London’s Royal Parks and Gardens Regulation Act of 1872 established the north-eastern corner of Hyde Park as a venue for public speaking. That site is close to the former site of the Tyburn gallows. As a venue for public speaking, that site became known as “Speakers’ Corner.” Speakers’ Corner, like democratic Athens, has become an honored representation of direct democracy.

The competitive structure of Speakers’ Corner differs fundamentally from that of democratic Athens. Speakers’ Corner is a place where persons act as if they were competing for public acclaim. That’s what speakers did in democratic Athens. However, in Speakers’ Corner, unlike in democratic Athens, no public is institutionally gathered for the speaker. Speakers at Speakers’ Corner act as if they are competing for public acclaim, but actually they are competing for public attention. Usually they attract very little.