Shadowing Practice: 260826 BBC London, Evening News - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Thanks Jane.
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Tonight on BBC London.
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We speak to the residents still paying mortgages for flats which burned down in a building fire two years ago, leaving 80 people homeless.
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We don't know when we'll get any money.
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I don't know when I'll be able to afford a house.
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If I'll be able to afford a house, it's just a constant, it's a constant stress.
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Also on the programme.
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Extra funding for security at the 60th Notting Hill Carnival.
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More cameras and stewards to keep the crowd safe.
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We'll have the details.
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Plus.
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Buckingham Palace guards play 9 to 5 in honour of Dolly Parton, who's died aged 80.
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We look at her London legacy and.
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And your specialist subject.
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Transport for London, Maquette.
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The mastermind moment that's gone viral.
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We meet the contestant behind a very specialist subject.
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Good evening and welcome.
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I'm Alice Bandukravi.
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Two years on from a building fire in East London which left more than 80 people homeless, residents say they remain in limbo and out of pocket.
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Some people who lived at the Spectrum building in Dagenham are still paying mortgages for homes that no longer exist.
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The building was demolished last year after Surveyor reports deemed it unsafe.
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Here's our work and money correspondent Megan Owen.
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Two years ago today, flames engulfed the Spectrum building.
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a residential block in East London.
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The cause of the fire was never established, but the flames spread rapidly through scaffolding surrounding the building, in place as part of ongoing work to remove cladding.
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Four months later, the building was demolished.
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Today, there is little left but wasteland, but the blaze remains etched in the minds of leaseholders James and Sarah.
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It felt really severe.
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because I'm watching my home burn down on the news.
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Woke up, saw embers floating outside the front of our flat.
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My partner opened the front door, the corridor was full of smoke, at which point we ran out of the building just wearing what we had on.
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I had no shoes on, no socks.
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The company that owned the building has since gone into administration, leaving administrators to dish out money for loss and damages.
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but residents say the process has been painfully slow.
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It's just to be nice for someone to take responsibility, some accountability and actually say, right, well, we're going to manage it.
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We're going to manage this process for you.
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We don't know when we'll get any money.
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I don't know when I'll be able to afford a house.
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If I'll be able to afford a house, it's just a constant, it's a constant stress dealing with so many different agencies.
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Insurance is covering their emergency accommodation for three years.
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But some worry that if compensation hasn't been paid by then, they'll have to pay rent and mortgage on homes that no longer exist.
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Well, two years on from the fire here in Dagenham, there have been a lot of parties involved along the way.
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The leaseholders, the freeholder who's gone into administration, the government, the Greater London Authority,
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the administrators, and a lot of back and forth over who should get the money.
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But so far, there's been no payout.
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It's been a real challenge getting monies out of the insurers and the administrators.
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We're supporting the leaseholders to make sure they get the money back and they're the front of the queue.
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When the leaseholders get compensation first, once they've got the compensation, they will then look at how we can try and reclaim some of this money back.
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Cladding work on the building at the time, which was never completed, had been funded by a government grant, meaning it could be in line to receive some of the payout.
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It's urging the building's administrators to resolve the insurance settlements quickly and, says more broadly, they continue to work to speed up cladding removal.
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The administrators say they're now applying to the court to approve the first round of payments to leaseholders and creditors,
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and getting money out to residents as quickly as the process allows is their priority.
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Well, Megan is here.
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Megan, what do you think this tells us about wider building safety?
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Well, just a reminder that whilst we don't know what the cause of the fire was, it does speak to the wider picture.
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And that is because the then Secretary of State for Housing, Angela Rayner, visited the site,
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spoke to press at the time and said that this showed that cladding remediation works needed to be sped up.
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So let's just take a listen to that.
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I will be making sure that I push the health
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and safety executive and the building safety regulators
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and those responsible who own the buildings to make sure that remediation work is carried out as quickly as possible.
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It's too slow.
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People, these are not assets.
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These are people's homes and people need to feel safe in their own homes.
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So that was Angela Rayner speaking two years ago.
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Where are we today?
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Well, new figures released actually today show that 4,697 residential buildings over 11 metres are currently being monitored with unsafe cladding.
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but around 60% of those have not yet been remediated.
