English & the UK: Cardiff

Introduction

Jack: Hello my name’s Jack

Rowan: My name’s Rowan

Rich: and I’m Rich and welcome to this week’s Premier Skills English podcast.

Jack: In the Premier Skills English podcast, we talk about football and help you with your English.

Rowan: Don’t forget you can find the transcript for all our podcasts on the Premier Skills English website.

Rich: This podcast returns to a series of podcasts that we started a while ago where we visited different cities in the UK.

Jack: That’s right in this series we’ve visited many of the UK’s big cities: London, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Manchester and many more.

Rowan: But we’ve never visited Wales in one of our podcasts so that’s where we are going this week.

Rich: You’re from Wales, aren’t you, Rowan?

Rowan: Yes, I am.

Jack: OK, everyone probably knows that there are two main languages in Wales: English and Welsh - Welsh is a Celtic language and is very different from English.

Rowan: Yes, it is very different - Helo Rowan ydw i. Cymraeg ydw i. That is hello I’m Rowan and I’m Welsh.

Rich: Can you say that again?

Rowan:  Helo Rowan ydw i. Cymraeg ydw i.

Jack: The Welsh word I’ve always wanted to learn is a place name and it’s the longest place name in the world.

Rich: Oh, yes. I’ve been to this village it’s on a little island called Anglesey in North Wales.

Rowan: OK, you want me to say it, don’t you?

Jack: Yes, please.

Rowan: OK, in Welsh this village is called: Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch

Rich: That is very long - I’ll practise it later. I don’t want to embarrass myself on the podcast.

Jack: Let’s leave the Welsh to Rowan. So in our roleplay this week we are visiting three different places in Wales: the capital of Wales, the seaside and the mountains.

Rowan: In the roleplay, I’m revisiting some of the things I did and the places I visited when I was a child growing up in Wales.

Rich: After each part of the roleplay we’ll focus on some language. This week we’re looking at phrases we can use to talk about famous places and things and geographical features connected to the coast and words and phrases connected to mountains.

Rowan: And I’m also on a mission in the podcast. The mission involves cake but more about that later.

Jack: Your task this week is to talk about something your city is famous for.

Rich: If you are listening to us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or any other podcast platform, you should also check out our website.

Rowan: On the Premier Skills English website, you’ll find the transcript, examples and activities to help you understand the language, and a task for you to complete with other listeners.

Jack: Before we do the roleplays let’s look back at last week’s football phrase.

Last week’s Football Phrase 

Rich: OK, our football phrase. If you’ve not listened to the podcast before, every week we set our listeners a challenge. We explain a football phrase or word and you have to guess what it is.

Jack: When you know the answer, go to the Premier Skills English website and write the word or phrase in the comments section for this podcast.

Rowan: Thanks for all your answers last week. The first listener with the correct answer for the second week in a row was WSanta from Argentina. Well done WSanta!

Rich: And congratulations to these other listeners who also got the correct answer to our football phrase: MoBeckham, and HSN from Turkey, Hayato from Japan, Ranj from Norway, Alex and Liubomyr from Ukraine, Marco Zapien, Mario and Vic from Mexico, Jacek from Poland, and Emmanuel from France.  

Jack: If you didn’t hear last week’s football phrase, we’re going to give you one more chance to guess now. And later on, at the end of the podcast, we’ll tell you the answer. Are you ready?

Rich: Last week’s football phrase was ****** ***. This phrase is used to refer to the return match in a tie that consists of two games. Manchester City and Chelsea played very well at PSG and Real Madrid this week but they have to finish the job in the ****** ***.

Rowan: And well done to Chelsea and Manchester City who both won their ****** *** matches and will meet in the Champions League Final in Istanbul later this month.

Jack: Last week’s podcast was about the difference between two words: hear and listen. We asked you about the things you hear and listen to and we had some interesting answers.

Rowan: Alex from Ukraine listens to music a lot - wherever he is and wherever he goes he always seems to be listening to music. Is that true, Alex?

Rich: HSN from Turkey listens to BBC radio. I think that is a very good way to practise your English and keep yourself up to date with things happening in the world.

