4 ★ FTWeekend 17 August/18 August 2019Style
B
lack cabs are synonymous
with Britain; as stronga
symbol of the London traffic-
scape as red double-decker
buses. Like Britain’s wider
identity, the black taxi is in a time of flux
— under threat from ride-hailing apps,
change abounds.
On a recent Tuesday morning on Lon-
don’s Caledonian Road, I spotted a black
cab wrapped in bright pink advertising
for the fast-fashion retailer PrettyLit-
tleThing. The driver was a red lipstick-
wearing woman. Regarding her in her
flamingo- coloured cab, she seemed like
some rare, bright bird. She is, indeed, a
rarity; data from Transport for London
from 2018 shows that of London’s
22,928 black cab drivers, only 546 are
women — that’s less than 2.5 per cent.
Cab drivers are the holders of the
city’s secrets. Not only do they have to
learn London’s 25,000 streets by rote —
nicknamed “The Knowledge”, it’s the
world’s toughest taxi test — they’re also
more attuned to the mood of London’s
people (whether the topic is Brexit,
Boris Johnson orBake Off) than anyone
else. Somewhere between pollsters and
therapists, they are privy to it all; our
hurried phone-calls, our catch-ups with
colleagues, our drunken speeches. They
hear us rant, they sometimes console
our tears. And female cabbies, it turns
out, have a style all their own. I was
determined to find out more.Jenny Watkins
I came to London from Dorset to train
to be an actress. It’s the same old story
— it was OK for a while, but I realised
I’d have to get a serious job at some
point. Cabbing is, absolutely without
compromise, flexible. You can pick it
up and put it down.
When you have tourists, it’s lovely to
give them a talk about stuff in London,
or its histories. And then you get
people who want to talk politics — you
learn very quickly which side they’re
on. Generally speaking, it’s usually
easier just to side with them, so that
does take a bit of acting.
Often, I feel like a news presenter as
people only see my top half from the
back of the cab. But that doesn’t mean I
don’t like to dress up. You never know
when you will pick up a customer from
The Ritz or The Connaught Hotel. I get
my eyelashes tinted, I like to keep my
hair clean and as I wear sandals I
always get a French manicure on my
toes. And SPF50 on my right arm is
essential when driving, for protection
from the sun.You find yourself taking on many
roles, depending on the character in
the back of the cab. Sometimes you
have conversations with people and
you feel like you could have been their
best friend, other times there is
complete silence. It’s a bit like being a
hairdresser — some people take the
chance to disclose their worldly secrets.
The cab is like a sound booth — like
those rooms in reality TV shows where
people can go and vent. Sometimes I
feel I should record it all and send it to
the government — you get such a
widespread range of opinions, and
some of them so articulate.
I’m a routine-type person. I get up
about 4.30am and get out as quick as
possible. I always have Murray Mints, a
nail file, moisturiser and hand cream in
my glove compartment and tissues —
because you get people who are ill or,
sadly quite often, crying. I’ll do 20 or 25
journeys a day, on average. On rainy
days, you get lots of short journeys —
we’re always praying for rain, us
cabbies. Rain and train delays — the
things that no one else wants.Danielle Handbridge
I have a little routine of laying
everything out in the morning in the
car. I put my phone in place, turn on
my credit card machine, before
driving to get a coffee. Then I can
start my day.
I also can’t work without hand
sanitiser. I’ve been driving for nine
years now — it will be 10 next
February. I like to be smart, but
comfortable too — I wouldn’t wear
jeans, for example. I always like to
have my hair done, and dress well.
We are professional drivers so it is
nice to be smart, especially if you
have to get out to help passengers
with their luggage. I like to make an
effort. I always have my handbag on
the left of me, and I always worry
when people put their luggage in the
front that they’ll accidentally take
my bag with them.
People are always surprised when
they see I’m a woman driver. I’mpregnant with my third child at the
moment. I would always encourage
women and mothers to think of
driving as a career option. I never
had to worry about fitting work
around the kids; it’s so flexible, you
don’t have to worry. And when
you’re off work, you’re really off.
I loved it the second I got in the
cab. It doesn’t matter what sex you
are, what race you are, you’re all
making the same money — andanyone can do it. It’s probably one of
the few careers in the world where
men are always paid equally to
women. My husband is also a black
cab driver and I always know we’re
earning the same.
I love working with the public.
People are what make the world
work. I’ve had people getting it on in
the back. I’ve had girls going on their
first date. I’ve had people going for
interviews and they’re nervous and
you have to keep stopping as they
need to go to the toilet. I’ve had
people leaving hospital having lost
someone. People going to funerals.
