With Halloween just around the corner, we’ve been exploring some of the weirdest, most wonderful and downright creepy career paths to see how you could take a passion for the paranormal, a flavour for the freaky, a marvel for the morbid and a curiosity for the creepy and turn it into a proper job.
Mortician
Do you enjoy makeovers? Why not work in the ultimate transformation industry and become a funeral makeup artist? For open casket funerals, the family and friends of the deceased want their loved one to appear just they did when they were living and preparing them for viewing takes skills, knowledge, and artistic flare. If you enjoy makeup artistry then this could be a really interesting role for you.
Firstly, you need to be comfortable working with dead bodies. Once you get past that barrier, cosmetology classes will give you a solid foundation of makeup techniques. It is also important to have hair styling skills to complete the look of the deceased. The cosmetics used in funeral makeup are specifically manufactured for purpose due to texture that you are working with, and mortuary science can further your knowledge of how cosmetics are applied to the dead including restoration airbrushing. Associated occupations include anatomical pathology technician, funeral directing and embalming. Find out more here
Professional Mourner
Are you a great actor and conversationalist with fantastic social skills and a knack for looking sad? Then professional mourning may be for you! A professional mourner is somebody who is hired by the organisers of a funeral to appear as if they are a genuine mourner at a funeral or wake. Yes. Really!
It’s not as simple as turning up though. Mourners are required to meet up with the relevant organiser prior to the funeral to discuss the life of the deceased. They will be informed of their background, achievements and life story so that they can confidently engage in conversation with other funeral attendees. They will also receive instruction on how they should behave during the service and how they should integrate with other people. Professional mourners are usually required due to a low predicted attendance, a popularity issue or the deceased/family being new to the area or the country. Funerals are usually emotionally charged, so mourners need to be confident individuals with the ability to judge and react quickly, even after a few drams at the wake. No experience required. Contact Rent a Mourner to offer your services.
Taxidermist
Taxidermy is the art of preparing, stuffing and mounting the skins of animals so that they appear as lifelike as possible for display. The service is required to prepare animals for locations such as museums, exhibitions, educational displays, homes and personal hunting collections. Taxidermists must be highly knowledgeable on the anatomy of all types of vertebrates and have an artistic flare for sculpture, painting and tanning (treating animal hide – not hitting the beach).
Whatever creature they work with is usually required to appear in a pose which is as lifelike as possible and even the slightest mistake can make the finished product look ridiculous. As this is a highly specialised profession, it is necessary to undertake a course or which will give you practical training in the technical processes and introduce you the necessary tools for the job. You will of course have to be comfortable being around deceased animals, and learn about the laws which apply to selling and processing animals. Courses are available throughout the country. Find out more about training here
Detective
Does the prospect of solving grizzly crimes get you excited? Plenty of TV series have glamorised the escapades of detectives as they puzzle over how crimes have been committed which has made it quite a popular career choice. But what does it actually involve? Detectives are plain-clothes police officers who investigate crime in the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) or in departments dealing with drugs, murder, rape, theft, burglary and internet crime. They also work with the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) or Counter Terrorist Command and various government agencies.
You will need to have strong social and problem solving skills and be flexible to work around the clock, depending on the case that you are assigned to. You will have to interview suspects, analyse crime scenes for evidence (some of which may be gruesome), execute search warrants and prepare cases for court. A detective needs to be a good judge of character to determine the likely suspects in an investigation, have the strength and stamina to deal with violent crime and comfortable with the job entailing a degree of danger. Detectives begin their career in the police
Medium
Do you like
the idea of communicating with dead people? Luckily you can make a living out of it. Many people find great comfort in visiting mediums who help them ‘communicate’ with people (or animals) who have passed away. Mediums claim to be able to hear the deceased communicating with them in their mind and they choose what information to pass on the client, depending on what they want out of the session.
According to mediums, spirits are not literally seen, they are seen in the ‘mind’s eye’. When connected with spirits, whatever emotions they are experiencing will be felt by the medium. You may be sceptical, but a lot of people in the UK regularly rely on mediums for comfort and reassurance after the passing of a loved one. Every medium brings their own style and flare to their sessions. Some may be light-hearted, others very serious. The London College of Psychic studies offers foundation, intermediate and advanced classes in psychic and mediumship as well as programmes in shamanism, palmistry and tarot reading.
