Quintessentially English Speakers

Dr Max Atkinson is a freelance communications consultant and author, best known for developing a new approach to research and training in public speaking, speech writing and presentation. He is a visiting professor at the Henley Management College, where he has run courses on communication skills on executive and MBA programmes since 1985.

He has also taught at the universities of Lancaster, Manchester and Oxford, and has held visiting professorships at universities in Europe and the USA. He has published books on conversation, courtroom language, political speeches and business presentations.

For over 12 years Dr Atkinson served as communications advisor, speechwriter and coach to Paddy Ashdown, former leader of the (UK) Liberal Democrats, and the High Representative in Bosnia & Herzogovina from 2002-2006. In 1985, he ran a seminar on speech writing in the Reagan White House and his work has also been extensively used by Michael Sheehan, Bill Clinton’s chief speech coach.

Atkinson’s widely acclaimed research into public speaking first came to public notice with the publication of Our Masters’ Voices: The Language and Body Language of Politics (London & New York: Methuen, 1984; reprinted 1986, then by Routledge, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1994). Based on a detailed analysis of videotapes of political speeches, it described the main rhetorical techniques used by speakers to trigger applause.

The findings were put to the practical test in front of a mass television audience with the broadcast of a Granada Television World in Action programme, in which he Atkinson was challenged to coach a novice who had never made a speech before to address the 1984 SDP Conference – the result of which was a standing ovation for a speech that ‘lit up the conference as no other speech had done all week’ (The Guardian) , and was described by the late Sir Robin Day as ‘the most refreshing speech we’ve heard so far’.

Subsequently, he formed Atkinson Communications, a consultancy specialising in communication skills training, since when he has worked with a vast array of major corporations in the UK and abroad, often coaching and writing speeches for CEOs and other board level executives.

Dr Atkinson has brought together everything he has learnt about audience reactions to speeches and presentations in two recent books, Lend Me Your Ears: All You Need to Know about Making Speeches and Presentations (London: Vermilion, 2004), and Speech-making and Presentation Made Easy (London: Vermilion, 2008).



They show that the rhetorical techniques first identified by classical Greek and Roman writers 2000 years ago are as effective today as they ever were, and can be used to increase the impact of any kind of speech or presentation. They also explain why the slide-dependent style of presentation that has become increasingly prevalent is actually widely disliked by audiences, and describe how to make more effective use of visual aids. The books also debunks some widely propagated modern myths about the overwhelming importance of body language (e.g. that 93% of communication is non-verbal, that folded arms indicate defensiveness, etc.).

He has also appeared on numerous television and radio programmes, and has published articles in various newspapers, including The Times, Sunday Times, Financial Times, The Independent on Sunday and the Washington Post.

In September 2008, he started a blog, on which his analyses of speeches by Barack Obama and other leading politicians, economists, bankers, etc. have attracted thousands of visitors.

“I found Max’s lectures and teachings to be of great value in my professional development: I first attended one of Max’s sessions 15 years ago and still use what I learned there to this day. His lectures and books are a high quality means to achieving better business results.
Geoff Birkett, Global VP Marketing, AstraZeneca

“There was scarcely a single speech in my eleven years as leader of the Liberal Democrats that I made without benefiting from Max Atkinson’s personal advice and help.”
PADDY ASHDOWN (former leader of the Liberal Democrats, UK)

After many years in high-level diplomacy Charles Crawford has a unique profile as an imaginative, dynamic and even provocative speaker who has addressed audiences large and small in English, Polish and Serbian

After an Honours degree in Jurisprudence from Oxford University he qualified as a Barrister before joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

From 1985-87 Charles served as Foreign Secretary Sir Geoffrey Howe’s official Speechwriter, contributing ideas/language for speeches by the Foreign Secretary (major set-piece speeches, Parliamentary debates and less formal after-dinner remarks)

His first job on joining the FCO in 1979 was to head the Indonesia Section, followed by his first posting, to communist post-Tito Yugoslavia. He returned to London in 1984 and after a year on the Aviation Desk was appointed FCO Speech-writer. He was posted to South Africa in 1987 as part of the Embassy team led by Ambassador Robin Renwick working to end apartheid.

Returning to London in 1991 he worked in the FCO Department dealing with the Soviet Union as communist rule collapsed. He then spent three years in Moscow as Political Counsellor and then served three times as HM Ambassador: in Sarajevo (1996-1998); in Belgrade (2001-2003) and most recently in Poland (2003-2007).

In 1987 he wrote the FCO’s first Guide to Speech-Writing, a dynamic text full of real-life examples on how to write speeches – and how to weed out lugubrious mistakes. Two decades later it remains a core part of the FCO’s speech-drafting training

He subsequently contributed to speeches by members of the Royal Family and successive Prime Ministers, as well as different Ministers and other senior personalities in public and commercial life

He left the FCO at the end of 2007 to start a new career as writer, consultant, mediator and trainer. In 2009 he joined the UK Conservative Party candidates list

In recent months Charles Crawford led training courses for senior EU and other officials and private clients aimed at improving their communication skills. He has written for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Independent, DIPLOMAT and Total Politics.

