Jonathan is a BBC trained presenter who has appeared on BBC radio and has given talks to both national and international audiences.

His explorations of social history and social behaviour led to a series of entertaining, often humorous talks which encourage us to look at both ourselves and commonplace everyday matters in a new way. His historical talks take us back in time to look at captivating stories from the distant past to absorbing, sometimes nostalgic tales from more recent history.

Whatever the subject you’ll find he has some intriguing and amusing stories to tell, and all are delivered with fast paced visuals to engage the audience.

Since Jonathan's talks provide a variety of entertainment across a range of topics, they allow the choice of subject to best suit your particular audience and also allow a change of subject and style mid-cruise to vary the entertainment without the need to change the speaker.

Jonathan's talks were rated 95% by Ambassador Cruises and given a rating of 5 out of 5 by Fred Olsen Cruise Line. Feedback from Fred Olsen Cruises: ‘Jonathan did a brilliant job, his talks were very well spoken, clear, professional and with a good sense of humour.’

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Entertaining & Informative:

Men & Women - same species, different animals.
Do men and women really think differently? Is there really such a thing as male and female brains? Do we really have different abilities and talents? Are either of the sexes ‘better’ at certain tasks? After this amusing and informative talk, you’ll know exactly how and why we really are different animals.

Epic Failures – how success owes much to failure.
Coca-Cola, Corn Flakes, and car tyres were all failures and even the World Wide Web has a story of failure to tell. You may be surprised to learn that you use failures every day and that many successful products and top companies only succeeded because of failure in some way.

Money – its past and its future. (Single talk)
A look at why we use coins and notes instead of the many strange alternatives once used, why we needed to invent money and why we needed a banking system to allow it to work. Then we look at the future of money and how the technology powering cryptocurrency will bring beneficial change to many other aspects of our lives.

Money Scams & Cons Part 1 - The history of money and classic cons.
The intriguing story of the thing we call money. A look at why we needed to create money, the strange forms it took over the centuries and why we needed a banking system to make it work; and then we look at the sometimes amusing and sometimes ingenious classic historical cons.

Money Scams & Cons Part 2 - The future of money and modern-day scams.
A look at how cryptocurrency was created, why it is bad for the environment and what makes people invest in this new money. Then we look to modern-day scams and find out why the average Brit is the most likely nationality to be scammed and how the scammers’ traps can easily be avoided.

The story of the Olympic Games.
The surprising story of the origins of the ancient Games, why they came to an end after nearly twelve hundred years, the many attempts at their revival and how they became the games we know today. Along the way we see some strange sports once considered to be fitting for the Olympics and how it was even possible for a dead athlete to win.

Why do I find that funny?
A look at what humour really is and why humans react with laughter, whether laughter is something unique to homo sapiens, why we laugh at jokes that aren’t funny, why we groan at Christmas cracker jokes and why laughter is not only good for our heart and mind but can even help us lose weight.

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Humorous & Informative:

Being British - an essential guide to being a Brit.
An amusing look at the habits and peculiarities of the British. We put the Brits under the microscope as we look at British stoicism, the British sense of humour, eccentric past-times, passion for queueing, love of apologising and the real reason why the Brits are obsessed with the weather.

Epic Personal Failures – proof that man’s stupidity knows no bounds.
From politicians to broadcasters, insurance claim forms to medical notes, an entertaining look at individuals who have failed to think about the words they were speaking, to those who have failed to see the opportunity right in front of their eyes. We find even the so-called experts and even the rich and famous often fail in spectacular ways.

I told you I was ill – strange and amusing tales around our demise.
A talk inspired by the inscription on the headstone of the comedian Spike Milligan. But it is not just headstones that provide the opportunity for people to make a lasting statement. We look at the unusual ways some have met their final demise, unusual words prior to it happening, unusual Wills to carry out their wishes, as well as unusual memorial epitaphs.

35 Signs You’re Officially Old.
If you want to know why time goes quicker, where you are on the happiness scale, and whether you become a bad driver as you move up the ladder of life, this talk has the answers to these and many other questions. A fun and factual look at the myths and misconceptions around growing older in life.

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Historic & Informative:

Life in the 1950s – the changing world of post war Britain. (Single talk).
A trip back in time to look at the decade with still and video images to remind us of home life, school life, play, holidays, the cinema, and the stars of the day. We look at how television started to change our lives, how the health of the nation was changing and how nuclear weapons arrived to forever change the world.

Life in the 1950s Part 1 – home life, holidays, and entertainment in 1950s Britain.
A trip back in time to look at the fifties with still and moving images to remind us of home life, school life, play, holidays, the cinema, and the stars of the day. A look back at the decade that saw the beginnings of social and technological changes that still affect the way we live today.

Life in the 1950s Part 2 – the arrival of the age of computers and nuclear power.
Our visit to the fifties continues with a look at how the rapid expansion of television sets in the home started to influence our lives, how the health of the nation was changing, how the arrival of nuclear weapons was changing the world and how commercial computing power arrived to change our lives forevermore.

The changing face of Television in the 1960’s. (Single talk).
A look at the decade that saw television win the entertainment war and how our rapidly growing love of home entertainment brought about the swift decline of the cinema. A trip through history for the young or a nostalgic meander down memory lane for those old enough to remember the decade.

Life in the 1960s Part 1 – the rise of television and the arrival of the ‘soaps’.
The decade that saw the greatest change in lifestyle, music, and entertainment since the turn of the century. The decade when men’s hair grew longer, and women’s skirts grew shorter. Illustrated with clips from the most popular radio and television entertainment of the time, we see the rise of the captivating new phenomena, the TV ‘Soap’.

Life in the 1960s Part 2 – how we turned the 60s into the swinging sixties.
The decade of the Beatles and the Berlin Wall, the cold war, and the space race. A look back at the Mods and Rockers and the Vietnam War as well as the technological developments of the time. A dose of nostalgia or an insight into a world on the verge of nuclear war and man’s first walk on another planet.

Life in the 1970s – the decade we turned flower power into punk rock.
The story of the ever-changing face of life in Britain over the ten years that began with Flower Power and ended with Punk. A period of great strides forward in medical science and the arrival of the beginnings of the internet, email and mobile phones destined to take the world in a new direction from which there would be no going back.

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Christmas Talks:

Why we do strange things at Christmas.
Once a year we follow some strange traditions with little or no idea how these traditions came about or where they came from. A fascinating look at how a collection of traditions compiled and adapted over many centuries has led to what we now consider to be a traditional British Christmas.

Christmas Leftovers – more fun & strange facts.
If you have ever wondered why the meat disappeared from mince pies, why we eat turkey, Brussels sprouts, and plumb pudding at Christmas, why we watch a man dressed up as the Dame at the panto or why Boxing Day is so called, then this is the talk for you. More fun and strange facts about the festive season.

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