Category Archives: Interview

117. Psychics / Cold Reading / Barnum Statements

7 Replies

Listen to Luke explain the previous episode of the podcast, and how that relates to psychic readings and so-called ‘Barnum statements’.

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.

Transcript
In the last episode I told you a story that I felt I had made some kind of mystical connection with a listener to the podcast – that somehow I had developed a connection with one person in particular, and that in a vivid dream I had a conversation with that person which led me to write a detailed personality profile. I then read out the personality profile and asked you to respond if you felt it applied to you.

I must say at this point that the story I told was not true. I didn’t have a dream, I haven’t felt a connection with one listener in particular (beyond the emails and comments which I have received) and that the whole thing was an experiment. I am recording this now on the same day that I recorded the previous episode so I have no idea how my experiment went, if it was a success and if anyone out there felt that the personality profile I wrote related to them in particular. For all I know, my experiment failed and no-one felt I was describing them. Or maybe some of you listened to the last episode and really felt that I was describing you, even down to quite specific details like your relationships, or if you have a scar on your knee. I have no idea what happened, but in this episode I would like to explain the purpose of the experiment I did.

I would also like to apologise sincerely if you feel like you have been conned, duped or misled at all by this experiment. I see the experiment as being like a magic trick really, and magic tricks involve deception and lying to a point, but it is justified because they are interesting and engaging, and that is what I always try to achieve with these podcasts – to be interesting and engaging and to teach you some things. So, if I deceived you with this experiment I apologise and I hope you will forgive me. Now I would like to explain myself, what the experiment was about, and if you were ‘fooled’ by it – I mean, if you felt that personality profile really described you, then I would like to explain exactly how that happened. It can all be explained by linguistic tricks – there is certainly no real magic, psychic power or any other kind of mysticism. It’s all basic psychology and manipulation of language.

OK, so what was the experiment?
I am very interested in magic and related areas such as illusion, mind reading, hypnotism and psychics. By magic I mean the slight of hand techniques used to make playing cards disappear, or how to fool people into picking a certain card etc. By illusion I mean the way in which our senses can be tricked into seeing or not seeing things. By hypnotism I mean the way we can be convinced to do or believe things simply by someone suggesting those ideas into our subconscious. By mind reading I mean the ability to see into someone’s mind and then read what is in there, and by psychics I mean those people who claim they can communicate with the dead and who seem to know deep personal information about you although they have never met you before.

It is psychics and mind-readers that I am particularly interested in at the moment. I want to know if someone really can communicate with the dead, or if someone really can read your mind without even talking to you. Is that stuff real or is it fake? To be honest, I suspect that it’s fake but I can’t be sure. Perhaps some people really can read minds and communicate with the dead, or perhaps they just use other techniques to make it look like they can.

How does this relate to my experiment and the latest episode of the podcast? Well, I wanted to write a personality profile, using very carefully selected words and sentences, and I wanted to see if I could convince people that I had made a psychic connection with them. I also wanted to test some techniques which I believe are used by psychics and which could prove that their methods are psychological rather than genuinely psychic. I wanted to know if it was possible to achieve the same results without being genuinely psychic. Obviously, I still don’t know the results of my experiment but still, let’s proceed.

So, my personality profile was full of what is known as ‘Barnum statements’. These are sentences which are very carefully worded to sound like very specific descriptions of a person, but which could apply to everyone. For example, “At a party you appear to be very social and outgoing – perhaps talkative, funny and outgoing, but after the party you become quite introspective and you might even think carefully about what you and other people said, and worry about how other people see you. In fact, sometimes when you are at a party you feel disconnected as if you are just playing a part in a movie and you are a million miles away from other people”. Now, although the sentence seems specific it is actually very general. Of course if you are at a party you will act in an outgoing and social way. Those are the rules of a party – but it might not be who you really are. Of course we all worry about what other people think of us. We all present a certain version of ourselves to the world, and worry about what other people think. That is something which everyone experiences. So, the Barnum statement seems specific but it is just describing something we all can relate to.

There are other statements in there that could apply to everyone. For example, “You have a scar on your knee or leg which is a result of an accident you had when you were younger”. Well, most of us have a scar on our knee or leg. It’s the most common place to have a scar, and of course it happened because of an accident. No-one really intends to give themself a scar on the leg do they? And of course it happened when you were younger! So, although this statement seems specific it is actually very general and may apply to everyone.

These statements are used in horoscopes, mind-reading and psychic reading all the time. They are just a small part of the complex way in which people give the illusion of reading your mind. The technique becomes even more effective when the person being read wants it to make sense. The reader then starts to look for ways in which the sentences fit. If you really believe in mind-reading then you will want it to work, and so you will find ways to make the statements relate to you personally. For example if you read the sentence, “You had an accident as a child that involved water”, you might search your memory for an accident you had as a child that involved water and make it fit. Add that to the fact that it is very common for children to have accidents with water. Think about it. I’m sure you had an accident involving water as a child. I did. I fell into a canal once when I was fishing with my Dad. My brother spilled hot water on his arm. It’s very common.

