Since 2017, I’ve taken great pleasure in entertaining guests on P&O and Cunard Cruise Ships, with a range of talks that reveal the adrenaline filled world of TV News.
I play video and audio of what’s going on in the control room when we’re live on air, and all hell is breaking loose!
I share stories ranging from interviewing senior politicians, to reporting on royal visits in local communities.
But I don’t simply share these stories about my thirty year career at the coalface in various BBC Newsrooms — fascinating and exciting though they are.
I also immerse my audience in my world — through two special interactive talks, where they become News Editors and Reporters, making all the key decisions for themselves. I can deliver these confidently in the larger theatre venues, though they work particularly well in a more intimate cabaret style venue. And I make sure nobody has to leave the comfort of their own seat to enjoy it to the full!
I’m always conscious that my audience are on holiday. So I never deliver a ‘lecture’ – my primary aim is to capture their imagination with an entertainment, that gets them thinking or even (if they want to be) involved, in small teams or quietly alone.
I currently have a set of eight talks, three of which have a royal news theme. All last a maximum of 45 minutes, with a customised Question & Answer segment built into the final talk. As a broadcaster, used to the discipline of professional timekeeping, I never overrun. They are all delivered un-scripted, structured around video clips and sound effects, as I use all corners of the stage to make the entire audience feel involved.
As a former TV journalist whose audience has always been out of sight down a studio camera, it’s a joy for me to see them in front of me!