Dan:
 Years ago, Jamie Owens was sitting in his cab near Trafalgar Square in London when a woman ran up to his window.
 
 Jamie:
 She said, "I'll give you 40 pounds to take me to the Dorchester Hotel." Well, at the time, I think the fare used to go about six pounds. And I went, "Oh, go on. Get in then." So I took her round to the Dorchester. She got out. She went, "Here you go." I went, "No, no. Look, it's far too much. Just, if you want to tip me, 20's fine." She said, "No, no. I said I'd give you 40. There's the 40 pounds." And as she went into the hotel, the doorman came over and he went, "You do know who that was, don't you?" And I went, "No." He went, "That's um, um, what's her name? Um, um, uh, what'd you call it? Uh, uh." "Oh no, she's famous then, is she?"
 
 Dan:
 Did you ever find out who it was?
 
 Jamie:
 Nope. Ain't got a clue. Haven't got a clue.
 
 Dan:
 Then another time, the same thing happened again. He picked up some famous people without realizing it, but this time he found out later who they were.
 
 Jamie:
 I picked up these two girls one night, and with two young fellows, and they're talking about their record's gone to number one wherever. And I'm thinking, "Yeah, all right."
 
 Dan:
 Oh, wow.
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah. So I'm around a friend's house and he's got Top of the Pops on and the Spice Girls are on the TV. And I said, "Who are they?" He said, "They're the Spice Girls. Haven't you heard of them?" I said, "No." It was a bit bad coming from someone who used to be a DJ for 20 years, wasn't it?
 
 Dan:
 Wait, you had the Spice Girls in your taxi?
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah, it was Baby Spice and Ginger-
 
 Dan:
 No way.
 
 Jamie:
 ... and some fellows. Yeah. I didn't even recognize them when I picked them up.
 
 Dan:
 I'm Dan Heath and this is What It's Like To Be. In every episode we walk in the shoes of someone from a different profession, a turnaround consultant, a hair stylist, a high school principal. We want to know what do they do all day at work? Today we're going global. We'll ask Jamie Owens what it's like to be a London cabbie. We'll talk about why it's so expensive to become a London cabbie, how he thinks people have changed over the years, and the insane test he had to pass to get his license. Stay with us.
 So when you leave in the morning, do you have a commitment to do a certain number of hours regardless of your luck that day? Or do you try to hit a certain financial target, whether it's quick or slow, or how do you think about it?
 
 Jamie:
 I always think I'm going to do about eight hours. And if I hit me target a lot earlier, it depends on how the day's going. If your luck's in, you tend to stick with it and then carry on. If you've had a hard day and it hasn't really been flowing for you, but you've hit one job that sort of turns your day around, sometimes you might think, "That's it. I'm calling it a day and going home now." Because it's not really been working for you. It's only that one job that's really turned it around for you.
 
 Dan:
 Do most London cabbies work for a company or are they independent?
 
 Jamie:
 No, all London taxi's drivers are totally independent and self-employed. Slightly different to everywhere else in the world, whereby there's no restriction to the number of black cab drivers, London taxi drivers in London. The only restriction is that you have to complete The Knowledge of London.
 
 Dan:
 Oh, this is something I wanted to talk to you about. I've been so excited. I'm sure some of our listeners have heard of this and perhaps others haven't, but London cab drivers have to take an exam called The Knowledge. I've seen it called the hardest test in any subject in the world. You've passed it. Tell our listeners, what do you have to know to pass the test?
 
 Jamie:
 So in 1865, they introduced what is now known as The Knowledge and is called The Knowledge of London. It's what every single person who wants to become a London taxi driver, a black cab driver, has to do to acquire their license. Now what they have to do is they have to commit to memory every single street, government building, theater, cinema, hotel, apartment block, office building, basically anywhere that someone wants to be taken to within a six-mile radius of Charing Cross.
 
 Dan:
 We're talking about thousands of streets, right? I mean, leave alone the sights.
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah. You're talking about 25,000 streets. I mean, obviously there's no way you can ever always know all 25,000 streets. But you could be asked, when you go up to be tested, any one of those streets. Certain examiners tend to stick to certain streets and you get to know which ones they can ask. But they could ask you anything within London that someone might ask to be taken to.
 
