Congratulations to Fifth Year students Aidan McAllen, Thushan Peiris, and Semiloore Bankole who this week competed in and won the South London Regional Heat in the English Speaking Union’s Public Speaking Competition.  

Mr Paterson, who runs Trinity’s Debating Club reports, “Thushan delivered the team’s keynote speech on whether the UN has failed to respond to the migrant crisis. He spoke eloquently and insightfully and was particularly commended for covering such an expansive topic so well in the five-minute limit. Aidan and Semiloore were respectively singled out by judges for particular praise among the competition’s chairs and questioners, demonstrating the immense strength across the entire team. They hosted a speaker from Old Palace on the topic of whether celebrities have the same rights to privacy as non-celebrities. 

“Unfortunately, our other team of Adhi Sasikumar, Rahul Mehan, and Franco Hillier, were drawn in the same leg of the heats and were pipped by their peers on this occasion. However, they also won a great amount of praise from judges in their first foray into competitive speaking and I look forward to seeing more from all six students in the future. Aidan, Thushan, and Semiloore will progress to the next regional heat in February, with their sights set on the 2023 National Grand Final in April, which will be used as a selection pool for the team that will represent Great Britain at the Public Speaking World Championship 2024.” 

Aidan McAllen said, “I’m delighted that we can progress to the next round of this competition. The format of the competition is different to other types of public speaking that I have done before which meant that in my role as chair, I couldn’t plan in the same way as other speakers. However, we had some preparation time beforehand which proved very valuable and allowed me to come up with a good quote to finish my speech I’m glad to have been able to have this opportunity as it is a different way of improving my speaking skills and I look forward to the next round.”