Jack: And MoBeckham from Turkey listens to the Premier Skills English Podcast of course. Thanks for your comment MoBeckham and happy podcast anniversary!

Rowan: If you haven’t heard this podcast it’s called Learning Vocabulary: Hear and Listen and you can find it on the Premier Skills English website or on Apple Podcasts.

Introduction to roleplay

Rowan: As we said earlier, this week our roleplay is in three parts and in each part we visit a different place in Wales.

Jack: As you know, Rowan is from Wales and in the roleplays she goes back to three places she visited as a child.

Rich: But more importantly, she decides to take us with her. Rowan takes us to a rugby match, the Welsh seaside and the highest mountain in Wales.

Rowan: And ... I’m also on a quest - a mission. My mission is to find the best Bara Brith in Wales.

Jack: Bara Brith - I’m not totally sure, but isn’t that a type of cake?

Rowan: Good knowledge, Jack. It is indeed a cake, a traditional Welsh fruit cake. When I was a kid, I used to eat a lot of Bara Brith. It really is the taste of my childhood, but I haven’t had a slice for years.

Rich: OK, here’s part one of this week’s roleplay. We are in a cafe in Cardiff - the Welsh capital and have just been to a rugby match.

Jack: While you listen we want you to answer two questions:

Rowan: Question one: Who can’t sing very well?

Rich: Question two: Who likes the cake in the cafe?

Roleplay Part One 

Waiter: Here you are, two teas and a latte and three slices of our famous bara brith.

Rich: I thought Wales was famous for the dragon on its flag, leeks and daffodils, not cake.

Rowan: Come on, Rich. That’s just lazy thinking.

Jack: Are you alright Rowan? You look a bit ... sad?

Rowan: No, I’m not sad. I’m just reminiscing. It's been so long since I went to a rugby match. I used to go to the rugby with my Grandpa when I was a kid.

Rich: He would have loved the result!

Rowan: Yeah, he would have. He’d have loved the atmosphere, too. He liked the old stadium - Cardiff Arms Park - but he loved the Millenium Stadium, too and it is a world-class stadium.

Jack: It was amazing. When the whole crowd stood up and sang - it sent a shiver down my spine.

Rowan: Yeah, we love singing in Wales. Male voice choirs are very popular. ... Not many of us sing in a choir but we do like to sing in Wales.

Rich: The singing was brilliant, I mean, Wales is known for its singing.

Jack: I didn’t have a clue what you were all singing about, but yeah, it was awesome.

Rowan: That’s because it was in Welsh, Jack! When everyone sings a hymn like Calon Lan or Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau - that’s like an unofficial national anthem -  Ah... it’s magic. The whole stadium comes alive.

Jack: You need to teach us the words so we can sing it next time, Rowan!

Rich: No chance! I can’t hold a note to save my life. I’m tone-deaf. Right let’s try this cake - what did you say it was called again?

Rowan: Bara birth - it’s a fruit cake and it’s very good. It’s the taste of my childhood.

Jack: Delicious! Quite moist - not too dry and it’s very fruity.

Rowan: Yeah, it’s good but not quite how I remember it.

Jack: Things are never as good as you remember them. Maybe we can get some better Bara Brith tomorrow.

Rowan: Looks like Rich is enjoying it. Where did your slice go?

Rich: Sorry, sorry - yeah I liked it. So, what are we going to do next?

Rowan: Let’s have a look around Cardiff Castle - I bet that hasn’t changed since I was a kid. I suppose we could go down to Cardiff Bay and do some shopping - there are lots of bars and restaurants around there, too.

Jack: Sounds like a good plan to me.

Language Focus 1

Rich: Before the roleplay, we asked you two questions. The first question was: Who can’t sing very well?

Jack: The answer is Rich. He described himself as being tone-deaf and said he can’t hold a note to save his life.

Rowan: If someone is tone-deaf it means they are not able to distinguish between different musical notes. Basically both tone-deaf and not being able to hold a note are used to describe people who can’t sing.

Jack: It’s well-known that Welsh people like to sing and are good at it and rugby fans are well-known for singing at matches. Rich is not Welsh so we shouldn’t ask him to sing - ever!

Rich:  Our second question was: Who likes the cake in the cafe?

