Shadowing Practice: Listening B2, FCE 1 (2015), Test 3, Part 1 - Learn English Speaking with Video

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3. I'm going to give you the instructions for this test.
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I shall introduce each part of the test, and give you time to look at the questions.
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At the start of each piece, you'll hear this sound.
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Oh You'll hear each piece twice.
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Remember?
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While you're listening, Write your answers on the question paper.
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You'll have five minutes at the end of the test to copy your answers onto the separate answer sheet.
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There will now be a pause.
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Please ask any questions now because you must not speak during the test.
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Now open your question paper and look at part one.
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You will hear people talking in eight different situations.
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For questions 1 to 8, choose the best answer, A, B or C.
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Question 1.
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You hear a young actor talking about a colleague.
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Just watching her work is very useful.
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I've only been acting for about a year, so I've got so much to learn.
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When you meet someone who's as famous as she is, there's always a bit of nerves.
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She's an intelligent actor and everything she does seems so effortless.
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As I've got such a small part in the drama, I get to stand around a lot during the scenes, and it means I can watch and learn from her.
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She's very composed when she's acting.
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She takes her time to say her lines.
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Just watching her work is very useful.
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I've only been acting for about a year so I've got so much to learn.
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When you meet someone who's as famous as she is, there's always a bit of nerves.
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She's an intelligent actor and everything she does seems so effortless.
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As I've got such a small part in the drama, I get to stand around a lot during the scenes and it means I can watch and learn from her.
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She's very composed when she's acting.
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She takes her time to say her lines.
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Question 2.
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You hear two friends talking about a colleague.
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I don't know how he does it.
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He gets into the office before everyone else in the morning and he's also always the last to leave.
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He must be exhausted all the time.
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He seems pretty fit though and whenever I see him at the weekends he looks relaxed and happy.
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Maybe he just likes getting everything done before he goes home.
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Yeah, maybe you're right.
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But he earns just the same as we do, and that's not much.
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It's not too bad, though, is it?
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And I think he'll be promoted before any of the rest of us are.
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He's obviously very keen.
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There's no denying that.
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Oh I don't know how he does it.
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He gets into the office before everyone else in the morning and he's also always the last to leave.
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He must be exhausted all the time.
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He seems pretty fit though and whenever I see him at the weekends he looks relaxed and happy.
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Maybe he just likes getting everything done before he goes home.
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Yeah, maybe you're right.
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But he earns just the same as we do and that's not much.
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It's not too bad though, is it?
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And I think he'll be promoted before any of the rest of us are.
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He's obviously very keen.
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There's no denying that.
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Question 3.
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You hear an author talking about his new book.
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Oh Thanks for inviting me to come on the program and talk about my new book.
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I thought the book might never happen when I was sitting at my desk day after day.
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I wish the words would simply flow out like they did when I was writing my other books.
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Sometimes I wondered if I'd ever get it finished.
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Of course, I know it's unlikely to become a bestseller, but I hope that my loyal readers will enjoy it.
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They'll recognize some of the characters from my first novel.
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Older and wiser, at least in some cases.
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Oh Thanks for inviting me to come on the program and talk about my new book.
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I thought the book might never happen when I was sitting at my desk day after day.
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I wish the words would simply flow out like they did when I was writing my other books.
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Sometimes I wondered if I'd ever get it finished.
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Of course, I know it's unlikely to become a bestseller, but I hope that my loyal readers will enjoy it they'll recognize some of the characters from my first novel.
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Older and wiser, at least in some cases.
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Question four.
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You hear two friends talking about something they saw on TV.
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Oh It's funny really, but I just didn't get it.
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Everyone was talking about it, but I just thought it was silly.
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You mean you wanted more information?
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Exactly.
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I mean, what's the point of something like that?
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It didn't even make me laugh.
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Oh, come on.
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You have to admit, it was pretty funny.
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Well, I didn't think so.
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And it was annoying the way everybody whistled the tune all the time.
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Why on earth would that make me buy something?
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I think you're too serious sometimes.
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It was just a bit of fun.
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If you want to find out more, then look on the internet.
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Oh It's funny really, but I just didn't get it.
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Everyone was talking about it, but I just thought it was silly.
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You mean you wanted more information?
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Exactly.
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I mean, what's the point of something like that?
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It didn't even make me laugh.
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Oh, come on.
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You have to admit, it was pretty funny.
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Well, I didn't think so.
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And it was annoying the way everybody whistled the tune all the time.
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Why on earth would that make me buy something?
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I think you're too serious sometimes.
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It was just a bit of fun.
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If you want to find out more, then look on the internet.
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Question 5.
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You hear an office manager talking about her work.
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Oh You know how it is.
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As soon as you've finished one project, you have to get started on something else, and it's often something completely different.
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I don't find that a problem, though, and I enjoy the fact that I can get it done effectively.
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After all, I've been in this job for a long time, so I think I can say I know what I'm doing.
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I wish that was true of the people I'm working with.
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I reckon if I didn't keep checking, they'd never get on with things.
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Though I guess I'm not feeling very motivated about this project either.
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You know how it is.
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As soon as you've finished one project, you have to get started on something else, and it's often something completely different.
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I don't find that a problem, though, and I enjoy the fact that I can get it done effectively.
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After all, I've been in this job for a long time, so I think I can say I know what I'm doing.
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I wish that was true of the people I'm working with.
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I reckon if I didn't keep checking, they'd never get on with things.
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Though I guess I'm not feeling very motivated about this project either.
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Question 6.
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You overhear two friends talking in a restaurant.
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Mmm, delicious soup!
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You think so?
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It's a bit hot, isn't it?
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What do you mean hot?
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Too many spices or the temperature?
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It burned my mouth.
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Well, you should have had something else.
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There was plenty to choose from.
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There may have been for you, but don't forget, I'm a vegetarian.
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There wasn't much there for me.
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But at least we haven't paid a fortune for it.
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Mmm, I couldn't even make it at home for that price.
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But I still think we should go somewhere else next time.
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Mmm, delicious soup!
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You think so?
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It's a bit hot, isn't it?
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What do you mean hot?
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Too many spices or the temperature?
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It burned my mouth.
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Well, you should have had something else.
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There was plenty to choose from.
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There may have been for you, but don't forget, I'm a vegetarian.
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There wasn't much there for me.
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But at least we haven't paid a fortune for it.
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Mmm, I couldn't even make it at home for that price.
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But I still think we should go somewhere else next time.
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Question 7.
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You hear a woman talking about her neighbour's holiday photographs.
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Oh They always invite us round for dinner after they've been on holiday and show us all the photos they've taken.
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I didn't like the dinner much, but of course I didn't say anything.
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They go to some interesting places, and they actually do pretty well considering they don't have expensive equipment or any training as photographers.
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I wish I could remember the name of the place they went to this summer.
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'Mmm, that's really annoying.
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I should have written it down.' I'll have to ask them next time I see them.
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Oh They always invite us round for dinner after they've been on holiday, and show us all the photos they've taken.
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I didn't like the dinner much, but of course I didn't say anything.
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They go to some interesting places, and they actually do pretty well considering they don't have expensive equipment or any training as photographers.
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I wish I could remember the name of the place they went to this summer.
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"'Mmm, that's really annoying.
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I should have written it down.' I'll have to ask them next time I see them.
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Question 8.
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You hear two friends talking about a concert they've just been to.
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Oh.
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I really enjoyed that, didn't you?
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Despite the technical problems at the beginning.
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Wonderful!
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Spanish flamenco music just makes you want to get up and dance.
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I noticed you standing up at one stage.
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Yeah, but that was to get a better view.
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Ah, yes.
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Pity we were at the back.
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But it was all that was available when I bought the tickets on Friday.
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I know, but next time we must book earlier.
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It was very hot in there.
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Did that bother you?
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I just kept thinking it was like summer in Spain.
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and then the rhythm of the sticks they beat on the floor.
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Me too.
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I really enjoyed that, didn't you?
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Despite the technical problems at the beginning.
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Wonderful!
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Spanish flamenco music just makes you want to get up and dance.
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I noticed you standing up at one stage.
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Yeah, but that was to get a better view.
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Ah, yes.
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Pity we were at the back.
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But it was all that was available when I bought the tickets on Friday.
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I know, but next time we must book earlier.
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It was very hot in there.
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and the rhythm of the sticks they beat on the floor.
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Me too.
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That is the end of part one.

