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TS51
Covent Garden
Covent Garden used to be London's biggest market. For 200 years, Londoners bought their fruit and vegetables there. But in 1974 the market moved to another part of London, and Covent Garden is now the best place in London for free performances. You can see magicians, jugglers, mime artists, singers and musicians — all for nothing. It's also a great place for shopping. Clothes shops, music stores, art and design — you can find it all in the Central Piazza or in the streets nearby. It's going to change soon however. The Royal Opera House is going to become much bigger and some shops will disappear. Will Covent Garden lose its character? We will soon find out.
TS 52
The Other Side of London
Scene 1. (Studio.)
Speaker. You probably don't ever see them. But they are close and have their own lives
which we know nothing about. Scene 2. (A London street.)
Reporter. We are talking about animals in London, and more particularly — about wild animals. Here, next to me, is John Brown. He states he saw a wild fox in this place last night. But none of his friends believes him.
John: I was going home after a concert. There was nobody in the street and suddenly I saw a dog. You know, at first I thought it was a dog. But it looked really strange. I paid attention to the tail and the ears and understood that it wasn't a dog at all — it was a fox. I came home and called the Zoo. I thought it had run away from them. But they said all their foxes were safe in their cages. Then I called you.
Scene 3. (Zoo.)
Reporter: We decided to ask a specialist in foxes from London Zoo, Mr Brian Smith. Do you think John really saw a wild fox? Is it possible in such a big city as London?
Brian Smith: Many people think London hasn't got any wild life because it's a big city. Well, that isn't true. Foxes are very common in London. They look like small brown dogs but they can hear better than any dog. They can hear the sound of an earthworm moving under the ground. Earthworms and small animals are their main food. Foxes can see better in the dark than most other animals — their eyes are specially adapted — so you usually find them in the evening or at night.
Scene 4. (A London street.)
Reporter: We asked people in the street what they think about having wild animals in
such a city as London. Here's what they say. Woman: I think it's great that they are still here. It means that London is a live city. It's
not just all machines and electronics. I think we should be happy about it. Scene 5. (Studio.)
Speaker: As you see, there is other life around us which we don't know anything about.
TS 53
London Eye
The British Airways London Eye, sometimes called the Millennium Wheel, is the first-built and largest observation wheel in the world since the end of 1999. It is 135 metres high. The wheel has 32 closed and air conditioned passenger capsules. It moves at about 0.9 km/h so that one round takes about 30 minutes. The wheel does not usually stop to take on passengers; the movement is so slow that passengers can easily walk on and off the moving capsules. But it is stopped to give disabled or elderly passengers time to get off safely. Since its opening, the Eye has become one of the main tourist attractions.
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