Recently I had the honour of being the guest speaker at the Eyes on the future gala which was held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel on Park Lane in Mayfair London. The annual gala is held to raise money towards vital research into treatments and a cure for RDH12 which is an inherited retinal disease.
In the build up to the event I was ever more excited to be standing on stage in front of the 300 plus guests reading my poetry. I knew exactly what I was going to read and I was confident of the response my words would get.
The atmosphere in the ballroom as the night was progressing was incredible. There were bids coming in for the prizes in the silent Auction and the money was pouring in. The Auction prizes were amazing. Trips to Italy to places such as Sicily and Lake Como, VIP tickets to the Brit awards and even signed copies of my books. After the main course of dinner was served it was my time to take to the stage. On the big screens around the room played the video that Meta created about my story to show how I use social media to help people around the world. The video acted as the perfect introduction to those who weren't familiar with my story.
As the Meta video ended the compère the superb James Hasler aka The Man in the Red Coat announced "Ladies and Gentleman The Blind Poet"
The room fell silent and you could hear a pin drop. As I took to the stage dressed in my Marc Darcy midnight navy tuxedo I felt confident and calm, ready to show them who I am and why I'm proud to be The Blind Poet.
Check out my performance here
The evening was a huge success raising £240,000 on the night towards vital research into RDH12. It was such a pleasure being there and I hope to do it again next year. I'd like to thank Silvia Cerolini and all the team at Eyes on the future. Plus a special mention to the very talented Lizzie Jane Fairclough who not only performed for everyone with her incredible voice but sat next to me throughout the evening as we laughed together and helped each other not to spill or knock things over on the table. Picture a table full of visually impaired people and lots of glasses.
If you'd like to enquire about having me as guest speaker at your next event please email