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Now, the government says it continues to work to speed up cladding removal and bring the building safety crisis to an end,
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but these figures do show that there's still quite a long way to go, Alice.
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Definitely.
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Thank you very much for that, Megan Owen, our work and money correspondent.
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Lots more to come, including...
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Everything's going to be OK.
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Everything's going to be OK?
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This summer's latest Hollywood blockbuster hits our screens aboard a vintage train in Essex.
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Notting Hill Carnival will mark its 60th
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anniversary this bank holiday weekend with the streets of West London set to come alive with music, costumes and celebration.
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This year, organisers have been given extra funding to provide increased security measures to keep the millions in the crowds safe.
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Our political editor Carl Mercer has more.
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James, Aidan and Andrew are part of the team putting the final touches to this year's carnival safety plans.
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For the last couple of weeks they've been out across the route, fitting temporary CCTV cameras to buildings and lampposts.
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They'll be close to 90 this year, up from 20 a year ago.
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It's part of a new safety package made possible by a £4.5 million grant from City Hall, after last year's carnival was hit by fears of overcrowding and crushes.
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It was only saved by a last minute handout from the mayor.
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This year is more planned.
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It's always important to get it right, but I think this year is more significant.
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We've been entrusted, as you know, with additional funding.
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We've been working really hard to make sure that
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that funding is spent wisely and for the purpose that it was given for.
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And as you can see we've been really investing a lot of it in technology as well as personnel
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so we're really looking forward to this year.
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The extra money will also see a record number of stewards, up from 1750 to around 3,500 and increased use of these.
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Last year there were 14 of these big signs on the route, this year there will be 40, a simple but effective way to direct crowds.
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I always use the example, if you're stuck on a tube in the middle of a tunnel and you're not getting anything, it might only be five minutes,
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but it's quite agitating, you don't know what's happening, you don't know when you're going to go on, but if there's messaging and you're being told,
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look we're held here, it's going to be five minutes and then you're going to be on your way, it just calms people down.
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This West London warehouse is where most of the new safety kit is being shipped out from.
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If it's not going onto lamp posts on the route, it will be going to a new control centre for Carnival.
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This is where organisers and the Blue Light Services coordinate the event, able to monitor every part of the route and spot any potential problems.
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This year's will be much bigger than last.
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We did have a lot of support from the Metropolitan Police
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but they're now rightly focusing on their core responsibility so we're now stepping into the space.
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I think it's important that the public also know that the Met are not walking away.
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This is a transitional period that we're going to go through.
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It's a massive step change for Carnival and I think it will be foolish just to go off a cliff edge and, OK, this organisation is doing it now, now it goes to that.
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We have taken full control but we are fully supported by the NPS as well.
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The Met Police trialled facial recognition at two sites at last year's Carnival, using it to make 60 arrests.
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It's expected they'll be using it in more areas this year.
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Carl Mercer, BBC London.
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And you can head online for more information on what you
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need to know ahead of this weekend Notting Hill Carnival
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and BBC Radio London will have special programming on Bank Holiday Monday throughout the day.
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A round-up of some of the day's other news stories now.
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A 15-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the death of another teenage boy.
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A 17-year-old victim was stabbed and died in a building housing Brent Council's headquarters and library yesterday afternoon.
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A Metropolitan Police officer who said he hated homeless people and couldn't wait to taser someone has been sacked from the force.
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PC Lloyd Hunter was filmed during an undercover BBC Panorama investigation focused on Charing Cross Police Station.
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And rail services between Southend Victoria and London Liverpool Street have resumed after a train derailed in Wickford earlier this month.
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All services had been suspended since the 14th of August when the London-bound train carrying 45 passengers partially came off the tracks.
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Lowering waiting times for patients at London's A&Es is an ongoing challenge.
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Extreme summer temperatures have significantly increased demand for urgent care.
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It means hospitals are having to find new and creative ways to help patients access the care they need.
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Tolua Deoye has been to Northwick Park Hospital in northwest London where they've introduced a new system.
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Most of us have been there before.
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You turn up at A&E expecting to queue to register, queue to be triaged, then queue to be seen.
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Well, here at Northwick Park Hospital, they've come up with a way to reduce all that queuing with a digital doorway.
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So it's quite simple.
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You turn up, you scan the QR code, then you get a series of questions, including your personal details and questions about your condition.
