Russell Howard is no doubt one of the most popular comics of our time. With global tours and TV specials on his achievements, his observational, edgy and topical comments, are drawing massive crowds all over the world. 

Yet he originates from Bristol and in todays blog, we'll be looking at why you should bring something of your story into every presentation

When you step on to stage, known or unknown, every member of the audience is asking questions of you in their mind. Will you be engaging? Will you make me laugh, cry or think deeply? Will you be worth my time? Are you credible? 

But perhaps the big question that sits at the heart of every other, is 'Will I relate to this person'. 

Relatability is key to every presentation. 

When we bring something about ourselves into the talk, people begin to pay more attention.  Parents relate to parents, city dwellers relate to city dwellers, business owners relate to business owners.

There will no...

Jason Manford 

I'd love to spend some time with Jason. I always feel that he's a 'good guy' on and off stage. He's very likeable as a comedian with stories that we can all relate to and engage with. 

In this blog we look at the use of status and physicality. Enjoy the clip and then be sure to come back to the blog and apply this to your next presentation.

Status 

Jason has a very laid back approach - a natural storyteller, and very relatable in his style. Like Mark Watson, you feel like you could be sat opposite him in a coffee shop. He adopts a 'High status' approach, meaning his relationship with the audience and 'the scales', is very much communicated as if he's proving a point.

When it comes to our role as communicators, a high status approach is necessary in teaching or in sales, because you are yielding the audience to take on board what you are saying. High status bleeds with confidence, authority and passion. 

Yet in some circumstances,...

Mark Watson is one of my favourite comedians. His style, his commentary on the everyday and his ability to do so in a very relatable, conversational tone, just has me in hysterics. 

So I'm enjoying my blog session this morning, considering what we as communicators can learn from the brilliant Mark Watson. 

Enjoy the clip and then I've got some thoughts to share on it;

The Art of Being Natural 

One of the incredible traits about Marks stand up is that it very much feels like a conversation. You could quite easily convince yourself that he's sat opposite you in a coffee shop, telling you about a story from the last few days. There's no hint of it sounding scripted (though it likely is, to some extent), in many ways, he's not the most slick of speakers yet that brings a sense of charm and intrigue to his stage presence. 

Now hear me correctly - this is a refined skill that Mark has mastered. Not many people could pull of the same scatti presentation...

I'm excited to be writing this blog, just a few weeks after I had the chance to spend some time with Al backstage at a The Princes Hall in Aldershot. I even got to sit in the wing and observe the show from the side. What you see on stage with Al, is a carefully thought through, yet combined with skill-fully ad libbed moments of his character, 'The Pub Landlord'.

What fascinates me most about Al is that this character has been years in the making, and is quite the opposite of the Al I met backstage. (A genuinely nice guy who was super helpful as I picked his brains about his ability to ad lib huge laughs from some simple direct questions!) 

You might be wondering why I've chosen a character act to help us think about communication. I believe there's lots we can learn from this and I've highlighted three points below.

Enjoy this clip of Al in action. 

Everything is BIG

The Pub Landlord is a big character. Full of charisma. Bold, brash and unashamed. I...

Michael McIntyre needs no introduction. With global recognition and as the highest selling artist at London’s O2, there's no doubt of Michaels comedic success. The O2 Arena in London holds an audience of 20,000 people, of which Michael sold out for 28 shows in a row! 

Yet if we put Michaels comedy skills aside, he's still a masterful communicator. 

Watch and enjoy this brilliant clip and then read my reflections on how Michael has skilfully utilised to hold the attention of huge audiences across the world. 

 Engages the audience with a question 

Rather launching into his routine about windscreen wipers, he asks the audience a simple question and confidently hand-signals them to cheer in response. Given that a large majority of those attending will have come by public transport, he's assured of this response. 

Immediately, having been provoked to engage vocally through cheering - the audience has bought in.

Of...