 Dan:
 Do you remember what some of the questions were for your test?
 
 Jamie:
 One examiner just drove me mad once. His name was Mr. Ormes. And I've met him since doing The Knowledge and I got on really well with him. But when I went up for what they call an appearance in front of him, basically he'll ask you to take him from one place to another and you have to repeat the shortest route, not the quickest, verbally to him. He asked me to go from Clapham Common to Streatham Common. And then he said to me, "Are you sure that's the shortest route?" And I said, "Yes, sir, it's the shortest route I can see." And then he said, "Okay. Take me from Streatham Common to Clapham Common." And I said, "I'll run the route."
 And he said, "Are you sure that's the shortest route?" I said, "It's the shortest route I can see, sir." And he said, "Okay, take me from Clapham Common to Streatham Common." I run the route again. He said, "Are you sure that's the shortest route?" I said, "Yes, sir. Shortest route I can see." And he said, "Okay, take me from Streatham Ice Rink," which is basically on Streatham Common, "To Clapham Common," and I did it again. And sometimes it's just to test your character.
 
 Dan:
 Wait, so he was just messing with you to see if you would get nervous and change your answer?
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah, see whether you would lose your temper, basically.
 
 Dan:
 Wow. For listeners who aren't familiar with this, this is not the kind of thing where you buy a study book at the bookstore and spend a couple of weekends preparing. This can take years to train for, right?
 
 Jamie:
 It's quite funny because British Airways have just announced that they're starting a pilot training scheme. And if you apply and you're successful, then within two years you will qualify as a first officer to fly a jet with a hundred or so people on it. So within two years you can fly a plane. It'll take you between three and four years at the moment to become a London taxi driver.
 
 Dan:
 Wow. Three to four years.
 
 Jamie:
 Some people do do it quicker. I mean, when I did it, I did it in 21 months. That was when I started The Knowledge 35 years ago. It's making me sound old now, but I just wanted to get it finished. I'm one of them sort of people, once I start something like that, I just want to get it finished. I was really keen to get it done.
 
 Dan:
 Do you remember those days? What was your strategy for preparing?
 
 Jamie:
 Because there are schools you can go to that help you do The Knowledge of London. And if you asked any of the people that run any of these schools, they'll tell you that the way I did it was the totally wrong way to do it. Because they'll tell you you've got to do the runs... Because the Public Carriage Office, as they were then, is now part of Transport for London, used to give you a book of runs. And when I did it, there was 468 runs that you initially had to learn. And it's worked out very cleverly originally because they all crisscross over each other. So in the end, you build up a picture of the whole of London in your brain, basically. They'll also tell you that at the end of each run, you should learn a quarter of a mile radius around it and learn all of the places around a quarter of a mile at each end. So in the end, you end up doing quarter of a miles all over London and it all joins up. Basically, all I did was just did all the 468 runs.
 
 Dan:
 And that was enough for you?
 
 Jamie:
 Well, I just thought that I'm going to be crisscrossing all these places. What's the point I was wasting me time doing a quarter of a mile at each end? Because I'm going to be going to some of these places anyway on these runs. Then what I did was I just went and picked up the places that I didn't know and went and looked at them so that I could visualize them. The whole idea is that you can visualize London in your head.
 
 Dan:
 That was the thing that in just reading a little bit about it that struck me is it's not just a roadways, almost like a math problem. It's also like they want you to have the contextual knowledge. They want you to know... They might give you the name of a chef and their new restaurant, but they might not tell you what the name of the restaurant is or the address. And so you have to know enough to make sense of that. Or they might ask you where a certain statue is or...
 
 Jamie:
 Exactly.
 
 Dan:
 I mean, that's just a phenomenal depth of knowledge.
 
 Jamie:
 Well, one of the things that some of the examiners used to do if they didn't think you'd been out and looking at these places... If they asked you a particular point, as we call it, a particular building, and if they thought that you hadn't been there, they might turn around and say, "What color is the door?"
 
