Talking to my dad about the latest in the Brexit saga including the general election result, Brexit day on 31 January 2020 and the latest government shenanigans by PM Boris Johnson and co.

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Introduction

Hello everyone this is an episode of The Rick Thompson Report on Luke’s English Podcast. This is where I talk to my dad about politics, especially Brexit and here is the latest update since the last episode in November.

Here’s a quick summary to help you keep up during the conversation. It’ll only take a minute or two. It’s important to understand the overall context when listening to this so you don’t get lost and you can also notice language more easily.

Since the last episode in November

The Tories won their election majority in December and pushed through Boris Johnson’s withdrawal agreement because all their MPs voted for it. Then the UK officially left the EU on 31 January this year (2020 – for any aliens listening to this – the year 2020 in earth years) but nothing really changed because we are now in the transition period in which everything stays the same for a year and the UK and the EU have to bash out a new agreement for things like trade and regulations and stuff – a process that usually takes years. So, did the Tories “Get Brexit Done” like they promised or is there a lot more of this story yet to come?

Also, what has this Conservative majority led by Boris Johnson been doing since coming to power? What about the removal of certain journalists from their lobby briefing, their wish to replace the judiciary, the resignation of chancellor Sajid Javid because 10 Downing Street asked him to fire his team of civil servants.

If none of this makes any sense to you then listen on because you’re going to hear a chat with my dad who has been following this story very carefully as you have heard in previous episodes of the Rick Thompson Report.

Basically, what is the government up to? Who is really pulling the strings of power at the moment and what are they seeking to do? How could Brexit actually be a power grab by a party intent on exerting more executive control on the democratic framework?

Listen on, to find out more…

Ending

So that was another episode of the Rick Thompson Report. How long will this Brexit saga go on? I don’t know. But thanks again to Dad for making another valuable contribution to the podcast again.

So it’s actually valentine’s day as I record this. I hope you have some nice plans, or maybe if you’re single you also have nice plans just doing something else. I have prepared a series of episodes with a valentine’s day theme but I have to publish the RT report as soon as I’ve recorded it because it is quite time-sensitive content. I mean, stuff that’s relevant to the moment, although the RT reports could also serve as a kind of historical document – a history of Brexit. But I can’t publish this series with the VD theme today so that will have to wait. So next week probably you’ll get the first in a series about British comedy and there’s a sort of Valentine’s Day theme running through it. I hope that gives you a little teaser there of what’s coming soon.

Don’t forget about LEP Premium. I recently published a big series about articles which covers all the main errors people make and exactly how we use articles and pronounce them properly too. To sign up go to teacherluke.co.uk/premium

THat’s it for this episode. Have a lovely weekend or week or end or whatever and I will speak to you next time but for now, bye!!

This should make you laugh out loud on the bus – it’s the return of the Lying Game with Amber & Paul. Listen to our 3 stories. Do you think they are true, or lies?

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Introduction

Hello folks, welcome back to the podcast. This is episode 642 and it is called The Lying Game Returns with Amber and Paul and in this one you can hear us playing this classic game on the podcast once again.

This is actually the seventh Lying Game episode that we’ve had. All the others are 308, 309, 317, 318, 343 & 436. Check them out if you haven’t already done so.

I won’t go into the rules of the game now, suffice to say that essentially this game is about telling stories, and we all know the importance and usefulness of listening to stories for learning languages.

So, this game is a way to draw a story out of someone using questions. Someone makes a statement (usually a thing they did in the past) and the others have to ask questions to get all the details (this is when the story starts to emerge) until they’re satisfied that the story is either true or a lie. It becomes pretty entertaining I think as we investigate each other’s stories with varying levels of scepticism.

I also use this the game in class a lot as a way to practise storytelling, using past tenses and question formation, and it’s just a lot of fun to imagine you are a detective like Columbo who always has one more question to ask.

So, you can think of these as little stories from Amber, Paul and me, but are they true or are they lies? Listen carefully as we go through this funny conversation that might have you laughing out loud on a bus somewhere in podcastland, but try to work out if we are lying or telling the truth. Focusing on that part of the game can help you to pay attention more, which helps you remember the language you’re hearing in the process.

Check the page for this episode on the website for all the links and stuff like that.

But now, let’s play The Lying Game again, with Amber & Paul…

Luke’s Story

I saw a famous French actor on the roof of my apartment.

True, or a lie?

Amber’s Story

I’ve decided to take part in the 2021 Paris Marathon.

True, or a lie?

Paul’s Story

My daughter was cured of her excessive crying by a drunk Scottish man.

True, or a lie?

Final Score: 2 / 2 / 2 Even stevens!