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Boost Your English Listening and Speaking with This B2 Level Practice

What You'll Learn

This video helps build conversational comprehension and contextual inference—key skills for exams like IELTS speaking practice. You’ll also sharpen your ability to identify implicit opinions, such as how the young actor admires his colleague’s "effortless" style or how the friends debate their coworker’s work ethic. These skills are critical for both real-world interactions and structured tests.

Listen For These Sounds

Connected speech is everywhere in the dialogue. Notice how "got so much" links into "gotta so much" (a reduction of "got to") and "he’s an intelligent" becomes "he’s an n’telligent" with nasal linking. Phrases like "I don’t know how he does it" often drop the "t" in "don’t," making it sound like "don’ know." These reductions are common in natural speech, and recognizing them will improve English pronunciation.

Say It Like a Native

To mirror the speakers’ rhythm, focus on stress and pauses. The actor emphasizes "effortless" and "composed" to highlight his admiration, while the friends stress "before everyone else" and "last to leave" to show surprise. Try shadow speak—repeating lines aloud as you hear them—to mimic this flow. Shadowing helps train your mouth to move like a native, making your speech sound more natural. For example, practice saying "She takes her time to say her lines" with a slow, deliberate pace, stressing "takes" and "time" to match the actor’s tone. This technique is even used in IELTS speaking practice to build fluency.

By focusing on these elements, you’ll not only understand the dialogue better but also speak with more confidence. Whether you’re preparing for a test or everyday conversations, these tips will help you communicate like a pro.

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

StructureIn the video
Present perfect continuous have/has been + -ing — an action that started earlier and is still going onI've only been acting
Conditional sentences if + clause, will/would + verb — a condition and its resultif I didn't keep checking, they'd never
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters nowyou've finished · I've been · haven't paid
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does itbe promoted

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.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →