To many of us, Saturday night is the highlight of the week. For ‘nine to fivers,' it may mean meeting up with some friends after a hard week and hitting the pub.

Others may prefer to go out for a meal and some may wish to spend Saturday evening with their family. But for some, Saturday is just another day in the working calendar, and while people are getting ready to go out or have a relaxing night in, many are just starting, in the middle or at the end of a long shift.

Here are some of the people for whom working at 9 o'clock on a Saturday night is business as usual...

The burlesque dancer

Rosie McClelland (26) from Belfast is a Burlesque dancer. She says:

“I've been a Burlesque dancer for nearly a year now. I perform a few times a month but it's mainly on Saturday nights. Burlesque costs quite a bit to get started with in terms of clothing and accessories but, luckily, I'm the daughter of a dressmaker, so that helps.

Burlesque was started as a form of choreographed striptease without being sleazy or tacky. In Belfast, I dance at a function called ‘Bedlam Ballroom’ on Saturdays in Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter.

Each performance lasts between three to five minutes. Burlesque stems mainly from the 1920s period so I'll play music like Louis Armstrong or Ella Fitzgerald in the background. I dance in front of all sorts of audiences. Many people like to dress up in period clothing and we attract a diverse and mixed crowd.”

The radio DJ

Paul Kennedy (37) from Drogheda hosts the Saturday night dance show on Cool FM. He says.

“My show only lasts for two hours on a Saturday night, but I'll spend the whole week researching and listening to new music to play on it. It's a pretty constant job. I'll download about six or seven new songs every day and listen to them at night. Then I decide if I want to use them. On top of this I take a lot of requests.

People sometimes ring up and ask for things like Paulo Nutini without realising that it's a dance show. Sometimes they just switch on the radio and hear the music and assume I'll play anything. If people ask for artists like Lady Gaga or Beyonce there's usually some kind of dance remix I can play.

Unfortunately, I don't get much time to relax afterwards as I'll have to drive straight to the Coach in Banbridge to DJ there.”

The taxi driver

Angela Methias (58) is a taxi driver from Belfast who lost her arm in a car accident. Saturday night is one of the most important shifts of her week. She says:

“Friday and Saturday nights are the busiest nights of the week for me. I normally start at about two o'clock in the afternoon and continue until three in the morning.

There are a few reasons why I drive a taxi.

I do it mainly because I love the job. I meet so many characters during the course of a shift and we have a lot of laughs. Some people really open up to you and tell you things that they wouldn't tell anyone else. I think it's because I'm a stranger to them. It can be very therapeutic in a way — it makes you feel good. So it's not just a job to me.

Now and again you get people in a taxi who tell you stories to try and surprise or shock you. Sometimes I turn around and say: ‘I'll give you one better. I've only got one arm.’ I love the looks on their faces when I roll up my sleeve. It's a good ice-breaker.

We all need to earn a living, but I'm lucky because I love my job. It’s one of those jobs that you either love or hate. I think if you hate a job you shouldn't do it.”

The policeman

Chief Inspector Robert Murdie is involved in the Get Home Safe campaign in conjunction with Belfast City Council. He says:

“Our campaign focuses on what we call ‘hot spots' around south east Belfast. Around 70% of assaults take place in and around licensed premises in the city. At 9pm, our officers will be getting ready for the night ahead. It's quite quiet early in the evening, but it's at this stage that we try to nip any situation in the bud before it develops. Early in the evening we'll see some people getting rowdy and committing public order offences like urinating in the street.

Aggressive behaviour mainly comes from males aged from about 18 to 24 years old. When we engage with a drunk, we use something called conflict management. We try to calm that person down or get their friends to calm them down.

We also look out for females on their own and pick up stragglers to make sure they get home safe.

It's commonplace for police officers to be sworn at. You become de-sensitised to it after a while. Police officers take these shifts very personally. They consider it to be their turn of duty. If a member of the public gets injured, the officers on that shift will feel personally annoyed or saddened.

Many officers will check the crime figures for that weekend the next day they’re on in the hope that they’ve driven them down.”

The Samaritans volunteer

Alan Heron (53) has been a volunteer for 10 years. He works at the Belfast branch of the Samaritans. He says:

“I realised for the first time about 20 years ago that I wanted to become a volunteer. I didn't get started until about 10 years ago though, when someone who I worked with mentioned that they were involved in volunteering.

