Entrepreneurship and excellence. Entrepreneurial leadership. Business success. Talent management. Inspirational stories. The key to success

Carl Leighton-Pope started his career in 1964 aged 18 working at the Marquee Club in Soho, London with the likes of Rod Stewart, The Who, Eric Clapton. Those days as a Mod riding a scooter and shopping in Carnaby Street signalled the start of a long career in the music business lasting over 55 years.

In 1972, Carl opened a recording studio in South Wales and managed Sassafras a band on Chrysalis Records releasing 3 albums and touring Europe and the USA.  1976 saw Carl move back to London and kick started his agency career.

Early signings included Patti Smith, The Motors, and a number of major bands from America: Styx, Journey and Huey Lewis. By 1978, Dire Straits, Simple Minds, UFO, and Wishbone Ash were added to his list of clients. Carl became one of the top agents in Europe.

In the 1980s he found Bryan Adams, Climax Blues Band, and Matt Bianco, and were all added to the roster. He also signed Van Morrison and Bonnie Tyler. During the ‘90s he found and produced The Chippendales and toured them extensively in the UK and Europe. With the turn of the century, Michael Bublé, Billy Ocean, Jeff Healey, Keith Urban, and Chris Rea had also been added to Carl’s growing client base. WWE wrestling and Harlem Globetrotters soon joined the ranks. Bryan Adams, Michael Bublé, and Billy Ocean are still clients today.

Theatre has also been an important part of Carl’s story, writing and producing Carnaby Street the musical, and a new play “LOVE” set for the West End at the end of 2023.

“Carl is an interesting and highly entertaining speaker. He spoke to us about his early experiences in the music industry and brought to life an amazing array of colourful characters and extraordinary situations. Hilarious stories told with wit, charm and a twinkle in his eye.”

Threat and risk management. Privacy and security. The world of intelligence. Team building.

Julian Fisher is an intelligence specialist and author of Think Like a Spy: Master the Art of Influence and Build Life-Changing Alliances (Hachette 2024). In that book, Julian explains how readers can apply the nine secret skills of espionage to help them achieve their personal and professional goals. In 2017, he was the lead trainer on the Channel 4 TV series Spies, which put sixteen ordinary people through a series of challenges to find out if they had what it takes to be a spy.

Julian previously worked in a specialised branch of the British Diplomatic Service, for which he saw action in challenging locations around the world. He went on to work for a global private military company, operationally active in Africa. In his time, he has seen off camel-rustlers in Somalia, faced down gun-toting soldiers in The Congo, trained a newly-formed intelligence service in South Sudan and been invited to help plot a coup in West Africa (he declined).

Julian is an experienced and inspiring public speaker, with a strong track-record in the following areas:

• Keynote addresses at conferences and corporate awaydays.
• After-dinner and motivational speeches.
• Workshops and seminars.
• Themed team-building events.
• Tailored training events.

A specialist in the ‘people’ side of intelligence, Julian talks about what companies and individuals can learn from this world to enhance their effectiveness and productivity.

He focuses on leadership, interpersonal skills, motivations and influence. He also guides organisations on the uses of intelligence in threat and risk management, privacy and security. He can provide insights into global security matters, geopolitical risk and the realities behind headlines about terrorism, China, Russia and beyond.

Examples of keynote speeches that Julian offers include:

“Think Like a Spy: How Spies Achieve the Unimaginable and How You Can Too”. This is a motivational talk that focuses on personal-development lessons to be learned from Intelligence Officers’ use of interpersonal skills and human psychology.

“The business of spying: lessons from a parallel world”. Again, this is a motivational talk that examines how businesspeople can think like a spy to grow client-bases and improve inter-cultural communication and understanding.

“Thank you for a wonderful talk. The whole team thoroughly enjoyed the session and it prompted a lot of interesting discussions at drinks afterwards and in the office”

Leadership. Inspiration. Global Affairs. Philanthropy. Human Rights. Corporate and Social Responsibility

Shooting to fame as the lead singer of the Boomtown Rats, Bob Geldof was a major player in the 70s punk rock movement and enjoyed over a decade of hits between 1975 and 1986, including “Rat Trap”, “I Don’t Like Mondays” and “Up All Night”. After leaving the band, he launched a successful solo career, published his best-selling autobiography, “Is That It?” and worked as a radio DJ, journalist and television presenter.

In 1984 Geldof was watching the news one night when he was horrified by a report on the famine in Ethiopia. As we all now know he got on the phone. The result was the all-star band aid and the song he co-wrote with Midge Ure – “Do They Know it’s Christmas?”, which went on to sell over three million copies and become the biggest selling song in the UK. He subsequently inspired and joined the American response – “We are the World” the biggest-selling single in the world. Six months later, on July 13, 1985, came Live Aid – “the biggest and greatest event in pop history”. $200 million was raised for the starving and the dying in Ethiopia. Geldof established and continues to be the chairman of the Band Aid trust, which operates in eight African countries.

Geldof currently serves as an adviser to the One Campaign, co-founded by fellow Irish rock singer and activist Bono, and was a member of the Africa Progress Panel. He was a member of prime minister Blair’s Commission For Africa and is currently Founder and Chair of the 8 Miles private equity fund for investment in Africa.

“What an incredible speech! He [Bob Geldof] really is the best orator I have ever seen.”

Physical, emotional and psychological Safety. Inclusion, Motivation and Self Actualisation. Focus, efficiency and Agility.

Mark has sailed over 80,000 miles across the worlds toughest oceans and has competed at the highest level in countless races. Translating his vast experience navigating turbulent waters to helping businesses do the same, he has won awards for delivering amazing presentations.

