The son of a Sheffield steelworker, Brendan Lally started his working life in local government before joining the Police Service. He retired as a Chief Superintendent and his career included BBC broadcasting and contact with Royalty, Government Ministers and even the BEATLES! He worked with Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary for three years at the Home Office, London and a career highlight was his time in Colombia where he led a team of UK experts in crime, ballistics, forensics etc to assist in the capture of PABLO ESCOBAR -"King of cocaine". Brendan received three commendations for good police work during his career.

For six years following retirement, he and his wife ran a small hotel in the West Country of England which was shortlisted as "Best Small UK Hotel". Their several well known guests included actors and actresses in a "Hallmark Hall of Fame" production filmed on Exmoor. It starred Catherine Zeta Jones and Joan Plowright .The [then] Archbishop of Canterbury and his wife were also guests .[Brendan once met the late Pope [St ]John Paul 2 on a trip to Rome!]

Since 2015, Brendan has been speaking on cruise ships and his love of USA is reflected in talks he gives on American icons such as Martin Luther King Jnr, Rogers and Hammerstein and Walt Disney.

Brendan lives in South Yorkshire and enjoys jogging, golf and dancing.

NOTE The below crime related presentations will be of REAL INTEREST to UK and NORTH AMERICAN passengers.

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1. CRIME RELATED TOPICS

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1.1 PABLO ESCOBAR-KING OF COCAINE
Retired Chief Superintendent Lally,who twice worked in Colombia in an effort to capture him,tells the story of the man ,his life and death as well as his own involvement with the case.

1.2 SUTCLIFFE ! - the Yorkshire Ripper!
The story of the notorious serial killer,caught by a colleague in the "red light" district of Sheffield where our speaker once worked

1.3 THE BODY IN THE RIVER
Retired Chief Superintendent Lally gives an account of a mysterious occurrence he dealt with late one night in Sheffield. [A "Whodunit?"]

1.4 DIVERSITY [and a rainy day]
The 1980's provided great challenges to policing including the Brixton Riots.Retired Chief Superintendent Lally gives an account of a preventative initiative of his own [including the assistance of a future Home Secretary] which gave rise to a Royal visit to Sheffield.

1.5 UK MINER'S DISPUTE 1984
A true account of the involvement of our speaker, a ground commander for many month's of the year long strike,including the upsetting aspects of the tribulations of police and miners alike.

1.6 BODIES,BOBBIES AND [the] BEATLES
An amusing ,interesting and revealing account of life on the beat including personal involvement of our speaker and his brother with the "Fab Four" both socially and professionally.

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2. FAMOUS PEOPLE

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2.1 ENGLEBERT HUMPERDINCK AND THE three "B's"
A snapshot of the lives and music of the composer Humperdinck and his fellow Germans,,BEETHOVEN,BACH and BRAHMS [with Musical Content]

2.2 LORD HORATIO NELSON
The life and death and loves of this great British Naval Commander including the Battles of Copenhagen and Trafalgar.

2.3 ROBBEN ISLAND
The story of the life and death of the famous inmate,NELSON MANDELA and his great legacy.

2.4 "I HAVE A DREAM"
The tragic and emotional story of the iconic American civil right's leader, MARTIN LUTHER KING Jnr

2.5 CARDINALS,CONCLAVES AND WHITE SMOKE
The story of FRANCIS,the first South American POPE by our [Catholic] speaker.

2.6 "FROM MICKEY TO FROZEN"
The story of the life,death and legacy of WALT DISNEY

2.7 PABLO NERUDA-CHILEAN POET AND DIPLOMAT. The life and death [by assassination in the Pinochet years] of this [erotic] poet.

2.8 "BOGART! " The story of one of Hollywood's legends,Humphrey Bogart including his classic film,"CASABLANCA"

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3. GENERAL TOPICS

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3.1 CRUISING ON THE HIGH SEAS
A look back at how the industry once was,is now and may be in the future. [A presentation by one who has been cruising for over 30 years.]

3.2 SOUTH PACIFIC - THE MUSICAL and the story of ROGER'S AND HAMMERSTEIN.
[Previous presentations have included the involvement of professional singers on board in liaison with the Cruise Director]

3.3 FAWLTY TOWERS
Guest Speaker,"Basil Brendan" , gives a serious presentation on running a small business but includes many humorous true stories of his own experiences in the hotel domain.

3.4 PUBLIC SPEAKING-THE SUPPOSED ART
The "Do's" and "Don't's" of it by one who has trained others.

3.5 "SANTA OR SCROOGE" An interesting and entertaining look at Christmas traditions ,history and customs.

3.6 BEAUTY COMPETITIONS.A light hearted look at the various international events including some unfortunate happenings [includes the announcement of the wrong winner!! ]

3.7 THE " BIG APPLE" -a talk on New York including " THE FIREHOUSE CHEF " The sad,true story of a 9/11 Firefighter and his legacy.

3.8 "THE KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH" The story of migrating prospectors to the Yukon in pursuit of Gold.It includes relevant monologues [verbatim] of "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" "The Cremation of Sam McGee"

3.9 "HAGGLING TIPS" A presentation on the art of negotiating the best deal.Attending could save you thousands!!

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4. DESTINATION TALKS

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4.1 PIRI-PIRI PORTUGAL
An illustrated snapshot of the country with a special focus on"Lovely Lisbon"

4.2 WEST INDIES and the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
A presentation on the history,culture and people of the West Indies including it's piratical past.[Includes details of the "top ten pirates" of the "Golden era of Piracy".

4.3 A JOURNEY TO BRAZIL AND THE AMAZON RIVER
An illustrated talk on this part of South America and what to expect.

4.4 NORWAY - LAND OF THE NORTHERN LIGHTS AND MIDNIGHT SUN.
A presentation to whet the appetite for a visit including the Viking history,present day and the beauty of this Scandinavian country.

4.5 AUCKLAND - CITY OF SAILS
A snapshot of the City,surrounds and sporting activities.

4.6 ORKNEY AND SHETLAND ISLANDS
A factual and illustrated snapshot of these beautiful Northern Islands including the neolithic history and discoveries.

4.7 ICELAND - LAND OF FIRE AND ICE plus the Rugged FAROES.
Histories,heritages and peoples.

4.8 IRELAND -THE LAND OF THE LEPRECHAUNS!
An amusing but interesting presentation on the Emerald Isle.

4.9 "SOLIDARITY ! " The story of LECH WALESA,Polish Statesman,dissident and Union man [includes a "snapshot of Gdansk and other Polish cities]

4.10 MEXICO A "snapshot of the country,it's people and cultures.Also includes some places of interest and Aztec history.

4.11 THE PANAMA CANAL[S].An historical account of the construction,cost,usage etc of the first canal and the advantages of having the second.

Brendan has over 5 years experience as a Cruise Ship Speaker with different cruise lines including cruises in Australia,the Amazon,Caribbean,Baltic and Norway to list but some.He has been on long World cruise sectors including the South Pacific and South Africa .He has done a number of German Christmas Markets cruises on which he has given presentations relating to that festive season.

As at the beginning of 2021,Brendan had completed 21 cruises as a Speaker and his days at sea total is 309 [details below]

Whilst concentrating in the main on the above areas of expertise,he also gives a number of destination talks

On a few cruises where no Chaplain was on board,I volunteered to lead or organise an interdenominational service for passengers on Sunday sea days. These included six weeks on a World Cruise which,after my disembarkation, guests continued throughout their voyage.

The following recent Cruise History has been recorded for this candidate.