It was a shame that the poorest attendance for some time should have coincided with three exceptional speeches. Many regular stalwarts were absent for a variety of reasons and even one of the speakers, incoming president Elaine Watt, was only able to join the meeting at the half-time 'cake break'. Tragedy and near-tragedy marked her speech and that of Adrian Lane. Elaine described how her great-grandmother died in an asylum in her early 20s, soon after giving birth to her third child, from a condition which would later have been recognised as treatable diabetes, Yet in the same year of 1922, scientists in Toronto were discovering the key role of insulin which would soon transform life for diabetics – and win them a Nobel Prize.

Adrian Lane's moving and dramatic account of his mum's survival of a 1973 air crash in Switzerland which killed more than 100 of the women from social clubs in north Somerset who were on a shopping day trip to Basel. He gave his audience a vivid impression of how the event affected a young teenage boy from the moment he heard it reported on TV until he saw his mum in a Swiss hospital bed – a life-changing experience.

Voted the night's best speech, however, was president Hilary Benoit's masterful guide to public speaking entitled 'Speak or Die'. This was a veritable tutorial from one of the club's top speakers, who recalled that her first effort many years ago had been marked by several of the audience falling asleep!

In a lively impromptu Table Topics session, participants were invited by Jane Anson, recently returned from a lengthy caravan tour of Europe, to reflect on various holiday experiences. Recently joined member Rob Allen was voted the winner for a fluent and confident description of his favourite beach in Spain. Jackie Preuss won the Best Evaluator shield for her thoughtful appraisal of Adrian's speech.

There will be a three-week break till the club's next meeting which will take place at the Great Malvern Hotel at 7.30pm on Tuesday June 10.

COLIN JACKSON