Often people start talking about the
weather, but that can lead on to the
most serious, intense conversation —
we’re all fragile, really. Often people
feel they can open up more to a
stranger — I’ve had people talk about
their work, their relationships, even
their sex life.
There are times when people get
out and I think, actually, I made
them feel better. I’m now doing a
counselling course. This job has
made me find my niche. I’ve realised
how much I love helping people.Dee Ferrer
You have to dress
professionally in this job. I
don’t like it when I see male
drivers getting out of their
cars in flip-flops. You can’t
wear them when driving as
it’s illegal. If I got in an
accident — even though it
wasn’t my fault — I could be
done for wearing them. So
you need to be appropriate
and safe. I like to wear
trainers as they are the most
comfortable.
Occasionally, I really dress
up to the nines for work just
because I feel like it. My go-
to is lipstick — my favourite
is a pale pink colour by
Charlotte Tilbury — and a
pair of earrings. When they
are on, I’m ready. I always
wear jeans from Marks and
Spencer. And I’ve worn the
same prescription sunglasses
every day for the past three
years. It took me a while to
get used to them due to their
shape, but I always get
compliments.
I do think we female
drivers have a different
experience to the men,
especially in terms of the
conversations we have with
passengers. But it’s a great
opportunity to meet a whole
range of people. Once, a
male customer noticed my
watch. It’s from Cartier. I
wear it every day as it was a
gift. He turned out to be a
rare watch dealer and so we
talked all about his work
throughout his journey, butwhen he left the cab he
forgot his phone. I managed
to return it to him and as a
thank you he serviced my
watch for free at his
workshop, which I thought
was so special. You wouldn’t
believe the stories we
cabbies have to tell.
My dad was a cab driver —
I actually learnt to drive in a
cab. I was married by 18. I
wanted to do The
Knowledge in the 1980s, but
my husband at the time
wasn’t very accommodating.
Later, my son and I did
The Knowledge together. I
wanted to do something formyself. We were the first
mother-and-son duo to do
it. I was 51, but it proved to
my kids and to me that age
doesn’t really matter.
Mindset is what’s important.
I was off and about on a
scooter, learning all the
street names — that’s the
best way to practise, as there
are about 320 routes you
have to learn.
It’s been an incredible
opportunity to do this job; it
would be a shame if we were
“demised” in the next 10
years [because of apps like
Uber]. It could happen. We
could end up like the
gondolas in Venice.Sallyanne Crump
I’ve been driving for 13 years now. I
was 39 when I went into it. I had
three small children and it was hard
juggling school commitments with
work. My husband is a taxi driver, so
is my dad and other family members
— brothers, sisters, nephews. I
wanted a career where I could work
when I wanted, to work around my
children. It never crossed my mind
that I’d ever do it before that. I always
thought I’d do desk jobs in offices.
I leave the door at 7.30am. I’m not
really one for make-up; I simply just
shower, wash my hair and off I go. My
light goes on and from then I’m
working. I focus on comfortable
clothing because I’m sitting down all
day — always trousers, in cotton or
denim, because I have to help people
in with their luggage. And I always
wear sensible shoes, either loafers or
boots in winter. Never heels. I dress
according to the time of year, too. I
like wearing bright colours in the
summer, and in winter I will keep a
light jacket in the car with me, for
when it gets cold.
Usually, I head towards a station in
the morning, but often I’ll get a job on
the way. Everyone in the car has a
different opinion on things. It’s niceto ask people what they think and be
able to listen to a wide variety of
opinions. Some days, everyone wants
to talk about Donald Trump, others,
everyone will bring upLove Island.
There’s a lot of lonely people out
there and sometimes it’s nice to talk
to a stranger — and offload. They
think they’ll never see you again.
Which isn’t actually always the case,
as on numerous occasions I’ve picked
up people who I’ve driven before.
Sometimes two days in a row. As I’m
a woman and there aren’t so many of
us, they’ll remember you and say “Oh
you’ve picked me up before.” There’s
a lady who works in the City who I
end up picking up every two to three
weeks andwe’ve become friends. We
pick up where we left off.
People always comment on the fact
I’m a woman. One passenger said
she hadn’t planned to get a cab, but
when she saw a female driver she had
to get in. Sometimes people put
children in the cab to go from one
place and be picked up at the other
end. I know in those instances they
appreciate that I’m a woman. You do
get the odd sexist man who gets in the
back who thinks I don’t know where
I’m going, but that’s pretty rare. Most
people are really nice.It’s nice to be smart,
especially if you have to
get out to help passengerswith their luggage
Occasionally, I
really dress up to
the nines for workPhotographs for the FT by Arabelle ZhuangQueens
of the
road
Profile| Only 2 per cent of
London’s cabbies are women. But
they have a driving style of their
own, discoversLou Stoppard
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