Area Speech Contest 4th October 2014
An additional little post to let everyone know that we were represented in the Area "Humorous Speech and Table Topics Contest" last weekend.
Six members from Heart of England drove to a lovely location just outside Telford for the afternoon which was hosted by Shropshire Speakers. The afternoon started with a lunch where all the different groups had a chance to mingle and meet new, or familiar, faces and so we end up with a room full of like minded people all enthusiastic about Toastmasters.
We were represented by Sanat Shelat in the Humorous Sppech Contest and Tony Brassington in the Table Topics Contest and both are very accomplished speakers. As usual the competition was of a very high standard so unfortunately Tony's excellent improvisation was pipped at the post by a great Table Topic from Gavin representing Bull Ring Speakers. Sanat did us proud by winning with his very funny story and will go on to represent us in the next round which will be in Harrogate on October 26th.
For those members who haven't had the opportunity to go along support our competitors at a Contest before this is a great way to explore an event outside our club and meet members from other clubs It is good to see the slight variations in how others run their events and meetings but it is also comforting to know that we are on a similar track to everyone else too. It is also a fun and very social afternoon so I encourage anyone who hasn't already done so to come along to the next Contest in the Spring.
As usual we will be holding an "International Speech and Evaluation Contest" at club level which we will let you know about so be prepared for the Area Contest a few weeks later, usually at the weekend, somewhere in the Midlands ish (it is often difficult to get the info about where and when till the last minute but we will try and keep you informed)
...by the way...
For those who don't know or have forgotten I will explain what "Table Topics" is all about...
This is a section of a meeting where the speakers are chosen by a Table Topic Master and given a topic to talk about for 1 to 2 minutes without any preparation. The Topic can be anything but is often themed and each speaker would have a different question to answer, e.g "Which Super Hero would you like to be?" "Tell us about a time when you said the wrong thing" or anything that requires quick thinking and possible humour. It also does not have to be true.
This is a real skill as the speaker does not know they are going to be called up and only has the time from leaving their seat to reaching the front of the room in which to think of an answer and so it is a great way to develop "thinking on your feet" skills. This is often the most fun part of a meeting.
Six members from Heart of England drove to a lovely location just outside Telford for the afternoon which was hosted by Shropshire Speakers. The afternoon started with a lunch where all the different groups had a chance to mingle and meet new, or familiar, faces and so we end up with a room full of like minded people all enthusiastic about Toastmasters.
We were represented by Sanat Shelat in the Humorous Sppech Contest and Tony Brassington in the Table Topics Contest and both are very accomplished speakers. As usual the competition was of a very high standard so unfortunately Tony's excellent improvisation was pipped at the post by a great Table Topic from Gavin representing Bull Ring Speakers. Sanat did us proud by winning with his very funny story and will go on to represent us in the next round which will be in Harrogate on October 26th.
For those members who haven't had the opportunity to go along support our competitors at a Contest before this is a great way to explore an event outside our club and meet members from other clubs It is good to see the slight variations in how others run their events and meetings but it is also comforting to know that we are on a similar track to everyone else too. It is also a fun and very social afternoon so I encourage anyone who hasn't already done so to come along to the next Contest in the Spring.
As usual we will be holding an "International Speech and Evaluation Contest" at club level which we will let you know about so be prepared for the Area Contest a few weeks later, usually at the weekend, somewhere in the Midlands ish (it is often difficult to get the info about where and when till the last minute but we will try and keep you informed)
...by the way...
For those who don't know or have forgotten I will explain what "Table Topics" is all about...
This is a section of a meeting where the speakers are chosen by a Table Topic Master and given a topic to talk about for 1 to 2 minutes without any preparation. The Topic can be anything but is often themed and each speaker would have a different question to answer, e.g "Which Super Hero would you like to be?" "Tell us about a time when you said the wrong thing" or anything that requires quick thinking and possible humour. It also does not have to be true.
This is a real skill as the speaker does not know they are going to be called up and only has the time from leaving their seat to reaching the front of the room in which to think of an answer and so it is a great way to develop "thinking on your feet" skills. This is often the most fun part of a meeting.
Thanks for the overview, Mish and many CONGRATULATIONS to Sanat. I'm sure he'll do the club proud at the next round of the competition and I wish him the best of luck on the day.
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