On a balmy midsummer’s evening, the 21 finalists of this year’s Orator of the Year Competition set the evening alight with their verbal fireworks and sizzling debate. Parents and staff alike were dazzled as one by one these young orators sparkled on stage.

7 teams reached the final, each comprising a questioner, a chairman and a speaker. These three roles have their subtle distinctions, with the chair setting the tone for the discussion, and introducing the panel and topic, before the speaker delivers his engaging treatise and the questioner probes further, offering clear, succinct questions. The debate then opens up to the floor, and the audience evidently enjoyed quizzing these young experts on their chosen field, with searching questions bringing the very best out of the speakers.

The defunct version of this competition fizzled out a few years ago, but this year’s re-jigged and rejuvenated format sparked the imaginations of our Y9 boys: all 180 took part in the tournament, speaking in front of their peers on a range of controversial and demanding topics. Reaching the final was an achievement in itself, and the high quality of the speakers was evident from the start.  Joel Herman spoke fluently on Johnson’s famous line, ‘when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life’; Sam Wolfson was lauded by the judges for his interviewing of Krish Nanavati on his entertaining speech, ‘why Elizabeth II should become Elizabeth the Last’; Adam Jovine seemed as authoritative and informed as the Governor of the Bank of England as he assured us that ‘it is time to introduce the Universal Basic Income’, while Eliad Gross’s gentle humour on ‘the rise of the fidget spinners’ won him admirers in the audience; Oliver Mosheim rose from his sickbed to give a stunning assault on the Labour Party, but it was Gabriel Mendoza’s warm authority and the deft way he teased out the key themes of his guest speaker, coupled with Jack Coles’ careful and responsive questioning that ensured they, along with the accomplished Joel Herman, won the Brier Shield.

The judges of course kept us sweating for half an hour as they tried to separate these tightly matched performers. In the end, the margin of victory was tiny. Truth be told, all 21 of these students saw their stock rise last night. These fourteen year-olds could have passed for men three times their age, they were so confident and charismatic. There is no doubt that this experience has been a true platform for independent learning, broadening these boys’ horizons, and giving them an outlet to express themselves in an eloquent and engaging fashion. Their camaraderie is evident in this photo. They clearly relished the opportunity to be on a big stage. I sense that they will be gracing us with their eloquence in the years to come.
Special thanks to: Dr Courtney, Mrs Pollock, Ms Efstathiou, Mr Bown, Mr Lawrence, Ms Woodham and Ms Goldberg, and all the other staff that made this event possible.

TEM

Winning Team, and Winners of the Brier Shield
Gabriel Mendoza (Chair)
Jack Coles (Questioner)
Joel Herman (Speaker)

Special Commendation for Individual Roles
Speaker: Adam Jovine
Questioner: Sam Wolfson
Chairman: Gabriel Mendoza

Judges
Dr Courtney
Mrs Pollock
Ms Efstathiou