1、Lesson 1 This Is Your Life is one of the most popular programmes on British and American television. Every week a famous person is invited to a television studio, without knowing that he or she will be the subject of the programme. The compre meets the person outside the studio and says This is your
2、 life! The person then meets friends and relatives from his or her past and present. Studio 4 is where the programme is recorded. The programme begins at eight oclock. Its 6:45 now and the director is checking the preparations with his new production assistant (PA). The subject of tonights show will
3、 be an actor, Jason Douglas. The compre, as usual, will be Terry Donovan. Director: Lets just check the arrangements. Were bringing Jason Douglas here in a studio carhe thinks hes coming to a discussion programme! The driver has been told to arrive at exactly 7:55. Now, the programme begins at eight
4、 oclock. At that time Jason will be walking to the studio. Terry Donovan will start his introduction at 8:01, and Jason will arrive at 8:02. Terry will meet him at the studio entrance . Camera 4 will be there. Then hell take him to that seat. Itll be on Camera 3. Jason will be sitting there during t
5、he whole programme. For most of the show Terry will be standing in the middle, and hell be on Camera 2. The guests will come through that door, talk to Terry and Jason . and then sit over there. Director: Now, is that all clear? PA: Yes . theres just one thing. Director: Well, what is it? PA: Whos g
6、oing to look after the guests during the show? Director: Pauline is. PA: And where will they be waiting during the show? Director: In Room 401, as usual. Pauline will be waiting with them, and shell be watching the show on the monitor. Shell tell them two minutes before they enter. PA: I think thats
7、 everything. Terry: Good evening and welcome to This is Your Life. This is Terry Donovan speaking. Were waiting for the subject of tonights programme. Hes one of the worlds leading actors, and he thinks hes coming here to take part in a discussion programme . I can hear him now . yes, here he is! Ja
8、son Douglas . This is your life! Jason: Oh, no . I dont believe it! Not me . Terry: Yes, you! Now come over here and sit down. Jason, you were born at number 28 Balaclava Street in East Ham, London on July 2nd, 1947. You were one of six children, and your father was a taxi driver. Of course, your na
9、me was then Graham Smith. Terry: Now, do you know this voice? I remember Jason when he was two. He used to scream and shout all day. Jason: Susan! Terry: Yes . all the way from Sydney, Australia . She flew here specially for this programme. Its your sister, Susan Fraser! Jason: Susan . Why didnt you
10、 tell me . oh, this is wonderful! Terry: Yes, you havent seen each other for 13 years . take a seat next to him, Susan. You started school at the age of five, in 1952, and in 1958 you moved to Lane End Secondary School. Terry: Do you remember this voice? Smith! Stop looking out of the window! Jason:
11、 Oh, no! Its Mr. Hooper! Terry: Your English teacher, Mr. Stanley Hooper. Was Jason a good student, Mr. Hooper? Mr. Hooper: Eh? No, he was the worst in the class . but he was a brilliant actor, even in those days. He could imitate all the teachers? Terry: Thank you, Mr. Hooper. You can speak to Jaso
12、n, later. Well, you went to the London School of Drama in 1966, and left in 1969. In 1973 you went to Hollywood. Terry: Do you know this voice? Hi Jason . Can you ride a horse yet? Jason: Maria! Terry: Maria Montrose . whos come from Hollywood to be with you tonight. Maria: Hello, Jason . its great
13、to be here. Hello, Terry. Jason and I were in a movie together in 1974. Jason had to learn to ride a horse . Well, Jason doesnt like horses very much. Jason: Like them! Im terrified of them! Maria: Anyway, he practised for two weeks. Then he went to the director . it was Charles Orson . and said, Wh
14、at do you want me to do? Charles said, I want you to fall off the horse. Jason was furious. He said, What? Fall off! Ive been practising for two weeks . I could fall off the first day . without any practice! Interviewer: Good morning, sir. Im from radio station QRX, and I wonder if youd mind answeri
15、ng a few questions for our survey today. David: Uh . sure, why not? Interviewer: Whats your name? David: Uh, my name is David George. Interviewer: David, what do you do for a living? David: Im a professional baseball player. Interviewer: Really? David: Mm-hmm. Interviewer: Thats terrific. What do yo
16、u do for fun? David: Well, I like to read the classicsyou know, Dickens, Shakespeare, . uh . books like that. Interviewer: Fabulous. And whats the most exciting thing thats happened to you recently? David: Just call me Dad. My wife and I . uh . had our first baby. Interviewer: Oh, (Yeah. A little gi
