Cat CDZ

Read the text and mark the sentences True/False/Not Stated. Marathons Many Americans enjoy running marathons – a forty-two kilometer race. More than three hundred marathons were held in the United States last year and that number is expected to grow. The New York City marathon is held every year on the first Sunday of November. It is a big sporting event with thousands of participants. One can see celebrities and famous sportsmen among the marathon runners. A famous cyclist, whose excellent physical condition helped him complete the marathon in less than three hours, admitted that the race was ‘the hardest physical thing he had ever done’. While the New York City marathon is the biggest, the Boston Marathon is the oldest one. Boston’s is held in April. Boston is famous for the fact that Roberta Gibb became the first woman to unofficially run that marathon in 1966. At that time, people did not believe women could run marathons. The Olympics did not hold a women’s marathon event until 1984 in Los Angeles, California. Today’s marathons welcome everyone. The popularity of the sport has spread among people who are interested in health and fitness. Many middle-aged people like to spend a weekend visiting a new city and running a marathon there. Some magazines call the middle-aged people of today the ‘marathon generation’. Forty-three percent of marathon runners in the United States are 40 years old or older. There are many organisations for marathoners. Nowadays many local running clubs offer training programmes that can prepare runners for the big race. A marathon really starts several months before the race. You need to run about five days every week to prepare. Most runs should be for half an hour. You should also try to run for an hour or more each Sunday. This is a very basic way for an average runner to prepare. What you can’t prepare for is running in a big marathon with thousands of other participants. A marathon is in many ways a social event. There is a sense of community. The spectators are as much a part of the race as the runners. Almost every age group is present. At the start of the race there is a lot of shouting as the runners want to release some tension. They have three to five hours of hard running ahead of them. However, there are people who want to run farther. For them ultra-marathons are organised that take running to a different level. An ultra-marathon is any race longer than a marathon. One of the oldest ultra-marathons is held annually in California, USA. It is 160 kilometers long. Last year, 210 people finished the race. The winner, Graham Cooper, finished in eighteen hours and seventeen minutes. 3. In the 20th century doctors believed that marathons were harmful for women.

Read the text and mark the sentence TRUE, FALSE or NOT STATED. Glastonbury Festival is one of the largest open-air music and art festivals in the world. It became an example which other festivals followed. Of course, Glastonbury is best known for modern music, but its program also includes dance, comedy, theatre, circus and other arts. The festival organizer, Michael Eavis, was a common farmer. In 1970 he visited an open-air concert which greatly impressed him. So, he decided to organize a big festival outdoors in the same year. He knew, it wouldn’t bring any money, but it didn’t matter. At the first festival there were more than one thousand people. Each of them paid £1 for the ticket. The price also included free milk from the farm. Later on, the festival took place almost every year and grew in size and audience. The festival takes place in southwest England on a farm. It’s a beautiful and mystical place called the Valley of Avalon. It is surrounded with a lot of legends, symbols, myths, and religious traditions dating back many hundreds of years. Legends say that here King Arthur’s sword was made and the king himself was buried there. No wonder that the main stage of the festival, Pyramid Stage, has the form of a pyramid. Many believe that this is a very powerful structure, which gets energy from the stars and gives it to people. In many ways, Glastonbury is like a mix of different festivals, which take place in the countryside and last for a weekend. Each area of the festival has its own character, its own fans and its own special attractions. For example, dance lovers go to the Dance Village. There is also a big cinema area, Theatre and Circus. Children can have fun in the Kids’ Field. Some people spend the whole weekend in their favourite area. However, most of them prefer walking about and trying lots of different things. Most people who stay at Glastonbury Festival live in tents. There are lots of different camping areas, each one with its own atmosphere. You can choose where to stay: in a quiet place or a lively one. There are also places for families and disabled people. Anyway, you should remember to bring a tent with you. Of course, it’s possible to rent one, but it’s quite expensive. Glastonbury Festival supports Greenpeace and has a number of programs. There are hundreds of rubbish bins on the territory. All cans, glass, paper, electrical and electronic equipment, wood and waste are separated and recycled. Visitors are asked to clean after themselves and not to leave rubbish. The festival supports those who come by public transport or by bicycle, not by car. If you’re thinking about visiting Glastonbury, you should book tickets in advance. Today an average ticket is about £200 for three days which is quite expensive. Nevertheless, the tickets are sold out in two or three hours. So be quick to catch them. There are usually more people wishing to get to the festival than tickets. Michael Eavis was fond of country music.

