English Recordings

How stressed are these people?

Professor Parker, a stress expert from the University of London, looks at typical day of two people and tries to help...

Louisa works as a guide at the National Gallery in London and lives with her son George, aged 9.

6.30 - I get up and I make George’s sandwiches. Then I do some housework. Then I wake George up and make his breakfast. I’m always in a hurry and I don’t have time for breakfast at home.

8.00 - We cycle to school because the bus is expensive. Then I cycle six miles to work.

9.00 - I have a sandwich for breakfast in the canteen, and then I start work. My first tour is usually at 9.30. I like my job but I don’t earn much money and I stand all day.

5.00 - I finish work and I go to pick up George at 5.30. We go shopping.

6.30 - I cook dinner and help George with his homework. After dinner I do more housework or answer e-mails until 9.00. I don’t go out in the evening because a babysitter is very expensive.

9.00 - George goes to bed and I read him a story. Then I go to bed - I’m really tired!

Professor Parker’s advise: Have breakfast with your son. Do all the housework in the evening. Don’t cycle, get the bus. It’s important to see other people. Invite a friend for a drink once a week.

How stressed are these people?

Professor Parker, a stress expert from the University of London, looks a typical day of two people and tries to help...

Louisa works as a guide at the National Gallery in London and lives with her son George, aged 9.

6.30 - I get up and I make George’s sandwiches. Then I do some housework. Then I wake George up and make his breakfast. I’m always in a hurry and I don’t have time for breakfast at home.

8.00 - We cycle to school because the bus is expensive. Then I cycle six miles to work.

9.00 - I have a sandwich for breakfast in the canteen, and then I start work. My first tour is usually at 9.30. I like my job but I don’t earn much money and I stand all day.

5.00 - I finish work and I go to pick up George at 5.30. We go shopping.

6.30 - I cook dinner and help George with his homework. After dinner I do more housework or answer e-mails until 9.00. I don’t go out in the evening because a babysitter is very expensive.

9.00 - George goes to bed and I read him a story. Then I go to bed - I’m really tired!

Professor Parker’s advise: Have breakfast with your son. Do all the housework in the evening. Don’t cycle, get the bus. It’s important to see other people. Invite a friend for a drink once a week.

Don’t go to the gym this winter!

We all know that exercise is good for health. So on January the 1st we often start the New Year with a good resolution: to go to the gym three times a week. But what happens? The first week we go three times a week, the second we go twice, and the third week we stop going. The same thing happens with diets. After Christmas we start a new health eating plan. We are very enthusiastic at first – but after only three weeks, we stop.

Carl Harris, a personal trainer, says this is because winter is the wrong time of the year to start new exercise routines and diets. “In the winter the days are short and dark, and it’s cold outside. Our bodies want food and sleep, not diets and exercise.” His advice for people who want to start a healthy lifestyle in January is to make small changes. “Try to cut out chocolates and cakes for three days a week – but don’t eliminate them completely. Go for short walks during the day, when it’s light. But when March comes and spring begins, that’s the time to get up at 7:00, have a yogurt and juice for breakfast, and go jogging!”

Don’t go to the gym this winter!

We all know that exercise is good for health. So on January 1st we often start the New Year with a good resolution: to go to the gym three times a week. But what happens? The first week we go three times a week, the second we go twice, and the third week we stop going. The same thing happens with diets. After Christmas we start a new health eating plan. We are very enthusiastic at first – but after only three weeks, we stop.

Carl Harris, a personal trainer, says this is because winter is the wrong time of the year to start new exercise routines and diets. “In the winter the days are short and dark, and it’s cold outside. Our body wants food and sleep, not diets and exercise.” His advice for people who want to start a healthy lifestyle in January is to make small changes. “Try to cut out chocolates and cakes for three days a week – but don’t eliminate them completely. Go for short walks during the day, when it’s light. But when March comes and spring begins, that’s the time to get up at 7:00, have a yogurt and juice for breakfast, and go jogging!”

Don’t go to the gym this winter!

We all know that exercise is good for health. So on January 1st we often start the New Year with a good resolution: to go to the gym three times a week. But what happens? The first week we go three times a week, the second we go twice, and the third week we stop going. The same thing happens with diets. After Christmas we start a new health eating plan. We are very enthusiastic at first – but after only three weeks, we stop.

Carl Harris, a personal trainer, says this is because winter is the wrong time of the year to start new exercise routines and diets. “In the winter the days are short and dark, and it’s cold outside. Our body wants food and sleep, not diets and exercise.” His advice for people who want to start a healthy lifestyle in January is to make small changes. “Try to cut out chocolates and cakes for three days a week – but don’t eliminate them completely. Go for short walks during the day, when it’s light. But when March comes and spring begins, that’s the time to get up at 7:00, have a yogurt and juice for breakfast, and go jogging!”

Don’t go to the gym this winter!

We all know that exercise is good for health. So on January 1st we often start the New Year with a good resolution: to go to the gym three times a week. But what happens? The first week we go three times a week, the second we go twice, and the third week we stop going. The same thing happens with diets. After Christmas we start a new health eating plan. We are very enthusiastic at first – but after only three weeks, we stop.

Carl Harris, a personal trainer, says this is because winter is the wrong time of the year to start new exercise routines and diets. “In the winter the days are short and dark, and it’s cold outside. Our body wants food and sleep, not diets and exercise.” His advice for people who want to start a healthy lifestyle in January is to make small changes. “Try to cut out chocolates and cakes for three days a week – but don’t eliminate them completely. Go for short walks during the day, when it’s light. But when March comes and spring begins, that’s the time to get up at 7:00, have a yogurt and juice for breakfast, and go jogging!”

Don’t go to the gym this winter!

We all know that exercise is good for health. So on January 1st we often start the New Year with a good resolution: to go to the gym three times a week. But what happens? The first week we go three times a week, the second we go twice, and the third week we stop going. The same thing happens with diets. After Christmas we start a new healthy eating plan. We are very enthusiastic at first – but after only three weeks, we stop.

Carl Harris, a personal trainer, says this is because winter is the wrong time of the year to start new exercise routines and diets. “In the winter the days are short and dark, and it’s cold outside. Our bodies want food and sleep, not diets and exercise.” His advice for people who want to start a healthy lifestyle in January is to make small changes. “Try to cut out chocolates and cakes for three days a week – but don’t eliminate them completely. Go for short walks during the day, when it’s light. But when March comes and spring begins, that’s the time to get up at 7:00, have a yogurt and juice for breakfast, and go jogging!”

Don’t go to the gym this winter!

We all know that exercise is good for health. So on January 1st we often start the New Year with a good resolution: to go to the gym three times a week. But what happens? The first week we go three times a week, the second we go twice, and the third week we stop going. The same thing happens with diets. After Christmas we start a new healthy eating plan. We are very enthusiastic at first – but after only three weeks, we stop.

Carl Harris, a personal trainer, says this is because winter is the wrong time of the year to start new exercise routines and diets. “In the winter the days are short and dark, and it’s cold outside. Our bodies want food and sleep, not diets and exercise.” His advice for people who want to start a healthy lifestyle in January is to make small changes. “Try to cut out chocolates and cakes for three days a week – but don’t eliminate them completely. Go for short walks during the day, when it’s light. But when March comes and spring begins, that’s the time to get up at 7:00, have a yogurt and juice for breakfast, and go jogging!”

Five classic love stories – Which one is yours?

There are many romantic films, but there are only five basic types of love story: First love, obsession, teacher and student, rich and poor, and sacrifice. Here are some examples from Hollywood…

1 – My Fair Lady
She is a poor girl who sells flowers and he is a university professor. He teaches her to speak English like a “princess”. She falls in love with him but he thinks she is only an interesting student. She gets angry and she leaves him. In the end he says he loves her.

2 – An Officer and a Gentleman
He’s an American Marine. He wants to be an officer. She works in a factory. Her family is very poor. They go out together, and they fall in love. She wants to get married, but he’s very ambitious, and he leaves her. In the end, though, he can’t live without her, and he comes back to the factory for her.

3 – Fatal Attraction
He’s a happy family man. He meets a woman at work. They have a passionate love affair. He wants to end it, but she doesn’t want to stop. She follows him everywhere, and makes his life impossible. In the end his wife kills her.

4 – Romeo and Juliet
They are very young. He meets her at a party and they fall in love, but his family hates her family. They spend one night together. She says ‘I love you but our love is impossible’. They want to go away and get married, but in the end they die.

5 – The Bridges of Madison County
She is a housewife, married with two children. Her family goes away for the weekend. A man stops at her house. They fall in love. He says ‘Let’s get married’, but she loves her children and she can’t leave them. In the end he goes away and she stays with her husband, but she never forgets him, and he never forgets her.

He returned from Dachau

- On tonight's programme we welcome Mrs Brown, the founder member of the Guardian Angels, an organization set up to protect citizens on the often dangerous subways of New york. We also welcome Mrs Kitchen of the London Metropolitan Police. Firstly Mrs Brown, do you really believe the Guardian Angels have protected people in the subways?
- Yes, I do. Many people who used to be too frightened to use the subways now use them in confidence, knowing that the Angels are there to protect them.
- That's all very well, but the Guardian Angels are only amateurs trying to do the jobs of trained policemen.
- You're wrong there! The Guardian Angels go through rigorous daily training and are probably fitter than your policemen. Although unarmed, the men are all masters of the art of self-defence and remember, the protection of citizens is not accomplished through the use of guns alone.
- I still think the British public prefer to see a uniformed policeman on the street. Why don't you just go back to America?
- This visit to Britain is to show how effective we are and to encourage the Brits to set up their own groups. Of course, we might be more effective if we had the co-operation of the police.

Before I finish school, I would like to study abroad to learn another language and experience another culture. I'm really interested in studying Japanese, so I might apply for a program in Japan. Of course, I need to earn enough money to pay for tuition and living expenses, but I think that I first need to pick up a little of the language and learn something about the country so I can adjust quickly to the culture. Such an experience should help me develop an understanding of others---the way they live, think, and believe--and this knowledge should help me in my future career.