SAMPLE HUMOROUS & TABLE TOPICS CONTEST SCRIPT

SERGEANT AT ARMS

1. Call the meeting to order.

2. Provide invocation/opening thought and lead the Pledge of Allegiance.

3. Introduce the Presiding Officer (Area, Division or District Director, or Contest

Chair)

PRESIDING OFFICER (AREA, DIVISION OR DISTRICT DIRECTOR, OR CONTEST

CHAIR)

1. Welcome all to the contest.

2. Recognize dignitaries (District/Division/Area Officers) in the audience.

3. Introduce the Toastmaster.

CONTEST CHAIR will open contest and welcome audience. Then will
introduce and surrender control to the CONTEST MASTER

Humorous Speech Contest Script

CONTEST CHAIR: Hello everyone and welcome to the Bacolod Youth Leadership
Program Humorous Speech Contest.
Speech contests are an important part of the Toastmasters educational program.
Speech contests provide an opportunity for speakers to gain contest experience, and to
recognize the best speakers as an encouragement to everyone.
Contests also provide an opportunity to learn by observing the more proficient speakers
who have benefited from their Youth Leadership Program Toastmasters training.
We are incredibly fortunate this afternoon to have as our Contest Master (use
introduction for Contest Master), Toastmaster Carmz.
CONTEST MASTER: Good afternoon fellow toastmasters and guests. Deliver Opening
Remarks. Keep it brief but make it fun!  
These proceedings are designed to ensure that we run a fair contest and that each
contestant is given a level playing field on which to compete. The following
announcement is made in the interest of having a distraction-free environment for our
contestants.

The Humorous Speech contest will consist of a series of timed 3-5 minute speeches
that will be judged by a panel of judges.

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Humorous Speech Contest. (Optional - Add a personal spiel
acknowledging the hard work of the contestants – 100 words maximum. Should the program be behind
schedule, keep to the script.) Speech contests are an important part of the Toastmasters educational
program. They provide an opportunity for Youth Leaders to gain speaking experience, as well as an
opportunity for other Youth Leaders to learn by observing proficient speakers.

Contestants may remain in the room while the other contestants are speaking. The subject for the
Humorous speech shall be selected by the contestant. The speech must be thematic in nature contain
an opening, body, and close, and not be a series of one-liners. The contestants are to present their
speeches in a time of three to five minutes and the timing begins with their first verbal or non-verbal
communication with the audience.

A contestant will be disqualified if their speech is less than two minutes and 30 seconds or more than
five minutes and 30 seconds. Timers, please display the green signal at three minutes, the yellow signal
at four minutes and the red signal at five minutes. There will be no further indication of time and the red
signal will remain displayed until the contestant concludes their presentation. All contestants have been
made aware of the speaking area and how the timing device will work. Protests are limited to eligibility
and originality and shall only be lodged by voting judges and contestants. Any protest shall be lodged
with the chief judge and/or contest toastmaster prior to the announcement of the results.

Members of the audience, please ensure your mobile devices have been either turned off or are on
silent with the vibration mode disabled. Please refrain from moving around the room while the
contestants are delivering their speeches. There will be one minute of silence between contestant
speeches, during which the voting judges will mark their ballots. If you leave the room during this time
AND do not return before the next contestant is announced, you will not be permitted back into the
room until that contestant has completed their presentation. The taking of photographs is not permitted
during the contest, but there will be photo opportunities later.
The speaking order as drawn by the contestants is as follows:

(Ensure you spell the contestant’s name.)

Contestant No. 1 will be: ______________________________________________________

Contestant No. 2 will be: ______________________________________________________

Contestant No. 3 will be: ______________________________________________________

Contestant No. 4 will be: ______________________________________________________

Contestant No. 5 will be: ______________________________________________________

I shall introduce each contestant by announcing their name and the title of their speech and that’s when
the audience will supply the thunderous applause as the contestant arrives within the speaking area. I
will then repeat the title of their speech and their name. There shall be no further applause and the
contestant shall begin their presentation.

(Once the formalities are out of the way, tell your warm up joke and when the laughter dies down,
commence the contest.) Chief Judge, are we ready to proceed?

Ladies and Gentlemen, now that you’re all warmed up, please welcome: (Announce the contestant’s
name and their speech title, applaud, shake hands, repeat the speech title and the contestant’s name.
E.G. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome contestant number one _____________ with his/her speech
titled “____________”. Applaud, shake hands, then proceed by saying: “(Title_____________)”,
“(Name_____________).

[After each speaker has finished] “May we have one minute of silence (signal timer) while the judges
mark their ballots.”. [Repeat for each contestant.]

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome contestant number two _____________ with his/her speech
titled “____________”. Applaud, shake hands, then proceed by saying: “(Title_____________)”,
“(Name_____________).

[After each speaker has finished] “May we have one minute of silence (signal timer) while the judges
mark their ballots.”

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome contestant number two _____________ with his/her speech
titled “____________”. Applaud, shake hands, then proceed by saying: “(Title_____________)”,
“(Name_____________).