17、rl.) thats wonderful. David: Mm-hmm. Interviewer: Who do you admire most in this world? David: Well, I admire my wife . uh . shes terrific. Shes going to be a great mother, great mother. Interviewer: Terrific. What do you want to be doing five years from now? David: Well, . uh . five years from now
18、Id like to be a father of five. Id like to have lots of kids around the house. Interviewer: Thats fabulous. David: Yeah. Interviewer: Thanks very much for talking to us, David. David: Well, thank you. Interviewer: Good morning. Im from radio station QRX, and I wondered if youd mind answering a few q
19、uestions today for our survey. Suzanne: Not at all. Interviewer: Whats your name? Suzanne: Suzanne Brown. Interviewer: Suzanne, what do you do for a living? Suzanne: Im a lawyer. Interviewer: A lawyer? And what do you do for fun? Suzanne: I like to run. Interviewer: Uh-huh. Running, like Suzanne: Jo
20、gging. Interviewer: Jogging. And whats the most exciting thing thats happened to you recently? Suzanne: I got to run in the Boston Marathon. Interviewer: Congratulations. And who do you admire most in the world? Suzanne: Oh, well, Id have to say Martin Luther King, Jr. Interviewer: Mmm, yes. And wha
21、t do you want to be doing five years from today? Suzanne: Well, dare I say win the Boston Marathon? Interviewer: Wonderful. Thanks a lot for talking to us today, Suzanne. Suzanne: Youre welcome. Interviewer: Good morning, sir. Im from radio station QRX, and I wonder if you could answer a few questio
22、ns for our survey this morning. Adolfo: Oh, yes, yes. Interviewer: Whats your name? Adolfo: My name is Adolfo Vasquez. Interviewer: Adolfo, what do you do for a living? Adolfo: Im a dancer. Interviewer: A dancer. And what do you do for fun? Adolfo: I watch . uh . musical movies. Interviewer: Musical
23、 movies. And whats the most exciting thing thats happened to you recently? Adolfo: Oh, about six years ago I moved to United States, (Uh-huh.) and thats quite exciting for me. Interviewer: Yes, that is very exciting. What do youwho do you admire most in the world? Adolfo: I admire a lot . um . Sophi
24、a Loren, the movie actress. Interviewer: I understand completely. (Mm-hmm.) What do you want to be doing five years from now? Adolfo: I like very much what Im doing right now, so I really would like to keep doing it. Interviewer: Very good. (Mm-hmm.) Thanks for speaking to us today, Adolfo. Adolfo:
25、Okay. Youre welcome. Interviewer: Good morning, Miss. Im from radio station QRX, and I wonder if you could answer a few questions for our survey. Linda: Sure. Interviewer: Whats your name? Linda: Linda Montgomery. Interviewer: Linda, what do you do for a living? Linda: Uh, well, right now Im going t
26、o beauty school. Interviewer: Beauty school? Linda: Yeah. Interviewer: Uh-huh. And what do you do for fun? Linda: Oh, what for fun, I hang out with my friendsyou know, go for pizza, stuff like that. Interviewer: I understand. Whats the most exciting thing thats happened to you recently? Linda: Oh, t
27、his was so great! (Yeah?) Four of my friends and I, we went to a Bruce Springsteen concert. We actuallywe got tickets. Interviewer: Wonderful. Linda: It was the best. Interviewer: Who do you admire most in the world? Linda: Who do I admiI guess (Mm-hmm.) my dad, (Uh-huh.) probably my dad. Yeah. Inte
28、rviewer: And what do you want to be doing five years from now? Linda: I would love it if I could have my own beauty salon. Interviewer: Uh-huh. Linda: That would be great. Interviewer: Thanks very much for talking to us today. Linda: Okay. Announcer: And now, at 10:50 its time for “In Your Own Words
29、“, in which we interview people with unusual stories to tell. Here to introduce the programme is Patricia Newell. Good morning, Patricia. Patricia: Good morning, and good morning everyone. With me in the studio now is this mornings guest, Trevor Cartridge. Good morning, Trevor. Trevor: Good morning,
30、 Patricia. Patricia: Trevor, you have one of the most unusual stories Ive ever heard. Yet, nowadays, you seem to lead a very ordinary life. Trevor: Yes, Patricia. Im a dentist. I live and work in London. Patricia: But at one time you used to have a different job? Trevor: Yes, I was a soldier. Patric
31、ia: A soldier? Trevor: Thats right. Patricia: And how long ago was that? Trevor: Oh, about two thousand years ago. Patricia: Thats right. Trevor Cartridge believes that he was a soldier in the army of Julius Caesar. He remembers coming to Britain with the Roman army two thousand years ago. Trevor, t
32、ell us your remarkable story . in your own words! Trevor: Well, funnily enough, it all began because I wanted to give up smoking. Patricia: Give up smoking! Trevor: Mm, I used to smoke too much and I tried to give up several times, but I always started smoking again a few days later. In the end I we
33、nt to a hypnotist. He hypnotized me, and I stopped smoking at once. I was delighted, as you can imagine.Patricia: Yes? Trevor: That made me very interested in hypnotism, and I talked to the hypnotist about it. He told me that some people could remember their past lives when they were hypnotized, and
