Here’s a post about the 3rd project in the Humorously Speaking manual. The first video in this series is viewable here Humorously Speaking 1. and the 2nd post is here. There’s more to creating humour than just comedy writing techniques; this video goes “beyond the rule of three”.

As I’ve said before, if you want to learn to be humorous, this video is can help you add humour to your presentations whether you’re a member of Toastmasters International or not. This clip is 18 mins long, so you may want to set aside some time to watch it. Read the rest of this entry

Here’s a post about the 2nd project in the Humorously Speaking manual. The first video in this series is viewable here Humorously Speaking 1. This video is especially useful if you’re considering doing the Humorously Speaking Manual. Remember also, that the Humorous Speech Contest comes up once a year.

This vid is also a good way to introduce hmour to your speeches and presentations. If you need funny introduction, or maybe a funny story to end with, have a butcher’s… Read the rest of this entry

If you want to learn stand-up comedy, or how to give funny presentations, I came across something very interesting. I read an interview with British comedian Michael McIntyre recently. He tells a story where he was at the Montreal Comedy Festival and was approached by David Letterman’s people. If you’re interested in how to learn to be funny it’s important that you read this. Here’s the quote: Read the rest of this entry

I read an article on Chortle, the British comedy website, recently which spoke about the incident where comedian Lee Hurst smashed the mobile phone of an audience member who was filming his act. This is useful to read about if you’re a comedian or if you’re delivering funny presentations.

Hurst, like a lot of comedians, didn’t want his material to be stolen and/or potentially uploaded to YouTube. Read the rest of this entry

Even though this post is from the perspective of being a member of Toastmasters International and the Humorous Speech Contest, there are certainly some lessons that can be applied to any speaking or presentation.

The Humorous Speech Contest

During my time at Toastmasters I’ve had an opportunity to deliver and watch a number of different humorous speeches; obviously none more so than in the humorous speech contest.

What I find quite interesting is the number of speeches that strive for originality (one of the rules of the humorous speech contest). Whilst this is perfectly admirable it’s not something that always works in your favour. What, I hear you say? We should just regurgitate old hackneyed topics instead? Not exactly no. Read the rest of this entry