Denis Grignon

Denis Grignon

, Ontario
Bilingual, Corporate Standup Comedian & Keynote Speaker, Broadcaster, Writer & Freelance Journalist
Denis Grignon is a bilingual keynote speaker, corporate standup comedian, and author. An award-winning broadcast journalist, Denis has contributed to CBC local and national radio – from news and current affairs to sports and culture – for more than 25 years. Denis Grignon is a "sharp and personable entertainer who respects his audience's intelligence," according to The Ottawa Citizen. Meanwhile, The Globe and Mail described him as "wonderfully easygoing."
  • Business Growth
  • Agriculture & Farming
  • Annual General Meetings
  • Award Galas & After Dinner
  • Bilingual & French
  • Charities & Foundations
  • Community Engagement Events
  • Conferences & Summits
  • Corporate Audience

DENIS GRIGNON BIOGRAPHY

Denis Grignon, an Eastern Ontario native who speaks both English and French has been a featured comedian for more than 20 years. Early in his career, Denis came to the conclusion that he preferred comedy that was effective above the neck rather than below the belt.

Denis Grignon is a “sharp and personable entertainer who respects his audience’s intelligence,” according to The Ottawa Citizen. Meanwhile, The Globe and Mail described him as “wonderfully easygoing.”

He has performed stand-up comedy on the nationally broadcast CBC shows The Debaters, DNTO, and Marketplace. Denis Grignon is the driving force behind the No Foul Language Comic Tour, which was taped for Laugh Out Loud, the premier comedy show on CBC Radio.

Knowing the audience is paramount for a standup comic—at least, for a smart and conscientious one. And when it comes to empathizing with corporate culture, Denis can relate. He spent 10 years as an on-air staff reporter and documentary producer with CBC Radio, where he is still a frequent contributor.

His writing has been featured in the Toronto Star, the National Post as well as numerous periodicals. Heck, he’s even contributed feature articles for the Canadian Wildlife Federation’s magazines . He’s insightful enough to know what his audience wants…and funny enough to deliver it.

Denis Grignon’s documentaries are praised for their creative use of sound, clever writing and great interview clips. He also understands the unique sensibilities and culture of Kawartha Lakes and recognizes it’s important to get out of the studio – (okay, it’s his home office near Dunsford) – to hear people’s stories on their turf.

Denis Grignon connects just as easily with farmers and tradespeople, as he does with politicians and business owners (All of whom he’s played hockey with here, eh).

What sets Denis Grignon apart from other broadcasters is his professional experience as a comedian – a skill he often incorporates into the Advocate Podcast, blending solid journalism with occasional moments of humour and levity.

Denis Grignon had the honour of performing for the Canadian military in Afghanistan in August 2010. A recognized journalist, his radio documentaries can still be heard on CBC stations across the nation. He also regularly contributes to The Toronto Star and other national publications.

Denis Grignon has a realist but not a crude sense of humour. In fact, it’s a performance that avoids insulting remarks and deftly navigates issues of politics, business, family, education, and even his own shortcomings as a veteran hockey goalie.

Denis is no clueless city boy. In fact, he’s not a city boy at all. Though his work often takes him downtown, his hometown is in rural Ontario. Indeed, there aren’t a lot of standup comics who have to feed the ducks and shut in the laying hens before they head out to do a show.

Rural audiences react enthusiastically to a brand of humour that’s just as likely to be inspired by a classified ad in a small-town newspaper as by headlines in the Globe and Mail. Currently, Denis Grignon, his wife, and their two sons reside on a 50-acre farm outside of Peterborough where they rear a variety of hens and turkeys.

Videos

Podcasts

Play

The Lindsay Advocate

SBC

The Advocate Podcast

Denis Grignon Topic Presentations

set up. segue. sell. - a seminar on perfecting that sales pitch

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • A successful sales call isn’t that different from a successful standup comedy performance.

    The jokes are the product. The delivery is the pitch. The audience is the customer.

    This fast-paced presentation draws on Denis’s experience as a professional comedian and seasoned journalist to give participants practical, immediately applicable strategies for fine-tuning that pitch—and making the sale.

    Not only will participants leave Denis’s unique one-hour seminar with fresh new insights and tips for success, they’ll be buzzing about the short standup comedy interludes that kept them interested and drove it all home.

