Darren Flanagan

Darren's presentation received a long, standing ovation - celebrating his passion for human life and the frailties of our existence.
QSPA

An intense, passionate, emotional delivery of his story, there were a lot of tears in the room. Darren tied it very nicely with how you work with your advisers, commitment, leadership, thought and quality with family etc. He was a huge hit.
ANZ Bank

Darren was fantastic - highly relevant for our team and an absolutely professional, personal and emotional account from him - a highlight of our program.
Holcim Australia & NZ

Darren Flanagan had the audience at the NSW Ambulance Safety Summit laughing, crying and holding their breath during his incredible account of his role in the Beaconsfield Mine rescue. He received a standing ovation from the audience, predominantly medical professionals including paramedics, doctors and flight nurses.
Within his presentation, framed perfectly to the NSW Ambulance Summit safety messaging as ‘Safety in a Complex Environment’, Darren conveyed the unique challenges and pressures of his experience in a way that completely resonated with the audience. His presentation was voted the highlight of the conference with its multiple messages relating to safety, personal resilience, faith in your own abilities and the need to rise to a uniquely difficult challenge. I highly recommend Darren as an exceptional keynote speaker.
Director Marketing & Communication
NSW Ambulance

It was an intense, fascinating, heartfelt, honest and emotional story of survival from an unimaginable situation. You could hear a pin drop for the entire 90 minutes – no one moved, no one spoke, every staff member was completely captivated from start to finish (not normally the case!).
Cobar Shire Council

Darren’s story was quite incredible delivered in a very emotive way. The story was very captivating for the entire presentation and was wonderfully concluded with a set of key poignant messages. It was obvious that Darren was heavily invested in the presentation and entirely committed to bring across his important message regarding safety.
South32

Bloody amazing! Darren’s story is something that I think about often and it is an honour to have been able to gain a small glimpse of insight into his private story of struggle. The way he shares what he has been through is something that I feel anyone could draw strength from. I am so moved by Darren’s lived experience and his willingness to shed light on the importance of mental health.
Gwydir Shire Council

Met our expectations and exceeded them. Darren was very generous in sharing his personal experiences, which our staff found very moving and made a lasting impact. Exactly what our field- based staff needed to encourage them to seek support with mental health issues.
Tweed Shire Council

Darren's presentation was one of the best I've seen at a conference in 20 years. The story itself is gripping - it might even be fascinating if it was told poorly - but the kicker is that he tells it with great skill. It's full of courage, honor, larrikins, skill, risk, daring, innovation, heartbreak and humility. I thought I knew a bit about it from the news but within two minutes of Darren's intro I realised I hardly knew the first thing. He takes us through both the technical and human elements with some big laughs and great emotion. There are so many messages throughout and one driving message at the end - the importance of mental health. He compels us all to treat our mental health and our relationships with great respect. I will be recommending him to my clients.
Professional Speaker, Facilitator, and Comedian

Darren captured the audience from the moment he went on stage and held them until the end. His story and the lessons learned remained the key talking point amongst our members for the remaining day and a half of our conference.
Statewide Mutual Risk Management Conference 2022

We are a project operating in the Rail industry and Darren was asked to present his Beaconsfield story for an R U OK? Day event. The feedback we received after Darren’s talk was incredibly heartwarming, he truly touched every individual. Darren’s story literally had the team go from laughter to tears, to simply being in awe of his story and the impact it so clearly still has on him today. Darren’s message was such a great reminder for the team that no one is safe from mental illness, and you don’t need to have experienced a significant event to suffer your own battles. We would certainly have no hesitation in recommending Darren for any business wanting to make a big impact on its people.
John Holland Group

After two years of construction, typical toolboxes and a recent significant mental health issue onsite, we knew we had to do something different. Fulton Hogan engaged Darren on another project and I received great feedback on his approach and story. After I spoke with Darren and heard his story and how he can tailor it to our current site issue, I knew we had to give it a go.
Darren presented with such passion and authenticity that’s it’s impossible not to be encapsulated by his story. The team was laughing, crying and simply in awe as Darren took us on his Beaconsfield journey and inspired us to look after our mates better and change our attitude to staying safe as a way of life. The feedback we received from the team has been overwhelmingly positive - it’s very clear that Darren’s story touched the hearts of many of our people and I would not hesitate in recommending him to anyone.
Fulton Hogan

Darren Flanagan tells stories within stories. The rescue at Beaconsfield Mine is in itself a marvellous feat. The personal battles and rescues that also occurred during that rescue and since then are at another level. Darren’s recount is real, his story is personal and the delivery is from the heart.
RSM Australia

Darren was the most engaging and interesting speaker I have ever heard in person. He was open, honest and emotional. His talk took us to places I didn't imagine, and I am better for having heard it. Don't miss his story!
Milton Ulladulla Business Chamber Inc
Small Business Month Webinar 2020

10/10 – Darren isn’t your normal speaker; he puts his heart and soul into his story and really takes the audience along on the ride.
NSW Regional Safety Conference 2018

Darren quickly gained the full attention of the audience. His presentation is extremely honest and authentic. The story is one of heroism but also compassion. Feedback from delegates was that they greatly enjoyed Darren’s presentation; it was a tremendous start to our 2017 convention.
NIBA

