Thinking on your feet is an important job skill...

Let's say you're interviewing for a job. A technical job, something relating to database management, at a TV station. You arrive at the office of your prospective employer and are directed to a room -- one of the studio sets -- for your interview. An employee, presumably your interviewer, walks in and introduces herself, then asks if you're ready. You say yes. You become slightly alarmed when another employee appears, clips a microphone on your shirt, and disappears. Before you have time to ask what's going on, bright lights turn on and your "interviewer" begins speaking to the cameras on the other side of the room. And now you're live on TV.

Welcome to the BBC.

As I read about the incident on CNN:

LONDON, England (AP) -- An applicant for a job at the British Broadcasting Corp. who accidentally found himself on live television recalled his moment of fame, returning -- on purpose -- to the program on which he inadvertently appeared.

Guy Goma appeared on the News 24 program after a mix-up led his being mistaken for an expert on Internet music downloads. The network put Goma back on the air after he became a news story unto himself.

"I was very shocked," Goma said after watching a replay of his interview Tuesday on the BBC's all-news channel. "But I think now it is all right."

The confusion occurred on May 8, when Britain's High Court awarded a victory to Apple Computer in a lawsuit against Apple Corps, The Beatles' commercial arm.

The BBC had intended to interview computer expert Guy Kewney, but after a mistake at a reception desk, employees brought Goma to the studio. Goma was waiting in a reception area for his interview.

After BBC News 24 consumer affairs correspondent Karen Bowerman ostensibly welcomed the apparent expert, there was a Kafkaesque moment in which Goma winced and tried to open his mouth as if to explain.

When Bowerman asked if he was surprised by the verdict, a befuddled Goma managed to offer that he was "very surprised."

But his performance later swept the Internet in part because he simply pressed on, offering the best answers he could and growing more confident in his punditry as the interview progressed.

Meanwhile, the real Kewney watched the exchange in shock from outside the studio. During Tuesday's program, the BBC also interviewed him by telephone.

When offered a chance to speak directly to Kewney, Goma shook his head.

"I just want to say to him, sorry," Goma said.

Goma told the BBC that he didn't know yet if he got the tech job he sought.

But Britain's industrious tabloids have already put him to work. The Sun newspaper offered Goma a punditry platform beneath a story headlined the "Big Bluffer."

Goma, who has offered to speak on a variety of subjects, offered snap assessments on Saddam Hussein's trial ("He deserves to face justice"); Prince Harry ("It is difficult for him as everything he does is watched") and Britain's Human Rights Act ("We should treat each other as we wish to be treated.")

Of course, video clips of the incident are also available. And while there were probably a ton of signs that should have alerted this guy as to what was going on, it's hard not to feel bad for him. Watch the video and notice his momentary deer-in-the-headlights look when the host introduces him -- with the wrong name. At least he "recovered" and faked his way through the interview...mostly. Apparently now he is enjoying his 15 minutes of fame in the UK. Of course, the real question is whether he got the job or not.

On an unrelated note, I just finished my Heme/Onc exam. Eight days and one exam left until the end of my first year of medical school.

Time for a nap...