In 2009 his audiences included the Headmasters Conference and Conservative Friends of Poland, as well as private groups and academic gatherings

In 2010 he and other former British Ambassadors in partnership with ADR Group launched a new senior strategic dispute resolution panel, ADRg Ambassadors

Charles Crawford’s trenchant observations on public policy issues are now available to a growing readership on his blog




Such honesty has no place in modern government…it’s bloody dangerous!
Andrew Dodge (Samizdata)

The most telling critique of this delusional foreign policy comes in regular instalments in the form of a blog by the former British ambassador to Poland, Charles Crawford. It’s called www.charlescrawford.biz, and if you want to know just how much in despair many of our diplomats are, this is the place to look
Dominic Lawson (The Times, 2010)

In 2005 a humorous FCO email he wrote as Ambassador to Warsaw (a satirical speech by Prime Minister Tony Blair damning other countries’ selfishness on EU Budget issues) caused a stir when it was leaked to the Sunday Times

His FCO written work was praised at the highest levels in London, NATO and the EU for its uncompromising dynamic style:

“fabulously readable and interesting analysis, with practical application … just about the best scenesetter [No10 staff] have ever seen”

“acrobatic and eye-catching in his use of language”

As a speaker Charles Crawford draws on dramatic episodes from his diplomatic career to explain wider policy themes, paradoxes and trends. His presentations are interesting and thought-provoking, but above all memorable

He is strong on foreign and public policy issues such as:

o Communism (and Vampires)
o Dealing with extremists and war criminals
o Climate change and PPP (perverse precautionary principles)
o Amazon Space: how the Internet is changing the strategic policy context
o International negotiation (as explained by Shrek, the Joker and Clint Eastwood)
o UK/European Union relations: Too Big (not) to Fail

Quentin Letts is The Daily Mail’s star Parliamentary sketch writer and a prolific contributor to the news and magazine press including The Telegraph, New Statesman and formerly, The Times. He regularly appears on television progammes such as This Week, Newsnight, Have I Got News For You and Question Time.

His writing career has included writing and editing newspaper diaries for the likes of the Evening Standard’s ‘Londoner’s Diary’ and heading up the Daily Telegraph’s Peterborough column for four years.

Letts has worked as New York correspondent for both The Telegraph and The Times, returning to the UK to take up sketch-writing for the Daily Telegraph. Letts was lured to the Daily Mail by Editor Paul Dacre to revive parliamentary sketches in the paper.

Quentin Letts is a proudly self confessed middle-class scratcher renown for his mastery of the vituperative arts.

His highly acclaimed yet controversial book 50 People Who Buggered Up Britain reached number 3 on the Independent’s politics & current affairs bestseller list and is a recommended read by Specialist Speakers.

Quentin Letts is a highly recommended after dinner speaker and panellist for political and current affairs focussed debates.

When firebrand restaurateur Keith Floyd was approached by keen young TV producer David Pritchard, few realised they would create foodie history. Filming was an irresistible blend of unpredictable chaos and unforgettable adventure – but the real passion was always the cooking. And when David discovered Rick Stein, he knew another star was ready to hit the screens.

David Pritchard tells his brilliant and hilarious personal memoirs in a live talk using footage, outtakes and littered with personal comments from the famous chefs he has created, Shooting the Cook is a taste of just what it’s like to be on the road and behind the cameras with some of TV’s greatest celebrity chefs.

He started his career in TV as a vault porter at a regional studio and began working his way through the ranks. His easy style and confident creativity have made him the number one name in food and lifestyle television production.

His style combined with effusive warmth are evident in the programmes he makes. The TV series ‘French Odyssey’ with Rick Stein was dreamed up over a well lubricated meal and sketched on a napkin, yet only David’s style and flair could have made the programme the huge success it proved to be.

David is a raconteur and accomplished after dinner speaker. His hilarious tales are drawn from nearly thirty years of living and working with the nation’s favourite foodies and all that that entails. His talks are always entertaining and like his programmes they paint a wonderful picture of places, food, friends and future plans.

To buy David’s book, just click on the book cover – it’s a great read.

‘The drama, the comedy, the farce, the tales behind the
television series which changed the way we view food and
cooking on TV. David Pritchard speaks with the same
brio and sharpness with which he directs’
MATTHEW FORT

Will Self is the author of five novels, four collections of short stories, three novellas and four non-fiction works. He was born in London in 1961 and graduated from Oxford University. He began writing fiction and working as a cartoonist for the New Statesman and City Limits, a London listings magazine. He has a regular column in the Evening Standard and is also a frequent broadcaster on television and radio.

Nominated in 1993 as one of Granta magazine’s 20 ‘Best of Young British Novelists 2′, his fiction includes three short-story collections: The Quantity Theory of Insanity (1991), winner of the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize, Grey Area (1994), and Tough, Tough Toys for Tough, Tough Boys (1998). Cock and Bull (1992) consists of two novellas, and he is also the author of four novels: My Idea of Fun (1993), Great Apes (1997), How the Dead Live (2000) and Dorian (2002), a retelling of Oscar Wilde’s classic tale set in late 20th-century Britain.

His non-fiction includes Perfidious Man (2000), described by his publisher as ‘an examination of modern masculinity’ with photographs by David Gamble, and Sore Sites (2000), a collection of writings about architecture. In addition, he has published two collections of journalism, Junk Mail (1995), and Feeding Frenzy (2001), which includes writing from the period 1995-2000. In 2002 he took part in a ‘reality art’ project in a one-bedroom flat on the 20th floor of a tower block in Liverpool, writing a short piece of fiction while being watched by members of the public. His most recent novel is The Butt (2008), winner of the 2008 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize.

A regular broadcaster on television and radio and contributor to and numerous newspapers and magazines, Will Self lives in London with his partner and three children. A book of non-fiction, Psychogeography, was published in 2007, and a selected short stories, The Undivided Self, in 2008.

