Oxford Speechwriters' & Business Communicators' Conference 2025

You’re invited to the 24th UK Speechwriters’ Guild/European Speechwriter Network Conference.

Our conferences are open to people who write speeches in their organisations.

We’re especially popular with delegates who have to write in English, although it’s not their native language

We welcome advanced speechwriters, beginners and those interested in developing skills for the future.

You’ll meet colleagues who face the same challenges.

The European Speechwriter Network, working with the UK Speechwriters’ Guild, has pioneered a format where we listen to top speechwriters, leaders and interpreters talk about their work.

We learn what techniques they use, how they craft stories and how they build relationships. We host our conferences in a university environment, enabling speechwriters to exchange ideas, make contacts and build a reputation.

Who should attend?

Previous conferences in Brussels, Amsterdam and Berlin have attracted speechwriters from four Prime Ministers’ offices, the European Commission, NATO, Airbus, BMW, IBM, the CBI, Orange, Deloitte, the United Nations, the European Investment Bank, Coca Cola as well as the Dutch, Danish and British civil service.

This conference is for anyone wanting to improve their ability to write and deliver speeches.

While the conference is predominantly in English, the techniques will be transferable to other languages.

It’s also for people wishing to improve their company’s ability to communicate ideas.

The benefits

• Acquire techniques used in the White House, European institutions and and in numerous government and multinational offices around Europe
• Get insights into rhetoric from top writers
• Listen to outstanding public speakers
• Have your own work analysed in interactive sessions with top trainers
• Meet fellow professionals from Europe and the rest of the world

Arrival afternoon Tuesday 25 March for residential check-in after 2pm in Exeter College. 6.50pm assemble in college lodge to go for dinner in a local restaurant.

DAY 1 – Pre-conference Training

Wednesday 26 March – Delegates can choose from two pre-conference training workshops:

10.00am – 4.30pm – Jessica Cunniffe: From Downing Street to the C-suite, De-mystifying the magic of memorable speechesClick here for a more detailed summary of the workshop

10.00am – 4.30pm – John Zimmer: Get your ideas across and make an impact!
Click here for a more detailed summary of the workshop

DAY 2 – Full Conference

Thursday 27 March – Conference takes place in the Cohen Quad + Breakout Rooms in afternoon – 10am – 4.30pm

Speakers include: Helle Snelligen, Leonoor Russell, Professor Dr Michael Burke, Steve Rawling

7.30pm – Conference Banquet

Enjoy a three-course banquet in Exeter College dining hall.

Contact us if you would like to compete for the Fred Metcalf Memorial Trophy by delivering a 2-minute after-dinner speech.

DAY 3 – Conference continues

Friday 28 March – Cohen Quad 10am – 12.30pm

Speakers include: Hossam Hussein Ismail

12.30pm – Conference closes

12.45pm – Optional tour of the Divinity School and Bodleian Library

1.15pm – Informal lunch in Oxford for those who are still around.

What you will learn and leave with

• A better understanding of what makes an effective speech
• Insights on how to work with multilingual audiences
• Tips for managing your speakers
• Strategies for dealing with interpreters
• New contacts, ideas and perspectives on the trade

Jess Cunniffe MBE

Jessica has written speeches for over a decade. She was speechwriter to two prime ministers in 10 Downing Street, during which she penned David Cameron’s 2015 party conference address.

She went on to help write his bestselling memoir, For the Record. Today she writes for cabinet ministers, CEOs, entrepreneurs and philanthropists.

John Zimmer

John is an internationally recognised expert on public speaking and presentation skills. He works with companies, organisations and individuals round the world, helping them speak and present more effectively.

Prior to becoming a full-time speaker, John worked for many years as a litigation lawyer for Faskens, one of Canada’s premier law firms. He also worked at the United Nations, the International Organisation for Migration, and the World Health Organisation.

John writes a popular blog about public speaking, . In 2022, it was rated by Feedspot as the No. 1 public speaking blog in the world. He has a particular interest in persuasive speaking.

Kevin Toolis
Kevin is the Network’s resident expert in Donald Trump. He worked as a journalist in the House of Commons as a press gallery reporter and then reported on political conflicts and terrorism for publications including The New York Times, The Guardian and The Daily Mirror.

