Bank of tests for listening practice

Listening 1 [1.4]

Sarah: What makes me happy? Well, I love watching my children when they’re sleeping. That makes me feel very happy and peaceful. My days are usually extremely busy- I work for father’s travel company until 3 and pick up the kids from school on the way to home. At the moment they are in the other room watching TV so I’ve got a bit of time to myself. Um, what else make me happy? Well, I really enjoy going to museums and art galleries. Last Saturday I went an exhibition with a friend from work-oh, it was just wonderful.

Greg: Well, I really love travelling and visiting new places. That makes me really happy. I’ve been to about 20 countries so far, I enjoyed visiting every one of them, and they are all so different. Um last year I spent six weeks travelling around South America, which was amazing, a different world really. When I’m here in the UK, er, well I really like gardening that makes me happy too. I only have a small garden, but I spent a few hours working in it every weekend. I love watching things grow, it’s very satisfying.

Jenny: What makes me happy? Well, having a lie- in makes me really happy. I have to get up at 6.30every morning for work, including Saturdays. So Saturdays lie-ins are very important to me. Last Sunday I woke up at about 11, then I made some toast and coffee, got the papers and went back to bed- and I didn’t get up until half past one. It was wonderful! But my flat mate is the complete opposite to me. She is the happiest when she’s doing exercises. Dancing makes me happy. I don’t go clubbing very often, but when I do I always have a fantastic time.

Listening 2 [1.20]

Sam: I work as a guide for a company that organizes rainforest holidays here in Costa Rica. I’ve lived in this country for 3 years and I love it. I’ve worked in 2 other Central American countries and I had a great time in both places, but, er, this country is really special. It’s not an easy job- you have to deal with some very difficult people and most of guests have never been in a rainforest before. But they always say it’s the best experience they ever had. Of course, I’ve also had to put up with some idiots. For example, last month two guys set off on their own without telling anyone. They got lost in the rainforest and it took us 2 days to find them. And I’ve just been to San Isidro to pick up a guest from the hospital. He was bitten by poisonous spider he found in his room. He is OK now, though. And you know, at least he’ll have a story to tell people when he gets back home.

Marcia: I started working in the hotel industry 14 years ago, but this is the first time I’ve run a hotel in a touristy place like a Cornwall. My husband and I have had this place since 2001 and I am a bit, er, fed up with it, to be honest. Managing a hotel is quite stressful, particularly when people complain all the time, which can happen. And I can’t stand it when people steal things from the rooms. I suppose people want to bring back a souvenir of their holiday, but surely they’ve got enough towels at home! Another problem is that, um, one of us always has to be here. For example, my husband gone to see some friends off at the station, so I have to stay and look after the hotel. Also it’s very hard to get a holiday together. We’ve been away together a few times, but each time there was a problem at the hotel so we’ve to come back early. But this winter we’re going to close the hotel for 2 weeks and go skiing- we’re really looking forward to it.

Listening 3 [3.23]

How did I become an actor? Well at school when I was about 16 or 17 I was in quite a few plays and once my godfather, who was a television director, came to one of this plays just to see what was going on, not in any professional sense. There wasn’t other sort of motive. He just really came to see me work as his godson. And we, we did the play afterwards he and I were sitting having a chat and he thought maybe having seen my work there, was, had I ever thought going to the theatre as a profession? He thought there were grounds for a possible career move. So, I wrote to the grammar school and, I don’t know, filled in all the forms and did everything that was asked of me and accordingly I was called up to London for an audition and I was late. They wanted an explanation of course- the trains had held me up- but anyway, I got there, I did my audition and waited to hear what was going to happen. The audition’s quite interesting. You have a couple of pieces to do and then they give you a scene. They want to know as an actor, if can tell what the objective in a scene, whether you think the outcome of the scene can go one way or another. They’re quite interesting moment’s they’re improvised. And what was that and then after about2-3 months I heard from the drama school and I’d got it. So. it was thanks to my godfather really that I’d managed to go to drama school and I did 2 year course and here we are, I’m speaking to you.

