AUDIO SCRIPTS
174
LESSON 10.5 RECORDING 10.6
1
I like to test myself by putting new
vocabulary I want to learn onto cards.
I put an example sentence with the word or
phrase missing on one side of the card. On
the other side I put the word or phrase.
I often test myself when I’m on the train.
2
I like to organise new vocabulary under
topic areas, for example, verbs, nouns and
idioms connected to a subject, like crime,
so I can concentrate on learning vocabulary
on the same theme.
3
I like to have word families in my
vocabulary book. I test myself by starting
with a verb or noun and then try to
remember adverbs or adjectives, and
synonyms and opposites.
4
For difficult vocabulary I try to make a link
with my own language, so I try to think of a
word that sounds the same, and I remember
the new word that way.
5
I have a great vocabulary app on my phone.
It lets me record and test my pronunciation,
and gives me random tests of vocabulary
meanings as well.
6
I try to note down five new words each day
and learn their meaning. What I do is write
them on post-it notes and stick them on a
board in my office.
LESSON 11.1 RECORDING 11.1
4
Good morning listeners. Last night, I
attended the first live recording of a new
radio comedy series It’s a Laugh, which is
going out on Comedy FM. It’ll be on every
Monday evening for six weeks. I’m pleased
to report that the series lives up to its name.
It’s hilarious. Some of the jokes don’t always
work, but overall I really recommend it.
You’ll enjoy yourselves.
5
Even though you’re probably fans of his,
I’m sorry to tell you all that there’s no real
plot. It’s meant to be a gripping thriller,
but nobody seems to have a reason for
doing anything. I couldn’t relate to any
of the characters. This is the worst novel
I have read recently. I found the first few
chapters very heavy going. I know his first
novel was excellent, but this was a huge
disappointment.
6
Good evening, viewers. The first of the
old films we’re discussing tonight is The
Maltese Falcon, the 1941 version. It’s
a classic example of the detective genre
and I’m sure it’ll keep you on the edge of
your seats. It made Humphrey Bogart an
international star and its dark atmosphere is
truly exciting.
LESSON 11.3 RECORDING 11.2
N = Nura, R = Reema
N:
Hi, Reema. How did you get on in the
interview? Did it go well?
R:
I don’t know really. I think so.
N:
So, what kind of questions did they ask you?
R:
Well, the editor of the newspaper did most
of the talking. She asked me why I wanted
to be a foreign correspondent and obviously
I was expecting that. I said that I’d studied
journalism at university and that I’d been
the editor of the student newspaper. I also
said I had worked for the local newspaper
for five years and a national newspaper for
three years and now wanted a new
challenge as a foreign correspondent for a
national newspaper. Then she wanted to
know what parts of the world I was
interested in.
N:
Mmm, what did you say?
R:
Well, all the Arab countries and South
America. I told her that I also knew Brazil
and Argentina well, so they would be
interesting to report on.
N:
Oh, I see. What else did she ask you? Those
questions don’t sound too difficult.
R:
No, they weren’t really. Well, the subject of
languages came up. She asked if I spoke any
foreign languages.
N:
Ha! That was an easy one for you!
R:
Yeah, I told her I was bilingual in English
and Arabic and that I spoke Spanish and
Portuguese fluently. She seemed pretty
impressed.
N:
I’m sure she was. Did she offer you the job
on the spot?
R:
Not quite. She wanted to know where I’d
gone to university and if I’d taken any
further qualifications. I told her I’d taken
extra qualifications in IT and new digital
technologies and a Masters in Media. She
also wanted to know what articles I’d
written and so on. There was only one
difficult question really …
N:
Oh yeah?
R:
Mmm, she asked me what qualities a
journalist needed to be a foreign
correspondent. I wasn’t sure how to answer
that one.
N:
How did you handle it?
R:
Well, I said, obviously, I’d never done the
job, but I had thought about it. I said that
foreign correspondents had to be able to
make decisions without waiting for people
to tell you what to do. So, they needed to
show initiative when they were reporting in
a foreign country. They also needed to be
digitally literate and aware of all the new
digital technologies.
N:
I think that’s a really good answer. Was she
pleased?
R:
She seemed to be. Anyway, there were a
few more questions. Then at the end, she
asked if I was physically fit.
N:
Funny question, but I suppose it’s important
if you travel a lot in your job.
R:
Yes, true. Anyway, I said that I went to the
gym three times a week and go jogging
twice a week, so I should be.
N:
Good answer. Do you think you’ll get the
job?
R:
I’ve got a good chance, I think, but I wasn’t
the only candidate. I’ll just keep my fingers
crossed and hope for the best.
LESSON 11.4 RECORDING 11.3
A = Andy, B = Bob
A:
Well Bob, you know I think that this is a
great opportunity for the company, but it’s
very different from the kind of things we’ve
done in the past. We could make a lot of
money, but we could also lose a lot.
B:
Andy, don’t worry too much. It’s the same
as TV really, just everything’s bigger.
A:
I hope you’re right. I just want a safe
investment, something which is quite
similar to the sort of stuff we usually make. I
think some kind of mystery is the sort of
thing most people really like.
B:
Now, that’s where we disagree again. I
think this is a great opportunity to do
something very different – you know, a
proper big-budget film, something which
will really sell around the world and
something much better than what we’ve
been doing recently. You know, those rather
sad mini-series about unhappy housewives.
Having said that, I don’t think the genre is
that important really. It could be action,
adventure, or even a musical. It just has to
be different!
A:
I see your point Bob, but we need to be sure
exactly what we want. What are our main
criteria for investing?
B:
Well, for me it has to be down to the
originality of the idea. That’s what’ll get
people interested and help sell it.
A:
Yes, I understand that, but I also think the
experience of the director is important. They
can make or break a film and they make a
difference to its sales.
B:
True. Actually, I think the director is less
important than the location. I think we need
plenty of locations around the world so
people see places they’ve been to or would
like to visit. So the film becomes
aspirational and means something to
people.
A:
Mmm, good point, They are both important,
and a variety of locations will help to sell
the film in different places. On the one
hand, it’ll have more international appeal,
but on the other hand if we choose a film
like that it’ll be much more expensive, don’t
forget. We have to think about cost.
B:
Yes, we do, but if we want a big hit, we’ll
need to spend more.
A:
Maybe I’m being too careful, but I don’t
want to spend millions and find we have
something a lot worse than our usual TV
series.
B:
Yes, you are a careful person Andy. Maybe
that’s why you’re successful. But film-
making is always a big risk, whether for TV
or cinema.
LESSON 12.2 RECORDING 12.1
[Male]
1
I’m sure they’d said that we would meet
at the office, so that’s where I went. To be
honest, I wondered why there was no one
else around, but by that time it was too
late. Tom insists that he told me to go to
the airport, but you know what he’s like. I
can never understand what he’s saying, so I
guess I didn’t hear him properly. Why can’t
he speak more clearly?
[Female]
2
At first I didn’t know what was wrong
but when I finally realised, I was so
embarrassed. You know what happened?
I was texting her really quickly because
I didn’t have much time and I needed to
reply before she got on the train. So, I just
didn’t read what I was writing. Anyway, it
turns out that my phone didn’t recognise her
name, so every time I’d written it, my phone
had changed her name to something else.
It wasn’t terrible, but it meant she couldn’t
understand anything that I’d written and
that meant she didn’t get the information
she needed. In fact, we didn’t sort it out
till we spoke on the phone much later. She
was a bit annoyed with me and I could only
apologise.
