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Christina Latham-Koenig

Clive Oxenden

Upper-intermediate Student's Book

Christina Latham-Koenig

Clive Oxenden

Paul Seligson and Clive Oxe nden are the original co-authors of English File l and English File

working out mea ning from co ntext

compound adjectives, mod ifie rs

friendly intonati on, showing intere st intona tion and sentence rhythm

COLLOQUIAL

ENGLISH 1 Talking about... interviews , In the street 14 A

the doctor? 18 B

illne sses and injuri es

wiser?

REVISE & CHECK 1&2 Short film The history of surgery

A

I sl , ld3I , I t.fl , and / kl ; word st re ss

clothe s and fash ion

vowel sounds

air travel

adverbs and ad verbial phrases 32 COLLOQUIAL ENGLISH 2&3 Talking about... ch ildren 's books, In t h e st r eet

34 A Eco-guilt 38 B Are you a risk taker?

42 REVISE

after

regular and irregular past forms, sentence rhythm

word str ess and into natio n

vowe l so und s

sentence st ress and rhythm

wo rd stre ss

sen ten ce rhythm and intonation

Vocabulary

Pronunciation

words that come fr om othe r languages se ntence stress and linking weak form of have si l ent letters the l etter u word stress changing stress on nouns and verbs wo r d stress with pre fi xes and su ffixes st r

in word fami li es pausing

I'm not thrilled about answering questions like 'If you were being mugged, and you had a light sabre in one pocket and a whip in the other, which would you use? '

1 READING & SPEAKING

a Look at the photos of Benedict Cumberbatch and Elisabet h Moss and read their biographical info. Have yo u seen any of the TV series or films that they have been in? What did you think of them?

b Now read the interviews and match questions

A-G with their answers.

A How do you relax?

B What don't you like about your appearance?

C What's your earliest memory?

D What makes you unhappy?

E If you could edit your past, what do you think you would change?

F What was your most embarrassing moment?

G Who would you most like to say sorry to?

c Read the interviews again using the glossary to help yo u Answer th e questions with BC (Benedict Cumberbatch) or EM (Elisabeth Moss).

Who ?

1 D had an embarr assi ng experience as a child

2 D finds it hard to make decisions

3 D avoids answering one of the questions

4 D had a dangerous experience when they were travelling abroad

5 D had a dangerous experience w hen they were young

6 D often hesitate s when the y're s peaking

7 D was fond of a kind of flo wer w hen the y were a child

8 D has a favourite decad e

d Which of the questions in the interviews do h . k' ? yo u t m is ....

• the most interesting

• the most boring

• too personal to ask a person who yo u don't know well

e Choose six questions from Q&A to ask yo ur partner.

Every week the British newspaper, The Guardian, chooses people who have been in the news recently, and publishes a short interview with them called Q&A.

The acto r Benedict Cumberbatch was born in London in 1976 He has starred in many s u ccessful TV series and films , including Sherlocli, War Hors e , Star Trek , and The Hobbit.

1 What's one of your happiest memories?

Sitting with the sun on my face and a beer in my hand , the morning after I had been in a car-jacking in South Africa.

When I was six, I got stung by a wasp in a Greek market A woman pulled down my pants and rubbed an onion on my bottom.

3 What don't you like about your personality?

I'm imp atient , but also indecisive.

4 What is your greatest fear? Forgetting people's names.

The size and shape of my head. People say I look like Sid from Ic e Age.

6 What costume wouJd you wear to a fancy dress party?

I rather enjoyed wearing bandages round my face as the Inv isible Man at the last one I went to. People got to know me without recognizing me.

7 Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

I "E " t h say rm... oo muc .

8 What one thing would improve the quality of your life?

Better time m anage ment.

I might not have called Trevor Nunn, the famous director, 'Adrian' at m y first audition for him.

The ac tress Elisabeth Moss was born in California in 1982. She has been in severa l very successfu l US TV dramas, including Th e West Wing and Mad Men for which she won an Emmy award.

Go ing out into th e backyard o f my h ome in LA and pretending to build a vegetable garden wi th sticks and rocks. I must h ave been five

2 Which living person do you most admire? This is kind of cheesy, but m y mum.

3 Which living person do you most despise, and why? I won't say his name.

Not ge tting enou gh s leep.

5 What is your favourite smell? Jasmine. I grew up in Los Angeles , in the hills, and there was a l ways jasmine growing.

To a really good girlfriend with whom I lost touch when I was little. I wou ld love to see her aga in

7 If you could go back in time, where would you go?

To a 1930s jazz club in New York City. I love the art deco period - the jewellery, the clothes, the music.

I am big fan of getting a box set and watching the entire show in two or three weeks . I'm watching The Sopranos at the moment , because I misse d it when it first came out

9 What has been your most frightening experience?

When I was littl e, I was on a lake in the US a nd got caught und e rneath a rowing boat. That was pretty scary

2 GRAMMAR question formation

a Now read the questions in lb again and a n swer the qu est ions below w ith a partner

1 Which questions are examples of. .. ?

• a s u bject question , where there is no a u xiliary verb

• a question which ends with a preposition

• a question which u ses a negative aux ili ary verb

2 W h at h appens t o the word order in the question What would you chanBe? when yo u add do you think after what?

b )ii-- p.132 Grammar Bank lA. Learn more about question formation , and practise it.

3 PRONUNCIATION friendly

intonation, showing interest

a 1 4 l)) Listen to some people asking questions

1- 5 Who so u nds friendlier a nd more interested eac h tim e, a orb?

1 Do you havet_p big family?

2 What don't you liket_pbout the place where yo u live?

3 What you gooc:Lat?

4 Do you think you havet_p healthy diet?

s What makes you feel happy ?

b 5 l)) Listen and rep ea t the q u estions with friendly intonation. Focus on sentence stress a nd linking . p Reacting to what someone says

Wh en you ask someone a question and they answer, it is norma l to show interest by saying, e g Really? or Oh yes? with a friendly intonat ion, or by asking a question

c 1 6 >)) Now l isten to the question s in a co nversation . Complet e the expression s or questions that the man or woman us e to react to the answers.

1 Wow ! That 's a hu ge fam ily.

2 3

driv

Adapted from The Guardian

____ ? What's wrong with them?

__ ! We cou ld have a game one d ay.

4 ! How long hav e yo u b ee n a vegan?

5 ? I ca n ' t think of anyt hing worse!

d 1 7 >)) Listen and repea t the responses Copy the intonation

e Ask and answer the questions with a partner. Use friend ly intonation, and react to your p artner's a n swers

a Look at the photo with the article. What do you think is happening? Do you think the question is one which someone might really ask in this situation? Why (not)?

b Read the article once and find out. How would you answer the question?

pGuessing the meaning of new words and phrases

When you are reading and find a word or phrase you don't know :

1 Try to guess the meaning from the context (i.e the other words around it). Think also about what part of speech the unknown word is (e.g a verb, an adjective, etc.), whether it is similar to another English word you know, or whether it is similar to a word in your language.

2 If you still can't work out what the word or phrase means, either ignore it and carry on reading or use a dictionary (or glossary if there is one) to help you.

Extreme interview-s

WHAT sort of dinosaur are you? If you answered Tyrannosaurus rex, then the bad news is that you probably won't get the job you're applying for.

i Welcome to the st r ange world of 'extreme interviewing', the latest trend from America in which interviewers throw bi za r re questions at cand idates to see how they react.

5 It may seem like a game, but extreme interv iewing is deadly serious. The idea is to see how quickly job-seekers th i nk o n their feet and, at a time when 25% of recent graduates are unemployed, it offers e mployers a new way 10 of separat ing the brilliant candidates from the merely very good.

This new a p p roac to selecting ca ndid ates comes from Silicon Valley in Californiawhere else? Google, famous for its ae m a n a in g

15 interview process, asked a recent candidate: 'Yo u are strand ed on a d esert island You have 60 seconds to choose people of 10 professions to come with yo u. Who do yo u choos e? Go!'

One of the ea rly pioneers of extreme interviewing was Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, who cou ld 20 be famously cruel with j ob see ke r s Faced once with a candidate he considered boring , Job s su dden ly pretended to be a chicken, fl a ppin g his a rm s and making clucking noises round the unfortunate app licant, waiting to see what he would do In fact, the secret to extreme interviewing is neither in the question nor the answer. It is in the can didate's reaction.

David Moyle, a headhunter with the r ecruitm e nt age ncy Eximius Group in London, who admits to u sing 25 the dinosaur question when selecting ca ndidates, sa id: 'Essentia lly, t h at kind of interviewing is u sed by us to give someone an opportunity to show they are smart and not easily flu st e r ed .'

'Most ca ndidates actually get something out of it , it's not abo ut trying to c ru sh them. We are trying to give them an opportunity to show their personality, r a the r th an. just showing how they perform in an interview.'

Of course, getting the job is just the start. In the modern business world, survival will depend on what sort 30 of dinosaur you really are.

Glossary Silicon Valley the informal name for t h e r egion in northern Ca li fornia where many of the world's largest technology corporations are based headhunter a per son whose job it is to find people with the necessary skills to work for a company (often in executive posts) , and to persuade them to join that company

So, what sort of dinosaur would you be?

A Tyrannosaurus rex!

c Read the article again carefully. With a partner, cry to work out what the highlight e d words and phrases might mean , and how you think they are pronounced

d Now match the words and phrases with 1-10.

1 adj needing a lot of effort and skill

2 adj nervous and confused , especially because you have been given a lot to do or are in a hurry

3 adj very strange or unusual

4 mm to be able to think and react to things very quickly without any preparation

5 noun a way of doing or thinking about something

6 phrase instead of

7 verb to destroy somebody 's confidence

8 noun a specialist company which finds and interviews candidates to fill job vacancies in other companies

9 noun people who are looking for a job

10 verb moving sch quickly up and down, e.g. wings

e 1 8 l)) Listen and check. Underline the stressed syllables.

f Using your own words, answer the questions with a partner.

1 What are extreme interviews?

2 What kind of companies first s tarte d using them?

3 Why do so me people think that the y are better than norm a l interviews?

g Do you think extreme interviews are a good way of choosing candidates? Which of the questions below (used in real interviews) do you think would work well? Why?

On a scale of 1-10, how weird are you? Does life fascinate you?

Which TV character are you most like?

If you were a car, what car would you be?

a Have you ever been for a job interview? What kind of questions did they ask you? Did you get the job?

b 9 l)) Listen to five people talking about a strange question they were asked in job interviews. Complete the questions in the first column.

What strange question How d id they answer? What happened in were they asked? the end?

1 Do you still ?

2 What would make you a ?

3 are you? How much __ you ?

4 would you like to be reincarnated as?

5 Are you planning to ?

c Listen again and make notes in the rest of the chart.

d Which of the questions did you think were good or bad to ask at an interview?

Room, desk,orcarwhich do you clean first? Can you name three Lady Gaga songs?

6 SPEAKING

a >Communication Extreme interviews A p.104 B p.108 Ask yo ur partner 'extreme inter v iew' questions .

b Write three extreme interview questions of your own, which you think might tell yo u something interesting about another person.

c Ask yo u r questions to as many other students as possible and answer theirs.

d Which que st ions did you think were the most interesting? Why?

G auxiliary verbs; the the + comparatives

For t ho se wh o b eliev e, no pro of is necessa ry For thos e who don 't b el iev e, no proo f is possib le.

1 READING & LISTENING

a Look a t the beginnin g of tw o tru e s tori es. Wh a t d o you think th ey might hav e in co mm o n ?

b :>-Communication Work in p a ir s A a nd B and r e ad t wo sto ri es A r e ad Noises in th e NiB h t o n p. 104 B go to p .1 09 a nd r ea d The StranBe Objec t on th e Hill.

HARD TO BELIEVE? BUT IT HAPPENED TO ME ...

Have you ever experienced a paranormal happening? Write and tell us about it.

NOISES IN THE NIGHT

About six months ago, my hu sband Russ and I moved into a house in the country. our house is the middle one of three terraced houses and it's more than a hundred years old. A young couple live in the house on our right, but the house on our left was empty and for sale.

c Now re a d the b e ginning o f a n o th er tru e s t o r y Would yo u h ave b ee n happ y for Fatos to read yo ur co ffee cup? Why (not)?

THE STRANGE OBJECT ON THE HILL

This happened when I was 16, and I can st ill remember it vividly. It was a clear morning, sunny but with a breeze. I was go ing to mee t a schoo l friend to go walk in g in the hills where there were some wonderful views I'd agreed to meet him at the top of one of the hills .

THE COFFEE CUP READING

Iwe nt to Turkey a few years ago with a colleague call ed Chris. We'd been sent t here by the British council to t ra in seconda ry sc hool teache rs in a schoo l on th e outskirts of Istanbul. Wh il e I was th ere I decided to go and see an old fr iend of mine, a young Turkish woma n calle d Fat os, who I hadn't seen for several years . I call ed her and we agreed to meet in a hotel in the centre of Istanbu l. Chris came too , and the three of us had a very pleasant dinner together. After dinner we ordered Turkish coffee and we chatted for a wh il e, until Fatos suddenly asked me, 'Would you like me to read your coffee cup?' I refused politely because, to be honest, I don't really believe in clairvoyants an d fortune-telling. But Chris immed iately said he would be happy for her to read his coffee cup ... Adam, London

d 1 10 >)) Listen to the rest of The Coffee Cup Reading and answer the questions

1 What were the first two things Fatos saw in Chris's coffee cup? Were they accurate?

2 What was the third thing she saw?

3 How did Chris and Adam react to this?

4 Who did Chris's mother live with?

5 Where did Chris go the next morning?

6 Who called Adam? Why?

7 What was the bad news?

8 How did Faros react to what had happened?

9 How does Adam feel about the experience?

e 1 11 >)) Listen to some extracts from the story and complete the missing words Try to work out what they mean.

1 Well, Carla, Chris's girlfriend a t the time , was blonde , so that was ____ , too.

2 But Chris is quite a ____ sort of person and he didn 't seem to be too worried b y what s he'd said.

3 It was a slightly __ end to what had been a very enjoyable evening.

4 So, was it just a __

5 I always used to be very __ about fortune-telling ...

2 SPEAKING

Ta lk in small gro up s.

Which of the three stories do you find the spookiest? Can you think of any possible explanation for what happened in eac h story ?

Have you (or anybody you know) ?

• see n or heard something which can't be explained, e.g. a UFO or a ghost

• vis ited a fortune-teller, psychic, or faith hea le r

• had a surpri si ng coincidence p Reacting to a story about something strange

When somebody talks about something strange or difficult to explain we often react with these phrases. How I That's strange; bizarre; odd; weird; spooky

3 GRAMMAR auxiliary verbs

a Look at the dialogues and tr y to comp l ete the gaps with a G:J or B a u xiliary (do, did, is, was, etc.) .

1 A I heard a noise in the middle of the night.

B 1 you? What kind of noise?

2 A You don't believe in ghosts, 2 _ you?

B No, I don't.

3 A I don't believe you really saw a UFO.

B I 3 see one! It couldn't have been anything else

4 A I've never been to a fortune-teller

B Neither 4 I.

C I 5

• It was really interesting.

b 1 12 >)) Listen and check. In pairs , decide w hich auxiliary (1-5) is u sed

A D to add emphasis

B D to say that yo u are different

C D to ch eck information

D D to show surprise

E D to say that yo u are the same

c > p.133 Grammar Bank 18. Learn more about using auxiliary verbs, and practise them.

4 PRONUNCIATION intonation and sentence rhythm

a 1 14 >)) Listen to the dialog u es. Notice the stressed auxiliary verbs.

A 1dreamt that 1saw a ghost last night.

B Did you? So did I. How spooky!

A 1don't believe in fortune-telling.

B Don't you? I do.

b Repeat the dialogues with a partner, copying the rhythm and intonation.

c Comp lete sentences 1-8 so that they are true for yo u

1 I'm not very good at ____ (activity)

2 I'm going to tonight. (verb phrase)

3 Ilo ve (akindofmusic)

4 I don ' t like ___. (a kind of food)

5 I ' ve ne ver read (a famous book)

6 I'd love to live in . (a town or country)

7 I was very ___ as a child. (ad j of personality)

8 I didn't last night. (verb phrase)

d Work in pairs A and B. A read your sentences to B

B respond with a rep l y q u estion and t hen say whether you are the same or different. Then swap ro l es.

e 1 15 >)) Listen to another dialogue. Is do stressed in the hig lig ted phrases?

A B f

You don't like horror films, do you?

I do like them . It's just that sometimes t hey're too scary!

Repeat the dia logue w ith a partner , cop yi ng the rhythm and intonation

g > Communication You're psychic, aren't you? A p.105 B p.109. Make gu esses about yo ur partner.

5 1 16 >)) SONG Unbelievable

a On a piece of paper writ e th e s ente nc e I lo ok forward to h earinBfrom y ou. Then sign your name underneath and give the piece of paper to your partn er.

b Look at the signature s of s ome famous people . Can you identify any of them? Do you know any thing about these p e ople's personalitie s ?

c Read an extract from a book about grapholog y. Do you believe that our signature might say something about our p er s onality ?

----- What your djnaiure says about you

Your signature is the part of your handwriting that says the most about your personality It is quite common for your signature to change during your life because it reflects how you develop and evolve as a person You may have more than one signature, for example a more formal signature (name and surname) when you sign a credit card or your passport, and an informal signature (just your first name) when you sign a birthday card

Our signature is very much part of the way in which we present ourselves to the world , so it can give some important clues about the kind of person we are and how we feel about ourselves.

d 17, 18, 19, 20>)) Li s t en to an ex pert in gr apholog y t a lking ab out how to int e rp r et so mebod y' s per s onality from the ir s ignature. Comple te the note s on the r i ght .

p Taking notes

We often need to take note s when we are listening, for ex ample to somebody giving a lecture If you need to take notes when you are listening to someone speaking in English , try to write down key words or phra ses because you won't have time to write complete sentences Afterwards you could ex pand your notes into full sentences.

e In p a ir s, inte rpr e t the s i g natur es of the famou s p eo pl e. D o any of the interpr e t a tion s co inc id e w ith w h a t yo u a lr ea d y tho ught?

f Now loo k at your p a rtne r's s i gnatur e a nd tr y to int erpr e t it Do you ag r ee w ith yo ur partner 's int erpr e t a tion o f yo ur sign a tu re?

g D o yo u b eli eve tha t you ca n lea r n a n y thin g a b o ut so m eon e's per so n a lit y b y ?

• an alys in g their h a nd wr iting (grap h olo gy)

• loo king at their h a nd s (p a lmi s tr y)

• an alys ing th e p os ition o f the s un , moon , a nd pl a n et s at t h e exac t tim e of th eir birth (a s trol ogy)

• an o ther s imil a r m ethod

1 !

17 >)) What's in your signature?

Your name = your private self

Your surname = You use only initials either for your fir st name or your surname = There is a space between your name and surname =

18 >)) The size of your signature

Your first name is bigger than your surname = Your surname is bigger than your first name=

Your whole signature is big = You sign in c apital letter s = Your sign ature is small =

1 19 >)) The legibility of your signature

Your sign ature is l eg ibl e = Your signa t ure is illegibl e= The mor e ill egi ble your sig nat ure is

20 >)) The angle of your signature

A ri sin g sig natur e =

A d esce nding sign at ur e =

A h ori zontal sig n ature =

Th e ang le of a signatur e may c hange dependin g o n

the ... the ... +comparatives

The more space there is between your name and surname, the more you wish to keep separate these two parts of your personality.

The more illegible your signature is, the less assertive you probably are as a person.

Use the+ comparative adjective or adverb to show that one thing depends on another, e.g.

• The sooner we start, the earlier we'll finish. = how soon we will finish depends on when we start.

• The colder it is , the more clothes you need to wear to keep warm. = how many clothes you need to wear depends on how cold it is.

8 VOCABULARY compound adjectives

a Look at some extracts from the listening in 6 Can yo u remember wha t the gapped words were?

1 Some people act u ally sign in capital letters , which suggests that they may be big- or even arrogan t

2 A de scending signature suggests that yo u are the kind of person who gets disheartened or depressed when you are faced with problems , perhaps because you are not very self_____

3 A horizontal signature usually indicates a person who is well- and emotiona lly stab l e

b 1 21 >)) Listen and check Do the compound a dj ectives have a positive or negative meaning?

p Compound adjectives

Compound adjectives are adjectives that have two parts. The second part often ends in -ed or -ing, e.g. wellbehaved, hard-working. The words are normally linked by hyphens. The main stress is on the second word.

c With a partner, look at some more compound adjectives to describe a person's character. Use the two parts of the word to tr y to work o ut their meaning, and say if they are positive or negative characteristics

bad-tempered good-tempered open - minded narrow - minded absent-minded easy-gg_in g laid - b ack tight-fisted two-faced s trong-willed se lf-centred

a Rewrite the sentences using the .. the + comparative.

1 If yo u study a lot, yo u learn a lot

The

2 If we leave soon, we'll get there earlier.

The

3 If yo u have a lot of time, yo u do things slowly.

The , the _ _

4 If yo u are fit, you feel good.

The

b Complete the sentences in your own words.

1 The more mone y you have ,

2 The sooner you start yo ur homework ,

3 The faster I speak in English, ...

4 The less you sleep,

e Read the information on adjective modifiers.

pModifiers

We often use modifiers with adjectives of personality. With positive characteristics quite I pretty My mum is very good-tempered really I incredibly With negative characteristics a bit

My sister is quite I rather I pretty bad-tempered very really I incredibly

SAID,' DON'T TALI< TO ME!'

( I th 1

ink bad-tempered means somebody angry very eas ily

d 1 22 >)) Listen and rep eat the compound adjectives inc.

f Tell the partner about people with the cha racte ris tics below. Give exampl es of their behaviour.

Do you know somebody who is ?

rather bad -tempered a bit two-faced extreme ly absent-m in ded very good-tempered a bit tight-fisted in cred ibly strong-wi lled pretty laid-back qui t e self-centred

One of my cousins is a bit two-faced She says one thing to me, and then I find out she sa id the exact opposite to somebody else in the family

PEANUTS() 1966 Peanuts Worldwide LL C. Dist. By UNIVERSAL UCL/CK. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

1 THE INTERVIEW Part 1

VIDEO

a Read the biographical information about Ryan Judd. What do you think the HR department of a company does?

Ryan Judd was born in 1976. He has been working as a recruitment advisor in the HR (Human Resources) department at Oxford University Press since 2010

b 1 23 l)) Watch or listen to Part 1 of an interview with him. Tick (v") the things he says candidates for a job interview should do.

1 D Be enthusiastic about the job

2 D Call the interviewer b y their first name

3 D Ask questions about the job

4 D Ask questions about the salary

5 D Include a photograph on your CV

6 D Write a good cover letter

7 D Check everything is correct on yo ur CV

8 D Dress appropriately

9 D Be prepared for the interview

10 D Arrive on time

Glossary

CV the abbreviation for Curriculum Vi t ae, a w ritte n record of your education and the jobs you h ave done that yo u send when yo u are applying for a job cover(ing) letter a letter conta ining extra information which candidates se nd w ith their CV recruiter the p erson w ho finds new people to join a company salary banding th e level of pay given for certain j obs within a compa n y

c Now listen again and answer the questions.

1 What kind of things does he ask candidates about to relax them before the interview?

2 What kind of things does he ask candidates at the beginning the interview?

3 What information should be given in a covering letter?

Talking about. ..

VIDEO

a 1 24 l)) Now watch or listen to Part 2. Which three interview situations did he find difficult or surprised him?

b Listen again and answer the questions .

1 What choice did he have with the first candidate he talks about?

2 What explanation for her behaviour did the second candidate give?

3 What kind of clothes does he think candidates should wear?

4 Why did the third candidate arrive in the wrong kind of clothes? Did he get the job?

Glossary

A blazer / 'bl e1z;:i/ a s mart jacket which is n o t worn with matching trou sers 3

VIDEO

a

1 25 l)) Now watch or listen to Part 3. Complete the two 'extreme interview' questions he mentions.

1 How would you describe to your ____ ?

2 Would yo u rather fight a horse-sized or a hundred ducksized ?

b Listen again. Mark the sentences T (true) or F (false) . Say why the F ones are false.

1 R ya n thinks the purpose of extreme interviewing is to see how candidates r eac t in a strange situation

2 He has used extreme interviewing on several occasions.

3 The first 'extreme' question he mentions was asked to see if the candidate had technical and communication skills

4 The second 'extreme ' question was asked to see if candidates had leadership potential.

5 R ya n thought that was a good question.

6 He would have chosen the first option .

3 IN THE STREET VIDEO

a 27>)) Watch or lis ten to five people talking about job interviews. How many of them say they definitely got the job?

2 LOOKING AT LANGUAGE

'""' Formal language

Ryan often uses more formal words and ex pressions than would normally be used in conversation, but would often be used in a more formal setting, e.g. a job interview.

1 26 >)) Listen to some extracts from the interview and replace the highlighted words or phrases with the more formal equivalent u sed by Ryan.

1 ' you're al so lookin g for them to show experience relevant to the position.'

2 'During an interview, once it has begun , I w ill always try to start the interview with some general questions .. .'

3 ' First thing is obviously, making mistakes on their app lication , um , that's always see n negatively .'

4 ' but again during the interview when she hadn't sai dl that's w h y she was doing it , it was a bit of a s urpr ise.'

5 ' you would expect, expect to see suita le shoes and the same for a woman as we ll. .' _ / ____

6 ' It's not something that I have direct experience of, but Il<now about some of the techniques that the y use .'

7 ' . .I 'm not even sure ifl wou ld h ave been able to give an immediate answer .. .'

Jeanine, Jo, South African English

Ivan, American Yasuko, American

b Watch or listen again. Who (Je, Jo, I, Y, or Jst) ... ?

D didn ' t get the job because of his/ her age

D had their interview the most recently

Joost, Dutch

D prepared for the interview by assessing how su it able he / she was for the job

D took some medicine to help make him / her feel less ner vo us

D tried to find out what the company believed in

c 28 >)) Watch or listen and complete the Co lloquial English phrases. What do you think they mean?

1 'I just practised every question that the y could ask me in

2 ' and then tried to my experience to the var iou s different points on the job interview .'

3 'I think it went well because the y ____,.....,up with an email.'

4 ' ... their philosophy, the histor y and the of the company.'

5 'In the end the y said I was too yo ung so they didn ' t ____ me. '

4 SPEAKING

Answer the questions with a partner.

1 Have you ever been interviewed for a job or a place on a course? What was it for? How did yo u prepare for it? How did it go?

2 Have yo u ever int e r viewe d another p erso n? What for?

3 What do yo u think is the most important advice to give to someone who is going for a job interview?

G present perfect simple and cont inuous V illnesses and injuries

1 VOCABULARY illnesses and injuries

a Look at the six quiz questions. With a partner , decide what the hig ighted words might mean. Use the pictures to help you

b Now do the quiz with a partner

He IP Save I·1ves I

My doctor gave me six months to live, but when I said I couldn't pay he gave me six months more.

c >- Communication First aid quiz A p.105 B p 109. Read the answers to half of the quiz and the reasons why, and tell each other.

d >- p.152 Vocabulary Bank Illne ss es and i njuries

The British Red Cross first aid quiz

• www.redcross.org.uk/firstaid

Would you know what to do in these common medical emergencies?

3

1 2 3

If someone is choking, you should

a) hit them on the back

b) lean them backwards

c) lie them on their side

What is the best thing to put on a burn at first?

a) warm running water

b) cold running water

c) kitchen film

If someone has a cut which is bleeding badly, you should first ...

a) press on the wound

b) cover the wound

c) wash the wound under running water

4

Which of these is the best way to treat a nose bleed?

a) lean your head forwards and pinch the soft part of the nose

b) lean your head forwards and pinch the hard part of the nose

c) lean your head backwards and pinch the soft part of the nose

5

If you find someone collapsed on the ground, what should you do first?

a) put your jacket over them to keep them warm

b) check if they are breathing

c) run off to find someone else to help

6

If someone has fallen and you think they may have broken their leg , you should ...

a) try to move their leg into a straight position

b) make sure the leg is supported to prevent unecessary movement

c) put a bandage on their leg where you th ink the break is

PRONUNCIATION & SPEAKING

!JI, /d3 /, ltfl, and /k/; word stress

a H ow d o you p ro n o unce so u n d s 1-4 a b ove? W rite the word s from the lis t in th e correc t co lumn.

a c he aller g y an k le banda g e ch ok ing pr e ss ure ra sh s toma c h t emper at ur e un c ons ci ous

b 1 33 >)) Li s t en a nd check. Practise sayi n g th e wo rd s

c > p.167 Sound Bank. Look at t h e t y pical spe lli n gs fo r If /, /d3/, l tf/, a n d /k /.

d L ook at so m e m o r e wor d s r elate d t o illne ss a nd injur y. W h ich o n es a r e s imilar in you r l a n g u age? D o you k now w hat the o th er o n es m ea n?

an lt ij b ij o ltics /re ntiba1'ot1k s/ symp ltom /'s1mptgm/ me dij cine / ' meclsn/ e imer lgen lcy /i'm3:cl3gn ii o ipe l ra ltion /opg' r e1fn / as lpij rin / 're spgnn / spe lcia tl ist /'s pej°ghst/ paIra ic elta lmol /prer;:>'s i:t;:>mol/ X- lray /'eks re1/ cho ile s it el ro l / b' lestgrol/ /m'd3ekfn / sc an /s kren/

e 1 34 >)) Li s t en a nd underlin e th e s t resse d syllable . P ra ct ise say i ng th e wor d s

3 GRAMMAR present perfect simple and continuous

a 1 35 >)) Lis t en to a conversat ion bet ween a d oc t or and pat ient. W h at symptoms d oes the pat ient h ave? W h a t d oes the doctor s u ggest ?

b Lis t en again and comple t e the ga p s w it h a verb i n the presen t p erfect sim ple or present perfe c t c o ntinuo u s

Doctor Good morning, Mr Bl aine. What 's the prob lem?

Patient 11 we ll for a few days I k eep gettin g headaches , and I 2 a lot, too A nd I ha ve a temperature .

D 3 anything for the headaches?

P Yes , paracetamol. But they do n't really help. I r ead on the in ternet that headaches can be the first symptom of a bra in t um our...

D Ho w many tab lets 4 so far today?

P I took two this morning.

D And have you taken your temperatu re th is morni ng?

P Yes. I 5 it f ive or six times

It's high

D Let me see Well , your temperature seems to be per f ectly norma l now

P I think I need a b lood test. I 6 _______ one for two mon t hs

D We ll, Mr Blaine, you k now I think we shoul d wait fo r a f ew days and see how your symptoms deve lop. Can you send t he ne xt pat ient in p l ease , n ur se?

c 1 36 >)) Lis t en to wha t the d o ctor a nd nur se say after Mr Bla i ne h as left Wha t d o th ey thi nk of h i m?

d Look a t the sen t enc es a nd 9 t he r ight ve rb fo r m .

i f yo u t h ink b o th fo r m s are p ossible

1 Have yo u been taking / taken any thi ng for t h e h ead ac h es?

2 How many tab lets h ave yo u been taking / taken so far t o d ay?

e > p.134 Grammar Bank 2A . Lear n more a b o ut t h e present perfec t simpl e a nd conti nu o u s, and pr ac ti se th em.

What injuries or illnesses might you get when you are ...?

a) cooking

b) doing sport

c) eating in a restaurant

Have any of these things ever happened to you?

f As k and a n swer the ques t ion s w it h a par t ner 1 2

Have you ever been in a situation where you had to give first aid? Who to? Why?

What happened?

How much do you know about first aid?

Where did you learn it?

Has anyone ever had to give you first a i d?

What happened?

What do you think you should do if...?

a) someone has a very high tempe rature

b) someone is stung by a wasp and has an allergic reaction

c) someone has very bad sunburn

f In p airs, u se t he p rompts to as k a nd answer t h e qu est io n s The fi rst qu es t io n s h o u ld b e present si mpl e or co nt inuou s , and th e se c o nd s h o uld be p resen t p erfec t s imple or c o n t inu ous

1 /often get cold s? How m an y colds/ have in the las t th ree m onths?

2 / take any vita m i n s or suppleme nts at the m om ent? How long / take them ?

3 / drink muc h w at er? How many glasses / drink t o d ay?

4 / do any exercise? What ? How lo n g / do it?

5 /eat a lo t of fr ui t and vegeta bles? How many port ions/ have t oday ?

