West Herts Speakers Club

15/08/2026

🌟 West Herts Speakers: 12 August Meeting Recap — Theme: A Bird in the Hand 🐦✨

There’s an old saying: “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” It reminds us to value the opportunities already in front of us.

At Toastmasters, we take it one step further: sometimes, you simply have to take the opportunity, step onto the stage, and give it a go! 🎤

This evening, we enjoyed three inspiring prepared speeches and a lively Table Topics® session, where members and guests embraced the challenge of thinking on their feet.

🌟 Meeting Highlights

Six brave guests took on the challenge of delivering two-minute impromptu speeches during our Table Topics® session, expertly facilitated by Judy Mallinson — who quite literally had a bird in her hand to bring our theme to life! 🐦😄

It was wonderful to see our guests step outside their comfort zones and fly with the opportunity!

🎉 Congratulations to our Award Winners! 👏👏

🏆 Best Table Topics Speakers: Matt Barrett & Tracey Whitmore
🏆 Best Evaluator: Jan Ross
🏆 Best Speaker: Joseph Firth — “Mitigating Circumstances”

Joe delivered his speech in a wonderfully creative way, adopting the style of a legal court debate to defend his recent absence from Toastmasters, citing work commitments and World Cup tournament tours as evidence for the defence! ⚖️🎤 A creative concept, confident delivery, and plenty of humour made for a memorable speech. The jury is still out… but the audience delivered its verdict! 👏😄

🫶 A Heartfelt Thank You

A sincere thank you to our speakers, evaluators, role-holders, and wonderful guests. Your enthusiasm and encouragement make West Herts Speakers such a welcoming community. 🙌

Perhaps that is another lesson from tonight’s theme: opportunities don’t always come looking as we expect. Sometimes, they simply land in our hands — and we just need the courage to take them. 🐦✨

🤗 Thinking of Visiting Us?

📅 Wednesday, 26 August | 7:30–9:30 pm
📍 The County Club, 29 Ridgmont Road, St Albans, AL1 3AG

Mark your calendars, bring a friend, and come along — your next opportunity could be right in front of you! 🙌🐦

23/07/2026

🌟 West Herts Speakers: 22 July Meeting Recap — Theme: Wonderland ✨

When we hear the word Wonderland, many of us picture magical adventures and unexpected discoveries. But perhaps Wonderland isn’t a place we visit—it’s a mindset. It’s about staying curious, embracing the unexpected, and seeing possibilities where others see obstacles. Life becomes richer when we approach it with curiosity and a sense of wonder.

This evening, we enjoyed two inspiring prepared speeches and a lively Table Topics® session that encouraged participants to think creatively, embrace new ideas, and view ordinary moments from an extraordinary perspective.

🌟 Meeting Highlights
• Judy Mallinson delivered her third Ice Breaker speech, marking the exciting start of her third Toastmasters Pathway. Congratulations on this wonderful milestone!
• Sujanth Sivanesan delivered an inspiring 12-minute speech, sharing his Toastmasters journey, personal growth, and achievements over the years.
• Three guests bravely took on the challenge of delivering two-minute impromptu speeches during our lively Table Topics® session, expertly facilitated by Nigel Manunure.

🎉 Congratulations to our award winners! 👏👏

🏆 Best Evaluator: Matt F**t
🏆 Best Table Topics Speakers: Julia Philips & Viktoryia Young

🫶 A heartfelt thank you

A sincere thank you to everyone who helped make the evening such a success—our speakers, evaluators, role-holders, and wonderful guests. Your enthusiasm, encouragement, and willingness to support one another are what make West Herts Speakers such a welcoming and inspiring community. 🙌

🤗 Thinking of visiting us?

If you’d like to build your confidence, enhance your public speaking, and develop your leadership skills in a friendly and supportive environment, we’d love to welcome you to one of our meetings.

