Picture this: Two ex-gas engineers, a couple of dodgy Christmas hangovers, and a podcast studio held together with fence posts and MDF. That’s how Off The Job: A Trade Podcast Overtime kicks off. Fresh from a festive season of questionable decisions, Keiran Yates and Pete Withers sit down to launch the first episode of their unfiltered, unhinged deep dive into the world of tradesmen’s tales. With producers Abigail and Robbie lurking behind the cameras (and occasionally dropping in with horror stories), this episode is an absolute rollercoaster.
A Christmas to Forget (or Remember for All the Wrong Reasons)
Pete kicked things off with a truly heartwarming Christmas story, by which we mean, a tale of Baileys, too much red wine, and an unfortunate roadside incident involving a deer. The moral? Maybe don’t mix Baileys and wine before a long car journey.
Meanwhile, Keiran had his own festive disaster. After rolling in at 3 AM, he somehow managed to wake his partner up not once, but twice, first by knocking on the door despite having his key, and then by setting off his alarm at 5:40 AM. The response? A full glass of water to the face. If near-drowning wasn’t bad enough, he then had to spend the rest of the night on the wet side of the bed, contemplating his life choices.
When Community Outreach Goes Horribly Wrong
You’d think collecting funny trade stories for a podcast would be straightforward. Turns out, not so much. Abigail, the podcast’s producer, had spent days trawling Reddit and Facebook for the best (and worst) trade tales. Instead, she was bombarded with insults, compensation demands, and, to Pete and Keiran’s horror, extremely detailed Two Girls, One Cup-inspired fan fiction about the two of them in a portaloo.
Yes. You read that correctly.
Cue Keiran and Pete’s sheer panic as they attempted to erase the mental image from their minds. No amount of fence post supported desks could protect them from the horrors of the internet.
The ‘Wrestling’ Incident
One listener submission stood out, not for its technical insights, but for its sheer awkwardness. A tradesman was sent to hang radiators in a client’s house. All seemed normal until a second bloke walked in. The customer nodded at him, he nodded back… and then the noises started. No, not power tools—wrestling. Or at least, that’s what they claimed. Cue a hasty exit and a very uncomfortable phone call to the boss.
Driller Killer
Pete, ever the responsible tradesman, shared a legendary story from his apprentice days. Drilling through a wall, no tape measure, just vibes. He was pretty confident he’d end up in the right spot. He wasn’t. The drill bit went straight into the next-door flat, more specifically, into the duvet of a sleeping child.
The kid? Absolutely terrified.
The mum? Furious.
Pete? Legging it.
To this day, he’s not sure if she ever got a replacement quilt.
When the ‘Weird Noise’ Isn’t a Boiler
Ever had a job where something felt off? One tradesman certainly did. He got called out to investigate a mysterious noise in a customer’s house. After checking walls, floorboards, and pipes, he finally opened a bedside drawer,and found the culprit.
A battery-powered… ‘personal appliance’.
The awkwardness levels were off the charts as the customer insisted, “Oh, that must be my daughter’s phone.”
Yeah. Sure it was.
The Drag Queen Dungeon
One of Pete’s more unexpected jobs involved a seemingly standard bathroom installation. All was going smoothly until the customer, a 6’4” bloke with a full beard, asked if Pete wanted to see his dungeon.
Now, most people would say no. Pete, ever the gentleman, thought, “He’s made me tea all day. It’d be rude not to.” And so, he followed him into what was indeed… a fully equipped dungeon. Chains, harnesses, the whole kit and caboodle. The kicker? The bloke introduced himself as “Mimi” and twirled in a full-length dress.
Pete’s response?
“Beautiful.”
Why Do This Job Without the Right Tools?
After all that madness, there’s one thing every tradesperson can agree on—working smarter, not harder. Whether it’s avoiding community outreach nightmares or keeping your paperwork in order, the Gas Certificate App is here to make your life easier. Stop drowning in admin (or, in Keiran’s case, in bed). Get your certificates sorted quickly so you can focus on the important things—like dodging weird customer requests and avoiding Reddit at all costs.
Got a Story? Send It In!
Tradespeople have the best stories, and we want to hear them. Got a customer from hell? An apprentice mishap? A workplace blunder? Send them in to Off The Job Podcast and get involved.
Just… maybe leave the portaloo fan fiction out of it. Please.
Stay tuned for the next Overtime episode—who knows what disasters the lads will discuss next?