6 / wa lk t o s choo l (or w ork or universi t y)? How far / walk to d ay?

7 H ow ma ny h ou rs /sleep a nig ht? /s leep well rece n tly?

8 /a ll ergic any thing?/ ever have a seriou s a ller gic reac t io n ?

4 WRITING

> p.113 Writing An informal email. Wr ite a n ema il t o a fr ie nd ex pl ainin g t h at you haven ' t b ee n we ll , and sayi n g w h a t yo u 've b een doing recently.

a Look at the title of the article. How would you define a h y pochondriac? What do y ou think a 'cyberchondriac ' is?

CONFESSIONS OF A cyberchondriac

Afew weeks ago I was feeling under the weatheli After days of intensive internet diagnosis, I finally went to see my GP A f ter examining me she told me that my heart rate was a bit fast and sent me off to A&E to have some tests. Did I go s traight th e re? Of course not. Firs t I took out my phone, logged on to Google , and found out that the technica l term for a fast heart rate i s supraventricular tachycardia. Then I typed the se two words into Google.

1

For example, w rongdiagnosis .com immediately scared me with a list of 407 possible caus e s I raced to the ho spital , convinced that I probabl y needed open-heart surgery

2

I had a chest infection and a bad case of cyberchondria. The only consol ation for the latter condition is that I'm in good compan y. A Microsoft survey of one million internet users last year found that 2 % of all searches were hea lth-related.

3

Since my trip to hospital, I have been obsessively checking my pulse, swapping symptoms in chatrooms, and reading all about wor st- case scenarios . What if the doctors got it wrong? What if the ECG machine was faulty? It ' s exhausting trying to convince yours elf that you might have a life - threatening illness.

4

b Read the article once and check. Then complete the paragraphs with topic sentences A-E.

p Topic sentences

In a we ll wr itten article each pa r agraph u sua lly begi ns w ith a 'topic sentence' whic h te ll s you wha t t he paragraph is about.

A Another problem for cyberchondriacs is that online medical information may be from an unreliable source or be out of d a te.

B Sadly, the problem with Dr Google is that he isn't exactly a comfort in times of crisis.

C The Microsoft study also revealed another serious problem - that online information often doesn't discriminate between common and very rare conditions .

D Unfortuna tely, once you have it cyberchondria can be hard to cure .

E Four hours later I got a diagnosi s.

0 n e in four of all articles thrown up by an internet search for ' headache ' suggested a brain tumour as a po ss ible cau se Although it i s true that this may be the cause , in fact brain tumour s develop in fewer than one in 50,000 people. People also a ssume that the first answers that come up in s earches refer to the mo st common causes , so if you type in ' mouth ulcer ' and see that ' mouth cancer ' has several mention s near the top, you think that it must be very common However, this is not the case at all.

5

A recent American study showed that 75 % of the people who us e the internet to look up information about their health do not check where that information came from , or the date it was created ' Once something has been put up on the internet , even if it' s wrong , it 's difficult to remove ,' says Sarah Jarvis, a doctor 'This is a problem e specially with scare stories, and also with some alternative remedie s which claim to be miracle cures , but which may actually do you harm .'

Check the information ? Sorry, I don ' t have time - I'm off to buy a heartrate monitor!

Glos s ary GP ge n e r a l pr ac tition e r (= fa m i ly d oc t o r )

A&E Accident a nd Em e r ge nc y d epa r t m e nt of a h os pi ta l EC G mac h ine e lectroca rdiog r a m m ac hin e u se d t o test p eo p le's h ear t r a t e sc ar e st o r ies s t or ies in th e n e ws, e .g. 'Mob ile ph o n es g i ve you canc e r ' whi ch m a k e peo p le wo rr y a b o u t th e ir h ea lth

Ada pte d f rom Th e Sunda y Time s

c With a partner, look at the hig ighted words and phrases and guess what they mean. Then match them with definitions 1-11.

More medical vocabulary

_____ adj sth very serious , which could kill you

____ noun a sma ll blister in the mouth that can be very painful , but is no t serio u s

_____ noun way s of curing illnesses that are not traditional medicine , e g. herbal medicine

----- mm not feeling ver y well

_____ noun a serious illn ess in w hich malignant ce ll s form in the body and k ill normal body ce ll s

___ noun an i lln ess that is ca u sed by bacteria or a virus

___ noun the spee d at which your heart beats

_____ noun the medical treatment of an illness or injury that involves an operation

_____ noun the number of times your heart beats in a minute

_____ noun a group of ce ll s that are growing in a place where they should not be

noun successfu l treatments for illnesses that were thought to be impossible to cure

d 1 40 l)) Listen and check.

e Read the article again carefu lly. Choose a, b, or c.

1 The first thing the jo urn a li s t did after leaving her GP was

a go and see a specialist

b gotoA&E

c find out what h e r condition was called

2 After r ealizing that she was a cyberchondriac, she

a stopped worrying

b worried just as much as before

c stopped visiting health-related websites

3 One problem with health-related websites on the internet is that

a they make unusual illnesses seem more common than they really are

b they often d escr ib e conditions which don't really exist

c they give more information about rare illnesses than about common ones

4 Another prob lem with these websites is that

a they encourage people to go to the doctor more often

b they make people believe in miracle cures

c the information may not be right

a 41 l)) Listen to a radio inter view with a doctor abo ut cyberchondria. What's her genera l opinion of patients using health websites?

b Listen again Then answer the questions with a partner.

1 What d id a patient she saw recently th ink h e h ad? W h at did h e rea lly have?

2 What fo ur things does she say that diagnosis depends on apart from symptoms?

3 W h at kind of we b site forums does she recommend?

4 Comp l ete the three tips she gives to cyberchondriacs:

i Only look onlin e

ii Make sure that th e website you are using is .. .

iii R em emb er that common sy mptoms usually

c With a partner, or in small gro u ps, answer the questions. Ask for and give as m u ch information as possible.

1 Which of the doctor 's three tips do you think is the most important?

2 How often do y ou look up information about health and illness on the internet? What websites do you usually go to? How useful is the information?

3 Do you know an yone who you think is a h y perchondriac or cyberchondriac?

4 Do you think peop le in yo ur country worry a lot about ?

a their blood pre ssure

b their chol estero l l evel

c their eyes i ght

Do the y worr y about anyt hing e lse related to h ea lth ? 7

It's true, some wines improve with

if the grapes were good in the f

1 SPEAKING

a Look at some ad jectives which are commonly used to describe teenagers or elderly people. With a par t ner, w r ite them in the colu mn w h ere you think they belong. Are t h e ma jority of t he adjectives positive or negative?

abs ent-minded adventurous bad-tempered clu msy kind l azy moody na r row-minded se lf-cent r ed stubb o rn un ent hu siast ic vu l nerab l e weak wise

teenagers elderly people

2 READ I NG

a Look at the photos of Nick Sydney and Karoline Bell. What do you think has been done to them and why?

b Read the first paragraph of the article once and check your answer Look at the hi ghli gh t e phrases related to the body. With a partner , say what you think they mean .

p old or elderly?

Old and eld erly mea n the same t hing, but eld erly is only used for people and is more pol ite

b In p airs or s m a ll groups , discuss the questions

1 Do you think the adjectives in a trul y describe most teenagers and e lderly people or do you think these are stereoty pes?

2 In what wa y might these stereot y pes be damaging?

3 Do you know people in these two age groups who a) conform to the stereot y pes b) don ' t conform to the stereotype s ? How?

It took five hours every morning to make Karoline and Nick look like elderly people in their seven t ie s. T hey we re given synthetic wrinkled skin, false teeth, and grey wigs. T hey also wore body suits to make them look fatter and contact lenses to make their eyes look older. The discomfort of the make-up, the heavy suit s, a nd the cont act lenses (which made their eyesight wors e ) gave them a small t a ste of the physical p ro b lems of old age They were al so coached to walk and sp e ak like people in their seventie s. Then they had to live each d ay, for a month, as a n old person , with a video di a ry to re cord th e ir experience s a nd hidden camera s to record how other people reacted to them .

c Yo u are goin g to rea d a b ou t w h at h a p pene d in the p r o g r a mme . B efo re you r e ad t a lk to a p a rtner.

1 In w h 0:t w ay d o yo u thin k p eo ple t r ea t ed th em differe ntly b ecause t h ey ap peare d t o b e old p eople ?

2 W hat do yo u th ink t hey learnt ab o ut w h a t old age is re ally like?

3 How d o yo u think th ey fe lt after maki n g the pro gram me ?

d N o w read the res t of the a rt i cle and che ck.

i fterwards both of them described the A 'invisibility' of being old Karoline was astonished to be ignored by some workmen , who only hours before had been wolf- whistling

5 at her when she had been an attractive young woman . Nick said 'I learnt that how people 1 treat you depends on what you look like.' On one occasion a bus driver treated him very rudely when he tried to pay his fare with a large note. ' I was amazed He

10 wouldn't have talked like that to my young self.' Nick was also nearly robbed when he was taking money out of a cash machine

There is a point in the documentary when Karoline 2 breaks down and cries. It comes at the end

15 of a day out with her two new pensioner friends , Betty and Sylvia, who she met at a day centre It is partly because she feels guilty that she is tricking them, but mainly because she realizes that they are individuals, and not just members of what she had

20 previously thought of as ' the elderly '. 'They were talking about real things and I f elt unqualified. I didn't have that life experience They had 3 been through so much It made me realize how ignorant I was. It was as if I was seeing the young

25 people inside them Before I would have just seen the wrinkles .'

At the start of the documentary Karoline had said that old people scared her, and that in spite of loving her 86 -year- old grandmother, who lives i n a

30 home, she had found it difficult to visit her.

Both she and Nick found making the programme life-changing Nick said 'I ' d never thought about getting old before.' Karoline said 'The whole experience of living as an old person helped me to understand

35 them far better and also to understand myself

One of the things that surprised me most was how important relationships still were to elderly people I was shocked by the fact that older people could still have their hearts broken Af1er a while I felt like

40 one of them I felt in a way that they were just young people in an old body try i ng to 4 deal with the problems of old age. 5 1'm not ready to be 73, but I'm not scared like I was.'

e Read the ar ticle again a n d answer the q u es t ions with K (Karoline)

N (Nick) , or B (b ot h of them) .

Who ... ?

1 D fo und t he phys ic al p r ep a r a t io n fo r their ro le very uncomfort able

2 D w as give n clas se s o n h ow t o move like a n eld erly p e r son

3 D was surprise d n o t b e noticed b y p eo ple w h o h a d p rev iou sly rea c ted to him / he r

4 D notic ed that p e ople were less polite to o ld er p eople

5 D found t ha t playing the r o le of an older p er s on mad e him / h er mo re emoti onal

6 D re a li ze d that old p eo ple we re ve r y differen t from w h at h e / sh e h ad previously imag ined

7 D use d to b e fright ene d of old pe o ple

8 D had never wo rri ed about w h a t it wo uld be lik e to b e old

9 D h adn' t e xpected love a nd fri endsh ip to be so imp o rt ant t o o ld p eople

f Now look a t the hi ghli ghted ve rb phr ases a nd m atc h the m with the i r mean ing.

D b e p repa r ed D b ehave towa rd s yo u

D loses cont ro l of h is/ her feelings

D so lve a problem or do a t as k D exper ience d

g How m uch cont ac t d o yo u nor m a lly h ave wi th elde rly peo p le? D o yo u t h ink th a t t h ey a re t rea t e d well i n yo ur co untr y?

3 GRAMMAR using adjectives as nouns, adjective order

a Look a t t he se nte nc es i n 1 a nd 2 b el ow a nd decide if you t hink they are ri gh t('°"' ) o r wrong (X) C o mp are w ith a p art n er a n d say w h y yo u th i nk t h e crosse d ones are w r o n g.

1 a D The old h ave a h ar d e r li fe th a n t he youn g.

b D The old p eo ple h ave a h ard er life th an th e you n g p eople .

c D Old p eo ple have a h ard er life t h a n young people

2 a D The m an was w it h a blond e t a ll Swe d ish woman

b D The ma n was wit h a t a ll Swe d ish blo nd e woman

c D The m a n was wi th a ta ll bl o nd e Swe d ish woman.

b )ii- p.135 Grammar Bank 28. Learn mo r e abo ut u sing a dj e ctive as n o un s , and a dj ec t ive o rder, a nd pr acti se them.

c A n swer the qu es tio n s in pai rs o r s m a ll gro up s . D o yo u ag r ee? Why (not)?

• The elderly are best loo ked after in residential homes , no t at home

• Politicians should be at least 40 years old - younge r people do n' t have enough experience for su c h a responsible job .

• Society doesn 't sufficiently value the wisdom that elderly peop le have.

• Rich people are usually meane r than poor peop le

• The government could and should do more for the unemployed

• The homeless should be all owed to live rent-free in empty second homes.

a Look at the photos. How o ld do yo u think these people are? Do yo u like the way they are dressed? Why (not)?

b 1 45 >)) Listen to a radio programme w here t wo fash i on journalists are talking about 'dressing yo ur age'. Do they agree that men and women shou ld dress the ir age? Complete their two fashion rule s.

Liza Wear wha te ve r you think and makes you ______

Adrian Dress for , not for ____

5 VOCABULARY clothes and fashion

c Listen again and make notes . Why do the journalists mention the following?

Liza Adrian

• a warm ca rd igan and slippers • men in their 20s who

• a leather miniskirt wear blazers a nd

• teenagers chinos or suits

• women of 30+

• very s hort shorts

• men in their 30s

d Who do yo u agree with most , Liza or Adrian?

a In two minutes write down as many it e m s of clothing or jeweller y as yo u can that yo u can wear.

• on your hand s and arms • round yo ur neck • on yo ur feet • on your head

b > p.153 Vocabulary Bank Clothes and fashion.

c Do the quiz with a partner

CLOTHES

6 PRONUNCIATION

vowel sounds

p

Vowel sounds

English vowel sounds are either short, long, or diphthongs (a combination of two short sounds)

a Look at the sound pictures below Which are short sounds, which are long, and which are diphthongs?

7 SPEAKING

Talk in small groups.

1 At what age do yo u think it is OK for men or women to have ... ?

grey or white hair very long hair pink streaked hair a piercing an earring in one ear a tattoo

b oo t b ull fi sh

I think pink ( agree . I think it looks looks great at any unless you 're under 20.

In what situations do yo u think it is not OK to wear ?

torn denim jeans a baseball cap worn backwards very short shorts large sung las ses a mini-skirt no shirt

b ir d bike tr ain

Do yo u agree or disagree with the following statements? Say w h y.

You shouldn't judge other people by the way they dress.

It's better to buy cheap clothes that don't last because then you can buy new ones more often.

b 1 50 >)) In pairs, put two words in each column Listen and check.

f u r hoo ded l ace l inen loo se ly cra pl ain p ut on sh irt sh oe s sil k sk irt sli ppers str iped sued e s uit t igh t w oo l

c > p 166 Sound Bank. Look at the t y pical spellings for these so und s.

d Practise saying these phrases

• a loose linen suit

• pink silk slippers

• blue suede shoes

• a tight lycra skirt

• a red and white striped tie

• a pale grey suede jacket

It's very risky to buy clothes online. Only sheep follow fashion. Good dressers have their own style.

Fur coats should be banned.

Women, but not men, are always expected to dress smartly for work or on TV.

8 WRITING

a Imagine yo u were given two items of clothing for yo ur birthday which yo u don' t like. You have decided to sell them on eBay Write a detailed description , making them sound as attractive as possible. Set a starting price.

I For sale! I Blue and white striped cotton skirt - never worn! Size 40 Would look great with white T-shirt. Perfect for the summer.

£3.99

1 bid +£3.00 postage

b Now read some other students ' adverts. Are there any things that yo u 'd like to bid for?

GRAMMAR b Write words for the definitions.

a Complete the sentences with one word.

1 What were you and Sarah talking ?

2 You didn't like her latest novel, you?

3 My father loves opera and so my mother.

4 A I've been to India twice . B you? I'd love to go.

5 What have you doing since I last saw you?

b@a,b,orc.

1 Could you tell me what time ?

a the bus leaves b leaves the bus c does the bus leave

2 How many people use this computer?

a do use b use c does use

3 You're not eating much. like the food?

a You don't b Don't you c Aren't you

4 A Why didn't you call me?

B I , but your phone was switched off.

a do call b did called c did call

5 The slower you work, you'll finish.

a later b the later c the later than

6 three cups of coffee already this morning.

a I've been having b I've had c I have

7 That was probably the worst

a I've ever seen b I've never seen

c I've ever been seeing

8 I met at my language class today.

a a Swiss b the Swiss c a Swiss girl

9 Some people think that don't pay enough tax.

a the rich b the rich people c rich

10 I got a bag for my birthday.

a beautiful leather Italian b Italian leather beautiful

c beautiful Italian leather

VOCABULARY

a Complete the compound adjectives.

1 My boss is very bad- When things go wrong he starts shouting at everyone.

2 I'm very -minded. I tend to forget things.

3 I think Paul is a bit tight- He never spends money unless he absolutely has to .

4 Syliva won't have any problems at the interview - she's very self-

___

5 That dress is very old- . It looks like the kind of thing my granny would wear.

1 bl verb to lose blood, from a wound or injury

2 SW adj bigger than normal, especially because of an injury or infection

3 b noun a piece of cloth used to tie round a part of the body that has been hurt

4 t ___ noun a pain in one of your teeth

5 r noun an area of red spots caused by an illness or allergy

c @the right verb or verb phrase

1 I have /feel a bit dizzy. I need to sit down.

2 She burnt/ sprained her ankle when she was jogging.

3 It was so hot in the room that I nearly fainted/ choked.

4 This skirt doesn't fit/ suit me. It's a bit too big.

5 Can I go in jeans? I don't feel like getting dressed/ getting changed.

d @the word that is different.

1 striped spotted plain

2 silk cotton fur

3 collar sleeveless hooded

4 lycra

5 fashionable scarf scruffy

e Complete with one word.

vest stylish

patterned smart long-sleeved cardigan trendy

1 My mother had very bad flu last week, but she's beginning to get it now

2 Please lie on the couch over there.

3 I'm feeling sick. I think I'm going to up.

4 Do we really need to dress for the party tonight?

5 Please up your clothes in the wardrobe

PRONUNCIATION

a @the word with a different sound.

1 a ch e ch oke ch ecked ma tc h es

2 W unconscious ra sh fa sh ion suede

3 i injury str iped s ilk blister

4 allergic b ur nt w ea r f ur

5 c o u gh fl u s ui t loo se

b Underline the main stressed syllable.

1 in lcre jdi lbly 2 big- jhea !ded 3 an lt ij bi lo jtics

4 swim lsuit 5 fa jshio lna jble

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS TEXT?

a Read the article once What do shamans do?

b Read the article again and choose a , b , or c .

1 According to the article, shamans help people to ...

a communicate with dead relatives

b solve their health problems

c enter a parallel reality

2 Shamans heal people by

a curing their depression

b helping them to find something they have lost

c dealing with their deep emotional problems

3 Harnam Sidhu and Shelly Khanna

a both had serious diseases

b did not initially believe that shamanism could help them

c have both become more deeply interested in shamanism

4 According to Klinger-Paul, shamanism ...

a requires time to work

b only works if people believe in it

c may work only because of the placebo effect

c Choose five words or phrases from the text. Check their meaning and pronunciation and try to learn them.

•411 CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS FILM?

VIDEO

1 51 >)) Watch or listen to a short film on the History of Surgery and mark the sentences T (true) or F (false).

1 St Thomas' hospital had a very early operating theatre.

2 In a modern operating theatre there is a monitor to measure a patient's brain activity.

3 The room where the operating theatre used to be is now a church.

4 The rooms where operations took place were called theatres because the public came to watch.

5 The theatre was usually full for an operation .

6 Most operations at St Thomas ' were done on rich people.

7 Surgeons used primitive forms of anaesthetic.

8 Surgeons could cut off a limb very quickly.

9 When there was a lot of blood during an operation , it was collected in a space under the floor.

10 If patients died , their bodies were given back to their families.

The rise of the shamans

The sound of drumbeats reverberates in the small conference room as the shaman goes into a trance. The others present, their eyes closed, focus on the rhythmic sounds of the drums. The shaman, in his trance, makes the journey to a parallel reality in search of solutions to the various problems the group has brought with it.

For most people this may seem weird, but it is becom i ng a fairly common experience for others. People from many different professions - students, businessmen, housewives, even former soldiers - are turning to shamanism, an ancient spiritual practice where the practitioner communes with 'spirit guides' to gain access to information and healing

Cosima Klinger-Paul, an Austrian who moved to India in 2000 and has started a school of shamanism, says that the interest in the practice is not surprising. 'Shamanism has always been there in every culture It is the oldest healing method of mankind.'

How exactly does shamanism work? Shamans believe that all illnesses have a spiritual cause, which is reflected in the physical body. Healing the spiritual cause heals the physical body. An important shamanic belief is the concept of 'soul loss ' Shamanic cultures around the world believe that whenever someone suffers an extreme physical or emotional trauma, a piece of his soul 'falls off'. Soul loss manifests in most people through feelings of emptiness and depression. Once the person gets the missing part of his soul back, shamans believe that the lost vitality and health also comes back.

But is it really as simplistic as this? Those who have undergone shamanic healing sessions seem to think so.

Harnam Sidhu, a 46-year-old marketing executive, swears by the practice. ' It helped reverse my disease,' he says. Sidhu was suffering from glaucoma -a degenerative condition that causes the loss of optic nerves leading to blindness. Doctors had to ld him it was a matter of months before he went completely blind in the bad eye. As a last resort, he tried out shamanism. After a few sessions, when he went for a check-up, his doctor told him that a miracle had happened - his condition was starting to reverse. Shelly Khanna, who took shamanic healing for a frozen shoulder condition, says 80% of her pain vanished after the session . 'I went as a sceptic, but I was so amazed by the experience that I resolved to learn shamanism myself.'

Was it really shamanism at work or simply the placebo effect? Believers stress that shamanic healing is an established tradition that has been tested time and again over centuries. 'Shamanism is not a religion, but an adventure into one's own mind,' says Klinger-Paul. 'It takes time to become familiar and to deal with the spirit world. I tend to say no to requests for quick healing. This is not a spiritual aspirin that you can take and be healed.'

Atul Sethi in The Times of India

G narrative tenses, past perfect continuous; so I such ... that Vair travel I don't have a fear of flying, I have a fear of crashing P reg ular and irregular past forms, sentence rhythm

1 LISTENING & VOCABULARY air travel

a 2 l)) Listen to some in-flight announcements and match them to pictures A-D. What information or inst ructi ons are the passengers being given?

b Listen again. What word or phrase do the flight attendants use to mean ?

1 sma ll baBs and cases

2 the cupboards above your seat

3 put on your seat belt

4 phones, tablets, etc.

5 the doors where you can get out of the plane quickl y if there is a problem

6 the t hinB you have to put on if the plane is going to land on the sea

7 to blow air inside something

c > p.154 Vocabulary Bank A ir t ra v e l.

2 READING

a Read the back cover of a book about air travel. Can yo u guess the answers to any of the questions?

b Now read the extract from Air Babylon. What are the answers to the questions, according to the text?

c Now read the extract again and mark the sentences T (true) or F (false). Underline the part of the text that gave you the answer.

1 Most airline passengers believe that the life jacket could save their life.

2 The passengers who inflated their life jackets too ea rly didn't survive

3 Customs officers can see through the mirror in Customs

4 Passengers are often caught b y customs officers because of their body language.

5 Small birds are more dangerous for planes than big birds.

6 Passengers get confused because what they can smell is not on the menu.

7 There aren't enough wheelchairs for all the people who need them.

8 One flight attendant sometimes makes sarcastic comments about passengers who don't really need a wheelchair.

d Did you find any of the information surprising? Which? Do you believe it at all?

1

Most airline passengers think it is laughable that a small yellow life jacket with a whistle will make any difference if the plane crashes into the sea. However, in some cases, like when 5 a hijacked Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 767 landed in the Indian Ocean in 1996, it did. Despite instructions from the cabin crew IlQl to preinflate their lifejackets inside the plane, several passengers did. They were unable to escape the lo rising water Inside the plane. But others, who followed the pilot's instructions, survived. So it is probably a good idea to look up from your magazine when the flight attendant is giving the safety demonstration.

15 customs officers are watching everywhere

They are watching you from the moment you walk off the plane, while you are standing in Baggage Reclaim waiting for your bag, and especially when you come out the other side of 20 Customs, which is when people who are trying to smuggle something finally let their guard down and get caught. The large two-way mirror in Customs, (behind which customs officers sit and watch) is part of that process. As you walk 25 past , it makes you look taller and thinner. So you feel good about yourself and you relax and smile. That's when a customs officer suddenly appears and asks you to open your case

Birds are one of the major problems for any

30 airport when planes are taking off and landing Any large bird can easily cause an accident. It flies into the engine, totally destroying itself and the machinery. Smaller birds are le ss of a problem. In some cases they can do s ome

35 d amage, but usually they are just roasted. When t his happens , there is often such a strong smell of roast bird that passengers on t e think at chicken is being cooked, an rised when they're given a c t dinner!

3 MINI GRAMMAR so I such that

a Look at these two sentences from t h e Air Babylon extract.

The passe nge r is no rma ll y so embarrassed that he d is ap pe ars a s l° q uick ly as possible. • :.

Wh e n t his ha p pe ns there is often such a strong smell , of roast bird that pa s se nge rs on the pl a ne think t hat chicken is being cooked

We oft en use s o I s uch that to ex press a consequence

• Us e so + adje c tive

The f lig h t was so bumpy (that) we all felt sick.

• Use so+ adverb

The taxi d r ive r drove so quickly (that) we got to the a irport on tim e

• Use so much I so many+ noun

There wa s so much traffic that we nearly missed our flight.

• Use such a+ adj ective + single counta bl e noun

It was s u c h a g r eat hote l (that) we wa n t to go back there nex t year.

• Use su c h+ a dje c tive + un c ountab l e noun

We had s uch terri b le weather that we didn ' t really enjoy the holiday.

• Us e su c h+ adj ective + plur al noun

They were su c h uncomfortable seats (that) I cou l dn't sleep at all

b Complete the sentences with so, so much / many, such, or such a.

1 The flight was long that I got really bored.

2 I had noisy child sitting beside me that I couldn't sleep at all .

3 My suitcase was heavy that I had to pay exce s s baggage.

4 I slept bad ly on the flight from New York that the jet lag was worse than usual.

5 We were served terrible food that I couldn' t eat a thing

6 There were people at check-in that we had to queue for ages.

7 We had luggage that we had to get another trolley.

8 The people we met on ho liday were nice people that we kept in touch with them.

4 SPEAKIN G

I n p ai r s, a sk and a n swer th e qu es tio n s.

1 How do yo u f ee l about fl y in g?

2 H ow oft en d o yo u fl y? Wha t for ?

3 When w a s the last fli ght you took? Wher e did you fl y to?

4 H ave you ever

• b ee n ver y d elayed at an airp or t ? How long for?

• mi sse d a flight ? Why?

• b een s topp e d in Cu s t o ms? W ere you c arr y ing any th i ng that y ou s h o uldn ' t h ave?

• h a d ver y b a d turb ule n ce o n a fli ght? H o w did yo u fe el?

W a s a nyone on the fli ght inj ure d ?

• fl ow n lo n g h aul? Did you ge t je t la g?

ssenger ge

the othe enge rs, 'Ladies and gentlemen!

5s Another miracle, courtesy of the airline industry! After years in a wheelchair, he walks again! ' The passenger is normally so embarrassed that he (and it's usually a 'he') disappears as quickly as he can.

From Air Babylon by Imogen Edwards -Jones

• fl o wn or b een up g r a d e d to business cl a ss ? What was it like ?

• b een o n a fli gh t w h e r e there w as an em e r gency ?

W h at h app en e d?

• sa t next to a sc r eamin g b ab y o n a flight (or a child that k e pt kickin g yo u r seat) ? What did yo u d o?

a You are going to liste n to a n ai rlin e pilot and an air traffic controller talking on a radio progr a mme B efore yo u listen , discu ss que stio n s 1-8 w ith a partn er and imagine what the answers w ill b e .

1 What weather conditions are the m ost dangero us when yo u are flying a plane?

2 Is turbul e n ce really dan gero u s?

3 Which is more dangerous, takin g off or landin g?

4 Are some a irport s m ore dangerous than others?

5 What personal qu alities does an a ir tr affic controller need ?

6 Is th e job really very stressfu l?

7 Why is it import a nt for a ir traffic controller s and pil o t s to s pe a k E n gli s h well?

8 Are there more men than women work in g as pilot s a nd air traffic controll ers?

b 7 >)) Li s t e n t o th e programm e. How m a n y of the qu estions did yo u a n swer correctly?

c Li ste n aga in for mo re detail and make notes for each of the ques tions.

d Which jo b would yo u pr efer, to work as a pilot or as an air traffic controller? Why?

6 GRAMMAR narrative tenses, past perfect continuous

a R ea d a newspaper s to ry about an incident that h a pp ene d during a flight. What exac tly happened ?

Last updated at 0 9: 12

Nightmare over the Atlantic!

At 11.35 on January 13th 2012 British Airways flight BA 0206 1 took off I was taking off from Miami to London. It had been flying for about three hours, and was over the Atlantic, when suddenly a voice 2 came out I had come out of the loudspeakers : 'This is an emergency announcement. We may short ly have t o make an emergency landing on water.'

Immediately panic 3 broke out I was breaking out One passenger on the flight said, ' My wife and I looked at each othe r and we feared the worst. We imagined that we were about to crash into the Atlantic It was awful. Everybody 4 s creamed I was screaming .'

But about 30 seconds later the cabin crew started to run up and down the aisle saying that the message 5 had been played I was being played by accident , and that everything was OK By this time a lot of the passengers were in tears , and 6 tried I were trying to get their life jackets out from under their seats.

Another passenger said , 'The captain didn 't even say anything about it until just before we started to land and even then he didn ' t explain what 7 happened I had happened. It was very traumatic Everybody was terr ified. I can ' t th ink of anything worse than being told your plane 's about to crash. It 8 was I had been the worst experience of my life.'

Late r a British Airways spokesman 9 said I had said, 'A prerecorded emergency announcement was activated by error on our f light from Miami to Heathrow We would like to apologize to passengers on this flight .'

Adapted from the Daily Telegraph

b Read th e story again a nd B the r ig h t form of the verbs 1- 9.

c Now lo ok at two sen te n ces abo ut th e story. What do yo u think is the difference between the two hi g hli ght ed verbs?

T h e pilot was very experienced a nd had flown this route many times b efore.

Whe n th e an n o unc ement was made the plane h ad been flying for a b o ut t h ree hours

d )ii- p.136 Grammar Bank 3A. Learn more about narrative tenses and the past perfect continu o u s, a nd practise them.

e In pairs or gro up s, try to comp lete the two sentences in fo ur different ways u s in g t h e four narrative tenses.

1 T h e poli ce stopped the driver because he

2 I couldn ' t sleep l ast night because

PRONUNCIAT ION

irregular past forms, sentence rhythm

a Write the past simple of the following verbs in the chart a ccord ing to the pronunciation of the vowel sound.

become ea-Eeh c ut dr i ve fa l l fl y hea r hid e f ig ht h o ld hur t keep leave li e read r ide say s l eep tell th ink t h row write

caught

8 SPEAKING

a >Communication Flight stories A p 105 B p 110 Read a newspaper story. Then imagine yo u were a passenger on the plane, and tell yo u r p artner the story.

b Yo u are going to tell an anecdo t e. The story can eith er b e tr u e or invent ed . If it 's i n vented, yo u m u st t ry t o t ell it in s u c h a conv i nci ng way that your partner thinks it's true. Choose one of th e topics be low and p l an w h at yo u 're going to say. Use the l anguage in the Telling an a n ec dote b ox to he lp yo u , and ask yo u r t eacher for any other wo rd s yo u nee d

Talk about a t i me when you

had a frightening experience whe n you were trave lling o r on ho li day

b Look at the verbs in a again. Which ones have a past par t iciple which is different from the past simple form? Write these past participles in the chart.

c 2 10 >)) Listen an d check. Then li sten and repeat.

d 1 1 >)) Listen to a n extract from a narrative Notice which are the stressed and unstressed words.

