The Secret to Being a Token Pop Star

Some see them as polar opposites, but more people than you might think are moving between the creative and technology industries; using the skills from one to further success in the other. But how easy is it to cross between art and engineering?

David Harper meets Jan Harlan, who started his career in the embryonic IT industry of the 1960s. The precision and planning skills he developed would help him in a 30-year career as a producer for one of the world’s greatest film directors: Stanley Kubrick.

David also speaks to Thomas Dolby, famous as a pop star in the 1980s synthpop scene, who later headed to Silicon Valley - using his enthusiasm for emerging technology to create new opportunities, including an infamous mobile phone ringtone.

And we hear from Lyndsey Scott, an actress, former model and computer coder who develops iOS apps while simultaneously juggling an acting career. Despite her successes, she sometimes finds it difficult to be taken seriously in a male-dominated technology business.

Presenter: David Harper Producers: David Harper and Victoria Hastings

(Image: Lyndsey Scott. Credit: Paul Smith)