Meeting Report for Wednesday 11th December 2019

Our Christmas-themed meeting started at 19:00 at our Fitzrovia venue, with a few members posing for the camera in their festive costumes.

Ken then called us to order before handing over to our President, Nick, who, after a few inspiring words, introduced our Toastmaster for the evening, Freddie.

Melanie, performing the Meet & Greet role, then invited our guests on stage, who each took a moment to tell us a little about themselves.

Our Timekeeper, Ilaria explained her role before Gosia conducted a Christmas-themed Table Topics session. At Excalibur, each TT is evaluated immediately after it has been delivered for up to 45 seconds by  a member of the audience.  

Our formal speeches then followed. The first was delivered by David: "From Dauphin to Charlemagne" (Presentation Mastery #2-3 Introduction to Toastmaster Mentoring). This was followed by Nick, with "Naughty of Nice?" (Humorously Speaking #4 - Keep them Laughing) and then Simon delivered "Who do you think I am?" (Presentation Mastery #1-2 - Evaluation and Feedback - 1). 

The speeches were evaluated by Latifa, Ian and Cat, before Ben took the Open Feedback session - in which members and guests are invited to add two minutes of commendations and one minute of suggestions to each speech.

Our General Evaluator, Alice then gave her meeting report - in which she explained what she liked about our club and made a few suggestions about how members could improve their performances.

Then it was time for the prizes! Cat was chosen as best Evaluator, Lynne scooped the Best Table Topic award and Simon was awarded the Best Speaker prize - for a speech that many present agreed was the best they'd heard him deliver.

And so ended another fun, high quality Excalibur meeting. Our next is on 8th January, 2020 at our usual venue, the Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DN. Guests are very welcome!

Meeting Report for 27th November, 2019

Ben called the meeting to order before  handing over to our President, Nick. After a few inspiring words from him, he introduced Monika, who was Toastmaster for the evening. She then invited David on stage who introduced our seven guests.

Our Table Topics Master was Ilaria who posed a number of thought-provoking TTs, which were answered and then instantly evaluated by audience members, in our packed Fitzrovia venue. 

The prepared speeches were: Melanie, with "The Annual Review" (Speeches by Management #2 - Appraise with Praise). This was followed by Sarah, with "Emotional Authenticity" (Visionary Commuication #2-2 - Understanding your Communication Style). Thirdly, Ian delivered "Using Schedules Effectively in Software Development" (Speaking to Inform #4 - A Fact-Finding Report).

The speeches were then evaluated by Robin, Freddie and Gosia before Lynne took our Open Feedback session - in which members and guests have three minutes per speech to add additional commendations and recommendations.

Visiting guest, Dominik then performed the General Evaluator role, which he did flawlessly, without notes (which was particularly impressive, as he remembered everyone's name!). 

Winner of Best Table Topic was David, Freddie scooped best Evaluator and Sarah was voted best speaker. 

Our next meeting is at 19:00 on 11th December, at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, W1W 6DN. Guests, as always, are very welcome!

Meeting Report for Wednesday 13th November, 2019

Gosia was our accomplished Toastmaster for this fun meeting - introducing slips of paper on which people wrote a line or two, which were then placed in a hat. Those on stage then chose a slip, before incorporating the lines in what they said. It added a degree of challenge...but then we are an advanced club!

Ian ran a debating-style Table Topics, which also lifted many of us from our comfort zones, as the exercise warmed us up for the three formal speeches.

David delivered speech #9 from the CC Manual, "Persuade with Power"- "How are You?" This was a beautifully crafted and sensitively delivered speech that addressed a personal tragedy in his life, while passing on valuable information to the audience.

Then Latifa delivered "Chameleonism" - from Communicating on Television #2 - The Talk Show. This took an interview format, with Ben asking her a series of questions about how she feels she fits into the world. Her thoughtful and sincere answers kept the audience spellbound.

Finally, Monika delivered: "From a Dusty Atlas to Digital: a Journey with Maps." This speech was CC Manual #4, "Inspire your Audience" and Monika certainly achieved her objective! Ben commented that he'd wished Monika had taught him geography at school.

