Anyone dreaming of a job as assistant to a show-business figure should think twice - the work isn't all that exciting. In fact, it's more often a dog's life, according a former assistant who has worked for more than 50 artists, from starlets to A-list celebrities.
Hence the title of her recently released memoir, I'm an Assistant, Not a Dog, which she has written under the pseudonym Ah Sei (No4) Mama - ah sei being Cantonese slang for dogsbody.
'Many young people want to be a celebrity assistant because they think it's a fun job, but the entertainment world isn't as glamorous as they think,' says No4 Mama.
She, too, had been attracted by the idea of being associated with celebrities but was quickly disillusioned. Star-struck fans should just admire their idols from afar, she says.
There is the occasional perk. Assistants receive tickets to movie premieres, some of the luxury freebies that the stars receive, and share the odd limousine ride to red carpet events.
But, as No4 Mama recounts, the core duties of co-ordinating the artists' work schedules and handling media inquiries made up only a small part of her day. A lot of her time was spent running personal errands, from picking up dry cleaning to taking their pets for spa treatments.
