Born London, November 20, 1924. Died London, January 10, 2009, aged 84.
March 5, 2009 12:16The doyen of toastmasters, Ivor Spencer decided he wanted to be a redcoat after seeing a toastmaster in action — and finished up running a school for toastmasters.
He was founder chairman of the Guild of International Toastmasters in 1970 and its life president when he was appointed MBE in 2002. He started up his own guild after serving as secretary to the Guild of Professional Toastmasters in 1969.
His first attempts to get bookings and acceptance, in common with actors and authors, met all-round rejection. But in 1955 he got a call “out of the blue” from the Savoy Hotel to act at a dockers’ settlement dinner and dance with Princess Margaret as guest of honour. He donned his second-hand tailcoat, while his wife patched up the holes in his white gloves.
Ivor Spencer left the Jews’ Free School at 14 with no clear plans. His father was a failed businessman at Spitalfields Market, where Ivor’s brother, Solly, worked as a market porter.
Ivor’s first jobs as a labourer, salesman and kitchen hand at the Dorchester Hotel were interrupted by Second World War service in the Royal Norfolk Regiment.
Watching toastmasters in action from the Dorchester Hotel kitchens spurred his ambition. He worked as a casual waiter at 15 shillings (75p) a job, and desperately sought an opening. He and his wife, Estelle, were living on a shoestring in a Lambeth council flat. They later moved out to Dulwich.
Once launched, he worked tirelessly to improve his knowledge and position. The Daily Express named him toastmaster of the year in 1969.
Prime Minister Harold Wilson booked him for Downing Street. By 1973 he was noted in the JC as charging far more than the average fee of 18 guineas (£18.40). During his career he officiated at over 1,000 royal events.
By 1980 he was training prospective toastmasters at Sunday school and taking them to his functions as apprentices. He explained his role as a linkman was to ensure the smooth running of events and not to be the star — even with his stentorian voice. His principle was that every occasion had to be memorable for the person at its centre.
The usual problems were getting the timing right for the summons to eat, calming down family tensions at weddings, censoring telegrams before they were read out, and nudging rabbis — and others — to keep their speeches short. Knowing the correct titles and order of precedence was taken for granted.
A red coat was not always necessary. Toastmasters could dress down to dinner jacket or even lounge suit for lower-key events — but never be too matey. Ivor Spencer liked variety in his work, from royalty one night to a docker’s pub wedding the next.
Although he never realised his dream of expanding to the US, his school graduates were in great demand there and flourished over the Atlantic.
He is survived by his wife and daughter.