Practice English Listening Test for B1 with answer and audioscript – Test #08

1 A   2 C   3 A   4 C   5 A   6 C   7 C

Audioscript

1   Where are the woman’s glasses?

Woman:   I can never find my glasses!

Man:   Where did you have them last?

Woman:   I either had them when I was working, or I left them in the lounge when I was watching television.

Man:   They’re not in either of those places, you know – you’re wearing them!

2   What damage was done to the car?

Woman:   I’m really annoyed. Someone’s damaged my car again.

Man:   Don’t tell me someone’s scratched the paint again!

Woman:   No, not scratches this time. Someone’s put paint all over the side.

3   What did she bring?

Man:   Did you remember to bring some toothpaste?

Woman:   I think so. Wait a minute, I’ll look … soap, towel, toothbrush. Er … no, sorry, I forgot.

4   What did Sally buy?

Woman:   I see you’ve been shopping, Sally. What have you got in the bag?

Sally:   Well, I went into town to buy a new skirt, but I’ve come back with a T-shirt and a pair of jeans.

Woman:   I thought you wanted some new shoes too.

Sally:   Yes, I did. But I couldn’t find any I liked.

5   Where are the man and his grandma?

Man:   Hello, Grandma, can I carry your case?

Grandma:   Oh, that’s nice of you. Thank you for coming to meet me. Travelling always makes me so nervous!

Man:   Don’t worry, we’ll be in the car soon, and it won’t take long to get home.

Grandma:   Good, I’ll be glad to get away from this noisy station.

6   What would John like to be?

Teacher:   What do you want to be when you leave school, John? You always wanted to be a professional footballer, didn’t you?

Boy:   Well, I did. I thought about being a doctor, too, but I don’t think I could pass all the exams.

Teacher:   What about being an engineer like your brother?

Boy:   It’s a nice idea – but I think I’d like to do what my dad does. He teaches maths.

7   Which pianist are the two people talking about?

Woman:   I thought the most interesting pianist in the whole competition was Gavin Willow.

Man:   Was he the tall one with long hair?

Woman:   Well he was tall, but he had short, dark hair and a beard.

Man:   Ah, yes, I know.

8 C   9 A   10 B   11 B   12 C   13 B

Audioscript

Guide:   Welcome, ladies and gentleman, to the Morecambe Museum of Fashion. Before we go up to the fashion exhibition ‘Clothes of the Future’, I would like to show you some slides on the screen, and say a few words about the history of fashion. I will also mention some of the important people in fashion. This will provide an introduction for you and will prepare you for the clothes that we’re going to see in the exhibition.

As I’m sure you know, nowadays fashion is something that almost everybody enjoys. People of all age groups and all incomes usually have an interest in what they wear. But this has only recently happened, and I will tell you why.

Until the beginning of this century, it was only the rich who could afford to follow fashion. There were no factories to make many copies of the same article, as there are today. Rich men and women wore trousers, jackets and dresses which were made especially for them. This picture here shows a young lady being measured for a dress that she will have made by hand, exactly how she wants it to be. Ladies’ clothes in those days were long and usually tight-fitting and made of heavy material.

However, the new century – the 1900s – brought new ideas. The important person at this time was Coco Chanel, who started making clothes in 1908, in Paris. Many people think she was the 20th century’s most important influence on fashion. Chanel loved to wear loose-fitting clothes and produced jackets and skirts which everyone admired. Here’s a picture of one of her ladies’ suits. Even today people still wear styles like this when they want to look smart. Young Paris designers all began to produce simple clothes, and skirts started to get shorter.

The idea of special clothes for playing sports also became popular in the early 1920s. Things like long shorts and tennis clothes started to become fashionable. Soon factories produced these new styles more cheaply, and then many more people were able to enjoy fashion.

In 1947, after the second world war, Christian Dior used all the new materials available to produce a fashion which was known as the ‘New Look’. As you can see in this picture, he made skirt lengths longer again.

Later, in the 60s, ‘flower power’ and student fashion were popular. In London, Mary Quant introduced short skirts. These were worn with boots that went up to the knee. Look at the white, shiny boots in this picture!

And now we come to today’s exhibition. Some of the clothes you will see today will be very different from anything which you have seen before. The exhibition aims to take a look at the sort of clothes that we might wear in the next 50 years.

Let’s go inside and have a look at the exciting clothes that are waiting for us …

14   (the) north(-)west / North(-)West

15   poet

16   (short) stories

17   waitress

18   (‘)City Life(‘)

19   24/twenty(-)four

Audioscript

Interviewer:   Hello and welcome. We’re spending the first part of today’s programme talking about Tanya Perry, and with me today is Ray Potter, her friend and colleague for many years …

Ray:   Yes, well, I’ve known Tanya for nearly 20 years. Not many people know that she was born in London, in 1948. In 1952, her parents moved with Tanya and her brother to the north west. They lived in various places, before finally coming to Manchester in 1956.

Tanya spent a very happy period at school. In fact she was in the same class as Jack Peters, the famous poet. David Thompson, the artist, was also at the school – a couple of years below her, I think. So it was an interesting time for Tanya, who actually began to write short stories while she was at school. One of her stories appeared in the school magazine – I have a copy here. It’s extraordinary, you can see a lot of her ideas starting to grow. When Tanya left school, she didn’t go to university, as Jack Peters did, but got a job immediately. She was never interested in university life. what she wanted was to be part of the real world, to meet different people and get more experience of life. So in the early 1970s she became a waitress, working in what was then one of the most popular cafés in Manchester. She was writing at night and in 1975 she had her first play performed, at the Edinburgh Festival.

She gave up her day job the following year, to be able to write full-time. Several of her plays were performed, including one at the Court Theatre in London. This was where she met film director Robin Newgate, who she later married. Robin introduced her to the film word and, in 1979, she wrote the story which later became the film ‘City Life’, which Robin directed. It won the prize for best foreign film at an important French Film Festival in 1984.

Tanya could have moved to Hollywood then, but she was still married to the theatre – and to Robin – so she decided to stay here. Now she has 24 plays in print, 18 in translation, which makes her work very widely known all over the world.

20 B   21 A   22 B   23 A   24 A   25 A

Audioscript

Man:   What shall we do tonight? Shall we go out somewhere?

Woman:   No, I’m tired. I’ve had a really hard day.

Man:   That’s a bit boring! Come on, let’s go to a cinema or see that new play at the theatre.

Woman:   Not tonight. Why don’t we rent a video and stay in?

Man:   Well, I’d rather go out … but if you’re tired … OK. So what shall we have? How about that new Italian film?

Woman:   No, far too serious for me. I’d fall asleep! Why can’t we get something funny – a film with Rik Moranis or someone like that.

Man:   A comedy? No thanks. I’m not wasting my money.

Woman:   Well, I’ll pay, if you’re going to be difficult about it.

Man:   I’m not being difficult – I just don’t want to see a comedy.

Woman:   Fine. What else do you suggest then?

Man:   How about a Robert de Niro?

Woman:   We’re seen them all.

Man:   Maybe, but they’re great films. Let’s watch one again.

Woman:   Now you’re suggesting something that’s a real waste of money! And I hate seeing films twice, you know that.

Man:   OK, OK. What, then?

Woman:   Oh, forget it. We’re obviously not going to agree anyway!

Man:   No, I tell you what, you go down to the video shop and choose a film. Whatever it is, I’ll watch it.

Woman:   Really? And you won’t be difficult or make me feel guilty?

Man:   No – go on, off you go. I’ll make something to eat while you’re out.

Woman:   Great. See you in a few minutes then.

Man:   Bye.