Listening 4 [1.70]

Amber Benson: Hello, I’m Amber Benson, and here is the news this Tuesday lunchtime. The health service has failed to meet its targets to reduce waiting times in A&E departments in NHS hospitals, according to a new survey carried out by the British Medical Council. The survey said that patients were still waiting too long to see a doctor, with some patients waiting up to 9 hours. However, government spokesperson Francis Hall told reporters that the situation was improving.

Francis Hall: We haven’t met our targets yet, that’s true, but we’ve made a lot of progress. The average waiting time has already been reduced from3 ½ hours nearly 2 2/1 hours, and we expect to see even a better figures in the future.

Amber Benson: A new report on allergies has been published. The report shows that allergies have become one of the UK’s biggest causes of illness, within three people now affected. According to the report, the UK also has the highest rate of asthma in Europe and treatment for this illness cost the NHS over £1billion last year. Dr Jeff Gordon from Charity Allergy Action welcomed the report.

Jeff Gordon: We’re pleased to see that the government has finally decided to take this issue more seriously. However, we feel they still haven’t told us the whole story. For example, the government has also carried out a survey on the causes of allergies, but why haven’t we seen those results yet? That survey hasn’t been still

published, although it was completed 6 months ago. We think they are hiding something.

Amber Benson: And we’ve just heard that the actress Tanya Fisher has died. She was taken to hospital 2 days ago with heart problems. Mrs. Fisher was best known as Jennifer Sheldon in the TV comedy series Over My Dead Body. She was 79. That’s the news this Tuesday lunchtime, now over to Danny Strong for the sport.

Listening 5 [1.54]

Don: I came here to work for a multinational company about 10 years ago, and I’ve been here ever since. I love living here, but it can get really hot in summer months, and I’m no good at all in that kind of weather. Er, this is why air conditioning is so important here. I know for sure, if we didn’t have it in the office, I wouldn’t get much work done. I just don’t know how people managed to do anything here before it was invented. And if we didn’t have it at home I wouldn’t get any sleep at all.

Holly: I like straight hair, but mine is really curly and I hate it. So after I wash my hair I always have to use these hair strengtheners. I’d never leave the house if I didn’t have these. Well, would you go out in public if you looked like clown?

I’ve had these strengtheners for a couple of years now, they’re ok, but they’re not good as my friend Jane’s. But the really good ones are quite expensive. Still I’ve got my birthday coming up next month, and Mum says if she has enough money, she’ll get me some new ones.

Kathy: I’ve got absolutely no sense of direction and I’m hopeless at finding my way around. My brother-in-law’s got a new car and it’s got a GPS, and it’s just amazing. If my car had one, life would be so much easier. I’d probably never get lost again in my life. I’d get one tomorrow if I had enough money, that’s for sure. But they’re quite expensive at the moment so I’ll have to wait until they come down in price. But you know, I spend so much on petrol because I get lost all the time, it might be cheaper to buy one now.

Listening 6 [1.94]

Sandy: For me the most important moment in my life was, probably, the day I met Paula. There was a party at a friend’s house and I was so late leaving I nearly didn’t go. Just think, If I’d stayed at home, I wouldn’t have met my wife. Anyway, when I got there a friend introduced us and we got on really well. Paula was only in England for 3 weeks-she’s Australian, you see-and she was supposed to fly back home the next day. Then she.., then lost her passport, so she had to stay in England to get a new one. She’d had flown home that day if she hadn’t lost her passport. Anyway we spent some time getting to know each other and before we knew it we were in love. We got married 3 years later- and the rest, as they say is history.