Rowan: The answer again is Rich. I was slightly disappointed with the cake but Jack enjoyed it and Rich ate his slice in about three seconds so he must have liked it best.

Jack: OK, let’s look at some language from the roleplay. I want to look at some phrases that we can use to talk about famous things or places.

Rich: We can start by using that word - famous. We need to add a preposition and use the phrase famous for. A place can be famous for something. Listen to the start of the roleplay again:

Waiter: Here you are, two teas and a latte and three slices of our famous bara brith.

Rich: I thought Wales was famous for the dragon on its flag, leeks and daffodils, not cake.

Rowan: A similar phrase that we have used already is known for or well-known for.

Jack: We said that Wales is known for its singing in the roleplay and I said a minute ago that Welsh rugby fans are well-known for singing at rugby matches.

Rich: The preposition you need to remember with these phrases is for: famous for, known for, well-known for.

Jack: Another useful word is world-class. We spoke about Cardiff’s world-class stadium. If something is world-class it’s as good as the best in the world.

Rich: Footballers are often described as world-class and the goals they score. That was a world-class goal by Gareth Bale last weekend.

Rowan: OK, we’ve got an activity on the website so you can check your understanding of more of the words and phrases we used in this part of the roleplay.

Rich: And don’t forget you can find the transcript there, too if you want to listen and read at the same time to check your understanding. Let’s move on to the second part of the roleplay.

Introduction to Roleplay Part 2

Rich: OK, here’s part two of this week’s roleplay. We are in Rhossili which is on the coast in South West Wales. Rhossili was the first place to be named as an area of outstanding natural beauty in the whole of the United Kingdom.

Rowan: And it is a place where I used to go on holiday when I was a child and in this part of the roleplay I’m going back there for the first time in many years.

Jack: And Rowan is still on her mission to find the best Bara Brith in Wales. Will she find the best fruit cake in Rhossili?

Rich: While you listen we want you to answer two questions:

Rowan: Question one: How are we going to get onto the beach?

Jack: Question two: Does Rowan like the cake?

Roleplay Part Two 

Rich: Are we nearly there yet? All these bends are making me feel sick? Why can’t I drive?

Jack: You know why, Rich. We’d all be sick the way you drive!

Rowan: We’re nearly there - first to see the sea wins an extra slice of leek quiche at lunch!

Rich: Oh yeah and we’ve got that Bara Brith from that bakery just outside of Swansea.

Jack: I see it. There it is. We’ve got to park up on top of the cliffs and we can wander down to the beach.

Rowan: Yeah. Let’s have the picnic on the beach.

...

Jack: Where did you say this was again - the Gower Peninsula?

Rowan: Yeah, Rhossili Bay. I used to come here a lot as kid with the whole family - every summer - I learned to surf.

Rich: You can surf - cool! I wish I could surf. Look at this place - it’s absolutely stunning.

Jack: It’s incredible - really unspoiled. Look at those sand dunes. Let’s get down to those they look awesome.

Rich: Or we could walk out to the headland over there. The views will be breathtaking from the tops of the cliffs. Look there’s a sign there - headland walk.

Rowan: Oh, yeah I remember now - this really takes me back. We can go out to Worm’s Head but we’ve gotta get back before the tide comes in. Then there’s a little path that takes us down to the beach.

Jack: Shall we have the picnic now? Before the walk.

Rich: Yeah, get the picnic blanket out. I am a bit peckish.

Rowan: you’re always hungry but all right.

Jack: Let’s start with the bara brith.

Rowan: Start with it? Come on then. Let’s see if this is how I remember it from my childhood.

Rich: Well, it is from an award-winning bakery. Let me cut you a slice.

Rowan: Mmm … it tastes good - fruity … sweet … moist … but it’s just not right - there’s something missing. It’s never quite how you remember it, is it?

Jack: Ah well! The mission continues.

Rich: Tastes all right to me. Can I have another bit?

Language Focus 2

Rowan: Before the roleplay, we asked you two questions. The first question was: How are we going to get onto the beach?

Jack: The answer is we have to follow a small path down through the cliffs.

Rich: And the second question was: Does Rowan like the cake?