As a documentary director has made a series of acclaimed films on terrorism and was nominated for an International Emmy for Outstanding Investigative Journalism for the programme ‘Cult of Death: Suicide Bombers’ for the Discovery Channel. There’s an idea that Donald Trump is a poor communicator, Kevin will explain what mainstream politicians and speechwriters need to learn from the success of the 47th President of the United States.

Marine Lambert

Passionate about foreign languages, sport and politics, Marine’s training in Political Studies first led her to work as a parliamentary assistant in the French Parliament before joining the cabinet of the president of the Department of Seine-Saint-Denis (located to the northeast of Paris). She went on to combine her two passions, sport and writing, as a speechwriter for the French President of the Organising Committee for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Tony Estanguet.

Simon Atkinson

Simon is the son of Dr Max Atkinson, who had a distinguished career as an analyst of political oratory. It’s almost possible to say that if you read a speech, you can tell if the writer has studied Max’s theories. Max died last year and Simon will talk about his work and his legacy.

Simon is Chief Knowledge Officer at Ipsos. He has worked on the company’s research for every UK general election campaign since 1992 and has been co-editor of the Political Communications book series since 2001.

Dr Michael Burke

Dr. Michael Burke is a Professor of Rhetoric at Utrecht University. He is the author of several books and articles on the topics of style, language, rhetoric and persuasion. He teaches courses on classical rhetoric, rhetoric in the community, persuasive communication and leadership communication. He has been a keynote speaker at several international conferences and has been a visiting scholar at the universities of Cambridge, Glasgow, Uppsala and Bologna. He also gives workshops on public speaking, business pitching, persuasive writing, marketing persuasion, critical thinking and creative thinking.

Leonoor Russell

Leonoor took up the post of Public Affairs (PA) and Strategic Communications (StratCom) Advisor in June 2021 at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels. As such, Leonoor is the main PA Advisor and principal contact for StratCom for the Chair of the NATO Military Committee, the Deputy Chair, the Director General of the NATO International Military Staff, and the NATO Military Committee. She is also the designated spokesperson for the aforementioned military leaders and entities.

From September 2017 to May 2021, Leonoor was a senior speechwriter at the Netherlands Ministry of Defence. In this capacity she wrote speeches, letters and articles for the Minister of Defence, the State Secretary for Defence and the Chief of Defence. Prior to this, she worked as speechwriter and communications advisor to the President of the Dutch Senate.

Leonoor has won three Cicero Awards and one Grand Cicero Award for speeches that she wrote for Admiral Rob Bauer, Chair of the NATO Military Committee. In 2023, she received the NATO Meritorious Service Medal.

Guy Doza

Guy is an author, TEDx speaker, and Public Affairs Consultant with a passion for language and what it can achieve. He works with C-suite executives, directors, and intergovernmental organisations, often focusing on gender, education, and environmental AI technology.

Matthew Collins

Matthew is a professional speaker and vocal coach. He runs corporate and public voice workshops.

Matthew will talk about how Shakespeare can improve your speechwriting.

Steve Rawling

Steve is a former BBC TV journalist and author of Storyteller Tactics. He has told over 20,000 stories in his career and helped thousands of people tell their stories too.

Lucie Robin

Lucie was speechwriter to the U.S. Ambassador to France and Monaco before she moved to Bordeaux to create her own consultancy Fiat Lux, which deals with cross-cultural communications. Lucie is a member of the Guilde des Plumes.

She will be chairing the conference.

More speakers to be announced in the coming weeks…while we do our best to make sure all speakers on the programme will appear on the day, we cannot be responsible for any unforeseen cancellations.

If you want to get a feel for what the conference is like, this is a lecture we recorded in Cambridge last year.

Costs

The Early-Bird offer ended on 17 January.

If you arrive on the Tuesday afternoon to attend the full conference including the banquet and three nights’ bed and breakfast in Exeter College, the cost is now £2249 (inc VAT)

If you arrive on the Wednesday afternoon to attend the main conference all day on the Thursday and Friday morning including the banquet and two nights’ bed and breakfast in Exeter College, the cost is £1525 (inc VAT)

If you send us an email telling us what tickets you require, we will calculate the amount and raise an invoice.