    Set-up. Segue. Sell. opens with a carefully chosen five-minute comedy routine that subtly introduces ideas Denis will refer to as the session unfolds. Denis highlights four key areas where his extensive experience as a standup comic and journalist enables him to provide a uniquely valuable perspective on creating and presenting a truly effective pitch.

comedy with a rural sensibility

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • Denis Grignon is no clueless city boy. In fact, he’s not a city boy at all. Though his work often takes him downtown, his home town is in rural Ontario. Indeed, there aren’t a lot of standup comics who have to feed the ducks and shut in the laying hens before they head out to do a show.

    Rural audiences react enthusiastically to a brand of humour that’s just as likely to be inspired by a classified ad in a small-town newspaper as by headlines in the Globe and Mail.

custom writing

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • Every audience is unique, which is why every one of Denis’s performances is unique. Denis Grignon will work with you to ensure his act takes into account your group’s goals, experiences and sensibilities. Whether he is emceeing an awards night or providing after-dinner entertainment, he will weave custom-written content together with time-tested material to produce a performance that’s clean, clever and hilarious.

    Denis’s background as a radio broadcaster and print journalist means he understands the importance of research and preparation. He produces radio documentaries for CBC Radio, and is a regular contributor to the Toronto Star.

    Those decades of experience help guide Denis Grignon in shaping his act, whether it’s for a blue-chip corporation at a huge convention or a service club’s Christmas party at a small-town community centre. He’ll talk to you well ahead of time to learn about your group’s particular interests, and run the custom material he writes past you to make sure it strikes the right tone.

    On the day of your event, he’ll put your mind at ease by arriving in plenty of time to get a feel for the crowd and the setting—he may even develop some new jokes on the spot! When you hire Denis Grignon, you’re making your life easier, knowing that you’ll be working with an experienced professional who knows how to strike just the right tone.

Testimonials

This was the first year we started our four-day event with a set by a comedian, and Denis Grignon was a great choice for our group of empty nesters.  His observations and anecdotes were thoughtfully tailored to our age group, and he connected easily with folks in the audience.  It was such a treat to be in a room surrounded by laughing people after two years of relative isolation.  I happily recommend Denis Grignon as an entertainer.

Catherine Loudon

Fall Fiesta Coordinator
Golden Lake, Ontario

I have only received positive comments about your show. One of our staff commented on the fact that you were able to swing back and forth between both languages and still keep everyone laughing. Thank you for an intelligent and funny performance. I should mention that I was very impressed by the time you put into researching our organization and becoming familiar with our ‘hot’ topics.

Canadian Institute of Steel Construction

Although his jokes are intended for an adult audience, they are not crass or offensive. His material was quite varied, and he was able to appeal to the entire audience. A jolly good time was had by all.

Ryan

Lamontagne Financial
Ottawa

You tailored your opening remarks to our participants and to the event, including appropriate humour. ..outstanding

Public Works Canada

Denis Grignon was better able to connect with us and what we do because of the research he did beforehand.

Aquaculture Canada

You managed to find humour in both the banking industry and farming that allowed you to strike a familiar chord with us.

TD Bank

Articles & Media

Baseball's teen umpires grow up quickly or strike out

CBC

No matter your age, when you're behind home plate you have to handle the hecklers In youth baseball games across Canada, it's not uncommon to see teens and even pre-teens working behind home plate, wearing wire masks and shouting out calls like the pros. No matter how young they are, they're still...
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Comedian uses laughs to teach teens about financial responsibility

Peterborough Examiner

When you think about it, there’s nothing really that funny about money. A lack of it can be frustrating. Trying to manage it can be stressful. But then again, some people act funny when you ask them about money, so maybe that’s part of Denis Grignon’s shtick. Grignon is a stand-up...
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Comics rant against smoking... and bugs

Sudbury

Two comics, Denis Grignon and Rick Currie, will be deriding smoking with their best jabs Friday at Little Montreal, 182 Elgin St. at 9 pm. It is part of the It’s Canada’s Time to Quit Comedy Tour, which has focused on the benefits and challenges of quitting smoking. Grignon, a standup...
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CBC

SBC

White Men & Chicken or Egg
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Books

Coming Soon!

How to book Denis Grignon for an event?

Denis Grignon keynote speaker is an expert presenter and has a wide range of experience speaking to a wide variety of audiences and organizations. Denis Grignon delivers keynotes, workshops & training sessions. They may also host or emcee events. Hire Denis Grignon from , Ontario for your event to inspire the audience to take action and make change in their work and their lives. Your workplace will benefit from our keynote speaker and their keynote talks and speeches will shift the mindsets or behaviours for the audience members in Canada. 