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Staff can then identify potentially critical cases within minutes.
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If I say I've got an illness, we then break it down into which body area, which system it is that's affected.
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We ask a few basic questions about the problems and then also a few red flag indicators.
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We now have you on our electronic system.
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We know that you are here and also we know why you're here.
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So the next step is the triage nurse will call you in.
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They now have their forms pre-populated with all of this information.
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Bosses say this system offers increased privacy because you're not having to tell reception about your issues out in the open.
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It reduces errors and reduces the administration, cutting the queuing time.
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I think improving that first initial contact time for patients is crucial.
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They were waiting for sometimes 30, 40 minutes just to book in and then another way to see the triage nurse.
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By using the digital check-in, what we managed to do is eliminate that.
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Patients are booking in in a matter of two to three minutes, doing a quick self-triage, which means that their overall time spent in the emergency department is significantly less.
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Now you get an estimation of your waiting time and patients have that visibility and clarity from the moment they arrive.
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Reception staff remain available for anyone unable to use the system for any reason.
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It's due to launch at Ealing Hospital in October.
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After that it will be at Chelsea and Westminster, St Mary's, West Middlesex and Hillingdon. So
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if this all goes well you might see the system at
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the hospital near you soon now for a look at the
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bbc news app at gatwick airport travelers are returning to what's
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left of their cars after a huge fire at a parking facility
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meanwhile commuters using thames link trains through the capital are set to get comfier seats new cushions
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and back rests are being added to the carriages from next year
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and look at these photographs from a nosy polar bear to a swift flying above London.
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The shortlist for wildlife photographer of the year has been announced.
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More on these and other stories.
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Head to the BBC News app.
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Now remembering the country music icon Dolly Parton, London fans and musicians have been paying tribute to the singer,
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songwriter and actress who died in Nashville at the age of 80.
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in a career lasting over seven decades.
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Her legacy lives on in the capital, as Chris Sleg reports.
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Miss Dolly Parton.
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1975, Dolly Parton plays London for the first time.
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Well, a good way down the railroad track, there was this little run-down shag.
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The talents won her admirers spanning the globe and the decades.
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Working not to fly, what a way to make a living.
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The band Ward Thomas were among those inspired by her
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and went on to become the first UK country act to reach number one in the main album chart.
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She was a true unifier,
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she was a true songwriter and she was just a positive essence to the world and we absolutely love her.
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We're now about to go on tour for our 10 year anniversary of that number one album.
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And yeah, even planning the tour, we constantly say to each other, what would Dolly do?
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Thank you, London.
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In 2019, she came to London to launch her 9 to 5 musical in the West End.
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Despite her immense fame, she always remained grounded.
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She was never one of those people that said, how are you?
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How are you?
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She always said, I love your shirt.
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That color looks great on you.
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I love your hair.
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She always found something special about you to make you feel special.
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And it instantly put you at ease.
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She firmly believed every child should get the chance to learn to read and created her imagination library, gifting young children a book every month.
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Camden Council was among those to benefit.
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I thought it was an incredible way of her to use her fame.
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I think having the influence she has and focusing on literacy is incredible.
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and knowing that we've given out nearly 15,000 books since February alone is amazing.
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This morning, even the Buckingham Palace guards played nine to five in honour of Dolly Parton.
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Has loved here in London as she was around the world.
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Chris Sleg, BBC London.
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Now, festival season is in full swing, but there's one thing festival goers would rather do without, the dust.
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After one of London's driest summers on record, there are concerns about conditions in the capital's parks, with the parched ground underfoot creating some extremely dry conditions.
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Organisers of all points east at Victoria Park introduced additional ground protection and dust mitigation measures following problems there last year,
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but some visitors this year have called it a dust bowl and say they've had to wear masks.
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Anna O'Neill has the story.
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The hot weather is making London parks dusty and dry.
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We all know how hot it's been already this year
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and it's easy to see why the residents living near this park with thousands of people coming in
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and out for the festival have got a real problem with the dust.
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These social media videos from the All Points East Festival last weekend show the dust flying around.
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The extra dust can be uncomfortable not just for festival goers but also local residents.
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You're somewhat sweating in your flat and if you try and open your windows, a wave of dust and noise comes in.
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It becomes rather unbearable and you can see the dust cloud pretty much anywhere.