34、 he asked if I wanted to try. I didnt believe it at first, but in the end I agreed. He hypnotized me, and sure enough, I remembered. I was a Roman soldier in Caesars army. Patricia: You didnt believe it at first? Trevor: I didnt believe it before we tried the experiment. Now Im absolutely convinced
35、its true. Patricia: What do you remember? Trevor: Oh, all kinds of things, but the most interesting thing I remember is the night we landed in Britain. Patricia: You remember that? Trevor: Oh yes. It was a terrible, stormy night. There were a hundred or more of us in the boat. We were all shut in, b
36、ecause the weather was so bad and most people were sick, because it was very stuffy. There was a terrible smell of petrol, I remember. Lots of men thought we should go back to France. It wasnt called France then, of course. Patricia: And there was a smell of petrol? Trevor: Yes, it was terrible. The
37、 weather got worse and worse. We thought we were going to die. In the end the boat was pushed up onto the sands, and we climbed out. I remember jumping into the water and struggling to the beach. The water was up to my shoulders and it was a freezing night. A lot of men were killed by the cold or dr
38、owned in the storm, but I managed to get ashore. Patricia: You did? Trevor: Yes. There were about ten survivors from our boat, but even then our troubles werent over. We found a farmhouse, but it was deserted. When the people read the newspapers, and knew that we were coming, they were terrified. Th
39、ey took all their animals and all their food, and ran away into the hills. Of course, there were no proper roads in those days. Well, we went into the house and tried to light a fire, but we couldnt even do that. We always kept matches in our trousers pockets, so naturally they were all soaked. We c
40、ouldnt find anything to eat, except one tin of cat food. We were so hungry, we broke it open with our knives, and ate it. We found a tap, but the water was frozen. In the end we drank rainwater from the tin. We sat very close together and tried to keep warm. We could hear wolves but we didnt have an
41、y weapons, because our guns were full of seawater. By the morning, the storm was over. We went on to the beach and found what was left of the boat. We managed to find some food, and we hoped there was some wine too, but when we opened the box all the bottles were broken. Patricia: So what happened?
42、Trevor: We waited. Finally another boat came and took us away, and we joined the other soldiers. I remember going into the camp, and getting a hot meal, and clean clothes. It was wonderful. We were given our pay, too. I remember the date on the coins, 50 BC. It was an exciting time. Patricia: And di
43、d you stay in Britain? Trevor: Oh yes, I was here for five years, from 50 BC to 55 BC. I enjoyed my stay in Britain very much. Patricia: And then you went back to Rome? Trevor: I cant remember anything after that. Patricia: Well, Trevor Cartridge, thank you for telling us your story, in your own wor
44、ds. (1) Bob, do you think you could possibly turn off that radio? Im (pause) trying to write a letter. (2) A: I dont want a double room. I want a single room. B: Im sorry, sir, but Im afraid 43 (pause) is the only single room available at the moment. (3) A: Just look what Ive got. B: Let me see. Fif
45、ty pounds! (pause) Where on earth did you get it? (4) A: Oh bother the Sex Discrimination Act. Surely they cant force me to take on a married woman. B: They cant force you to, Mr. Clark, but (pause) you mustnt discriminate against someone just because theyre married. (5) A: Im glad Im not a princess
46、. It must be a dreadful life. B: Dreadful? (pause) I wouldnt mind being a prince. (6) Im a reasonably hard-working person. But (pause) Im not a workaholic. (7) A: Had your brother been nervous about it himself? B: Well, he didnt say, but possibly (pause) he had been. The Knowledge Becoming a London
47、taxi driver isnt easy. In order to obtain a licence to drive a taxi in London, candidates have to pass a detailed examination. They have to learn not only the streets, landmarks and hotels, but also the quickest way to get there. This is called The Knowledge by London cab drivers and it can take yea
48、rs of study and practice to get The Knowledge. Candidates are examined not only on the quickest routes but also on the quickest routes at different times of the day. People who want to pass the examination spend much of their free time driving or even cycling around London, studying maps and learnin
49、g the huge street directory by heart. The Underground Travelling on the London underground (the tube) presents few difficulties for visitors because of the clear colour-coded maps. It is always useful to have plenty of spare change with you because there are often long queues at the larger stations. If you have enough change you can buy your ticket from a machine. You will find signs which l
