Preparation
Why Your MC Shouldn't Read the Script Word for Word
A compere who reads every line loses the room. Why the best MCs prepare a script but speak from it, and what organisers should ask for instead.
Check availabilityMost events have a script, and they should. It holds the running order, names, titles, sponsor mentions and timings. But there's a big difference between a compere who prepares from a script and one who reads it aloud, head down, line by line.
What happens when an MC reads
- Eye contact disappears. The audience sees the top of the host's head and a sheet of paper. Connection drops almost immediately.
- The voice goes flat. Reading aloud has a recognisable rhythm — even, monotonous and slightly rushed. Listeners tune out within a minute.
- The host can't respond to the room. If the audience laughs, applauds or reacts, a reader keeps going. The moment is lost.
- Mistakes become obvious. When the event changes — a speaker is late, an item is moved — a host tied to the page is stuck, and the room can see it.
Prepare from the script, speak from understanding
A professional compere uses the script as a map, not a teleprompter:
- Learn the structure. Know the order of items and why each one is there.
- Know the key facts by heart. Opening and closing lines, the event's purpose, the organiser's name.
- Keep exact wording only where it matters. Names, titles, award categories, sponsor credits and formal protocol lines should be read accurately from cue cards. Everything else is spoken naturally.
- Use cue cards, not pages. Short prompts in large print let the host glance down for a second and look back up.
- Rehearse the transitions, so the links between items sound conversational rather than recited.
Accuracy still matters
Not reading the script doesn't mean improvising names or titles. Mispronouncing a chief guest's name or getting a designation wrong is far worse than glancing at a card. A good compere checks pronunciations with the organiser beforehand, writes them phonetically on cue cards, and reads those exactly. The skill is knowing which lines must be exact and which should sound human.
Bilingual events
In events run in Sinhala and English, reading two scripts back to back makes the programme feel twice as long. A compere who understands the content can move between languages naturally — a welcome in one, the key point in the other — without repeating everything word for word.
What organisers can do
- Send the compere the programme, speaker list and name pronunciations at least a few days before the event.
- Ask, when booking: "Do you work from cue cards or a full script?" (It belongs on your list of questions to ask before booking an MC.)
- Mark which lines are fixed (sponsors, protocol) and which the host can put in their own words.
- Plan a short run-through on the day.
The result is an event that sounds prepared and personal at the same time — which is exactly what guests remember.
FAQs
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Should an MC memorise the whole script?
No. The MC should know the structure and key lines, read names and formal credits from cue cards, and speak the rest naturally.
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Is it unprofessional for a compere to use notes?
Not at all. Brief cue cards are standard. What loses an audience is reading full pages without looking up.
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Who writes the compere's script?
Usually the organiser provides the programme and fixed wording; the compere shapes the links and introductions so they sound natural.
Booking a compere? Read the 10 questions to ask before booking an MC or check availability.
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