Here are some more examples of statements which sound specific but which could apply to anyone:
“I sense that you are experiencing some tension with a friend or relative at the moment” – it’s highly likely that you’re experiencing tension with a friend or a family member. On any given day there’s always someone who I’m having trouble with. It could be my parents, my brother, a friend. If you want it to fit then I’m sure you’ll find something which matches that statement.

“I feel you’re quite an independently minded person and you like to make up your own mind about things” – well who doesn’t feel they are independently minded? Everyone wants to feel they are independent. If you’re not independent then what are you? You’re a sheep or something, and no-one wants to be a sheep.

“Generally you are a cheerful and friendly person but there has been a time in the past when you were very upset. You still think about that moment sometimes and you haven’t fully get over it, or dealt with it yet, but you will in time.” – Everyone has a time in the past that they were upset and which they think about sometimes. It could be a break-up, an exam failure, a death in the family. These things always take time to deal with.

“Very much this will likely lead to you having considered writing a novel or some such, but a fear that you won’t be able to achieve quite what you want stops you from getting on with it. ” – Sorry but everyone considers writing a novel or creating some work of art, but hardly anyone actually achieves it because it’s really hard to finish a novel! But, writing a novel is an intensely personal thing. Again this could apply to anyone and feels very personal and specific.

“Your relationship with your parents (and I get the feeling here that one is no longer around, or at least emotionally absent) is under some strain. ” – Again, everyone has some issue with their parents. That is the nature of the parent/child relationship. I can’t think of anyone who is completely fine with their parents. Then the bit about ‘I get the feeling that one is not around or is emotionally absent’, could apply to everyone too. Either one of your parents has died – and if that doesn’t apply to you then maybe the line about one being emotionally absent, and I think again it’s common for some of us to have lost a parent and even more common to feel that one of your parents is not as emotionally close to you as you’d like.

“There’s also an odd feeling that you should have been born in a different century, like you feel that you would be more suited to another time in the past. ” – Again, it is very common to feel that you don’t really belong in this time, and since we understand the past pretty well we can just pick a time which suits us in the past. For example I often imagine that I would be perfect for life in the sixties, mainly because the music which was made then really appeals to me. In reality, I would be terribly out of place in the 1960s.

“A look around your living space would show a box of photos, not organised into albums, out-of-date medicines, broken items not thrown out, and notes to yourself which are significantly out of date.” – OK, everyone has a box of photos in their home and this is one of the most common lines which psychics use. Photos are very personal and private and yet we all have them in our homes, especially ones which are not in an album because who has time to put all their photos in an album? Also the stuff about out-of-date medicines and broken items. Again, these are things we all have in our homes when you think about it.

The list goes on. Many of the statements are designed to flatter you, such as the line about you having a fantastic sense of humour. Well, everyone loves to believe they have a good sense of humour. Who would say they didn’t have a good sense of humour? It’s very likely that we would believe that applies to us.

So, basically the trick with these statements is to make them sound specific but actually to make them as general as possible to allow people to really make them fit. Naturally, we all look for ways to make the description fit us, so it is you who does all the work. The mind-reader throws out general sounding statements and the subject makes them fit. Now, it’s not as simple as that of course. Mind reading is a complex art form and involves a lot of skill – especially when doing it live in front of a person, or in front of a crowd, but if the psychic is confident and skilled enough he/she can make a live reading even more impressive.

How do psychics read minds in front of a live audience?
Here are some ways that a psychic might do live readings in front of a crowd:
1. The psychic claims to be in communication with the dead, but the messages that come in are vague. Isn’t it funny that the messages are vague at first? Surely the dead would just come out with their statement clearly from the beginning. Psychics never give a good reason for this though.
2. The reading will begin with a name or even just a letter. The psychic will say “I’m getting an Anna or maybe an Anne, does that make sense to anyone in the audience?”, then each person in the audience tries to think of someone they know with the name Anna, Anne or Annie. Because they want to contact a dead relative, they will search for a dead relative called Anne or Anna. It’s a very common name. Surely someone in the audience will say yes because they have a dead relative or someone else called Anna. So immediately the psychic has got a ‘hit’. Then the psychic continues by making more general statements and letting the person explain how they make sense.
3. The psychic will use negative statements. For example, “This person didn’t have an accident involving water, did he?”. Negative statements like this are effective because both a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’ answer will look like a success, or a ‘hit’. For example, “She didn’t have an accident with water did she?” – ‘No.’ No, I didn’t think so. Or “Yes she did”. Ah, that’s what she’s saying to me.
4. The psychic puts the emphasis on the person being read. So if the psychic says something like “I’m getting something about a dog, or a pet” and the person says “No” then the psychic may say “Well, I’m definitely getting something about a dog, can you work harder?” or “Well, it’s definitely a dog so I want you to go away and really think about what that means” and then the person is responsible for finding a connection to a dog.
5. The psychic uses the information from the subject to change the message. E.g. “I’m getting something about a dog” -No, we didn’t have a dog. “Well, it’s a pet maybe a dog or a cat, an animal of some kind in the family”, -Yes my grandfather used to have chickens, “Ah yes that’s it, it was chickens! Well he says he’s still happy with his chickens, and he wants you to know that even now he enjoys his chickens”.