Read the text and mark the sentence TRUE, FALSE or NOT STATED. Glastonbury Festival is one of the largest open-air music and art festivals in the world. It became an example which other festivals followed. Of course, Glastonbury is best known for modern music, but its program also includes dance, comedy, theatre, circus and other arts. The festival organizer, Michael Eavis, was a common farmer. In 1970 he visited an open-air concert which greatly impressed him. So, he decided to organize a big festival outdoors in the same year. He knew, it wouldn’t bring any money, but it didn’t matter. At the first festival there were more than one thousand people. Each of them paid £1 for the ticket. The price also included free milk from the farm. Later on, the festival took place almost every year and grew in size and audience. The festival takes place in southwest England on a farm. It’s a beautiful and mystical place called the Valley of Avalon. It is surrounded with a lot of legends, symbols, myths, and religious traditions dating back many hundreds of years. Legends say that here King Arthur’s sword was made and the king himself was buried there. No wonder that the main stage of the festival, Pyramid Stage, has the form of a pyramid. Many believe that this is a very powerful structure, which gets energy from the stars and gives it to people. In many ways, Glastonbury is like a mix of different festivals, which take place in the countryside and last for a weekend. Each area of the festival has its own character, its own fans and its own special attractions. For example, dance lovers go to the Dance Village. There is also a big cinema area, Theatre and Circus. Children can have fun in the Kids’ Field. Some people spend the whole weekend in their favourite area. However, most of them prefer walking about and trying lots of different things. Most people who stay at Glastonbury Festival live in tents. There are lots of different camping areas, each one with its own atmosphere. You can choose where to stay: in a quiet place or a lively one. There are also places for families and disabled people. Anyway, you should remember to bring a tent with you. Of course, it’s possible to rent one, but it’s quite expensive. Glastonbury Festival supports Greenpeace and has a number of programs. There are hundreds of rubbish bins on the territory. All cans, glass, paper, electrical and electronic equipment, wood and waste are separated and recycled. Visitors are asked to clean after themselves and not to leave rubbish. The festival supports those who come by public transport or by bicycle, not by car. If you’re thinking about visiting Glastonbury, you should book tickets in advance. Today an average ticket is about £200 for three days which is quite expensive. Nevertheless, the tickets are sold out in two or three hours. So be quick to catch them. There are usually more people wishing to get to the festival than tickets. Michael Eavis started the festival to earn money.

Read the text and mark the sentence TRUE, FALSE or NOT STATED. Glastonbury Festival is one of the largest open-air music and art festivals in the world. It became an example which other festivals followed. Of course, Glastonbury is best known for modern music, but its program also includes dance, comedy, theatre, circus and other arts. The festival organizer, Michael Eavis, was a common farmer. In 1970 he visited an open-air concert which greatly impressed him. So, he decided to organize a big festival outdoors in the same year. He knew, it wouldn’t bring any money, but it didn’t matter. At the first festival there were more than one thousand people. Each of them paid £1 for the ticket. The price also included free milk from the farm. Later on, the festival took place almost every year and grew in size and audience. The festival takes place in southwest England on a farm. It’s a beautiful and mystical place called the Valley of Avalon. It is surrounded with a lot of legends, symbols, myths, and religious traditions dating back many hundreds of years. Legends say that here King Arthur’s sword was made and the king himself was buried there. No wonder that the main stage of the festival, Pyramid Stage, has the form of a pyramid. Many believe that this is a very powerful structure, which gets energy from the stars and gives it to people. In many ways, Glastonbury is like a mix of different festivals, which take place in the countryside and last for a weekend. Each area of the festival has its own character, its own fans and its own special attractions. For example, dance lovers go to the Dance Village. There is also a big cinema area, Theatre and Circus. Children can have fun in the Kids’ Field. Some people spend the whole weekend in their favourite area. However, most of them prefer walking about and trying lots of different things. Most people who stay at Glastonbury Festival live in tents. There are lots of different camping areas, each one with its own atmosphere. You can choose where to stay: in a quiet place or a lively one. There are also places for families and disabled people. Anyway, you should remember to bring a tent with you. Of course, it’s possible to rent one, but it’s quite expensive. Glastonbury Festival supports Greenpeace and has a number of programs. There are hundreds of rubbish bins on the territory. All cans, glass, paper, electrical and electronic equipment, wood and waste are separated and recycled. Visitors are asked to clean after themselves and not to leave rubbish. The festival supports those who come by public transport or by bicycle, not by car. If you’re thinking about visiting Glastonbury, you should book tickets in advance. Today an average ticket is about £200 for three days which is quite expensive. Nevertheless, the tickets are sold out in two or three hours. So be quick to catch them. There are usually more people wishing to get to the festival than tickets. Nowadays Glastonbury festival is held in King Arthur’s museum.