Books by Will:

Cock And Bull
Dorian
Dr Mukti And Other Tales Of Woe
Feeding Frenzy
Great Apes
Grey Area
How The Dead Live
Junk Mail
Liver
My Idea Of Fun
Perfidious Man
Psycho Too
Psychogeography
The Book Of Dave
The Butt
The Quantity Theory Of Insanity
Tough Tough Toys For Tough Tough Boys

Andrew Marr presents BBC Radio Four’s Start The Week each Monday. He joined the Monday morning programme in November 2002. He is also the host of the interview programme The Andrew Marr Show on BBC One.

He wrote and presented Andrew Marr’s History Of Modern Britain (BBC Two), winning a string of awards including a Royal Television Society award for best historical programme.

He was born in 1959, in Glasgow, Scotland, he attended School in Dundee, Fife, and Musselburgh. He then gained a BA in English from Trinity Hall, Cambridge.

Andrew joined The Scotsman as a trainee and junior/business reporter in 1981 and became parliamentary correspondent in 1984 and political correspondent in 1986. He worked for two years at The Independent then returned to The Scotsman as political editor in 1986. He moved to become political editor at The Economist from 1988-92 but returned to the Independent as chief political commentator in 1992 and was promoted to editor in 1996.

Andrew became a columnist for The Express and The Observer in 1998 before being appointed as BBC political editor in May 2000, and has five books published: The Battle For Scotland (Penguin, 1992); Ruling Britannia (Penguin, 1996, 1998); The Day Britain Died (Profile, 2000); My Trade (Macmillan, 2004); and A History Of Modern Britian (2007).

Broadcasting includes series on contemporary thinkers for BBC TWO and Radio 4, and political documentaries for Channel 4 and BBC Panorama.

He has received more than a dozen major awards for writing and broadcasting – including from BAFTA, the Royal Television Society and most recently the Broadcasting Press Guild, which awarded two prizes for The Andrew Marr Show and Andrew Marr’s History Of Modern Britain.

He was named Columnist of the Year in the What The Papers Say awards of 1995 and Columnist of the Year in the British Press Awards of the same year. He was named Journalist of the Year in the Creative Freedom Awards 2000 and received the Journalist Award in the Channel 4 Political Awards of 2001.

Andrew was named as the best individual contributor on television at the Voice Of The Listener And Viewer’s Annual awards 2002.

Andrew won the Royal Television Society Television Journalism Award in 2001 for specialist journalism on the BBC Ten O’Clock News. In 2004, Andrew received the Richard Dimbleby Award at the Bafta Television Awards.

Sir Steven Redgrave has proved himself to be the greatest Olympian Britain has ever produced. After striking gold in Atlanta – Britain’s solitary victory of the games – he became the only British athlete ever (and one of only five sportsmen worldwide) who has won gold medals at five consecutive Olympic games. Gold in the Coxed fours in Los Angeles in 1984, gold in the Coxless pairs in Seoul (1988), Barcelona (1992), Atlanta (1996) and Sydney (2000).

In addition to his Olympic successes and following two unbeaten seasons in 1993 and 1994, Steve (and his partner Matthew Pinsent) won his sixth world championship gold in August 1995 in Finland. His previous world championship golds were in 1986, 1987, 1991, 1993 and 1994.

His other interests include golf and winter sports, and he was a member of the British Bobsleigh team.

Together with Matthew Pinsent, Steven Redgrave is the holder of the world record in coxless pairs set in Lucerne in 1994 and the Olympic record set in Barcelona in 1992.

Now established as the most outstanding rower of all time, he has announced that he has decided to carry on competing and to maintain his association with sport at the highest level as a standard bearer for British Olympic aspirants through to the Millennium Games in Sydney.

Steven Redgrave was awarded the MBE in the New Year’s Honours List in 1986, and the CBE in the New Year’s Honours List of 1997. The Queen of England has since knighted him.

Redgrave is Vice President of the British Olympic Association and a member of the board that won the bid for London in 2012. After the public voted him Sports Personality of the Year, he then topped an all time poll of winners – beating David Beckham and Ian Botham.

Major Ken Hames is a British former Special Air Service’s officer,highly rated motivational speaker and specialist television presenter.

Ken Hames is a real life action man who leads from the front. He has 25 years military experience under his belt, and is almost unique in having served in The Parachute Brigade, the Royal Marines and the Special Air Service. Ken’s operational experience is vast, ranging from guarding Nazi war criminal Rudolph Hesse, in Spandau Prison to the liberation of Port Stanley in the Falklands.

He is an accomplished Mountain Guide and skier and represented Great Britain in cross-country skiing. He played rugby for the Combined Services, is an expert in the great outdoors in all survival disciplines and is a keen amateur opera singer

Following an impressive 25 year military career, Ken Hames has brought a unique slant to the many documentaries that he has created and presented for television. Ken’s third series of ‘Beyond Boundaries’ was set in the Andes range in Ecuador and followed his highly acclaimed BBC1 documentary ‘Ex Forces and Homeless’ , his next broadcast series will be ‘Beyond Boundaries – Where Are They Now’.

Ken has created and presented series like, ‘Mission Africa’ – a 15 part series for prime time BBC1 where Ken took a group of young apprentice builders from the UK to Kenya to build the first eco lodge and game reserve to protect the endangered species that live there working closely with the Born Free Foundation. This was then handed over to the local Samburu tribe as a sustainable business that also protects the wildlife.