The list of techniques goes on. All of it works very effectively when the audience really wants to believe it is true and so tries to make all the information fit.

But do you agree with me?
Now, you might not agree with me. You might believe that psychics are real, that people really can read minds and that it is because of paranormal activity or powers. That’s fine. Like I said, I have an open mind and I am willing to believe it if it is proved to be true. The problem is, when these paranormal skills are tested under scientific conditions then they just never work. Then the argument might be that a laboratory or other scientific skills will block the psychic skills. So then we have a claim which cannot be tested. It’s like saying, I have a UFO in my back garden but you can’t see it because it’s invisible and if you try to do a scientific test to find it then it will disappear. So, I am a skeptic. I am quite willing to believe in paranormal claims if they can be proven scientifically, and I’m not the only one. Some people have devoted their whole lives to trying to find out if paranormal claims are really true. There’s a magician called James Randi who goes around the world testing paranormal claims. You can see many of his tests on YouTube. They always seem to show that the paranormal skill is not paranormal at all. Certainly under scientific conditions the skills don’t work. In the end I think it comes down to what you want to believe. If you want to believe there are paranormal powers in the world, then you will – even if there is no genuine scientific evidence.

Are psychics fake or not?
Regarding psychics, I think there are a few possibilities:
1. The psychic genuinely does have psychic powers – they can communicate with the dead, etc but for some reason these skills disappear under testing conditions (although why this happens we don’t know).
2. The psychic does not have any powers, but uses secret techniques like Barnum statements etc in order to fake it. The psychics are deceiving their audience, exploiting people who have lost members of their family, and making money by lying to people.
3. The psychic does not have magic powers, but believes that he/she does. He/she uses normal methods (not paranormal ones) and yet believes his/her own bullsh*t to the point that he/she really thinks he/she has psychic powers.

Option 3 really is possible. Maybe some psychics believe their own claims to be psychic. Maybe they use non-psychic methods but interpret them as evidence of psychic power, when actually there are other explanations.

Personally I believe that most psychics are faking it, but I can’t be sure without testing them. It’s interesting that James Randi is so open minded that he has famously offered a $1m prize to any psychic who can prove that their method works under scientific conditions. To date, no-one has won the $1m.

What does this all mean?
I think it means we have to be careful of people who claim they have psychic powers and then use that claim to get money from us. It’s dangerous for us to believe that people have these powers. It’s dangerous to put our trust in these people who just want to deceive us and get our money. I also think it is morally wrong for people to lie like this. I especially think it is morally wrong for people to use people’s grief and desire to connect with dead family members to get money. Still, maybe what’s important is that if these grief stricken people do get genuine relief from psychic readings – if they do go away happy and satisfied, maybe it’s okay and it doesn’t matter if it is all lies. Perhaps the lies are justified by the outcome if people feel happy after a psychic reading. Who knows. One thing is certain: It is a complex and fascinating issue which we still don’t fully understand.

I want to know your opinions. First of all, what did you think of my experiment? Did it work? Was I wrong to do it? Perhaps it didn’t work because I am not a specialist, it was the first time I’d done it, and because doing it over the internet like that just doesn’t work. What do you think of psychics? Do they really have powers or is it fake? Is it wrong to say they contact dead people and to make people cry over the memory of a dead relative? Have you ever had a psychic reading? What happened?

Now I’d like to play you some recordings on this subject. First I will play you the audio track of a clip from a TV show in which a great magician called Derren Brown conducts the experiment which I did on 3 groups of people in 3 different countries. The experiment is a success.
The second clip is an interview with Derren Brown about psychics, Barnum statements and other techniques.

The third clip of a psychic doing some cold reading (that’s reading the audience without any prior information).

I hope you enjoy these clips. You can also see them on the website of course.
Derren Brown – Personality Reading
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haP7Ys9ocTk&w=400&h=300]
Derren Brown Interview about Psychics and Cold Reading
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xswt8B8-UTM&w=400&h=225]
James Randi Exposes a psychic
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlfMsZwr8rc&w=400&h=225]
A Psychic completely fails in a cold reading
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t07UzTcApMI&w=400&h=225]
BBC ‘Bullshit’ investigators
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4qGfNViVN8&w=400&h=225]
Tony Stockwell’s Psychic Reading (the one from the end of the podcast)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUsqP0Aj89M&w=400&h=300]

Here are two comments from a YouTube video involving a psychic. I think they sum-up the situation quite well.