 Dan:
 What color is the door in one of the world's biggest cities? I mean, this is just mind-boggling.
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah, I mean nowadays there's only 320 runs. They've not condensed it, I wouldn't say. They've taken out some of the duplicate runs. Because some of them did overlap with each other and were unnecessary really, so they've reduced it slightly. But obviously, places are changing in London all the time, so it's a continual learning process. Because hotels change names, restaurants change names, streets close, new housing developments are built, new buildings are built. It's a continual learning process all the time when you're driving around.
 
 Dan:
 What do you think it did to your brain to pass The Knowledge?
 
 Jamie:
 Well, they say that London taxi drivers have got an enlarged hippocampus, which is the navigational part of your brain. And they're doing studies on taxi drivers' brains at the moment. And one of the things that they've come up with is that there's very few London taxi drivers that have suffered with dementia or Alzheimer's.
 
 Dan:
 Really?
 
 Jamie:
 And this is what they're doing these studies into, cab drivers' hippocampuses and the way cab drivers' brains work and how they manage to retain all with this information. The whole idea is, as I said, you build up a visual picture of the whole of London. So when someone gets into your taxi, they might get into your taxi at Waterloo Station and they say, "Take me to King's Cross Station." Immediately when they say that, you're building up a picture in your mind as to which way you're going to drive. I'm already doing it now. You know you're going to leave Waterloo Station, go up Waterloo Road, over Waterloo Bridge, and you sort of visualize which way you're going to go.
 
 Dan:
 I have to ask this. This is a sacrilegious question and I hate myself for asking it. But in the age of GPS and Google Maps, what is the point of still doing The Knowledge?
 
 Jamie:
 Google Maps is wrong. There's quite a number of cases where Google Maps will try to send you down one-way streets the wrong way. It'll take you an extremely long way around, which is not the idea when you're driving a taxi. What you've got to remember is we work on a taxi meter that works on distance and time. Now if we go an extremely long way around, that's going to be more expensive for the passenger. We're not working on a fixed price. So basically, the idea is to get the passengers to where they want to go in the most efficient way in the shortest route for the most economical price at the same time. There's this fallacy that we go around the houses to try to earn an extra 20P or things like that, and it's a load of rubbish. The most profitable way of driving a cab is to get people in and out as quick as possible.
 
 Dan:
 But it seems like there's something... I mean, maybe this is almost an aesthetic objection or something, but I really admire this kind of Everest climb of mastering The Knowledge. And even if you were 10% more accurate than Google Maps or something, it feels like there's something beyond accuracy that's being achieved there.
 
 Jamie:
 I think it's the whole package, Dan. It is. People use us. Yes, on certain journeys we are more expensive than private hire vehicles or some of the apps they're using. The word I don't like to say, apps like Uber and things like that. But over a long period of time, if you're a regular user of taxis or of Uber, you'll find that there's very little difference in the two prices. But with us, you're getting into basically a hundred thousand dollar vehicle.
 
 Dan:
 Is it really?
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah.
 
 Dan:
 A hundred thousand dollar. Why?
 
 Jamie:
 Because they're a purpose-built vehicle. And our mayor has said that from 2018, any taxi that's first licensed, in other words, its first license has to be zero emissions capable. Taxis have always been expensive. Because they're a low production run. I think they sell about a thousand a year.
 
 Dan:
 Oh, wow. I never thought about that. Wow. It's just shocking what a huge, I mean, intellectual and financial investment it is to get started between the price of the taxi and passing The Knowledge.
 
 Jamie:
 It's a career choice, Dan. It's a little bit different to anywhere else in the world, where in certain places people turn to taxi driving as a stopgap between jobs. Whereas in London, it tends to be a career choice.
 
 Dan:
 That's so interesting, isn't it? Yeah, it does have that feel of a transition or a side job or something, but it's very different there. Why is that?
 