/ f

got ill or h ad an accide nt wh il e travell in g

We w e r e on a flight to Tokyo, and we'd been flying fo r about five hours . I was reading and my wife was watching a film when suddenly we heard a very loud noise. it sounded as if an engin e h ad exploded. T he pilot didn 't tell us what had happened un til half an hour later.

e P r actise reading the extract with the right rhy thm .

arrived home from a tr ip and had a su r pr ise

p Telling an anecdote

Setting the scene

This happened to me when I was...

I was -ing when. / beca use I had / hadn't...

The main events

I dec ided to beca use.. So t h en /

Suddenly I At that moment...

What happened in the end

In the end I eventually. .. I felt...

c In pairs, A tell B yo u r story. B sh ow i nterest and ask for more details. T h en decide whet h er yo u t h ink the stor y is true or not. Then swap ro les

This happened to me a few years ago when I was on holiday in Fl orida. I was swimming in the sea one day when I saw a shark

How big was it?

1 GRAMMAR the position of adver bs and adverbia l phrases

a

If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.

The young men walked aggressively through the crowded shopping centre. They had their target in their sights, and wouldn't stop until they had done what they had set out to do.

Now she felt scared. She ran from the hooded gang. stopped, and was cornered.

'Miss, you forgot your handbag.'

He was worried. Unfortunately, since his wife's death his teenage daughter had become extremely difficult. They had agreed 2.00 a.m. as the latest return time from nightclubs. Now it was 3.30 He prepared himself for confrontation as the door opened. 'Dad,' she shouted angrily 'I've been frantic. You're late again.'

Glossary

A target n o un obj ect ive , goa l hooded adj w ith the h ood of a coat cove rin g yo ur face set out to do sth PV t o b eg in a n ac ti o n w i t h a p a rticular go a l in m ind B

stab ver b to pu sh a knife i nto s b o r s th cl i ff nou n a hi g h ar ea o f roc k o ft en a t the ed ge of the sea brakes no un the things th a t you us e to s to p a car c frantic adj ve r y wo r r ie d D fabulous adj wo nd er ful intake n o un the a m o unt o f fo od an d drink th a t yo u ta k e into yo ur b o dy pudding noun desser t

They had been arguing bitterly the night before. He had come in from the garage with oil on his shoes. Fed up, desperate, she stabbed him. Horrified by what she had done, she drove away from the house along the cliff road. Sudden l y she realized that the brakes weren't working.

Stage one: Feel fat. Go on diet. Lose weight. Feel fabulous. Buy new clothes

Stage two : Eat normally but controlling intake. Look fabulous. New clothes slightly tight

Stage three: Eat and drink normally (potatoes, bread, pudding AND wine). New clothes don't fit. Old clothes thrown away

Back to stage one

b Look at the higli ighted adverbs or adverbial phrases in the stories. Think about what they mean and notice their position in the sentence. Wr it e them in the correct place in the chart.

Types of adverbs

Time (when things hap pen, e.g. immediately)

Manner (how you do somet hing, e.g. slo w ly)

Degree (describing I modifying an adjective, e.g. very)

Comment (giving an opinion, e g. lu cki ly)

c With a partner , decide where the bold adverbs sho uld go in these sentences

I He speaks French and Spanish. fluently

2 I u se public transport. hardly ever

3 I thought I'd lost my phone, but it was in m y bag . fortunately

4 It's important that you arrive on time. extremely

5 As soon as I know, I' ll tell yo u straightaway

d )ii- p.137 Grammar Bank 3B. Learn more about adverbs and adverbia l phrases , an d practise them.

e 14 >)) Listen to some sound effects and short dialogues. Then u se the bold adverb to complete the sentence

I When she got to the bus stop, the b u s just

2 They were having a party when suddenly

3 He tho ught he had lost his boarding pas s, but luckily

4 The woman thought Andrea and Tom were friends, but in fact . .. hardly

2 VOCABULARY adverbs and adverbia l phrases

a Read another fifty-word story. Who is it abo ut?

Exam nerves

It was nearly 4 a m. and she could hardly keep her eyes open. She had been working hard since lunchtime, but the exam was nea r Would she be able to finish in time? At n ine t he next morning she was in t he classroom. 'OK.' she said 'You can start now.'

b Look at the highlighted adverbs What's the difference between . ?

a ha1·d and hardly b near and nearly

c )ii- p.155 Vocabulary Bank Adverbs and adverbial phrases.

3 PRONUNCIATION word stress and intonation

a 17>)) Underline the stressed syllables in these adverbs. Listen and check.

acltua l lly al lmost a l ppar le ntlly ba lsic lally defl inlitelly elven elvenltuallly forltu l nate l ly graldua l lly i ldeallly in lcre ldib l ly lu cklilly oblvi lous l ly un lforltu lnate l ly

b 18 >)) Listen and repeat the sentences, copying the stress and intonation of the adverbs

1 T here was a lot of traffic, and unfortunately we arrived extremely late

2 We definitely want to go abroad this summer, ideally somewhere hot .

3 It 's incredib ly easy- even a child could do it!

4 Mark gradually began to realize that Lily didn't love him any more.

5 I thought Roberto was Portuguese, but actually he 's Br azil ian.

6 Apparently Jack has been offered a promotion at work, but it will mean moving to New York.

7 I absolutely love It alian food, especially pasta.

4 WRITING

a You are going to write a fifty -word story. It must be SO words exactly (not including the title) and you must include at least two adverbs . Contracted forms (e.g. I'd) count as one word. First , in pairs , choose two of the titles below.

A holiday romance The lie

A day to for get Never again

b Brainstorm ideas for the two plots , and each write a first draft without worrying about the n u mber of words.

5 The driver couldn't see where he was goi ng because... hard

6 A lain couldn't understand the man because... incredibly

c Swap your drafts then edit the stories, making s ure they are exactly 50 words.

d Read two other pairs' stories. Which do you like best?

e )ii- p.114 Writing A short story Wri t e a 120-180 word short story

5 SPEAKING

a A s k a nd a nsw er the qu es t io n s in the R ea d ing hab i ts que s tionn a ir e w ith a part ne r.

b How s imila r a r e y our rea d i n g h a bits?

6 READING & LISTENING

a 19 l)) R ead a nd li ste n t o Part 1 of a n Amer ica n s h or t sto r y Answer t he q u est io n s wit h a par t ner.

1 W h e r e d oes S u san wa n t Sta n t o t ake h er? To d o w h at?

2 Why is Stan s u r p r ised?

3 Wha t h ad h app e n e d t o S u sa n th e previou s wee k ?

4 Why d oe s t he w r i t er say a b out Su san ' S h e wa s r ight , of cou rse, exc e pt a b o ut t h e hard- ear n e d p ar t .' ?

The press

national newspapers

local papers

sports papers

Books

novels classics

te x tbooks

Online

free papers comics academi c journals

non-fiction, e g self- help books short stories manuals

web pages academic or work-related websites

biogs news websites

chat forums song lyrics

• Which of the above do you read? How often?

• Do you ever read any of them in English?

• Do you read anything specifically to improve your English?

• Do you prefer reading on paper or on screen?

• Do you read more or less than you used to (or about the same)?

Lazy Susan

BY NANCY PICKARD

'Iwa nt yo u t o t ea ch m e h ow t o sh o o t a g un ,' Susan Carpen t er said t o he r hus b a nd a t b reakfast

' Yo u wa nt me t o d o what?' St a n Ca rp ent er s t are d at her, a p i ece of to ast in hi s h a nd.

' Ta ke me t o a sh oo tin g ra nge .' Susa n pl a ced a co upl e o f mus h roo ms a nd a fri ed egg ca refull y o nto her b read t o ma ke a san dwic h It seemed a sill y was t e o f effort t o ea t o nl y one t h in g a t a t im e. H er hu s ba nd 's s urprise turn ed to deli ght

' I think that 's a wond erful id ea !'

Ever sin ce sh e'd bee n rob bed t he wee k before o n a dark n igh t in t h e p a rkin g lot of th e M ulb err y St reet Sho ppin g Cen t er, St an ha d bee n t e llin g her to lea rn h ow t o protec t h er sel f, prefe r a bly wi th a g u n

'A re you serio us a bout t h is ? Yo u've a lways h ated gun s.'

'Well , it looks like yo u w in , d ear '

'We' ll go to a ran ge t on ight,' Stan p ro mi se d.

Su san had been mo re angry t h a n sc ared wh en sh e was ro bb ed th a t ni ght. H e h a dn ' t hurt her mu ch, jus t a li gh t kn ock on th e h ea d w i t h hi s gun befo re h e to ok h er purse It was only a littl e injur y a d de d to t h e grea t er i n s ult Sh e was so a n gry a bo ut it!

• What was the last book you read?

• Why did you choose to read it?

• What are you reading at the moment?

• Do you have a favourite author or authors?

• What's the best book you've read recently?

• Would you read more if you had more time?

• Did you use to read more when you were younger? When did you stop? Did you have a favourite children's book?

• What do you do to pass the time when you are travelling?

Do you ever... ?

• listen to a song and read the lyrics at the same time

• watch films or TV in English with English subtitles

• read books and listen to them on audio at the same time, e.g. Graded Readers

' Fifty d o ll a r s !' she said incredul o usly to the ni ce p o lice officer ' O n e minute I h a d fifty d o ll a rs in m y p u rse and the n ext minute I h a d n oth in g. Fifty ha rd-e arn ed d o lla r s gon e, just gon e! I h ave t o wo rk hours t o earn th a t much mon ey, and he co mes a lo ng a nd ta k es i t just l ike th a t !'

Sh e was ri g ht, of co urse, excep t abo ut th e ' h ard- earned ' part Th a t wa s a bi t of a n exa gger a tio n Tru e, s h e di d have a jo b as a recep ti onist in a sa les offi ce, but s he di dn' t exactl y wo rk h a rd for her mo n ey. O h , s he was a t work fo r eight ho urs eve r y d ay, a nd s h e s mil ed at a ll t h e c us t o mers, a nd h e r bo sses liked h er, m os t p eop le liked h er But th er e was mo re work tha t didn ' t get d o n e th a n did As sh e was a lways say ing to h er fr ie nd s, ' Oh , we ll, yo u k now me " Lazy Su sa n " .'

Glossary parking lot n oun AmE for car pa r k purse n oun AmE for a woman 's bag

b 20 ))) Look at the glossar y and make sure you know how the words are pronounced , and what they mean Now listen to Part 2 . Then answer the questions with a partner

Glossary aimed /e 1md / verb pointe d a wea p o n a t s th mugging / 'mAg IIJ/ nou n th e crim e o f a tt ac king s b , or t hre a t e ning to do s o , in ord er to s tea l fro m th e m trigger n o un th e part of a g un that yo u press in ord e r to fire it

John Wayne a n Ame r ica n ac t o r who o ft e n s t a rr e d in Wes t e rn a nd w a r film s tough / tAf/ adj s trong e no ug h to d ea l w ith a diffi c ult s itu a ti o n bushes / 'buf1 z/ no un medium- s ized plants like s mall t rees

1 Where are Susan and Stan at the beginning of Part 2?

2 How does Susan feel about shooting?

3 According to the instructor, who is the typical victim of a mugging?

4 What kind of person does the mugger avoid?

5 How does the instructor recommend they should walk in order to look tough and confident?

6 How does the instructor say they can recognize a mugger?

7 What did he teach them in the previous two classes?

8 What s u rprises Stan about Susan?

c 21 ))) Read and listen to Part 3. Answer the questions with a partner.

The shops were closed when the mov ie-goers came out int o the dark Mulberry Street Shopping Center parking lot. It had been one of the Superman films and Susan felt inspired. Stan wou ld not have app roved of her going to the movies alone , especially not back to the place where she was robbed . But h e was away and she'd taken all those self-defense lessons. Now s he knew a thing or two.

A group of dark bushes were between her and her c ar Sh e wa lked confidently straight through them , then s he stopped. Sh e bent down slightly, and turned to look carefully behind her. She saw the man before h e saw her. Everything she'd learn ed in her classes went through her mind : she looked at his walk, the look on his shadowed face, the object in his hands. Her breathin g go t quicker. She thought of the hours she ' d worked to earn t hos e fifty dollars, and of the so-and-so who had stolen it from her so easi ly. She took from her pocket the little gun that Stan had taught her to use. T h en, just as the man walked past the bushes, she jump ed behind him so he couldn't see her.

1 What effect did watching Sup erman have on S u san?

2 What does she mean b y 'the scene of the crime' in paragraph two?

3 What did she think about when she saw the man?

4 Look at the high l i ghted words and phrases and try to work out their meaning from the context.

5 What do you think is going to happen next?

d 22 ))) Listen to the end of the stor y In pairs, discuss what you think happened , and what Susan is going to do in the future Do you like the way the stor y ended? Did it end the way you expected?

pGraded Readers

This story is in a Graded Reader (from the Oxford Bookworm series level 6) called Ame r ican Crime Stories Remember that the more you read, the more vocabulary you learn , and the better your English will become

1 THE INTERVIEW Part 1

VIDEO

a 23 >)) Re a d th e b iographi ca l i nfor m a tio n a b o u t Juli a E ccle s ha re a nd look a t th e b oo k cover s: h ave yo u rea d a n y of th em ?

Julia Eccleshare is a well-known British journalist and writer on the subject of children 's books She has been children's book editor for t he Guardian newspaper since 2000. She regularly appears as a judge or Chair of judges on some of the major children 's book prize s, and is particularly interested in how to encourage children and young people to read. Julia was awarded the Eleanor Farjeon Prize in 2000 in recognition of her outsta n ding contribution to children 's books. She has four children and lives in London.

Talking about. .. 2

V IDEO

a 24 >)) Now wa t ch or li ste n to Part 2. N umb e r th e pho t os in th e ord e r s h e m e ntio n s the m

b W a tch or li s t e n to Part 1 o f a n in te r view w ith h e r. W h y d oes s h e m e nt ion the se fo u r b ooks ?

Wa rrior S carlet L ittl e House on th e Prair i e Mouse House No r t h ern LiBh t s

c N ow lis t e n ag a i n and ma rk the se nte nce s T (tru e) o r F (fal se) S ay w h y the F se ntenc es are fal se.

1 Julia h as o nly r e -rea d War r io r Scar lett onc e s in ce she was a child

2 S h e think s people h ave ve r y clea r m e m ories abo ut b oo ks th ey love d as child re n

3 H e r p a r ent s r ea d t o he r a lo t w h e n sh e was a chi ld.

4 H e r hu sb a nd d idn ' t wan t t o read t o t h e c hildr e n a t th e end of a long d ay.

5 On e of the thin gs sh e loves a b out Philip P ull ma n 's b oo ks i s th a t they m a k e child re n th in k

Glossary warrior / 'wori 'J/ a p erso n w ho fig hts in a bat tle or war (espec ia lly i n th e p as t)

His Dark Materials trilogy a series of t h ree fa ntasy novels by t h e a uthor Ph i li p P ull ma n co n sis ti ng of No rthern LiBhts , The Subtl e Knife , a nd The Amber SpyBlass. A film b ased o n Northern LiBhts was re lease d in 2007 ca ll ed The Golden Compass

b Li s t e n aga in.@ t he right a n swer.

1 T h e o n e bi g thi ng tha t s h e thin ks m akes a ch il d a rea d er i s learninB to read ea rly / findinB the riB h t book.

2 W h en t een agers have seen a fi l m it often/ rarely m a kes them wa nt to rea d t h e b ook.

3 Pare n ts so m et im es t hink t h at ch ildr en shou ld/ shou ldn't rea d b ooks w h ic h are d iffic ult

4 Jac qu eline W il so n is an example o f an a uth or w h o parents / children u se d t o think was very goo d b u t parents/ children d idn 't .

5 Juli a think s that child ren shou ld/ sh ouldn' t on ly read b ook s w h ich a r e of h ig h litera r y qu a li ty.

Glossary

a teen anthem a song w h ich yo un g peop le s t ro n gly iden t ify w it h.

H e r e Ju l ia u se s the express ion to d escribe a novel.

a literary stylist a w r iter who writes in a very literary style

children's books

3

VIDEO

a 25>)) Now watch or listen to Part 3. Answer the questions.

1 Does she read print book s, e- book s, or both?

2 Does she think pe o ple will read few er books because of all the new technolog y?

3 Does she still read for pleasure?

b Listen again. What is she referring to when she says the following things?

1 'I think we are, ought to , sor t of, s top seeing the two in polarity, I think , yo u know. Everybody is going to read both.'

2 'So the book has always been under threat from these other media .'

3 '. .I know you can do both, but most people don't .'

4 ' but as yo u get older it's just harder to carve out time like that and there's a lways something else pressing . . .'

5 '. and yo u have that kind of chemical moment when the story grabs you .'

2 LOOKING AT LANGUAGE

j) Ways of giving yourself time to think Julia often gives herself time to think when she's answering questions, either by stopping and starting again, sometimes in a slightly different way, or by using 'filler' sounds, e.g. 'um' and 'e r', and certain words or phrases, e.g . ' well', 'I mean', etc. that don 't add meaning but which we use for this purpose

2 26 >)) Listen to some extracts from the interview and complete the missing words or phra ses.

1 'Well, that 's i nteresting , because ifl think back to it .'

2 ' I think , there 's a lot of, of talk about how children learn to read and all of this but , and what strategy might be be st, but actually what makes a reader .. .'

3 'Well, I think the bigge s t inspiration that I, I would, _ I would like to say again .'

4 'You take a book like The Beach, it wasn' t a book that was written for children .'

5 ' .. .it was a _ almost a teen anthem n ove l. . .'

6 'A nd what do you say about someo ne like JK Rowling who is , , not a great literary styli st .'

a 27 >)) Watch or listen to three people talking about children's books. Match the speakers (C, S, and L) with the book titles they mention.

D Northern Lights D The Famous Five

D The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

D Dear Zoo D The Roald Dahl books

b Watch or listen again. Who (C, S, or L) .. .?

D had favourite authors rather than favourite books

D heard their favourite book before reading it

D identified with a particular situation rather than specific characters

D identified with naught y children in general

D liked a book becau se it was about something he / she wasn't allowed to have

D liked an author's books especially because of the pictures in them

c 28 >)) Watch or listen a nd complete the highlighted Colloquial English phrases What do you think the y mean?

1 ' I liked the thall the boy got lots of different animals through the post .'

2 ' ... she was like a tomboy, so I liK'ea the idea of being quite a d vent urous . . .'

3 ' I remember we h a d a teacher at schoo l who r ead it ____ to us .'

4 ' so whenever there was a boy who got into lots of

5 '. .I loved b ecause it just offered a really detailed other world, to just into .. .'

4 SPEAKING

Answer the questions with a partner Practise using 'fi llers' to give yo urself t ime to think.

1 What was yo ur favourite book when yo u we re a child? Why did yo u like it so much?

2 Was there a character in a children's book that you identified w ith when yo u were a child?

3 Did your parents use to read to yo u? When and where?

4 Do yo u read more print books or more e-books? Why?

Charlie , English Sean, English Lucy, English

1 READING & SPEAKING

a Look at t h e title of the les s o n W h at do yo u th ink it mean s ?

b R ea d th e int ro du c ti on t o t h e art icl e an d ch eck T h en d o t h e que s tionnaire and ad d u p yo ur score.

c Now comp are yo u r a n swers w i th a par tner Exp l ain w h y yo u d o or don' t d o th ese thing s See w h a t yo ur score m eans. D o yo u ag r ee w ith it ?

Icommitted a crime last Tuesday, which just happened to be Ea r th Day* , a day that invites people to think about thei r eco -sins I turned on the shower, intending to get straight in even though the water takes a while to warm up. But then I decided to brush my teeth, and suddenly the water had been running for over two minu t es By the time I got in, I was drown i ng in eco - guilt! I had wasted water ,T -· f ' , _._...

Should you feel eco-guilty, too? Take the test.

SHOPPING BAGS

D I have a reusable shopping bag made of recyclable mater ials, which I always use when I' m shopp i ng 0000 (+4 eco-points)

D I own several reusab le shopp i ng bags , but I often forget to bring them with me. 000 (-3 eco-points)

D I always ask for plast ic bags because they ' re convenient They can be recycled, can't they? 0000(-4)

WASHING TOWELS

D I wash my towels immediately after I use them . 00000 (-5)

D I use a towel for seve r al days before I put it in the washing machi n e 0 (+1)

D That rem i nds me, I must wash my towels! 000 (+3)

RUNNING WATER

D I n e ver le ave the wate r running when I brus h my teeth , no r befo re getti ng i nto the shower. 00 (+ 2)

D I'm allergic to c old wate r, so I have to leave the shower to r un for a while b efore I get i n 00 (-2)

D I hate showers I n e ed a hot bath every day to re la x . 000 (-3)

BUYING

FRUIT AND VEGETABLES

D I never b uy fruit and ve g e tabl es at supe r markets I buy organic fru it and vegetables in markets or small shops 000 (+3)

D I buy some fruit an d vegetables in a market, bu t t he supermarket is more conv e ni ent. 00 (- 2)

D I shop at the che ap e st p laces - who cares abo ut eco - guilt, I fe el guiltier if I spend too much money on food!. 00000 (-5)

RECYCLING

D I throw ev e rything i n th e sam e b in . 000000(-6)

D I someti mes r ecycle glass b o tt les , especially afte r a part y ! Bu t t h at's p rob ably all. 0000 (-4)

D I re c ycle al l my newspapers, bott les , and p last ic c on t ai n e rs 00000 (+ 5)

GETTING AROUND

D I walk, us e pub l ic transp o r t o r cycle becaus e cars pollute th e plan et 00000(+5)

D I w al k, u se pub l ic transpo rt or cycle because I can ' t affo rd to buy a ca r 0 (-1)

D Vroom vroom he re I co me! 00000 (-5)

So how guilty should you feel?

Below 0: You should feel very guilty.

0-12 points: You should feel qu ite gu i lt y

Above 10: You are too good to be true!

GRAMMAR future perfect and future continuous

a Read some predictions that have been made about the next 20 years. Which ones do you think . . . ?

1 are already happening

2 are likely to happen

3 probably won't happen

How we will be living in 20 years' time ... (or will we?)

At home

Most people will have installed solar panels or wind turbines on their houses or blocks of flats to generate their electricity. People will be recycling nearly 100% of their waste (and those who don't will have to pay a fine) .

Transport

Cars that use a lot of petrol (e g. four-by-four cars) will ha ve been banned and many people will be driving electric cars. Low-cost airlines wi ll have disappeared and flights will be much more expensive .

The environment

Paper books will no longer be produced to save trees from being cut down, and all books will be electronic. Fresh water wi ll be runn in g out in many parts of the world and we wi ll be getting much of our water from the sea (through desalination plants)

The weather

Temperatures worldwide will ha ve risen even further. Many ski resorts w ill have closed because of a lack of winter snow and some beaches and holiday resorts will have disappeared completely. We will be ha v ing even more extreme weather, and heatwaves, hurricanes, floods, etc. will be frequent occurrences.

b Read the predictions again. Which two wo uld yo u most and least like to come true?

c Look at the highlighted ver b s in the predictions . Which ones refer to ... ?

a an action or situation that w ill be finished in the future

b an action or situation which will be in progress in the future

d )iii- p 138 Grammar Bank 4A Learn more about the f uture perfect and the continuous , and practise them.

e Talk to a partner and say if you think the following predictions will happen . Expl ain why (not).

IN TWENTY YEARS ' TIME...

• Most people in office jobs will be working from home

• All private swimming pools and golf courses will have been banned.

• Most people will be using public t ransport or bikes to get to work.

• People will be having more holidays in their own country and fewer abroad.

• People will be retiring at 70 or even later

• The teach in g of handwr iting will have disappeared from the school cu rr ic ulum because students w ill only be writing on tablets or laptops.

pdefinitely, probably, and likely I unlikely We often use definitely, probably, and likely I unlikely when talking about the future, especially when we are making predictions. I think it'll definitely happen I it definitely won't happen. it 'll probably happen I it probably won 't happen. it's (very) likely (to happen) I it's (very) unlikely (to happen).

READING & VOCABULARY the weather

a L ook a t th e car t oo n . W h at d oes it say ab o ut Brit is h we a t h er ? Wo uld it b e tr ue a b o ut yo ur

c o unt ry?

Don't know what to say?

Talk about the weather!

E 0 u ,:;_ u

\ \ \ We ' Te on a . . . h0 .s ;a • S"l"'lme-r ho1icJay . . · ·.1 u

1 ' I t is commonly observed,' w r o t e Dr Jo h nson in 1758, ' that w hen two Englishmen meet , their first talk is of the weather; they are in haste to tell each other, what each must already know, that it is hot or cold, bright or cloudy, windy or calm .' No t much has 5 changed A survey published earlier this year found that the average British person mentions t he weather at least once every six hours , and that 70 per cent of us check the weather forecast every day, even when nothing unusual is happening.

Last week, as temperatures soared to 29°C - the highest recorded l o end-of-September temperature for 116 years - there was a sense of both delight (at the love ly hot weather) and worry (about the threat of global warming). On television and in the newspapers, experts argued earnestly over what such extreme weather meant, a nd if t here was even a term for it While many called it an Indian summe r, the 15 Met Office ruled that it couldn 't be properly called an Indian summer, which only occurs ' as a warm spell in autumn , especi all y in Oct obe r and November '. The BBC 's main weatherman a lso ag r eed t h at the heat had arrived a bit too early to be described as an Indian summer

b R ea d th e article onc e. A t w h a t ti me o f yea r wa s the a rticle w ritte n ? W h a t is a n Indi an s umm e r?

c R ead the ar ticle a gain a nd m ark t h e sent ences

T (tru e) or F (false) Un derlin e t he senten ce o r p ar t o f t h e ar t icle that gives yo u the answer

1 Briti sh p eople t a lk ab ou t t h e wea ther more t h a n th ey u s ed t o

2 Peo pl e h ad mi xed fee lin gs ab o u t th e h o t wea the r

3 So m e wea ther e x p ert s said t h at th e w arm wea t her was n o t a n In d ia n sum mer b ecau se it h appe n e d in S e ptemb er.

4 T h e older E n gli s h t er m for In dian s u mmers is s till u se d in so m e p a r ts of th e UK

5 Kate Fox s ays tha t th e Br it ish t a lk a b out the wea ther b e cau s e th ey a re shy.

6 Sir John Mo rti me r b e li eves tha t t h e Br iti sh t a lk a b out the we a t h e r t o avoid saying w h a t they r eally t hi nk.

d L o ok a t the highlighted phr ases r el a t e d t o the wea the r. W ith a p a rtner, say w h a t yo u thi n k th ey m ean

e > p.156 Vocabulary Bank Weather.

f D o yo u h ave an ex pr essio n for I ndi a n s um me r in yo u r l a n g uage? D o p eople in yo u r co unt ry o ft e n talk a b o ut the wea th er ?

Wh y (no t)?

Indian summer has differe nt names across the globe. In Britain, u nt il 20 around the end of the First World War, late heatwaves we r e known as ' St Martin's summers' - the feast of St Martin falling on I Ith November - and in much of Europe they still are. Other countries have their own names - in Russia it's an 'Old Lad ies' summe r'; in Bulgaria a ' Gipsy summer'; and in China a 'Tiger autumn'.

Bu t the big difference between the Br itish and other national it ies is that they talk about Indian summers much more. ' Britons need weather-talk to he lp us ove r come our reserve,' explains Kate Fox , author of Watching the English ' We talk about it a lot , but not because it is an intrinsically interest ing topic. People use weather-talk to 30 facilitate social interaction .'

The writer Sir John Morti mer saw a deeper reason for Britain 's peculiar obsession with the weather. 'There 's nothing personal about it,' he wrote 'It gives away no secrets Talking to our next-door neighbours over the fence, we, as a nation, are reluctant to make 3 5 such uncomfortable confessions as ' I can 't stand your ch ildren ' , or 'I'm passionately in love with your wife' It's far easier to say, ' I think we ' ll be having rain over the weekend'.'

4 PRONUNCIATION

vowel sounds

p Spelling and pronunciation

Most vowels, or combinations of vowels, can be pronounced in more than one way. If you are unsure what the vowel sound is in a new word , check with your dictionary.

a Look at the groups of words below and @the word you think is different .

1 blow snow show ers below

2 w eather sw ea t h eavy h eat

3 dr izzle b li zzard chilly m ild

4 h ar d w ar m d ark g ar den

5 fl oo d cool s oon loo se

6 fo ught ought d ro ught br ought

7 th u nder s u nny h u rricane h u mid

8 sc or ching w o rld t or nado stor m

b 34 >)) Listen and check.

c 35>)) Listen and write five sentences Then practise saying them.

d Talk to a partner.

• What kind of weather do you associate with the different seasons where you live?

• What's the weather like today? Have yo u heard the forecast for tomorrow / next weekend?

• What's your favourite weather? Does the weather affect your mood? What do you like doing when the weather is bad?

• What kind of weather do you think is the best and the worst for . . . ?

a camping

b going for a walk in the mountains

c driving

d running a marathon

e shopping

f sightseeing

• Do you think global warming is affecting the climat e? In what ways has climate change affected the weather in yo ur country?

a 36 >)) You're going to listen to three people talking about their experiences of extreme weather in the UK. Listen once. Which speaker ?

D was both frightened and excited by the weather

D got quite stressed because of the weather

D really enjoyed themselves in spite of the bad weather

b Listen again and make notes in the chart.

Speakerl Speaker2 Speaker3

When did it happen?

Where were they at the time?

What kind of weather was it?

What happened as a result?

pModifiers with strong adjectives

When you are talking about extreme situations, e.g very bad weather you can use:

1 Normal adjectives with a modifier (very, really, extremely, incredibly, unbelievably), e g. It was incredibly cold, extremely hot, unbelievably windy, etc.

2 Stro ng adject ives, e.g. It 's boiling here - 40 degrees, It's freezing today, etc

3 Strong adjectives with absolutely, e.g It was absolutely freezing. The midday heat was absolutely scorching. Remember that we often use a bit or rather+ adjective to express a negative idea, e.g It 's a bit too hot. It 's rather chilly today

c In small groups, talk about a time when you were somewhere when ...

there was a terrible heatwave

Where were yo u and what were yo u doing ?

What did you do to protect yourse lf from the weather?

Did yo u ever fe el scare d or in danger?

G zero and first conditionals, future time clauses

V expressions with take

In a world that's changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks. P sentence rhythm

1 LISTENING & SPEAKING

a Talk to a partner.

1 Imagine th a t yo u h ad a dream where yo u were sta nding on the edge of a p rec ipice What sor t of dre am would it be for yo u?

a an exciting one

b a nightmare

c an intere sti ng one, which you might try to interpret

2 What do yo u think yo ur answer says about yo ur att itude to ri sk?

b 38 >)) Listen to s ix people answeri ng the question Are you a risk taker? How many of the speakers consider th e mselves risk t akers?

c Listen again. Who ... ?

D says that some activities are enjoyable bec ause they are a bit risky

D thinks that his /her attitude to ri sk i s different from what it was before

D thinks that taking risks mean s lo sing control

D had to pay some mone y becau se of hi s / her risky behaviour

D worries about his / her personal s afet y

D does some thing which m os t people think of as very ri sky, but w hich he / she says is not

d Listen again for more detail. What examples of risks do the speakers say the y would take , or have taken? What things wouldn't they do? Do you identify with any of the speakers? Why?

e Work with a partner. A interview B with the que s tions in the r e d circles. For each circle , write R if you think that in that area B is prepared to take risks. Then B inter v iew A with the blu e circles.

f Look at what yo u have written in the circles. In which areas of his /her life would yo u say your partner was a risk taker? Does he / s he agree? Which of yo u is the bigger risk taker?

Sports and activities

rHave you ever done any dangerous sports or activities? Did you enjoy them? Would you do them again?

Would you do a parachute jump or a bungee jump for charity?

Have you ever done something dramatically different to " your appearance, e.g had a very different hairstyle or hair colour, a tattoo, or a piercing? How did you feel immediately afterwards? Did you regret it later?

Do you have any habits that you know are not good for your health? Have you ever tried to give up the habits? Do you worry about them?

Do you ever buy things online? Have you ever had a bad experience?

Do you walk by yourself late

Do you cycle in your town or city? How safe do you feel? at night or get )',,..._ late night taxis? Do you

drive a ca r or ride a motorbike?

Do you ever go really fast and b reak the speed limit?

Do you buy clothes online?

