At IMPACT! 2026 in Leeds, Jonathan Griffiths of PSA South East was crowned PSA Emerging Speaker of the Year 2026, winning the competition with his five-minute talk, Be More Fudge.
Now in its second year, Emerging Speaker of the Year (ESY) was created to give PSA Associate Members an opportunity to step forward, challenge themselves and develop their speaking in a supportive but competitive environment.
And that is really what the competition is all about.
Five Minutes. No Slides. One Opportunity to Make an Impact.
Emerging Speaker of the Year challenges members to craft and deliver a five-minute talk with no slides. While it sounds simple, it isn’t. With only five minutes, every word matters. Every story needs a purpose. Every pause, movement and choice has to help the speaker connect with the audience.
Judges look at originality, stagecraft, bookability and the speaker’s ability to communicate an idea that lands. While there can be only one overall winner, the value of the competition goes far beyond the trophy.
It gives emerging speakers a reason to work on their craft, test their ideas, build confidence and experience speaking in front of increasingly larger audiences.
This Year’s Winning Talk
Jonathan’s winning talk, Be More Fudge, combined personal experience with a simple message about kindness, empathy and inspiration.
Inspired by his much-loved cockapoo, Fudge, the talk explored the qualities we value most in others and challenged the audience to think about what it really means to be brilliant.
Personal, thoughtful and memorable, the talk demonstrated exactly what the five-minute format demands: a clear idea, a strong connection with the audience and a message that stays with you after the speaker leaves the stage.
From the Regions to the IMPACT! Stage
The Emerging Speaker of the Year journey begins within our PSA regions, with Associate Members putting themselves forward and competing for the opportunity to represent their region. Regional winners then progress to the national semi-final at IMPACT!, before the finalists take to the main stage. For many entrants, that journey is just as important as the final result. It means writing, rewriting, practising, practicing some more and of course taking feedback.
And then standing up and doing it anyway. It is exactly the kind of practical development the PSA exists to encourage.
Learning From Each Other
One of the strengths of Emerging Speaker of the Year is that it doesn’t happen in isolation.
Regional Presidents, fellow members, previous competitors and more experienced speakers all play a role in encouraging and supporting those taking part. That means members are not simply entering a competition.
They are learning from people who understand the speaking business, watching other speakers develop, exchanging feedback and becoming part of a community that wants to see them progress.
Jonathan’s own Emerging Speaker of the Year journey actually began when he attended the 2025 regional competition as an audience member.
As he explains:
“I sat in the audience completely blown away by the standard of the speakers, and by the concept itself. I set myself a goal that night: I’d enter the following year.”
Twelve months later, he was standing on the IMPACT! stage as the 2026 winner.
And perhaps that is one of the nicest things about the competition. You never quite know who is sitting in the audience thinking, “Next year, that could be me.”
Congratulations to Our 2026 Speakers
Congratulations to Jonathan Griffiths on becoming PSA Emerging Speaker of the Year 2026, who wins a mainstage slot at IMPACT! 2027. Congratulations also goes to every Associate Member who stepped forward this year through the regional heats, semi-final and final.
Every one of them made the decision to put themselves on the stage, test themselves and move their speaking forward. And that matters. Because professional speaking doesn’t develop by watching from the sidelines. It develops by speaking.
Let Jonathan inspire you….could you Emerging Speaker of the Year 2027 be your next step?
Applications for the 2027 competition will open later this year. Keep an eye on the PSA website and your regional communications for more information.
