Spellbound talks - testimonials

‘When tasked with providing some eminent speakers for our international festival, Spellbound Talks came up trumps, proposing fresh ideas and securing some household names who in turn delighted our audiences.'

'The two lecturers you have provided have been first class and I look forward to more next year.'

‘With her wealth of contacts together with her efficiency, attention to detail and reliability, I would have no hesitation in using this new service for my school, and wish Spellbound Talks every success in getting established.'

'Thank you for your truly excellent lecture to the above association. It was most informative and extremely amusing in delivery. The buzz as members left the hall gave witness to how much they had enjoyed and appreciated the presentation'.

'Thank you so much for organising Benedict’s talk for us today. I cannot speak too highly of his talk or the way he interacted with the pupils, spending nearly an hour answering questions and signing books after his talk. It was a privilege to have him with us today and the place is buzzing!! I do hope very much that this is the first of many speakers that visit the School through Spellbound Talks.'

'We had a most fantastic evening with Benedict, he is such a natural relaxed speaker, and did the whole presentation without notes. His command of the subject and his relationship with the dogs was tremendous. I always feel the success of any evening can be judged by the wealth of questions raised and this proved the case. The Chairman had difficulty drawing the evening to a close!'

‘Allen is the best guide to the world’s wilder and weirder cultures’.

‘Scary, funny, sad shocking, exciting and much more. He, in his kind and easy manner, guided and supported us through a world of experience and emotion. At the end I couldn't work out why my eyes felt peculiar, dry, sort of. Then I realised. I hadn't blinked.’

'Chris Bradley produced an excellent, smooth and knowledgeable lecture. His presenting style was confident … he conveyed a clear picture and incite into the subject matter. A high quality presentation that would be ideal for all types of audiences.'

‘Paul Deegan was superb when he presented his lecture 'Quest' at our club's new venue. His thorough research beforehand meant that he was able to tailor his talk perfectly. The result was a captivated audience.'

Thank you for the two wonderful talks you gave last week. They both went down an absolute storm - we could not have been happier. We would be very interested in booking you to speak again next year!

'Paul as ever was a fascinating and utterly professional speaker, whom I was very glad to have re-booked. Please pass my satisfaction on to him'.

'My daughter is still enthralled with your explorations and your presentation at Southbank. You were, in fact, voted the class' favorite component of their current curriculum.'

'The presentation 'Can you Climb Everest?' was exciting, stimulating and perfectly pitched to the age range of the pupils. I thought you used the children extremely well in the delivery and never gave them a moments chance to lose interest - they were absolutely captured by your enthusiasm and by the interactivity of the well structured and cleverly conceived presentation ... I would unreservedly recommend your talk in the most glowing terms to any school.'

'I just wanted to say a big thank you for your lecture today. Seriously inspiring stuff and delivered with great humour, modesty and professionalism. You will know from the applause what our students thought. There is no question that you have made a tremendous impression.'

'Many, many thanks for your wonderful Montserrat talk yesterday at Hall Grove. The pupils haven't stopped talking about it all day! It was a fascinating insight into how so much physical change can happen in such a short period of time and how the community responded to the disaster. Your very personal take on the events made it all the more compelling. We'd love to have you back for one of your other talks!'

'The Head couldn't have been more complimentary about Dave's talk. He thought it was excellent, and Dave had a brilliant rapport with the kids. We would definitely like to book him again.'

'Dave’s talk was absolutely excellent. I was really impressed with how he constructed his talk in such an intelligent and thoughtful way. He structured his material to hold the attention of his audience. He held back on arguably the most exciting part of his journey and captivated his audience right to the end. The students came from a range of backgrounds and experiences and all thoroughly enjoyed it.'

‘Alistair Fothergill succeeded in holding his audience, from six-year-olds to senior staff, absolutely spellbound for an hour and a half. His relaxed manner, his passion and excitement for his subject was palpable and infectious, and the pictures he showed us were simply breathtaking. The applause said it all... it lasted two or three minutes, and coupled with his warmth and engagement in answering peoples' questions, made it, in their words the best lecture that some of our senior students have ever heard.'

‘Commodore Ian Gibb was a great success at our Ladies Lunch Club. He was very entertaining and all the ladies enjoyed his talk.'

'Richard's talk on Friday was a great success. The students engagement was clear and I've had oodles of positive feedback over the last couple of days. Engaging and perfectly pitched.'

'Caroline Hamilton was terrific and went down universally well.'

'Martha was excellent and was really well-received by both the boys and the girls.'

'With the possible exception of Sir David Attenborough, that was the best lecture, and the longest applause, that I have heard in the past 15 years.'

'The two talks you gave were absolutely superb. The boys talked about it enormously and the staff have not stopped talking about it yet.'

'He has a hugely interesting story to tell, which in itself is captivating, but his talk is even better than that - it was by turns inspiring, amusing, uplifting and educational. The sixth formers reported that the talk was the best sixth form lecture they had had this year, and we will certainly look forward to Alastair coming back on a future occasion to repeat the talk. Very strongly recommended indeed.'

'Freddie Knoller was tremendous. Quite an overwhelming experience and one deeply felt by the 180 or so who attended his talk and shared his experiences. After that the College seemed to go into suspended animation. I couldn’t pass anyone but that they would stop to reflect on what they had heard. No, we are not going to forget Freddie. One of life’s rich privileges to have been able to spend some time with him.'

'Freddie Knoller was really excellent. The students (and staff) were really enthralled by his remarkable story and he could have held their attention for twice the time. I'm sure that for many of them it will be an abiding memory of school.'