Videos / Links

In case you were wondering about “The Russian Joke”

The pod-pals are back on the podcast and it’s time for the usual catching up session in which we talk about how very-pregnant Amber has moved to the suburbs of Paris, the difference between a terrace, veranda, porch and conservatory, the difference between a cave and a basement, Paul’s showbiz news, the ongoing joys and struggles of parenthood, the strikes in France, raising bilingual children and more.

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Introduction

Hello there, how are you? Welcome back to the podcast. I hope you’re basically doing ok wherever you are in the world. Walking around, on public transport, driving, sitting somewhere, lying down – whatever your current body position, welcome. Here’s a new episode and in this one I am joined once again by Amber Minogue and Paul Taylor.

It’s been a while since Amber & Paul were on the podcast. Is it nearly a year? Anyway, for those of you who don’t know, Amber Minogue & Paul Taylor have been two of the most frequent guests on this podcast. They’ve got their own jingle, their own nicknames – the pod-pals, the talkative trio, the tangential three and their own fan club of sorts, in the form of listeners who often say that the Amber & Paul episodes are their favourite.

I met both Amber and Paul on the English stand up comedy scene in Paris, back in the early days when the only English nights were being run by Sebastian Marx and Robert Hoehn. We sort of teamed up because we’re all brits. I used to have them on the podcast to play vocabulary games and have rambling conversations on the terrace of my old apartment.

Amber made her first appearance in episode 161 “She’s Having a Baby” and Paul in episode 158 “A Cup of Christmas Tea with Paul Taylor”. Amber had her baby, little Hugo and there have been various funny stories of what he’s got up to, meanwhile Paul became an overnight sensation with his comedy video about “La Bise” the French custom of kissing people when you meet them. His video went viral on YouTube and picked up over a million views in a few days. It was on the BBC’s website and stuff like that. Then Canal+ the TV company in France offered him a TV show and he went for it, bringing some of his comedy Friends with him to help write the show. So, Amber and I helped Paul a bit with his popular show What the Fuck, France?

That, along with his first one man show #Franglias has made Paul something of a celebrity in France, and now it’s not uncommon for him to be recognised and stopped in the street for a selfie. Often when we are out getting lunch, people will stop to say hello to him, which is funny! Amber & I have been lucky enough to be invited by Paul to performed with him on big shows in Paris, at venues including The Bataclan and Casino de Paris.

On the podcast Amber is famous for having a lovely voice, and Paul is famous for having a funny and infectious laugh. Amber is also known to be the cleverest of the three probably because of her excessive reading and listening of BBC Radio 4. She is also something of a history buff when it comes to Paris and does tours here as well as a podcast about Paris called Paname Podcast. Amber is also quite strategic when it comes to playing games. Paul seems to be less good at the games and it appears that he doesn’t even know his own language sometimes. He’s a good impressionist and often gets angry about life in general. Both Amber & Paul speak French fluently.

Anyway, we don’t get to have Amber & Paul on the podcast that often, so the tradition has become to have one “catching up” episode, in which we do just that – find out what’s been going on with them since the last time we spoke and so there’s the usual mix of stories about general life as well as some stuff about language, some bits about kids learning English and also the usual bits of inside showbiz information as we continue to follow Paul behind the scenes in his career.

So there’s the catching up episode, and then if there’s time I usually try to get them to record another one and we did just that, this time. I managed to record two episodes with Amber and Paul, so the second one will be coming soon. I won’t tell you what that is about or what happens in it, yet, but it will arrive quite soon after this one.

But now, without further ado, let’s catch up with Amber & Paul.

In case you were wondering about “The Russian Joke”

VOCAB: porch / veranda / terrace / balcony / patio / conservatory

In the UK a porch usually looks like this

And a veranda looks like this (UK)

But in the USA, a porch can be bigger (a bit like a veranda), like this

And a veranda looks like this in the USA (longer, and often around the house, sometimes on several floors)

A terrace in the UK is like this

A balcony looks like this

A patio looks like this

And a conservatory is like this

So Amber has a large terrace on part of the roof of her new house in the Paris suburbs.

Ending

So that was Catching Up with Amber & Paul #9. I hope you enjoyed that.

Check out the page for this episode on the website to see pictures of a porch, veranda, terrace, patio, balcony and conservatory so you can work out what’s really going on with those words! I wonder if you have one of these features on your home or in the garden maybe.

You heard there us talking about recording another episode, and we did. So the next episode will also feature Amber & Paul again and it’s going to be the return of … that’s right The Lying Game. There’s a full lying game episode coming up next on the podcast. That should arrive in the next few days.

I’m very happy with the responses I’ve had to the last 3 episodes about Quintessentially British Things. I’ve had lots of comments about Mum’s Book Club or Gill’s Book Club. It seems there is quite a lot of enthusiasm for that, so I’ve been talking to my mum about it and we might be able to do some fairly regular episodes in which we talk about 3 books, or other works of art (because Mum is also into theatre, galleries, exhibitions, cinema and stuff like that). Watch this space, that should happen at some point. What should I call those episodes? Gill’s Book Club (because my dad uses his name in his episodes) or should it be Mum’s Book Club? Or should we call it Culture Club (a bit like the band) or something else? Let me know what you think in the comment section.

LEP Premium

I’ve been working really hard on a mammoth series about grammar for LEP Premium. It’s all about articles – a, an, the, no article. This is a particularly tricky aspect of English grammar and I’ve had plenty of requests for it ,so I’ve been slaving away, consulting various grammar books, coming up with loads of real examples. We’re using extracts from interviews with The Beatles in this series ,seeing how John, Paul, George & Ringo have used articles in interviews and using that as a way to learn this grammar. Also I’ve been looking through various grammar books for all the rules. Long story short, I have a long and very detailed look at articles for LEP Premium, which should already be published – either all of it or part of it, and it will also include the usual test and pronunciation drills. So check it out – www.teacherluke.co.uk/premium

But for now, that’s it!

Thank you for listening and stay tuned for the next episode which should arrive in a few days.

But for now it’s just time to say, BYE!

Talking to IELTS speaking coach Keith O’Hare about how to get your best score in the IELTS speaking test, plus some chat about the right approach to learning English.

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Introduction

Hello folks, welcome to the podcast. I hope you are fine whatever you’re doing at this moment, wherever you are in the world, and at whatever time of day you have chosen to listen to this new episode of my podcast for learners of English.

If you’re listening while watching on YouTube, don’t forget to like and subscribe to my channel so you don’t miss a new episode. Also, you could consider turning on the automatic subtitles as you will find they are about 95% correct.

And if you listen in any other way, I hope this podcast finds you in good form and happy to receive another episode.

Today I’m talking to Keith O’Hare who is an English teacher specialising in helping people prepare to take the IELTS test, specifically the speaking part.

Keith got in touch with me a while ago to invite me onto one of his videos. I mentioned it on the podcast recently. One of the things Keith likes to do is invite native speakers onto his YouTube channel to take an IELTS speaking exam and then give feedback on their performance at the end. This is great for learners of English because you can observe how a native speaker deals with all the tasks and you can pick up loads of nice bits of English in the process. It’s also a good way to get strategies for dealing with each part of the test.

So Keith had heard of my podcast and he wanted to record me doing an IELTS speaking test, so we did that in December. You can see me doing the test by watching the video which will be embedded on the page for this episode on my website and maybe in the show notes in your app.

We had a little chat afterwards about teaching English and I thought it might be interesting to invite him onto my podcast to talk about IELTS speaking tips, his teaching career, any good advice he has for learning English, and any stories of good and bad students he’s had over the years.

So this is mainly about IELTS with some general English chat as well. IELTS is a huge thing in the world of learning English. Anyone who plans to travel and use their English at work or just to get a visa or something will probably come across it. I know that a lot of my listeners are interested in IELTS, but even if you’re not – the kinds of speaking skills and strategies that will help in IELTS can also be applied to the learning of English in general, and certainly you will find in this conversation lots of stuff about the right approach to producing spoken English discourse in test conditions, and to learning English in general.

As we go through the episode I give Keith an IELTS speaking test himself, so we can see how he gets on.

Again, if you want to see me doing the IELTS speaking test in one of Keith’s videos, check the page for this episode on my website.

But now, without any further ado, let’s meet Keith O’Hare.

Ending

So there you go folks that was my conversation with Keith O’Hare from IELTSspeakingsuccess.com 

So what’s up?

I strongly expect that you understood nearly all of that, am I right?

I have a sneaking suspicion that this conversation was dead easy for all of you, right? 

I think it’s just because both Keith and I are English teachers and so we naturally speak clearly after nearly 50 combined years of English teaching between us, also because we’re used to presenting on a podcast or on YouTube so we are used to talking as if there’s an audience listening, and also because this wasn’t one of those conversations where my guest and I are struggling to say what we want to say about a topic without interrupting each other too much, which is usually what happens when I’m with my brother or my friends on the podcast.

So if this episode was easier to listen to than normal, it’s probably because there were fewer things getting in the way and you were able to focus only on the English being spoken.

And if it was at all easy to understand, I think that’s a great sign that your listening is improving all the time, especially with plenty of practice like you get on this podcast.

I also noticed plenty of nice chunks of vocabulary and other bits of pieces in English that I think were worth noticing and so I may do a premium episode about this at some point soon.

But right now all that remains to be said is that I will speak to you soon but until then, goodbye!