In his stunning audio visual presentations, Mark shows how ordinary people are capable of achieving truly extraordinary results. Simply put, Mark helps organisations to reshape their cultures and improve their leadership resilience.

“We couldn’t have hoped for more from the Masterclass session. 100% attention, 5 star feedback and our leaders visibly moved afterwards by what they heard. It was everything we were hoping for!“

Leadership. Teamwork. Motivation. After Dinner. Awards Host. Overcoming Challenges. People Management.

Kevin Keegan was quite simply THE football superstar of the 1970’s. An English football icon, Kevin graced the pitches of Liverpool, Newcastle, Southampton and SV Hamburg, being crowned European Footballer of the Year twice, as well as going on to Captain and manager England.

Available as one of the most entertaining after dinner speakers, or as an inspirational speaker tailoring his speech to the client and audience, Kevin is warm, hospitable and as friendly a speaker you could wish to have.

Having his audiences motivated and laughing (mainly at himself), from his spellbinding performances on the pitch to his 70’s perm and pop songs, Kevin inspires an audience whether football fans or not.

Cyber and Information Security. Risk and Crisis Management. Counter terrorism. After Dinner. The Business of Security. Leadership and Motivation.

Chairman and founder of the Security Awareness Special Interest Group (SASIG), was formerly senior director of corporate security for Kroll Associates, a commercial counter-intelligence and security organisation. Martin has had a fascinating career in counter-espionage in the RAF for 15 years, and will give a fascinating insight into counter-terrorism, counter fraud and computer security.

An internationally recognised author and speaker on his specialist subject of the human factor in security, Martin relates his experiences in both Cold War and more recent hostilities in a hugely interesting and humorous way.

Martin relates his experiences in both Cold War and more recent hostilities in a hugely interesting and humorous way, and as a raconteur will also entertain the audience with his tales of the crazy world of espionage and security.

“I have known Martin for many years and have listened to him speaking in public many times. He is an authoritative and accomplished speaker on cybersecurity and the threats to the modern business. He also draws upon decades of experience as a senior leader in the RAF and in the corporate business world to explain his views on successful management and leadership. He does all this with great humour and aplomb, charm and modesty.”

Motivation. Sales. Marketing. Customer Service. Leadership. Energising Teams. Change Management. Communication.

Geoff Burch is one of the all-time original business gurus. Author of the iconic and highly regarded book on sales ‘Resistance is Useless’ and five other bestselling business titles, Geoff is also a regular business presenter on BBC television and radio.

Working within your brief you can rest assured that Geoff will help to bring about the result you are looking for, whether it is an increase in sales, an improvement in customer relations, change without pain and an inspired team – all this whilst having a really good time that is simply unforgettable.

An irreverent, humorous and brilliant keynote speaker, bestselling business author and international consultant for major corporations, Geoff is now tackling the most challenging business topics that face us today. Using engaging and humorous stories, Geoff will use relevant and fitting examples to help transform your business and excite your employees and leadership.

Find out more about Geoff Burch

“Sincere thanks once again. Your session was both entertaining and thought provoking and the positive feedback we’re receiving from conference delegates is exceeding our expectations.”

Motivation and Inspiration. Teamwork. Leadership. Triumph Over Adversity. Personal development. Safety and Security. Risk Management. Mental Health Issues.

Robin Horsfall has led an amazing life. A broken family life adversely affected his education, so he left school in 1972 at the age of fifteen and joined the army as a boy soldier. Despite a long period of isolation and bullying by his peers, he became a full member of the Parachute Regiment in and served three tours of Northern Ireland and was a member of the SAS counter terrorist team that assaulted the Iranian Embassy in London in 1980, helping to rescue the nineteen hostages who had been held for six days.

Robin draws upon his unique experiences to captivate his audience, speaking on subjects such as overcoming adversity, bullying and PTSD. He shares details on the SAS selection process, SAS operations Banner, Nimrod and Mikado in the 1980’s and aims to inspire people to change their direction and take control of their lives.

In the early 90’s, Robin started to teach martial arts and for twenty years taught thousands of children karate in South West London building the largest independent children’s karate group in Europe. He broke his neck and while recovering went to Surrey University as a mature student (56) and graduated three years later.

During his speeches, attendees will discover fascinating stories from his extensive military career and how they relate to his underlying theme of overcoming adversity.

Find out more about Robin Horsfall

“Robin is a captivating speaker, he brings you in from the start and takes you on a journey that amazingly everyone can relate to. Our audience was left inspired by his valuable advice on leadership and his heroic tales of a career that demonstrated how anyone can embrace change and overcome adversity.”

The future of the mind. Consciousness: How the brain works. The neuroscience of creativity. Science. Policy and politics. Dementia: current and future prospects. Women in science.

Founder and CEO of Neuro-Bio Ltd. Former Director of the Royal Institution, and research fellowships at the Department of Physiology Oxford, Susan Greenfield is a neuroscientist, writer and broadcaster. She has published over 200 papers in peer-reviewed journals, based mainly at Oxford University but has held research fellowships at the College de France Paris, NYU Medical Center New York and Melbourne University.

Holding 32 honorary degrees from UK and foreign universities, she has received numerous honours including the Legion d’Honneur from the French Government, an Honorary Fellowship from the Royal College of Physicians, The American Academy of Achievement Golden Plate Award, and The Australian Medical Research Society Medal. She is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Understanding the human mind and how it is evolving, bears relevance to audiences right across the public and private sector – from solving workforce issues, nurturing leadership and inspiring creativity, to understanding the consumers of the future.

Susan has delivered captivating keynote talks, lectures and after dinner speeches for organisations across a wide variety of sectors including finance, technology, human resources, media and education.