Are there any k inds of clothes you wouldn 't buy on line?

Would you ever buy a second-hand car or bike on eBay (or a similar website)?

Have you ever travelled somewhere without having booked somewhere to stay in advance?

Do you normally take out insurance when you travel?

If you are travelling somewhere, do you normally get to the station or airport with plenty of time or at the last minute?

Would you go on holiday abroad on your own?

2 GRAMMAR conditionals and future time clauses

a Ma tch t h e se n te n ce h a l ves

1 D If my d a d fin s oun I 've b ee n hi tc hhiki ng,

2 D Wh en you're crossing t h e roa d in t he UK ,

3 D As soon as ['ve passed m y d riving t est,

4 D If it 's still raining th is a ft er no o n ,

5 D W h en I've ooked the fligh t s ,

6 D If you don't ask her t o p ay yo u back ,

7 D If[ 'm not feeling b e tt er t omo r row,

8 D If yo u carry on w i t h the die t ,

A yo u' fl have lost ten kilos b y C hrist m as.

B h e 'll be fur io u s

C I 'm going to buy a car.

D make sure yo u look r igh t a nd t he n left.

E sh e'llnave forgotten s h e b orrowe d it .

F we can start looking for h otels.

G we ' re ca lli ng off th e match

H I won't be going to work.

b L ook a t the highlighted ver b s. I n fi r st co nditi o n a l se nte nc es a nd futu re time clau s e s, w h a t for m s o r t e n ses ca n yo u u se a) after if, w hen, etc (1- 8) b ) in t h e main clau se (A- H) ?

c Now l ook a t t wo more cond i t io n a l se nt ences. D o the m a in cla u ses r efer to a) som eth i ng w h ich m i g ht b e a c o n se quence of th e if- clau se, or b ) so m e t h in g w h ich is a lways a conse qu e n ce of t h e if- cl a u se?

If p eopl e d r ive wh en t h ey ar e t i r ed , t h ey often h ave acc id e n ts .

If roa d s a r e wet or icy, t h e numb e r of acc id ents goes up

Do you think you would go out with ?

a) someone from another country

b) someone you had met online

Do you th ink you would go out with someone who was much older (or much younger) than you?

d

)ii- p.139 Grammar Bank 48 L ea rn m o r e ab o ut conditi o nal s a nd fu tu re ti m e clau ses, a nd p ract ise th e m

e In p a ir s, c o mple t e e a ch sent e nc e i n you r ow n wo rd s .

1 D o n ' t le t c hil d r en pl ay n ea r a sw im m in g pool u n less

2 Never leave a d og loc ked up i n a car if.

3 Kee p a first a id kit in yo u r house i n case

4 C h i ldren sho uldn' t be left a lo n e i n t h e h o u se u ntil.

5 A lways un p lu g e lec t r ica l applia n ces (e.g. a hair d ryer) as soon as

6 A l ways k eep m e d icin es in a safe p la ce i n case

7 D o n ' t a llow s t ra n ger s into your h o u se unless

8 If you a r e fr y i ng so m e thin g a nd t h e oil cat ch es fir e ,

Would Work d t d you take a an s u y job (with a two- / year contract) in an English-speaking country, e.g the US or the UK? Have you ever cheated in an exam? Were you worried about getting caught? Would you ever cheat in a very important exam?

Do you normally start revising for an exam in good time , or do you leave it until the last min ute?

3 PRONUNCIATION sentence rhythm

a 2 42 >)) L i s t en a nd w rite s i x se nte n ces in the d i a log u es

1 A If w e rent a house in the mountains, will you co m e s kii ng w it h u s?

B 1 How m uch do you th in k it ' ll co st?

A 2

B Well, I'll have to c heck my dates fi r st A

2 A Ho w wi ll I find y ou at the th eatre?

B 4

A 5

? I don't finish wor k unt il 7.00.

B I' ll wait for you unti l 7.20 an d then I'll go to my seat. A

b 2 43 >)) L is t en t o bot h d ia log u es a nd und e rli ne t h e s tr ess ed wo rd s yo u have w ritten

c In p ai r s, p r act ise th e dia log u es Tr y t o say the se nt ences smoothly with a na tur a l r h y t h m .

READING

a H ave yo u ever t rave ll e d very fast in a car or on a mo t or bike ? D o yo u know h ow fast yo u we r e goi n g ? H ow did yo u feel ?

b Lo o k a t th e a rticl e Can yo u ex plai n th e title ? R ea d th e articl e o n ce an d a n swe r th e ques ti o n s .

1 W h a t t wo alt er n atives are offere d to sp ee d a h o li cs if t h ey are ca u ght ?

2 W h at's th e m ain t hi n g th at par t icip a nt s lear n o n th e co ur se ?

3 D o yo u th in k th e co ur se w ill m ake Jo hn Ea rl go mo r e slowly?

c R ead the a rticle agai n and comp l e t e the ga p s wi th A- E.

A the speeders are asked to ex plain why they were stopped and to give details of any accidents they 've had

B so before leaving , each of them is given a metal key ring engraved with a cross - section of a head inside a helmet

C programmes used to treat alcohol i cs and drug addicts

D although other people get injured and even die, ' It 's not going to happen to me '

E the class to write down their worst ex perience on the road, their potential risk areas , and what they need to remember to keep themselves alive

d L oo k a t the hi ghli ght ed ph rases W ith a p a rtner, u se yo u r ow n word s t o say w h a t th ey m ea n .

e W hich of the t wo pun ishm e nt s fo r s p ee di ng (d o in g the c ourse o r ge tt ing poi nt s o n yo ur li ce n ce) d o yo u think wo uld b e m ore e ffec tive in yo u r co unt ry? W h y?

John Earl is 25 and add i cted to speed Not the drug, but a mixture that is just as powerful - an intoxicating combinat i on of high-powe r ed engines , tes t osterone and youth ' It 's not the speed exactly ,' he says. 'It's the adrenaline . It's the buzz you get when you go fast .'

But if you regularly drive at 120mph (190kph) on a pub li c road , soone r or late r you're going to get caught , and today John is one of a dozen speeders attend i ng a new programme designed to cure them of their need for speed It is similar to 1 __ At the beginn i ng of the cou r se the participants are asked to introduce themselves and admit that they have a problem ' Hello, my name 's John , and I' m a speedaholic .'

The speedaholics course is for serious and hab i tual offenders , and is offered as an a l ternative to getting points on your licence ' It is based on research into the atti t udes of young drivers and bikers ,' says Chr i s Burgess , a psycho l ogy l ecturer at Exete r University, who created the programme. There are courses for both car dr ivers and motorcycl i st s 'There is an element of addiction in this sort of behaviour,' says Burgess. ' It 's sensat i on-seeking, it 's taking risks , looking for that buzz, but ignoring the potentially fatal consequences. They all have the feel i ng that 2 __

Today's course , wh i ch is for motorcyclists , is led by Inspector Robin Derges , a pol i ce officer who is a senior i nvestigator of road deaths and a keen bi ker himself After introducing t h emselves, 3 __ They range in age from 18 to mid-forties and most were caught doing at least 20mph (36kph) over the speed limit. Oerges gets straight to the po i nt. 'Motorcyclists make up just 1%of all the vehicles on the road , but 33 %of all deaths and serious injuri es happen to motorcyclists Unless something changes, if we meet up here in a year 's time , one of you will be dead.'

Says Derges 'We want to give them a sense of their own vul n e rability, their human limitat i ons, and t o help them make a realistic assessment of the ri sks i nvolved. It's not abou t stopping peop l e from enjoying riding , i t 's about p r eventing deaths .' Towards the end of the day he asks 4 __ ' The problem is that people get on their bikes and suddenly think they' r e Valentino Rossi,' says John.

Glossary speed no u n the rate at whic h something moves or trave l s speed n oun (info r mal) a n i ll ega l amp h e tam i ne drug points on your licence in t h e UK (and m any ot h er co u ntr ies ) i f yo u co m m i t a dr iv in g offe n ce yo u ma y ge t pe n a l t y point s o n yo ur li cence. If yo u get mo r e than 1 2 p o i n t s i n th ree ye ars , yo u ca n be b a n n ed from drivi n g. Valentino Rossi an It a l ian mot orcy cli s t who h as won n i n e Gra n d Pr i x Wo rld C h a m p i onsh ips

Standing in the car park at the end of the course, the bikers seem to 1 have taken everything they have heard very seriously John admits ' It 's certainly made me more awa r e I know I sometimes behave li ke an idiot. But that 's not to say I won 't forget all about i t in a few weeks' time.' Burgess knows th i s, 5 It is t o rem ind them of a part of the course that explained what can happen to the brain in a co ll is i on.

'The idea is that they will see the key ring when they are rid i ng and it will make them think twice,' says Burgess.

5 LISTENING

a You are going to listen to an expert talking about the risks of driving. Before you listen , choose which you think is the right option, a, b, or c. Compare with a partner and give reasons for your choice.

1 The most dangerous thing to be on the road is

a a pedestrian b a driver c a motorcyclist

2 Most fatal accidents happen because drivers

a fall asleep at the wheel b are drunk c drive too fast

3 Driving at night is as dangerous as driving during the day.

a three times b four times c ten times

4 You ' re most like ly to have an accident on a . . ..

a Monday morning

b Friday afternoon

c Saturday n ight

5 Most accidents happen . . ..

a on long-distance journeys

b in the city centre

c very near your house

6 The worst roads for fatal accidents are

a motorways b urban roads c country roads

7 Mile for mile , women have more than men

a minor accidents

b serious accidents

c fata l accidents

8 The age at which a driver is at most risk is ....

a over 25

b between 21 and 26 c under 25

b 44 >)) Listen once and check yo ur answers.

c Listen for more details for each question in a

d Talk to a partner.

1 Wou ld these s t atis t ics probab ly be similar in yo ur country?

2 Do you think the age limit for having a driving licence should be raised?

3 Do you think punishments for dangerous driving should be more severe?

4 What else do you think would help to reduce accidents in yo ur countr y?

5 Do you or does anybody you know often drive too fast?

6 VO CABULARY ex press ions wi t h t ake

a Look at three sentences from the lesson . What do the highlighted phrases with take mean? Which one is a phrasal verb?

Do you normally take out insurance when you travel? It's sensation -seeking , it's taking risks we need to take the risks involved in driving very ser ious ly

b Match some more expressions and phrasal verbs with take to their meanings.

Expressions with take

1 take care of

2 take advantage of

3 take part in

4 take p l ace

5 take (your) time

6 take into account

Phrasal verbs with take

7 take after

8 take off

9 take up

A D look after

B D begin a new activity

C D participate in

D D happen

E D 1 (for planes) leave the ground; 2 (for clothes) remove

F D do sth slowly, not in a hurr y

G D be similar to sb

H D make us e of an opportunity

I D think abou t sb / sth when yo u are making a decision

c Complete the questions with a phrasal verb or expression from b . Then ask a nd answer with a partner. Give examples to explain your answers.

1 Who do yo u take more , yo ur father or yo ur mother?

2 Do yo u worry about yo ur health? Do yo u take ____ yo urself?

3 Do yo u get up very quickl y in the morning or do yo u take ?

4 Have you ever not taken a good opportunity (and regretted it)?

5 Have yo u ever taken a demonstration?

6 Have you taken a new sport or hobby recently ?

7 Has any big s porting event ever taken _ m yo ur (nearest big) city?

8 If you were thinking of buy ing a new computer or mobile phone , what factors would you take ?

pGiving examples

We often use for example or for instance to give examp l es.

I take after my mother, for example I for instance we both have the same sense of humour.

GRAMMAR

a@a,b , orc.

1 When we got to Terminal 2, the flight from London

a had already landed b had already been landing

c already landed

2 As soon as we arrived at the airport, we ___

a had checked in b were checking in c checked in

3 We for about an hour when suddenly the plane began to lose height.

a had been flying b were flying c flew

4 It was boring film that we left in the middle of it.

a so b such a c a such

5 Nico's father _ _

a speaks English fluently b speaks English fluent

c speaks fluently English

6 I just need another five minutes

a I've finished nearly b Nearly I've finished

c I've nearly finished

7 The driver in the accident

a seriously was injured b was injured seriously

c was seriously injured

8 The car 50,000 km -we'll need to get it serviced.

a will soon have done b will soon do

c will soon be doing

9 You can watch TV as soon as your homework.

a you'll finish b you 're finishing

c you've finished

10 If the tickets cost more than 100 euros, ___

a I don' t go b I'm not going to go

c I won ' t have gone

b Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in bold.

1 Imagine! This time tomorrow we ___ on the beach . lie

2 The match starts at 7.00. By the time I get home it

___ already start

3 You mustn't use your mobile phone until the plane . land

4 Many people have problems sleeping if they ___ coffee after midday. drink

5 I want to spend a year travelling when I ___ university. finish

VOCABULARY

a Write words for the definitions.

1 g the door outside which you wait to board your flight

2 b r the place where you pick up your luggage after you've arrived

3 a the passage between the rows of seats inside a plane

4 t a series of sudden and violent changes in wind direction which affects flights

5 j 1 the feeling of being tired and confused after a long flight

b @ the correct word.

1 Gina and I haven't seen each other much lat e / lat ely.

2 Our hotel has a great view! We can even/ ever see the Eiffel Tower!

3 I've been working too hard / hardly lately.

4 How much cases/ luBBaBe are you going to take?

5 I love all pasta , but esp ecially / specially lasagne.

c Complete with the verb in the past tense .

1 The wind bl so hard that two trees fell down .

2 The taxi dr me off outside the terminal.

3 It p with rain last night and I got soaked coming home from work.

4 She g on the bus but there was nowhere to sit

5 Wet advantage of the good weather and spent the day at the beach .

d @ the word that is different.

1 breeze wind hurricane

2 chilly boiling hot

3 fog damp mist

4 cold free z ing bright

5 hail thunder lightning

e Complete with one word.

bli z zard scorching smog icy drought

1 We checked as soon as we got to the airport.

2 The most dangerous moment during a flight is when the plane is taking or landing.

3 I' ve decided to take running. I need to lose some weight

4 Who do you take ___ most in your family?

5 The final will take in Stockholm next Saturday

a @the word with a different sound.

1 p o ur ing sto r m h a rdly w a r m

2 l w eather h eavy cl ea r pl ea sant

3 lo u nge snow c o ld cl o sed

4 rn lu ggage fl oo d th u nder h u mid

5 r a in troll ey l a tely del ayed

b Underline the main stresse d syllable

1 e jven jtua llly 2 gra jdua !lly 3 e jspe lcia llly

4 pa !ssen lger 5 hu lrr ij cane

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS TEXT?

a Read the article once. Is wingsuit flying a popular hobby?

b Read the article again and complete it with phrases A-F. There is one sentence yo u do not need

A But the sport truly took off in 1997

B Some wingsuit flyers attach cameras to their helmets

C For me, the crazy thing isn't continuing to do it

D With practice, some wingsuiters can stay in the air for more than three minutes

E The acronym stands for the potential jump off points

F But wingsuiters are not easily deterred

c Choose five words or phrases from the text. Check their meaning and pronunciation and try to learn them.

V IDEO

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS FILM?

45 l)) Watch or listen to a short film on The British and the Weather. Complete the sentences with one or two words.

1 A of British people begin a conversation by talking about the weather.

2 People talk even more about the weather nowadays, because in Britain it's becoming ______

3 2012 was the year since records began.

4 British weather is quite compared to other countries.

5 The British weather has an influence on its and ___

6 Former Prime Minster Gordon Brown blamed Britain's bad economic performance on the ______

7 In the UK elections are nearly always held in the ___ or ___

8 Some experts say that the weather is the reason why Britain has never had a ___

9 Turner and Constable are famous British ___ who were inspired by the weather.

The expression 'to weather the --'"-etbing

They believe they can fly

Somepeople just wo n 't be sat isfied till the y can fly Thi s primal urge has given rise to wingsui t fliers, thr illseekers who leap off cliffs or out of aeroplanes wearing winged jumpsuits . 1 , and hit speeds of over 100 miles an hour, achieving what they say is the closest thing to engineless flight that humans have ever experienced .

'It's a weird , risky thing to do,' said Tanya Weiss, 35, a professional wing su it pilot, 'b ut the dream of flight is ancient, and some of us feel like it's something we were born w ith .'

In addition to the dozen or so professionals like Ms Weiss, who spend their workdays filming a dverts and doing movie s tunts, there are on ly a handful of people w ho have ever actually tried it. Most are elite skydivers, also known as BASE jumper s. 2 - Buildings, Antennas, Spans (br idge s), and Earth (i.e. hills and cliffs).

There have been many attempts at w ingsuit flying throughout history, dating from the German engineer Otto Lilienthal, who in the late 1800s designed winged gliders that allowed him to fly up to 1,000 feet without an eng ine. 3 , when the French skydiver Patrick de Gayardon successfully jumped from a plane wearing nothing but a modified jumpsuit.

Wingsuit flying as a spectator sport derives much of its thrill from people putting their lives at risk, and at extremely high speeds. Both Otto Lilienthal and Patrick de Gayardon died trying to achieve flight with winged outfits, as did Eric Stephenson, Tanya Weiss's mentor and fiance.

4 Despite the death of the man she planned to marry, Ms Weiss, who recently led the successful effort to set a world record for the largest wingsuit skydive formatio n with 99 others in California, still pursues her dream of flying .

'I thought about quitting,' she said. 'B ut we 're pushing the boundaries of what humans can do. 5 The crazy thing wou ld be to wa lk away from this thing that has brought me together with some of the most incredible people in the world .'

1 SPEAKING & READING

a Answer the questions with a partner. Give reasons for yo ur answers.

l How do you think you would react in a life or death emergency situation?

a I'd panic and become hysterical.

b I'd 'freeze' and wouldn't be able to do anything.

c I'd act coolly and calmly.

2 If you caught a plane tomorrow and the flight attendant began giving the safety information, would you ... ?

a listen, but not take it very seriously

b carry on reading your b ook or magazine

c pay attention and also read the safety information in the seat pocket

3 What would you do if you were hiking alone in the mountains and you got completely lost (without phone coverage)?

a I'd stay where I was and wait to be rescued.

b I'd keep walking and try to find my way to my destination

c I'd try to find my way back to where I'd started from.

4 What would you do if you woke up in the middle of the night and thought that you could hear an intruder in your home? If you would do something different, say what.

a I'd confront the intruder

b I'd keep still and quiet and hope that the intruder would go away.

c I'd lock myself in a room and call the police.

To survive, it is often necessary to fig ht, and to fight you have to get dirty.

b Read the article How to eat an e l eph ant and answer the questions.

1 What is the key to s ur vivi ng in a life o r death crisis?

2 What is the 10-80-10 principle?

3 What is the other important factor apart from keeping calm?

c Look at the highlighted words and phrases tr y to work out their meaning. Then match them to 1-8.

adj unable to react because the emotion is too strong adj so shocked that you cannot think clearly or act

-

noun a new or difficult thing that tests yo ur abilities adj ve r y confused adj based on reason and not emotion verb to succeed in dealing with or controlling a problem to not get excited or nervous, to not panic pieces of work that it is possible to deal with or control

d Work in groups of three.> Communication It 's an emergency! A p 106 B p.110 c p 112. Read about what to do in three different emergency situations . Then take turns to say what yo u should and shou ldn' t do.

e Now look back at the questions in a. Did yo u choose the right answers?

kiT AN EIEr<, ·

THE LESSONS OF THE SURVIVORS CLUB

i At least 80% of us react in the same way to a life or death crisis or emergency: we're simply overwhelmed - the challenge seems too great, the problem insolvable In Air 5 Force survival school, they try to teach you how to over come this feeling. One of the things they ask new cadets, is 'How would you eat an elephant?', and they make them memorize the right answer, which is: 'You eat an elephant one bite at a time.' Survival means io dealing with a huge life-or-death problem, one which you may not be able to solve quickly or all at once. The key to survival is to slow down and divide the challenges into small, manageable tasks, one goal at a time, one decision at a time. When an avalanche

15 buried the survivors of a plane crash in the Andes, the survivors whispered to each other 'Breathe. Breathe again. With every breath you are alive.' In a hopeless situation without oxygen or light this approach kept them going until they found a way out.

20 This and much more is what survival expert Ben Sherwood tells us in his best-selling book The Survivors Club, which brings together stories of reallife survivors from all kinds of disasters. He begins by explaining the 10-8 0-10 principle. When faced with

25 an emergency 80 % of people freeze. They are stunned and 'turn into statues' or are so bewildered by what is happening around them that they can't react. Ten per cent lose control. These people scream and cry, and often make the situation worse. But 10% keep calm and 30 behave in a ra tiona l way. They don't panic and they assess the situation clearly and take decisions. These people have the best chance of survival in a crisis, and Sherwood explains how you can try to become more like them

35 He also reminds us that, apart from staying calm and not despairing, knowing the right thing to do in a crisis is also vital, and that in most emergencies many more people survive than don't. For example, most

40 people think that you can't survive a plane crash, but American research has shown that the survival rate in all air crashes is historically 95 7%. Sherwood not only tries to show us how to behave rationally and calmly, he also gives us the information we need to join 'The Survivors Club'.

2 VOCABULARY feelings

a Look at four adjectives in le. Which three describe how people are feeling?

b >- p 157 Vocabulary Bank Feelings

3 PRONUNCIATION

word stress in 3- or 4 - syllable adject ives

a Read the dia logues and underline the stressed syllable in the bold adjectives.

1 A Hi, Sue. What 's the matter?

B I've just been robbed! Please come quickly I'm des !per !ate.

2 A You weren't of lfend jed by what I said , were you?

B Yes, actually I was .

3 A What did you think of the film?

B To be honest , I was a bit dis jap l point jed

4 A What don't you understand in the repo rt?

B I'm just completely be jwi lj dered by so many facts and figures.

5 A Were you surprised to hear that the boss is leaving?

B I was as jton jished . I really wasn't expecting it.

6 A So can you come to dinner next week?

B Yes, we'd be de jlight jed to.

7 A How did your parents react when you told them you and Susan had separated?

B They were dev jas ita i ted

8 A How did you feel when you heard the news?

B I was absolutely hor l rijfied. It was such an awfu l accident.

9 A So do you like the watch?

B I love it. I'm completely o l ver l whelmed - I don 't know what to say!

b 3 5 >)) Listen and check. Practise the conversations, copying the intonation and stressing the right syllable in the adjectives

c Choose two adjectives from a and tell yo ur partner about a time or a situation when yo u felt like that.

READING & LISTENING

a Answer the q u est ions in pairs

1 Imagine yo u were going to go b ackpacking in the Amazon ra in fo r est, w h a t d o yo u t hi nk wo uld b e the main p ro bl ems yo u wo uld need t o over co m e, e g. t he h ea t , inse cts, th e foo d , e t c ?

2 W h a t wo uld yo u b e m os t afra id of?

b R ea d the b eg in ni n g of a tr u e s u rv i v al s t o r y a nd th e n a n swer th e qu es tio n s b e low

1 W h at was t he th ree friends' o ri gi n al p la n? How d id thi s cha n ge?

2 W h at ca u se d t en s io n s b e t wee n . . . ? a the th ree men a nd the g u id e b Kev in a nd M a r c u s

3 W h y did they finall y sep a r a t e ?

4 W h ich p ai r wo uld you h ave c ho se n t o go with? W h y?

5 How wo uld yo u h ave fe lt if yo u h a d b ee n in M arcu s's s itu a ti o n ?

c Yo u are going t o li s t e n to p art of a d oc u me nt ary and find o ut w h a t h a pp e n e d t o t h e four men. After each p a rt a n swer th e qu es t io n s wi t h a pa rt ne r .

Four young men went into the jungle on the adventure of a lifetime. Only two of them would come out alive ••.

The Amazon rainforest is rough ly the s ize of Europe or Australia. It is the home of more than half t he plant and animal species known to man , many of which a re lethal.

In 1981 three fr iends went backpacking i n a remote area of Bo li via : Yoss i Ghinsberg, 22 , and his t wo friends Kevin Wallace , 29 , and Marcus Stamm , 29 . They hi red an experienced gu ide , an Austr ian called Karl, who prom ised that he cou ld take them deep into the ra info rest to an undiscovered Indian vi llage Then they would raft nearly 200 kilomet res back down river Ka r l sa id that t he journey to the v illage would take them about seven days. Before they entered t he jungle , the three friends made a promise that they would ' go in together and come out together '

3 6 l)) 1 Wh a t h a pp ene d t o K ev in a n d Yoss i o n the raft?

2 Wh a t pi e ce o flu ck did Yoss i h ave?

W h ose s itu a tion would yo u rat h er h ave b ee n i n , Kevi n 's or Yo ss i 's ? Why ?

3 8 l)) 5 W h y did Yossi 's spirits ch a n ge from desperate to opt i m ist ic, a nd t h en to d esperate aga in ?

H ow wo uld yo u h ave fe lt at thi s p oint ? W h a t d o yo u think h a d h a p pe n ed to Kevi n ?

3 How we r e Ke v in a nd Yoss i fee ling ?

4 W hat h appene d t o Yossi o n his fi r st n ight a lo n e in the jungle ?

What would you h ave done if you h a d b ee n in Yo ss i 's situation?

3 9 l)) 6 W h at h ad Kevin been doing a ll t h is time?

7 W h a t d id Kev i n decid e to do?

8 W hy was he i ncredib ly luc ky?

If yo u h a d b ee n K evin, w h at wo uld yo u h ave do n e now?

The four men set off from the town of Apolo and soon they had left civilization far behind. But after walking for more than a week there was no sign of the village and tensions began to appear in the group. The three friends started to suspect that Karl , the guide, didn 't really know where the Indian village was. Yossi and Kevin began to get fed up with their friend Marcus because he was complaining about everyth ing, especially his feet, which had become infected and were hurting. Eventually they decided to abandon the search for the village and just to hike back to Apolo (instead of rafting) the way they had come. But Kevin was furious because he thought that it was Marcus's fault that they had had to cut short their adventure So he decided that he would raft down the river, and he persuaded Yossi to join him , but he didn' t want Marcus to come with them. Marcus and Karl decided to go back to Apolo on foot. The three friends agreed to meet in a hotel in the capital La Paz in a week's time.

Early next morning the two pairs of travellers sa id goodbye and set off on their different journeys

5 GRAMMAR unreal conditionals

a Look at four sentences, and complete the gaps with the verbs in the right tense.

1 What would yo u do if yo u (be) in the mountains and yo u (get lost)?

2 Ifl thought that somebody was in my house , I (call) the police and I (not confront) the intruder.

3 What would yo u have done if yo u (be) in Yoss i 's situation?

How did Kevin first try to get h elp?

Why was it unsucces sfu l?

11 What was his last attempt to find hi s friend?

4 If Kevin hadn't looked for his friend , Yossi __ (die).

b Look a t se ntences 1-4 again. Which two refer to a h ypothetical situation in the past? Which two refer to a hypothetical situation in the present or future?

c > p.140 Grammar Bank SA. Learn more about unreal conditionals, and practise them

d Complete the two sentences in your own words with a positive [±] a nd negative clause B

1 Ifl lived in the city centre [±] B

3 11 l))12 How lon g had Yossi been on his own in the jungle? How was he?

13 What did he think the buz zi ng noise was? What was it?

What do you think might have happened to Marcus and Karl?

d Do yo u think you would have survived if yo u had been in Yossi's situation? Would yo u have done anything differently?

2 My phone bill wouldn't have been so high if. [±] B -

e > Communication Guess the conditionals A p 106 B p.111.

G structures after wish

V expressing feelings with verbs or -ed I -ing adjectives

P sentence rhythm and intonation

1 GRAMMAR wish + would

a Look at a Twitter thread where people tweeted about things that anno y them. Tick (vi') the things that annoy you , too.

b Compare the things you've ticked with a partner Which are your top three, and why?

p Useful language I agree with this one.

It really annoys me when people shout It's so annoying when.. . on mobile phones .

Some people want things to happen , some wish th ings would happen, others make things happen.

'-# #iwishtheywouldn't

Tweets Top / All

I wish people wouldn't start stupid rumours that aren't true. #iwishtheywouldn 't

I wish my boyfriend wouldn't fall asleep every time I want to talk to him @ #1w1shtheywouldn 't

I wish my son wouldn't always leave the car with no petrol every time he borrows it. #iwishtheywouldn ' t

I wish people would turn up when they say they're It drives me mad when ...

• going to #1wishtheyw o uldn t

c )iii- p.141 Grammar Bank SB. Learn more about wish+ would, a nd practise it.

d Write three more things that annoy you an a I

that you would like people to change, to add to the Twitter thread. Begin...

I wish would J wouldn't.

e In pairs or small groups, compare your tweets.

I wish people would stop using emoticons and smiley faces. They just annoy me. :( tt wishtheywouldn ' t

aI wish my family would put DVDs back in their cases I hate finding empty cases when I 'm looking for something to watch. #iwishtheywouldn't

I wish my friends would put their phones away when we're having a meal. You shouldn ' t text at the dinner table! #iwishtheywouldn ' t

I wish my children would take their tissues out of their pockets before they put their clothes in the washing machine. #iwishtheywouldn't

I wish my boss wouldn't always arrange meet ings during my lunch hour. #iwishtheywouldn ' t

I wish people wouldn't ask me 'What are you doing?' when it's completely obvious what I'm doing #1wishtheywouldn ' t

I wish advertising companies wouldn't use songs I really love to advertise something I hate #iwishtheywouldn ' t

I wish people wouldn't leave supermarket trolleys in the car park just because they can't be bothered to take them back #iwishtheywouldn ' t

I wish shop assistants would serve me when I'm waiting instead of chatting with their friends. t'l 1wishtheywouldn' t

I wish people would throw away pens when they don't work any more!!! rt w 1s htheyw o uldn 't

VOCABULARY & SPEAKING expressing feelings with verbs or -ed I -ing adjectives

j) Ways of talking about feelings

We often talk abo ut f eelings in three differe nt ways:

1 by using a verb (e.g. annoy)

That noise is starting to annoy m e

2 by using an -ing adjective (e g annoying)

That noise is really annoying.

3 by using an -ed adjective (e g annoyed)

I'm getting really annoyed by that noise

Remembe r th at the rules for pronoun c ing -ed adje c tives are the same as for regular past tense verbs, e g annoyed= Id/, irritated= / 1d / and depressed= /ti

a Comp le te t h e se n te nc es wi th the correct fo r m of t he wo rd i n bold

1 It rea lly m e w h en peop le d r ive close infuriate b ehi nd me.

2 I ge t very when so m et hin g goes frustrate wro n g w ith m y inte rn et co n nec ti on a nd I do n ' t know h ow t o fi x i t

3 It's so _____ w h en I can't re m emb er so m eo n e's n a m e , but t h ey can remember min e.

4 I u se d t o love sh op pin g in t he sales , b ut now I fin d i t . After an hour I just wan t t o go h ome .

5 I'm often w i th m y b ir t h d ay p rese nt s. My expectati o n s are o b v io u sly too hi gh!

6 It m e th a t so m e peo ple s till do n ' t bu y t hin gs like b ooks and mu sic on lin e

7 I fin d s p ea k i n g in publ ic a bsolut ely ____ I ha t e d oin g i t.

embarra ss exhaust disappoint amaze terrify

8 I've often b een by readi n g abo ut h ow inspire some successfu l peop le h ave overcome di ffic ult ies.

9 I n ever find i n st ru c t io n s for e lectro ni c d ev ices confu s e h elpful , i n fac t u s u a lly th ey ju st me

10 W h e n I t rave l I'm a l ways ifl manage thrill to co mmun ica t e so m e th i n g i n a foreig n la n g u age

b

3 16 l)) L is t en a nd check. T h e n w it h a p a rtner, say if th e se nt e n ces a r e tru e fo r yo u or n o t. G ive exa m p les or reaso n s.

j) Feelings adjectives that have an -edform, but not an -ingform

A few -ed adject ives describ ing fee l ings don't have an -ing fo rm , e.g. i mpressed - impres s i ve NOT iff1f7FeSSifig

c Com p le t e the sent enc es b elow wi th a fo r m of t h e a dj ective i n bold.