Read the text and mark the sentence TRUE, FALSE or NOT STATED. Glastonbury Festival is one of the largest open-air music and art festivals in the world. It became an example which other festivals followed. Of course, Glastonbury is best known for modern music, but its program also includes dance, comedy, theatre, circus and other arts. The festival organizer, Michael Eavis, was a common farmer. In 1970 he visited an open-air concert which greatly impressed him. So, he decided to organize a big festival outdoors in the same year. He knew, it wouldn’t bring any money, but it didn’t matter. At the first festival there were more than one thousand people. Each of them paid £1 for the ticket. The price also included free milk from the farm. Later on, the festival took place almost every year and grew in size and audience. The festival takes place in southwest England on a farm. It’s a beautiful and mystical place called the Valley of Avalon. It is surrounded with a lot of legends, symbols, myths, and religious traditions dating back many hundreds of years. Legends say that here King Arthur’s sword was made and the king himself was buried there. No wonder that the main stage of the festival, Pyramid Stage, has the form of a pyramid. Many believe that this is a very powerful structure, which gets energy from the stars and gives it to people. In many ways, Glastonbury is like a mix of different festivals, which take place in the countryside and last for a weekend. Each area of the festival has its own character, its own fans and its own special attractions. For example, dance lovers go to the Dance Village. There is also a big cinema area, Theatre and Circus. Children can have fun in the Kids’ Field. Some people spend the whole weekend in their favourite area. However, most of them prefer walking about and trying lots of different things. Most people who stay at Glastonbury Festival live in tents. There are lots of different camping areas, each one with its own atmosphere. You can choose where to stay: in a quiet place or a lively one. There are also places for families and disabled people. Anyway, you should remember to bring a tent with you. Of course, it’s possible to rent one, but it’s quite expensive. Glastonbury Festival supports Greenpeace and has a number of programs. There are hundreds of rubbish bins on the territory. All cans, glass, paper, electrical and electronic equipment, wood and waste are separated and recycled. Visitors are asked to clean after themselves and not to leave rubbish. The festival supports those who come by public transport or by bicycle, not by car. If you’re thinking about visiting Glastonbury, you should book tickets in advance. Today an average ticket is about £200 for three days which is quite expensive. Nevertheless, the tickets are sold out in two or three hours. So be quick to catch them. There are usually more people wishing to get to the festival than tickets. Famous musicians and singers take part in Glastonbury Festival.

Read the text and mark the sentence TRUE, FALSE or NOT STATED. Glastonbury Festival is one of the largest open-air music and art festivals in the world. It became an example which other festivals followed. Of course, Glastonbury is best known for modern music, but its program also includes dance, comedy, theatre, circus and other arts. The festival organizer, Michael Eavis, was a common farmer. In 1970 he visited an open-air concert which greatly impressed him. So, he decided to organize a big festival outdoors in the same year. He knew, it wouldn’t bring any money, but it didn’t matter. At the first festival there were more than one thousand people. Each of them paid £1 for the ticket. The price also included free milk from the farm. Later on, the festival took place almost every year and grew in size and audience. The festival takes place in southwest England on a farm. It’s a beautiful and mystical place called the Valley of Avalon. It is surrounded with a lot of legends, symbols, myths, and religious traditions dating back many hundreds of years. Legends say that here King Arthur’s sword was made and the king himself was buried there. No wonder that the main stage of the festival, Pyramid Stage, has the form of a pyramid. Many believe that this is a very powerful structure, which gets energy from the stars and gives it to people. In many ways, Glastonbury is like a mix of different festivals, which take place in the countryside and last for a weekend. Each area of the festival has its own character, its own fans and its own special attractions. For example, dance lovers go to the Dance Village. There is also a big cinema area, Theatre and Circus. Children can have fun in the Kids’ Field. Some people spend the whole weekend in their favourite area. However, most of them prefer walking about and trying lots of different things. Most people who stay at Glastonbury Festival live in tents. There are lots of different camping areas, each one with its own atmosphere. You can choose where to stay: in a quiet place or a lively one. There are also places for families and disabled people. Anyway, you should remember to bring a tent with you. Of course, it’s possible to rent one, but it’s quite expensive. Glastonbury Festival supports Greenpeace and has a number of programs. There are hundreds of rubbish bins on the territory. All cans, glass, paper, electrical and electronic equipment, wood and waste are separated and recycled. Visitors are asked to clean after themselves and not to leave rubbish. The festival supports those who come by public transport or by bicycle, not by car. If you’re thinking about visiting Glastonbury, you should book tickets in advance. Today an average ticket is about £200 for three days which is quite expensive. Nevertheless, the tickets are sold out in two or three hours. So be quick to catch them. There are usually more people wishing to get to the festival than tickets. During the festival all the visitors stay in the nearby country inns.

Read the text and mark the sentence TRUE, FALSE or NOT STATED. Glastonbury Festival is one of the largest open-air music and art festivals in the world. It became an example which other festivals followed. Of course, Glastonbury is best known for modern music, but its program also includes dance, comedy, theatre, circus and other arts. The festival organizer, Michael Eavis, was a common farmer. In 1970 he visited an open-air concert which greatly impressed him. So, he decided to organize a big festival outdoors in the same year. He knew, it wouldn’t bring any money, but it didn’t matter. At the first festival there were more than one thousand people. Each of them paid £1 for the ticket. The price also included free milk from the farm. Later on, the festival took place almost every year and grew in size and audience. The festival takes place in southwest England on a farm. It’s a beautiful and mystical place called the Valley of Avalon. It is surrounded with a lot of legends, symbols, myths, and religious traditions dating back many hundreds of years. Legends say that here King Arthur’s sword was made and the king himself was buried there. No wonder that the main stage of the festival, Pyramid Stage, has the form of a pyramid. Many believe that this is a very powerful structure, which gets energy from the stars and gives it to people. In many ways, Glastonbury is like a mix of different festivals, which take place in the countryside and last for a weekend. Each area of the festival has its own character, its own fans and its own special attractions. For example, dance lovers go to the Dance Village. There is also a big cinema area, Theatre and Circus. Children can have fun in the Kids’ Field. Some people spend the whole weekend in their favourite area. However, most of them prefer walking about and trying lots of different things. Most people who stay at Glastonbury Festival live in tents. There are lots of different camping areas, each one with its own atmosphere. You can choose where to stay: in a quiet place or a lively one. There are also places for families and disabled people. Anyway, you should remember to bring a tent with you. Of course, it’s possible to rent one, but it’s quite expensive. Glastonbury Festival supports Greenpeace and has a number of programs. There are hundreds of rubbish bins on the territory. All cans, glass, paper, electrical and electronic equipment, wood and waste are separated and recycled. Visitors are asked to clean after themselves and not to leave rubbish. The festival supports those who come by public transport or by bicycle, not by car. If you’re thinking about visiting Glastonbury, you should book tickets in advance. Today an average ticket is about £200 for three days which is quite expensive. Nevertheless, the tickets are sold out in two or three hours. So be quick to catch them. There are usually more people wishing to get to the festival than tickets. Glastonbury Festival is an environmentally-friendly event.