Many people think that the Samaritans hotline is just a service for people who feel suicidal — but it's not. We provide all kinds of emotional support. Lonely people contact us, people who feel uneasy about their job security, mortgages and even the the economical climate. The news is constantly full of doom and gloom and that doesn't help either.

At 9pm on a Saturday, we get just as many people calling us and coming into the building as we do during the week. All of our volunteers are highly trained. There's a lot of time put into training to make sure we have the best people on the job.

It does take an emotional toll on our volunteers. Some of us take very difficult calls, but we're all human beings at the end of the day. We can't take our work home with us either. Confidentiality must be ensured at all costs.”

The fireman

District Commander Graham Lowry is responsible for Fire Service operations within south and east Belfast. He says:

“I joined the Fire Service in 1988 and I have served in every station in Belfast. Part of my role now as District Commander involves attending operational incidents as a supervisory officer to either take charge of the incident or provide additional operational support.

I work a flexible duty rota, which means that when I’m on duty at the weekend my shift begins at 9am on the Saturday and finishes on Monday at 9am. By 9pm on Saturday I am 12 hours into a 48 hour shift. Incidents that I attend can be as diverse as a house fire, road traffic collisions, chemical incidents, flooding or even a gas leak.

My father was a fire officer and I spent a lot of my time as a child in the local fire station. My job also has the added advantage of keeping me fit, healthy and active.

It’s a great feeling being able to help people who are in danger and I enjoy high levels of job satisfaction. You can enjoy a long and worthwhile career with the Fire Service.

Unfortunately, while attending incidents, we have come under attack in the past. Firefighting is dangerous enough without this type of extra threat from an increasingly small number of individuals who are not representative of the local community.

When attacks do occur it saddens me, as fire fighters work tirelessly for their community every single day of the year.

Incidents involving a fatality are obviously very difficult to deal with. Naturally you think of your own family and friends and you appreciate how fragile life actually is.

Fire crews are close knit teams, however, and being able to talk about what we have witnessed back at the station following the incident helps with dealing with the emotional side of things. We also share common experiences following a call out and this helps us deal with difficult incidents.

If I wasn't working, I would most likely be the designated driver for my two girls, Emma and Eva who now have a better social life than I do. Some Saturday evenings the whole family goes for a meal and then onto the cinema, where I am always out-voted and end up watching a ‘chick flick.'“

The student

Andy Lambe (23) from Carrickfergus is a design student who prefers to stay in on a Saturday night. He says:

“I decide not to go out every weekend — only to gig nights and events that I feel are worthwhile.

I think that club nights can be very boring, with unsightly drunkenness or irresponsible behaviour.

A typical Saturday night for me could be spent in front of the television unsympathetically critiquing what could be deemed as prime-time broadcasting while pointing out the wrongs of others.

I will then flick channels hoping to find something of cinematic greatness to watch and really enjoy. If still not satisfied with television, I then turn to drawing or reading — with a new interest in pre-1900s Russian literature — the writings of Gogol, Dostoyevsky and Pushkin.

If this doesn’t work, I sing to my dog.”

The hospice volunteer

Collette Murphy (59) from Rostrevor, is retired and volunteers with the St John's House Hospice in Newry which is just one of several hospices run by the Southern Area Hospice Services. She says:

“I've been volunteering with the Hospice for about four years. I'm originally from Northern Ireland, but I lived in England for 34 years. When I came home, I felt like a fish out of water.

I didn't really know many people and most of my friends had moved on or moved away to a different country. I saw volunteering as a bit of a challenge and a good way of meeting people.

On a Saturday, I can start in the Hospice at about six o'clock in the evening. At nine, things are starting to quieten down a little. Most of my work is done on the reception, so I deal with a lot of people coming in and out, whether patients or visitors.

I really get to see the good side of people. Sometimes the public just come in to give a donation and then leave again.

People from a wide range of ages work here, and if you get lonely, it's a good place to find some good company.”

For more information: The Volunteer Development Agency, 129 Ormeau Road, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT7 1SHT. Tel: 028 9023 6100, info@volunteering-ni.org , www.volunteering-ni.org