1 We a r e ext r e m ely impressed by yo u r CV. Your CV is ex tr e m e ly imp ressive

2 I'm ve r y stressed by m y jo b. My jo b is ve r y ____

3 I was rea lly s cared duri ng th e fi l m. The endin g was es p ec ia lly

4 I was delighted to m ee t Ja n e . She r ea lly is a person .

5 I was r ea lly offended b y what yo u said . W h a t yo u sai d was rea lly

d In p ai r s, c h oose t h ree ci rcles to t al k a b o ut

an embarrassing mistake you onc e m ade something that makes you f eel depressed

a film or a book that you found really disappo i nt in g something t h at really annoys you w hen you 're shopping

e Are there a n y thi n gs that m a k e you fee l exac tly the same way as yo ur p a rtn e r ?

som ethin g tha t some t imes fr us t ra t es y ou ab ou t lea rn ing Engli sh som ething that rea lly st resses you in your daily li fe

a You are going to read an article about some research that h as been done about what people regret in life . Before you read, with a partner say whether yo u think the following sentences are true or not.

1 Most people spend so me time every day thinking about things that they regret having done or not having done.

2 The main area oflife where people have regrets is relationships.

3 On average people have one major regret in life.

4 Most people think that the things they regret having done (or not done) are other people's fault

5 Most people believe that regrets are positive, becaus e yo u learn from yo ur mistakes.

b Read the first part of the article (to line 16) once and check.

c Without looking back at the article, can yo u remember another way of saying ... ?

1 753

2 66.6%

3 25%

d Now read Some of the top 20 re8rets. With a partner, number what yo u think the top five regrets were in the survey (1= the most common regret).

e 17 ))) Listen and check. How many did you get right? Which do yo u think would be the top regrets for people in yo ur age group?

p regret doing or regret having done?

After regret the following verb must be in the gerund, but you can normally use either a simple gerund or a perfect gerund.

I regret not going to university. OR I regret not having gone to university

Regrets, we've had a

few

(our love lives, health, childhoods ...)

A recent survey has shown that we spend almost three quarters of an hour every week dwelling on our regrets.

Glossary

Regrets, I've had a few an often-quoted line from th e Frank Sinatra song My Way lay the blame at sb else's door /OM say that sb else is responsible for sth getting on the property ladder /OM buying yo u r first house or flat

Three quarters of the people surveyed said they did not believe it was possible to live a life without regrets. perhaps explaining why, on average. we spend 44 minutes a week thinking about things we could or should have done differently. Our main areas of regret are s our love lives (20%), family (18%), career (16%) , health (14%), and finances (14%).

On average. most people have two main regrets in life - and 17% of those interviewed laid the blame at someone else's door. But two thirds of 2,000 people interviewed said they thought their regrets lo had led them to act more positively and that they had learnt from their mistakes A quarter of them said their regrets had made them into the person they are today.

Common regrets range from not getting on the property ladder sooner to not having had more relationships when they were ls younger. Others include regretting not telling someone we loved them and wishing that we had repaired a damaged friendship

Some of the top 20 regrets were (not in order):

• Getting married too early

• Not asking grandparents more about their lives when they were alive

• Not having done more exercise or eaten more healthily

• Not having saved enough money

• Not learning a foreign language or a musical instrument when you were younger

• Not working harder at school

• Not having travelled more and seen more of the world

• Making the wrong career choice

• Not keeping in touch with friends

• Having taken up smoking

• Falling out with a friend and not making up

wish+ past simple or past perfect

a Now rea d fo ur co m men t s w h ic h peop le p os t e d o n th e n ews p a p er we b site after rea din g the a rticl e . D o yo u agree wit h a n y of the m? Why (not) ?

I'm almost 23 and saving incredibly hard to travel round the world! I' d ha t e to reach my 30s and then look back at my 20s and say 'I w i sh I' d travelled more when I had the time'

Matthew, Aberdeen

I don 't regret anything There 's no t hing that I wish was different about my life. Everything I've done , however stupid it seems now, seemed like the right thing at the time Of course I've made mistakes , but I don't regre t anyt hi ng. And yes , that includes saving money, bad boyfriends , all the usual th i ngs! I see them as pu r e mista kes - something to learn from , something which makes me the person I am today ! I neve r t h ink ' I wish I' d stayed on at university I w ish I' d marr i ed my ex If I had done these things , then I wouldn't be who I am today

Cindy, Coggeshall

Regrets? I try not to think about them What's the point? It's no use crying over spilt milk But I have a few Not bu yi ng the house I w as renting for ha lf the pr i ce I eventually pa id for it, and smoking I really wish I hadn 't w asted all that money on cigarettes Wha t a fool. Still, I managed to give it up, which I'm proud of.

Nancy, Norwich

I wish there was a song called 'Je regrette tout' *. That would be my philosophy of life!

Martyn, Oxford

* Je regrette tout French for I rewet everythinB There is a very well-known Edith Piaf song ca ll ed Je ne rewette rien (=I don' t regret anyt h ing)

b U nd e rl i n e the s i x sent en ces in t he com m e nt s w ith wis h. W hat t e n se is th e verb after wis h ? Are th ey w i she s ab o ut the pr ese nt or a b o ut the p as t?

c > p.141 Grammar Bank SB. Lear n more a b o ut wis h + pas t s i m ple and past perfec t , a nd p r actise i t.

5 PRONUNCIATION sentence rhythm and intonation

a 3 19 >)) L i sten and write d own six sent e nc es w i th wish

b Match each sentenc e fro m a wi th a se nt en ce b elow.

A D Do yo u wa nt me t o p h o n e a n d ma ke a n excuse?

B D Well , d on' t a sk me ! I've never b een h ere befo r e.

C D Well , it isn't t oo l ate. Yo u 're on ly 22.

D D Well , it's no t m y fa ult . You've go t no se lf- cont rol!

E D W h y don' t yo u go back to t h e shop an d see i f t hey still have t hem?

F D Sorry, but i t is . And I'm getting h ungry.

c 3 20 >)) L i sten a nd ch eck. In p airs, prac t ise th e dialog u es, copying t h e rhythm and i ntona t ion.

6 LISTENING & SPEAKING

a 21 >)) L is t e n and m a tch s p e a ke r s 1-5 with the r eg r ets . T h er e is one sente n ce yo u d o n 't n eed to use.

W ho ?

A D wis h es he / sh e had fo ll owed some b o d y's ad v ice

B D wasn't old enough to do something he / she now regrets

C D fe lt very ashame d about what h e/ sh e ha d do n e

D D wis h es he/ sh e ha d b een more grateful for everyt h ing he / she h a d.

E D wis h es h e/ sh e ha d b een a bi t b raver

F D regrette d w h a t h e/ she h ad done immed i a t ely after d o in g i t

b Lis t en aga in. W h y d o the s p eakers m entio n or say t h e followi n g:

1 ' I rea lly fancie d h e r .'; 'Now it's too late.'

2 'Someo n e h as to say to you t h at you rea lly d on't have to do thi s.' 'I spent t he next 15 years tryi n g to get ou t of it.'

3 t h e R u ssian R evo luti on; old letters

4 'It was a crazy ide a an d totally o u t of ch ara c ter' 'in t he long r un it was p ro b ably a good thin g'

5 'My pa r e nt s we r e r eally keen for me t o ch a n ge' 'but I was tota lly aga i nst t he idea'

c Work in small gro up s. Tell the other st ud e n ts a b out

• two things yo u wis h you co ul d do but you can't

• two things yo u wis h you h ad which wou ld improve your life

• two things yo u wish yo u had d one when yo u were younger

• two things you w i sh you h adn't done whe n you were yo u nger

1 THE INTERVIEW Part 1

VIDEO

a Read the biographical information about Candida Brady. Have y ou seen Trashed or any other docume ntar y film about th e e n viro nm e nt?

Candida Brady is a British journalist and film-maker She founded her film company, Blenheim Films, in 1996 and has produc ed and directed several documentaries on a variety of topics, including youth culture , music , and ballet

In 2012, Candida completed her first documentary feature film , Trashed, which follows the actor Jeremy Irons around the world as he dis c overs the grow ing environmental and health problems caused by wastethe billions of tons of rubbish that we generate every day - and the way we deal with it. The soundt rack for the film was composed by the Greek composer Vangelis , who wrote the award-winning soundtrack to Chariots of Fire. The film had a special screening at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival and has won several awards at fi lm festivals , including the Tokyo International Film Festival.

b 3 23 >)) Watch or li s t en to Part 1 of a n int e r v iew wit h h e r. Mark th e se ntenc es T (tr u e) or F (false) .

1 Candida made th e film Tras h ed b ecau se s he wanted p eo ple to kno w more about th e problem of wa s te

2 Jer em y Irons i s a person who lo ves buy ing n ew thin gs

3 Candid a was s urp rised th at h e immediately love d the film proposal.

4 Vangelis is a goo d friend of Ca ndid a's

5 Vangelis h a d previous ex p e ri e n ce of projects r e l ate d to the enviro nm en t.

6 She didn ' t n ee d to d o mu ch r esearc h b efore m aking the fi lm b eca u se s h e was a lre a d y a n ex p er t o n th e s ubj ect.

c Now li s ten again and say why th e F se nt ences are false.

Glossary

rough cut / r1.t· k At / the fi r s t ver s ion of a film a ft e r th e diffe r e nt s ce n es h ave b e e n put to ge th e r

Jacques Cousteau a w e ll -kn o w n Fr e n c h con se rv a tioni s t a nd filmmak e r w ho s tudi e d th e s e a a nd a ll form s o f l ife in wate r

Talking about. ..

VIDEO

a 3 24 >)) Now watch or l isten to Part 2. Answer the question s .

1 Which was the bi gger prob le m for Ca nd ida : makin g the film v is uall y attractive, o r tr yi n g not to make it too d e pr essi ng?

2 What kind of pollution d oes s he think is th e most worrying: a ir, la nd , o r sea?

b Listen again. Complete the sentences with one word.

1 Candida had a DOP (Dire ctor of Photography)

2 S h e wanted t o film in beautiful places that h a d b een _____ b y m a n - m ade rubbish.

3 S h e would h ave preferred to m a k e a mor e _____ docume nt ary.

4 S he think s th e y were very much aware that they wanted to o ffer at the e nd of th e film

5 S h e says yo u hav e t o di g down over a foot d ee p on a b each to find sa nd that do esn ' t have any in it.

6 S h e says the pieces of plastic in the water b eco m e so fragmented th a t they ' re the same s i ze as th e zoo pl an kton , wh ich i s in the chain

Glossary

Saida (or Sidon) a po rr in Le ban o n , its th ird lar ges t c it y a foot U K m eas ur e m e nt = 3 0 .5 ce ntimetr es zooplankton mic ro sco p ic o r g ani s m s th a t li ve in wat e r 1t11111KmRs mm1s

JEREMY IRONS IN

TRASHED

IF YOU THINK WASTE IS SOMEONE ELSE ' S PROBLEM THINK AGAIN OFFICIAL

VIDEO

a 3 25 >)) Now watch or listen to Part 3 . Answer the questions.

I Who does she blame for the problem of waste?

2 Why do es San Francisco offer a po si tive note at the end of the film?

3 Has the film changed her own habits?

b Listen again. What does s h e say about . . . ?

I hotels in San Francisco

2 her grandparents

3 her bic ycle

Glossary

zero waste th e r ecycl in g a nd r e- us in g o f a ll pro du c t s bins co nt a in e r s w he r e p eop le throw their rubbi s h

2 LOOKING AT LANGUAGE

Comment adverbs

Candida uses a lot of comment adverbs (e.g unfortunately) to clarify how s he feels about what she is saying.

3 26 >)) Liste n to some extracts from the int e rview and wri t e in the mi ss ing adv erb s .

I 'We ended up filming in eleve n countrie s .. .'

2 ' . .. but the stories that I've chosen are univ ersa l and, , I spoke to, to peopl e in co mmuniti es , um , in more countries, um , than we ac tu a lly film e d in . .. '

3 ' ... and so I sent h i m the treatment and _____ h e, um , he loved it. '

4 'but , again, h e was very sh ock e d , um , by the film and really wanted to get involved.'

5 ' yes a nd no , enoug h. Obvious ly I had a wonderful, DOP, Director of Photography, so h e ca n pr e tt y much make anyt hin g look b ea utiful. .'

6 'I did a lot of re sea r c h a nd so, , these things were rep ea t a bl e a nd , and in eve r y co untr y around th e wo rld .'

7 ' what's h app ened with the way that soft plastic degrade s in w a te r is that , um , the pieces b eco m e so fragmented .'

3 IN THE STREET

a 3 27 >)) Watch or li sten to four people talking about recycling. Which person seems to have the most positive attitude abo ut recycling?

Sally, English Jo, English Jill, American Pranjal , American

b Watch or listen again. Who (S , Jo , J, or Pr) . .. ?

DD thinks the government shou ld offer money for recycling a nd producing less rubbish

D thinks it 's up to people themselves to realize that it 's worth recycling

D thinks the government should provide more containers for recycling

D think s the government sho uld d o more to show people wh y rec ycling is good for the environment

c 3 28 >)) Watch or li sten and comple te the h iglilig h ted Colloquial English phrases. What do you think they mean?

I ' people h aven't reall y go t not to rec ycle any more. '

2 ' we ll ma ybe the y could offer a for, for rec ycling.' i ncentive

3 ' .I think we sti ll h ave a t o go .'

4 ' filling it up with cans and bottles, newspapers and all

5 ' .. .and so if everyone could ju s t get in that the sma llest change the y can make in their lives makes a big difference.'

4 SPEAKING

Answer the question s with a partner. Tr y to use comment adverbs to show how yo u feel abo ut what yo u ' re say in g.

I How much rec ycling do p eo ple in yo ur country do?

2 How much rec ycling do yo u do personally?

3 What do yo u think the government, or individu a ls, co uld do to make peop le r ecycl e more?

4 What do yo u th ink th a t companies a nd shop s co uld do to r e duce the amount of waste?

5 Are yo u optimi st ic or p ess imistic about th e future of the environment?

G gerunds and infin itives V music

P words that come from other languages

1 VOCABULARY & PRONUNCIATION

music, words from other languages

a 29 >)) Lis te n a nd match w h a t yo u h ear w ith a wo rd in the li s t

D a bass guitar D a ce llo D a ch oi r D a condu ctor D dru ms D an orche stra D a soprano D a flute D a violin D a keyboa rd D a s ax ophone

b 30 >)) Lis t e n a nd check. Pr a cti s e say ing the w o r d s. What o ther wor d s d o you know for in s trum e nt s a nd mu s ici a n s ?

c R e ad the inform a t ion box b elow Then , in p airs, look at Bor r owed words related to music and t ry to p ro nounce them as they a r e p r o n o unc e d in E nglis h Underlin e th e s tre sse d sy llable

p Foreign words that are used in English English has 'borrowed ' many words from other languages , fo r ex ample in the field of music from Italian, Greek, and French. The English pronunciation is often similar to their pronunc iation in their original language , e g. ch in words which come from Gr eek is / k/, e g. orchestra

Borrowed words related to music

From Italian

From Greek

c ello / 'tJe J;;iu/ ; con certo / bn'tJ3:t;;iu/ me zz o-soprano / mets;;iu s;;i'pra: n;;iu/ or c hestra / 'J:k 1st r;;i/ ; ch oir / 'kwa1;;i/ ; ch oru s / 'b:r;;is/ micro p hone /' ma1kr;;ifaun / ; rhy thm / 'rrom / ; sy m p hony / ' 1mfani/

From French ball et /'bre le1 / e ncore / ' olJb: /; gen re / '3onrJ/

d 31 >)) Li s t en a nd check . H ow a r e th e pink letters p r o no u nce d?

e With a partn er , tr y t o w o rk o ut w h ich langua ge th e s e words c o m e fr om , and put them in the right column s D o you kno w w h a t t hey a ll mea n ?

architecture barista bouquet cappuccino chauffeur chef chi c croissant fiance graffiti hypochondriac macc h iato paparaz zi philo s ophy photograph psychic psychologist villa

From Italian

From Greek

From French

f 32 >)) Lis t e n and che ck. Pr a ctis e s ay ing the w ord s .

2 SPEAKING

Ask and a n swer th e ques t ion s wi th a p ar t ner.

Yet1F music

Do you have a favourite ?

• kind of music

• song

• piece of classical m usic (symphony, sonata , etc.)

• band

• solo artist

• composer

• conductor

Do you play a musical instrument? YES

• What instrument , or instruments , do you play?

• How long have you been playing it?

• Have you had or are you hav i ng lessons?

• Can you read music?

• Have you ever played in a band I orchestra? NO

• Have you ever tried to learn to play an instrument? Why did you stop learning?

• Is there an instrument you would like to learn to play?

Have you ever ?

• sung in a choir

• performed in front of a lot of people

• taken part in a musical talent contest

Concerts

• Have you been to a good concert recently?

• Which art ist or band would you most like to see in concert?

• What 's the best live concert you've ever been to?

READING

a Think of a song or piece of mu sic that yo u remember hearing and liking w hen yo u were a child. Where did you first hear it? How old were you? Why did yo u like it?

b Look at the title of a newspaper article. Then read the article once. Why did the writer choose this title?

c Read the first paragraph again. Find words or phrases m eaning:

1 completely

2 behave in a way that makes other p eo ple think yo u are s tupid

3 s tarted cr ying beca use of strong emotion

4 not thinking that anything po sitive would happen

5 a mixture ofloud and unplea sant sounds

d What kind of sounds do yo u think whir, hum , and clackinB (line 10) are?

e Read the rest of t he article again With a partner, and in yo ur own words, say why the article mentions the fo llow ing pieces of music or artists.

1 the Lacrimosa from Mozart's Requiem

2 the Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, Sigur R6 s, R adiohead, E lvis, a nd Pink Floyd

3 music from the fifties

4 Guillaume de Machau t's ABnus Dei

5 co untr y music

6 Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody

7 Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Sinatra's Fly Me to the Moon.

8 the Beatles

9 silence

f Talk to a partner.

• Why do you t hink the journalist says that Austin's experience may help us understand more about musical taste?

• Imagine you were going to recommend music to Austin. Whi ch song or piece of music decade

wo ul d you suggest? singer

1 Aust i n, you see, was born profoundly deaf For his whole life, music has been a mystery. 'I had seen people make a fool of themselves, singing or moving wildly on the dance floor,' he says. ' I had also seen people moved to tears by a song, which was probably the hardest 5 thing for me to understand.' Then , just a few weeks ago, his parents suggested that he try a newly developed hearing aid that they had heard about. He went to the doctor ' s with no great expectations But when the doctor switched on the hearing aid, he was stunned 'I sat in the doctor's office, frozen as a cacophony of sounds attacked me. The 10 whir of the computer, the hum of the air conditioning, the clacking of the keyboard, the sound of my friend's voice.' Austin could hear. And for the first time ever the world of music was open to him

It didn 't take hi m long to dec ide what to do: he was going to listen to music non-stop. Later that day, he heard his first piece, Mozart's beautiful 15 Lacrimosa (from his Requiem), in a friend 's car. He wept . So did everybody else in the car The experience, he says, was 'like the first time you kiss a girl '. His friends went on to play hi m the Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, Sigur R6s, Radiohead , Elvis, and Pink Floyd. But Austin knew that there was a vast universe of music to explore, so he decided to seek further 20 help. He described his situation on reddit.com and so far, he' s received mo r e than 14,000 suggestions. As a strategy, he has decided to follow the advice of someone who posted this message on the site: ' This is like introducing an alien to the music of Earth. Once you've tired of classical, you could start w ith music from the fifties and progress through each 25 decade. That way you can really see the growth of modern music.'

Austin adopted that system, but chose to start much earlier, with a piece by Guillaume de Machaut called Agnus Dei, from the 14th century. Currently, he's listening to four or five hours of music a day. As he had never heard music before Austin isn't influenced by nostalgia and , via the 30 internet, he can listen to just about anything ever composed Consequently his experience may help us to understand more about musical taste. So what has he been listening to? It seems that no one genre dominates (although he says he' s not very keen on country music - too depressing} His favourite piece - for now - is Queen ' s Bohemian Rhapsody He's also 35 keen on Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Frank Sinatra's Fly Me to the Moon But so far he has not listened to the most recommended band, the Beatles. 'I'm waiting for a special occasion, ' he says.

Austin is also learning how to hear. When we met at a cafe in West Hollywood, we took a table far from the street to avoid the 40 background noise of traffic. The ability to ignore unwanted noise is something that will take him time. This may help explain why Austin says that 'silence is still my favourite sound When I turn my hearing aid off, my thoughts become clearer; it's absolutely peaceful.'

'I can hear music for the first time ever,' wrote Austin Chapman, a 23-year-old film-maker from California. 'What should I listen to?'

4 LISTENING & SPEAKING

a 3 33 >)) Listen to some shor t pieces of music . How do the y make yo u feel? Wou ld yo u lik e to carry on listening?

b 3 34 >)) Listen to John S loboda , a music ps yc hologi s t , talking a b out w h y we li sten to mu sic Try to complete the notes below b y wri tin g key wor d s or phrases Then with a partner , tr y t o remember as much as yo u can of what he said.

c 3 35 >)) Now li s ten to Jo hn ex plaining h ow mu s ic can affec t the way we fe e l. Compl ete the note s b e low b y giv ing examp les Then compare w ith a partner and tr y to remember w hat h e said.

d T alk t o a p artn er . As k fo r m o r e d e t a ils w h ere p oss ible .

1 On a typical day, when and where do yo u liste n to music?

2 Do you listen to different ki nds of m us ic at differen t times of day?

3 What mus ic would you play ?

• if you were feeling sad and you wanted to feel more cheerful

• if you were feeling down and you wanted to fee l even worse

• if you were feeling furious about something or somebody

• if you were feeling stresse d o r nerv ous abou t something and w ante d to c alm dow n

• if you wanted to c reate a roma nt ic atmosphe re for a special d inner

• if you were feeling exc ited a nd we re getting ready to go out for the ev eni ng

• if you were falling in love

5 GRAMMAR gerunds and infinitives

a Look a t some ex tr acts from the l i ste n ing. P u t the verbs in br a c ke t s i n the i n fi nitive (wi th or w i thout to) or the ger un d (-inB for m ).

1 Firs tl y, we listen to m u s ic to m ake u s ___ im por t a n t m o m e nts i n t h e past. (remember)

2 Whe n we h ea r a certa in p iece of mu sic we re m emb er ___ it fo r t he first tim e . (hear)

3 If we wa n t fro m one act i vit y to another , we ofte n u se m u sic to help us the change . (go, make)

b 3 36 l)) Lis t en a nd c h ec k .

c L ook a t t wo sentences w ith t h e ve rb remember. W h ich o n e i s a b o ut reme m berin g th e p as t? W hi ch o n e i s a b o u t re m em b er i ng somet hin g fo r the f utu re?

1 I r em em b er meeti n g him for t h e first ti m e

2 Please r eme m ber to mee t h im at t h e s tation

d p.142 Grammar Bank 6A. Find o ut more about ge rund s a n d infinit ives, and practise t hem.

e Te ll yo u r partner one thing th at . . .

• you'l l n eve r fo rget seeing for the fi rs t time

• y o u so m et imes fo rg et t o d o be fo r e y o u lea ve t he house in t h e morn ing s

• you r e member doing when you were u nder five ye ars old

• you must remember to do today or t h is w eek

• needs doing in your house I fla t (e.g. t h e kitchen ce il ing need s re painting)

• you ne e d t o do t his evening

• you t ried t o l e arn but coul d n't

• you h ave trie d doing whe n yo u can't sleep at night

6 3 39 i)) SONG Sing _n

G used to, be used to, get used to

1 LISTENING & SPEAKING

a Do you have problems s leeping? Why (not)?

b 3 40,41, 42 >)) You are going to listen to three people who have problems s leep ing at night. Listen and take notes on what their problem is, and what has caused it. Compare with a partner and then listen again to complete your notes.

Speaker! Speaker2 Speaker3

2 GRAMMAR

Laugh and the world laughs with you, snore and you sleep alone.

used to, be used to, get used to

a Look at some extracts from the listening Match the highlighted phrases to their meanings 1-3. What form is the verb after a) used to b) be/ Bet used to?

D In Spain always used t o s eep in complete darkness.

D t 's very liara to get u sed to being awake all night

D And just w he n I ' m fin ally u se a t o b eing on ew York time , then it 's time to fly home.

I I usually did this in the past.

2 It 's not a problem for me because it is now a habit .

3 It's a problem for me because it hasn' t become a habit ye t.

c Answer the questions with a partner.

I Do you usually sleep with your b edroom completely dark , or with the curtains or blinds open? Do yo u have problems sle eping if there is too much or not enough light for you?

2 Have you ever worked at night? Did you have any problems sleeping the next day? Why (not)? Do yo u think you would be able to work at night and sleep during the day?

3 Have you ever flown long haul? Where to? Did you get jet lag? How long did it take you to get over it?

b > p 143 Grammar Bank 68 Find out more about used to, be used to and Bet used to and practise them.

3 PRONUNCIATION sentence stress and linking

a 3 45 Listen and repeat three sentences. Notice the rhythm and how the words are linked.

1 I'm usedJo working-.Jn___,a team.

2 1can't get used J o driving'""'°n t he right.

3 1usedJo get'--'up at six o'cloclcevery day.

b 3 46 Now listen and write down three more sentences.

c Practise saying the sentences quickly, getting the stress right and trying to link the words.

d Talk to a partner. Ask for and give more information.

I When you were a child, did you use to ... ?

• share a room with a brother or sister

• have nightmares

• wake up very early in the morning

2 Do yo u have problems if you have to sleep in a bed that you aren't used to sleeping in (e.g in a hotel)?

3 Do you think you would find it difficult to get used to ... ?

• getting up at 5.30 a.m. every day

• on ly being ab le to sleep for six hours a night

• not having breakfast in the morning

READING & SPEAKIN G

a R ea d the int ro ductory paragraph of Thre e things you (pr o ba b ly) didn't know about sleep. D o yo u know the answers t o any of the ques tions?

b R ea d Livin g y ou r d rea m s and m ark t h e sentenc e s T (tr u e) or F (fa lse). U nderline the p ar t of the t ex t t h a t gave y o u the a n swer.

1 W h en we h ave a ' lucid ' d rea m we know t h at we're d reaming.

2 In a ' lucid ' d ream the person who i s dr eam ing can n ever ch a ng e w h a t i s h appenin g.

3 G a m ers m ay b e able t o con t ro l t h eir d rea m s b ecau se dreams a r e simila r t o co m p uter gam es .

4 T h e rea s on w e h ave n ightm ares m ay b e t o p rep are u s for cer t ain d a nger o us s itu a tions .

5 Vid eo ga m er s h ave m ore night mares t h a n n o n- ga m ers becau se they d on ' t ex p er ienc e d a n gero u s li fe -threaten in g si t u a t io n s

6 Video gam er s are b rave r i n th ei r dream s th an n o n - gamers .

c >- Communication Three things you (probably) didn 't know about sleeping. A Sleeping Beauty p.106 B How our ancestors used to sleep p.111. Tell yo u r par tner som e m ore int eres t i n g fa cts about sleep.

d In p a ir s see if y o u can reme mb er some of t h e words a nd phrases fr o m the articles yo u h ave read or h ear d

Vocabulary Quiz

1 a med ical condit ion , ofte n an unusua l on e: a

2 an adje c tiv e me an i ng stay ing f ai thf ul to some bo dy and supp o rting them : ______

3 an adje c tive ofte n use d with sl eep . A p er son who is in a - s le ep is diffi c ult to wake : -

4 a hundred year s, e.g fr om 1900 t o 2000 : a _____

5 the time in t he eve ni ng w hen it be c omes dar k : ___

6 the v erb meaning to sp eak t o Go d: ___

7 the word for a pe r son who pla ys a lot of v ideo g ames : a vi de o

8 an adjective meani ng clear, espe c ially af ter a per iod of c onfu si on:

9 to change po siti on so as t o f ac e the ot her w ay : ______

e A n swer the qu es ti ons i n p airs .

1 D o yo u pl ay v ideo games? D o y o u thin k it h as a n y effec t o n t he way yo u dr ea m? D o you t hi n k it has a n y posi tive or n ega tive effect s on you ?

2 W h a t d o yo u think wo uld b e th e wors t t h i n g for s o m eone wi th Slee ping Beaut y Sy nd rome?

3 D o yo u th i nk slee pi ng in two sh or t er p erio d s is a b e t te r way of sleep i ng? Do you t hink it wo uld suit yo u a nd you r l ifes t yle?

Everybody loves it. Everybody needs it. No-one seems to get enough of it. We all know that most people need eight hours sleep, and that REM* sleep is when you have most dreams, but here are three questions about sleep which you may not know the answer to:

• How can video games help us control our dreams?

• What is Sleeping Beauty Syndrome?

• What did our ancestors use to do in the middle of the night (which we don 't)?

Living your dreams

Aunivers ity psychologist in Canada be li eves tha t people who play video games are more likely to be able to control their own dreams. Jayne Gacke nbach studied t he dreams of regula r video gamers and non-gamers and found

5 that people who frequently played video games experienced ' lucid' dreams more often. A lucid dream is one in which we are awa re that we are d reaming. In a lucid dream, th e dreamer is sometimes able to control or influence what is happening to them in the dream - very simi lar to controlling

10 the action of a character in a video game.

'Dreams and video games are both parallel unive rses,' says Gackenbach, 'Gamers spend hours a day in a virtual reality and t hey are used to controlling their game environments, and this seems to help them to do the

2

1

5 same when they are dreaming.'

Gackenbach a lso d iscovered that video game rs have fewer nightmares than non-gamers. Some experts believe that we have n ightmares to help us pract ise for life-threatening situations in a safe environment. Since

20 video gamers already practise those situatio ns regularly in games, Gackenbach 's research suggests that video gamers may have less need of n ightmares . But, int eresti ngly, when gamers do have a nightmare they reac t differently to nongamers:

' What happens with gamers,' says Gackenbach, 'is

5 that when they have a fr ightening exper ience in a dream they don 't run away li ke most of us do, they turn round and fight back .' •

Three things you {probably) didn't know about

& SPEAKING

a Look at the picture and the headline of the article. Why do yo u think the man cooks in the middle of the night?

b 3 47l)) Now listen to the first part of a r a dio programme and check yo ur answers to a What kind of things does he cook? Wh y is it a problem?

c Read the newspaper article about Robert Wood. Can yo u remember any of the details about him? Try to complete the gaps with a word or words, then listen again to check

d You are now going to listen to the second half of the radio programme. Before yo u li s t en, work with a partner and discuss if yo u think the information in sentences 1- 10 is T (true) or F (false).

1 A sleepwalker can drive a car while he is asleep.

2 It is easy to know if someone is sleepwa lking or not .

3 A bout 8 3 of people sleepwalk from time to time

4 Sleepwalking is m ost common among young boys.

5 Stress can cause people to sleepwalk.

6 You s h o uld never wake up a s leepwa lker.

7 Sleepwalkers cannot hurt themselves

8 People usuall y slee pwa lk for a s h ort time.

9 Sleepwalkers don 't u s u a lly remember anything afterwards.

10 Sleepwalking is no exc u se if yo u commit a cnme.

e 3 48 l)) Listen once to check yo ur answers. Then li s ten again and correc t the false stateme nt s

f Have yo u ever s leep wa lked or do you know anyone who sl eepwa lks? What do the y do when they sleepwalk? Where do they go? Does anyone try to wake them up?

The chef who cooks in the middle of the night

ROBERT WOOD, from Fife in Scotland, often gets up in the middle of the night and goes downstairs to the kitchen. Not surprising, you may think. He's probably hungry and looking for something to eat. But you'd be wrong. Robert starts cooking - and he does this while he is fast asleep

Mr Wood, who is 1 years old and a retired 2 _____ has been a sleepwalker for more than 40 years.

' The first time it happened I was 3 ', he said. 'My parents heard me wandering downstairs i n the middle of the night Now I get up 4 times a week and these days I usually head for the kitchen , although on other occasions I have also turned on the television very loudly and even filled 5 with water.'

His wife Eleanor says that she often wakes up in the night when she hears her husband cooking downstairs . She has seen him laying the table and caught him making 6 and spaghetti bolognese and even frying 7 The couple say that because of Mr Wood's sleepwalking they only get a few hours' sleep a night and are getting worried that Robert could start a 8 without realizing 'I really am asleep and have no idea I am getting up,' said Mr Wood .

Mrs Wood says that although the food her husband cooks when asleep looks lovely, she has never eaten it. ' Every night, I think "Is Rob going to cook tonight?". The last time he was in the kitchen, he spilt milk all over the place.'