Rowan: Well, I liked it but it still wasn’t as good as the ones I ate as a child. I’ll carry on looking for the next Bara Brith.

Jack: Let’s look at some of the language we used in the roleplay. We were on the coast in South Wales - a really beautiful place. We used lots of words to describe what we could see - geographical features.

Rich: Let’s start with that word you just used - coast. The coast is the land next to the sea or ocean. We were on the coast or at the coast in the roleplay.

Rowan: Listen to this part of the roleplay again. How many geographical features can you hear us talk about?

Jack: Where did you say this was again - the Gower Peninsula.

Rowan: Yeah, Rhossili Bay I used to come here a lot as kid with the whole family - every summer - I learned to surf.

Rich: You can surf - cool! I wish I could surf. Look at this place - it’s absolutely stunning.

Jack: It’s incredible - really unspoiled. Look at those sand dunes. Let’s get down to those they look awesome.

Rich: Or we could walk out to the headland over there. The views will be breathtaking from the tops of the cliffs. Look there’s a sign there - headland walk.

Rowan: The first word we used here was peninsula. A peninsula is an area of land that is almost totally surrounded by water but connected to a larger piece of land at one point.

Jack: Italy is a peninsula - it is surrounded by sea apart from in the north where it connects to the rest of Europe.

Rowan: The next word is bay. We were in Rhossili Bay. A bay is where the sea comes into the land a little and creates a curve. The sea is usually calmer in a bay and there are often beaches to enjoy.

Jack: In Rhossili Bay there are sand dunes on the beach. Sand dunes are small hills of sand that are created by the wind. You often see them in the desert as well as on beaches.

Rich: The next word I want to look at in this section is cliff. A cliff is a high area of rock with a very steep side that goes directly down. Cliffs can be very dangerous places if you’re not careful.

Jack: The last word I want to look at is headland. We said that we were going to go on a headland walk.

Rowan: A headland is a little piece of land that sticks out into the sea. There are usually cliffs on either side of a headland. I suppose it’s like a little peninsula.

Rich: OK, on the website we have some more examples, pictures and activities to help you understand the geographical features of coastlines but for now let’s move on to the final part of our roleplay.

Introduction to Roleplay Part 3

Rich: OK, here’s the final part of this week’s roleplay. We are in Snowdonia which is a National Park in North Wales. Snowdon is the highest mountain in Wales.

Rowan: And it is another place I visited a lot as a child.

Jack: Rowan still hasn’t found the perfect Bara Brith on her trip to Wales. Will she find the best fruit cake in Wales at the top of the mountain?

Rich: While you listen we want you to answer two questions:

Rowan: Question one: Who gets to the top of the mountain first?

Jack: Question two: Does Rowan like the cake?

Roleplay 3 

Rich: So we’re going to climb Snowdon - the highest mountain in Wales. I feel exhausted just thinking about it.

Jack: Come on Rich you can’t be that sleepy - you went to bed at nine last night and we’re not going to climb it, we’re going to walk up it. It’s not really mountaineering.

Rich: How long is it going to take to get to the summit?

Rowan: It’s a three-hour hike to the top but it depends on how fast we walk. Jack - you’ve got the picnic, right?

Jack: Lovingly prepared by your Great Aunty Gwen - it was lovely to meet her. It was a shame that we couldn’t have stopped for lunch.

Rich: We don’t want to be coming down a mountain in the dark. So, how many times have you climbed Snowdon, Rowan?

Rowan: Lots of times, I know this path like the back of my hand. On a clear day, we might even be able to see Ireland from the top.

Rich: Well, we’ve got blue skies so we might be in luck.

Jack: Come on guys let’s pick up the pace a bit. We want to get to the top before Sunday.

Rich: I just need to catch my breath. I’ll catch you up around the next corner.

...

Jack: I know Rich seemed shattered but I can’t believe he turned back so soon - so lazy.

Rowan: I know - a very poor show. I tell you what - let’s crack out the Bara-Brith - that’ll serve him right.

Jack: This is the good stuff right - homemade by your Great Aunt.

Rowan: Wow! This is it! This is what I remember - I’ve found it - the perfect Bara-Brith. Delicious.

