Professor Peter Barlow, 62, is executive director of Sharjah Performing Arts Academy (SPAA), which opened last September. The Briton has been teaching and training actors, performers and theatre technicians for more than 30 years. He was previously chief executive of Guildford School of Acting in England, a consultant to various drama schools and courses, and chair of the Conference of Drama Schools, as well as an Olivier Awards judge.
Mr Barlow has been married for 30 years and is father to UK-based sons, aged 23 and 20. He moved to Sharjah in April 2018, while his wife Amanda continues in her UK drama school job.
I'm being a lot more cautious because we don't know how long this is going to last.
How did your upbringing shape your attitude towards money?
My father was a helicopter pilot in the Royal Air Force, so we travelled extensively and I didn’t really settle anywhere for longer than two years. I have four brothers and one sister. We weren’t on the bread line, but it wasn’t a lavish lifestyle – we were a comfortable, middle class family.
Mum was a full-time nursing sister. We learnt how to look after ourselves quite early on. I had a younger brother and sister, so I was asked to look after them while mum was at work, cooking and cleaning.
When my dad came out of the RAF, he did a variety of jobs: worked in a bank, for an insurance broker, ran kennels. He got work in Dubai in the 1980s. He’d been running a pub so it probably was a financial decision. I visited and saw Dubai when the tallest building was the World Trade Centre. I was beginning to learn the value of money as I grew up.
How much were you paid in your first job?
I did a paper round, aged 11/12. It was horrendous; early starts, poorly paid – probably less than £2 (Dh9) a week.
I had a couple of part-time jobs as a teenager, working pretty much through the whole of my schooling. When I was 16, I worked in a home for autistic children, as a weekend carer for 50p an hour. It wasn’t just financially worthwhile, it was socially and mentally worthwhile.
What led you to enter the acting world?
At one time I wanted to be a vet, then a doctor. I realised I wasn’t going to make it academically, in terms of sciences, so I started going to an amateur dramatics group. I said to my father I wanted to be an actor and was told, ‘no, get a proper job’.
So I went to teacher training college, hated every minute, worked for an employment agency, an officers club, an interior designer hanging blinds and fixing tiles, worked for a builder, went to the US and taught horse riding – a complete mix of work experience before I went to drama school when I was 20.
I had to fund myself, pretty much. I had a small grant, fees paid for, and my dad would give me a little towards living expenses. I worked in a pub and also as a delivery driver on weekends. Saving was not an option, but it gave me fantastic life experience and I came out of drama school without student loan debt going into a profession where it’s quite difficult to make a living.
So you were resourceful topping up your finances?
For the first four or five years I didn’t really stop working because I was prepared to do anything: teaching kids, running a drama group, the next minute doing a commercial, then working as an actor in the West End. I’m not afraid of hard work and was good at finding lots of different jobs.
The first thing we did when I left drama school at 24 was set up a theatre and education company. Six of us toured London schools in a Volkswagen van, making money doing interactive shows.
Doing things that were business-based became part of where I am now at the academy; I’m not only a creative leader, but somebody that looks after business.
Is this something you pass on to students?
It doesn’t matter where you are in the world, earning a living solely from being an actor is difficult. Students who graduate [from SPAA] are going to have to be entrepreneurs. They will have to know how to set up businesses, because there isn’t any arts business in the UAE, not anything like the West End or Broadway. They need to have entrepreneurial skills as well as performance skills, so we’re teaching them how to be business professionals as well. Drama schools and theatre companies need income in order to do creative work.
What luxuries are important to you?
I like buying jewellery for my wife and have a particular like of fancy watches. I have a Longines that cost about £3,500. It’s an investment; they don’t lose value. We also enjoy eating out, trying different hotels, travelling, holidays.
Has the Covid-19 crisis made you economise?
Now we’re able to save because we’re not doing those things. This crisis is pushing us into a saving position. I’m being a lot more cautious because we don’t know how long this is going to last.
In terms of six months, we can cope. I have a little bit of savings. Luckily my boys are still getting paid and my wife is in a pretty secure job, able to teach remotely.
How about professionally?
The academy is fully funded. The students are on spring break until April 12. At the moment all universities and schools are closed until September. We will be teaching the summer term April through to end of June remotely, as best we can. We’ve planned that and can deliver the courses and programmes for that term.
