It’s safe to say that when I was 19 and 20 minutes away from starting a shift at my part-time retail job, I was more than stunned to receive a call telling me I’d secured a job at the ��̳. If you had told me that after going to a state school, college, and then making the decision not to go to university, that a year later I’d be working for the ��̳, I would never have believed it. I was completely overwhelmed with shock, happiness and pride that I could tell my family I now worked for the ��̳. I was ready to throw myself into the deep end and grab the opportunity with both hands!

My background is mainly in theatre, and after college I spent a year working as a young director at The Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester. I have virtually no media experience at all except a GCSE in Media Studies, so on walking into my ��̳ office on my first day, I had no idea what to expect. My apprenticeship is split into two placements, working as a runner on CBeebies for six months, and then as a production management assistant on C��̳ for another six months, which allows me to get a feel for the editorial and production side of TV. It’s a completely new way of working for me, and I’m still adjusting to the steady and then suddenly rapid schedules of TV production, but I’m lucky enough to have a kind and supportive team behind me to help me learn and grow.

Last year, in November, less than a month into the job, I got the chance to work on the CBeebies Christmas Pantomime The Nutcracker at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. The ��̳ had created a Santa’s Grotto worthy Winter Wonderland for 2000 of our youngest audience members to enjoy just outside the theatre, with the live performance being filmed and streamed in the square for families to watch.

There’s something incredibly special about being able to interact with the audience who directly receives the content your team works so hard to create. It was wonderful to see the excitement and impact it has on them and their family’s lives. I had so many grateful parents approach me, and there’s nothing like knowing you’ve contributed to a family’s happiness for the day to make you forget you’re stood in the freezing cold dressed as a pirate.

A month later, I got an opportunity to work on a huge ��̳ event outside of my department – ��̳'s Sports Personality of the Year. The event was filmed in the Birmingham Genting Arena; and we were there for two 12 hour days to act as celebrity stand-ins, allowing the camera operators to rehearse for the live show. We were rehearsing with Claire Balding, Garry Lineker, Gabby Logan and Robbie Williams!

It was incredible to see the huge amount of dedication and effort that goes into planning for a live show. On the final day, we were lucky enough to get to watch the actual live show. The whole arena was electric, and I’ll never forget the feeling of being surrounded by Olympic Champions and to then turn around and see the arena we’d been rehearsing in for two days filled with 10,000 people, all ready to be broadcast live across the nation to six million viewers.

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Production Apprentice: Olivia Nielsen on working at CBeebies, Sports Personality of the Year, and standing in the cold dressed as a pirate