Former Primark employee explains ‘store secrets’ and why staff ask for ‘Mr Brown’
Poleighh Soper's video, titled 'Secrets of an ex primark employee', has been viewed, liked and shared thousands of times since appearing on the social media platform.
A TikTok user claiming to be a former Primark employee has shared some of the store’s biggest secrets online.
Poleighh Soper’s video, titled ‘Secrets of an ex primark employee’, has been viewed, liked and shared thousands of times since appearing on the social media platform – with the original poster passing on some of the mos intriguing info she learnt during her time working in the budget store.
This week, she published a ‘Part 2’ – which has also gone viral.
According to Poleighh Soper, hearing a request for ‘Mr Brown’ on the tannoy in a Primark store is in fact a call for security.
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“Say your security company that stands by the door and makes sure nobody is stealing…say their name is like ‘Brown Security Services’, that’s who they’re calling,” explained the TikTok user.
“So, when they say ‘Can Mr Brown please come to the customer service checkout’, they’re actually calling for security – they just don’t want the customers to know that,” she added.
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Theft checks
The TikTok user also shared the cheeky theft checks apparently in place at the Primark tills.
“You know when you go to the till and you’ve got like a makeup bag or something, they’ll always open it up and take out the tissue? That’s to check that you’re not stealing,” Poleighh Soper explained.
“So, we have to take the tissue out to check there’s nothing else in the bag, however, we’re not actually allowed to accuse you of stealing.
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“We could open that bag and find ten pieces of jewellery and three pairs of socks in there – [but] can’t accuse you of stealing it.
“We simply have to say: ‘Would you like that as well?'”
Mark Waugh / Flickr
Call bell rings
Another secret the user shared was that the number of call bell rings actually mean different things.
According to Poleighh Soper, one ring means ‘we need extra staff’, two rings means ‘we want supervisor or a manager’s help’, whereas three rings is apparently the signal for an ’emergency’.
Also, staff can seemingly select whether they want their till voice (which you hear saying “till number one, please”) to be male or female by pressing a button below.
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Staff discount
One frequently asked question has been whether Primark employees get money off purchases in store.
“No, staff do not get staff discount,” Poleighh Soper emphasised during Part 2 of her video.
She did however say that employees enjoy a 10% discount at Christmas.
The TikTok user also added: “Any staff member that actually wants to buy something from Primark has to take it to the customer service desk and hand over their ID number when they buy it.
“That includes any store – not just the one you’re working in.”
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Apparently the user is set to share more secrets in the future, promising a ‘Part 3’ of her series and urging followers to “stay tuned”.
Erling Haaland has named his four favourite films… and fans have a lot to say on it
Emily Sergeant
Erling Haaland has answered the all-important question.
The question heard around the world, the question on everyone’s lips, a question that has absolutely nothing to do with football whatsoever… that’s right, he’s answered Letterboxd’s famous question of ‘what are your four favourite films?’.
If you’re unaware of what Letterboxd is, it describes itself as being an ‘online diary platform and app for film lovers’ and it gives users the chance to display their four favourite films at the top of their profile for all to see (and judge).
An extension of this has then been Letterboxd asking celebrities in press junket interviews and on red carpets what their ‘four faves’ are – and it’s gone on to become something of a phenomenon in the film world.
Everyone from massive A-list movie stars, to indie darlings and up-and-coming names have answered this question before, and now (it appears) to be Erling Haaland’s turn.
He’s not the first footballer to be tasked with question though, as the entire Spurs team was ambushed with it by former player – and famously massive cinephile – Alfie Whiteman last year, but it’s fair to say that after the summer he’s had with Norway at the World Cup, achieving international fame in the process, that Haaland is one of the most high-profile to answer it in a long while.
So, what’s on Erling’s list then?
Well, to self-confessed ‘film bros’ out there, you’re not going to find any deep cuts in this selection unfortunately, and you’re probably not going to get any recommendations for movies you haven’t seen before either, but come on, he is only a footballer after all.
Erling Haaland has named his four favourite films… and fans have a lot to say on it / Credit: Letterboxd
First up for the Manchester City striker is a pretty common pick by straight white men, it’s The Wolf of Wall Street, and he doesn’t give much of a reason for it, other than just suggesting: “I think you understand why”.
He then follows that up with Ridley Scott’s classic Gladiator, calling it ‘amazing’, before naming 2004’s epic Troy, and then rounding it out with a Christmas favourite for many, Home Alone, adding that he ‘watched it a lot as a kid, and then again now’.
As for fan reaction to Haaland’s four favourites, let’s just say it’s been mixed.
Among the 1,000+ comments on the Instagram video, you’ll find just as many people called him ‘king’ and saying he has ‘goated’ taste, as you will comments like this: “He has the most male gazed top four in history of Letterboxd.”
Noel Gallagher reveals his and Liam’s children are now ‘best friends’ after the Oasis reunion
Emily Sergeant
Noel Gallagher has revealed that his and Liam’s sons had never met each other before the Oasis reunion last year.
But now? Well now they’re ‘best friends’, apparently.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, then I’m sure you’ll know by now that Oasis reunited last year for the first time since they disbanded back in 2009 to bring the world the long-awaited Oasis Live ’25 reunion tour – including five nostalgia-drenched gigs here in Manchester at Heaton Park, which saw more than 300,000 people descend on our city.
It was undeniably one of the biggest cultural events of the 21st century so far, given the fact most fans presumed the Gallagher brothers‘ feud meant they would never meet each other again.
Now though, it’s been revealed that some Gallaghers actually hadn’t met before last year.
According to those lucky fans who have already had the chance to see the Oasis: Don’t Look Back In Anger documentary concert film – which premiered first at the 2026 Venice Film Festival this past weekend, and then had its world premiere in London last night (7 September) – Noel Gallagher shares a story about how his two sons, Donovan and Sonny, had never met Liam’s sons Lennon and Gene prior to the reunion tour.
Noel Gallagher reveals that his and Liam’s sons had never met before the Oasis reunion:
Noel has three children – 26-year-old daughter Anaïs from his first marriage to Meg Matthews, and then two sons, 18-year-old Donovan and 16-year-old Sonny from his second marriage to Sara MacDonald.
Liam, on the other hand, has four children – daughter Molly, 28, two sons Lennon and Gene, aged 26 and 25 respectively, as well as a 13-year-old daughter named Gemma, who he is yet to meet.
Speaking on the relationship between his kids and their cousins, Noel said: “When my kids met his kids they didn’t know each other.
“Donovan and Sonny had never met Gene and Lennon. Lo and behold they’re best friends now.”
Oasis: Don’t Look Back In Anger is set to show the meteoric rise of Oasis through rare footage and untold stories as the band reunites for Oasis Live ’25, chronicling their journey from Manchester streets to global rock stardom.
It releases in cinemas nationwide, including in IMAX, this Friday 11 September.
The Manc -
9th November 2020 
