Nine Distinguished Judges Gather at SOAS London
London, 10 November 2026 — The 5th UK English–Chinese Bilingual Recitation Competition will hold its Grand Final on Sunday, 29 November 2026, at SOAS University of London, bringing together 50 young finalists aged 5–17 for a celebration of language, culture and communication.
Jointly organised by The Mothers’ Bridge of Love (MBL), KYX International Education and Capital Class, the competition promotes bilingual education, cultural understanding and confidence in public speaking.
50 Young Voices, One Shared Stage
The finalists will compete in four age categories across two sessions:
Morning (10:00–12:40)
Group D (14–17 years): 12 contestants
Group C (11–13 years): 13 contestants
Afternoon (13:30–16:00)
Group A (5–7 years): 13 contestants
Group B (8–10 years): 12 contestants
Participants will present poetry, stories and speeches in English and Chinese, receiving individual feedback from the judges. The programme also features multilingual games, audience interaction, award presentations and collective bilingual poetry performances.
A Distinguished Panel of Nine Judges
The Grand Final welcomes nine distinguished judges from literature, education, academia and journalism, listed alphabetically by surname:
Hugo De Burgh — Founder and Chairman of Kensington Wade; Founder of the China Media Centre.
Yukteshwar Kumar（余德烁） — First Asian Deputy Mayor of Bath; Chinese Stream Course Director at the University of Bath.
James Li（李健） — CEO of KYX International Education Group.
Liu Qian（刘倩） — Associate Professor at the University of Warwick.
Hilary Spurling — Award-winning British writer and biographer.
Wei Cheng（魏城） — Former FT Chinese journalist and media commentator.
Frances Wood（吴芳思） — Former Curator of Chinese Collections at the British Library; sinologist and author.
Zeng Biao（曾飚） — Lecturer at the University of South Wales.
Zhao Xiao（赵潇） — Chinese history PhD, retired teacher and writer.
Building Bridges Through Language
More than a competition, this annual event celebrates the power of language to connect people across cultures and generations.
For MBL, a UK-registered charity dedicated to fostering cultural and human connections between China and the wider world, the competition reflects a shared belief:
Language builds bridges. Understanding brings people together.
The organisers warmly thank all judges, participating schools, sponsors, families and volunteers for making this celebration possible.
Date: Sunday, 29 November 2026 | 10:00–16:00
Venue: Djam Lecture Theatre, SOAS University of London
Website: www.mothersbridge.org