Licensed Life

“I enjoy saving people’s lives.” – Olu In our latest edition of Behind the Licence, Get Licensed speaks with bodyguard to the stars Olu ‘Henchy’ Johnson. In this candid interview, Close Protection Operative Olu lets us know his thoughts on the security industry and what it’s like being an international bodyguard. What made you decide to […]

Our Behind the Licence series takes a look at the men and women who have trained to hold a licence and work in their chosen field, whether that be having an SIA Licence as a Door Supervisor, or a Bar Manager with a Personal Licence. This week we speak with 43 year old Carl Simpson. […]

I’ve not found it difficult as a female in this Industry” – Wendy Standing at a petite 5 ft, Wendy is probably the least likely contender to work in the security sector. However, don’t let the height fool you, as this 52-year-old mum has been around the security sector for much of her life, raising […]

“The time I fell into security, also happened to coincide with the hardest period of my life” – Dean Back when I started out, this game was all about catching people; restraining them, getting them arrested or banned from a store. It was about playing the hero. Now – in the retail industry at least […]

“If I sense things are escalating, I’ll ask my colleague to come back me up.” – Anthony   I’ve been doing security for 26 years, not just in London, but Essex, Kent – everywhere. I fell into it through my brother in-law. He asked if I wanted to earn a little bit of extra money […]

I would recommend this job to anyone – Nicholas I always greet people and can tell instantly by the way they talk, whether they’ve had too much to drink. I’ve been doing this work since November last year. I used to work for the trains, at the gate lines. I’d get abuse of customers all […]

“Manners don’t hurt. If a person gives you negativity, always show politeness. I had a man here once who was seriously drunk. I didn’t want to let him in. He insulted me, physically poked me, did everything you could imagine. Ten minutes later he got tired and went home. He knew he wasn’t going to win. […]

“Security is one of the few professions that offers great flexibility” – Jack “I spend a lot of my time searching people’s bags, checking for alcohol, especially in a place like this, where it’s widely sold on the premises. Sometimes I’m met with resistance and I’ll be like: ‘can I search your bag?’ and they’ll […]

“I could have ended up in prison or worse” – Phil “I was a bad apple when I was younger, and my mother cottoned on quickly. She always felt I needed discipline. So, after many warnings she eventually caved and sent me packing. Before I knew it, I joined the army at the age of […]

“Maybe on a subconscious level I just wanted to play the hero” – Ali “I like to slowly take everything in. I observe how people dress, listen to the pitch and tone of their voice. If they’re too loud, I’ll ask myself: are they a threat? Likewise, if a person walks past me in suspicion, […]