[After each speaker has finished] “May we have one minute of silence (signal timer) while the judges
mark their ballots.”

“Everyone please remain silent while the judges complete their ballots and have them collected by the
Ballot Counters.” ASK: “Are there any ballots not yet picked up?”
(Announce:) Thank you, _________. We will now have a 10-minute break. Please enjoy the
refreshments; we will resume our contest in ten minutes.”

Table Topics Contest Format

We will have now have the Table Topics Contest.

The Table Topics question will be the same for all contestants.

All but the first contestant will be escorted to a quiet area outside and isolated from the contest room.

Presenting the speakers

The introduction is limited to stating their name, the Table Topics question twice, and repeating their
name.

Timing

The Table Topics will be timed for 1-2 minutes (with a 30 sec buffer at the end). Table Topics less than 1
min or more than 2 minutes 30 seconds will be disqualified. Timing cards will be used by one timer to
communicate with the speaker. The cards will be in clear view of the speaker, but not obvious to the
audience.

• The green card will be shown at 1 minutes and remain up until…

• The yellow card is shown at 1 minutes 30 seconds and remain up until...

• The red card is shown at 2 minutes and remain up until the speech is concluded.

• No further warning will be made to indicate the overtime period. Other instructions Judges have been
instructed not to pay attention to the time. At the end of the contest the chief judge will look at the
timing to check for disqualifications.

At the conclusion of each speech, there will be one minute of silence to allow the judges to mark their
ballots. Contestants may stay in the audience after their speech is complete. After the last one-minute-
of-silence, we will offer another minute for the judges to total up their scores and fill out the ballot form.
The judges will hold their ballots in the envelope provided until the conclusion of the contests. Any
questions? Start the Contest We are now ready for the Table Topics Contest.

Speaking Order

#1 _____________________________________

#2 _____________________________________

#3 _____________________________________

#4 _____________________________________
#5 _____________________________________

Make sure everyone is ready and all contestants but the first are out of the room

Are the timers ready? Chief Judge, are the judges ready? We are ready then.

Let the Table Topics contest begin.

Process

* Introduce the first contestant (speaker name, Table Topics question, Table Topics question, speaker
name)

* The Sgt at Arms gathers the contestants from the quiet room. (Contestants may stay in the audience
after their speech.)

* Introduce Contestants in turn, one by one.

Table Topics Contestant #1 _____________________________________________________ (Name)

_____________________________________________________ Table Topics Question – same for each
contestant REPEAT: Table Topics Question – same for each contestant REPEAT: Name

(AFTER SPEECH ENDS) Now there will be a minute of silence for the judges to mark their ballots (timer
will show you a green card after that minute)

Contestant #2 _____________________________________________________ (Name)

_____________________________________________________ Table Topics Question – same for each
contestant REPEAT: Table Topics Question – same for each contestant REPEAT: Name

(AFTER SPEECH ENDS) Now there will be a minute of silence for the judges to mark their ballots (timer
will show you a green card after that minute)

Contestant #3 _____________________________________________________ (Name)

_____________________________________________________ Table Topics Question – same for each
contestant REPEAT: Table Topics Question – same for each contestant REPEAT: Name

(AFTER SPEECH ENDS) Now there will be a minute of silence for the judges to mark their ballots (timer
will show you a green card after that minute)

After the last speaker, ask the timer team to give you two minutes. Judges Finalize Their Ballots Now
there will be a minute of silence for the judges finalize their ballots. Allow a reasonable time for the
judges to fill out their ballot.

Concluding the Contests Finalizing and Collecting Ballots for Both Contests
Remind the audience to be quiet and ask the judges to fill out their ballot forms. Remind judges to sign
their ballots or they will be void. After most ballots seem to be collected, ask that any judges that need
more time to follow the Chief Judge out of the room.

Once all the ballots have been collected and the Chief Judge and counters have left the room, encourage
everyone to relax. Contestant Interviews.

Call up the contestants for an interview, one at a time (you only need to interview contestants that
participated in multiple contests once): Keep the interview upbeat. Give equal time to each contestant.
Plan for total interview time to take between 15 and 20 minutes.

Ask the timer to show you cards in accordance to the amount of time you plan to spend based on the
number of contestants o For example, if you want interviews to be 2-3 minutes, have them show you a
green card at 2, yellow card at 2.5, and red card at 3.

Present a certificate of participation to each contestant as they conclude their interview. During the
interviews, the Chief Judge and counting team process the ballots and prepare the award certificates.

Announce Winners

The chief judge will hand you the results form with certificates for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place if applicable.
Announce the results of various contests in the order that they occurred at the meeting. In each case:
Announce if time disqualifications occurred, but do not name the contestant(s) involved. Announce the
winners in reverse order:

• In contests with 5 or more participants:

▪ Announce the 3rd place

▪ Announce the 2nd place

▪ Announce the 1st place

In contests with 4 or fewer participants:

▪ Announce the 2nd place

▪ Announce the 1st place