SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS

UPCOMING EVENTS

I became a public speaker because I wanted to share my extraordinary story with people of all ages. While speaking, I particularly love those moments when I can connect with a member of my audience and draw them into the story with me. By making eye contact, or seeing someone smile, or a nod of acknowledgement, a message of understanding passes between us which lights up the room. 

It took me a long time to gain anything resembling confidence in public speaking. For many years I was terrified to speak in public, and yet as part of my job I would frequently put together events such as breakfast meetings for psychiatrists, or leading an after-care group for people in recovery. I once organised a conference on Mindfulness, choosing the speakers, all of whom I knew well, but I didn’t have the nerve to stand on stage of this large hall to introduce them. I knew that if I did, the backs of my knees would immediately turn to jelly and I would forget all of their names. I had to ask someone else to introduce the event.

All of this suddenly changed in 2014 when I was asked to talk about my book ‘It’s Not Only Rock’n’Roll’ for the WhitLit Festival in Whitstable. It was a lightbulb moment as I realized with joy, I wasn’t nervous! In fact, I was loving being up there on the stage looking at the crowd, answering questions about my book and giving little anecdotes about my life, about creativity and the musicians I’d interviewed. I had this wonderful feeling of connection to everyone in that room, they were there because they wanted to know more and I wanted to tell them.

I get a chance to speak to people from the audience once the interview is over. I sit at a table, pen in hand, as one person after another hands me my book with smiles on their faces and asks me to sign it. As I’m writing they tell me how they loved the interview, loved hearing about the stories I had to tell. Some speak with nostalgia, others, the younger ones, are fascinated. Sometimes they tell me about themselves, they feel they have made a connection. 

Felixstowe Book Festival 2025, interviewed by Mandy Morton.