Read the text and mark the sentence TRUE, FALSE or NOT STATED. Glastonbury Festival is one of the largest open-air music and art festivals in the world. It became an example which other festivals followed. Of course, Glastonbury is best known for modern music, but its program also includes dance, comedy, theatre, circus and other arts. The festival organizer, Michael Eavis, was a common farmer. In 1970 he visited an open-air concert which greatly impressed him. So, he decided to organize a big festival outdoors in the same year. He knew, it wouldn’t bring any money, but it didn’t matter. At the first festival there were more than one thousand people. Each of them paid £1 for the ticket. The price also included free milk from the farm. Later on, the festival took place almost every year and grew in size and audience. The festival takes place in southwest England on a farm. It’s a beautiful and mystical place called the Valley of Avalon. It is surrounded with a lot of legends, symbols, myths, and religious traditions dating back many hundreds of years. Legends say that here King Arthur’s sword was made and the king himself was buried there. No wonder that the main stage of the festival, Pyramid Stage, has the form of a pyramid. Many believe that this is a very powerful structure, which gets energy from the stars and gives it to people. In many ways, Glastonbury is like a mix of different festivals, which take place in the countryside and last for a weekend. Each area of the festival has its own character, its own fans and its own special attractions. For example, dance lovers go to the Dance Village. There is also a big cinema area, Theatre and Circus. Children can have fun in the Kids’ Field. Some people spend the whole weekend in their favourite area. However, most of them prefer walking about and trying lots of different things. Most people who stay at Glastonbury Festival live in tents. There are lots of different camping areas, each one with its own atmosphere. You can choose where to stay: in a quiet place or a lively one. There are also places for families and disabled people. Anyway, you should remember to bring a tent with you. Of course, it’s possible to rent one, but it’s quite expensive. Glastonbury Festival supports Greenpeace and has a number of programs. There are hundreds of rubbish bins on the territory. All cans, glass, paper, electrical and electronic equipment, wood and waste are separated and recycled. Visitors are asked to clean after themselves and not to leave rubbish. The festival supports those who come by public transport or by bicycle, not by car. If you’re thinking about visiting Glastonbury, you should book tickets in advance. Today an average ticket is about £200 for three days which is quite expensive. Nevertheless, the tickets are sold out in two or three hours. So be quick to catch them. There are usually more people wishing to get to the festival than tickets. It’s recommended to reserve tickets to Glastonbury Festival beforehand.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Hanami A Flowering Celebration! The beginning of spring (March-ApriI) is a very special time in Japan, because this is when Japan's famous cherry trees come into flower. The Japanese celebrate this happy time with festivals and flower-viewing parties. At the end of winter, everyone’s excitement starts to grow. The whole country wants to know the exact day when the cherry flowers ('sakura') will appear. Starting in February, weathermen try to guess when this day will be. When the first flowers open on the trees, national joy breaks out! There are rides and games for children in the street, music and dance performances, tea ceremonies, flower displays, and much more. But the most special thing that people do at this time is have 'hanami' parties. Hanami means flower watching. In hanami parties, families and friends take a picnic and go and sit under a cherry tree to Iook at and admire the flowers. Hanami parties take place during the daytime and also at night, because when it is dark, lights light up the cherry trees. Hanami is very important to the Japanese. Cherry blossoms appear on trees for only one week before they fall to the ground and die, and for the Japanese this symbolises the short nature of childhood and life. So hanami is a time when Japanese people Iike to think about how important Iife is.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Las Fallas Valencia, Spain, is a town of under a million people, but from 15th to 19th of March it is full of visitors; almost three million of them! The reason is Las Fallas, which means 'the fires' in Valencian. This is the local festival that celebrates the end of winter. Preparations for the festival last for over six months, as hundreds of people are busy constructing extremely big floats, called 'ninots'. When it's close to the time of the festival, they place the 'ninots' at different places around the city. When the festival begins, the city becomes one big, celebratory street party! Happy people in funny-looking, colourful outfits or traditional costumes spend the days and nights exploding smoke bombs and firecrackers and dancing to loud music. There are also very beautiful fireworks displays every night. The festival ends on the night of 19th March, when people burn the 'ninots'. Las Fallas is truly an amazing celebration, which leaves anyone who has attended the festivities exhausted, but happy they were part of the fiesta.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. A Christmas Story Years ago, there was a very rich man whose main interest in life was collecting art. He was a widower, and he had a son who shared his father’s passion. They travelled together around the world, buying the finest pictures for their collection. War put an end to their travels. The young man left to serve his country. After a few weeks, his father got the news that the young man had died while taking a fellow soldier to hospital. Miserable and lonely, the old man thought about the upcoming Christmas holidays. On Christmas morning, a knock on the door awakened the depressed old man. As he opened the door, he saw a young soldier with a large package in his hand. “I was a friend of your son,” he said. “I was the one he was rescuing when he died. May I come in? I have something to show you.” The soldier told the old man how his son had saved his life and how everyone in the regiment loved and respected him. “I’m an artist,” said the soldier, “and I want to give you this.” He handed the package to the old man. The old man unwrapped the package and saw that it was a picture - a portrait of his son. The old man knew enough about art to understand that the picture was not the work of a genius, but his son’s face, his features, his expression... The likeness was striking. The painting of his son soon became his most prized possession. He valued it more than the pieces that museums around the world would be proud to have. The following spring, the old man became ill and died. As he had no relatives, all his paintings were to be sold at an auction. According to the old man’s will, the pictures had to be auctioned on Christmas Day, the day he received his greatest gift. Art collectors from around the world gathered to buy some of the world’s most famous paintings. The auction began with a painting that was not on any museum’s list. It was the painting of the man’s son. The auctioneer asked for an opening sum. The room was silent. “Who will start with $100?” he asked. No one spoke. Minutes passed. From the back of the room came, “Who cares about that painting? It’s just a picture of his son. Let’s forget it and go on to the good stuff.” “No, we have to sell this one first,” replied the auctioneer. “Now, who will take the son?” After a few minutes, a man stood up and said,“ I’m not an art collector, I just knew the father and the son, and I’d like to have the boy’s portrait if nobody wants it. But I have only ten dollars.” “Ten dollars. Will anyone go higher?” called the auctioneer. “Going once, going twice. And now the auction is over.” The room went quiet. Everybody looked at the auctioneer in disbelief. Then somebody asked, “What do you mean it’s over? We didn’t come here for a picture of some old man’s son painted by an artist nobody has heard of. What about all these paintings?” The auctioneer replied, “It’s very simple. According to the will of the father, whoever takes the son ... gets it all.”