Jack: Mission accomplished and I can see the top of the mountain - we’ve made it.

Rich: Hey guys! What kept you? The views are stunning from up here.

Rowan: You didn’t, did you? You did, didn’t you? You are so lazy!

Jack: What’s he done?

Rowan: He’s only gone and caught the train to the top.

Rich: I only got a single. We can run back down, can’t we?

Rowan: Well, you’ve missed out on the homemade Bara-Brith and it was the best I’ve ever tasted!

Language Focus 3

Jack: Before the roleplay, we asked you two questions. The first question was: Who gets to the top of the mountain first?

Rich: The answer was me as I’m a world-class mountain climber.

Rowan: No, you’re not you cheated by getting the train to the top!

Jack: The second was: Does Rowan like the cake?

Rowan: And the answer is finally yes - I found the cake I remembered as a child and I should have known really. The best cake is always homemade!

Rich: OK, let’s look at some language. We’re going to look at a few words connected to mountains and getting up them.

Jack: We go up and go down or come down mountains. These are a few useful phrasal verbs. Have you ever gone up a mountain?  How long did it take you to come down again?

Rowan: The verb we associate most with mountains is probably climb. When we talk about climbing mountains we often think about ropes and lots of equipment - we are talking about rock climbing or mountaineering.

Rich: We didn’t need any ropes to get to the top of Snowdon so we can’t really describe it as rock climbing or mountaineering.

Jack: The top of Snowdon? There’s another word we used in the roleplay to describe the top of a mountain. We used the word summit. It took us about three hours to reach the summit of Snowdon.

Rowan: So if we weren’t climbing or mountaineering what were we doing?

Rich: In the roleplay, we used the word hike. Rowan said it was a three-hour hike to the top.

Jack: A hike is a long walk usually for enjoyment and usually in the countryside. We can use it as a verb but it’s more common as a noun. I like to go hiking in the mountains at the weekend. It’s a three-hour hike to the summit.

Rowan: A similar word to hike is trek which can be used in the same way. We’ve looked at quite a lot of language connected geography in this podcast. You can check your understanding of all these words and phrases on the website.

Task

Rich: We’ve been speaking about Cardiff and Wales in this week’s podcast. We’ve spoken about things Cardiff and Wales are famous for and places on the coast and in the mountains.

Jack: Your task this week has two parts. First, we want you to tell us something your city or country is famous for.

Rowan: And your second task is to tell us either about a place next to the coast or a place in the mountains that you have visited.

Rich: Try to use some of the language we have introduced in this week’s podcast when you write your answers in the comments section on the Premier Skills English website.

Jack: And don’t forget to reply to other listeners about their cities and countries - let’s see what new places and things we can learn about.

Football Phrase

Rowan: It’s time for this week’s football phrase and it’s a bit different this week, isn’t it?

Rich: Yes, it is. Remember last week we asked you if you had a football phrase. Well, this week’s football phrase comes from HSN in Turkey - thanks for the idea, HSN.

Jack: This week’s football phrase is ***** ********. This phrase is used when a team doesn’t have a fixture - maybe because a league has an odd number of teams and each week one team doesn’t play or maybe a scheduled match has been postponed. This term is used a lot in fantasy football, too - you don’t want to choose any players with a ***** ******** because they won’t score you any points.  

Rowan: This is a difficult phrase - the first word describes something that is empty or clear and the second word is used to describe each round of fixtures in a season.

Rich: Useful help, Rowan - let’s see if anyone gets the football phrase right and who is first this week. If you are still wondering what the answer was to last week’s football phrase it was second leg.

Jack: If you have a football phrase that you would like us to use in the podcast, just get in touch and let us know.

Rowan: Right, that’s all we have time for this week! Don’t forget to write your answers to our questions and make a guess at our football phrase in the comments below. If you get it right, we’ll announce your name on next week’s podcast.

Rich: If you have a question for us about football or English you can email us at premierskills@britishcouncil.org

Jack: or you can leave your questions and comments on the website in the comments section or on our Facebook page.

Rowan: or you could give us a rating and a fantastic review on Apple Podcasts.

Rich: Bye for now and enjoy your football!