 Jamie:
 I think it's because of the commitment of actually doing The Knowledge. If you're going to commit to doing that, it's got to be worthwhile at the end of it. And not so much financially worthwhile because, I mean, we can talk about that later, but it's rewarding in the fact that once you pass The Knowledge, you feel like you've achieved something. And you feel like you're a cut above the rest to a certain extent. And also, as I said earlier, it's the flexibility. When you work for a company, if you want to have the day off to go to your children's sports day or parents' evening at school, then you have to ask your employer for the time off. If you're a taxi driver, the only person you've got to answer to is yourself. As long as you earn enough money to pay your bills, you've only got to answer to yourself.
 
 Dan:
 Hey, folks, this show is one year old. Here's the State of the Union. I love making this show. I hope you can tell. And apparently thousands of you seem to like listening to it, so that's great for both of us. If you're new to the show, you've probably gotten a feel for how we're different. What we're chasing here is the miraculous in the everyday. What's it like to sit across from a married couple on the cusp of divorce and try to get them to see each other again? And what's it like to do the wedding day hairstyle for a bride who you've known since she was a little girl? And what's it like to haul 32,000 pounds of frozen dead rats across the country? A year in, we have not blasted you with a single paid ad. No mattresses, no hiring firms, nothing.
 A couple of swaps with other shows that we like, and that's it. That's been good for you, maybe a little less good for us. If you have appreciated that absence, you can give us a gift, suitcases of cash, always appreciated, or a review on Apple Podcasts, or the simple exquisite gift of a share. Pick your favorite episode and send it to a friend. In honor of this one-year landmark. We won't be ad-free forever. We got to grow up sometime, but let's enjoy it while it lasts. Happy first anniversary, everybody. Now back to the show.
 So are young people still coming into the profession?
 
 Jamie:
 Not as many as there was before. The number of people coming into profession is worrying, to be honest with you. Because our numbers are dwindling and we are losing about a thousand drivers a year, which is-
 
 Dan:
 Oh, wow.
 
 Jamie:
 It's not a shock really, because there's always been a turnover of about a thousand drivers a year. Because you'd have drivers retiring or unfortunately passing away, and then newer drivers coming in. And the newer drivers coming in would replenish those that were either retiring or sadly passed. But we're not getting the numbers coming through to replace those that are leaving the trade.
 
 Dan:
 So what do you think that will mean 10 years from now?
 
 Jamie:
 Unfortunately, unless there's a huge uptake in younger people doing The Knowledge, the way it's looking at the moment is that we are a dying trade. And over a period of time, probably 10, 15 years, we're no longer going to be a viable trade. There won't be the numbers left to service the train stations and the airports and things like that. So I don't know where it's going to leave us. We'll end up like the gondolas in Venice, I think.
 
 Dan:
 That feels sad.
 
 Jamie:
 It does. It does. I mean, I personally love driving a taxi. 33 years later, and I still love it. And my brother did The Knowledge and become a taxi driver after me. But he was a builder before and he always loved building. He did it because he injured his back and he always hated it. And during the pandemic, he just didn't bother renewing his license. With regards to taxi driving, we're like chalk and cheese. He hated it, I love it.
 
 Dan:
 What do you think is the difference there? What about your personality fit with it?
 
 Jamie:
 I love driving. I've always loved driving. I wanted to do The Knowledge to become a cab driver since I was about 18. But then I found out you couldn't get your license until you was 21. And at the time it was taken about two years, and I sort of put it to the back of my mind and I went off and worked for British Telecom. Then a friend of mine I bumped into, I was the best man at his wedding and I hadn't seen him for a few months. And I just said to him, "What are you doing?" He said, "Oh, I'm doing The Knowledge." And I said, "Oh, can I come out with you one Sunday, if you're going out to do some runs? I'll see if I like it." And I went out with him. And the funny thing was I ended up completing it and he gave it up. And then he started again and he got his license eight years after me.
 
 Dan:
 What's the best conversation you've ever had in your taxi?
 