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Two Candidates Mr. Stone was a very clever man whose thoughts were always on learning. When he applied for a post at Camford University, his friends had no doubts that he would get the job. Even though there were hundreds of candidates willing to try their luck, he made up his mind to take part in the contest. Arriving at Camford, a very small town, he learnt that the only hotel was already full. So, he had to stay in the same room with another candidate, a cheerful fellow called Adams, about twenty years younger than himself. The committee listened to all the candidates and only two of them, Mr. Stone and Mr. Adams, were chosen because it seemed impossible to decide who was more skillful. That is why, they were both asked to prepare a report on Ancient Greece and to give a lecture on the subject in three days’ time. Mr. Stone almost stopped eating and sleeping. He worked day and night, arranging his thoughts, writing out and learning his lecture by heart. As for Adams, he didn’t seem to do any preparation. He spent most of his time playing tennis and going to parties and did not return to his room till midnight. On the day of the lecture Mr. Stone, waiting for his turn to speak, discovered that his speech had disappeared. Turning his head, he saw Adams take the stolen speech out of his pocket and heard him read it to the audience. Adams read it so well that when he finished there was a storm of applause. Mr. Stone was too much upset to protest. So, when his turn came, he could only repeat the same speech word for word, in a low voice. When the committee went out to decide who the successful candidate was, everyone was sure what their choice would be. However, when the Dean gave Mr. Stone’s name at last, nobody could believe it! They all had admired Mr. Adams’s remarkable speech so much! Asked for explanation, the Dean said: “The reason why we have chosen Mr. Stone is that he was able to repeat from memory a brilliant lecture he had never heard before. What a memory must he have! And a fine memory is quite necessary for this post.” As they walked out of the room, the Dean came up to Mr. Stone and, shaking his hand, said: “Congratulations, Mr. Stone! However, let me give you a piece of advice. Be more careful and don’t leave valuable papers lying about!”

