No-one can deny that working in a creative environment is challenging and demanding. DNA is fortunate in having a team of high calibre staff who are more than capable of rising to those challenges. But what do they do to re-charge their creative batteries?

Wake boarding? Stamp collecting? BASE jumping? Maybe… Designer and IT Manager John Dawkins is a bus conductor. No kidding, most weekends from May until September you’ll find him on the platform of a vintage bus in Somerset. Kitted out in traditional bus conductor’s uniform, he collects fares and acts as tour guide on a scenic route around Exmoor or on private hire to wedding parties (see him in action on YouTube  http://uk.youtube.com).

But why? ”It’s great therapy,” John explains, “especially as there isn’t a computer in sight! Everything we use is old technology – even my ticket machine is 40 years old and entirely mechanical”.

John has only been a conductor for three years, so why the sudden departure from cutting edge technology? “Maybe it’s mid-life crisis or perhaps an antidote to the demands of keeping DNA’s computer systems running! Actually I’ve been mildly fascinated by all forms of transport since childhood but I never pursued it actively until I was offered the chance to work part time for these guys just a few years ago”.

So, although John goes off at the weekend to recreate bus journeys from the 1960s, he reappears on Mondays as a regular guy ready for the challenges of a new week in a busy creative agency. For more information please go to www.quantockmotorservices.co.uk