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So this Saudi Prince calls and asks why he can't watch movies ...

Documenting the work that goes on in the wee hours

On Call We at weekend Reg realise that some of you are actually at work when you read, often because you're part of the tribe of on-call workers who have to stay sober and hit the office at all sorts of odd times.

In the spirit of our popular eXpat Files column, we thought we'd have a lash at telling your weirdest tales of what happens after hours, when you're called into fix whatever it is that happens on the weekend. Or during the Christmas period.

Our first contributor has asked to remain anonymous. Once you read his tale you'll understand why. Over to you, Mr X:

I was working in Saudi Arabia and one evening, quite late, my phone rang. Caller ID told me it was the secretary to a Prince.

“Come and make the movies work. Right now,” he said. “He wants to watch movies and it doesn’t work.”

I suggested some troubleshooting steps and none of them were helpful.

Why?

Perhaps it was because “the lights and power and aircon and network is broken in the rest of the palace but he wants to watch a movie. Come right now and fix it.”

I asked if perhaps, just perhaps, the power outage might be the problem.

“Yes, but the iPad remote control is still on and its screen is working so it can’t be that,” was the response.

That'd be the battery-powered iPad.

So I slapped my forehead and started driving to an obscure, distant, secure part of town.

Half-way there I got another call from the secretary.

“Hey! You fixed it! it all works now! You can come anyway and we will thank you with tea and sweets!”

I said that because it was 3:00 AM I would take up the offer some other time.

“OK! Bye bye!”

*click*

And that's how I fixed a Saudi Prince's home cinema.

Do you have a story of weird on-call incidents? You know the drill: share them by writing to me here. ®

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