Burger Van Dreamz2 months ago:
LOL these people need stopping, its cruel and just plain wrong.
These people are vulnerable, and psychics should be outlawed as its fraudulent abuse!

jmjmartin2 months ago
Some excellent points… (And please understand, I am NOT on the side of the Psychics). But, nobody ‘forces’ these to people to visit Psychics or Mediums. Ok, they pay… But they are comforted, soothed and sympathised with…Is that so bad in a ratbag world we live in, where our neighbours, would step over you, rather than help you up!
Here’s the video they’re referring to:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82tTr5I33hc&w=500&h=281]

115. A Chat About Music (with James)

6 Replies

Listen to a chat with my brother James about music and our musical memories.

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.
I’ve written a list of some phrases and sentences that we use in the conversation. You can check them out below. Highlight and google words which are new to you. You can also find some YouTube videos featuring some of the music we talk about in this episode.

Thanks for listening, please add your comments below and you can donate by clicking the donate button on the right of this screen.

Vocabulary
Some phrases and sentences from this episode:
Are you buzzing?
We’re on top of things
Hearing cosmic sounds coming through the speakers
It captures something of the dystopia of the future
They covered 60s ska tunes
I think The Specials did more cover versions than Madness
The Specials take themselves a little bit too seriously
As good as they were they never made anything that sent a chill down your spine
They were a little bit of a novelty act
See see them bouncing around on Top of the Pops
This is a piece of hardware which is one of the best sequencers
You can sample bits from other records
If you had to give it a genre, what genre would it be?
That’s all we’re going to get for the time being
The ‘Mad’chester scene, which was characteristed by a kind of psychedelic sensibility
Slightly 60s throwback vibe
Almost a slightly parody/jokey way
The Mondays were more into Donovan
They weren’t a retro band they were actually quite modern
They were a cross between a kind of funk/punk/acid house
Just good vibes
Really good lyrics
He didn’t have a traditional singing voice but he really meant what he said
Some things are rhyming, some things are jokes
We had a piano, inherited from our Grandma when she died
I tried the piano, didn’t really appeal to me
I almost got put off music at school
I tried learning the bass – not really much cop
That’s the last vestige of the guy who can’t play music – they become drummers
Drummer jokes:
What do you call a guy who hangs around with a group of musicians? A drummer
How do you know when there’s a drummer at your door? Because the knocking speeds up
How do you know when a drummer’s standing at your door? Because he doesn’t know when to come in
He also wrote his own very sappy 60s music
He did this very cheesy music but to be fair it’s really good. It’s multi-tracked and everything.
I remember once you getting me to bleach your hair
You ended up joining a band
The Genital Fungi
Grandpa Knuckles
We used to do a really heavy death metal song
Amanda X
We were a 3-piece, we were very fucking cool
A cutting riposte to being shunned by a girl
I was into ambient music, atmospheric sort of Aphex Twin music
The other 2 were these hardcore ravers
I can beat-match
This MPC 2000, this Akai piece of kit
It was quite cheap. It was about 250 quid
I remember crawling round on the floor and from the speakers above listening to The Beatles
It reminds me of being in the living room as a four year old
Skellington were a really good band, very sketchy though

Pete Rock demonstrates how to use the Akai MPC 2000

114. Twelve Natural Expressions

7 Replies

Learn 12 very common expressions by listening to this authentic and unscripted conversation.

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.
In this episode I am joined by Kate again, and her friend Mark. We teach you some natural expressions and get to know Mark a little bit.

12 Natural Expressions
Here are the expressions we explain and talk about in this episode:

to end up doing something = to eventually find yourself in a situation after having done lots of things. “We went to the pub, had a few drinks, went to a club and then we ended up at someone’s house party.”

to bend over backwards = to make a big effort for someone. “They really bent over backwards to make us feel at home.”

to bite off more than you can chew = to try and do more than you can do. “I’ve bitten off more than I can chew with this job. I don’t think I can finish it.”

to work something out = to understand something after thinking about it a lot, “I’ve worked out what to do with my old car. I’ll sell it.”

in the nick of time = at the last possible moment, “I got onto the train in the nick of time”
by the skin of my teeth = to manage to do something but you were close to failing, “I passed the course by the skin of my teeth”

to know it like the back of your hand = to know something really well, “I know this town like the back of my hand”

once in a while = sometimes, “Once in a while I like to eat a McDonald’s”

every now and then = sometimes, “I like to eat a McDonald’s from time to time”

to sleep on it = to go to sleep before making an important decision and then make the decision after sleeping, “I can’t decide what to do, I think I’ll just sleep on it”

to get the ball rolling = to get things started, “Just to get the ball rolling I’d like to ask you a question”

to get stuck in there = to go for it and get involved, ” just get stuck in there and go for it!”

