . The consistent despair does make the occasional good times sweeter , though !
146 | Tees Business