The Open Feedback session was chaired by Ilaria, which is an opportunity for the audience to suggest further commendations and recommendation on the delivered speeches.

Our experienced guest, Christopher was kind enough to perform the role of Open Feedback - making a number of helpful observations about Excalibur.

The Table Topics prize was shared by Ben and Freddie.
Errol was voted best Evaluator and the Best Speaker award went to David.

Our next meeting is at 19:00 on Wednesday 27th November at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street,  London W1W 6DN. Gests are very welcome! 

 

Excalibur Triumphs at the Area Humorous Speech and Table Topics Contest!

Tuesday 29th October saw a packed room and high levels of excitement for the Area Humorous Speech and Table Topics Contest, kindly hosted by Mindshare in their WC2 office.

Excalibur was represented by Robin (Table Topics) and Ben (Humorous Speech) and despite strong competition, I am pleased to report that both emerged triumphant!

A huge thank you to everyone who helped make the event such a success - especially Monika, who ran her first Area Contest - and was presented, for (amongst other things), her cartographic excellence, with a Toastmasters Outstanding Member pin, by Florian!

The Division L Humorous Speech and Table Topics Contest, at which Robin and Ben will continue their journeys representing Excalibur, will be on Saturday 23rd November, 09:00 - 14:00 at City Temple Conference Centre, Holborn Viaduct, EC1A 2DE - get your tickets on Eventbrite!

Meeting Report for Wednesday 23rd October, 2019

Monika and Gosia got our meeting off to a smooth start, performing the Meet & Greet and Call to Order roles, before President Nick took to the stage with some sage words. He then handed over to our Toastmaster for the evening, Cat.
Sarah then explained - and performed - the Timekeeper role.
We were then ready for Table Topics, hosted by David.
Being an advanced club, we like to do things a little differently and so members of the audience are invited on stage to do an instant evaluation on the previous table topic. House Rule: every evaluator must include a recommendation!
Three prepared, high quality speeches followed. The first was delivered by Ilaria: "Is this Mission Possible?" (Strategic Relationships #1-4 - Researching & Presenting; 5-7 mins).
Our second speech was delivered by Carolina: "More Honey" (Competition & Other speeches #10 - Non-manual speech (5:00-7:00 mins, which included 1:00 min of Q&A).
Then Freddie entertained us with "The Age of Transition" (The Professional Speaker #2 - Speaking to Entertain (15:00-20:00 mins).
The speeches were evaluated for 2-3:00 mins by Latifa, David and Chinkata, before Brian ran the Open Feedback session - in which audience members offer an additional two minutes of commendations and one minute of recommendations per speech.
Our General Evaluator for the evening, Gagan then evaluated everyone who hadn't previously been evaluated.
It was then time for the prizes. Freddie scooped Best Speaker, and Chinkata, who was on top form as usual, was voted both best Evaluator and best Table Topics contestant.

Our next meeting is on Wednesday 13th November 2019 at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley St., London W1W 6DN. Guests are very welcome!

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In other news, we welcome Ilaria who had agreed to be our new VPE. She is very experienced Toastmaster and VPE - this will be her fifth time performing this important committee role. 

Meeting Report for Wednesday 9th October, 2019

We met on our traditional second (the other meeting being the fourth) Wednesday of the month at the Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DN.
Our Toastmaster for the evening was new member Latifa, who delivered a faultless and entertaining performance - her fist time in this role for Excalibur. 
Ben then invited our guests on stage to introduce themselves:

Freddie took the Table Topics session. The participants were instantly evaluated by other members of the audience. 

We then had our three formal speeches: Deborah - "The Secret of Youth" Humorously Speaking # 3 "Make them Laugh". This excellent speech was followed by Robin's "Smart" - Speeches by Management #1 "The Briefing". Finally Prakesh delivered "Books we Read. People we Meet" - Visionary Communication #1-1 Icebreaker. 

The speeches were evaluated by Monika, Ilaria and Carolina. 

Then we had the Open Feedback session, in which the audience is invited to add three minutes per speech of extra commendations and suggestions. Congratulations to Robin (#2) who jumped in at short notice to perform this role!

