I was privileged enough to meet Baroness Boothroyd OM at the House of Lords to discuss her outstanding skills as a public speaker. She very kindly agreed to answer a number of questions about public speaking for the Executive Voice newsletter.

Baroness Boothroyd is known as an outstanding Public Speaker who engages and delivers to audiences of varied sizes. On the day I met Baroness Boothroyd, she had had to deliver a eulogy at the House of Lords for Lord ‘Jack’ Weatherill,  the Speaker of the House before her (she was a deputy Speaker at the time). She was unaware of the protocol at the House of Lords for Eulogies and was given 5 minutes warning! Given that she is fully prepared and knows her subject, she quickly wrote some notes – but as she pointed out to me, she knew the subject well and the point of a eulogy is to provide positive and happy memories of the person. I am sure she did this with aplomb.

1. As a Speaker of the House, you had a phenomenal presence and the ability to manage ‘heated’ debates with apparent ease. How did you acquire these skills?

I acquired these skills through experience, and watching others. I worked at the House of Commons for 19 years prior to becoming an MP and had the opportunity to learn and develop. I learnt a great deal from others by watching them and also assessing their strengths and weaknesses. I began to work out what worked and what didn’t.

2. How do you prepare for important public speaking engagements and speeches at the House of Lords?

There is no substitute for homework. There are no shortcuts. Those that think they don’t have to prepare are wrong! There is no substitute for preparation. You have to know the subject you are speaking about, and to research the topic. 90% of people have to prepare so that their audience will listen and take notice of what they are saying.

You owe it to your audience to be well prepared. Know your subject by reading up and researching beforehand.

3. I am aware of your theatrical background. How do you think this experience has helped you with public speaking?

I was involved in Public Speaking as well as performing from a young age. I had a natural presence. I was also taken to a number of large rallies and meetings with my mother in around the West Yorkshire area,, and was able to develop ideas for speaking styles from that experience.

4. I am sure that someone as experienced as you does not get very nervous, but how do you manage any nerves before an important engagement?

I do get nervous. Those that don’t don’t take themselves very seriously. Anyone who is sensitive gets nervous. Once you start, the nerves go away. If you have prepared and done your homework, you will be okay. Having prepared gives you the confidence to speak confidently.

5. We all suffer from colds and losing our voices; have you ever been in a situation where you had an important speech and had either lost your voice or it is faint or croaky? What did you do (other than cancel the engagement!)? I have some tips on ‘finding your voice’ in those situations, and would be happy to send them to you!

I have never cancelled an engagement. I have had a croaky voice on occasions but have always been able to speak through that. I have never had a ‘normal’ high voice of a woman, but a resonant, low pitched voice. When I became the Speaker of the House, I deliberately trained my voice to remain low when I shouted (or projected my voice), to ensure that it was still audible over the noise of the Commons. People’s voices naturally become higher when they shout, and I wanted to avoid the voice becoming high, shrill and inaudible. By lowering the voice, I was able to project it more easily.

I have never warmed up as such: I don’t feel it’s as necessary for speakers, but I will give a good cough to clear my throat (Baroness Boothroyd is a smoker). I have always naturally breathed deeply from the diaphragm (BB demonstrated this to me – impressive!!) I have never been precious about my voice and happily smoke. I naturally have a mezzo/contralto voice (Low female voice).

6. What are your top tips for anyone wishing to develop their public speaking skills?

Have skills and knowledge about the topic you are speaking about. Do the preparation. I learnt a great deal from listening to other people. My mother used to take me to political meetings in Leeds and Bradford and I heard some of the great public speakers including Barbara Castle, Clement Attlee and Bevan. I was surrounded by good public speakers both before I became an MP (I worked in the House of Commons for 19 years before I was elected) and when I was an MP. I listened, watched and learned. I would assess what worked and what didn’t and tried to include it in any public speaking I did. Also, there is nothing like gaining experience from developing your public speaking skills.

With regards to writing a speech, I have always written a section with a particular point or topic, then used a concluding sentence to end the section, before moving on to the next part of the speech. (We both agreed that this was rather like a conclusion or ‘sound bite’ at the end of each section of a speech). It ‘winds up’ the section.

7. What additional challenges did you have as a woman in the political world? Do you feel you had to alter your vocal style – and if so how?

I trained my voice to become lower. I was aware that there is a tendency for the voice to become higher and ‘shrill’ when women shout. My voice is naturally low for a woman (we discussed the fact that Baroness Boothroyd would probably have been a contralto singer, and she agreed that her father wanted her to sing like Dame Clara Butt – a British Contralto famous in the 1920s.) I made sure that my voice was pitched lower when I projected my voice and it became more audible in the Commons. It can be very noisy in the Commons and I wanted to ensure I was audible, not shrill.

With regards to being a woman in politics, I believe that men and women compliment each other. I fought 5 elections in 16 years before I was elected as an MP and in that time acquired a huge knowledge of the electorate, how to campaign, how to talk to people and how to deliver speeches. There were people – men and women, who were elected on their first attempt, but I do not believe it was anything to do with gender: just the luck of the draw. I did not encounter discrimination because I was a woman and feel that because I worked hard, was good at my job and well prepared that there was nothing to criticise me for.

8. What preparations if any, do you make before a public speaking engagement or speech within a debate?

Always be prepared; know the subject, your audience and listen to others within a debate.

9. Are there any other ‘gems’ of knowledge that you can share with me, with regards to public speaking?

Put a smile on your face. Have a ‘welcome’ in your face and a ‘shine’ in your eyes AND glam up. Always be well turned out. You owe it to your audience to look as though you have made an effort with your appearance as well as preparing yourself for the speech. I have always been interested in my appearance and so it wasn’t an additional ‘effort’ to look good for my audience.

Baroness Boothroyd also discussed the following:

I grabbed every opportunity I could. I wanted to learn and by taking opportunities, listening and watching, I was able to acquire a knowledge and experience that was invaluable when I became the Speaker of the House.

When the position of Speaker of the House became vacant, I was nominated for the position. Normally the party in power would elect a Speaker from their party. The Labour Party were in opposition at the time, so it was significant that I was voted Speaker of the House at that time. I won a significant majority to be elected to that post..

I believe it was a great privilege to be the first woman Speaker of the House. As well as wishing to do the job to the best of my abilities, I wanted to ensure that I didn’t let down women; I wanted people to say that I was a good Speaker of the House, not that I was a poor woman Speaker of the House.

I have no doubt that people do indeed believe she was an outstanding Speaker of the House, and she is held in high regard by the nation. Thank you very much for sparing some time to be interviewed for Executive Voice.