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It's rather noticeable from our flat and you really don't want to go near it.
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There are concerns that more dust is having an effect on nature too.
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When we then have a major festival with huge footfall and massive stages and industrial sized derigging,
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setting up, the soil gets extremely compacted and that basically creates further stress.
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But what effect is this dust having on our health?
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These particles are pulverised sand, grass.
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they will contain environmental bacteria and mycobacterium depending on the season.
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There may be mould spores and pollens within the dust that's floating
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and when it goes deeper down into the lungs it can cause inflammation.
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All Points East organisers AEG say they've introduced additional ground protection
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and walkways on the site to protect the ground
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and told us we've carried out extensive restoration and reseeding work since late summer 2025 to create a more resilient environment.
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But some people are worried that if the climate gets drier and festivals get more popular, local communities will feel the impact.
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We know that people appreciate the festivals, but we think there has to be about balance of interest
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and making sure that the park can sustain the level of activity.
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It's summertime, people want to use the park.
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With festivals also this weekend in Battersea, Southwark and Reading, the advice for festival goers is to come prepared with extra water, sunglasses to keep the dust out of the eyes
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and maybe even a bandana or mask to stop dust from getting in the mouth and nose.
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Anna O'Neill, BBC London.
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Now, some of us commute so much, we may not even notice the different seat designs on the tube.
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But one Londoner has made them her specialist subject.
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Emily Medhurst has gone viral on social media after appearing on Mastermind, answering questions on this very niche subject.
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We're going to chat to Emily in just a moment, but first, let's see how she got on.
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And your specialist subject?
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Transport for London maquette.
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The history of the carpet-like fabric used to cover the seats of the capital's public transport vehicles.
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In two minutes.
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Here we go.
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Which design depicting landmarks such as the Dome of St Paul's
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and the London Eye is named after the publicity manager who commissioned moquettes for London Transport in the 1930s.
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Barman.
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Yes, the 1940s moquette known as Roundel or Bullseye was originally attributed to Eddie Chapman, but was later discovered to be the work of which other designer?
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Joy Jarvis.
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It was Joy Jarvis.
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Well, that's Emily Medhurst from Ealing, scoring eight points on your chosen subject, and I'm so glad that you've joined us this evening.
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I have so many questions.
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First of all, I can't help but notice your sweater vest, which you wore on Mastermind.
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Tell us about it.
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Is that your favourite maquette?
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How long does it take?
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So this is the overground maquette, which was originally designed by Wallace Sewell.
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So I just love the colours.
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It was also something I could knit as well.
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And it probably took about 100 hours with all the planning and everything in the end.
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Yeah, it was a bit of a labour of love.
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Well, it's only right that you should wear it not once but twice on telly to show it off.
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How did you get into this, as I said earlier, niche subject?
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Well, I've always been interested in textiles and design.
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Grew up in London, loved the tube, loved the design that's part of TFL.
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And then I went to an open day at Acton Depot a couple of years ago
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and they had a stand there about maquette and I was like, this is a perfect marriage of my interest.
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And then going on Mastermind was just a really good excuse to really delve into the topic.
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So tell us about going on Mastermind.
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I can only imagine that there's a huge amount of pressure.
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Did you have to revise?
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Were you nervous?
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Yeah, there was a lot of revision leading up.
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I wasn't too nervous, I think, until the week before, and then it really hit that I was actually going to be on the show, flew over to Belfast to film it,
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and that was very nerve-wracking.
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And how do you revise in that situation?
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Were you just going on the tube and on the overground, refreshing your memory?
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There's a couple of books out there, and the London Transport Museum has a really great archive as well, So I was kind of using all of that.
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I recorded it all.
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I made a podcast that I listened to all the time.
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I made my partner listen to it all the time.
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I think everyone was very bored of hearing it by the end, but it obviously worked a little bit.
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And remind us how you did in the show.
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So I came third.
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There were amazing contestants in my round who did really good, but I did, I said, I want to get at least seven and I did better than that.
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So that was good.
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And just finally, since you're the expert, what makes a good moquette?
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Oh, I mean, I'm sure there are some designers that would have some strict rules, but I think a unique design,
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good use of colour and just like a really good identity to maybe the line or what it's meant to be representing.