Kat then delivered an insightful Open Feedback session - in which everyone who hadn't been previously evaluated on stage, received her thoughts and suggestions.

President Nick then awarded the prizes which were as follows: best table Topic: Deborah; best Evaluation: Monika; best Speech: Robin.

Our next meeting is at 19:00 on Wednesday 23th October, at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, London W1W 6DN. Guests are very welcome!

Excalibur Humorous Speech and Table Topics Competition, 25th September, 2019

We met at our usual Fitzrovia venue (2 Foley St., W1W 6DN) for our hotly anticipated annual Humorous Speech and Table Topics competitions. The tension was so great, you could have cut it with a knife (or indeed, a sword).

Our Humorous Speech contestants consisted of Debbie, Chinkata, Ian, David and Ben. Each in turn fulfilled the brief with expertly delivered, funny speeches that lasted 5-7.5 mins (there we no disqualifications).

The Table Topics contestants were Melanie, Debbie, Ilaria, Simon and Robin who answered the question, "What is your most spectacular failure and how did you make it a success?" The permitted time for answers was 1-2.5 mins and again, there were no disqualifications. All gave well structured and thoughtful replies - following the (unwritten) brief of employing a beginning, middle and end.

The Certificates of Participation were then handed out:

After the judges had done their work, the results were announced. The winners of the Table Topics competition were:

First Place: Robin
Second Place: Debbie
Third Place: Ilaria

Humorous Speech Winners:

First Place: Ben
Second Place: Chinkata
Third Place: Debbie

A big thank-you to everyone who helped this fun evening be the great success it was. That includes the many functionaries needed to run a competition, both from Excalibur, and from other clubs. 

The Area Competition is at 18.30 on 29th October at Mindshare Toastmasters, who meet at 1 St Giles High Street, WC2H 8AR. Come and support Robin and Ben! 

The next Excalibur meeting is at 19:00 on 9th October, 2019 at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DN. Guests are very welcome! 

   

Meeting Report for Wednesday 11th September, 2019

We met on a balmy evening for another high quality meeting, kicked off by Brian (Meet and Greet) and Lukasz (Call to Order) before our President, Nick took to the stage to hand over to our Toastmaster for the evening, Debbie, who performed the role with great polish.

Once our guests had been introduced, Freddie explained the role of Timekeeper and then Robin took to the stage as Table Topics Master - her questions were based on the theme: when we we young, which given the considerable age spread of the club's members, proved more challenging for some than others!

Three excellent speeches were then delivered. The first was by David, "Do you see what I'm saying?" Presentation Mastery #2-1 Effective Body Language. It was evaluated by Ben.

Then Chinkata delivered "Things Fall Apart" Interpretive Reading #1 - Read a Story. This speech was evaluated by Errol.

Thirdly, David gave a speech entitled "Find the Source" Speaking to Inform #1 - The Speech to Inform which was evaluated by Jan.

Ian then ran the Open Feedback session - in which the audience is invited to add two minutes more of commendations and one minute more of suggestions to each speech. Rarely seen in Toastmasters clubs, this session allows members of the audience to speak and adds additional layers of analysis to the formal presentations.

Next, Ilaria delivered the Open Feedback session, in which she made insightful commendations and suggestions to people who hadn't been previously evaluated.

It was then time for President Nick to award the evening's prizes. Ben was chosen as best Table Topics contestant, best Evaluator was Errol, and David won Best Speaker. 

Our next meeting - which is our annual Humorous Speech and Table Topics contests - is on 25th September, but it starts at the earlier time of 6.30pm, at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DN. Guests are very welcome!

Meeting Report for 14th August, 2019

Lukash called us to order, before handing over to club President Nick, who after some well chosen words, introduced our evening's Toastmaster, David, to the crowded room. Ben then invited our guests on stage.

Table Topics Master was Lynne, who conducted the session with her usual aplomb, reminding us that when the Table Topics are evaluated, the speaker must supply at least one recommendation. We are, after all, an advanced club!

We enjoyed three high quality, but very different speeches this evening. The first was delivered by Mel (including visuals!): "Thanks to Basingstoke" Dynamic Leadership 1 - The Icebreaker. We shared Mel's journey from her childhood in (un)inspiring Basingstoke, which generated the drive to achieve so much in her professional life.  