 Jamie:
 I think the funniest one that sticks in my mind, and it always sort of sticks in my mind. I picked up this barrister one night. Some of your listeners might not know what a barrister is, but it's like a lawyer that represents people in a higher court. They're the ones that wear the wigs and gowns. I took him up to where he lived in Kings Cross and he said, "Do you know what, young man?" And I said, "What's that, sir?" He said, "I liken your profession to my own." And I said, "How is that, sir?" He said, "Well..." He said, "We take on all takers..." He said, "And we never know where the hell we're going to end up." He didn't say where the hell we're going to end up, but. It's a bit stronger than that, but I'm not going to swear on your podcast, Dan.
 
 Dan:
 So what makes a good passenger?
 
 Jamie:
 Passengers have changed over the years, and I'll tell you for why. 25 years ago, people used to get in the back of the taxi, especially if they was on their own, and they'd want to have a chat with you. Nowadays, all you see when you pick people up, especially overnight, all you see is the glow of their mobile phone reflecting off their face while they're engaging with social media. People don't talk these days, Dan.
 
 Dan:
 Oh, this is hitting uncomfortably close to home because, yeah, I think I'm one of those cell phone people. I'll just get right on my phone or I'll work or something. And the other day, I was headed to the airport and the Uber driver is really chatty. And at first I experienced that with frustration and then I was like, "Come on, dude. This human being wants to talk. Just talk." And we had a great chat. He was a guy that grew up in the Philippines and he had all these great stories and he had girls about the same age as mine. And I felt so ashamed later that I'd been kind of defaulted into that phone-centric mode. I don't really know that anybody is consciously choosing to do that. It's just some weird evolution that we've undergone.
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah. I mean, when I pick people up off the street nowadays, to be polite, I always say, "Have you had a good day?" And they'll even say, "Yes, thanks," and that'll be it. Or they'll want to engage in a conversation. If they don't want to engage in a conversation, they just say, "Yes, thank you." Fine. If they don't want to talk, they don't want to talk. If they want to talk, they know that I'm open to talk, open to chat.
 
 Dan:
 And does it feel rude to you when they say, "Yes, thanks"?
 
 Jamie:
 No, not at all. I don't take offense. I've been doing it for 33 years now, Dan. It doesn't faze me, to be honest with you. There's sometimes when I pick people up... On the reverse, the other side of the coin, where I pick people up and I'm having a bit of a bad day and they want to chat, and I'm thinking, "Oh, I really can't be bothered today."
 
 Dan:
 Do you play the radio or music in your taxi?
 
 Jamie:
 Don't tend to, no. I mean, it's really strange because there's no speakers fitted in the back of a taxi. And the reason for that is because it's supposed to be a public carriage. So any music being played in there is subject to copyright.
 
 Dan:
 Oh my goodness.
 
 Jamie:
 It means we'd have to have a Performing Right Society license, which is a load of old rubbish, but.
 
 Dan:
 Oh dear.
 
 Jamie:
 The silly thing is Uber drivers don't have to have one, but this is our license and authority for us. And it's rules that go back to a long, long way. So you tend to try to do what the customer wants. Customer's always right, Dan.
 
 Dan:
 I seriously doubt that. Speaking of which, how do you deal with passengers that are a bit unruly? Tell me about some of the tense moments you've had over the years.
 
 Jamie:
 Well, you end up becoming a very good instant judge of character when you're working in the streets, especially the night. There's one sure-fired way if you think someone's drunk. I mean, a lot of cab drivers used to make the mistake of pulling up. And the passenger that's trying to hail them is standing in front of them. Well, that's a big mistake because then if you think they're too drunk and you try to drive off, they can always kick your cab. So what you do is you pull up past them and you look in the mirror. And if they start staggering towards you, you just pull away and leave them there. And they've got no chance of kicking your taxi or whatever.
 
 Dan:
 Have you ever had passengers that were too amorous, shall we say?
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah, I've had that on a number of occasions where one particular couple was taken down to Tolworth in Surrey. And as they got out, she's got out of the cab, he's got out, and he couldn't get the money out of his pockets because his trousers kept falling down where she'd undone his trousers. And he was quite embarrassed. And I thought, "If you get embarrassed, mate, don't do it in the back of a cab." But it's on some people's... on their bucket lists, to a certain extent. A bit like the Mile-high Club, sex on a train, sex in-
 
 Dan:
 Just to act out in the back of a cab.
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah. Sex in the back of a black cab.
 