Alternatively you can pay by credit/debit card by clicking here.

The online payment facility has an itemised price list for the benefit of people working in institutions that like to separate the cost of the conference from expenses for accommodation and meals.

You can use it to calculate the cost. If you want to then request to pay by separate invoices, that’s fine.

Also we have a price list for those who do not want to stay in the college or who only want to attend a part of the conference.

Accommodation

Exeter College has purpose-built conference accommodation for conferences. We recommend you take ensuite rooms in the Exeter College Cohen Quad on Walton Street, OX1 2HG in order to enjoy the ‘campus’ atmosphere of the conference. If you want a quirky Harry-Potter old-style bedroom, email us to request one. You can access your room at 2pm on the day of your arrival.

If you prefer to find your own accommodation in Oxford you can buy a non-residential conference ticket.

Cancellation Policy

Bookings will not be accepted unless accompanied by payment and cancellations must be received no later than one month (28 days) before the conference if a full refund is to be given.

Cancellations received within 2 to 4 weeks of the first date of conference will be refunded 50%. No refunds will be given for cancellations made within 14 days.

However, we are happy to discuss transferring your ticket to a future conference in the event that you can’t attend due to unforeseen circumstances.

Get to Oxford

By Air

Oxford is within easy reach of London Heathrow, London Gatwick and Birmingham International Airport.

By Train

If you arrive in the UK by Eurostar, there is a fast and frequent rail service from London Paddington.

By Coach

Coaches leave Victoria coach station at frequent intervals.

Students

There are a limited number of places available at a discount to people in full-time education who are considering a career in speechwriting. Details on application.

I just wanted to write and thank you for an amazing conference last week. It was a really good experience, both as a participant and speaker. And the lineup was really well chosen, both in terms of speakers and seminars. (The interactive seminar on improvisational theatre was amazing! )

Mette Pedersen

It was an inspiring few days – thank you. Every speaker was interesting and every session worthwhile. I can’t remember ever enjoying a conference or work-related seminar so much; it felt like being on a really fantastic holiday! Congratulations on putting together such a fascinating program and on uniting so many wonderful people.

I hope I will be able to attend another event soon and look forward to seeing you again there.

Justine Bashford

You’ve helped create an atmosphere of friendship, enthusiasm and mutual support among everyone. And what a fine bunch of people they all are.

Sasha Damjanovski

Thanks for putting together the excellent conference in Cambridge. Interesting, inspiring and useful for all sorts of future networking of course.

Paul Hutchison, European Commission

Thank you for another wonderful conference in Cambridge.

Alison Reid, Teesside University

Congratulations for the well organised and in many ways great Cambridge conference! You have earned a couple of rest days.

Antti Mustakallio

Thank you for wonderful company and a wonderful conference.

Øyvind Rekstad

Let me first thank you for a brilliant conference last week. Really valuable to participate and a fantastic motivator.

Douwe Miedema, European Stability Mechanism

Just coming down from the high of the Conference. Every year I say “It was the best ever”. Emotionally, I felt it was. Just loved Stephen’ s final keynote.
I also felt Guy was superb as the chair. Low key, humour, in control. I’m sure you’re thinking about asking him again.

Barry Graham

Just wanted to drop you a quick note to say thanks for the week! It was a wonderful and well-curated series.

Tom Moylan, European Commission

Another superb conference. Brilliant line-up. Priceless insider tips. Presentations which ran from the intensely moving to the hilarious – often from one moment to the next.

Louise Rowland

What a way to spend three days: listening to, and learning from, some of the best speechwriters in the world. Informative, entertaining, moving. Wish it hadn’t ended.

Ángel Gurria

Join our Network

Membership of the UK Speechwriters’ Guild or European Speechwriter Network entitles you to a £50 discount on the conference fee.

You can follow the European Speechwriter Network on Twitter

You can apply to join our Linkedin group, European Speechwriter Network24th UK Speechwriters' Guild/ European Speechwriter Network Conference at Exeter College, Oxford.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Cohen Quadrangle B&B, Exeter College, Walton Street, Oxford, United Kingdom