This was followed by Melanie's: "The Office Briefing" Speeches by Management - 1 - The Briefing. Melanie talked us through a list of essential recommendations when moving office, and handled the Q&A session with confidence and skill.    

Our third speech was by Freddie: "The Path to a More Successful Life" The Professional Speaker - 5 - The Motivational Speech. In this thoughtful speech, Freddie examined the meaning of life, compared his own goals when younger with the paths of three school friends, before gently steering us towards a more fulfilling future. 

The speeches were evaluated by Prakash, Simon and Ken. 

Monika then led the Open Feedback session, in which members and guests add additional commendations and suggestions to the prepared speeches. 

Our guest Latifa then took to the stage to deliver an excellent general evaluation - in which she made commendations and suggestions to those who hadn't been previously evaluated. A high-point of her delivery was when she announced she'd be joining Excalibur! 

We then moved to the prize giving. The best Table Topics award went to David, Ken was best Evaluator and Freddie was chosen as best speaker.

Our next meeting will be at 19:00 on Wednesday 28th August, 2019 at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DN. Guests are very welcome!

Meeting Report for 24th July, 2019

Despite the clammy weather, the room was packed, and anticipation ran high as our 7pm bi-weekly meeting got underway.

President Nick opened the meeting before handing over to our Toastmaster for the evening, the very experienced Simon, who ran the event in a calm and very welcoming manner.
Ilaria then introduced our guests, who told us a little about themselves. Timekeeper Brian then explained the Timekeeper role.

Cat ran a 30 minute "Moments of Truth"workshop - an annual event - in which the audience split into three groups, with each tasked with analysing ways in which the club could be improved. Spokespeople then took to the stage to deliver their group's recommendations, which were recorded by Robin, the Club Secretary, for later committee consideration and implementation.

We then moved on to our prepared speeches. David delivered: Presentation Mastery - 5- Understanding your Communication Style, entitled "Do you get what I am saying?" (5-7 mins).

Our second speaker was Ben, whose speech, "Add a Story to that Presentation" was from the Speeches by Management - 3 - Persuade and Inspire (5-7 mins).

Our third speaker was Sonia, whose speech was from: Interpretive Reading - 3 - The Monodrama, "Rosencranz & Gildenstern are Dead" (5-7 mins).

The speeches were evaluated by Ian, Monika and Freddy before Melanie led the open feedback session, in which members of the audience add three minutes (per speech) of additional commendations and suggestions. 

Lily then took to the stage as General Evaluator, a role she performed delightfully as she described what she liked about our advanced club, and suggested ways it could be improved. 

It was then time for President Nick to give his closing remarks and for the prize giving. The best speech evaluator award went to Freddie; the best speech was delivered by Sonia.

Our next meeting is on 14th August, at 19:00 at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DN. Guests are most welcome! 

Meeting Report for Wednesday 10th July, 2019

Prakesh performed the Meet and Greet role, as he welcomed our guest John (who was GE for the meeting) at the door, and then introduced him on stage.

After Simon had called us to order, President Nick opened the meeting with an inspiring talk about his vision and membership goals for the club over the next twelve months He then introduced our Toastmaster, Ian who added his customary humour to the role! Monika was Timekeeper, keeping the audience involved with brief anecdotes and factoids about time.

The Table Topic Master was Ben, who invited members of the audience on stage to a Hero's Journey-themed TT, with each participant limited in scope to elements of Joseph Campbell's classic work. The resulting narrative included (amongst its many twists and turns) worms, dragons and something about overeating, in an arc that had the audience, and the TT evaluators, on the edge of their seats.

We the came to the formal speeches.

Marcin delivered "The Confidence" - The Entertaining Speaker - 4 - A Dramatic Talk. In this moving 5-7 min speech, he described elements of his childhood and offered salutary advice on how we should treat each other.

Melanie then delivered "One Small Change" - Public Relations - 3 - The Persuasive Approach. In this 8-10 min speech, Melanie built a convincing case as to why we should stop buying plastic bottled water.

