Sausage dogs and meditative sword fighting - you only get that at Didsbury Speakers

We thought everyone might be away on holiday and we'd have a quiet night. We couldn't have been more wrong! Didsbury Speakers was packed with members and new guests, and it turned into a great evening.

Luke kicked things off with the hilarious story of how he became a sausage-dog convert. We then had two Ice Breaker speeches. Mohammed took us on his journey from Saudi Arabia to Manchester. Sadly for us, he'll soon be returning home, and we wish him all the very best for the future. Raja followed with an eloquent speech about gratitude, cleverly weaving in a parable along the way.

The evening's theme was "new beginnings", and Table Topics brought out stories about moving countries, trying new things and even taking up meditative sword fighting. Lots of our guests got up and had a go too, which is no mean feat when you're asked to speak without any preparation.

Our president, Emma, introduced the club's new buddy scheme, Toast Buddies, designed to help members find mentors as they make their way through the Toastmasters programme. Members are encouraged to connect with more experienced speakers at our meetings and ask if they'll buddy up and help them develop their speaking skills.

Karen Lee also told us about the club's upcoming Table Topics competition, where contestants all answer the same mystery question and wait outside the room until it's their turn. Winners can progress to the next round of the competition, with more details to follow.

Our next meeting is Wednesday 19 August. Come along, challenge yourself and have a good laugh while you're at it.