Five years ago I applied to the Film Artistes' Association - the union for extras - in an attempt to find a way of funding my writing. I needed a job that didn't take all my time and yet paid well. Prostitution had crossed my mind - I expect most women fantasise about that - but the memory of a foreign student and patron of tarts whom I'd once taught brought me back to reality.

LRB 20 June 1985 | PDF Download