Ken created and is the expedition leader on the ground breaking ‘Beyond Boundaries’ series for BBC TV. This is now a successful brand with it’s own live event, bringing disabled people from all over the world together with their friends and families. Each series, Ken takes a different group of highly disabled people and motivates them to achieve seemingly impossible expeditions. He trains and inspires them into a team and the end result is life changing.

‘Desert Darlings’ was broadcast on Channel 4 in spring 2003. Ken took couples across the Namib Desert, placing their sometimes fragile relationships under the extreme pressures of an expedition. His first series for Channel 4, was the award winning, ‘Jungle Janes’, where Ken’s challenge was to turn a group of British women, none of whom had any expedition experience, into a cohesive team fit enough to take on the gruelling jungles of Borneo. It was enjoyed by millions who found this journey an inspiration. The first documentary was a television series, called ‘The Trek’ broadcast by Meridian. In 1994, with the help of Diana, Princess of Wales, Ken was able to take twelve disadvantaged youngsters to the heart of Africa on a 500-mile trek over desert and mountainous terrain, The process transformed their lives and Ken still monitors their progress.

These documentaries have proved Ken’s extraordinary ability to inspire and motivate even the most unlikely candidates. His unique skills enable him to take any rabble of individuals and finish with a winning, cohesive team, using sound leadership and thorough training are just some of the tools he uses. Ken is passionate about empowering people to transform their lives for the better.

Ken presented the highly praised series, ‘Greatest SAS Missions’ for Five in 2004, CBBC’s ‘Bring it On’, ‘Hero Factor’ for the Discovery Channel in 2002, ‘Battle Stripes’ for Sky in 2000, ‘Future Fighting Machines’ for the US in 2003, Channel 4’s ‘Shattered’ and ITV’s ‘Celebrity Fit Club’. Ken was also involved from the earliest of stages in the design and development of ITV’s ‘I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here’.
A powerful and charismatic speaker, Ken’s experiences in the cutting edge of the military and at the forefront of some of history’s most significant expeditions combine with those in the business arena to provide a fascinating insight into pressure, survival, teamwork, leadership and motivation. Ken is an action man who leads from the front. He is an accomplished Mountain Guide and skier and represented Great Britain in cross country skiing. He has played rugby for the Combined Services and is an expert in the great outdoors in all survival disciplines.

Testimonials

• Thank you for your fantastic presentation. The feedback was excellent. People will not forget ‘Lead, follow or get out of the way’

Martin Goodman, Office of the Director – IBM

• Your speech was an inspiration to our audience. You have given IGF members a renewed sense of motivation and desire to succeed.

Paul Foulkes
Director of Global Financing – IBM

• Ken’s motivational style lifts people’s horizons. He was an absolute inspiration to our delegates.

Carole Nicholl, Director
Lehman Brothers

• Ken Hames is the master practitioner in the field of motivation. He has the unique ability to inspire other to seek personal transformation and high achievement.

Diana, Princess of Wales

• In his leadership master class Ken gave my senior managers a renewed sense of purpose and direction. He is current, credible and inspirational and is particularly adept at getting results in a short timeframe. I continue to use him to keep my leaders at the cutting edge.

Robert Ford CIO EMEA
Microsoft Corporation

• Ken inspired us all with his motivational conference programme and leadership master class. We are looking forward to the next phase in our business development programme.
Simon Curry Director BT UK

• Ken did a fantastic job for us and it was an inspiration to hear him talk and motivate our leadership team. We look forward to his return.
Derek Hudson Vice President UK, British Gas

• Wherever Ken goes the atmosphere changes significantly. He is able to get results and does this with credibility as someone who is still out there ‘doing it’ so to speak. He has a unique understanding of the pressures facing business today and delivers solutions that will help managers do better.
Jerry Hagan, Director GlaxoSmithKline

• I give Ken 10 out of 10 for everything from how the audience reacted to the content of his talk. He really met our expectations and at the end of the presentation there was an audible ‘wow’ factor – it really hit the spot. Our clients really appreciated his enthusiasm for their project and the willingness to stay behind and become involved on an informal basis.
Chris Ball Senior Partner Penna PLC

• Ken, Thank you so much for speaking at the Business Direct Forum, the feedback has been excellent. The Management team were really impressed and delighted. Your positioning was spot on and we were all grateful for the amount of time you took to understand our business and current challenges.
Vodaphone HQ, Management Meeting

• We have now come to the end of our series of leadership workshops held during March and April and as one of the guest speakers on the workshops I would just like to say thank you for your time in talking to us recently your session was extremely interesting and the feedback from our leaders has been very positive.
Nigel Cann Station Director, British Energy

Jennie Bond has been a journalist for more than thirty years and has become one of the most familiar faces on television. Although she made her name as the BBC’s Royal Correspondent, she has a wide breadth of experience on general news and current affairs. This has helped make her a much sought-after facilitator of business debates and conferences.

For many years Jennie has also been a regular news presenter on BBC Television and documentaries and factual programmes.

She began her career in journalism after graduating from Warwick University in 1972. She worked on local papers as a reporter for five years before joining BBC Radio News. During the next few years she
gained a thorough grounding in radio news, editing the main bulletins. She also worked as a producer on current affairs shows, including the very popular Woman’s Hour, and in light entertainment, with Noel Edmonds.

She returned to full-time reporting in 1986 with BBC Radio, covering major news stories, for example in Northern Ireland. She also began her career as a presenter, anchoring among other programmes, the top current affairs show in the UK, ‘TODAY’, on Radio 4.