Interested in booking Denis Grignon for an event?

Are you looking to hire Denis Grignon for your event? Denis Grignon , Ontario is a dynamic and engaging speaker that offers audiences researched content paired with expertise and a dynamic speaking ability. Denis Grignon is also a Canadian corporate consultant and coach and facilitates workshops and training sessions for a corporate audience. Denis Grignon is an expert keynote presenter and speaks on wide variety of topics. Hiring a great speaker for your event is important and working with a thought leader like Denis Grignon from Speakers Canada’s roster will engage audiences into the content of the presentation to bring awareness and a fresh perspective for their approach to their work and their lives. Book Denis Grignon to educate, motivate and activate the audience through an interactive and entertaining presentation at corporate meetings and gatherings.

Known as a popular key note speaker in Canada, Denis Grignon creates life changing experiences for the participants with practical insights and strategic advice they can implement right after the session. Working with a one our leading expert speaker like Denis Grignon from , Ontario offers organizations a fresh perspective to assist the people of the organization. No matter if it is a government, association, or business crowd, Denis Grignon is a perfect speaker for your event. Through unique practical insights for trending topics and years experience speaking to different organizations, Denis Grignon focuses on changing individuals to make better decisions at work and their lives. No matter if you are holding an in person or virtual event, having an influential speaker such as Denis Grignon will engage, motivate, and activate the audience to make a change in their lives and inspire action for results to meet organizational goals. Your workforce will benefit from Denis Grignon’s presentations and speeches, with measurable results set to shift the people of the organization and core direction of the company. Book Denis Grignon speaker for your annual general meeting, conference, summit, or convention in Canada.

How much does it cost to hire Denis Grignon for a keynote presentation or virtual event?

Denis Grignon is an expert professional key note speaker with a lot of experience speaking and delivering engaging talks to organizations and audiences in Canada. Each of Speaker Bureau Canada’s talent have different ways to assess their fees, and Denis Grignon speaker fee ranges depending on the size of the audience, event format (in person or virtual), event location, and if the organization booking them is a non profit, association, government department/government agency or business/corporation. The speakers we work with are flexible with their fees, and it is important for us to learn more about your event before we approach them, as it is our role to work for you, and to help you find a speaker within budget. 

Please contact Speakers Bureau of Canada and provide us with your event details so that we can contact Denis Grignon to check availability or confirm the pricing and associated costs to hire a great speaker like Denis Grignon for your event. As Denis Grignon's agent and as a Canadian top speaker bureau and talent agency for speakers, we are able to propose each event opportunity from each host organization’s behalf to try to help you get in touch with Denis Grignon and confirm them for your in person or online meeting/event. We can also provide and advise on the booking process and potentially negotiate their fee. Speakers Canada is a client focused speaker agency, and we work for you in finding good speakers for your team meetings and booking processes.

Denis Grignon Disclaimer
Speakers Bureau Canada assists companies and event planning teams seeking to hire talent like Denis Grignon for speaking engagements, virtual meetings, conference appearances, training sessions and workshops facilitations. Our Canadian speakers bureau does not claim to exclusively represent Denis Grignon, however they are represented by Speakers Canada, and we work with them closely for their Canadian speaking opportunities and bookings. As Canada’s top speaker bureau, we represent Canadian motivational keynote speakers and professional guest speakers that will be available on your upcoming events date and location that are withing the budget. Our talented bureau speaker booking agency can help find business speakers or celebrity speakers that aligns with each organization, audience, event theme and the topic themes you hope for the speaker to address in their presentation. 

When SBC receives a request to book Denis Grignon we provide you with their speaker fees, travel costs and check their schedules. We work closely with the host organization’s event planning team and the speaker to handle the logistics and to relay or negotiate associated costs. Our talented team members then will work with our talent directly or their agent/manager/assistant to confirm the Canadian speaker fee and travel expenses, so that event planning teams can receive an official quote for the speaker appearing at the event. Speaker fees and travel costs vary per speaker and our role is to contact Denis Grignon about your event, after we have connected with the event organizers to learn all the event details and/or conference program. Each booking request is unique since session durations and audience sizes can vary which may affect the speaker’s fees. If you are looking to hire Denis Grignon, we recommend filling out the booking request form so a booking agent from Speakers Bureau Canada can get in touch with our talent to help you coordinate with your team to engage the speaker for a successful event.

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