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Each week we'll be asking people from all parts of the media industry - from channel controllers to catering staff, directors to digital technicians - to tell us about themselves and their job.
Name
Venetia Ercolani
Job Title
Costume Designer, Cirque de Celebrité
Age
44
Lives
Buckinghamshire
In the role since
Been a costume designer in TV for 15 years, but was involved in theatre costumes before that.
Responsibilities
I design all the costumes for the show, sort all the fabrics, the shoes, the underwear and I work out all the colour schemes.
Best thing about your job
Something like Cirque is so creative. There's different celebrities, different personalities, they all need a different colour and you have a great freedom on something like this. It's great fun and you can really let your creative juices out. I do a lot of these kind of shows, like Strictly, and they're extremely hard work but you do get a lot of creative input, which is wonderful.
Worst thing about your job
The time! We make all these costumes in under a week and they have to be fitted for the girls on a Wednesday, then they have to be made and back for a technical rehearsal to make sure the costumes are safe, and then we do the show on the Sunday. You're never quite fast enough!
First thing you do in the morning when you get in
Probably re-arranging the van or the portakabin (on location) to keep it tidy! But I start drawing (the costumes) very early too.
Any downsides to working in TV?
You always have a budget and its always never enough. You always working against it. As soon as you do anything like this people expect it to me more fabulous. You have to keep to the budget and make it look great. I wouldn't say its a "downside", just the reality of it.
You run around like a mad thing - but on shows like this you really have to embrace it and go with the flow. You've got to be very organised and very flexible because you're having to change stuff - especially with celebrities, they get quite nervous and you have to take that on board.
First TV job
At the BBC on Eastenders. They used to put new designers on the show as a good training ground, especially in drama as you've got lots of characters and continuity.
Biggest achievement to date
Well its actually coming up - I've been nominated for a Royal Television Society award for the costumes on Strictly Dance Fever!
Anything you wish you'd done differently?
I don't think so - sometimes you go up for things and you don't get it, but I always think that there's a reason why I didn't get it, and usually I think "Oh it will be awful anyway!"
Dream job/company/lifestyle
What I'm doing now is really good as it is so creative. Something like nice period film would be good though.
Best media event you've ever attended
Elton John's concert at the Royal Opera House, that was very star-studded. The Queen Mother's 90th too - there were so many Lords in one room at the Palladium, in a tiny little dressing room. We had Sir John Mills - everyone. That was quite a laugh.
This weeks topical question: Does TV makes us obsessive about our bodies?
I not sure that TV does, a lot of the makeover shows add to the general millieu that people have about their bodies, and those sort of shows just sort of put a full stop on it. I don't think they start it, but they probably don't help things.
Cirque de Celebrité sees celebs including ex-Emmerdale actress Nicola Wheeler, models Sophie Anderton and Emma B, comedian Ninia Benjamin and "Handy Andy" battle it out over the remaining five weeks to get top billing at the big top, learning circus skills and performing in Venetia's amazing costumes! Watch the show on Sunday on Sky One at 7pm.