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Well, we've seen some wonderful examples here.
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And of course, your own knitted sweater vest.
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Emily Medhurst, thank you so much for coming in and telling us all about it.
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Thank you.
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Now, the stars of Practical Magic 2 will be walking the
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red carpet in London tonight as the long-awaited sequel gets its UK premiere.
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Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock return for the follow-up to the 1998 cult classic alongside Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams.
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And while it may be a very Hollywood production, there's a little bit of Essex magic in the movie too with locations used during filming.
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More now from Laura Foster.
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I'm sure you've heard of the Owens family.
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The original Practical Magic was set and shot in the USA, but this time filming has taken them to the Epping-Onger railway line.
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Some of the filming took place here on the line, but some of it involved moving a railway carriage nearly 40 miles away to Leavesden Studios in Hertfordshire.
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It had some aqua props put underneath it so we could simulate the train moving, so gentle rocking.
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It was very exciting actually to be on a film set.
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It's not something everyone gets to do every day.
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What was it like being there, Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock?
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Lovely.
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Everyone was really friendly.
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Just having a normal conversation with Sandra, you know, starstruck, it's amazing.
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What were you talking about?
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Just generally about the railway and the train carriage and where it came from and what we were about.
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Everything's going to be OK.
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Everything's going to be OK?
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Just like it was when we had to bury a corpse under a rose bush? much, that kind of line or different.
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Meanwhile, the film crew turned a church and graveyard in nearby Lambourne into one from New England.
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Carpenters were putting up the false front on the church.
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They were putting false gravestones in the churchyard.
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It looked good and when we came to church on the Sunday, people didn't even notice it.
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Both locations were paid money by the film studios.
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The railway says it wasn't six figures, but it was quite a high figure.
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jobs and and christmas and visitors coming to see us all helps us make sure
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that we can carry on telling the story of of how britain's railways moved
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so if you're looking for the exact seats that sandra bullock
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and nicole kidman sat in well you need seats 17 and 18 now at the moment
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they're marked with these paper stars
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but the team here i think you're getting a little plaque
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put up on the side just to commemorate their moment in this big hollywood film
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and looks like there may be more plaques popping up in future.
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We are really busy at the moment.
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We've seen a real uptick in enquiries over the last few weeks.
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Who's been in contact with you over the last few weeks?
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I couldn't possibly say.
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Give us a clue.
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I can't say because it's under NDAs.
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Rob will also actually appear in the film.
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Is your name going to appear in the credits as Train Guy or Rob Benzzi?
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I don't know is the honest answer to that.
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I never asked a question.
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We'll have to wait until the film is out next week to see if he makes the cut.
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Laura Foster, BBC Luke East on the Epping-Onger Railway Line.
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Now we didn't get that much rain overnight but is there more on the way?
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Let's find out from Christopher Blanchett.
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Good evening to you.
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We've had another hot and sunny one today haven't we?
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If you were hoping for some rain or showers you will have been disappointed.
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Many areas reaching 27 Celsius.
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Now we did see a few splashes of rain first thing this morning across the capital
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but you can see on the satellite radar picture
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that weather soon pulled away
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and actually we still have a Met Office yellow warning in
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force for the chance of thunderstorms for the next few hours
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but really they are very much hit and miss and most of us won't see any at all.
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So it's a dry start to the night
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but there are changes on the way as we head through
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the early hours we're expecting a band of heavy thundery rain to arrive from the south
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and move in across the capital
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and it will be a warm humid night temperatures holding in the mid to high teens
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so very wet start to the day tomorrow with
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that heavy rain we could well see some localized flooding poor conditions on the roads
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but that rain pulls away fairly smartly and by lunchtime
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and into the afternoon it's dry again
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and there'll be some sunshine breaking through one or two residual showers
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and temperature wise around about the mid-20s so a notch down on today but still a humid feel.
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That takes us to Friday and it's a case of sunshine and showers arriving on southwesterly winds.
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Some of these showers could be heavy with the odd rumble of thunder at times
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and temperatures come mid-afternoon on Friday a little bit lower once again around about 22
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or 23 degrees so a somewhat fresher feel.
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That takes us to the weekend and we have low pressure nearby bringing outbreaks of rain on Saturday fairly widespread.
