Do you guys want children? What a question to ask us in a car park

During a trip to the UAE to make a documentary, Charlotte Cripps is asked a rather abrupt question by the TV producer and must summon her best ‘casual’ face

(Illustration by Amara May)

When a friend who knew a sheik invited us to help him make a TV documentary in the United Arab Emirates, we jumped at the chance. Instantly I had visions of Lawrence of Arabia and Merchant Ivory films such as Heat and Dust – so I packed long silk scarves and flowing dresses. Alex was terribly excited and treated the trip to the UAE as if he was Napolean making a move on a new province to make himself richer.

The “green sheik” was an environmentalist, who organised food banks for the poor and chose to live a modest life even though he was connected to the ruling family in one of the lesser-known emirates. I wasn’t sure what to expect; it was a whole new world.

When he picked us up at the airport in his Lexus, Alex stuffed hundreds of his business cards into the back seats so they were bulging with details of his design and build company.