Then Ken delivered "Three Vows in a Wedding" - The Entertaining Speaker - 1 - The Entertaining Speech (5-7 mins). Ken's speech certainly fulfilled its brief as he described the marriage rituals of his native Nigeria. Sadly the VPPR failed to get a decent picture of Ken - he blames is on the lights being switched off for the slide show! 

The speeches were formally evaluated by Anke, Carolina and David, before we held our Open Feedback session which was hosted by Cat. This is an uncommon Toastmasters meeting feature which our members and guests find particularly useful, in which they deliver an extra three minutes of commendations and suggestions per speech.

John then delivered his General Evaluation for the club and meeting, and ended on a high note: he enjoyed himself so much, and was so impressed by Excalibur that he intends joining the club in the near future!

The Table Topics winner was Anke, Carolina was voted best Evaluator and the Best Speaker was a dead heat between Marcin, Melanie and Ken.

Sadly,  we say goodbye to Anke who is moving abroad for work reasons. We wish her every success both in her career and continuing Toastmasters journey.

Our next meeting is at 19:00 on 24th July at the Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, London W1W 6DN. All guests are very welcome!

EXCALIBUR CELEBRATED 21 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE - on 12th June, 2019

We opened our Past Presidents Meeting by celebrating our first 21 years with nibbles and bubbly, before our President Monika handed over to our Toastmaster for the evening, Lynne, who brought huge experience and fun to the role.

Ken performed Meet and Greet, firstly by introducing our guest for the evening and then by inviting the past presidents on stage, each of whom was asked (and answered) an impromptu question.

Anke then ran a great Table topics session, with Freddie acting as Timekeeper.

Our prepared speeches were: Cat, with Comparing Compering (Presentation Mastery - 4 - researching and Presenting); Carolina with From Procurement to Sales (a forthcoming keynote speech) and Nick with Powerful Presentations (The Professional Speaker - 3 - The Sales Training Speech). 

 The speeches were then evaluated by Ben, Simon and Ilaria before David took the Open Feedback session - in which members and guests are invited to add more commendations and suggestions to the evening's speeches.

Former President Bob then performed the GE role. 

David was voted the evening's Table Topic champion, Simon won best Evaluator and Cat was chosen as best Speaker.

 But there were more awards, with cat and Lynne both receiving their prestigious Toastmasters' Triple Crowns!

Our next meeting is at 19:00 on Wednesday 26th June, at the Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DN. Guests are very welcome!

Meeting Report for 8th May, 2019

President Monika opened the meeting, before handing over to Toastmaster, Jan. Jan  introduced a new twist to the evening: inviting people with roles to pair up and find out something about their partner, before revealing this on stage before their partner performs. Ben then introduced our guests for the evening, before Brian came on stage to explain the Timekeeper role.

Former club president Chinkata then supervised the club officer elections before we moved on to a fun Table Topics session, run by Freddie. After each table topic, members of the audience were invited on stage to give instant evaluations. 

The prepared speeches were delivered next. The first was by David, "Old School Ties" (Speciality Speeches - 1 - Speak off the Cuff) in which he prepared for a forthcoming school reunion.

Gosia, then recounted "The Legend of the Wawel Dragon" (Storytelling - 1 - The Folk Tale) in which she described the odd dietary habits of a Polish dragon, and how it met its demise (courtesy of a sulphur filled sheep).

Our third speaker was Ian, with "An Afternoon at the Beach" (The Entertaining Speaker - 4 - A Dramatic Talk). Ian took us wave by wave through the turbulent surf of Bondi beach.

The speeches were evaluated by Carolina, David and Harsha.

Cat then took the Open Feedback session - in which members and guests make further commendations and suggestions on the speeches.

President Monika then announced that the club had achieved the coveted "Excellence in Training Award", and the committee members present took to the stage to be photographed. 

Monika then revealed the results for the evening, with John (a guest) winning best Table Topic, Carolina was best evaluator and the best speech award went to Gosia.

The meeting was a great success and we look forward to our next meeting which will be at 19:00 on Wednesday 22nd May, at the Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, London W1W 6DN. Guest are very welcome!