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Investing in Memories My uncle had a moustache, a good job in the Civil Service and used to smoke forty cigarettes a day. But when he organized day trips for our family he used to behave like a boy. Today, seventy years later, we still talk about the wonderful trips to the sea our uncle used to organize when we were children. He organized the trips very carefully. He used to buy the railway tickets and write special programmes long before the day arrived so we began to look forward to the trip. On the cover of the programme there was the name of the place we were visiting and a humorous drawing of everyone in the family. There was even a lucky number on each programme and the winner didn’t have to carry the bags on the way home. All through the day he organized games and competitions. In his view, all the games had to be slightly anti-social. So if the programme said “4pm: Annual Ladies v Gentlemen match”, the match would always take place, even if the beach was very crowded. He organized treasure hunts, modelling competitions with seaweed, shells and bits of wood from the beach, and other events. There would be a special prize for the winner of every competition, usually an old sporting cup from a local junk shop. He made sure that there were as many people on the top as possible, and invited neighbours and their children as well to join the family for the day. The fun started as soon as we left home. Even the walk down to the station in the morning used to involve a game (‘the first person to see a policeman gets a point’). One game we used to play in the car was called “I know that lady”. One of us would choose someone walking along the street, and as we approached, the driver sounded the car horn, and everybody waved. The woman wouldn’t understand why we were waving at her and would look puzzled. He never thought the money spent on a well-organized outing was wasted. When his wife complained about the cost of a family day out, he said, “Look, it’s not wasting money, it’s investing in memories.”