 Dan:
 Oh, man.
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah. It does happen.
 
 Dan:
 That puts you in a very awkward place, I would think.
 
 Jamie:
 Well, yeah, you can even turn the mirror one way or the other, can't you? If you want to be a voyeur, you turn it downwards. If you don't want to have a look, you just point it towards the sky so you can't see what's going on in the back.
 
 Dan:
 So Jamie, we always end our episodes with a quick lightning round of questions. Here goes. What is a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know, and what does it mean?
 
 Jamie:
 A musher. A musher is somebody that owns and drives their own taxi rather than renting or sharing.
 
 Dan:
 I see. And you're a musher.
 
 Jamie:
 I am, yep.
 
 Dan:
 What's a sound specific to your profession that you're likely to hear?
 
 Jamie:
 Taxi.
 
 Dan:
 You tell us, what's the official approved best way to summon a taxi?
 
 Jamie:
 The best way to summon a taxi is just to stand on the side of the road and put your arm out. Just extend your arm when you see the light on the top of the taxi. There's a light. That is the best way to hail a taxi. Some people whistle when they want a taxi and some taxi drivers take offense to that saying, "I'm not a dog. I'm not going to respond to a whistle," so they won't respond to it.
 
 Dan:
 So just a nice, friendly, silent hand gesture.
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah, extend your hand out. That's the most polite way to hail a taxi.
 
 Dan:
 What's an aspect of your job that you consistently savor?
 
 Jamie:
 When people are nice to you. When people give you a tip, it means they appreciate what you've done for them. If you're taking someone to the airport and you get out and you help them, I always get out and help them with their luggage and things like that. And if they give you a tip, it means they've appreciated what you're doing. And I think that's something to savor. When I do a tour for someone, if they compliment you on it, it just makes you feel like it's all been worthwhile. And I think that's what a lot of people want when you go to work. You want to feel like your contribution is worthwhile.
 
 Dan:
 Is tipping an important part of your income?
 
 Jamie:
 Not anymore, no. I mean, it used to be when most payments were by cash. Nowadays, it's really hit-and-miss as to whether people tip or not. But yeah, it used to be about five to 10%. It's a lot, lot less now.
 
 Dan:
 So when you finally put up your keys for the last time, what do you think you'll miss most about the job?
 
 Jamie:
 I don't think I'll ever retire. My pension is kaput, so I think I'll probably be driving up to the lunchtime of my own funeral. I may even be driving the hearse to my own funeral. You never know.
 
 Dan:
 Give yourself a ride.
 
 Jamie:
 Yeah. Yeah, something like that. As long as my health allows me, I don't think I'll ever stop driving a taxi. It's been in my life for 33 years, so I think I'll be doing it to the day I die.
 
 Dan:
 Jamie Owens is a London cabbie. In the weeks since I talked to Jamie, here's the debate that's been circling in my head. I really hate the fact that the London cabbie is going away as a profession because of Uber and eventually self-driving cars. But then another part of me says, "Do you mourn elevator attendants too?" it's just sentimentality to worry about jobs that are no longer needed. But this was such a meaningful job. The Knowledge is one of the great intellectual feats of our time, and it was a passport to this good, steady work. It's even an identity. And now an app on your phone can replicate all that work for somebody who knows nothing about London. So what's the point ultimately?
 
 And then, this point I get mad at my own brain and start sputtering. Maybe it's enough to just admire what this profession represented and represents. It sets incredibly high standards and it makes its practitioners feel, as Jamie said, a cut above. Making casual conversation during a cross-town ride, avoiding trips to Heathrow at peak times, dodging drunks, appreciating tippers, and nurturing the 3D map in your brain of one of the world's best cities. Folks, that's what it's like to be a London cabbie. A shoutout to recent reviewers on Apple Podcasts, Charightythen and David the Ninthe.
 
 This episode was produced by Matt Purdy. I am Dan Heath. Here's to the next year of episodes.