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Sunday starts dry with some sunshine
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but further rain is expected to arrive from the west through the second half of the day.
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So you can see through the bank holiday weekend it is rather unsettled
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but as we start next week
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and start a new month September on Tuesday it's back to dry weather
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but it will be a good bit fresher with afternoon highs reaching 22 degrees.
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Well that's about it from me.
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Just a reminder
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that you can see some of those incredible photographs from the
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wildlife photographer of the year competition on our website ahead of
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going on display at the natural history museum in a few
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months time i will be here later with our 10 30 bulletin
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but in the meantime of course plenty more stories on the bbc news app
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but for now from all of us here whatever you're doing do have a lovely evening bye-bye
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “260826 BBC London, Evening News”. This video has 368 sentences and 4701 words to shadow. The speech runs for 27:33. The speaker talks at a natural 171 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 83% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| carnival noun | /ˈkɑɹnɪvəl/ | Any of a number of festivals held just before the beginning of Lent. |
| clad verb | /klæd/ | To cover with a cladding or another material (for example, insulation). |
| queue noun | /kju/ | A line of people, vehicles or other objects, usually one to be dealt with in sequence (i.e., the one at the front end is dealt with first, the one behind is… |
| leaseholder noun | A person who is tenant by holding a lease; a lessee. | |
| maquette noun | /mæˈkɛt/ | A preliminary model or sketch used in preparation for making a sculpture. |
| mastermind noun | /ˈmæs.tɚˌmaɪnd/ | A person with an extraordinary intellect or skill that is markedly superior to their peers. |
| administrator noun | /ədˈmɪn.ɪ.stɹeɪ.tɚ/ | One who administers affairs; one who directs, manages, executes, or dispenses, whether in civil, judicial, political, or ecclesiastical affairs; a manager. |
| bullock noun | /ˈbʊlək/ | A castrated bull; an ox. |
| goer noun | /ˈɡoʊɚ/ | One who, or that which, goes. |
| triage noun | /ˈtɹi.ɑʒ/ | Assessment or sorting according to quality, need, etc., especially to determine how resources will be allocated. |
| sunshine noun | /ˈsʌnʃaɪn/ | The direct rays, light or warmth of the sun. |
| demolish verb | /dɪˈmɒl.ɪʃ/ | To destroy (buildings, etc.), especially in a planned or intentional fashion. |
| moquette noun | /mɒˈkɛt/ | A kind of fabric with a thick pile used for carpeting or to upholster seating, etc. |
| overground noun | A commuter rail or similar rail transport system, or a train in such systems, generally running through an urban area largely above ground and faster than an… | |
| payout noun | An amount of money paid out. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| carry out verb | /ˈkæ.ɹi aʊt/ | To hold while moving it out. |
| pull away verb | To move ahead. | |
| speed up verb | /spiːdˈʌp/ | To accelerate; to increase speed. |
| break through verb | To gain popularity. | |
| come off verb | To become detached. | |
| come up with verb | To manage to produce, deliver, or present (something) by inventing, creating, thinking of, or obtaining it. | |
| give out verb | To utter, publish; to announce, proclaim, report. | |
| go off verb | To explode. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Is that your favourite maquette?
- Did you have to revise?
- What were you talking about?
- Who's been in contact with you over the last few weeks?
- We've had another hot and sunny one today haven't we?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect continuous have/has been + -ing — an action that started earlier and is still going on | We've been working · have been paying |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has been · hasn't been paid · have been |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | was demolished · was never established · been paid |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | people who lived · time, which was · triage, which means |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 81 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, we're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: underneath /ˌʌndɚˈniθ/, thunder /ˈθʌndɚ/, northwest /nɔɹθˈwɛst/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: triage /ˈtɹi.ɑʒ/, sunshine /ˈsʌnʃaɪn/, demolish /dɪˈmɒl.ɪʃ/, remediation /rɪˌmiːdiˈeɪʃn/, musician /mjuˈzɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: administrator /ədˈmɪn.ɪ.stɹeɪ.tɚ/, remediation /rɪˌmiːdiˈeɪʃn/, correspondent /ˌkɔɹ.ɪˈspɑn.dənt/, accommodation /əˌkɒm.əˈdeɪ.ʃən/, restoration /ɹɛstəˈɹeɪʃən/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like carnival, clad, queue.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.