The Speakers Sub-Committee is dedicated to maintaining the quality and diversity of the BFWI Speakers Listing, the brochure for which is published every two years.
Speakers recommended to the Committee are selected to be invited for audition at venues around the County. WI members’ written comments at these events are relied upon to determine whether a speaker is approved for entry to the Speakers Listing. Speakers are subsequently invited to renew their place in the Listing, updating their details every two years. Details of interim changes and newly approved speakers are published in BFWI News.
Speakers offering virtual presentations are now identified in the Listing.
To ensure that the standard of speakers remains high, WIs are requested to complete and submit a Speaker Report Form after each monthly meeting, whether the talk was virtual or face to face. This applies to all speakers, whether or not they have been approved for the listing. Click on the .pdf link below to download a copy.
| speaker_report_form_current_revising_2020.pdf |
NEW SPEAKERS ADDED! - see foot of page for full information
Featured Speaker
David Allen
With over 10 years experience, David Allen is a very popular public speaker with a fascination for Victorian History and the Golden Age of Hollywood, who is the perfect combination of being both hugely knowledgeable and a very skilled and entertaining storyteller. His presenting style is fun, energetic, and inventive, always with a great deal of humour, and invariably he involves the audience as part of the story to bring the subject to life. Funny, light-hearted, but meticulously well researched, his talks are both fun and thought-provoking and are either taken from his own life experience in his professional life as a solicitor, actor & storyteller or are based on hours, days, and weeks of tireless historical research, trawling through the archives and records dating back to the 1800s. David's talks have been working very well on zoom and many groups are now booking him to do hybrid meetings with some members in the hall and some at home on zoom. Please see the list of talks below or visit his website for further details. www.davidallenpublicspeaker.co.uk DAVID ALLEN - TALKS – 2021 Blood, Guts & Gore - True Stories of Murder in Victorian England David Allen takes you on a gripping journey through the world of plots, deadly poisons, and the occasional chopped-up body, using contemporaneous accounts from newspapers and law reports. Fascinating true stories and great fun! This is a series of talks and in each talk, David tells one or two meticulously-researched stories that are jam-packed with factual details. One of the current stories in this popular series is a particularly blood-curdling tale, in which David will introduce you to an eccentric, bad-tempered ex-teacher who hires a new servant…but is she too good to be true? The Lady Poisoners of Victorian England Meet two ladies who were each cruelly betrayed by their lovers. What did they do next? Of course, they took a trip to their local pharmacy to buy a packet of deadly poison. Ever so cheap, less than 6 old pennies. Welcome to the true tales of two ladies in Victorian England with one word on the tip of their tongues…Murder! The Amazing Mr. Dickens! An affectionate romp through the life of the world’s greatest storyteller, Charles John Huffam Dickens. From his early childhood working in a factory, short-lived employment as a legal clerk, to his illustrious life as a writer, journalist, social reformer, publisher, and much more. With readings from some of his most popular works, including Oliver Twist and Great Expectations. Manners Please, Dearest! Welcome to the extraordinary world of Victorian etiquette! You are all invited to attend a Victorian Finishing School for Young Ladies where you will discover the Do’s and Don’ts of courtship, calling cards, dinner party etiquette, and the mysterious language of the fan. Great Fun! Black Teeth & Dirty Fingernails: The Great Unwashed of Victorian London While the wealthy privileged few were contemplating which bonnet to wear that day, thousands of ordinary people were living in cramped, vermin-ridden slums and workhouses where crime, hunger, and vice were the norms. Using eyewitness accounts, David reveals the grim but fascinating lives of the Victorian underclass, in their brutal struggle to survive. The Weird & Wonderful World of The Law Great fun and plenty of laughs! An enjoyable romp through the legal world: drawing on over 25 years as a locum solicitor travelling around the country, encountering raging judges, dotty clients, and weird cases. Join David on a sideways journey through bizarre true-life oddities, daft old laws still in place, and political correctness gone raving mad! The Life of Agatha Christie A fascinating presentation on the great crime writer exploring her incredible life and the inspiration for her most famous characters with readings from her work. The Making of Casablanca A behind the scenes look at one of the world’s most romantic films. Sit back and enjoy the story of this back-lot B movie which became a classic from the golden age of Hollywood, forever remembered for its incredible cast of Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Peter Lorre, Sydney Greenstreet, and the song… ’As Time Goes By.’ The Making of The Wizard of Oz A behind the scenes look at the iconic ‘Wizard of Oz’. Watch some clips from the film, hear about the book, the author and the team of screenwriters and the original Broadway play from the turn of the 20th century. And of course, you’ll meet Judy Garland… The Making of The Sound of Music One of the most popular films of all time. Find out the real story that inspired this wonderful film, with clips and stories of how the film was made - feel free to sing along! |
NEW SPEAKERS ADDED!
We have continued to audition speakers through lockdown - virtually of course - and we're delighted to introduce you to new "WI approved" speakers. Click on the file .pdf below to open Pandora's Box!
| new_speakers_approved_no_addresses_from_april_21_for_communications_or_other.pdf |
Booking details in your WI's Speakers Listing, or contact us at WISpeakers1915@gmail.com