113. Setting The World To Rights

7 Replies

Setting the world to rights: What does this expression mean? Listen to find out, and to hear a conversation in a pub with a friend & colleague of mine.

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.
According to the Macmillan dictionary this phrase means “to have a conversation with someone in which you exchange opinions on a range of subjects, especially opinions on how to solve society’s problems”.

That’s exactly what I did in this episode. Listen and you’ll hear me engaging in conversation with a colleague of mine named Eamon. We went to the pub for a quick pint and ended up setting the world to rights. Eamon is a very intelligent and interesting guy and I’m sure you’ll enjoy listening in on our conversation. I’ve decided it will help you immensely if you can read some of the phrases we use in this episode, and so I’ve written many of those things in a list below. You can use it to learn more vocabulary, understand the episode better, and generally become a more wonderful human being in the process. You’re welcome!

Vocabulary & Expressions
Here’s a list of some of the expressions Eamon used in our conversation:
1. “Eamon is Irish for Edmund” – <is ______ for…> means that this is an equivalent word in another language, e.g. “bonjour is French for hello”
2. “and of course I was named after the first president of The Irish Republic”
3. “he was a horrible man. He was nonetheless an iconographic figure” – nonetheless means ‘still’ or ‘nevertheless’, and ‘iconographic’ means being famous for symbolising something
4. “I do become aware of a cultural distinction” – a ‘distinction’ means a ‘difference’
5. “in rural parts of the country” – ‘rural’ means ‘of the countryside’
6. “There might be listeners who get a bit tetchy about that” – ‘tetchy’ means ‘irritated and angry’
7. “if you look at the history of these islands, we’re all intertwined” – ‘intertwined’ means ‘closely connected in complex ways’
8. “we called them grants, and we didn’t have loans” – a ‘grant’ is some money which the government gives to students to help them study. The student does not have to pay the money back, unlike in the case of a ‘loan’.
9. “English as a foreign language was beginning to boom” – to ‘boom’ means to have a good economic situation. The opposite is to ‘bust’ which means to have poor economic conditions.
10. “my lifestyle was becoming increasingly dissolute” – ‘dissolute’ means to ‘indulge in pleasures like sex or drinking”
11. “the workaholic culture” – a ‘workaholic’ is someone who is addicted to work, like the way an alcoholic is addicted to alcohol.
12. “apart from the odd blip as a lawyer” – a ‘blip’ is a moment of inconsistency, for example in Eamon’s life he managed to avoid having a proper job except for the odd blip as a lawyer. This means for most of his time he wasn’t a lawyer then on some moments he worked as a lawyer.
13. “Sorry that was a bit facetious” – ‘facetious’ means to make a joke about something which should be serious
14. “I sometimes worry that maybe I’m short-changing my children” – to ‘short-change’ someone is to give them a bad deal or to not treat them fairly
15. “I console myself” – to ‘console’ yourself means to make yourself feel better or to deal with bad news
16. “London is a very urbane place” – ‘urbane’ means ‘sophisticated’ and ‘cultured’
17. “I find Croations basically more inhibited” – ‘inhibited’ means ‘shy’ or unable to express themselves well
18. “Croats have a bad reputation for being ill-mannered and surly” – ‘ill-mannered’ means ‘rude’, ‘manners’ means the way you behave in public, and ‘surly’ also means ‘rude’ or ‘bad tempered’
19. “when it all kicked off” – to ‘kick off’ means to ‘start’
20. “it was a manifestation of people who felt like they’d been left out of the enrichment process” – a ‘manifestation’ is a sign of something else. To be ‘left out’ means to be excluded.
21. “…whose values had somehow curdled” – to ‘curdle’ is when liquid becomes solid (e.g. when milk becomes cheese)
22. “we’re bombarded with advertising left, right and centre” – to be ‘bombarded’ means to be attacked by things coming at us (e.g. bombs). ‘Left, right and centre’ means from every direction.
23. “I have very mixed feelings about those riots” – to have ‘mixed feelings’ means you can’t really decide because you have opinions on both sides
24. “I don’t really know where I stand” – to ‘know where you stand” means to ‘know your opinion clearly’
25. “the belief that the acquisition of things can make a difference to your life” – ‘acquisition’ means to ‘get’ something or to ‘own’ something
26. “I was ready to clip their wings” – to ‘clip’ someone’s wings means to cut the wings of a bird so it can’t fly
27. “to pull it off” – to ‘pull something off’ means to achieve something very difficult

109. Friday Night Banter (The Drunk Episode) with Alex, Paul & Moz

5 Replies

I’m joined by Alex, Paul and Moz as we have a few drinks, do some comedy improv games and talk general nonsense. Enjoy!

