Humor4u

Meghan Markle has recently launched Archetypes , an original podcast on Spotify.  In the first episode, the Duchess of Sussex has a casual chat to her friend and tennis champion Serena Williams about ambition in women . The conversation, in very natural American English, is quite long (57:28), so it is recommended for C1 students and above. There seems to be no operating link to the script on the web page, so, you can use this list of interesting and salient words as a listening guide:  a commercial, greasy, pots and pans, to belong in the kitchen, to reach out to, triumph, to have a ripple effect, an awakening, to box women, to make a difference, diva, the "b" word, slut, harsh, abrasive, to suck around, bitch, mortified, dumb, dragon-lady, household names, to bear the brunt of [something], label, to open up, competitive, an order [of nuns], the sisters, to renounce [their] vows, to behold to a system, to be raised [Catholic], to trickle down, limitless, to date [my now husb...

After the Lionesses, England's female football team, won the European Cup last Sunday, there has been a national celebration of soccer and female empowerment. The media have reflected the historical moment by flooding the waves with words of praise and joy for the victorious women athletes. BBC Radio 4 programme Today is a good example of this shared communal enthusiasm, and on August 1st, Today devoted several slots to cover the different angles of the the story during the 3 hour programme (that podcast is available on line for 29 days, and it is suitable for C2 students). A compilation of the different interviews can be heard on Best of Today , a podcast that is only available on line for 6 days, also suitable for C2 students. In the podcast 5 Minutes On , you can hear a short summary of the story for a whole year (C1). Below you can watch a Sky Sports News video, where the England players interrupt the press conference that coach Sarina Wiegman was giving by singing the song ...

Ellen MacArthur has recently won the Princess of Asturias Prize for International Cooperation, The Majorca Daily Bulletin reported last week . In 2005, Ms MacArthur became the first woman to break the world record as a solo sailor around the world and later she started the Ellen MacArthur Foundation to promote the circular economy and design a more sustainable future for the finite world resources.  As a result of their campaign, in March 2022 the UN adopted a resolution to negotiate a legally-binding treaty on plastic pollution, which is hoped to be drawn and signed by the end of 2024.  Dame Ellen MacArthur was invited to the BBC Radio 4 programme Desert Island Discs back in 2009. In this 45' interview she talks about her background, her achievement in sailing, and her charity work. Her English is a perfect model for C1 and C2 students, because it is rich, but not pompous; there are technical terms, but it is not packed with jargon; the colloquial expressions fit natur...

Rafa Nadal has made history again. Last Sunday he won his 14th Roland Garros title and his 22nd Grand Slam title, two in a row in 2022. Here you can read the BBC News report on the RG victory , which is suitable for C1 students, and the NPR story , which uses shorter sentences and easier words, and could easily be read by B2 students. If you are keen on tennis, you can watch the highlights of the Roland Garros Final here  (11':41"). Some of the most interesting words you can find in the BBC News report are: to beat, back-to-back, to reclaim, straight [sets], [eighth] seed, clay, in a row, to surpass, left-hander, to drop his racquet, to hamper, the rib, nous, a miscue, to take his serve, a vicious forehand winner, a double fault, discomfort, a long-standing [foot problem], groundstrokes, a wide backhand, to target, to save [three break points] to hold, a break point, to pummel, to punch, to hand over [a two-set lead], ruthlessly, to wrap up [the third set], the hallmark, to un...

Lewis Hamilton recently won his 7th F1 title in Turkey, matching Michael Schumacher's all time record. This feat has prompted the British media to relish a debate about Lewis Hamilton's place in the history of F1 and British sport in general. Here you can listen to a BBC Radio 5 Live programme, " Chequered Flag ", where a panel of 3 journalists, Rebecca Clancy, from The Times , Scott Mitchell from The Race and Saith Hardy, a freelance reporter from the USA, talk about the most popular sportsperson in Britain nowadays: his recent victory in the Turkish Grand Prix,and his leading role as an activist in various social causes, including racism.  The podcast lasts 53':48", and there is no script, so it can be suitable for C2 students. Below you can find the glossary and here, on this link, a list of the different sections of the interview which can be used as a supplementary listening guide for the students who might need that kind of written support. If you want...

The BBC Radio 4 programme Desert Island Disc  marked its 75th anniversary with this interview to David Beckham where he talks about his football career in Manchester United, Real Madrid, Milan, PSG etc.  He also talks about his relationship to Victoria Beckham, the "Posh Spice Girl", his family and his charity work. The programme is 52 minutes long and there is no script, so it is recommended for C2 students, but it can be used as "background conversation" to expose learners to the rhythm of English language, while attention is elsewhere: walking, running, ironing, gardening etc (see "How to use this blog"). The interview contains several examples of the use of "would" for past habits. In the conversation, David mentions the letter  "Love at First Sight Exits"   that Victoria Beckham wrote for Vogue magazine in 1996. Here you can read an article in Hello magazine that reports about that "candid" letter, where Victoria describe...

Yesterday was the first day that Spanish people were allowed to exercise outdoors after 49 days of lockdown.  It was a day so many people had been longing for and, perhaps, a day to remember.  This is how Reuters reported the story for Channel News Asia (CNA) in Singapore. This text is suitable for B2 students.

"The Dawn Wall" is a documentary film that shows how Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson managed to climb El Capitan's southeastern face, called "The Dawn Wall" in Yosemite National Park, California.  It took them 19 days to go up the vertical granite, and six or seven years to prepare that remarkable feat.  "It's highly precise" Jorgeson says of the preparations and he compares the moves across the rock to a dance choreography or to a gymnastics routine in this NPR interview. The beginning of the interview contains some technical descriptions of the climbing equipment, so this 31':49" interview could be classified as C2.