VOCABULARY & SPEAKING sleep

a Vocabulary race. In pair s, write the correct word from the list in the column on the right .

alarm blanketsd t uv e fall asleep

fast asleep . . keep you awake Insom n la nap jet- tagged nightmares

. log h t oversleep pillow s ee s . set . siesta sleeping tablets sleepy snore yawn

1 Most people start feeling • around 11.00 sleepy at night.

2 They often open their mouth and • ·

3 They go to bed and • their • (clock).

4 They get into bed and put their head on the • ·

5 They cover themselves up with a • or with • and •

6 Soon they •

7 Some people make a loud noise when they breathe In other words, they • ·

8 During the night some people have bad dreams , called • ·

9 If you don't hear your alarm clock, you might • ·

10 If you drink coffee in the evening, it may • ·

11 Some people can't sleep beca us e they suffer fr o m • .

12 These people often have to take • ·

13 Some people have a • or • after lun ch.

14 A person who sleeps well 's leeps like a• :

15 Someone who is tired after flying to another time zone is • ·

16 Someone who is s leeping very deeply is • ·

3 49 l)) Listen and check.

c Cover the column of words and test yo ur self.

d Ask and answer the questions in pairs. A asks the blue questions, and B asks the red questions. Ask for and give as much informati on as po ss ible. -----.,

Do you sometimes have problems to slee ? Do you take, or have you ever ta en, le pills? Do you any tips for peop who suffer f ram insomnia .

Do you prefer to sleep with a or with blankets? How many pillows do you have? What temperature do you like the bedroom to be?

sleep when you' re Do you nnd it difficult to r planes? Is there any in buses o · h t travelling, e g k s you awake , or t a food or drink that welt? stops you from sleeping

Do you ever have a nap after lunch or during the day? How long do you sleep for? How do you feel when you wake up?

Do you often have nightmares or recurring dreams? Do you normally remember what dreams were about? Do you ever try to interpret your dreams?

Have you ever stayed up all night to revise for an exam the next day? How well did you do in the exam?

(;',;: sleeper or do ; u sleep in th og. do you usually wake up e morning?

Do you have a TV or computer in your bedroom? Do you often watch TV before going to sleep? Do you ever fall asleep on the sofa in front of the TV?

snore? Have you ever had to share a room w1 someone who snores? Was this a problem? -

Have you ever fallen asleep at an moment, e.g. during a class or 1n a meeting?

GRAMMAR

a Complete the second sentence so that it means the same as the first.

1 They escaped from the jungle because they found the river.

They wouldn't have escaped from the jungle if they __ the river

2 I can't go to dance classes because I work in the evening I would be able to go to dance classes ifl ___ in the evening.

3 We went to that restaurant because you recommended it. We to that restaurant if you hadn't recommended it.

4 Marta goes to bed late , so she's always tired in the morning.

If Marta didn't go to bed late, she so tired in the morning.

5 After living in London for a year I still find driving on the left difficult.

After living in London for a year I still can ' t get on the left.

6 My hair was very long when I was a child

When I was a child I u sed very lon g hair.

7 I get up very early, but it's not a problem for me now I'm used very early.

8 It's a pity I can' t speak French. I wish French.

9 I regret not learning to play the piano when I was younger

I wish ________ the piano when I was younger.

10 I hat e seeing your dirty clothes on the floor.

I wish your dirty clothes on the floor.

b Complete the sentences with the correct form of the bold verb .

1 I don't remember _ you before. meet

2 The car needs Shall I take it to the car wash? clean

3 We managed to the airport on time. get

4 Please try late tomorrow. not be

5 My sister isn't used to in such a big city. She'd always lived in the country before. live

VOCABULARY

a Complete the sentences with an adjective expressing a feeling.

1 Our son played brilliantly in the concert! We felt very pr___

2 I'm feeling a bit h . I really miss my family.

3 Thanks for lending me the money. I'm very gr___

4 I shouldn't have bought that bag - it was so expensive. Now I feel really

5 When I heard that I had won the prize I was completely st . I couldn't say anything!

b Complete the sentences with the correct form of the bold word.

1 That walk was . I need a good rest now. exhaust

2 I was really when I read Tim's email. shock

3 You really me at the party last night! embarrass

4 It's very when you think that you are going to miss your flight. stress

5 It me when people who don't know me use my first name. annoy

6 Last night's concert was really . The orchestra didn' t play well at all. disappoint

7 It always me that people actually enjoy doing risky sports. amaze

8 We were when we heard the news . horrify

9 What you said to Ruth was rather . I think yo u should apologize. offend

10 It was an incredibly film! scare

c Write the words for the definitions.

the person who directs an orchestra a group of people who sing together a stringed instrument that yo u hold between yo ur knees

a woman who sings with a very high voice an electronic musical instrument, like a piano

d Complete the missing words.

1 Could I have an extra p for m y bed, please?

2 My husband says I sn really loudly at night.

3 I didn't sleep last night , so I'm going to have now.

4 Last night I had a horrible n ___ . I dreamt that I was lost in the jungle.

5 Don't forget to s ___ the alarm for tomorrow morning .

a Q the word with a different sound.

1 CH shee ts r ea lly reli eved sle e py

2 ala rm ya w n exha u sted snor e

3 ch orus ch auffeur c h emist c h oir

4 ch ef sh attered arc h itect sh ocked

5 deligh ted inspi red surv ival g ui lty

b Underline the main stressed syllable.

1 up jset 2 de lva lsta jted 3 or lche jstra 4 in jsom jni la 5 sleep jwalk

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS TEXT?

a Read the article once. What two factors helped Samuel to survive?

b Read it again and choose the best words to fill the gaps.

1 a carrying b wearing c holding

2 a take off b take up c take out

3 a watching b finding c setting

Survival tastes so sweet for rescued British backpacker

Contact lens solution is not usually considered a survival tool , but if 18-year-old Samuel Woodhead hadn ' t been 1 it, he might not have survived. The British gap year student went missing in the 40 ° C heat of the Australian outback on Tuesday A fitness fanatic hop i ng to join the Royal Marines, Samuel survived for three days by drinking the saline cleaning solut ion , which his father had packed in his rucksack, but which he had forgotten to 2 when he went for a run.

Samuel had been working for only two weeks as a ranch hand at Upshot cattle station , near the town of Longreach in the vast state of Queensland. After 3 out for his run, he lost his way. Australian authorities had feared for his survival in a region where heat, a lack of water, poisonous snakes , and the possibility of injury could prove deadly

inviting 5 a search b film

4 a including b involving

shoot 6 a so

although 7 a understand b worry

fear

8 a found b missing

9 a career b course c degree 10 a underused b misused c mispronounced

c Choose five new words or phrases from the text. Check their meaning and pronunciation and try to learn them.

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS FILM?

VIDEO

3 50 l)) Watch or listen to a short film on sleep research. Choose a, b, ore.

1 In Britain have problems getting to sleep

a over 10 3 b approximately 103 c more than 503

2 One of the more common sleeping disorders mentioned is ___

a Sleep paralysis b somniloquy c Exploding head syndrome

3 Scientists at the Sleep Unit take measurements in order to analyse people's _ _

a sleeping patterns b brain activity c body movement

4 Many people today are sleep deprived because they ___

a sleep too few hours

b sleep different hours every night

c wake up a lot during the night.

5 Nowadays many people sleep longer hours

a during the week

b after a night out

c at weekends

After a helicopter rescue mission, 4 hundreds of people , he was found exhausted about six miles from the stat ion. Alex Dorr, a pilot with the North Queensland Rescue Helicopte r Serv ice , said that he went in the dark to the area where the teenager had disappeared and used nightvision cameras to 5 for the missing boy. ' Where am I?' was all that he asked his rescuers when they found hi m i n the ear ly hours of the morning. He was immediately taken for a medical assessment before being transferred to a hospita l in Longreach , but was found to be suffering from no more than sunburn and dehydration , 6 he had lost 15 kilos.

Clai re Derry, his mother, said she heard that he was safe from the captain of the plane as she was flying to Australia to j oin the hunt for her son 'I sobbed , absolutely sobbed and I jumped up and hugged the air hostesses and the captain ,' she said ' To be honest , I was beginning to 7 the worst. It's been the worst three days of my life , by a long way, since 5.30 a.m Tuesday when two policemen knocked on my fr ont door and to ld me they'd got a message from Australia and to ld me my son was s '

Samuel 's training for a 9 in the Armed Services helped him to survive in the hosti le conditions, his mother said. ' My father was a war hero and Sam was named after him and he 's always wanted to live up to that sort of reputation,' she said His father, Peter Woodhead, was vis ibly emotional as he described the ordeal the family had been through while waiting for news that he was safe. 'T he word nightmare these days is much 10 ,' he said. ' Th is has been a true nightmare .'

G p ast medals : must have, etc .; would rather

1 GRAMMAR past modals: must have, etc.

a b

4 2 l)) Look at the photos. What do yo u think the people are arguing about in each photo? What were the arguments about? Listen and check.

4 3 l)) Listen to some extracts from the conversations again and complete them with may have, miBht have, must have, can't hav e, or should have.

Conversation 1

1 D You ______ finished it.

2 D You given it to the cat last night.

3 D I given it to the cat.

Conversation 2

4 D Oh no! We ______ gone wrong.

5 D We taken the second exit at the roundabout.

6 D OK , I made a mistake.

c In pairs, put A, B, C, or Din the box before each phrase.

Which phrase (or phrases) in b means yo u think ?

A it's very probable (or almost certain) that something happened or somebody did so mething

B it 's possible that something happened or somebody did something

C it's impossible that something happened or somebody did something

D somebody did somet hin g wrong

d > p. 144 Grammar Bank 7A. Learn more about past modals , and practise them.

My parents only had one argument in 45 years. It lasted 43 years.

2 PRONUNCIATION weak form of have

a 4 6 l)) Listen to the extracts from the conversations in lb again. Underline the stressed words. How is hav e pronounced?

b In pairs, re ad the conversations and complete B 's response s with yo ur own ideas (for responses 5-8 yo u also need to use must have, miBht hav e, should have , or can't have). Then practise the conversations .

1 A It was my birthday yesterday!

B You should have told me.

2 A I can't find my phone anywhere

B You must have

3 A I definitely said we we re meet ing them at 7.00.

B They may have

4 A I'm so tired. I can't keep my eyes open.

B You shouldn't have

5 A I failed my piano exam.

B

6 A Why do you think Fiona and Brian broke up? B

7 A Alberto didn't come to class yesterday B

8 A We're going to be late T here's so much traffic.

B

READING & SPEAKING

a I n yo u r experi e n ce, w h at do co u p les t yp ica lly arg u e a b o u t ? D o you t hin k men a nd women u se differen t s t rategies w h en t h ey arg u e? In what way?

b Rea d a n a rti cle a b o ut h ow men a nd women argue . D oes i t m ent io n any of t he s t ra t egies yo u t a lke d ab o u t?

l

In Gapun, a remote village in Papua New Guinea, the women take a very direct approach to arguing. Linguist Deborah Cameron tells of an argument between a husband and wife. It started after the woman fell through a hole in the rotten floor of their home and she blamed 5 her husband. He hit her with a piece of sugar cane, so she threatened to attack him with a machete and burn the house to the ground. At this point the husband decided to leave and she launched i nto a kros -a traditional angry tirade of insults and swear words - directed at a g husband with the intention of it being heard by everyone in the village.

c Now rea d the art icle agai n an d mark the sentences T (tru e) or F (fal se). Underli ne t h e parts of the article t hat g ive yo u the answers.

1 T h e arg ume nt D eb ora h Ca m ero n d escr ib es hap p e n e d b ecau se a w i fe co n sid e r ed h er hu sb and respo n s ib le for a n acci de n t s h e h ad .

2 In P apua New G u inea when a woman is arg ui ng w it h h er hus b and, h e's su ppose d to reply to his wife's insu lts.

3 Joh n Gray says t h at men are mo r e assertive in arg uments tha n wome n

4 E d war d thinks t hat h e co u ld w in arg uments more often ifhe were b etter prepared .

5 Christine Nor th am says that older men are less a ble t han yo u nger men t o ta l k abo ut their fee lin gs.

6 Sh e says t h a t some women start crying d u r i ng arguments o nly because they get tr ul y u pset

7 Sarah t hi nks th at her boyfr iend is in se n sitive to h er crying

8 C h rist i ne Northam bel ieves it is not difficult to learn new ways of dealing w ith arguments .

d Look at the hi g fi i ghte words a n d p h rases which are rel ated to arg u i n g. Wi th a partner , t r y to work out what they mean and t h e n c h eck w i th a d ic ti onary o r the t each er.

e Do yo u agree wit h w h at the text says a b o u t the d ifferent way men and women argue?

13 The fury can last for up to 45 minutes, during which time the husband is expected to keep quiet. Such a domestic scene may be familiar to some 15 readers, but, for most of us, arguing with our partners is not quite such an explosive business!

Human beings argue about everything but are there any differences between the sexes in the way that we argue?

In fact, according to John Gray, author of Men are from Mars, Women 20 are from Venus (the 1990s best-seller) - men prefer not to argue at all, wherever possible. 'To avoid confrontation men may retire into their caves and never come out. They refuse to talk and nothing gets resolved. Men would rather keep quiet and avoid talking about any topics that may cause an argument.' Women , however, are quite happy 25 to bring up relationship matters that they would like to change.

Edward, 37, a writer, says 'I'm useless at ar guing. There are things that bother me about my partner, but when I finally say something I am too slow to w in the argument I can only argue properly when I have all the evidence to back up my argument ready to use, but I'm too lazy to do 30 that. I think women , on the whole , are more practised at argu i ng , or more interested.'

Christine Northam, a counsellor with Relate, the marriage - counselling service, agrees with the view that men have a greater tendency to withdraw. 'Women say: "He won't respond to me, he won ' t listen, he 3s thinks he' s right all the time. " However, the younger men that I see tend to be much more willing to understand their own feelings and talk about them Older men find it more difficult.'

However she adds that women are also capable of the withdrawal technique 'Oh yes, women are quite good at doing that as well. They 40 change the subject or cry. Crying is a good tactic and then the poor man says: " Oh, my God, she ' s in tears" '

'I don ' t argue a lot, but I do cry a lot, ' says Sarah, 32, an advertis i ng executive 'I ' ll say something hurtful to him and he ' ll say something equally hurtful back and then I' ll be in floods of tears I call my friend 45 and sh e says: "Where are you? " " In the loo *," I say And th en, when I finally come out after half an hour, he's just watching TV as if nothing has happened.'

Northam says, 'Everything goes back to our upbringing, the stereotypical stuff we have all be en fed. We ar e very influenced by the way our parents 50 were, or even our grandparents. The w ay you deal with emotions is learnt in your fa mily To under stand this , and then make a conscious decision that you will do it differently requires a lot of maturity.'

* loo in f ormal = toil e t

Adapted from The Time s

a 7 ))) You're going to listen to a ps yc hologist giving some tips to help peop le when the y disagree with some body about something Listen once and tick (I ') the s i x things she says.

1 D Think carefully what to say when you begin a discussion

2 D Try to ' win ' the argument as quickly as you can.

3 D Say so rry if s omethin g re ally is your fault.

4 D Never avo id an argument by refusing to talk

5 D Don 't say things that aren't comp letely true

6 D Don't shout.

7 D Don't talk about things that aren't re l evant to the argument.

8 D Use another person to mediate

9 D Postpone the argument until later when you have both ca lm ed down.

10 D It's a bad thing for a coup le to argue .

b Listen again and wit h a partner, try to add more detail to the tip s yo u ticke d

c 4 8 ))) Look at the sentences from the listening and tr y to work out what the missing words are Then listen and c h eck.

1 But of course it 's easier said ____

2 If you're the person who's __ the __, just admi t it!

3 it's important to __ things __ control . ..

4 Raising yo ur voice will just make t he other per son _ their _ , too.

5 stop for a moment and __ a __ breath.

6 It 's also ve r y important to _ the point .

7 There 's m u ch more chance that yo u ' ll be able to an

8 . ____ conflict is an important part of any relationship

d With a partner, decide which two of the psychologist's tips yo u think are the most u seful, and why they 're u seful.

e >-Communication Argument! A p.107

B p 110 Role-play two arguments with a partner .

f Did yo u follow any of the psychologist 's advice about how to argue? Was there anything you sho uld / shouldn' t have done? Is there any thing yo ur partner should / shouldn ' t have said?

MINI GRAMMAR would rather

fvlen would rather keep quiet and avoid talking about any topics that may cause an argument.

Listen, I'd rather talk about this tomorrow when we 've both calmed down.

• We use would rather with the infinitive without to as an alternative to would prefer, e g I'd rather go on holiday in July than August. Would you rather stay in or go out tonight? I'd rather not go out tonight. I'm really tired. NOT I'd not rather.

• We can also use would rather+ person +past tense to talk about what we would prefer another person to do I'd rather you didn ' t smoke in here, if you don't mind

a Re -wr ite the sentences using would rather.

I I'd prefer to go to the cinema than to a club

2 I'd prefer not to go to the part y if my ex is going to b e there.

3 Would you prefer to meet on Thursday morning or afternoon?

4 My wife would prefer not to fly. She had a bad experience once.

5 My husband would prefer to get a train to Manchester , not take the car.

6 I'd prefer to come on Sunday, if that's OK

b Work in pairs. Look at the options and take turns to ask and answer with Would you rather ? Say why

1 do an English course in London or New York

2 have a summer holiday or a winter holiday

3 work for yourself or work for a company

4 go to a foreign restaurant for dinner or to a restaurant which serves food from your country

5 read an e-book or a normal book

6 have a four-by-four or a small sports car

7 go to a concert or a sporting event

8 live on your own or share a flat with friends

Would you rather do an ) ( do a course course in London or New York because

6 VOCABULARY verbs often confused

a Look at some extracts from the listening in the correct verb What does the other verb mean?

I Tr y not to say. ..you never r emind/ r em e mb er to buy the toothpaste.

2 If you follow the s e tips , you may often be able to preve nt/ avoid an argument.

3 The most important thing is not to ris e / raise your voice.

b >- p.158 Vocabulary Bank Verbs often confused

c Complete the questions with the verbs from each pair in the right form. Then ask and answer with a partner.

1 Do you ___ if people are a bit late when you have arranged to meet them , or do you think it doesn' t ? matter / mind

2 Can you usually famil y birthdays , or do y ou need somebody to _ you? remember/ remind

3 Have you e ver been when you were on holiday ? What was ? steal/ rob

4 What would you people to do if the y want to come to your countr y in the summer? What might you them to be careful about? advise / warn

5 Do you think taking vitamin C helps to colds? What other things can people do to ca tching colds? avoid/ prevent 7 10 >)) SONG

Botox should be banned for actors

Acting is all about expression ; why

you want to iron out a

1 GRAMMAR verbs of the senses

a Read the introduction to Howard Schatz's book. Then look at the photo of actress Fran Drescher play ing a role . In pairs , choose a , b , or c .

In Character : Actors Acting

Caught in th e Act: Actors Acting

T h e photograph e r H oward Sc h atz h ad a ve r y unu su a l id ea for his b oo ks. H e im ite d actors into his st udi o, and as ked th em to ' b e' ce rt a in c h arac ters in ce rtain s itu a ti ons, a n d then h e ph otograph ed t h e m.

1 I think she looks

a scared

b miserable

c embarrassed

2 I think she look s like

a a teenage student

b a young mother

c a young business woman

3 I think she looks as if.

a she has just had some bad news

b she is watching something on TV

c she has just heard a noise

b 4 11 >)) Now listen to someone talking about the photo. Were you right?

c Look at the sentences in a. What kind of words or phrases do you use after looks , looks lik e, and l ooks as if?

d > p . 145 Grammar Bank 78 . Learn more about using the verbs of the senses, and practise them.

e 4 13 >)) Listen to these sounds. What do you think is happening? Use It sounds as if. .. or It sounds lik e

as if somebody 's scored a goal. like a football match

f >Communication Guess what it is A pl07 B plll

Describe objects for your partner to identify using looks,fee ls, smells, or tast es + an ad jective or + lik e + noun.

2 SPEAKING & LISTENING

a Look at some more photo s from the book. Describe how yo u thi nk the characters are feeling.

she looks very pleased with herself...

b Answer the questions with a partner. Who do you think looks .. . ?

1 like a child who 's doing something naught y

2 like somebod y who 's apologizing to someone

3 like a very proud parent or teacher

4 as if they have just see n something awful

5 as if the y are eating or drinking something that tastes terrible

6 as if the y 're going t o hit somebody

c 4 14 >)) Lis ten and check.

d Lis ten again. What exactly were the roles each actor was asked to play?

e How do you think acting is different when yo u are k ? wor mg m ....

a film and TV b theatre c radio

f 4 15 >)) Now listen t o an interview with Tim Bentinck , who has been working as a radio a ctor for many ye ars. What is the main wa y in which he says radio acting i s different from oth e r kind s of acting?

g Listen again and answ e r the questions

1 What two things do es he sa y radio actor s use to co nvey feelings?

2 Complete the tip that a radio actor onc e gave him: You have to be able to __ o ne e yebrow with your __.

3 What techniqu e do e s h e u se to help convey the fe eling of happiness?

4 What are radio actors tr y ing to do wh e n the y read a script?

h Do you have radio dramas in your countr y? Do you ever listen to them?

3 MINI GRAMMAR as

a Look at some extracts from 2f, and then read the rule s about as.

Tim Bentinck has b ee n workinB as a radio act o r for many years .

'It 's as naturalistic as you can mak e it sound - to lift it off th e paBe, to make it sound as thouBh you 're not r eadinB it .'

We can use as in many different ways:

1 to describe somebody or something's job or function: She works as a nurse You can use that box as a chair

2 to compare peo pl e or thi ngs: She 's as tall as me now.

3 to talk about how something appea r s, sounds , fee l s, etc. : It looks as if it 's going to snow.

4 to give a reason: As it was raining , we didn ' t go out. (as = because)

5 to say that someth ing happened while somet hi ng else was happening: As they were leaving the postman arrived. (as = when I at the same time)

b Decide how as is used in each sentence and match the m to uses 1-5 above

A D I don 't think his performance in th is ser ies was as good as in the last one.

B D That picture looks as if it has been pa inted by a child

C D You can use that glass as a vase for the flowers.

D D I got to the airport really quick ly as there was ha r dly any traffic.

E D As he was driving home it sta r ted to rain.

F D You sound as if you ' ve got a bad cold.

G D His hair went greyer as he got older.

H D He got a job with the BBC as a programme r esearche r

4

VOCABULARY the body

a 16 >)) Look at a picture of another actress, Dame Helen Mirren. Match the words in the list w ith 1- 9 in the photo. Listen and check.

D cheek D chin D eyebrow D eyelash D eyelid

D forehead D lips D neck D wrinkles

6 READING & LISTENING

a Look at the title of the article and read the s ubhe ad ing . Why do yo u think the writer called his book What Every Body is SayinB and not What Everybody is SayinB?

b Read the article once and then in pairs, answer the questions.

1 Why wasn' t the man being questioned one of the main s uspect s?

2 Why did the agent ask him the question abo ut four different murder weapons?

3 How did the man show that h e committed the murder?

4 Why was Joe Navarro a very successful FBI agent?

5 What a re the two kinds of communication he mentions?

6 Why can't we usually identify non- verba l s ign s?

b > p.159 Vocabulary Bank The body.

c 20 l)) Listen and mime the action.

5 PRONUNCIATION silent letters

a Cross out the 'si lent ' consonant in these words. calf wrist palm wrinkles comb kneel thumb

b 4 21 l)) Listen and check. What can yo u deduce about the pronunciation of ?

• wr and kn at the beginning of a word

• mb at the end of a word

c Look at some more words with silent consonants. In pairs , decide which they are and cross them out. Use the phonetics to help yo u .

aisle /a ll / calm / ka:m I climb / kl a 1m / design /d 1'za 1n/ doubt /d a ut / fasten / 'fu: sn/ half / ha :f/ honest / 'o m st / knock /nnk / muscle / ' m Asll whistle / ' w 1sl/ whole / h;:>ul /

d 4 22 >)) Li s ten and check. Then practise saying the phrases below.

half an hour I doubt it calm down an aisle seat, please designer clothes anti-wrinkle cream kneel down

[[] The man sat at one end of the table, carefully p lanning his replies. He wasn 't considered a major suspect in the murder case. He had an alibi which was credible, and he sounded si ncere , but the agent pressed on, and asked a series of questions about the murder weapons:

'IF YOU HAD COMMITTED THE CRIME , WOULD YOU HAVE USED A GUN? '

'IF YOU HAD COMMITTED THE CRIME , WOULD YOU HAVE USED A KNIFE? '

'I FYOU HAD COMMITTED THE CRIME , WOULD YOU HAVE USED AN ICE PICK? '

' IF YOU HAD COMMITTED THE CRIME , WOULD YOU HAVE USED A HAMMER? '

c Read the article again, and find synonyms for the words and phrase s below.

Paragraph 1

1 believable

2 honest, not pretending ___

3 continued in a determined way (verb) ___

Paragraph 2

1 watched _ _

2 meaning (noun) ___

3 seen -

Paragraph 3

1 thought to be responsible for ___

2 find the meaning of ___

3 make it possible for ___

Paragraph 4

1 identify ___

2 succeed in getting ___

3 join together ___

ne of the weapons, the ice pick, had actually been used in the crime, but that information had been kept from the public So, only the killer would know which object was the real murder weapon As Joe Navarro, the FBI agent, went through the list of weapons, he observed the suspect carefully. When the ice pick was mentioned, the man's eyelids came down hard, and stayed down until the next weapon was named Joe immediately understood the significance of the eyelid movement he had witnessed, and from that moment the man became the chief suspect. He later confessed to the crime.

Navarro is credited with catching many criminals in his 25-year career with the FBI. If you ask him how he has been able to do this , he says, 'I owe it to being able to read people'. In his best-selling book What Every Body is Saying, he teaches us how to decipher other people 's non-verbal behaviour, and thus to enable us to interact with them more successfully.

it comes to human behaviours,'

he says , ' there are basically two kinds of signs, verbal and non-verbal , e.g. facial expressions, gestures, etc All of us have been taught to look for the verbal signs. Then there are the non-verbal signs , the ones that have always been there but that many of us have not learnt to spot because we haven't been trained to look for them. It is my hope that through an understanding of non - verbal behaviour, you will achieve a deeper, more meaningful view of the world around you - able to hear and see the two languages, spoken and silent, that combine to present human experience i n all its complexity .'

d Look at the pictures With a partn er , say ho w yo u think the people are feeling.

e Now try to match the gestures to the feelings.

D dominant D friendly and in te res ted D in a good mood

D insecure D nervous D rela xed D stressed

f 23 >)) Listen and check. T hen listen aga in for more de ta il , a nd make notes.

p -wards

We often add the suffi x -wards to a preposition or adverb of movement to mean 'i n this direction', e g forwards, backwards, inwards, outwards , upwards, downwards

g Test a partner A make the gestures , one-by- o n e, but in a different order B say what the gestures mean. Then swap roles

h Is there any gesture that yo u know you d o a lot, like fo lding yo ur arms or stan ding wi th yo ur hands on yo ur hips? Why do you think yo u do it?

7 SPEAKING & WRITING

a )ii- Communication Two photos A p 108 B p.112. De scribe your pict u re for your partner t o visualize. D escrib e the people's body language, and how yo u think they are feeling.

b > p.117 Writing Describing a photo. Write a description of a picture specu l ating abo ut what the people are doing, feeling , etc.

1 • ._ THE INTERVIEW Part 1

VIDEO

a R ea d the bio g raph ica l i n for m a t io n a b o ut S i mon Ca ll ow. Have yo u s e e n a n y o f his film s ?

Simon Callow is an English actor, writer, and theatre director. He was born in London in 1949 and studied at Queen's university, Belfast, and the Drama Centre in London As a young actor he made his name when he played the part of Mozart in Peter Shaffer's production of Amadeus at the Royal National Theatre in London in 1979 and he later appeared in the film version As well as acting in the theatre he has also appea red in TV dramas and comedies and in many fi l ms including Four Weddings and a Funeral and Shakespeare in Love. He has dire c t ed bot h plays and musicals and was awarded the Laurence Olivier award for Be st Musical for Carmen Jones in 1992. He has w r itten biograp h ies of t he Irish wr iter Oscar Wilde and Orson Welles , the American actor and film dir ec tor He was awarded the CBE in 1999 for h is ser v ices to drama.

a 4 25 >)) Now wa t ch or lis te n to Part 2 . Answer the q u es t ions

1 Which does he p refer, act ing in t h e th ea t re or in films?

2 Comple t e th e two cr u cia l differenc es h e me n tio n s a b o ut ac tin g i n the theatre: T h ere's a nEve r y si n gle pe r formance is u t te rly ____

3 Who d oes h e say a r e the m ost i mpor t an t peo p le in t he ma kin g o f a fi l m, t h e direc t or , t h e e d itor, or t h e ac t o r s? Why?

b 4 24>)) Wa tch or li s t e n t o p a rt 1 o f a n int e r v i ew wi th h im . Ma rk the sent enc es T (true) or F (fa lse).

1 His fir s t jo b was as a n ac t or a t T h e Ol d Vic t heatre

2 W h e n h e wa t c h e d re h ea r sa ls h e was fasc in a t ed b y how goo d t h e a ct ors were.

3 Ac t in g a ttr a ct e d hi m b e c a u se it i nvolve d p ro blem solv in g.

4 Pl ay in g th e p a rt o f Mozar t in Amadeu s was a ch a llenge becau se h e was n ' t a ficti o nal ch ara ct e r .

5 Moz a rt was th e m os t exc it i n g ro le h e has h a d b ecau se it was h is fir st.

c Now li s t en a g a i n a nd say w h y th e F se nte nc es are fa lse

Glossary

The Old Vic o ne of the o ld est a nd most fa m o u s of the London t heat res Amadeus is a pl ay by Pe ter S h affer abo ut t he l ife of th e composer Wolfga n g Amade u s Mozart. It was a lso m ade into a fil m of t h e sa m e name. In t he play, Moz art is por t raye d as h av i ng a ver y c hild is h p erso n a lit y, w hi ch contrasts with the geni us a nd so phi stica t io n of his mu sic.

The Marriage of Figaro o ne of Moza rt 's best-k n own operas box office the pl ace at a thea t re o r cinema where t ickets are sold rehearsals / n ' h3:s l z/ ti m e that is spe nt prac ti s i ng a p lay or a p iece of m u s ic auditorium /,;, :d1 't::i :ri :Hn / t he part of a th eatre w h ere t h e a udience sit s

4 D oes h e t h ink a c t i ng in film is more na tu ra l and realist ic t han theatre ac tin g? Why (not)?

b L i ste n again W h at is he referr i ng t o w h en h e says . . . ?

1 'It's imp or t a nt b ecau se yo u h ave t o reac h o u t t o t h em, m ake sur e t h at eve r yb o dy ca n hear and see wha t yo u ' r e do in g.'

2 ' .I mea n yo u n ever d o, you n eve r can.'

3 ' So, in t h at sense, t he actor is ra t her powerless.'

4 ' t h er e are some , you k now, little metal objects right in fron t of yo u , sort of, st ari n g a t you as you're d oing yo u r love s cene '

Glossary (film) editor the person w h ose job it is to decide wh at to i ncl ud e a n d wh at to cut i n a fi l m editing suite /'ed 1l11) a room containi n g e lectro nic eq u ipm e n t fo r e d it i ng video ma t eria l

4 26 >)) Now watch or l isten to Part 3 What do es he say abo u t . ?

1 watching other actors acting

2 the first great actors h e saw

3 Daniel Day-Lewis

4 wearing make up

5 the first night of a play

Glossary

John Gielgud a famous stage and film actor (1904 - 2000)

Ralph Richardson a famous s tage and fi lm actor ( 1902 - 1983)

Laurence Olivier a famo u s stage and film actor ( 190 7 -1989)

Ed ith Evans a famous stage and fi l m actor (1888 - 19 76)

Peggy Ashcroft a famous s tag e and film actor ( 190 7 - 1991)

Daniel Day - Lewis a famo u s fi l m actor (195 7-) stage fright ner vo u s fee l ings fe lt by actor s before t h ey appear i n fro nt of an a udience

2 LOOKING AT LANGUAGE p Modifiers

Simon Callow uses a wide variety of modifiers (really, incredibly, etc .) to make his l anguage more expressive.

a 27 l)) Listen to so m e extrac t s from the interview and comple t e the missin g adjective or modifi er

1 ' .. .I thought what a wo nd erfu l job , what a _ _ interesting job '

2 'My job was to reconcile that with the fact that he wrote The MarriaB e of FiBaro, and that was tremendously ____

3 ' .its fame , a lmo st from the moment it was announced , was overwhelmingly than a n yth in g I had ever done .. .'