Darren’s presentation was a highly emotional and thought-provoking account of his involvement in the Beaconsfield mine rescue in 2006. Darren’s attention to detail took the audience through the rescue and included important messages for us all such as trusting yourself amidst fear and the human instinct of avoidance. He also made me reflect on the value of family and friends, what is important, and the impact of mental health illness in our society. I would recommend Darren’s to others who are seeking an impactful and genuine storyteller.
Tomago

The two events were fabulous, and Darren had staff in both the north and the south operations captivated – they were along for the whole ride from the moment he got to the stage. We very much appreciate his energy and support.
Arrow Energy

To say it was an interesting, absorbing and dramatic presentation would not be doing it justice. His talk was electrifying, emotional and detailed....His description of the rescue operation and the conditions the miners survived in, made us all understand, not only the enormity of the operation and the delicacy of the final preparations to break through to the miners as well as the extreme conditions that rescuers and rescued were sharing but how the Aussie spirit shone through. As well as privileged, we were enthralled, thrilled but most of all thankful to have such a dinkum, brave Aussie speaker to share his extreme experience with us.
Shoalhaven Council

Darren's story is amazing - everyone in the room felt like they were there. Darren made our audience laugh, cry, but most of all realise how amazing we all can be. His story is truly memorable.
ING Australia Limited

Excellent, what a inspiring delivery. Darren had everyone on the journey from the moment he started to the moment he finished. My audience laughed with him and cried with him, there wasn’t a sound in the room. It was such a moving presentation.
AMMA

Inspiring, and emotionally gripping – what a dedicated team can achieve.
National Oil and Safety Conference

In a nutshell, he blew everyone away. Several of our guys who have been with us for 10 years or more said he was the best speaker we have ever had. It was nice to have someone who wasn’t overly professional (that’s not a criticism) and didn’t look like he was ‘just going through the motions. He is an ordinary, genuine man who was caught up in an extraordinary set of circumstances.... everyone in the room was moved by his experience ... a lot of our delegates are men in the construction industry - they’re not known for being easily affected.
Hooker Cockram Projects Limited

Darren was extremely moving speaker. He was very emotional and honest. He made us laugh, cry, laugh and cry again. Evaluations from our delegates rated Darren an average of 5 out 5 with some putting 5++++. Darren was perfect for a Safety Conference and speaking to Safety Professionals.
Russell Transport

Darren was a fantastic choice for us. His story was truly inspirational, so genuine and real. His honesty and openness was so moving. It was an absolute privilege to hear his story. Our team took away some very real messages.
Novartis

Darren Flanagan is a passionate, enthralling, and inspiring speaker. The way he is able to communicate the human side of the Beaconsfield rescue – the effect on families, on rescuers, and on the survivors themselves – made us realise why safety in the workplace cannot be taken for granted. Darren was the closing speaker of the conference and even after two days of presentations, Darren managed to hold the attention of everyone in the room - and I mean all 300 delegates - for over an hour.
The Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia

An insider’s version of events of one of the most publicised mining accidents in Australia’s history. Darren Flanagan’s speech about his involvement with the rescue of the Beaconsfield miners is gripping from start to finish. His raw emotion takes the audience to the scene of the accident, the efforts of the team involved in the rescue and the toll that it took on the mining community. His speech is a real eye opener and a great motivational tool for anyone involved with the industry.
Rio Tinto

I have never seen a presenter invite an audience in to experience the real emotions of his own real life experience. The way Darren presented made us all feel as we were actually there with him. At times we cried, at times we laughed, he was the best presenter I have seen in twenty-five years. That night Darren also joined us for dinner and he was swamped by both members and suppliers alike who merely wanted to speak with this guy and thank him for sharing his story.
Leading Edge Electronics & Digital

Darren was amazing. Darren’s story was so raw and emotional and moved every single person in that room. Our audience consisted of 30 – 50-year-old tradesman who normally wouldn’t be seen shedding a tear, let alone from a speaker, but there was not a dry eye to be seen. Darren had strong messages weaved into his presentation that individually resonated with people, dependant on their personal situations. I heard comments saying that ‘I haven’t cried for 15 years, but he really moved me’. Darren’s presentation was truly a gift. Darren was by far the stand-out speaker of our Conference. His was an inspiration, and to add to that, he was genuinely a lovely, compassionate and personable man. We would definitely recommend Darren to any organisation.
Master Electricians Aust

Darren’s presentation has been the best we have ever ran. I have never received such an overwhelming response from so many people at this site. Importantly the safety messages that Darren is able to convey in his presentation really hit the mark for what we were wanting to achieve.
Thales

Whole audience was spellbound. Every single delegate rated his presentation as excellent.
Careers Advisers Association of NSW

Wow, what an amazing guy! Darren’s presentation was so moving and inspirational. He really puts things into perspective. He was just so generous with his time, emotions and advice. Words cannot describe our thanks for not only his group presentation but also the words he had for our staff afterwards. Thank you Darren for taking us on a small part of your journey.
Domain Principal Group

He is always very real, and you feel the raw emotion which hits home for all. It starts the right kind of conversation, and reaches everyone, even the toughest of people. Love his honestly and appreciate his willingness to share so openly with everyone to raise awareness for the right reasons.
John Holland Laing O'Rourke Joint Venture