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.
In this episode you’ll hear:
-An introduction (10-12 mins) in which I give you a general update and explain what you’ll hear in the rest of the episode.

-The results of a Friday night recording in my flat with Alex, Paul and Moz. We had a few drinks while recording this episode so you might hear us slurring our words and generally getting a little bit pissed* so I hope you don’t mind that! In fact, according to all your comments on the last episode, you’d love to hear a slightly drunk conversation between 4 Londoners. However, if you’re expecting to hear 4 completely smashed football hooligans chanting the national anthem, I’m afraid you’re going to be disappointed as we are all quite civilised drinkers these days.
*rude word! (as you may already know, it means ‘drunk’)

So that’s it for now. Please leave your comments, thoughts, jokes and suggestions below.

Have a great morning/afternoon/evening/night and if you listen to the podcast while driving or operating heavy machinery please take care!

Luke

London Olympics 2012

6 Replies

More interviews with speakers of English. This time I went to the Olympic Park in East London and spoke to some people about the Olympic Games.

TRANSCRIPT:

London Olympics 2012

What do you think?

Girl 1: Hello

Girl 2: Hello

Luke: Hello, where are you from?

Girl 1: Australia

Luke: Really?

Girl 2: And the UK

Luke: Right, okay, fantastic. So, you are living in England are you?

Girl 1: I am living in England, at the moment yeah.

Luke: Okay, so which event are you going to see today?

Girl 1: Women’s basketball

Luke: Okay right, I see. So how was the Olympic ceremony in your opinion?

Girl 2: It was pretty amazing, yeah it was really good.

Luke: Okay, what do you think of the orbit over there?

Girl 1: I want to go up there

Luke: Yeah?

Girl 1: Can you go up there?

Luke: I don’t know actually

Girl 1: I think you can and I want to go up there, it looks cool

Luke: What do you think about the way it looks?

Girl 2: Yeah it looks really good everything’s done really nice and it’s, yeah really well done.

Luke: Okay, cool and so in general is the Olympics good for London or bad for London?

Girl 1: Good I think

Luke: Why’s that?

Girl 1: I don’t know, it brings more people here. I don’t know! I’m not even from London! To her…

Luke: What do you think? Do you think it’s improving London or is it just annoying or…?

Girl 2: A little bit annoying, but

Luke: How is it annoying a little bit?

Girl 2: It’s just I guess costs quite a lot and the traffic and everything’s quite a hassle but generally I think it’s pretty good event for us to have

Girl 1: The spirit!

Girl 2: Yeah, it brings everyone together. But it’s annoying when you have to try and get to work

Luke: Yeah the traffic is a bit of a problem

Girl 2: Yeah the traffic but no  it’s good it’s good for us to have  .

Luke: Well have a great time

Girl 1: Thank you

Girl 2: Thank you cheers bye!

Luke: Thank you, bye

 

Luke: Hi, how are you doing?

Man: Very well thank you

Luke: Where are you from?

Man: We’re from Devon

Luke: Devon, okay. So, hello

Daughter: Hello

Luke: Hi, what’s your name?

Daughter: Ellie

Luke: How’s the Olympics for you so far?

Daughter: It’s cool

Luke: Yeah, what do you like about it the best?

Daughter: I’m not really sure

Luke: You’re not really sure?

Daughter: No, it’s all good

Luke: Which event are you going to see?

Daughter: Erm, the swimming.

Luke: Swimming, okay, alright brilliant. So what did you think of the opening ceremony?

Man: I thought it was pretty awesome actually, I thought it was a good err, it was good for Britain, showed off Britain, a bit quirky, a bit funny, errrm, yeah not trying to be anything that we’re not.

Luke: Okay. And erm what do you think of the Orbit over there?

Daughter: I think it’s really cool.

Luke: You like it?

Daughter: Unusual yeah

Luke: Unusual you think yeah? And what do you think about that?

Man: I haven’t really thought about it to be honest but it’s an interesting structure

Luke:T is isn’t it yeah. Do you think that the Olympics is good for London or bad for London in general?

Man: Brilliant, absolutely amazing

Luke: Why?

Man: Err, it just puts Britain on the map, puts London right in the centre where it should be. I think it’s great for Britain.

Luke: So who are you going to cheer for today?

Daughter: Erm…

Luke: Britain I would say. Team GB right? Okay right well have a fantastic day

Man: Thank you very much

Luke: and err, bye

Man & Daughter: Bye!

 

Luke: Hi mate

American: How’s it going?

Luke: Fine thanks. So where are you from?

American: I’m from America

Luke: What a surprise! And which event are you going to see today?

American: We’re actually going to watch Phelps swim. We’re going to support him.

Luke: You’re going to see what?

