This is NOT normal.
If I had to guess, I would agree with Steve; there is a connection somewhere in this circuit that is just barely loose, and is requiring an electrical arc to complete the circuit. The light bulb just isn't enough, but turn on that power-hungry heating element and the circuit is now drawing enough for the arcing to be the "easiest path". Arcing across a gap produces heat which helps to swell the metal parts in the connection, drawing them closer together so this doesn't occur once the circuit has "warmed up".
If I were a betting man, I would put a nickel on your home having aluminum electrical wiring. Aluminum is more susceptible to this expansion and contraction while under load, which is why copper is used in virtually all new construction. Aluminum isn't dangerous, per se, you just need to know what it will do over time and plan for it; terminals should be screwed down very tightly, a little slack should be given in the box and along wire runs, and of course Al-rated switches, outlets and receptacles should be used.
Before calling an electrician there are some things you can try yourself. With the power off at the breaker, open up the switch box and outlets, and clamp down all the wiring terminals on both switch and outlet. If the outlet or switch seems very old, beat-up, worn, rusted, or generally untrustworthy, replace it. If you do have aluminum wire (should be real easy to tell), it will require Al-rated switches and outlets; they can handle the higher heat, the expansion and contraction of aluminum as it heats, and are made of metals that won't react galvanically with aluminum. DO NOT use switches rated for "copper or copper-clad wire only"; the switch or outlet will say exactly that on the back of the switch body, and will have a circle and line drawn through the letters "Al".
Your honest statement, "I have no experience with this kind of thing," is both refreshing and cautionary. Electricity can be dangerous. Most of us who dabble in it have learned a good bit by watching those who are much more experienced. When in doubt, call a pro (or at least a well-seasoned amateur). What follows is not a recommendation for you to proceed. Think about getting more experienced help.
The switches can be switched. How difficult it is depends on how they are presently wired.
The switch on the left, Switch A, has a full circuit in the box, that is, a hot, neutral and ground, which powers the outlet. Switch A above it is probably on the same line and works by interrupting the hot current to the light it controls, Light One. The neutral and ground that feed the outlet are probably tied in to the controlled light. The question is, where does the switch on the right, Switch B, and the light it controls, Light Two, get their power?
If Light Two gets its power (hot and neutral) directly from the box that contains Switch A, and the line to Switch B is just a two wire hot line that Switch B either connects or disconnects to Light Two (back through the box containing Switch A), then the lines in Switch A's box that control both lights can be swapped to reverse the switches.
If Light Two draws its power directly from the box on the right (rather than through the Switch A box), you cannot reverse the controls without running a new line. The most likely solution is to open a channel in the wall between the two boxes and run a new line to Switch B. Then Switches A and B can be reassigned. The channel can then be patched with drywall tape and compound.
The way to tell whether you have the easy or the hard setup is look in the box containing Switch B. If there is just one line with a black and white wire (and a bare ground), but no other wire, you have the easy setup. If there are two or more lines in Switch B box, you have the harder setup.
Exactly how to swap the wires is a bit complex, and if you do not already know how to do this, you really should have help.
Best Answer
No precise regulation for a light switch
Except in the case of electric discharge lighting, there is no precise regulation that says you must place a switch, mechanical or otherwise, in or near a light, but in practice it would be unusual not to, and safer, more convenient, and more appropriate to the purpose of the device if you can operate a mechanical switch for that circuit or part thereof, rather than a circuit breaker.
Regulatory definitions and requirements
From BS7671:2008 incorporating Amendment No 1: 2011 (Requirements for Electrical Installations, IET Wiring Regulations, Seventeenth Edition)
Reg. 530.3:
Reg. 537.5.2.3:
Table 53.4 - Guidance on the selection of protective, isolation and switching devices:
This table shows that a circuit-breaker or RCD may be used for both isolation and functional switching.
Reg. 537.5.1.1:
Reg. 537.5.1.3:
Reg. 537.5.2.2:
Conclusion
Smart light bulbs, remotely controlled, are only switched after the fixed wiring and after a DC transformer. Therefore they fall outside the scope of functional switching within the meaning of the regulations.
In practice, what this means is that the light fitting would still be live when you remove a bulb, unless switched or isolated within the fixed wiring. Normally, this would be achieved by means of a light switch, but the regulations provide that a circuit breaker (not a fuse) can be used for this purpose.
Smart switches, inserted into the fixed wiring but electronically controlled, fall within the scope of the note to reg. 537.5.2.2 in that they do functionally switch the light fitting(s) such that in the off state, the lamp socket would not be live for the removal and replacement of a light bulb.
Smart bulb controllers that look like mechanical or electronic light switches but are not connected to the fixed wiring, are increasingly common, and aesthetically and functionally speaking it is not necessary to install a mechanical or even an electronic light switch beside such a controller. In the long-term however, should you wish to replace smart bulbs with non-smart bulbs, even on a temporary basis, it would be inconvenient at best to have to switch them off at the consumer unit.
My recommendation based on the above, where smart bulb controllers are installed, would be to install them over or beside a blanked switch box containing a link (with screw terminal blocks, for example) in which a switch could be installed. Alternatively, if non-routine switching within the room is desired, but accidental local switching-off is to be prevented, install the controller beside a secret key switch such as those in MK's Grid Plus range: