Practice English Listening Test for B2 with answer and audioscript – Test #25

1 C   2 B   3 C   4 A   5 C   6 A   7 C   8 B

Audioscript

1

M   Of course, this is the time of year in England that I enjoy most. You can be outside late in the evening pottering around. It’s still warm and it’s not yet dark. There’s a lot of work to do because things are growing so fast but the air is fragrant with honeysuckle and roses and you can already see the fruits of your labours in the kitchen garden.

2

M   We’re moving very slowly again now. It’s infuriating. I’m going to miss my meeting if we don’t speed up soon.

F   Yes, we seem to be late most days at the moment. Mind you I’m not too bothered today.

M   Don’t you have to be in at the usual time?

F   Well, I should be but we’ve got this rather awkward visitor coming in and if I’m not there someone else will have to deal with him. It’s not my fault if the train’s delayed, is it. I’ll just ring in and sound as upset as I can.

3

F   Did you hear that Minister on the radio this morning saying they’re thinking of increasing tax rates for higher earners?

M   Yes, I did. Isn’t it terrible! No wonder people who earn a lot all try to move abroad.

F   Mm, I suppose so, but they’ve got to get money somehow for hospitals and schools.

M   Yes, but do they spend it on hospitals and schools?

F   Well, I wouldn’t mind paying a bit more tax myself as long as they do use it properly.

M   Oh, no, you can’t trust them.

4

F   This is delicious. Did you make it yourself?

F   Yes, I did. It’s very simple.

F   Well, it’s certainly much nicer than anything you can buy in the shops. For that matter, it’s better than anything I’ve ever had at that café in town, that one that specialises in juices and shakes. Will you give me the recipe?

F   Of course. The important thing is to have really fresh ingredients.

5

F   So what happened then?

M   Well the MD went purple in the face and looked absolutely furious. Fortunately, the fire alarm then went off and I guess he’d cooled down a bit by the time we were allowed back into the building.

F   Oh well, that’s good. So no one got the sack?

M   Not today at least. Are you getting off here tonight?

F   Yes, I’m going to my mum’s before I go home. I’ll look forward to the next instalment tomorrow then.

6

M   Three people were slightly injured in the pile-up but amazingly most of the people involved escaped unhurt. The AA has strongly criticised drivers for not reducing their speed in such difficult weather conditions. The rain is likely to continue in most areas for some hours yet and caution is urged on all roads.

7

F   Shall we sit here? It’s nice to be able to watch people on the street as we eat.

M   It might be a bit draughty by the door.

F   How about over there then?

M   But it’s right by the kitchen – the waiters’ll be walking right past us all the time.

F   You choose then. I really don’t mind as long as we can eat soon.

M   Let’s go over in that corner then. It doesn’t look too noisy there.

F   OK. I just hope the waiters will notice us there though. I’m starving!

8

F   Having enormously enjoyed all of Smith’s other novels, I had high hopes of this one. Somehow, though, it didn’t live up to my expectations. The characters were not quite as convincing as they usually are and the plot rather predictable. Nevertheless there are some lovely moments. I particularly enjoyed the opening scene …

9 water-skiing   10 large   11 kitchen   12 outdoor shoes

13 use showers   14 sailing   15 canoeing 16 horse riding

17 (special) dinner   18 the Mountain Men

Audioscript

M   Welcome to this weekend’s course at Helvellyn Hall. It’s nice to see some familiar faces here again as well as some people who are on one of our courses for the first time. I hope that you will all enjoy yourselves. I’m James and I’ll be coaching those of you who have opted for one of the water skiing sessions.

First of all, can I just give you some basic information about our procedures. Although we are quite a small group, all meals will be taken in the Large Dining Room. The Small Dining Room is currently being redecorated and is out of use. We do not require you to wash up after your meals but we would be grateful if you could return all dishes to the kitchen after you have eaten.

There are a couple of other rules that we should be grateful if you could all comply with. Please take off your outdoor shoes in the entrance hall and leave them in the racks there. This is better for our floors and makes life much easier for our cleaners. We would also request that you do not use the showers between midnight and 6.30 a.m. as this can disturb others who are trying to sleep.

You have already got the programme for the weekend and you’ve all given us your choices for the various activities we have on offer. However, I’m afraid there is a bit of a hitch with tomorrow morning’s sailing option as the instructor is not available on Saturday this week. I’m sorry about this but those of you who wanted to try your hand at sailing may be able to do so on Sunday instead – I’ll let you know for sure tomorrow. Now, tomorrow morning we are able to offer canoeing as a new alternative or you could join the hill walking group or the one doing horse riding.