American: Phelps, Michael Phelps

Luke: Oh yes

American: in the 400 IM

Luke: Okay brilliant. And so how’s the Olympics for you so far?

American: Oh well it’s our first day here so we’re excited about it. Hopefully we can get back out here and see some more events.

Luke: Have you been in London long now?

American: I’ve been in London for two weeks actually. Doing summer school here.

Luke: What do you think of the place?

American: I love it. It’s a lot of fun.

Luke: What exactly about it do you like?

American: What do I… pardon me?

Luke: What is it exactly that you like about London?

American: Oh it’s, I don’t know it’s different from everywhere else, you can’t, like, can’t find most things you find all in one place like you can in London.

Luke: How is it different to the States?

American: There’s a lot of different things. The culture, the language are slightly different. It just, I don’t know it’s the European melting pot I guess, from over here.

Luke: What do you think of The Orbit?

American: Erm, I don’t know. I guess it’s err, London’s attempt at the Eiffel Tower.

Luke: You think so?

American: I guess

Luke: What is it?

American: Err, it’s an observatory tower I believe. Maybe I’ll make my way up there.

Luke: Yeah, okay well have a fantastic evening

American: Thank you nice to meet you

Luke: And a great time in London

American: Bye

Luke: Bye

106. Brighton Fringe Festival #3 (with Alex, Paul & Moz)

1 Reply

Part 3 of the Brighton Trilogy. In this episode I ask Paul, Alex and Moz some very stupid questions, with some revealing results. Listen to the previous two episodes to find out more about The Brighton Fringe and my comedy counterparts.

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.
In this episode I ask Paul, Alex and Moz some very stupid questions, with some revealing results.

Listen to the previous two episodes to find out more about The Brighton Fringe and my comedy counterparts.

Please leave your comments and questions below. I am always glad to hear from you.

All the best, have a good weekend and speak to you again soon.

Luke

105. Brighton Fringe Festival #2 (with Alex, Paul & Moz)

1 Reply

Part 2 of the Brighton Trilogy.

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.
Hi everyone, how are you? (I’m fine thanks Luke.) Oh, you’re fine? Glad to hear that. I’m fine too thanks. In fact, I’m in a pretty good mood today. (Why Luke?) Well this weekend I won an award at a business English conference. (Wow, that’s cool. What’s the award?) It’s an award for ‘best presentation for a first time speaker’. I won it with a colleague of mine called Andy Johnson. (Is he related to Luke Johnson?) No, he isn’t! It’s just a coincidence! Actually, you already know Andy because he was in an episode of Luke’s English Podcast once. It was called Luke and Andy’s Crime Stories, remember that? Anyway, I’ll tell you more about that award later.

Let me tell you about this episode of the podcast that you’re about to listen to. This one is the second of 3 episodes I recorded at The Brighton Fringe Festival last month. It might be quite difficult to follow this episode because you will hear a conversation between 4 people and it’s quite fast. Do keep listening though because it is very good practice for you to follow natural and authentic conversation like this.

So, in this episode I talk to Alex, Paul, Moz (and Luke Johnson) again about various subjects including:
-The art of flyering
-How Alex would describe Paul to an alien
-Luke’s lion-like hair (it’s like a lion’s mane)
-Paul’s approach to comedy (shouting, funny faces, not many punchlines)
-Luke’s approach to comedy (surprisingly similar to Paul’s)
-Alex’s approach to comedy (it’s cerebral)
-Why Moz is like a pink dolphin in the Amazon (you’ll have to listen to find out why!)
-Moz’s weird relationship with the truth
-Moz’s comedy (it revolves around bodily functions, and gibberish)
-Paul, Alex and Moz’s relationship with the English language
-Why the English don’t speak foreign languages
-Are the English fundamentally lazy people?
-Learning French at school using a book called Tricolore, which was set in La Rochelle in France
-Experiences of going to another country and living in another culture
-Beeping out swear words (In the end I decided not to ‘beep out’ the swear word here)
-Paul’s cultural experiences in the USA
-Differences between London and the countryside
Alex’s blog: www.alexlove.co.uk

Thanks for listening and remember that your donations help to make this podcast possible.
Luke

104. Brighton Fringe Festival #1 (with Alex, Paul & Moz)

1 Reply

Part 1 of a trilogy of podcasts from the Brighton Fringe Festival. Join me and my friends in Brighton as we discuss various topics.

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.
Hello Listeners! This is the first of three podcast episodes recorded with comedians Alex Love, Paul Langton and Moz at the Brighton Fringe Festival last month. In this episode I introduce Alex, Paul and Moz and we discuss a number of topics including: British accents, experiences in foreign countries, comedy shows and a mysterious character called Luke Johnson. Listen to the episode to find out more, and please feel free to leave comments and questions below.

