Thursday 5th September – tonight was our Humorous Speech and Table Topics competition night. It’s a yearly event that allows members to test themselves. First of all before I delve into the detail, a big thank you to everyone who supported the evening either as part of the audience, as a competitor and of course, as one of the unsung heroes who performed a role that enabled the event to run – such as the judges, the counters and timekeepers. An extra special mention goes to Carol Mae who’s been with the club for a year now and who celebrated as the evening’s Chair. Smooth and calm – that’s Carol.
Four members prepared humorous speeches and eight chanced their arms in the Table Topics competition. The humorous speech contest is not about stand-up comedy, it’s about adding, well, humour, to your style. Were we entertained? Yes!
The four humorous speeches covered a wide range of topics: from mere mortals meeting celebrities including Mick Jagger in Venice and Margaret Thatcher in the House of Lords, secondary school gaffs when not paying attention in class and childhood rebellion involving the adaptation of 1970s flares into the style of the Bay City Rollers (excessive use of tartan for anyone wondering …). The winning speech by Neil was about things he’d wished he’d said and done, The speech gave us insight into the inner workings of his mind and how he wished he’d dealt with certain life events … you know the ones, the ones where it’s only after the event that you think of something cutting you should have said but never did! Things like taking an axe to a noisey neighbour’s hifi system … Remind me to keep the noise down when near to him …
Eight members took on the table topic. One at a time they were led to the slaughter, dispatched with the challenge of answering: what’s the most unusual thing you’ve ever seen in someone else’s home? That was a tough one! Answers were varied to say the least and the idea of never letting the truth get in the way of a good story was tested by several speakers.
We had encounters with a chimpanzee when measuring up a client’s home for a new kitchen, UFOs, hoarders, the removal of a roundabout (??!), a curry night and cockroaches. Not happy with one win, Neil deservedly took first place in this competition too. Neil regaled us with a story about how he never knew how bright the interior of his home was (or that he had a damp patch on his ceiling) until after his recent eye surgery. Quick witted and funny, Neil will be representing us in the area competition – we’re in safe hands and we all wish him the best. Bring home the bacon Neil!