Marc Crosby

Try reading our article here – https://www.moneymagpie.com/make-money/mystery-shopping-become-a-mystery-shopper-andget-paid-to-shop-and-eat-out

Years ago I tested one of the sites out and got to mystery shop at a well-known fast-food company.

It was a bit stressful because you literally had to time everything (how long until you got your order etc.) so you needed a stopwatch without looking suspicious, but it was great fun. The closest I’ve ever got to feeling like a spy!

It’s very scary – a pub near me that has been open for years has had to close down. The mix of inflation and bills going up, combined with customers having less spending power has made the situation impossible for them. Genuinely worrying how many other businesses will be in the same position.

I’m that typical hypocrite who absolutely values the need for cash but tends to pay most things by card these days.

There are so many reasons why a purely digital currency scares me, though, so I will always argue for the necessity of cash.

This is just a reminder now we’re relaunching these boards that we really appreciate feedback from users.

Paul wrote:

Thanks, I’ll check some of these out. So Andor’s good? I’m a bit burnt out on Star Wars TV – Mando was fine, but Bobba Fett and Obi-Wan just really underwhelmed me.

Oh yes, Andor is in a different league, I think. It’s an entirely separate creative team, and it’s shot on location rather than The Volume so it feels really different.

It’s kind of Star Wars ‘for adults’ but not in a juvenile way – it’s not gory or sweary – its just really well-written with morally-grey characters and a burning hatred for fascism that keeps the whole thing feeling depressingly timely.

Good question, Paul. There’s actually been some amazing TV this year.

Some of my top pics would be:

Severance – a fantastic new sci-fi TV show which has a (really quite creepy) spin on work-life balance.

Better Call Saul – This was the final season, so you’d need to watch the other series first, but honestly I think it’s one of the best shows ever made.

Andor – A Star Wars TV show that actually feels thoughtful and takes the franchise to new heights.

House Of The Dragon – A slightly more tentative suggestion, depending on your taste, but if you liked Game Of Thrones back at its height, I think you’d like this.

I’m a bit of a fantasy/sci-fi geek though, so a bit biased. Currently watching The Devils Hour which I’m really enjoying as well – one episode to go!

In my area the restaurants do generally seemed to be booked up Monday-Wednesday – in fact, there was a post on our local Facebook group from someone who had their partner’s birthday upcoming, and she couldn’t get a spot because she underestimated how much EOTHO would impact things.

I’ve also noticed some of my family members, who rarely eat out, have done so a few times this month.

That being said, I’m not sure how many of the people going Mon-Weds are the people who would have normally gone Fri/Sat and simply moved the day. Very hard to say!

I’m in the same position – I work from home usually but am still making big savings at the moment.

Usually I would go out with my friends once or twice a week for a meal, or at least drinks, so that’s probably £40 or so a week. I also was getting into (quite a bad habit) of having a few too many Costa Coffees each week, so I’m probably saving about £30 a month or so there as well.

I’ll confess to having the odd takeaway delivered by Just Eat over the past few weeks, but we all need a little pick-me-up, I guess!