She moved to television in 1988. She has presented ‘BREAKFAST NEWS’, the one o’clock and six o’clock news bulletins regularly, and is one of the most familiar faces on the BBC .

Few people have had a closer view of royal history through the past turbulent 14 years and as the BBC’s royal Correspondent she was at the heart of events that made headlines around the world: from the fairytale marriages to the adultery, the divorces and the deaths, She has ridden a royal roller coaster that has seen the monarchy almost brought to its knees before being swept up on the crest of a wave of national celebration for the Queen’s Golden Jubilee.

Jennie’s book “Reporting Royalty” tells in detail of her years keeping tabs on Britain’s Royal Family. It was published in September 2001 by Headline. In Jubilee Year, Carlton books published her “Elizabeth, 50 Glorious Years”, a commemoration of the Queen’s reign.

Rick Stein OBE is the first TV chef everyone thinks of when it comes to seafood. But with his series Food Heroes, Rick has shown that he’s equally passionate about the best of British produce whatever its provenance. In his most recent series French Odyssey, he also revealed a passion for the French way of life, especially the food culture.

Stein didn’t always harbour ambitions to be an award-winning chef. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in English, he spent several years at running a disco before buying an ailing local nightclub in Padstow.

The venture was not a success and Rick turned to food as a way out. He opened a restaurant that specialised in freshly caught local produce, supplied by the fishermen who had once frequented his club.
Rick has run the Seafood Restaurant for more than 25 years, seeing it grow from a seaside bistro to an award-winning restaurant with an international reputation. Since those early days, the Steins have added guest bedrooms, a Seafood Delicatessen, a gift shop and two smaller restaurants – St Petroc’s Bistro and Rick Stein’s Café. The most recent addition is the Padstow Seafood School overlooking the Camel estuary and a fish and chips takeaway.

He has been honoured for his cookery success with many awards, including the Glenfiddich Trophy for his outstanding contribution to widening the understanding and appreciation of excellent food and drink in Britain through his work as a chef, teacher, presenter and author.

His many TV programmes and books include Rick Stein’s Taste of the Sea, Fruits of the Sea, Seafood Odyssey, Fresh Food, Seafood Lovers’ Guide, Food Heroes, French Odyssey and, most recently, Mediterranean Escapes.

In January 2003, Rick was awarded an OBE for services to Cornish tourism. He’s based in Padstow but spends several weeks each year in Sydney, Australia.

Sir John Banham is the Chairman designate of Johnson Matthey PLC, Cyclacel Limited (the UK-based cancer therapeutics company) and Spacelabs Inc. (a world leader in heart monitoring equipment, based in Seattle, USA). He is also the senior independent director of AMVESCAP PLC and a non executive director of Merchants Trust PLC.

Former Director General of the CBI, he set up a number of initiatives which focused on developing closer relationships between ‘Government and Business’ and ‘Business and Education’. After leaving the CBI, he was Director/Chairman of a wide cross-section of companies, including: National Power, National Westminster Bank, Westcountry Television, and Labatt Breweries. At Tarmac, Whitbread, Kingfisher and Geest he created significant shareholder value. He led the Audit Commission and the Local Government Commission for England and saved the taxpayer well over £1 billion a year.

Sir John started his career in the Foreign Office in 1962 after gaining a first class Honours Degree in Natural Sciences and in 1964 spent a year with J Walter Thompson, learning marketing and from there moved to Reed International, where he went on to become Director of Marketing for the Wallcovering Division of the Group.

In 1969 he joined the management consultants, McKinsey & Co., becoming a Principal in 1975 and the youngest ever British Director in 1980. During this period he gained wide industrial experience in the UK, the United States and Europe. He was directly responsible for major consultancy assignments with a variety of leading UK companies in engineering, aviation, food processing, mineral extraction and other manufacturing and service groups at critical stages in their development.

Sir John was the first Controller (Chief Executive) of the Audit Commission when it was established in 1983, set up to monitor efficiency and seek better value for money in local government. Under Sir John’s leadership it identified improvements worth over £2 billion a year and launched a range of reforms now being implemented in local government finance, the management of secondary schools, Council housing and community care. He held that position until 1987, when he left to become the Director-General of the Confederation of British Industry.

On leaving the CBI in 1992, he took up the position of Chairman of the Local Government Commission for England which he held until his departure in March 1995 when the Secretary of State for the Environment announced his intention to reform the Commission since its review of the counties in Shire England had now been largely completed.

In addition to his Chairmanships, Sir John is Director of Merchants Trust Plc and a Non-Executive Director of National Westminster Bank Plc and National Power Plc. He serves as Chairman of the Remuneration Committees for National Westminster Bank Plc and National Power and Kingfisher Plc.

Sir John is a Managing Trustee of the Nuffield Foundation and Honorary Treasurer and Member of the Council of the Cancer Research Campaign. He holds an Honorary Doctor of Law degree from the University of Bath (1987) and an Honorary Doctor of the Science degree from the University of Exeter, as well as being an Honorary Fellow of his old college, Queens College, Cambridge. Sir John became the first Fellow of Cornwall College when it became independent in 1993.

Sir John has written numerous publications including ‘The Future of the British Car Industry’ (1975), ‘Realising the Promise of a National Health Service’ (1977), together with a number of reports for the Audit Commission on education, housing, social services and local government finance (1984-87). He has also co-authored many reports for the CBI on the UK economy, skills and education, transport, the infrastructure, urban regeneration, manufacturing (1987-92) and local government. In addition, Sir John Banham is the author of ‘The Anatomy of Change: Blueprint for a New Era’ (1994).