Our next meeting:
📅 Wednesday, 12 August | 7:30–9:30 pm
📍 The County Club, 29 Ridgmont Road, St Albans, AL1 3AG

Mark your calendars, bring a friend, and come along—we’d love to see you there! 🙌

09/07/2026

🌟 West Herts Speakers: 8 July Meeting Recap — Theme: Finding Freedom ✨

Resilience is often what helps us endure—but Finding Freedom is what helps us move forward. This evening, our members and guests stepped into the house with fresh confidence and a growing sense of possibility. Through inspiring speeches, thoughtful evaluations, and energetic Table Topics, we explored how “freedom” can mean different things for all of us: speaking up, letting go of self-doubt, taking risks, and finding our own voice. 🎤

Together, we created another Toastmasters evening filled with warmth, humour, and encouragement in the first meeting of the new term.

🎉 Congratulations to our award winners!👏👏
🏆 Best Speaker: Matt F**t —“ The Worst 4.8-Star Review I’ve Ever Trusted”. Matt shared with us his adventures of hiking trip in Lake District and his reflection conquering the worst and calling for us to take risks.

🏆 Best Evaluator: Judy Mallinson
🏆 Best Table Topics Speakers: Nigel Manunure, Ajeet Maurya

👏 A special highlight
Please join us in giving a huge round of applause to our Immediate Past President, Enrica Laprocina, who led the Club to achieve a new height—District Distinguished Club for 2025/2026. Congratulations as well on her new endeavour as Area Director in the coming year!

🫶 A heartfelt thank you
A sincere thank you to everyone who helped make the evening such a success—our speakers, evaluators, role-holders, and our wonderful guests. Your enthusiasm, encouragement, and willingness to support one another are what make West Herts Speakers Club such a welcoming community. 🙌

🤗 Thinking of visiting us?
If you’d like to build your confidence, improve your public speaking, and develop leadership skills in a friendly and supportive environment, we’d love to welcome you to one of our meetings.

Our next meeting:
📅 Wednesday 22 July | 7:30pm–9:30pm
📍 The County Club, 29 Ridgmont Road, St Albans, AL1 3AG

Mark your calendars, bring a friend, and come along—we’d love to see you there! 🙌

04/07/2026

Celebrating West Herts Speakers’ 30th Anniversary 🎂🎉🥂👏👏

The evening brought together members from across Area 32 for an occasion filled with friendship, celebration, and recognition of the achievements of our clubs and members throughout the year. Guests enjoyed a formal dinner, networking, and an opportunity to reflect on the impact Toastmasters has had on so many lives over the past three decades.🙌

Area 32 members and guests gathered for a memorable Gala Night at Redbourn Golf Club to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of West Herts Speakers Club.

26/04/2026

🍻 Speaker Showcase: Live in Milton Keynes! 🎤

We’re excited to invite you to a special Speaker Showcase, a collaborative event between West Herts Speakers and North Bucks Speakers.

This is an opportunity to experience a live line-up of 12 speakers in an informal, social setting at Bucks Star Beer, StoneBridge, Milton Keynes (MK13 0DX) — with pizza, drinks, and a relaxed brewery atmosphere.

Each speaker will take the stage to deliver a short talk, offering a diverse range of styles, ideas, and perspectives. From storytelling to personal insights to practical topics, no two talks will be the same — and that’s exactly what makes the evening so engaging.

It’s public speaking in its most authentic form: real people, speaking live, in front of a real audience.

Whether you’re a Toastmasters member, interested in communication and speaking, or simply looking for a unique evening out, you’re very welcome to join us.

📅 Thursday 14 May
🕢 7:30pm start
📍 Bucks Star Beer, StoneBridge, Milton Keynes, MK13 0DX
🎟️ Free entry (limited spaces)
📩 RSVP required — please DM on Instagram to secure your place

We’d love to fill the room with a supportive audience from both clubs for what promises to be a lively and memorable evening.