The laugh-a-bout sessions at Glasto this year were the best yet...
World Laughter Day 2009
This year the Laughter Network celebrated World Laughter Day in many different places in the UK - the Laughter Movement is spreading!
Colchester Laughter Club
Helene Buck reports: Colchester Laughter Clubs going great guns! I started the first Laughter Club in Colchester on 23rd October 2008 - not without a little trepidation! ...
Alzheimer's Society October 2008
Julie Whitehead reports: I was invited to run a Laughter session by the Information & Support Worker of the Croydon branch of the Alzheimer's Society for twelve members of the Croydon Out & About Group with early dementia at the end of October 2008.
Public Free-Range Organic Festival Workshops
Joe hoare reports: Festivals like Glasto, Bestival, the Big Green Gathering, Quest, Small Nations, Big Chill all provide opportunities to experience exuberant, exciting easy-going laughter workshops.
Cortijo Romero
Joe Hoare reports: Throw off the over-seriousness and celebrate the joyful you. In a relaxing, supportive and "light" environment, spend a week boosting all the positives in your life, finding your passion and purpose, and then use them to be more of the ‘YOU’ you’d really like to be, and know you are.
World Laughter Pledge
Robin Graham reports: Remember how you feel after a good laugh? Now imagine how the World would feel if we all laughed together! So let’s do it! Every Saturday. Let’s change the World with laughter!
Laughter Network and Parkinson's Awareness Week
Julie Whiteheadreports: Julie Whitehead joined Bob Taylor from the Parkinson's Disease Society at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley, Kent on Friday 11th April when they ran LAUGH-4-FUN sessions to raise awareness of Parkinson’s Disease.
Laughing in a Foreign Language
Amanda Bate reports: February – April 2008:
Amanda Bate, Julie Whitehead and a number of active members represented and supported the Laughter Network at the South Bank Centre in London as part of a series of workshops to celebrate ‘Laughing in a Foreign Language’.
The exhibition took part over three months in the Hayward Gallery and included laughter sessions both in the Gallery and the Royal Festival Hall.
A fun piece showing how laughter can transcend cultural barriers was aired on BBC2’s the Culture Show.
The laughter sessions were a great success and the Laughter Network looks forward to working with the South Bank Centre again.
The Laughter Network helps Lloyds' staff to de-stress...
Julie Whitehead reports: Laughter Network helps Lloyd's staff to de-stress on Samaritans National Stress Down Day
For the first time Lloyd's supported Samaritans' national Stress Down Day held on 1st February and staff at Lloyd's enjoyed many stress reducing therapies in the workplace, including a laughter workshop.
Here’s what a member of staff had to say about the workshop.
"Endorphins escape!! From distress to de-stress in just under an hour!"
The Laughter Workshop was no joke, as we learned about the positive physiological changes that laughter brings about, the therapeutic benefits of tackling stress, and the remedy for a happier workplace!
The Laughter Network featured on the BBC2 Culture Show
Julie Whitehead reports:
The Laughter Network was featured on the Culture Show BBC2 on Saturday 2nd February.
in association with the exhibition Laughing in a Foreign Language held at the Hayward Gallery on London’s South Bank.
Julie Whitehead reports: “Take us to the prison please" I said to the driver in the bright blue taxi outside Peterborough station. I had never expected to say these words but had been approached by Amy who runs the Holistic centre at Her Majesty's Prison in Peterborough and asked if we could run a laughter session for the women there.
The Clown Within by a Rachel Caine Student
I met Rachel as Doris at a “Mind, Body, Spirit” festival in Manchester. I was undergoing radiotherapy treatment and was searching for healing. I was disgruntled because nothing seemed to help and was about to leave when I spotted a crazy- looking charlady with a mop and bucket at the smallest stand in the festival (no bigger than a cupboard).