Perhaps I could ask all of you to sign again for which of these three activities you’d like to do tomorrow morning – I’ll pass a list round now. There is one other change but I’m sure it is one that should please you all. Tomorrow evening as you know we have a special dinner for you followed by some Scottish country dancing. The music, however, is not going to be provided by a disco as advertised but by the well-known Scottish folk group called the Mountain Men. We are sure you will all enjoy their music very much.

I think that is all the business that I wanted to raise with you now. Has anyone got any questions that they’d like to ask?

19 C   20 F   21 B   22 A   23 D

Audioscript

M   A lot of people think it’s very glamorous to be cabin crew and travel all over the world but that side of the job is not really as good as it sounds. You’re on your feet constantly doing quite hard physical work and you don’t really have much time to look round all the different places you travel to but it’s still a great job. You meet lots of really interesting people and you have a good laugh with the people you work with.

F   It’s the best job in the world, I’m sure, though not if you want to earn a lot of money. It’s wonderful to work with children and to see them developing, learning how to use their bodies and their minds.

F   Aren’t they a bit of a handful at times, though?

F   Well, yes, they can be, of course, but you get used to dealing with them. I think I like teaching so much because you are always learning something new yourself.

F   Yes, that must be good, I guess.

M   I was never that good at schoolwork but I love doing things with my hands. I’d hate to have a job that wasn’t creative – something that just involved shuffling pieces of paper around is certainly not for me. It takes a long time to learn to be really good at working with wood but I’m getting much better and learning by doing is a very different kettle of fish from book study.

F   I never really planned to work in an insurance office. I just saw the job advert and went for it. Sometimes the work can be a bit tedious but the pay’s good and I get a really nice company car and a decent holiday allowance. And I like my colleagues – most of them at least. I have quite a lot of contact with the public – that can be a bit of a mixed blessing!

F   I’m a travel journalist. I work freelance so sometimes I have loads of money …

M   … and sometimes you don’t!

F   That’s right. But that’s compensated for by the fact that I have control over my own time. I suppose I miss contact with colleagues sometimes but it’s fantastic not to be at the beck and call of a boss all the time. I can work where and how I want to.

24 C   25 A   26 C   27 A   28 B   29 A   30 B

Audioscript

M   In our programme this week we are going to talk to an expert on consumer affairs, Tania Brown. Tania used to work for a consumer rights organisation. She now writes a weekly column for a popular women’s magazine. Tania, we get a lot of letters and emails from listeners asking us how to complain effectively when you’ve bought something that goes wrong or you are given really poor service. Rebecca from Oxford, for example, bought an expensive dress for a ball and one seam came undone the first time she tried it on at home. So, Tania, what’s the first piece of advice you would give Rebecca?

F   Well, the first thing is to be absolutely clear about what she wants to happen when she complains. Does she want her money back? Does she want to exchange the dress? Does she want it repaired? If she’s not totally sure yet what exactly she wants there are people she can talk things over with?

M   You mean a friend of her mum.

F   Well, yes, of course, that’s possible though I was actually thinking of organisations that could help her clarify her thoughts. Places like the Citizens’ Advice Bureau, for example. They can often be more objective than someone closer to you.

M   Anything else it can be useful to discuss in advance?

F   Certainly. You need to think about how you’re going to complain. Would it be better to do it in person, by letter or by phone? Larger companies often have a formal complaints procedure so ring them to find out what it is before you go any further. If you make a phone call at any stage in the process, though, make sure you find out who you are speaking to and note down exactly what you were told. A good record can make things much easier for you later on.

M   I must say I usually prefer to do anything official by letter. Then you can say exactly what you want to and you’ve got a record of what you said too. So have you any advice on letters of complaint?

F   Well, yes. First of all, it’s usually better to type rather than hand-write. It looks much more professional. If typing is not possible for you, then make sure your hand-writing is neat and clear. Find out the name of the person you should be writing to in advance – it’s much better to write to a named person than a faceless department if you possibly can. Provide all the necessary information as concisely as you can. Make it clear what you want to happen as a result of your letter and set a fixed time for the response.

M   Wouldn’t that antagonise the person you are writing to?

F   I don’t think so. It shows you are well organised and you mean business. Of course, it’s best to be as objective as you can and to avoid throwing insults around at this stage.

M   Well, that’s a lot of very useful and practical advice, Tania. I’m sure it’s helped Rebecca and many others like her …