4 ' They're different m ed i a, they require different things from you as an actor '

5 ' you bring different things to them.'

6 'The beauty of the theatre is that every single performance is utterly from every othe r one.'

7 'As a yo un g man, and a boy, I wa s lucky to see that fa bled generation of actors, of, of Gie lgud and Richardson, Olivier, .'

3 IN THE STREET VIDEO

a 28 l)) Watch or lis t en to four people talking about their favourite actors Match the speakers (N, S , J, or M) to the a ctors.

Nathan, English Se an, English

D Audrey Hepburn

D Jud i Dench

D MattSmi t h

D Oliv ia Colman

D Russell Crowe

Jo , English

D Jodie Foster

D Kevin Spacey

D Natalie Po rtman

Mairi, Scottish

D.D Robe rt De Niro

b Watch or l isten again . Who (N, S , J, or M) ... ?

D like s one of the actors h e / sh e mentions b ecau se he/ sh e is very versatile

D ha s seen one of the actors he / she mentions in the theatre

D thinks his / h er favourite actors ex pres s fee lings very well

D says the actor h e / she likes be s t was also in the film h e / s he likes best

c 4 29 l)) Watch o r li s ten and comp lete the hi g hli g htedJ Colloquial Englis h phrases. What d o yo u think they mean?

1 ' . actors who are that famous have some sort of Sta ,

2 'I think h e just has an int ensity, a nd a that makes yo u want to watc h him .'

3 'My favo u rite film and my favo urit e performance of is The Deer Hunt er.'

4 ' . .. I fee l lik e she put 1er. ___ into everything, . . .'

4 SPEAKING

Answer the qu estions with a partner. Try to u se a var iety of m o difiers.

1 What actors do you particularly enjoy watching? Why do you like them? Which performances particularly?

2 What's one of the best fi l ms you've seen recently? Why did yo u l ike it so much?

3 Do yo u ever go to the theatre? Do yo u prefer it to the c inema? Why (not)? What p lays h ave you seen ?

4 Have you ever acted in a play or film? What was it, and what part did you play? Did yo u get stage fright?

1 READING & LISTENING

HOW NOT TO GET ROBBED IN THE STREET

You d r amatically increase your chances of being robbed if you look as i f you might have a lot of money on you You don't have to look like a tramp, but you should try t o look as if you aren' t carry i ng much of value If you' re a tour i st, keep your expensive camera o r phone hidden

This is especially true in countries where there are big i ncome differences, and particularly in urban areas Children are sadly often the most dangerous people on the street because they have nothing to lose. If you see a group of children coming towards you, ignore them completely and walk quickly to an area where there are plenty of other people

If you see that people are watching you in a susp i cious way, look stra i ght back at them and make eye contact. If they were thinking of robb i ng you, it will make them realize that you may not be an easy target.

If you are a tourist and somebody in the street tells you to put your phone away, do it. Sometimes the locals can be overprotective because they want you to see the best side of their town , but it's always a good idea to take their advice If they say don' t go somewhere, don' t.

The safest thing to do is to phone a reputable company every time you need one (your hotel can normally help with this). If you do have to get a taxi in the street, make sure it looks like a regulated one (e.g one which has an official number or company phone number on i t) and neve r eve r get into a cab that has another person in the front passenger seat.

What's the first thing tourists do when th ey come out of We stminster

Tube station in London? Th ey look up at Big Be n, and th e n th ey pose to have th e ir photo taken . When they're looking up, o r looking at t he camera , that's the moment when a pi c kpocket st eals th e ir w all e t. Thi e ves also love the posters you see that warn tourists : 'Watch out! Pickpockets about!' When men read that their natural reaction is to imm ediat e ly put their hand on the pocket where their wallet is, to make sure it ' s still there The pickpockets are watching and so they see exactly where the man is carrying his wallet.

a Have yo u ever been robbed i n t h e street? Where were you? W h at was stolen?

b Read the art i cle How not to Bet robbed. Match the headings to t he paragraphs

A Be careful when you' re sightseeing

B Be smart about cabs

C Don't look too well off

D Keep an eye on the kids

E Listen to the locals

F Look confident

c R ead t h e a r ticle again. T h e n cover the t ext and look at A - F. Can yo u reme mb er the advice? What advice wo u ld you give someone to avoid bei n g robbed i n your t own?

d Look at the qu estions and pre d ict t he answers. H o w t o b e at th e bu r gl ars

1 How long do you think a burglar normally takes to search someo n e's h ouse?

2 Whic h are t h e m ost common t h ings t h at burglars stea l , apart from money?

3 What one t hing wo ul d be like ly to stop a burglar coming i nto your house?

4 What fac t ors influen ce a b u rglar to choose a house?

5 Why do some burglars prefer it if the owners are at home?

6 When are yo u most li ke ly to b e bu rgled, d u ri n g t h e day or n igh t?

7 How are burglars more li ke ly to get into a ho u se?

8 What is the best room in t h e house to h ide you r val u ables?

:

e 30 >)) Listen to an interview with an ex-burglar. Check your answers to d.

f Listen again for more detail. What reasons does he give for each answer? What tips can you learn from what he says to protect yourself from being burgled?

g Of all the tips for keeping safe at home and in the street, which one do you think is the most useful? Why?

2 VOCABULARY c rime and punish m ent

a Match the words for people who steal with the definitions in the list. burglar mugger p ickpocket robber shoplifter thief

1 A is someone who breaks in and steals from a private house.

2 A is someone who steals from a person or place , e g. a bank, using or threatening violence.

3 A is someone who steals something from a shop.

4 A is someone who steals from you in the street , usually without you noticing.

5 A is someone who uses violence to steal from you in the street

6 A ____ is the general word for someone who steals from a person.

b 31 >)) Listen and check. Underline the stressed sy llables

c :>- p 160 Vocabulary Bank Crime and punishment.

3 PRONUNCIATION & SPEAKING the l etter u

acc u se b ur glar c augh t c our t drugs fr au d j u dge j u ry m ugger m u r derer p unishment sm uggling

a Look at the words in the list , which all have the letter u in them. Put them in the corre ct column below according to how the vowel sound is pronounced.

d Talk to a partner.

What are the most common crimes in your town or city?

What has been the biggest crime story in your country in the last few weeks?

Do you have trial by jury in your country?

Do you think it's a good system?

Do you have capital punishment in your country?

If not, would you re-introduce it?

Do you know anyone ? What happened?

• who has been burgled

• who has been mugged

• whose car has been stolen

• who has been unfairly accused of shoplifting

• who has been stopped by the police while driving

• who has been robbed whi le on holiday

• who has been offered a bribe

• who has been kidnapped

4 MINI GRAMMAR have someth ing done

They look up at Big Ben, and then they pose to have their photo taken

• Use have (something) done when you get another person to do something for you Compare:

I took a photo of Westminster Bridge = I took the photo myself.

I had my photo taken on Westminster Bridge =I asked someone to take my photo

• Have is the main verb so it changes according to the tense I'm going to have my hair cut tomorrow. I had my car repaired after the accident.

• You can also use get instead of have, e g I'm going to get my hair cut tomorrow.

a Complete the sentences with the right form of have + the past participle of a verb from the list.

cut install renew repair take

1 How often do you your hair ?

2 Have you ever had a problem with your laptop? Where did you it ?

b 34 >)) Liste n and check. Which two word s ar e pronounce d e xactly the same?

c Practise saying the -s entence s .

1 Luke wa s accused of s uggling drugs.

'Murd erers must be punished ,' s a id th e judge

3 Th e burglar is doing communit y service .

4 The jury sa id he wa s guilty of fraud

5 The mugge r was caught and t a ken to court

3 Do you usually your passport or ID card in plenty of time before it runs out?

4 Have you a burglar alarm m your house or flat? What kind is it?

5 Have you ever your photo in front of a famous monument? Where ?

b Ask and answer the ques tions with a partner.

5

GRAMMAR the passive (all forms); it is said that. , he is thought to , etc.

a R e ad a tr u e c r i m e story. Wha t d oes i t adv ise u s t o b e careful w ith ? W h at h a pp e n e d to th e wo m an?

Not her best buy

If a man approaches you outside a Best Buy store* with a complicated story about needing money to get home, and a surprisingly cheap iPad for sale, don't believe him!

A woman in Daytona Beach , Flo ri da, 1/eamt I was learnt this the hard way after handing over $400 for what turned out to be a s uare p iece of wood with a piece of glass st k o tHe fron When the man, 39-year-old Torrance Canady, w o 2 had I was had a long criminal rec rd , 3 /ater caug'b t I was later caugh t by the police, sev ral more fake A):>ple p roducts 4found I were foun a in his car. Th e were two MacBooks which 5had made J ha a been made from wood and which were covered in silver tape. An Apple logo 6had cut I had been cut out in the middle, a Best Buy price tag stuck on the back. Canady insisted that he 7didn't know I wasn't known the computers were fake and said he'd 'bought them in a nearby town for his girlfriend '. He 8has charged I has been charged with selling fake electrical equipment and 9is holding I is being held in Volusia County jail.

* Best Buy store =a US store selling electronic equipment

b R e ad the s t ory agai n @ the right form of the verb.

c 35 >)) Now li s t e n t o a n o the r cri m e sto r y. Answer t h e qu es tio n s

1 W h er e we r e t h e burglaries t aki n g place?

2 Wh a t did h e s t ea l ?

3 W h a t did Coo p er do ap a rt fr o m s t ea lin g?

4 W h a t did h e d o ifhe fo und p eo ple a t ho m e?

5 How was h e ca u ght ?

6 W h ere did th e po lice find h im ?

d Li s t e n a gain a nd c omple t e the ex t rac t s w ith t he mi ss ing wor d s. H ow is t h e s truc t u re different after he is th ou Bht a nd a ft e r i t is th ouB ht?

1 . . .h e is tho u gh t b e t wee n 5 0 an d 10 0 bur gla r ies in the area

2 It i s b elieve d mai nly int eres t e d i n findin g dru gs

3 Coop er is al so sa id ______ h imse lf at h ome in t h e h o u ses.

4 it is tho u ght ________ t o know so m eone t h ere .

e ::>- p.146 Grammar Bank SA. Lea r n m ore a b o ut t h e passive, a nd pr ac t ise i t .

f Use the notes below to comp lete a n ewspaper cr i me s t ory.

Britain's most polite robber

Police in Stockpo rt in the UK a re looking for a man who 1 • (believe I be Britain ' s most polite armed robber)

The robber, who always says 'please' and ' thank you' when he orders shop staff to give him t he money in the till, 2 • (say/ be a tall man in his early fort ies)

He wears a mask and washing-up gloves during robber ies. It 3 at least four shops in Stockport in recent weeks. (think I he I rob)

A police officer said , ' He 4 _________ (report I be polite to his victims), but there is nothing polite about armed robbery. Last week this man used a knife to threaten shop staff. They were ter r ified. Saying " please" and "thank you" cannot change that.'

6 READING

a Look at t h e t itle of the ar ticle. W h a t kind of crime(s) d o yo u th in k it w ill b e a b ou t ?

b Rea d the ar ticle once . C h oose the b es t sum m ary of t h e w r it er 's opi ni o n .

A Illegal downloadi n g of music is not necessar ily b ad for the mu sic in du stry. I n some ways it b enefits it .

B T h ere is no way of sto p ping illegal downloa d in g. We w ill just h ave to learn t o live w ith it.

C Illegally d own load in g music is t h e same as stea l in g it from a sh o p and it w ill ult im ate ly h arm t h e p eop le w h o a r e co mmi tt ing the crime.

c R ea d the article again . Answer the qu estions with a p ar tn er.

1 Accordi ng to t he writer, i n w h at way d o p eop le have a d ifferen t at t it ude t o the on line wo rld?

2 In w h at way is p eop le's att it ude t o on li ne m usic illog ical?

3 Wha t did t he government wan t to do? W h o opposed thi s, a nd w h y?

4 Wha t is the wri t er's view a b out ill egal d ow n loadin g?

5 Why d oes sh e compa r e fans w h o illegally dow nl oa d thei r idols' m u sic to ' lovers ' who ' watch you as you d row n '?

6 Why d oes she think t h a t the people who downl oa d w ill b e t he losers in t h e long r u n?

d Look at t he hig ilig ted word s a nd p h rases rel ated to crim e. In p a irs, work o ut thei r m ean i ng.

Crime online

What is the world online? Is it real? Are we safe there? How should we behave there?

1 The answer is : it's just the internet Our internet The internet w e made It's exactly like the real world - just a place with shops, and information, where people chat - but on a computer. But for some reason we won ' t accept so simple an answer We think that, as soon as 5 something is on the internet , it turns i nto something else, that it's not quite real.

Take for instance a song When is a song no t a song? When it's on the internet If a song is on a CD , in a shop. we would not hesitate to pa y for it. But if you put the same song on the internet, millions of people th i n k lo that you can take the same song without pay i ng for it. It's st ill t he same song. written by the same people . who spent the same hours and same money recording it. but press a button and it's yours

There are plenty of justifications for taking things for free on the internet In fact, when the government proposed punish i ng illegal

15 downloaders with internet disconnection, a lobby group of a r tists and musicians actually campaigned against it saying that 'it would reduce the civil liberties of every one of us in this country.'

But how can this be true? How is being banned from using t he internet because you have committed a cr i me any different to being banned

20 from a library because you stole some boo ks from there? The internet isn 't a necessity. It's thrilling and brilliant and useful most of the time but it's not a r i ght to be able to use it We don't have a right to listen to the music we want. or watch the films we l ike , for free These things are treats pleasures , luxuries Why is it considered a right? Becaus e it's t he

25 internet And why is the internet different from the rest of the world , where luxuries have to be paid for? Because .i t's the internet.

There is also the argument that it's good for artists t o be heard and seen But what use are 9 million people who love your work , but not enough to want to pay you for your song or your film? Fans who don't

30 pay their idols are like lovers who promise everlasting love but then sit and watch you as you drown.

Do you know who will end up suffering the most from all this? Young people. the ones who themselves are do i ng it The music indust r y has shrunk 40% since 2000. Famous music magazines, like Melody Make r and

35 The Face have now closed And young people who t r y to get jobs in the music industry complain about the low salaries while they download hundreds of pounds worth of albums for free

By The Times journalist Cai t lin fvloran

7 SPEAKING

a In gro u ps, d is cu ss the q u es tions bel ow :

Are these activit ies against the l aw in your country? Do you think they should be illegal?

Why (not)? How do you th ink they should be pun ished?

Online world

• Dow nloadin g m us ic, book s, and f il ms

• Hac kin g in t o s o me bo dy e l se 's co m pu te r

• Post i ng aggress ive o r t hr e at e nin g 'tweet s' o r m es sa ges

• Ph ot og r a ph in g someo ne and p os t ing t he p h ot o on th e in tern et wi t hout t heir pe rmiss ion

• Us in g a false ide nt it y o nli ne

• Cr ea ti ng a comp uter v iru s

Real world

• Own in g an aggressiv e br e ed of do g

• Squ atti ng in an un occ upi e d h ouse (li v in g th e re w it ho ut pay ing re nt)

• Go ing on strike witho ut ha vi ng previously agreed I announce d it

• Il l-trea ti ng an an i mal in a ny way

• Pai nting att ract ive graffiti on a w all or fenc e

p Useful language: saying what you think (1)

When w e a re giving o u r op ini on about the right w ay t o puni s h someone , w e of ten use should+ pas s ive infini t ive

I think I "t h Id b I illegal I I don 't t hink 1 s ou e aga ins t the la w I th in k people w ho do th is should be fined . sent to prison. banned from us ing the interne t. made to

b Compare yo ur ideas with o t her gro up s

Do yo u agree ?

8 WRITING

:>- p.118 Writing Expressing y our opinion

Wri t e an article for a m agazine say i ng w h a t you think abo u t eith e r d ownloading m usic a nd fi lm s, or abo ut s qu a t ti n g

For most people no news is good

but for journalists good

1 SPEAKING & LISTENING

a Talk to a partner.

1 How do you normally find out .. . ?

• the latest news

• what the weather 's going to be lik e

• sports results and match reports

• what's on TV

• your horoscope

• film and book reviews

• job / accommodation adverts

2 Which sections of a newspaper do you normally read? Which sections do you u sually skip?

• politics

• sport

• crime

• business

• foreign news

• celebrity gossip

• food & lifestyle

• local / national news

3 What stories are in the news at the moment in your country?

b Look at the photo and the headline from a news story. What do yo u think the story is about?

1118

Last updated 07:52

Love at first bite

c 38>)) Listen and check. Were you right?

d Listen again and answer the que stions.

1 Who i s Soundari, a nd how old i s she?

2 Why did the keep e rs build the snowmen?

3 What was inside one of the snowmen?

4 What did Soundari do when she s aw the snowman?

5 Why is the film recorded on the camera very unus ual?

6 What useful information did the keepers get from the film?

e Look at the photos and headlines from two more stories. What do you think they are abo ut?

Last updated 15:09

Lost tourist finds herself Dog phones for help

f >-Communication Strange, but true A p.107, B p.112. Read the other two stories and tell each other what happened.

2 GRAMMAR reporting verbs

a Read a news story called Chicken fight What was the 'chicken fight'? How did the local paper resolve the dispute? Would you like to try the dish?

b Read it again and match the hig ig te phrases 1- 6 in the text with the direct speech below.

A D 'I'll say sorr y.'

B D 'It's not true.'

C D 'OK. I did see it there.'

DD 'Wou ld you like to make it for us?'

E D 'OK , w e 'll do it.'

F D ' You s tole it .'

c Three of the four s tories on the s e pages are true, but one was invented. Which do you think is the invented one?

d :>- p.147 Grammar Bank SB. Learn more about reporti ng verbs , and practi s e them .

3 PRONUNCIATION word stress

Last updated 14:33

Chicken fight

By Sam Urban

Two chefs got into a fight last week after Andrew Palmer 1accused Geoff Lewis of stealing one of his recipes and publishing it in a local newspaper.

Andrew Palmer, 28, claimed that he had inv ented the dish of cold chicken wi th strawberry mayonnaise at hi s Kent gastropub , The King 's H ead. However, restaurant chef Geoff Lew is, 30, who writes a weekly newspaper column on cook ing, 2 deni e d copying th e recipe and sa id the dish was his own creat ion.

So, th e local newspaper, the Sidcup Echo, 3 invited both chefs to prepare th e dish at their offices to see whose recipe it rea ll y was. They 4 agreed to come , and the 'cook-off' took place ye s t erday N ewspaper staff tri ed both dishes and unanimously declared Andrew 's to be the winner. Geoff's dish w as said to be ' lacking in f lavour ' He later 5 admitted having seen th e di s h on the menu at Andrew 's pub and he has 6 offe re d to publi s h a n a pology in the fo ll owing issue of the Echo. ' In any case,' he said later, 'I ' ve decided that it works better with raspberries .'

a Look at the two -sy llab le reporting verb s in the lis t. All of them except four are stressed on the seco nd four exception s.

a jccuse ad lmit ad lvise algree conlvince de l ny in lsist in lvite o lffer or jder per lsuade pro l mise re lfuse re lgret re l mind su lggest threa lten

b 40 >)) Listen an d check.

p Spelling of two-syllable verbs

If a two - syllable verb ends in consonant, vowel , consonant, and is stres se d on the second syllable, the final consonant is doubled before an -ed ending, e g regret > regretted, admit > admitted BUT gffer > offered, threaten > threatened

Complete the sentences below with the correc t reporting verb in the past tense .

1 'Sha ll I make some coffee?' He offired t o make some coffee.

2 ' No, I won't go.' He to go.

3 'OK, I' ll help yo u.' He to h e lp me.

4 'I'll ca ll you Believe me.' He to call me.

5 'Remember to lock the door! ' He me to lock the door.

6 'Yo u shou ld buy a new car.' He me to buy a new car.

7 'Wo uld yo u like to have dinner? ' He me to have dinner.

8 'I didn't break the window!' He breaking the window.

9 'Yes, it was me I stole the money.' I He stealing the mone y.

10 ' I wish I hadn 't married Susan.' Irle marrying S u san.

11 'Let's go to a club .' fie going to a club.

12 'Yo u killed yo ur boss .' The po lice him of killing hi s bos s.

4 41 >)) Liste n a nd check.

e 42 >)) Cover th e exa mples inc. Now li sten to the sentences in direct speech in a different order. Say the reported se nte nce .

OK. I'll help yoi] 0 agreed to help me

READING & VOCABULARY the media

a Read an extract from 24 Hours in Journali sm, showing what s ix different people are d o ing between 6 . 00 and 8 . 00 in the morning. Match th e extracts wi th the kind of journalis ts below.

D a war reporter D the on line editor of the magazine fvlarie Claire D a paparazzo (pl papparazzi) D a radio news presenter D an agony aunt D a freelance journalist

Wh e n r e porter a nd author J ohn Da le wa nte d to sho w hi s r eader s what the life of a journa list was rea lly like, h e wrote to journalist s from a ll differ ent ty p es of m edi a a nd aske d them to d esc rib e a ty pical day in th eir wo rkin g life.

6 a.m.. - 8 a.m..

1 Hele n Ru sse ll wakes up exc ited , with a Frank Sinatra song running through h er h ea d like a m a ntr a .New York .New York

The first thing sh e reach es for i s h er Bl ackB e rr y She's got a ll h e r co mplex life loc ke d up in th at electro ni c m atc hb ox W e llmanic ure d fin ger s tap keys, and sh e s t arts looking at her diar y Sh e sees m ee tings, m eetings

In h e r h ead H elen is a lready choosing the wardrobe sh e n eed s to wea r, to look like h er 1 wo uld like to look th em selves. When yo u ' r e thi s kind ofjourn ali st yo u h ave to look 2

2 <You )re listening to TodGJ! on R adio 4 with Ju stin Webb and Jam es .Naughtie. Th e 3 this morning Th e Chancellor has warned that the row abou t PGJ!ing bonuses threatens to put jo bs at risk .. but Labour have accused him ifputting the economy into reverse A new 4 SGJ!S that old people who need care ha ve been Let do wn by socia l services which pass them round like a parcel '

<A.nything happening?'

<Two I EDs have exploded this morning. '

<H ow many ha vey oufound?'

<Fourteen.'

It's a bad start to the day, a nd a warning Sommerville climbs i nto a British armoured vehicle. It is a d a n ger ous 5 , although he is well u sed to that. His life is one of bloody h eadlines. Wherever h e is, th a t's th e Big Story The army convoy m oves forward. Sommerville knows it's not ifa n o th er bomb will 6 it 's wizen.

4 A li mo usin e sweeps along v\Til sh i r e Bo u levar d , Los Angeles, a nd turn s in b etween the palm trees whi ch mark t h e dri veway of a n undi st in gu is h e d ch a in h ote l. It pull s up , a nd a uni forme d co mmi ssion a ire steps fo r ward and reaches for t h e hand le of the r ea r do or

H e pulls it open , a nd a woma n 's legs a pp ear H e 7 h er face and says, 'Goo d eve ning, M a dam .' Th e woman sm iles a nd walk s th rough the d oor into the lobby.

Ou ts id e in the hotel g r o und s a m a n ca rr y in g several large ca meras 8 a ca ll on h is mobile.

<She's here)

5 Samantha Booth gets out of bed, goes into th e kitch en and makes the first coffee of the d ay. She sits at h er computer and opens her em a ils.

Gimme work, gimme wo rk

Sh e's been sending out lot s of id eas, hopin g that a t least o n e of h e r stor ies wo uld b e acce pted She 9 down the screen Nothin g. Zilch. Samantha i s starting to fee l sid el in ed S h e 10 t h e TV a nd stares at the n ews, h ard ly taki n g it in. Why d on't e di tors r e ply?

6 While organizing h er three child ren for scho ol, K at ie Fraser sw itch es on h er comp uter. She 11 doze n s of Facebook group s dealing w ith everythi ng, from drugs to aba ndon ed wives, t o panic attacks a nd prem at ure babies

S he 1 2 he r messages The fi r st one says <J've had enough effeeling like this no w. Doct01J keep giving me pills but lhf:Y don 't w01k. '

Fra ser h as to take the do g fo r a walk as well as get h e r kid s ready fo r sc hool. 'Co m e on, everyone,' sh e k eeps sayin g, ' T im e to go.'

Glossary

The Chancellor (of the Exchequer) The se ni o r finance minister in t h e British govern m e nt IED Imp rovized Ex plos ive D ev ic e (sma ll ho m e -m ade bomb) commissionaire atte nd a nt , a p e r son w h ose jo b it is to h e lp o r serve gimme sla n8, contractio n of'give me ' zilch n o thin g (in fo rm al, US E ng lis h )

b R e ad the ex tract ag ain Choose th e be s t option a, b , or c to complete the gap.

ONE DAY. ONE MILLION STORIES.

c Which of the six jobs in the book extract so und s ?

• the most interesting • the most stressful

• the most insecure

• the most fun

Which job would yo u most/ l east like to have?

d > p.161 Vocabulary Bank The media.

5 SPEAKING

Talk in sma ll groups.

1 Do yo u have a favourite ... ?

a newsreader

b film or TV critic

c sports writer or commentator

d TV or r adio presenter

e newspaper journalist

What do yo u like about them? Are there any that yo u can' t stand?

2 Which newspapers , TV channels, or radio stations in your co untr y do you think are ?

a biased b re li able c sensational

3 Is there much censorship in your co unt ry?

4 Look at the topics below and decid e if yo u personally agree or disagree with them. Then, in yo ur groups , di sc u ss them. What is the majority opi nion on each topic?

It's not acceptable for journalists to listen in on politicians' phone calls and hack into their email accounts.

The print newspaper is dead. We will soon read all our news online.

Celebrities have to accept that the media publishes stories and photos about their private lives. That is the price they pay for being rich and famous.

pUseful language: saying what you think (2)

In my opinion I view ...

If you ask me... celebrities should ...

Personally I think

Agreeing I disagreeing

I completely agree / I don't agree at all.

I think I don't think you're right.

6 LISTENING

a 46 >)) Look at photos of six celebrities. Do yo u kn ow anything about them? Listen to an interview with Jenn ifer Buhl, one of the paparazzi who work in the Hollywood area. Why are the ce lebritie s mentioned?

b Listen again and tick (v" )the things that Jennifer says.

1 Many celebrities work with the paparazzi

2 There are far more male paparazzi than female.

3 Most celebrities have a favo u rite paparazzo or paparazza .

4 It 's easy for celebrities to avoid the paparazzi if the y want to.

5 If celebri ti es are not photographed, the public become less interested in them

6 There is no need to have stricter l aws to protect people from paparazzi .

7 Nowadays man y paparazzi use their phones to take photos

8 There are some plac es where paparazz i won't go to try and get photogr a phs.

9 Being followed b y paparazz i is not stressful for most celebrities.

c Who do the paparazzi follow a lot in your country?

Why? Are there any celebrities who rarely appear in the press?

GRAMMAR

Complete the second sentence so that it means the same as the first.

1 I'm almost sure you left your phone in the restaurant. You left your phone in the restaurant.

2 Why didn ' t you tell me it was your birthday?

You me it was your birthday!

3 I'm sure the backpackers haven't got lost. The backpackers lost

4 What would yo u prefer to do tonight, go out or stay in? What would you tonight, go out or stay in?

5 I think somebody has tried to break in.

It looks somebody has tried to break in.

6 This meat has a very similar taste to beef. This meat beef.

7 My brother is a waiter in a restaurant. My brother works _ in a restaurant.

8 The accident happened when they were repairing the road. The accident happened when the road ______

9 They'll probably never find the murderer. The murderer will probably _________

10 People think the burglar is a teenager. The burglar is thought a teenager

11 People say that crime doesn' t pay

It that crime doesn't pay.

12 We need to install a burglar alarm in our house

We need to have a in our house.

13 'I think you shou ld talk to a lawyer,' I said to Sarah.

I advised Sarah to a lawyer.

14 'I didn't kill my husband,' Margaret said Margaret denied _________

15 'I'm sorry I'm late,' James said James late

VOCABULARY

a @ the correct verb.

1 Please remind / rem emb er the children to do their homework.

2 A I'm terribly sorry.

B Don 't worry It doesn' t mind/ matter.

3 The robbers stole/ robb ed €5 0 ,000 from the bank.

4 Ifyou know the answer, raise / ris e your hand , don' t shout.

5 Don't discuss I araue about it! You know that I'm right.

6 My brother refuses / denies to admit that he has a problem.

b @the word that is different.

1 palm calf wrist thumb

2 kidney lung hip liver

3 wink wave hold touch

4 robber vandal burglar pickpocket

5 fraud smuggler theft terrorism

6 evidence judge jury witness

c Write the verbs for the definitions.

to bite food into small pieces in your mouth to rub your skin with your nails to look at sth or sb for a long time to make a serious, angry, or worried expression to find a way of entering sb's computer to demand money from sb by threatening to tell a secret about them to give sb money so that they help you especially if it's dishonest to leave your job (esp. in newspaper headlines)

d Complete the missing words .

1 The Sunday Times TV er wrote a very negative review of the programme.

2 This paper always supports the government. It's very b __

3 The journalist 's report was c by the newspaper. They cut some of the things he had wanted to say because of government rules.

4 My favourite n is the woman on the six o'clock news on BBCl.

5 The article in the newspaper wasn't very ace - a lot of the facts were completel y wrong.

PRONUNCIATION

a @ the word with a different sound.

1 elb ow fr ow n sh o ulders h old

2 l ay n ai ls r a ise bi ased

3 fr a ud m urd er b urglar jo ur nalist

4 au nt h ear t ch arge st are

5 /ju:/ arg ue r efu se n ews JUry

b Underline the main stressed syllable.

1 re ja jli ze 2 kid jney 3 kid jnap

4 co lmmen jta ltor 5 ob ljec ltive

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS TEXT?

a Read the article once. What was ironic about Jill Dando's murder?

b Read the article again. Mark the sentences T (true) or F (false).

1 Ex-criminals reconstruct their crimes on Crimewatch

2 The objective of the programme is to solve crime

3 More than 50 % of the crimes featured on Crimewatch are solved as a result of the show.

4 A neighbour discovered Jill Dando's body about 15 minutes after she died.

5 The press thought that her murder was possibly connected to her job.

6 The programme itself was used to try to catch Dando's murderer.

7 The police arrested Barry George immediately after the reconstruction.

8 Barry George was known to stalk women.

9 George had said that he was innocent

10 All the jury believed he was responsible for the murder.

c Choose five new words or phrases from the text. Check their meaning and pronunciation and tr y to learn them

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS FILM?

Who murdered Jill Dando?

The killing of a popular BBC journalist and TV presenter has baffled police and crime experts for many years.

One of the strangest unsolved crimes in the UK i n recent years was the murder of Jill Dando , a well -known and much-loved presenter on the BBC programme Crimewatch

On Crimewatch, major cr imes are reconstructed by actors in the hope that members of the public will come forward with new informat ion to help the police catch the criminals invo lved According to the producers of the s how, about a third of its cases are solved , ha lf of wh ich as a direct result of viewers ' calls These have included some of Br itai n' s most notorious crimes, such as kidnappings and murders.

VIDEO

48l)) Watch or listen to a short film on the Speed of News and answer the questions.

But on the morning of 26th April 1999 Jill Dando herself became a vict i m of a vi o lent crime. As she was about to open the front door of he r house i n West London she was shot once in the head. He r body was discovered about a qua rter of an hour later by her next-door ne ighbour.