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Niccolo Paganini: Virtuoso or Devil He was the first superstar. His incredible technique — he could do miracles with his violin — and his unusual appearance tempted many of his admirers to whisper that he was the son of the devil. Although Niccolo Paganini was always the subject of rumours, the secret of his power was that he had worked hard since early childhood. Paganini was born in Genoa, Italy, on October 27, 1782. His father, Antonio Paganini raised his son with a hand of iron. He hoped that his son’s talent would bring the family fame and wealth, so he forced Niccolo to practise from morning to night. He drilled the boy constantly, even leaving him without food, if he didn’t play well enough. In 1797, Paganini started his concert tours. He earned enough money to support himself and he left home. He composed, he taught, he gave concerts. His violin could sound so soft and sweet that his audiences often burst into tears. People just couldn’t believe that a man could play like that. Paganini’s appearance seemed to support this opinion. He was tall and thin, and his long pale face, his eyes which were like flaming charcoals and his long curly hair looked a bit diabolic. Sometimes people crossed themselves if he accidentally touched them. Paganini became something of a legend. He enjoyed playing tricks at his concerts. In the middle of a piece, he would cut all of the strings except for one and continue just on the one string. Paganini made a lot of money during his career. But in 1836, he decided to open a casino — a “Casino Paganini” — in Paris. It was a failure and he lost almost all his money. Paganini’s health had always been weak and after that his illness grew worse. He died on May 27, 1840 in Nice, France. The church refused to allow him a burial on holy ground. Paganini’s son took his father’s body to Genoa, but they were not allowed to enter the city. Only five years after Paganini’s death, his son, by appealing directly to the Pope, received permission to bury the body of the great violinist in a village church.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Audrey Hepburn Audrey Kathleen van Heemstra Hepburn-Ruston was born in Brussels on May 4, 1929 in the family of a wealthy English banker and a Dutch baroness. She spent her early childhood travelling between England, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Her parents divorced when she was six. Then came the war. Her mother moved with Audrey to her parents’ home in the neutral Netherlands. The following year the country was invaded by the Nazis. It was a difficult time for the whole family. There was very little food. Audrey and her family had to dig vegetables from the hard frozen ground, for some time they survived on flour made from tulip bulbs. Audrey’s greatest love was music. She wanted to be a dancer, and she had studied dancing since she was five. In 1948 Audrey and her mother moved to London. Audrey went to a ballet school. She worked hard at her dancing. She had no time for boyfriends. But one day the ballet school teacher told her, ‘I’m sorry, but you’ll never be a famous dancer. You’re too tall.’ Audrey got upset but then something happened. She was given a small part in a big London musical. She quickly found jobs in other musicals. Everybody liked this thin girl with a pretty face and wide smile. When Audrey was twenty, she had small parts in several movies and during the filming of a movie she met a famous novelist and screenwriter Colette. Colette wanted to find a girl for the Broadway musical of her book, Gigi. When she saw Audrey, she said. ‘She is Gigi! Half-woman, half-boy.’ This role won Hepburn a Theatre World Award in 1952. The same year a Hollywood movie producer offered her the part of a princess in a big new movie, Roman Holiday. The film was a great success and Audrey won an Oscar for Best Actress. Audrey starred in about 30 films, among them were “War and Peace” (1956), “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961), “My Fair Lady” (1964), “How to Steal a Million” (1965). But she always made it clear that family was more important for her than work. She was married twice and had two sons. After her second son was born in 1970, she said: ‘I don’t want to make any more movies. I’m happy as a good wife and mother.’ However, her second marriage ended in divorce - just like the first one. Since 1970 Audrey lived a quiet life in her house in Switzerland raising her two sons. She only made two or three more movies, and they were not very successful. She made them because she needed money. When she became older, she wanted to do something more important with her life. She started to work for the United Nations. She was officially appointed UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. She visited the poorest and most dangerous countries in the world. In 1992 she travelled to Africa for the last time. When she came back, she was seriously ill. The doctors thought it was some infection, but it was cancer. On January 20, 1993 Audrey Hepburn died. She was sixty-four. Audrey was one of the few actresses who became the symbol of their time, whose look was imitated by thousands of girls. She became and stayed the symbol of elegance, glamour, charm, and grace. As one of film critics said ‘In this cruel and imperfect world Audrey was living proof that God could still create perfection.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. The Beatles Ask anyone, in any country, whether they are young or old, rich or poor, if they’ve heard of the Beatles and they will all say: ‘Yes, of course!’ Most people know the names of at least two members of the group; most likely, John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Some people may also know a few things about when they were very young. They probably know, for instance, that they were born in Liverpool, went to school there and that there were four members of the group. But that’s all that most people know about them. John Lennon started The Beatles. He was abandoned by his parents when he was a baby and caused lots of trouble at school. He was a great fan of American rock’n’roll and started his first band when he was at school. Paul McCartney went to see this band play in 1957 and joined it shortly afterwards. Lennon and McCartney soon became very close friends. McCartney’s talent impressed Lennon and Lennon’s knowledge of the world impressed McCartney. Soon they agreed that everything they wrote together or individually would be published under their joint names ‘Lennon-McCartney.’ They kept this agreement for nearly 15 years. George Harrison was the next person to join the group and, later, the drummer, Pete Best, who was replaced by Ringo Starr. The group had lots of different names when it started. They were originally called the Quarry Men, then Johnny & the Moondogs, and The Silver Beatles. They finally decided on the name Beatles with Lennon misspelling it on purpose to make the pun on ‘beat group’. In 1960, The Beatles spent four months playing at clubs in Hamburg, Germany. They worked really hard there and performed eight hours every night. This helped them to build up a really impressive act and they signed their first record deal in 1962. The Beatles’ enormous success, which followed immediately after their first record was released, was unbelievable. John Lennon later talked about what it was like to be a Beatle in the early days. He said they spent all their time in a car or in a hotel room, because they travelled by road so much all over the country and spent their time between gigs in hotels. The Beatles stopped touring everywhere shortly after 1964 and although they continued to compose and perform songs together, that was really the beginning of the end of the group. The Beatles formed their own music company called Apple and from 1966 to 1970 they produced many famous collections and songs which reflected the spirit of the time and which are still popular nowadays — songs such as ‘Hey Jude’ or ‘Let It Be’. And then, finally, the group split up. But that was not the end of their musical creativity. Lennon, for example, formed another band soon afterwards and wrote one of the most famous songs of all time: ‘Imagine’.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Charles Dickens Charles Dickens can be considered to be the first celebrity author in the world. He had become popular by the age of 25 and he was treated just like rock stars and movie stars are treated today. Everywhere he went, there were crowds of people cheering him, shaking his hand, and asking for his autograph. His fans in the US even cut bits of fur from his coat for souvenirs. He was so famous that when he died at the age of 58 he was buried at Westminster Abbey. A great novelist, short story writer, journalist, he was also an editor - and a father of 10 children! Dickens’s life was much like that of his many characters, a rags-to-riches story. Born in Portsmouth on the 7th of February, 1812, he was the second of eight children. When he was 10 years old, his family moved to London. But there were serious money problems and his father went to prison for debt. His family later joined him. It was common in those days for the family of a debtor to live with him in prison. Charles was taken out of school and sent to work in a blacking factory where he put labels on bottles of shoe polish. He worked long hours for very little money and lived away from his family, alone in London. Charles never forgot this. Even as a famous and successful adult, he carried a deep memory of the grief, humiliation and hopelessness he had felt. Later, he went to school again, and left it at 15 to become a reporter. His genius for describing comical characters and his anger about social injustice were soon noticed. In 1836, he began The Pickwick Papers. The book was so popular that by the age of 25 Charles was the most popular novelist in both Britain and America. Charles Dickens’s novels were funny and exciting, but they had a very serious message. He described the hard life of poor people and attacked injustice, hypocrisy and other social ills of Victorian England. He often wrote about real people and real events. His stories were so powerful that Parliament sometimes passed laws to change things for the better. For example, after publishing Nicholas Nickleby, some of the cruel boarding schools in England were closed down. London was Dickens’s muse. Throughout his life, he both loved and hated the city. When he was a boy, it filled him with horror and wonder. As a man, he regularly walked ten to twenty miles across the city, working out his plots. The city always inspired him, and when he was away from it he often found it difficult to work. He called it his ‘magic lantern,’ and it never failed to spark his imagination. Dickens is read and remembered today for the unique characters he created. Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Uriah Heep, Ebenezer Scrooge, and many, many more live in our memories as real people. When Dickens created his characters, he often ran to the mirror and acted out their movements and facial expressions. Probably that’s why they are so memorable. One of his most famous characters is Scrooge from A Christmas Carol. Today, this name is part of the English language: we often call a mean person a ‘scrooge’. Dickens is as popular today as he was during his lifetime. To mark his birthday, there are celebrations all over the English-speaking world — performances, exhibitions, festivals and even parades!

