We were delighted to be able to stage the final of this year’s John Fry Public Speaking Competition in socially distanced conditions in the Clarissa Farr Theatre on Tuesday 20 April – the first such event for over a year.

Our six finalists delivered eloquent, thought-provoking speeches on a range of given topics, and each had to answer an unprepared question from the floor.

The standard was extremely high this year, and our adjudicators – Mrs Truran (Librarian) and Mrs Vine (Examinations Officer) – were thoroughly impressed.

Ultimately, the trophy was awarded to Year 11 student Georgie I (pictured) for an innovative and provocative response to the question, ‘What human quality do we need more of?’

You can watch short extracts from each of the speeches below.

About John Fry

This competition was inaugurated in 2008 in memory of John Fry, a former Chairman of Governors at Queenswood. John Fry was the son of a schoolmaster and was educated at Tonbridge School.

After National Service as a commissioned officer, he went up to the University of Cambridge where he read Law at Trinity Hall. In 1961, he joined the Abbey National Building Society as its first graduate trainee, rising to become the Deputy Chairman in 1991. By this time, the Abbey National had demutualised and become a major UK public limited company with a nationwide branch network. In his private life, he was a dedicated family man and a keen sportsman who particularly enjoyed cricket, squash and rackets.

John became a Governor of Queenswood in 1987 and was elected Chairman in 1995, a position he fulfilled with distinction until his untimely death in 1999 at the early age of 63.