Here is one more unusual occupation for you: prompter ! The exclamation mark there is a bit of a contradiction because a prompter is someone who is not supposed to make much noise at all, but remain in the background. Or, in this case, usually, in the foreground, as their job is to prompt or cue actors and actresses when they forget their lines. Or when they neglect to move on the stage to where they are supposed to be situated.

The prompt is located on the stage, in the prompt corner, usually stage left". Nowadays, many of the earlier duties of the prompter are undertaken by the stage manager. He or she will have a copy of the script called the prompt book.

Prompting is still used of course in theatres, especially during rehearsals, but today the word prompter usually means something else though. It is not a person at all, but a machine which tells the television newscaster or narrator what to say. Or officially teleprompter - or autocue as it is also called. We’ve all seen them in the studios, haven’t we? But it takes skill to be able to read the text without seeming to read it.