Every evening Alex, Paul and I performed a comedy show called Snigger Happy in a hot room above a friendly pub called The Temple. We had a great time performing the shows and enjoying ourselves in Brighton, which is a lovely town near the sea on the south coast of England. Also with us was another comedian called Moz, who was performing a solo show called Balloon. We performed 4 shows, with each of us doing 15-20 minutes of stand-up. I also managed to record three episodes with Alex, Paul and Moz. This is the first of those episodes.

Click here to visit Alex Love’s blog: www.alexlove.co.uk It’s all about his experiences performing comedy in venues all over London and the UK in general. Alex is a really good writer, and has written as a journalist for The Guardian newspaper.

100. Going To The Pub (with James)

25 Replies

This is your complete guide to how to go to the pub in the UK, including what to say, what to do, and how to get served at the bar.

Small Donate ButtonRight-click here to download this episode.

Contents

In this episode you’ll learn everything you need to know about going to the pub, including:
– what does a pub look like?
– types of pub
– are you welcome?
– opening times
– how to order
– where to stand
– how to get served
– the order of being served
– buying drinks for others
– tipping
– what to say to the barman
– making conversation with locals
– types of drink
– useful phrases
– what you will find in the pub
– places to sit
– things to do
– smoking
– food
– trouble
– locals
– banter
– football
– pub lunch
– after work drinks
– night out
– beer garden
– What NOT to do
– binge drinking
– getting drunk
– words for ‘drunk’
– the pub in British culture – films, tv shows
If you find the podcast useful, why not donate some money to help me pay for website costs, etc. It’s very simple to do and you can use your PayPal account for other things like online shopping. It’s completely safe and trustworthy.

The pub in English films and TV shows, and other videos:
*Comedy is difficult to understand sometimes, especially in another language. If you don’t find any of this funny, never mind!*
This is a scene from classic comedy show Only Fools and Horses. People describe this scene as “the bit when Del Boy falls through the bar”
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63rcdLeXiU8&w=400&h=301]
This is a useful guide to the different kinds of pub you can find in London. Here’s a quick summary: Tourist Pubs – they’re bad because they’re really big, fake, the beer is flat, the food is stodgy. Old Man Pubs (often found in Soho or Mayfair, but anywhere in London really) are great because they’re quite small, authentic, have interesting interior design, friendly people (usually), cheaper, more relaxing, a good place to buy good ale, a good place for banter or intelligent conversation with locals. Hipster Hangouts (typical trendy pubs in East London) are where you find fashionable cutting-edge cool young people. Family Pubs can be found in quieter parts of London, e.g. the suburbs or areas near the river for example near Hammersmith Bridge, which is my neighbourhood. The Dove in Hammersmith that’s my local, and a great pub!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMrBcc5kdSE&w=560&h=315]
This is a home-made video. The commentator sounds like a cockney. See what happens when an American goes to a pub in the UK. He makes a few mistakes, the muppet. (‘Muppet’ is a cockney slang word meaning ‘idiot’ – it’s an affectionate insult)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XHyze2trng&w=420&h=315]
This is Al Murray The Pub Landlord. He is a comedy character based on the cliche of British pub landlords. He’s patriotic, small minded and ridiculous. He’s a horrible, stupid guy and that is the joke (yes, it’s weird British humour). One thing I should say – this character is a criticism of this kind of stupid character but also a kind of celebration too. It’s complicated.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyGgL_omNbI&w=420&h=315]
This clip is from a disgusting, rude and hilarious (in my opinion) BBC comedy called “Bottom”. The show is about two characters called Richie and Eddie. They are both sad lonely perverts who live in London. They are desperate to pick up some girls and ‘have it off’ with them, but they have absolutely no charm whatsoever. They have no luck with women. This is because they are stupid, sex-obsessed, completely unsophisticated and downright rude. In this episode they have bought some ‘sex spray’. This is a chemical which they believe will make them irresistibly attractive towards women. They go to the pub to try and pick up some ‘birds’. In fact, the spray doesn’t work at all. It only attracts dogs, which chase them through the street outside the pub. All their pathetic attempts to seduce the women fail miserably. Richie and Eddie are played by actors Rik Mayall and Ade Edmonson, who are two of the UK’s favourite TV comedy actors. Enjoy the clip, but watch out if you’re easily offended by very crass humour. It’s a rude show, but I love it.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uVWlbh30HM&w=400&h=301]
A nostalgic and slightly sad documentary film about the decline of the pub in Britain.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ASxxiuCAcA&w=400&h=301]
Barack Obama drinks a pint of Guinness in a pub in Ireland (the best place to drink good Guinness). You might here them saying Slainte (pronounced Slanche), which what they say in Ireland before having a drink (like ‘cheers’ in the UK). Enjoy – and doesn’t it make you want a pint of Guinness?
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5206QjFWmAk&w=400&h=233]