Sir John Banham was knighted in 1992, was born in Torquay and lives in West Cornwall. His recreations include country walking, classical music, gardening and writing all of which he very much enjoys when not working or engaged in his other successful sideline of after-dinner and conference speaking events.

Sir Roy Strong, author, broadcaster, former Director of the National Portrait Gallery and the Victoria and Albert Museum, is one of Britain’s best-known public figures. Articulate, witty, often provocative, he is a great communicator much in demand for his opinions and ideas. His many bestselling books include The Story of Britain, The Cult of Elizabeth and The Spirit of Britain.

He was Director of the National Portrait Gallery from 1967 to 1973 and of the Victoria and Albert Museum from 1974 to 1987. In 1980 he was awarded the prestigious Shakespeare Prize by the FVS Foundation of Hamburg in recognition of his contribution to the arts in the UK. He has published a number of highly acclaimed books, most recently The Laskett, the story of the garden he built with his late wife, the film, television and theatre designer Dr. Julia Trevelyan Oman. He is currently working on a history of the Coronation for HarperCollins and A Little History of the English Church for Jonathan Cape.

For a public figure whose career is firmly rooted in the arts, Sir Roy is widely known as a common sense advocate with views on society and the future. His warm and witty style makes him a popular choice as an after dinner speaker; a role he increasingly enjoys.

Entrepreneur and team leader Richard Noble specialises in developing high risk ventures. His Thrust team have held the land speed record for over a quarter of a century. First time around with the Thrust 2 programme which brought the World Land Speed Record back to Britain in 1983 and then with Thrust SSC, the first ever supersonic land speed record programme.

Other ground breaking projects have included the ARV Super2 aircraft, the Atlantic Sprinter Blue Riband contender, an original television funding company, and the last, Farnborough Aircraft.

At the end of September 1997 Richard achieved the seemingly impossible. His newly designed Supersonic car broke first the land speed record, and in October 1997 it broke the sound barrier with Andy Green as one of the top RAF pilots at the wheel. On the 15th October 1997 the first supersonic world land-speed record – 763.035 MPH was achieved.

The adventure is far from over. Bloodhound SSC was conceived with the objective of making engineering excellence and innovation sexy once again to young British adults. The project team will design, construction and attain 1000 mph on land.

His presentations are thought provoking, fast paced and feature enthralling video inserts. The idea is to inspire the audience to realize their potential to encourage original thought, develop ownership of responsibility and understand the principles of true teamwork.

Richard has received numerous awards from accross the world, the most valued among them are his OBE, RAC Diamond Jubilee Trophy, John Cobb Memorial Trophy, the Sir Malcolm Campbell Trophy and the Sir Henry Segrave Trophy.

The successes of Richard’s projects are driven by his energy and leadership, by bringing together a team and motivating and inspiring them towards the same goal. The tremendous loyalty and ‘ownership’ heuristic inherent in his teams are testament to the ability of humans to work together.

Many people end up in a career by accident, James is one of them. Having started out as a sub-editor on a trade magazine, James made the move to a car magazine. This gave him a reputation for knowing about motoring, and the opportunity to work on the launch of other motoring journals in an editorial capacity.
James was offered a column in Car Magazine, and became a freelance writer. James has since written for Autocar, Country Life and Scotland on Sunday. He now has a regular column in Saturday’s Daily Telegraph motoring section, and the monthly magazine Top Gear.

Following the colossal success of Top Gear, James has presented Inside Killer Sharks, UKTV People Car of the Year and wrote and presented James May’s Top Toys and 20th Century. James is currently filming yet another series of Oz & James’ Big Wine Adventure for BBC2.

James has also made guest appearances on Ready Steady Cook, BBC Breakfast, Petrolheads, 20th Century Roadshow and has been a guest host on Top of the Pops. As well as television, James has been a regular guest on BBC radio discussing motoring issues.

James’s style of writing can be more of a social commentary, rather than a plain critique of the latest vehicle to leave a car manufacturer’s stable. His musings on modern motoring are witty and engaging, keeping the readers interest to the last sentence.

Captain Slow as James has become known is an advocate of driving sensibly from behind a wooden dashboard. Popular with audiences of all ages James has become a role model for the younger driver, he has been instrumental is making indicating before lane changes and legal tyre tread depths popular once more.

Very highly rated as an after dinner raconteur, James style is a relaxed, flowing and humorous series of observations of modern life, past times and social habits. Very popular with senior business audiences both young and old.

James was voted HEAT magazines ‘Weird Crush of the year 2007’ winner, young women readers have seemingly taken James to their hearts.

Gyles Brandreth is one of Britain’s most sought-after award ceremony hosts and after-dinner speakers.

He won his first prize as a public speaker as a schoolboy of fifteen. At Oxford, aged twenty, he was elected President of the Oxford Union. At 22, he turned professional. Since then he has spoken all over the world, in venues as varied as the Helmsley Palace, New York and Buckingham Palace, London.

His audiences have ranged from the executives of Coca-Cola to a silent order of nuns, from a thousand bankers in Frankfurt to ten thousand members of the WI at Wembley Arena. He has featured in the Guinness Book of Records for making the world’s longest-ever after-dinner speech. To raise funds for the National Playing Fields Association, he spoke non-stop for twelve and a half hours.

