Debating During Distanced Learning

One of Leighton Park’s greatest traditions, the JBH Speech Competition first took place in 1914. Founded by the school’s Chair of Governors, a passionate believer in the need for young people to be able to speak confidently in public, Jonathan Backhouse Hodgkin was determined to develop the students’ skills of “thinking on their feet”.  The guidelines that he laid down for the competition – talking for three minutes uninterrupted, withstanding eight minutes of heckling whilst continuing and then summing up in a further three minutes – emphasise brevity, clarity, presence of mind and sympathy with the audience.

Part of the joy of participating is to select a controversial topic and to play with the audience’s conflicting emotions about the subject. This year is no exception and our six finalists have chosen subjects that should definitely provoke a reaction! Angelika, whose experience in last year’s competition should stand her in good stead, has gone for ‘Men are the weaker sex’, whilst fellow Lower Sixth Formers Grace. Luey and Tisa have opted for ‘Designer babies should be free on the NHS’, ‘Why the UK should stop exporting weapons’ and ‘Commit to teaching only black history, the time to decolonise our syllabus is now’ respectively. The only Year 11 in the competition this year, Charlie, will argue that ‘Liberalism is fundamentally flawed’ whilst Will, Head of School House and the only Upper Sixth participant, will explain ‘Why Britain should have national service.’

Although the JBH competition usually takes place in November it has been post-poned this year due to Covid. The contestants are busy preparing for the event in front of a live audience of Sixth Formers in Main Hall during the second half of Spring Term with a simultaneous livestream broadcast to other year groups bubbles, parents and Old Leightonians. Since heckling is such an important element of the competition the live audience will be pleased to undertake the challenge of testing the speakers on behalf of the rest of the School community!

The list of topics of the speeches since the beginning of the competition puts a mirror up to the history and social changes of the UK.  From “now is the time to make peace” by Joseph Fryer in 1915, to Anglo-Egyptian relations (1951), the Euro (2001), the ordination of women (1989), and nuclear deterrent (1959) to prison reform (2010).

Those at Leighton Park who have put themselves under the spotlight have gone on to be successful in a variety of walks of life. Old Leightonian, Michael Foot, considered by many to be one of Britain’s greatest orators, came in second place, deliberating on the future of the Liberal Party in 1931. Others include the publisher of “Spycatcher” Nick Hudson, celebrated film director Karel Reisz, MP Sir Tony Baldry, and a plethora of barristers.