JLA have launched dozens of speakers onto the after dinner circuit. Whilst many of the names are new, reflecting audiences’ changing tastes, the essence of a good speech remains the same: to reveal something you didn’t know about something or someone you do know. The best speakers let you in on a secret.

This section includes people who travel the world, and some who have run parts of it; those who have built up empires, and one or two who destroyed them; those more used to appearing in front of, or behind a camera; and those who have achieved sporting glory - together with some of their English counterparts.