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We like Debbie McGee's showbiz agency.........not a lot
The Daily Mirror
Penman & Sommerlad 14/02/2008
It was a bit like a Paul Daniels magic trick... you hand over a bundle of notes and they vanish into thin air.
Only this time it was Paul's wife Debbie McGee who was waving the not-very-magic wand.
Mum Andrea Barlow had been understandably cautious when she took her talented young daughter Gina along to a showbiz agency.
She'd already been stung for £180 by one dodgy agency which had taken her money and done nothing - but this new one was Debbie McGee Models.
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"Tv/Film Extras & Models Wanted!" its adverts ran, alongside a picture of Debbie.
"Catwalk, film, television, stage, dance. All ages welcome. No experience necessary."
So Andrea took 10-year-old Gina, a budding dancer, to a casting session at a hotel in Bournemouth where they live.
"Debbie was extremely friendly and we were introduced to Paul," recalls Andrea.
"We filled in a form and paid the £125 charge because they were established in the business and I felt they could be trusted.
"There were loads of people arriving and we were all given a signed photograph of Paul and Debbie."
Debbie insists that everyone there was warned that showbiz was "very tough and fickle" and there was no guarantee of work.
"Debbie did tell us showbiz was fickle," admitted Andrea. "However she also emphasised her massive address book filled with agents and casting directors she knows through all her years in the business and gave the impression that if anyone could get work for her clients then it was her and Paul."
But according to a survey by the Stage newspaper, three quarters of people who pay up-front fees to acting agencies get no work.
And Gina was one of them.
Debbie would not tell us how many of hopefuls she recruited or how many got paid work, though in an email last month to clients she wrote that "just a handful" got nothing.
Now the agency is being taken over and Debbie's bailing out. "To each and every one of you I so enjoyed meeting you and I wish you every success," she wrote.
Gina has not been taken on by the new agency yet Debbie is adamant she provided a legitimate service.
"Over the period Gina was with us three people, including myself, looked at in excess of 7,000 casting breakdowns for film, TV, theatre, commercials and corporate work," she told us.
Gina's story appalled campaigner Clive Hurst of acting union Equity. Although it is not illegal to collect upfront administration fees, Clive says they are the "biggest organised scam in the entertainment industry".
"Paying a fee up-front and then getting no work is awful, especially for children," he said.
"Legitimate agencies, including those run by celebrities, find jobs for their clients and only then charge a fee."
From April, up-front charges at casting sessions will be banned and a seven day cooling-off period introduced.
But Clive warns that the cooling-off period won't help because it will take months for you realise the agency is not going to come up with any work.
Meanwhile Andrea is philosophical about having nothing to show for £125 apart from two signed celeb snaps.
"I guess we paid quite a high price for the photos," she said.
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