Miranda: For me the, um… the biggest turning point in my life was when I lost my job few years ago. I was working for an American multinational company, but they got into a financial trouble and you know, had to get rid of lots of people, including me. I got a bit depressed at first, but I was getting fed up with my job anyway. That was when I decided to do at business management course. Now I live in the country and run my own garden centre – I’ve always loved gardening, and now I’m working with plants and flowers all the time. But if I hadn’t lost my job, I wouldn’t have left London. I don’t get as much money as I used to, but I am definitely much happier. So, um, it’s worked out really well for me, I think.

Barry: Well, for me it’s probably the day I got my first pair of boxing gloves. When I was younger I used to like, get into trouble a lot, you know fighting at school, that kind of things. Then for my 15’th birthday Dad gave me some boxing gloves, kind of like as a joke because I was always fighting. If he’d got me the bike I’d asked for, I’d never had started boxing. Anyway, the next weekend he took me to the gym where they teach kids how to box- and I really loved it.

I lost my first 3 fights, but you know, but I’ve got better as I’ve got older and now I’m thinking of going professional. I know some people don’t like boxing because it’s violent, but it really changed my life. I’d had got into a lot more trouble if I hadn’t started doing this, I’m sure of that.

Listening 7 [1.86]

Joe: So how did it go?

Eva: Oh, quite well, I think. I had to read from the script, then Max, the producer, interviewed me.

J: What did he ask?

E: First he asked me if I was working at the moment.

J: And how did you deal with that?

E: Well I couldn’t tell I was working part-time in a café, could I? So I said no. then he wanted to know what my last acting job had been, so I told him Ward 6.

J: That’s good. It shows you’re working actress-well, some of the time anyway.

E: Very funny. He also asked if I had any acting work in the next 3 months.

J: And what did you say?

E: I told him about other auditions, and said it was very helpful, that was the best thing to say, don’t you think?

J: Yes probably.

E: Oh, and he asked where I’d studied acting.

J: Uh-huh

E: Uh-huh.

E: So I told him about drama school, of course.

J: Did he ask anything else?

E: Er… let me think…yes he asked me what other parts I’d had recently.

J: You told him about FLOWERS IN WINTER, I suppose.

E: OF course. Then guess what?

J: What?

E: He wanted to know whether I was available to start new week!

J: Next week?! So you’ve got the part?

E: Er, no, not exactly- he said he’d let me know by the end of the day. But I have a good feeling about this…I really do.

J: Well, I really hope you get it. Will you still love me when you get famous?

E: No, I’ll go out with someone rich and good-looking, for a charge.

J: Hey.

Listening 8 [4;14; 2.1]

Cassy: I recent the government telling me what I should and shouldn’t eat.

And, um, anyway, they keep changing their minds about what’s good and for you. For example, I’m …we’re always hearing stuff about fat being bad for us. Er, it causes heart attacks and all that, but I heard on the radio only this morning that the French eat a high fat diet and they have fewer heart attacks than we do in America, so where, where does that leave us? As for me, well I don’t care how much fat I eat. Every day when I get home from work. I’ll have a coffee and a half packet of chocolate cookies. That’s a lot of fat. But I know what I like and I eat what I like. I’ve always been like that. Tonight I’ll probably have a burger and fries for dinner- even more fat. And you know what? My mum’s always telling me what I should and shouldn’t eat, and the joke is, I never get ill and she’s ill all the time

Ted: Most of the time I watch what I eat, but, sometimes I’ll things that I know are unhealthy like ice-cream or pizza. But when I was a teenager I’d get up in the morning and go straight to the cookie jar. I used to be addicted to chocolate chip cookies- my mum used to hide them from me. and then I read a lot of books about health and nutrition, and I knew I had to change. One of the big killers is fat, so I’m always reading food labels to see what the fat content is. It drives my girlfriend crazy. And did you know that Japanese people have far fewer heart attacks than Americans? That’s because they have a very low fat diet, you know, stuff like sushi, rice, that sort of thing. They don’t add fat to anything, well, that’s what I heard anyway.

Listening 9 [3.53]

Дата добавления: 2015-08-20