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Nostradamus, the Prophet Was a man living in the 16th century able to predict the French Revolution, World War II and that Man would walk on the Moon? The answer is ‘yes’ if we ask the fans of Nostradamus, a great French astrologer and astronomer, who used both astrology and astronomy to predict the future. Nostradamus’ real name was Michel de Nostradame. He was born on the 14th of December, 1503, in a small town in southern France. As a child he was very good at mathematics and astrology. At the age of 15, he became a university student, but the University was soon closed because of an outbreak of the plague. Nostradamus travelled across the country and helped victims of the plague using his own methods. It is said that he invented a ‘rose pill’ that could protect people against the plague. Sadly, his first wife and two small children later died from the plague. Nostradamus continued to learn and practise medicine, but he also got interested in astrology. Soon legends began to grow about his strange ability to predict future. One story said that when Nostradamus was in Italy, he met a monk. He immediately went down on his knees and called the monk ‘Your Holiness’. About 45 years later the monk became Pope. Nostradamus realised that he had an unusual gift and started writing down his predictions in the form of four-line poems. He quickly became famous, and even Queen Catherine de Medici of France wanted to meet him. Nostradamus predicted the death of her husband, King Henry II, and in 1559 his prediction came true! It is said that Nostradamus even predicted his own death! When his assistant wished him goodnight on the 1st of July, 1566, Nostradamus said: ‘You won’t find me alive at sunrise.’ He was found dead on the 2nd of July. All in all, Nostradamus wrote over 900 predictions about the future of the world. They were published in two books called The Centuries, which were published in 1555 and 1558. Nostradamus’ four-line poems predicted events from the mid-1500s until the end of the world. People have studied and interpreted his predictions since the sixteenth century! The problem with these predictions is that they are very vague and can mean many things. Nostradamus made his poems difficult to understand by using words from Latin, French, Greek and Italian. They have anagrams and riddles and are not placed in chronological order. This was because he didn’t want the Church to accuse him of being a magician or a heretic. But just how did Nostradamus predict the future? He worked with ancient books, he studied the stars using his knowledge of astrology. He also used an ancient method of predicting the future - he looked into a bowl of water until he had an inspiration or saw an image. People who believe him say that he predicted the Great Fire of London of 1666, the rise of both Napoleon and Hitler, the assassination of American President John F. Kennedy and even the terrorist attacks of the 11th of September, 2001. Many of his predictions seem true. But some of the events never happened. Sceptics think that Nostradamus’ predictions can be interpreted to fit almost any event.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated. Lewis Carroll Lewis Carroll was the pen-name of Charles Dodgson, an English writer and author of two of the best loved children's books in English Literature – “Alice's Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass”. The characters and phrases from these books have entered and become part of the English culture so if someone calls you “Mad as a Hatter”, you know whom to thank. Charles Dodgson was talented in many ways. Apart from being a creative writer, he was also a Mathematics Don (professor) at Oxford and a well-known logician. He was interested in photography and music. He sang very well, played chess and enjoyed creating and solving puzzles. Charles Dodgson was born on 27 January 1832 and spent the first eleven years of his life at Warrington, Cheshire where his father was the priest. His family was large; his parents had 11 children, 4 boys and 7 girls. Charles was educated first by home-schooling, then at two boarding schools, and finally at Christ Church College, Oxford. Later in life, he remembered his boarding school experience without any warm feelings. Still, he was an excellent student and studied very well in all his subjects. In 1854 Charles Dodgson got a 1st class degree in Mathematics and one year later he became a lecturer in Mathematics at Christ Church College. It was then that he started his literary career and took his pen-name, Lewis Carroll. While his creative books and poetry were published under his pen-name, he also wrote books on Mathematics under his own name. When a new Headmaster arrived at Christ Church College, he brought with him his family. Dodgson became the family’s close friend. The Headmaster’s little daughters, the youngest of which was called Alice, enjoyed his company very much. Charles often entertained the girls by telling them stories about imaginary worlds with fantastic creatures. The story about the adventures of little Alice became popular all over the world. “Alice in Wonderland” is primarily a children’s story, but adults have enjoyed the novel for over a century together with children. Many elements of “Alice” were not completely new. Talking animals, for instance, or the story idea in which a child or children are carried away from reality into a fantasy world. However, it was Carroll who established a new motif that would be used again and again in children’s literature: Peter Pan, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Narnia books, and the Harry Potter books. That is the possibility for the main characters to travel back and forth between the real world and wonderland. Though his characters travelled a lot between one world and another, Charles Dodgson himself didn’t like being away from home. The only occasion on which (as far as it is known) he went abroad was a trip to Russia in 1867. He died of pneumonia on 14 January 1898 at his sisters' home. He was 2 weeks away from turning 66.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated.

Choose the correct variant. This oven is used __________ bread.

Choose the correct variant. The reason __________ she left early is unknown.

Choose the correct variant. Ann bought a car __________ she had enough money.

Choose the correct variant. Take your hat __________ it gets too hot.

Choose the correct variant. Marie Curie is the woman __________ discovered radium.

Match the synonyms.

Choose the correct variant. What do you hope to __________ from the course?

Choose the correct variant. Have you set a __________ for completing the work?

Choose the correct variant. She has a __________ in publishing, so she might be able to help you with your book.

Read the text and mark the sentences True, False or Not stated.