'Just wanted to say a huge thank you for organising the Freddie Knoller event. We’re filled with admiration for Mr Knoller a true inspiration to us all. It was a privilege to attend.'

'You gave a memorable address that was deeply moving and made even more poignant by your optimism for life that shone through not only in your words but also your demeanour. When looking around the very full Council Chamber you clearly had all the audience captivated.'

'Freddie was absolutely marvelous. He was the best speaker we have ever had. The students were mesmerized and really moved.'

'Super talk! Girls and staff were impressed and felt very humble. The talk was informative and thankfully not too upsetting. A real gentleman.'

'It really was a hugely memorable talk and your message is a vitally important one for the boys and girls of today's world to hear. Your optimism for life certainly shone through and it is a truly extraordinary and humbling story that you tell. You clearly held the pupils' attention throughout the talk and there were so many questions, which I know could have taken up the rest of the afternoon if they had the opportunity.'

'There has been an incredible response to Freddie's talk from boys and staff - a real sense that it was huge privilege to hear him and a deeply moving and humbling experience.'

'School schedules are busy things, but if you can find time to lift your students out of their normal day for just an hour, Rob Lilwall's stories will fill them with optimism, courage and self belief. Our girls, particularly in the senior school, were enthralled from start to finish – and left feeling empowered to pursue and to achieve their dreams. This, together with gaining a memorable lesson in geography history and humanity, made it an experience I wholeheartedly recommend.'

'Rob was great. His very presentable and easy manner kept the children enthralled. He arrived on time and was highly efficient about setting up and clearing up.'

'I've received great feedback from Rob's talk. The Year 10 pupils were thoroughly motivated and interested in his thoughts and ideas. It struck a real chord.'

'Rob Lilwall spoke to 130 of our Lower Sixth. He gave an inspirational, thoughtful and above all a very personal slant on his three years of travel by bike. Our Sixth formers were captivated and I would definitely recommend Rob as an excellent and very approachable speaker.'

'Rob's talk was excellent, the children were captivated by his story - most inspiring!'

'Martin was excellent. A fair few pupils were bounding up to me after the event to express how 'brilliant' he'd been. Moreover - both pupils and colleagues described him as 'compelling, insightful and very entertaining'.'

'Another Spellbound success! John was a huge hit with all ages both backstage and onstage ... the audience didn’t want to leave!'

'John was superb yesterday. A number of pupils stayed on after the talk (which also marks the end of their school day) to talk to him and to express how inspired and excited they felt. He certainly entertained and enlightened. And he's a lovely guy, something that came through in his talk too.'

'It was a fantastic evening … John was an absolute pleasure to have. Great audience feedback!'

'He was absolutely fantastic. One of the best speakers we have ever had here. The audience was as mixed as I have ever seen it, ranging from children to the elderly, and everybody - young and old - equally loved the night.'

'Rebecca captivated a four hundred strong audience of 11 and 12 year olds for over an hour. Her style was natural, warm, intelligent, unpatronising and utterly engaging. The follow up work we did in English proved that the boys had retained a wealth of information.'

'Rebecca Stephens was a sell-out success!'

'Rebecca was simply excellent last night. In your company's words, she was spellbinding. She is an extremely gifted and articulate speaker. She covered so much of deep interest that I could sit and listen to her for many a further session. '

‘The capacity audience admired the clarity of her talk, the fine pictures and the modest way in which she described such an arduous expedition ….her lecture here was a great triumph.'

‘Fascinating and inspiring talk …. It’s rare to listen to a speaker with such obvious passion for their subject.'

‘A compelling and utterly fascinating insight into Everest. Yes, you had a great story to tell, and yes, you had winning visual to back you up, but ultimately, these things come down to the individual at the front. Brilliant.'

'Brilliant – inspiring and, at times, breath-taking.'

'Just back from hearing Lars. He was in fact quite superb and everyone said so too! So easy and friendly and chatted happily to us all at lunch. There must have been over 300 there.'

'Lars Tharp was his usual brilliant and delightful self – thank you so much.'

'There has been nothing but praise for your performance … I now have in my possession several written notes ... all expressing gratitude for your very professional presentation … peppered with words like “memorable speaker”, “superb”, “broad approach”, “non-technical”, “top notch”, “held my attention throughout”. Clearly, you have made a lasting impression!

'Dick Willis' illustrated lecture on the Giant Caves Borneo is one of the most professional and inspiring travel adventures Stanfords has ever had the pleasure of attending. Dick shares the excitement of discovery in some the worlds largest and spectacular caves, along with tropical fauna and flora. Thank you for the experience.'

'Dick's talk went very well. He is a very accomplished lecturer, who prepares his talk well, supplemented by good quality images and has a good relaxed style of delivery.'

'"Thanks... the evening was a great success with all the students that have spoken to me about it saying how good and inspirational it was......great stuff!'



Home	Speakers	Testimonials	About

About Spellbound Talks ...

About Benedict Allen ...

About Chris Bradley ...

About Paul Deegan ...

About Dave Edwards ...

About Alistair Fothergill ...

About Commodore Ian Gibb ...

About Richard Grundy ...

About Caroline Hamilton ...

About Martha Holmes ...

About Alastair Humphreys ...

About Freddie Knoller ...

About Rob Lilwall ...

About Martin Pailthorpe ...

About John Pilkington ...

About Geoff Somers ...

About Rebecca Stephens ...

About Lars Tharp ...

About Dick Willis ...