David Blunkett
Former Home Secretary
Simon Weston
Simon Weston CBE
Falklands War Hero
As a Welsh Guardsman, Simon was waiting aboard HMS Sir Galahad when it was bombed by Argentine planes off the Falklands. After a series of operations he rebuilt his life with enormous courage, setting up The Weston Spirit to help community projects across the UK. A humble, funny and truly inspiring speaker, Simon shows how a positive attitude enables any of us to cope with a dramatic change in circumstances and turn adversity into opportunity.
Speaking Topics
- Leadership
- Resilience
Biography
In 1982 Simon Weston was aboard HMS Sir Galahad with his regiment of Welsh Guards when it was bombed by Argentinian planes. The horrific burns he suffered required a series of operations that continue to this day. Despite his injuries and the physical and mental suffering, Simon’s life is an example of great personal triumph and courage.
After the Falklands campaign Simon co-founded The Weston Spirit, dedicated to helping young people play an active role in their own communities. Until it ceased in 2008, he spent much of his time fundraising - enabling the charity to set up regional projects in Liverpool, Cardiff and Newcastle.
Simon's presentations both humble and inspire conference audiences. He shows the power of a positive mental attitude when you experience a change of circumstances: accept the position in which you find yourself, turn adversity into opportunity and remain focused on the goal.
Simon Weston has been the subject of several documentaries. The success of his two books, Walking Tall and Going Back, further demonstrates the public’s genuine and enduring respect for a true role model.
“The only other speaker who has filled the room was Bob Geldof – and he didn't get a standing ovation!”
Entertaining, uplifting and inspiring. Simon is a very good speaker and by including the odd joke he added some lightness to the subject matter without detracting from the seriousness of what happened to him, his colleagues on HMS Sir Galahad and his recovery process. His speech was informative and opened your eyes as to what really happened rather than what was shown on the news at the time. The audience reaction was very positive to say the least. He had the whole room gripped – it was pretty much silent. Some of the words used to describe his speech were: fantastic, amazing, inspiring and impactful.
What a great guy, the feedback we've received has been outstanding – we're absolutely delighted.
Simon was a pleasure to work with. Nothing was too much trouble and the speech he delivered was perfectly balanced – being engaging, informative, humorous (he told several really amusing stories which had the room in hysterics) and motivational. Our audience were glued throughout and very much inspired by Simon – who couldn't be??
We had fantastic feedback on Simon – he spoke eloquently, was very funny, poignant and made lots of relevant correlations between his life and our institution. He stayed behind over wine and was very personable
Thank you very much for speaking at this year’s CESA conference in association with the FCSI and BHA.
I am sure that you are used to feeling that you have the audience with you during your speech, this was no exception and we were all very moved and engaged by your story. Thank you also for conducting our act of remembrance with such relevance and dignity.
Once again thank you and if I or the association and its members can ever be of assistance in future please do not hesitate to ask.
Simon was excellent, inspired and emotional. He understood the audience and tailored his talk accordingly. He made time to talk to lots of people that attended on an individual basis. Everyone wanted to talk to him.
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