What we’re about
We believe there are three ingredients to civil disagreement that you only get by debating face to face: listening to what other people have to say, looking them in the eye when you tell them you disagree, and stepping into their shoes to understand why they think differently.
This is what we require all of our speakers to do at our Face to Face debates and though this has been made a lot more difficult by the pandemic, holding our debates on Zoom has allowed us to continue this tradition while moving all operations online until it is safe to stage live events again.
How Face to Face debates work
Face to Face debates are all about providing a space for people to practice civil disagreement themselves, so we recruit speakers from within our own community and give them a platform to make the case for or against each debate motion.
We set only ONE condition: they must agree to defend whichever position we assign them, even if it means arguing against what they personally believe. This is how we encourage our members to step into the shoes of people who think differently and try seeing the world through their eyes. It is then for our audience to work out if they genuinely hold the position they are defending.
The audience has a big role to play on top of this. After being given time to discuss how they feel about the topic in breakout rooms before the debate starts, we then hand the floor over to them after hearing the opening arguments for both sides, so they can cross-examine the speakers with their questions and comments.
The debate ends with closing arguments from both sides and an audience vote to see where they stand. We follow that with a short discussion to see how many people changed their minds and why.
Upcoming events (2)
See all- Network event18 attendees from 2 groups hostingAsylum Hotels, who decides where they go? - Victoria DebatesThe Windsor Castle Pub (Victoria), SW1P 1EQ
This House Would Give Local Councils The Final Say on Aylum Hotels
Why Are We Having This Debate?
In the last month a number of local councils have sued the government regarding the forced placement of asylum hotels within their constituencies, against the wishes of local residents.
Those councils have now lost their case in the courts with a event government appeal BUT more councils are pledging to join the case, pushing for more local decision making in where these hotels are placed.
Check out what the BBC has to saySo we ask, who should decide where these hotels go? - The state, the council, the people?
Come along and have your vote!What We Do
3v3 panel debate where our members explore the strongest arguments for a given topic.
A debate should tell the audience what they need to know and not just what the speakers think. If you feel the same way, then we want to meet you.
Debate London is the year-round series of free public debates held weekly at venues across the capital. The series is run by Debate London, a social enterprise that helps its members to advance their personal and professional development by teaching them how to debate.
All of our speakers are club members who have agreed to defend a particular perspective the audience need to hear, rather than just share their own personal opinion. After presenting the point of view assigned to them, the audience are then given the floor to cross-examine them and share their own position.
The only time we hear what the speakers really think is at the end of the debate when they tell us where they really stand and whether this changed at all while learning how to defend the perspective assigned to them.After Debate Social
After all of our debates we have a post debate hang-out. This is a chance for our community to get to know new people, explore new ideas and generally have more fun as a club! Come along and join us for a post-debate social!Venue
Our venues serve drinks (alcoholic and soft drinks) as well as brilliant food. All can be ordered from the bar
Do not bring external food or drink into our venues you will be asked to throw it away or to finish it outside. - This is a venue rule which we need to follow. - Network event1 attendee from 2 groups hostingPersuading with Rhetoric - Debate WorkshopYe Olde Cock Tavern, London£35.00
An introduction to rhetoric and persuasive speaking so you can begin to develop your own personal persuasive speaking style.
“The problem with political jokes is they get elected - Henry Cate VII”
In this 4.5 hour hour Masterclass we will be exploring persuasive speaking and the fundamentals of rhetoric.
Persuasion takes many forms but ultimately is a single communicative skill to deliver information effectively and with a motivation to act. In the debate space it's persuading an audience our ideas are the better solution this winning votes. At work it may be that all important discussion about a pay rise or why x product is better for your customer... Don't even get me started about how crucial it is in the argument of what you and your partner should eat for dinner (or who does the dishes.)
The Key Skills You Will Learn:
- Ethos (persuading from authority or audience connection)
- Pathos (Persuading using emotion)
- Logos (persuading using logic)
This workshop is for debaters and speakers of all skill ranges and free for all to attend. We will cover a range of rhetorical devices that we as speakers can take to the podium and use to our advantage. each one an additional tool we can use to bring our audience on side.
Our Coaches
Debate London's Coaching team brings together 6 of the greatest debaters from across the UK and the USA with a combined experience of over a century in debating. Wether that is leading on the debate competition circuit, judging debates across university & professional levels or running debate training organisations to develop the next generation of debaters our team will give you the skills you need to debate with the best of them.Venue
Food and drink available at the venue and a lunch break is scheduled within the workshop.
Please do not bring external food or drink into the venue you WILL be asked to throw it away.Running Order:
12:00 - Doors Open: Grab a drink and get comfy :)
12:05 - Introduction to Rhetoric and Persuasion
13:00 - Drinks break
13:15 - Active Learning and Debate Exercises
14:15 - Lunch
15:00 - Rhetoric Recap
15:15 - Practice Debates
16:00 - Coach Feedback & Final Q&A
16:30 - After Workshop Social
Past events (585)
See all- Network event2 attendees from 2 groups hostingHow To Oppose An Argument - Debate WorkshopThis event has passed£35.00