A former Oxford Scholar, President of the Oxford Union and MP for the City of Chester, Gyles Brandreth’s career has ranged from being a Whip and Lord Commissioner of the Treasury in John Major’s government to starring in his own award-winning musical revue in London’s West End. A prolific broadcaster (in programmes ranging from Just a Minute to Have I Got News for You), an acclaimed interviewer (principally for the Sunday Telegraph), a novelist, children’s author and a biographer, his best-selling diary, Breaking the Code , was described as ‘By far the best political diary of recent years, far more perceptive and revealing than Alan Clark’s’ (The Times) and ‘Searingly honest, wildly indiscreet, and incredibly funny’ (Daily Mail).

He is the author of two acclaimed royal biographies: Philip & Elizabeth: Portrait of a Marriage and Charles & Camilla: Portrait of a Love Affair. In 2007/2008, John Murray in the UK and Simon & Schuster in the US begin publishing The Oscar Wilde Murder Mysteries, his series of Victorian murder mysteries featuring Oscar Wilde as the detective.

Gyles Brandreth is one of Britain’s busiest after-dinner speakers and award ceremony hosts. He has won awards himself, and been nominated for awards, as a public speaker, novelist, children’s writer, broadcaster (Sony), political diarist (Channel Four), journalist (British Press Awards), theatre producer (Olivier), and businessman (British Tourist Authority Come to Britain Trophy).

Gyles Brandreth’s forebears include George R Sims (the highest-paid journalist of his day, who wrote the ballad Christmas Day in the Workhouse) and Jeremiah Brandreth (the last man in England to be beheaded for treason). His great-great-grandfather, Benjamin Brandreth, promoted ‘Brandreth’s Pills’ (a medicine that cured everything!) and was a pioneer of modern advertising and a New York state senator. Today, Gyles Brandreth has family living in New York, Maryland, South Carolina and California. He has been London correspondent for “Up to the Minute” on CBS News and his books published in the United States include the New York Times best-seller, The Joy of Lex and, most recently, Philip & Elizabeth: Portrait of a Royal Marriage.

A man of many talents, Stephen Fry has established himself as an actor, novelist, comedian, librettist and all-round wit.

Fry’s childhood and time at Cambridge has been well documented in his autobiography MOAB is my Washpot (1998), and it is these early years that have provided him with much of the content found in his novels. In particular, The Liar (1991) tells the story of a reckless ex-Cambridge student who becomes involved in an international espionage caper. The novel contains many episodes clearly inspired by the younger Fry.

Fry grew up in Norfolk and attended Uppingham School. After which he went to Queen’s College, Cambridge where he studied English.

It was during this time that he met Hugh Laurie, with whom he was to form a prolific writing partnership and appear with in the legendary Cambridge Footlights University Club.

In 1984, Fry was asked to do the re-write for the musical Me & My Girl, which earned him a Tony nomination. The 80s also saw Fry do a large amount of work for television, including the comedy shows A Bit of Fry & Laurie and Blackadder.

More success came with Jeeves & Wooster, based on the novels of P.G. Wodehouse, with Fry taking the part of the sagacious butler opposite Hugh Laurie’s bumbling Bertie Wooster.

With the occasional odd moment aside, like his sudden departure from the London stage during a run of Cell Mates, only to re-surface, sometime later on the continent, with the British press in hot pursuit, Fry has been prolific both with book and screen.

Peter’s Friends (1992), and Wilde (1997) feature two of his most notable performances as an actor. And, in 2003, Fry made his directorial debut with Bright Young Things, adapted from Evelyn Waugh’s 1930 novel Vile Bodies. He has also been a keen contributor to national newspapers over the years, in particular The Daily Telegraph, and is the host of the BBC TV quiz show QI.

In 2005, Fry was the voice of the book in the big screen version of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by the late Douglas Adams.

Fry was also cast as a chat show host, Gordon Dietrich, in V for Vendetta and came top in a Radio Times poll of their readers on whom they thought were the smartest people on TV. In 2007, he starred in the title role of ITV’s drama series Kingdom.

Educated at Nottingham High School and Cambridge. The Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke MP is a barrister-at-law, having been called to the Bar at Gray’s Inn in 1963 and becoming QC in 1980. He has practised on the Midland Circuit, based in Birmingham.

Kenneth Clarke first became active in politics at Cambridge where he was President of the Union. Life in the House of Commons began on his election as MP for Rushcliffe in the 1970 general election and he has retained the seat to this day.

His career within the House has been a long one and he held positions within the Department of Transport before being appointed Minister for Health in 1982. Kenneth Clarke joined the Cabinet in 1985 as Paymaster General and Minister for Employment, and following the 1987 general election, became Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for Trade & Industry. He subsequently held the posts of Secretary of State for Health, Education & Science and Home Office before becoming Chancellor of the Exchequer in May 1993, a position he held until the general election of May 1997.

On 19 January 2009, he rejoined the Conservative Party front bench team as Shadow Business Secretary.

Among the most energetic of former Conservative cabinet ministers in broadening his business interests since the election, Kenneth Clarke has recently been appointed non-executive chairman of Uni-Chem, non executive deputy chairman of BAT and a non-executive director of Foreign & Colonial Investment Trust.

Renowned for his powerful performances in the House and credited with having taken the UK economy to a healthy state, Kenneth Clarke is one of the most impressive people on the political scene today.

Famous also for his lively sense of humour and “the chuckle”, Kenneth Clarke’s vast experience of world economic and political affairs make him a much requested keynote speaker at senior-level conferences.

