The Tyranny of the Autocue

Anyone who was following the events of last week, in respect of the Northern Ireland Protocol and the new Windsor Framework, will have seen two speeches delivered by Rishi Sunak.  

The first was delivered from the steps of a hotel in Windsor, jointly with Ursula von der Leyan, using two autocue screens.  

The second from the despatch box in the Commons using his own prepared prompts.  The difference could not have been more striking. 

The autocue delivery was flat, wooden, and like so many autocue deliveries, he seemed detached from the words and looked like a tennis spectator going from side to side, screen to screen.  

The despatch box delivery was energised, passionate, and authoritative and won plaudits from both MPs and commentators.  He absolutely owned it.

If you want to see how badly the autocue affects authentic delivery, consider the contrast between Kier Starmer delivering seriously wooden speeches using one, with his more spontaneous answering of interviewer’s questions.

The best speakers and TED Talks provide good exemplification of this, showing how effective it can be without the use of notes or scripts and especially autocue.  The autocue is simply a tool and speakers who need that support must learn to use it effectively.  

In the wrong hands, it defeats its purpose, becomes a massive barrier, and makes otherwise passionate people appear wooden and stilted.  There are techniques for effective autocue delivery.  Ideally, avoid using one, but if you do need one, make sure you are its master, not its slave.