Where do you save?
I have a savings account attached to my bank account, and a pension fund. I used a financial adviser for my pension, but mostly it’s common sense.
What is your best investment?
Our house [in the UK] because of location. The region is relatively bulletproof when the housing market goes up and down. We’ve been there 20 years and it’s more than doubled, value-wise.
We bought property late but one of the big things I’d tell my younger self is ‘overpay your mortgage as much as you can’, because the highest expense is paying for where we live and it’s the longest commitment.
Do you have a philosophy on money?
Money makes it easier to be happy, but it’s not the be-all and end-all.
We all like money and I’m somebody who spends, but I’m not money motivated. I didn’t think, ‘I’ve got to make a million before I’m 40’. I wanted to enjoy the work I do. I never wanted nine-to-five or an office environment. Financial reward is important, but it’s not the only thing or the main motivator.
If you won Dh1m what would you spend it on?
In the early 2000s – when our boys were quite young – we did a short road trip in the US. The ambition is to get a Winnebago [motorhome] and do the tour again, the Californian coastline and perhaps beyond, spend a few months travelling that beautiful coastline.
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Founders: Ines Mena, Claudia Ribas, Simona Agolini, Nourhan Hassan and Therese Hundt
Date started: January 2017, app launched November 2017
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Private/Retail/Leisure
Number of Employees: 18 employees, including full-time and flexible workers
Funding stage and size: Seed round completed Q4 2019 - $1m raised
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, 500 Startups, Vision Ventures, Seedstars, Mindshift Capital, Delta Partners Ventures, with support from the OQAL Angel Investor Network and UAE Business Angels
Step by step
2070km to run
38 days
273,600 calories consumed
28kg of fruit
40kg of vegetables
45 pairs of running shoes
1 yoga matt
1 oxygen chamber
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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UAE
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Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
more from Janine di Giovanni
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
TOURNAMENT INFO
Opening fixtures:
Friday, Oct 5
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Paktia Panthers
Saturday, Oct 6
4pm: Nangarhar Leopards v Kandahar Knights
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Balkh Legends
Tickets
Tickets can be bought online at https://www.q-tickets.com/apl/eventlist and at the ticket office at the stadium.
TV info
The tournament will be broadcast live in the UAE on OSN Sports.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
More from Neighbourhood Watch
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
SQUADS
South Africa:
JP Duminy (capt), Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock (wkt), AB de Villiers, Robbie Frylinck, Beuran Hendricks, David Miller, Mangaliso Mosehle (wkt), Dane Paterson, Aaron Phangiso, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Tabraiz Shamsi
Bangladesh
Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Imrul Kayes, Liton Das (wkt), Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim (wkt), Nasir Hossain, Rubel Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Shafiul Islam, Soumya Sarkar, Taskin Ahmed
Fixtures
Oct 26: Bloemfontein
Oct 29: Potchefstroom
Maestro
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India squad for fourth and fifth Tests
Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rahul, Shaw, Pujara, Rahane (vc), Karun, Karthik (wk), Pant (wk), Ashwin, Jadeja, Pandya, Ishant, Shami, Umesh, Bumrah, Thakur, Vihari
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Bombshell
Director: Jay Roach
Stars: Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie
Four out of five stars
DUBAI WORLD CUP RACE CARD
6.30pm Meydan Classic Trial US$100,000 (Turf) 1,400m
7.05pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,400m
7.40pm UAE 2000 Guineas Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
8.15pm Dubai Sprint Listed Handicap $175,000 (T) 1,200m
8.50pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group Two $450,000 (D) 1,900m
9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,800m
10pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,400m
The National selections
6.30pm Well Of Wisdom
7.05pm Summrghand
7.40pm Laser Show
8.15pm Angel Alexander
8.50pm Benbatl
9.25pm Art Du Val
10pm: Beyond Reason
New schools in Dubai
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
Other key dates
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Finals draw: December 2
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Finals (including semi-finals and third-placed game): June 5–9, 2019
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Euro 2020 play-off draw: November 22, 2019
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Euro 2020 play-offs: March 26–31, 2020
Oscars in the UAE
The 90th Academy Awards will be aired in the UAE from 3.30am on Monday, March 5 on OSN, with the ceremony starting at 5am
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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