Jeremy Clarkson is an English broadcaster and writer who specialises in motoring. He writes weekly columns for The Sunday Times and The Sun, but is better known for his role on the BBC TV show Top Gear. Born in Doncaster, Clarkson was educated at Repton School, from where he was reputedly or unsurprisingly expelled. His first job was as a travelling salesman for his parents’ business selling Paddington Bear toys, after which he trained as a journalist with the Rotherham Advertiser.

Clarkson is most associated with Top Gear, which he presented from 1989 to 1999, in the programme’s original format, and then again from 2002, when it was relaunched in a new format after a brief period off the air. His current co-presenters are James May and Richard Hammond. It is now the most watched TV show on BBC Two, and is also shown in over 100 countries around the world.

For three years, Clarkson had his own chat show and has presented a number of shows focused on history. For example, he presented a programme looking at Victoria Cross winners, in particular focusing on his father-in-law Robert Henry Cain who won the VC during Operation Market Garden at Arnhem in World War 2.

In addition to television, Clarkson also had a small role in the UK release of the 2006 Disney Pixar movie Cars as the voice of Harv, Lightning McQueen’s agent.

“Not a man given to considered opinion,” according to the BBC, Clarkson is known to be opinionated and forthright in his views. The Economist, on the subject of road pricing in UK, has described him as a “skillful propagandist for the motoring lobby”.

In 2004 during an episode of the BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?, Clarkson was invited to investigate his family history; including the story of his great-great-great grandfather John Kilner (1792–1857), who invented the Kilner jar; a receptacle for preserved fruit.

Author, Broadcaster and Professor, Dan Cruickshank is a regular on the BBC, best known for his popular series Britain’s Best Buildings, Around the World in 80 Treasures and What the Industrial Revolution Did For Us. His knowledge of the Architectural Gems of the World combine with his natural humour and the experiences of a Worldly Wise Journeyman have made him one of the most enthralling and captivating speakers available today.

Dan has travelled Afghanistan for the BBC Omnibus series to discover what cultural treasures remained after years of civil war and bloodshed, his series Under Fire reported on the scale of looting of Iraqi treasures.

His books include Around the World in 80 Treasures; Life in the Georgian City; The Guide to the Georgian Buildings of Britain and Ireland; Invasion: Defending Britain from Attack; and The Story of Britain’s Best Buildings. He was also editor of the 20th edition of Sir Banister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture.

He is an Honorary Fellow of RIBA with a BA in Art, Design and Architecture. For three years he was also a visiting professor in the Department of Architecture at the University of Sheffield. He is also a member of the London Faculty of the University of Delaware.

He is a leading expert on architecture and historic buildings, and a frequent contributor to The Architects’ Journal and The Architectural Review. He is an active member of the Georgian Group and a member of the Architectural Panel of the National Trust.

John Sergeant is a freelance broadcaster, writer and sometime dancer. After his best selling memoirs, ‘Give Me Ten Seconds’ he has written another book – on the last part of Mrs Thatcher’s career. “Maggie: her fatal legacy”, published in February, 2005. He was given a bronze award for his audio version of the book in the Spoken Word Awards for 2005. John is a frequent guest on light entertainment shows. In March 2005 he appeared with Goldie Hawn and John Travolta on ITV’s ‘Parkinson.’ He has twice chaired the popular BBC satire show ‘Have I Got News for You has recently taken part in the BBC2 programme ‘The Big Read’ (he promoted Catch-22) and The Best British Sitcom (he promoted Blackadder). He appeared with Paul Merton in ‘Room 101.’

He has also been a guest on many Radio 4 shows, including the News Quiz, Quote Unquote, Just a Minute, and X Marks the Spot. He has taken part in the “With Great Pleasure …” series, ‘A Good Read’ and ‘Front Row.’

During the past three years he has been touring the country with his one-man show, ‘An Audience with John Sergeant.’ He is in great demand as an after-dinner speaker and as a presenter of awards. Until the end of 2003 he was Political Editor of ITN, having spent three years with ITV. Before that he was with the BBC for 30 years, starting as a general reporter and then specialising in political journalism. For 12 years he was the BBC’s Chief Political Correspondent. He has presented the World at One, Today and PM on Radio 4.

John was educated at Millfield School in Somerset, where he was taught English by the playwright Robert Bolt, who also wrote scripts for many highly-regarded films, including Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago. Later John went to Oxford and immediately after graduating joined Alan Bennett in his comedy series ‘On the Margin.’ It won the Comedy of the year award. In 1967 John became a trainee reporter at the Liverpool Daily Post and Echo. From here he joined the BBC as a Television and Radio news reporter and covered stories in more than 25 countries. John’s assignments included covering events in Vietnam, Rhodesia, Northern Ireland, the Turkish invasion of Cyprus and the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, He was also senior correspondent in Dublin, Paris and Washington.

In 1990 John won a Press Guild Award for the most memorable outside broadcast: Margaret Thatcher interrupted his report outside the Paris Embassy to announce her participation in the second round of the Conservative Party leadership ballot. He also won the National Viewers and Listener’s award for the broadcasting personality of the year in 2000.

His memoirs, Give Me Ten Seconds, were described by the Independent on Sunday as “an all-time rip-roaring read”. It was in the best-selling charts for six months and sold more than 300,000 copies. His latest book Maggie: Her Fatal Legacy was serialized in The Sunday Times and has been widely praised.