1 How can ordinary people become journalists nowadays?

2 How many newspapers are there in the Newseum?

3 Which famous person appeared in the Boston Newsletter in 1718?

4 In the early days of journalism how did journalists get their stories to the nearest printing press?

5 Why was the news out of date by the time it reached the public?

6 Which invention changed the history of journalism?

7 What were two reasons why the news reporting on the American Civil war wasn't very accurate?

8 Which inventions created the age of mass media?

9 How do visitors to the HP New Med ia Galler y see the day 's latest news stories?

10 Why did the news of the plane landing on the Hudson River reach the world so quickly?

At first there was great media speculation that the murderer might have been a criminal who had previously been convicted and impr isoned because of Ji ll Dando ' s investigative work on Crimewatch , but the police later discounted this theory. In fact , Crimewatch reconstructed the presenter ' s murder in an attempt to aid the police in the search for her k i ll er, but a year later, despi t e an intensive police investigat io n no arrest had been made The pol ice began to focus t heir attention on 38 -year-old Barry George , who lived about half a mile from Dando ' s house. He had a history of stalking women and other anti -socia l and attent ion-seeking behaviou r. Geo rge was put under police surveillance, and on 25 May 2000 he was arrested a nd charged with Dando ' s murder He was tried at the Old Bailey court in London and he pleaded no t gui lty to murder. The jury reached a majority verdict - George was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment , despite the fact that the only forensic evidence linking him to t he crime was a tiny microscopic pa rticle in his pocket , which experts be li eved could be gunpowder Geo rge appealed unsuccessfully against the sentence on two occas ions , but after a third appeal he was acquitted and released from prison, after se rving eight years of his life sente nce Ji ll Dando 's murder rema ins unsolved.

READING & VOCABULARY

a Look a t th e a dv ert a nd a n s w e r the ques tio n s w i t h a p ar tn e r.

1 What is it b ein g a d ve rti se d ?

2 Wh a t d ecad e d o yo u think it 's fro m?

3 Why d o you think th ey u se d a d oc t o r in th e a d ver t?

b R ea d the fi rs t para gra ph o f th e ar ticle and che ck yo ur a n swers to a .

c R ea d the w hole a rticle a nd an swer the qu es tions. Write 1-4 n ex t to se nt enc es A - F.

Which company (or companies) ... ?

A DD de c e ive d the public b y pr e tending th a t the ir pr odu c t h a d p rop er t ies whi ch i t didn' t r ea lly h ave

B DD us e d a c eleb r it y or a pro fess io n a l p er son i n o rd er fo r th e m t o asso ci a t e th eir product w ith a h ealthy lifes t yle

C D u se d t e chnolo gy t o creat e a fa lse impr essio n

D D a dmitted that they h a d mad e a claim that w as n ' t tru e

E D a dmitt e d th a t they h a d d o n e so m e th ing wro n g

F D wa s puni sh e d for the i r mi sle a ding a d ve rt

Advertising is the art of convincing peop le to spend money they don't have on something they don't need

FOUR OF THE MOST MISLEADING

ADVERTS OF ALL TIME

1 Cigarettes are not harmful to your health

Hard to believe, but there was a time when tobacco companies actually tried to make us believe that doctors approved of smoking, or that certain brands were better for your throat than others This advert for Lucky Strike from the 1920s is just one of dozens of ads featuring doctors recommending or 'preferring' one brand over another. Tobacco companies continued to use doctors to convince the public to smoke until the 1950s when evidence showing the link between smoking and lung cancer became too strong to ignore.

2 The thinner the better

In 2009 fashion retailer Ralph Lauren made a series of advertisements using a model who was so heavily airbrushed that her waist appeared to be smaller than her head. The ads were widely cr iticized in the press and experts warned of the negative effect these kinds of images might have on young girls. Lauren threatened to sue a blogger, who was the first person to publish and comment on the image online. But later he made a statement apologizing and admitting that 'we are responsible for the poor imaging and retouching that resulted in a very distorted image of a woman's body.' However, he later fired the model in the advert, Fillipa Hamilton, because she was 'overweight' (she weighed 54 kilos).

3 Vitamins prevent cancer

In 2010 the pharmaceutical company Bayer was sued by the Center for Science in the Public Interest for running TV and radio commercials that suggested one of the ingredients in its One A Day vitamin supplement brand prevented prostate cancer. In fact, there is no scientific evidence that vitamins fight cancer in any way. Bayer eventually paid a fine and signed a legal agreement which banned it from claiming that vitamins can cure cancer.

4 You can lose weight without dieting or doing exercise

During the 1990s Enforma, a US fitness company, ran an advertising campaign using TV commercials in which baseball player Steve Garvey promoted two diet supplements, a 'Fat Trapper' that supposedly blocked the absorption of fat, and a product named 'Exercise In A Bottle'. These two products together, according to the ad, would allow you to lose weight without dieting or exercise and promised consumers that 'they would never have to diet again'. The Federal Trade Commission* (the FTC) took Garvey to court for making false claims about the product. So began an epic legal battle which the FTC ultimately lost when a federal court ruled that Qj celebrity endorsers were not responsible for misleading statements 'Vi

in ads. However, this ruling eventually led to the passing of new regulations making it illegal for celebrities to make false statements

of fact in advertisements.

* The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency in the US which helps to protect consumers

d Look at the h1g lighted words and phrases. With a partner, try to work out what they mean. Then match them with their meanings 1-11.

1 advertisements notices , pictures , or films tellin g people about a product

2 noun advertisements on the radio or TV

3 noun two abbreviations for advertisements

4 verb saying that sth is true

5 famous people who promote a product

6 verb digitally changed details in a photograph

7 noun t y p es of product made by a particular company

8 verb took a person or company to court to ask for money because of something they sai d or did to h a rm yo u

9 adj giving the wrong idea or impression, making yo u believe sth that is not true

10 noun people who buy goods or u se services

11 a series of advertising messages with the sa me theme

e Do adverts or commercials in yo ur country use any of the tricks mentioned in the text? Which ones?

2 LISTENING & SPEAKING

a Look at the advertisement for mascara The ad campaign for this product was withdrawn because it was misleading. Why do you think it was misleading?

b 5 2 >)) Now listen to a radio programme about five tricks

used by advertisers. Tick (./) the things that the woman mentions that are often used in adverts:

D free gifts

D limited supplies of the product

D two for one offers

D animals and nature

D crowds of people

D a good sl ogan

D attractive models

D doctors and celebrities

D smiling, happy families

D good music or a good song

D recent studies

D humour

c Listen again. Why are the things you have ticked often a trick? Make notes .

d Talk in sma ll groups.

1 Which of the marketing techniques in b might influence yo u to buy (or not buy) the product?

2 Have you bought something recently which wasn't as good as the advertisement made yo u think? How was the advert misleading ?

3 What are viral adverts? Have you ever forwarded one to other people? Do yo u have a favourite one?

4 Can you think of a recent advert which made you not want to ever buy the product? Why did the advert have this effect on yo u?

5 Are there any brands which you think have a re a lly good logo or slogan? Does it make you want to buy the products?

3 GRAMMAR clauses of contrast and purpose

a Look at some extracts from the listening in 2, and complete them with the phrases A-G.

1 [ n spite of , its price was really included in the magazine subscription.

2 E ven t ough , and maybe don' t even like them , we immediately want to be among the lucky few who have them.

3 So as to , the y use expressions like, ' It 's a must-have' ...

4 . and they combine this with a photograph of a large group of people, so

5 The photo has been airbrushed in or er to , with perfect skin, and even more attractive than they are in real life.

6 lthoug , do you really think she colours her hair with it at home?

7 It was probably produced for ____ and paid for b y them , too .

A the company itself

B the actress is holding the product in the photo

C we can't fail to get the message

D make us believe it

E we don ' t really need the products

F what the advert said

G make the models lo ok even slimmer

b 5 3 >)) Listen and check. Then look at the seven phrases again, and the hig lig tea word(s) immediately before them Which ones express a contrast? Which ones express a purpose?

c p.148 Grammar Bank 9A. Find out more about clauses of contrast and purpose, and practise them.

d Sentence race: Try to complete as many sentences as yo u can in two minu es.

1 I think the advertising of expen 1ve toys should be banned, so that

2 In spite of a huge marketing campaign,

3 Although they have banned most cigarette advertising,

4 She app li ed for a job with a company in London so as to .. .

5 He's decided to carry on wor- ing despite ...

6 Even though the advertsaiOI would notic;;e

the effect after a week1. · £1 ...

7 I took my new laptop ,hac to the shop f .. .

8 We went to our head offlae in New Yor for c:::c:.

READING & LISTENING

a L ook at th e title of th e article a nd t he p h otos .

W h a t d o yo u thi nk t h e ' b agel test' is?

b R ea d the ar ticle and check. T h en in p a i rs say w h a t you can remember about

1 Pa ul Fe ldma n 's original jo b

2 the inc id e nt th at m ade h im d ecide to change hi s job

3 h ow t h e ' b age l h abit ' started, and what it co n s isted of

4 wh y h e started asking for money, an d t h e p roportio n of p eo pl e w h o paid

5 his fr iend s' a nd fa m ily's reac t ion to hi s c h a n ge of job .

6 h ow h is bu s iness p rog r esse d

7 th e eco n o m ic exper iment he h a d (u ninte nt ionally) designed

c Yo u a r e go ing to h ear an A m erican econo mi st t a lking

a b o ut Pau l Feldm an's experiment B efore yo u liste n , i n p a irs, p re dict th e an swer s t o th e qu est io n s :

1 W h a t was th e average p ayment r a t e?

a 70 %-8 0 % b 80 %- 90 % c 90 %- 100 %

2 Were sm all e r offices more or less h o n es t than big o n es?

3 How often has th e cash b ox b ee n s t olen?

4 D id peop le ' chea t ' mo r e du ring goo d or b ad weather?

5 D id p eopl e 'ch ea t ' more or less a t C hri st m as? Why?

6 W h o c hea t e d m o r e , exec u t ives or lower statu s emp loyees?

d 5 6 l)) L is t en a nd ch eck yo ur answers t o c.

e Li s t e n aga i n a nd ch oose a , b , or c .

1 More p eop le p a id in Feldm a n 's own office .

a aft er h e h ad cau gh t someb o dy s t ealing

b b ecau se h e aske d the m persona lly for t h e mo n ey

c b ecau se th e workers we r e h is co lleag u es

2 Fe ldm a n eve ntu a lly s to p p ed selling bagels to

a a comp a n y w h ere less than 80 % paid fo r their b agels

b a compa n y w h e r e th e m o n ey b ox got stole n

c a comp a n y w h ere less t h an 9 0 % pa id fo r thei r b agel s

3 Peopl e ar e more h o n es t in sma ller c omp a n ies b eca u se . . .

a they are m or e lik el y to get cau ght

b they wo uld b e more em b a rr asse d a b out being cau ght

c the r e is m ore control over wha t goes on

4 Peopl e 'ch ea t ' more

a after a d ay off

b b efore a ll pub lic h o li d ays

c b efore so m e public h o lid ays

5 W h ich of th ese peo ple is mos t l ik ely t o p ay?

a an adminis t rat ive wo rker w h o d oes n ' t li ke h is boss

b a n exec uti ve w h o is very p o pul ar with hi s s t aff

c a n employee w h o lik es th e co m pany wh ere h e works

f If Fe ldm an l eft a b as k e t of b agel s

in yo ur sch oo l or wor k p lace, w h a t propor t ion d o yo u th i nk wo uld p ay ?

What The Bagel Man Saw Would you pass the bagel test?

0nee upon a t ime , Paul Feldm an dreamed big dreams. While stu dying agricultural economics at Cornell, he wanted to end world hunger. Instead , he ended up taking a job with a research institut e in Washington , analysing the weapons expen ditures of the Unit ed States Navy. He was well paid and unfulfilled 'I'd go to the office Christmas party, and people would introduce me to their wives o r h usban ds as the guy who brings in the bagels,' h e says . " Oh! You're the guy who brings in the bagels!' Nobody ever sai d, ' This is the guy in charge of the p u blic r esearch group."

The bagels had begun as a casu al gesture: a boss treating his empl oyees whenever they won a new research contract . Then he made it a habit. Every Friday, h e would bring half a dozen bagel s , a serrated knife , some cream cheese. When employees from neighbouring floors heard about the bagels , they wanted some, too. Eventually he was bringing in 15 dozen b a gels a week. He set out a cash basket to recoup his costs His collection rate was about 95 per cent; he attributed the underpayment to oversight

In 1984 , when his research institut e fell under new management, Feldman said to management: ' I'm getting out of this. rm going to sell bagel s.'

His economist friends thought he had lost his mind. But his wife supported his deci sion. Driving around the office parks that encircle Washington, he solicited customers wit h a simple pitch: early in the morning, he w ould deliver some bagels and a cash basket to a company's snack r oom; he would return before lunch to pick up the money and the leftovers Within a few years , he was delivering 700 dozen bagels a week to 140 companies and earning as much as he had ever made as a resear ch analyst.

He had a lso - quit e without meaning to - designed a beautiful economic experiment By measuring the z money collected against the bagels t aken , he could tell, down to the penny, just how hones t his customers were. Did they steal from him?

If so, what were the characteristics of a company that stole versus a company that d i d not?

Under what circumstances did people tend to steal more , or less?

whatever, whenever, etc

a boss treating his employees whenever they won a new research contract.

We use whenever to mean at any time or it doesn't matter when, e.g. Come and see me whenever you like.

We can also use:

whatever(= anything), whichever (=anything, from a limited number), whoever(= any person), however(= in any way), wherever(= any p lace). They also mean it doesn't matter what I which I who I how I where, etc.

Complete the sentences with whatever, whichever, whoever, whenever, however, or wherever.

I Please sit you like.

2 There is a prize for can answer the question.

3 she opens her mouth she says something stupid.

4 I'm going to buy it expensive it is!

5 I give her, it's always the wrong thing.

6 I'll go by bus or train, is cheaper.

6 VOCABULARY business

a Look at some words from the Honest workers or thieves? article. With a partner, say what they mean .

• the head (of a company)

• a colleague

• employees

• a department (of a company)

• set up (a bus in ess)

• customers

b > p.162 Vocabulary Bank Bu siness.

c Answer the questions with a partner. What's the difference between ?

1 a customer and a client

2 a boom and a recession

3 increase and improve

4 rise and fall

5 export a product and import a product

6 a manager and an owner

7 PRONUNCIATION & SPEAKING changing stress on nouns and verbs

pChanging stress on two-syllable nouns and verbs

Some words change their stress depending on whether they are verbs or nouns. The nouns are usually stressed on the first syllable, e g. an export, a record and the verbs on the second syllab le, e g. to export, to record Words like this include: increase, decrease, import, progress, permit, produce, refund, transport.

a Read the information in the box and practise saying each word both ways, as a verb and as a noun.

b Underline the stressed syllable on the bold word.

1 We're making good pro !gress with the report.

2 The new building is pro !gre 1ssing well.

3 We ex !port to customers all over the world .

4 One of our main ex !ports is wine

5 A Can yo u re jfund me the cost of my ticket?

B Sorry, we don't give re !funds.

6 Sales have in !creased by 10 3 this month, so there has been an in lcrease in profits

7 The demand for organic pro Iduce has grown enormous ly.

8 Most toys nowadays are pro !duced in China.

9 They're planning to trans !port the goods by sea .

10 There has been a rise in the number of people using public trans !port .

c 5 10 >)) Listen and check. Practise saying the sentences.

d Talk to a partner . In your country

1 What agricultural products are produced or grown? What products are manufactured?

2 What are the main expo rt s to other countries? What kind of products are usually imported to yo ur country?

3 Is yo ur country in a boom period, in a recession, or somewhere in between? How easy is it to find a job at the moment? Has the number of une mplo ye d increased or d ecreased recently? 8 s 11>))

SONG The

G uncountable and plural nouns

V word building: prefixes and suffixes

P word stress with prefixes and suffixes

1 READING & SPEAKING

a What do you think a ' megacity' is? Read the introduction to the text to check yo ur answer. With a partner , in two minutes list what yo u think are probably the biggest problems for people who live in a megacity.

b Read the article once . In which cit y are the things yo u discuss e d in a a problem: Tokyo, Mexico City, both , or neither?

c Read the article again. Then , in pairs, using yo ur own words, say why the following are mentione d

TOKYO

33 million eight million a letter from the train company driving schools 25 square metres the Hikikomori Rent a friend the Ha shiriya

MEXICO CITY

taco stands Mariachi bands two-and-a-ha lf hours social imbalance kidnapping Kev l ar

d Find words in the article which mean TOKYO

1 adj operated by m ac hin es not p eople (paragraph 1)

2 adj impossible to imagine (paragraph 1)

3 noun the numb er of p eop le w h o don ' t have a job (paragraph 1)

4 adj w ith too many people in it (paragraph 2)

5 noun a feelin g that you don 't be long to a community (paragraph 3)

6 noun th e feeling of not having any frien d s (paragraph 3)

MEXICO CITY

7 noun the process of makin g air (and water) dirty (paragraph 2)

8 noun the state of b eing very rich

9 noun th e stat e of being poor

10 adj ective n o t h av in g a h ou se

e Talk to a partner.

1 If yo u had t o go to work or study in eit h e r M ex ico City or Tokyo, w hich wo uld yo u ch oose , and w h y?

2 What d o you think a r e the main a dvant ages ofliving in a bi g ci ty?

3 What's the bi ggest city yo u 've ever be en to? Why did yo u go th ere? What did you think of it?

Great cities , like cats, reveal themselves at night.

Andrew Marr's Megacities

BBC I Wednesday 8.00 p.m.

By 2050, 70% of the world will live in cities, and by the end of the century three-quarters of the entire planet will be urban There are now 21 cities called 'megacities', i.e. they have more than I0 million inhabitants. In Andrew Marr's BBC series Megacities he travelled to five of these cities, including Tokyo and Mexico City.

Tokyo, with a population of 33 million people, is by far the largest city in world It's also the most technologically advanced, and the city runs like digital clockwork. The automated subway * , for example, is so efficient that it is able to transport almost eight million commuters every day and on the rare occasions that it goes wrong, nobody believes it. If you are late for work in Tokyo and, as an excuse, you say that your train was late, you need to provide written proof from the train company. The idea of late trains is almost unthinkable. There is very little crime , violence , or vandalism in Tokyo and the streets are safe to walk by day or night. There is also relatively low unemployment compared to other big cities in the world

But such a huge population creates serious problems of space , and as Marr flew over Tokyo in a helicopter he saw football pitches, pl aygrounds, even driving schools constructed on top of buildings

Streets , par ks , and subways are extremely overcrowded Property prices are so high and space is so short that a family of six people may live in a tiny flat of on ly 25 square metres

There are other problems too, of alienation and loneliness . The Hikikomori are inhabitants of Tokyo who cannot cope with 'the mechanical coldness and robotic uniformity ' of a megacity a nd have become recluses , rarely or never leaving their homes. There is also a new business that has grown up in Tokyo which allows friendless people to 'rent a friend' to accompany them to a wedding or just to sit and chat to th em in a bar afte r wo rk.

Another strange group of people a re the Hoshiriyo , Tokyo's street racers who risk their lives driving at ridiculous speeds along the city streets During the week these men have ordinary jobs a nd they' re mod e l citizens. But on Saturday nights they spend the evening driving though the city as fast as they possibly can. It 's a deadly game, but it's just one w ay of escaping the d ai ly pressures of life in the metropolis

As a complete contrast to Tokyo , Marr takes us to Mex ico City, a colourful and vibrant city of about 20 million people where people live their lives in the street. Marr says that 'in Mexico City, food and friendship go hand in hand' The city is full of taco stands and cafes where people meet and socialize and Mariachi bands stroll through the boulevards and squares playing songs for money. And on Sundays people of all ages gather to dance in the street.

But it's a city with problems of its own, too. It can take twoand-a-half hours for commuters to drive to and from work in the rush hour through choking traffic fumes, and pollution levels are high. And , looking down from a helicopter, Marr shows us the huge social divide. On one hillside we see massive, luxurious houses and on the next hill, slums. It's a city of great wealth but also extreme poverty, and there are many homeless people Because of this social imbalance it can be a dangerous city too, with high levels of crime, especially kidnapping In fact, there are boutiques which sell a rather special line in men 's clothes: the shirts, sweaters, and jackets look completely normal but are in fact bulletproof, made of reinforced Kevlar.

But despite the crime, the traffic, and the pollution Andrew Marr describes Mexico City as 'a friendly, liveable place' and the most enjoyable megacity of all that he visited.

2 VOCABULARY word building: prefixes and suffixes

j)

Prefixes and suffixes

A prefix is something that you add to the beginning of a word, usually to change its meaning, e.g. pre= before (pre-war) , or a negative prefi x like un- or dis- (unhealthy, dishonest) A suffix is something you add to the end of a word, usually to change its grammatical form, e.g. -ment and -ness are typ ical noun suffixes (enjoyment, happiness). However, some suffixes also add meaning to a word , e.g. -ful =full of (stressful , beautiful).

a Read the information about prefixes and s u ffixes. What prefix can you add to city meaning biB? What s uffi x can you add to home meaning without? Can you think of any other examp les of words wit h this s uffi x?

b > p.163 Vocabulary Bank Word building.

3 PRONUNCIATION & SPEAKING word stress with prefixes and suffixes

j) Word stress on words with prefixes and suffixes We don't put main stress on prefi xes and suffixes that are added to nouns and adjectives However, there is usually secondary st ress on prefixes, e.g. un in unemployment.

a Underline the stressed syll able in these multi-syllable nouns and adjectives. The secondary stress has already been underlined.

ac lcom lmo l da ltion an lti lso lcial bi l ling l ual en jter ltain l ment go lvern lment home lle ss lone lli lnes s mullti lculltu l ral neigh l bour l hood

o lver lcrow lded po lver lty un lder lde Jve l loped un lem lploy lment van ldal lism

b 5 16 >)) Listen and check. Practise saying the words.

c Answer the ques tion s below with a partner. Which city (or region) in your country do you think ?

• is the most multicultural

• offers the be s t e nte rtainment (for touri s ts/ for loca ls)

• ha s a bilingual or trilingual popu lation

• is very overcrowded

• ha s ve r y serious pollution probl e m s

• ha s a lot of hom eles s peop le

• ha s som e very dangerou s neighbourhoods

• ha s the hi ghest r ate of une mplo y ment

• h as the worst leve ls of po verty

• s uffers from the wors t vanda li sm and antisocia l

b eh avio ur

a When you travel to another country or city, do you normally try to find out about it before you go? Where from? What kind of information do you look for?

b You are going to listen to an interview with Miles Roddis, a travel writer for the Lonely Planet guidebook series, talking about his five favourite cities. Look at the photos, and try to guess which continent or country they were taken in .

c 5 17 >)) Listen once and find out where they are What personal connection does Miles have to each place?

d Listen again and make notes. What does Miles say is special about each place?

e 18 >)) Now listen to some extracts from the interview. Try to write in the missing words What do you think they mean?

1 there's wonderfu l surfing on Bondi beach and plenty of great little for sunbathing and swimming.

2 the choice of places to eat is _

3 But what gives the city a special during the festival is ' the Fringe'.

4 And the Museum oflslamic Art has a whole lot of pieces from Muslim times.

5 Tuscany's two major tourist towns, Florence and Pisa, are absolutely with tourists all year round . ..

6 These walls are amazing - they're completely intact, and you can __ into people's living rooms as you walk past.

7 The Laotians are a lovely, , laid-back people

8 I remember looking down on it from one of the restaurants along its banks , and feeling that it was all my troubles.

f Talk in small groups.

1 Which of the five places Mile s mentions would you most like to go to? Why?

2 What other cities would you rea lly like to go to? Wh y?

3 What are your two favourite cities (not including your own)?

4 Of the cities you've been to, which one(s) have you liked least? Why ?

5 GRAMMAR uncountable and plural nouns

a @ the correct form. Tick (v") if you think both are possible.

I A good guidebook will give yo u advice/ advices about what to see.

2 You may have some bad weather/ a bad weather if you go to London in March.

3 When I was in Rome and Paris, the accommodation was / the accommodations were extremely expensive.

4 It's best not to t ake too much luBBaBe / too many luBBaBes if you go on a city break .

5 The old town centre is amazing, but the outskirts is / the outskirts are a bit depressing

6 I really liked the hotel. The rooms were beautiful, and the staffwas/ th e staff were incredibly friendl y

b > p.149 Grammar bank 98. Learn more about uncountable nouns and plural and collective nouns, and practise them.

c Play Just a minute in small groups.

Just a minute

RULE S

One person starts. He I she has to try to talk for a minute about the first subject below.

If he or she hesitates for more than five seconds, he I she loses his I her turn and the next student continues.

The person who is talking when one minute is up gets a point.

modern

furniture good advice you've been given what's in the news at the moment tourist accommodation in your country the weather you like most the most beautiful scenery you've seen the traffic in your town I city the police in your country clothes you love wearing

1 •• THE INTERVIEW Part 1

VIDEO

a Read the biographical information about George Tannenbaum Have yo u seen any adverts for the c o mpanie s h e ha s wor k e d w ith?

George Tannenbaum was born in 1957 in Yonkers, New York and was educated at Columbia University in New York . He has worked on advertising campaigns for many well - known companies such as IBM , Mercedes-Benz, Gillette, Citibank, and FedE x Today he is the Executive Creative Director at RIGA, an international advertising agency.

b 5 21 >)) Watch or listen to Part 1 of an interview w ith him and answer the que s tions .

I Which other member s of hi s family ha ve wo rked in adve rti s ing?

2 When did George start working in advertising?

3 What was n ' t h e allowed to do w hen th e famil y were wa tchin g TV?

4 Why doe s he think jin gle s are so memor abl e?

5 What kind of a d ve rt s were th e H O. Farina TV commercial?

6 What happen s in th e s tor y of Wilhelmina a nd W illi e?

Talking about...

••Part 2 VIDEO

Tommy Lee Jones in a BOSS advertisi ng campaign

Glossary jingle a s h o rt so ng or tune that is easy to remember and is u sed in a d ve rti s ing o n ra di o o r television.

H.O. Farina a co mp a n y w hi c h h as been making cerea l s s in ce the 1940s. T h ey ran a n adve rtisi n g ca mpai g n in the 50s ba se d o n a ca rt oon c h aracte r ca ll ed Wilhelmina

5 22 >)) Watch o r listen to Part 2 Complete the notes wi th one or t wo wo rd s.

1 George says that a commercial is m ade up of t hree elements I 2 3

2 The acronym A IDA s tand s for A ______ I D ____ A ______

3 Accord in g to George, u s in g a celebrity in a d vertisi ng is a way of ______ but he isn' t a of it.

4 George thinks th at humour in adver tis ing is ____

Glossary a depilatory I'd d 1'p1btri/ a product u se d for removing unwanted h a ir

Tommy Lee Jones a US ac t o r born in 1946 , win ner of an Oscar in th e 1993 fi lm The Fugitive.

Mad Men a well-known US TV series a bout a d vert ising exec utives in the 1 960s w h o worked in offices in Madison Avenue in New York

advertising

••Part 3

VIDEO

5 23 >) Watch or list en to Part 3 and circle the correct phrase.

1 He thinks that billb oard and TV advertising will remain important/ slowly decline

2 He tends to notice both Bood and bad adverts / only wellmade adverts

3 He thinks Nike adverts are very successful because of thei1' loBo and sloBan / because they make people feel aood about themselves

4 He thinks Apple's approach to adver tising was very innovative /repetitive.

5 Their advertising message was hon est and clear/ modern and informative.

billboard /'b 1Ib;,:d / a large board o n th e o ut s ide of a buildin g or at the side of the road , u sed for putting advertisements on

2 LOOKING AT LANGUAGE

p Metaphors and idiomatic expressions. George Tannenbaum uses a lot of metaphors and idiomatic expressions to make his language more colourful, e.g took the baton =carry on in the f amity tradition, (from relay races in athletics)

a 5 24 >)) Listen to some extracts from the interview and complete the missing words.

1 'Yo u know they, what do they ca ll them , _ _ worms?'

2 'They get into your and you can't get them out sometimes . . .'

3 'And I bet you I'm getting this for word if you could find it.'

4 ' .. .we do live in a celebrity culture and people , yo u know, their ears up when they see a celebrity.'

5 ' Um, have billboards and TV commercials had their ?'

6 ' because yo u 've got a captive ____

7 'they became kind of the gold standard and they rarely hit a note.'

3 •• IN THE STREET

a 25 >)) Watch or listen to five people talking about advertising. How man y of them say they are influenced by advertising campaigns?

b Look at the expressions with a partne r. What do yo u think they mean?

Jeanine, South African

Dustin , American Elvira, American Ivan, American Yasuko, American

b Watch or listen again. Who (J , D , El, I , or Y) .. . ?

D is against adverts which can make smoking seem attractive to yo ung people

D prefers to do their own research before they buy a product

D D say that they are concerned about yo ung people 's health

D is not sure we should ban the advertising of unhealthy product s

D thinks that women are sometimes exploited in advertising

c 5 26 >)) Watch or listen and complete the higfi igbte Colloquial English phrases What do yo u think they mean?

1 ' when they see it they ' re very to the a dverts and then the y want it immediately and it's a problem.'

2 ' I am sure I am, probably not consciously, but I'm sure

3 ' The only thing that to that sho uld be banned from advertisement is '

4 ' That's the only thing that I can think of.'

5 ' .. . so I think that anything that causes health ____ or bad influences or addiction should be banned from being o n commercials.'

4 SPEAKING

Answer the questions with a p ar tner.

1 Do yo u think yo u're influenced by a dvertising campaigns?

2 Is there any product that yo u think shouldn't be advertised?

3 Are there any brands that yo u think make very good or very b a d adverts?

4 Are there any jingles or slogans that you remember from yo ur childhood? Why do yo u think they were so memorable? Are there any others that have got into yo ur head since then?

5 Are there man y billboards in yo ur country? Do you think the y make the stree ts uglier or more attractive?

6 How important do you think humour and celebrities are in advertising?

We live in a soc iety exquisitely depe ndent on science and technology, in which hardly anyone knows anything about sc ience and technology

1 SPEAKING & LISTENING

a Wit h a partner , discuss the statements below. Do yo u think they are F (facts) or M (myths)? Say w h y.

b 5 27 >)) Listen to a scientist on a radio programme discussing each statement Were yo u right?

c With a partner , see if yo u can remember any of the explanations th e scientist gave. Then listen again and make notes for each statemen t

d Do you know a n y other things that some peop le think are scie ntific facts, but are really m yths?

A coin dropped from a very high building can kill someone on the ground.

2 We only use ten per cent of our brains .

3 There is no part of the moon which is permanently dark.

4 Rubber tyres protect a car from lightning

5 Albert Einstein was very bad at maths at school.

6 Antibiotics don' t kill v iruses .

7 A full moon makes people and animals go mad.

8 Ba ts are bl ind

2 VOCABULARY & PRONUNCIATION

stress in word families, science

a Look at these extracts from the listening in 1b and write the hig ighted words in the table below. This is one of the most popular scientific m yt h s . .. . . .until very recently scientists thought that this really was th e case . He got very high marks in maths and science.

person adjective subject scientist chemist biologist physicist geneticist

b Now complete the chart for th e other four words.

p Stress in word fam i lies

In some word groups the stressed syllable changes in the different parts of speech, e g. ggggrapher, geographic, ggggraphy

c 28 l)) Listen a nd ch eck. Then listen again and underline the stressed syllables in the words In which groups does th e stress change?

d Practise saying the word groups.

e Complete the sentences with a word from the li st. discovery drugs gu in ea pigs laboratory research side effects tests theory

1 Scientists carry out experiments in a ___

2 Archimedes made an import a nt in his b at h.

3 Isaac Newton's experiments proved his that gravity existed .

4 Before a pharmaceutical company can sell n ew t hey have to test the y to make sure they are safe .

5 Scientists have to do a lot of ___ into the possible ___ of new drugs.

6 People can volunteer to be in clinical trials

f 29l)) Listen and check, and mark the s tress on a ll the multisyllable words in bold. Practise saying the sen tences

3 SPEAKING

Work with a partner. A interview B wit h the ques t io n s in the red circles. Then B i nter v iew A with the blu e circles.

Which scientific subjects do I di d you study at schoo l? What !d I did you enjoy the t I the least?

Is t here a scient ist (l iving or dead) who you admire? Who?

If you were ill, would you agree to be a gu i nea pig fore new kind of treatment?

Do you thi nk it is accepta ble for imals t o be use d in er iments? Does it a difference if the · ents are for

READING

a You ar e goi n g t o re ad a b o ut fo u r s ci entists w h o s u ffere d t o m ake thei r dis c overies.

R ea d th e ar ticle once. How many of the s cien ti sts were kille d b y their ex p e r i m e nts or inve nt io n s?

b Re a d the extr ac t s a gain a nd a n swer ques tio n s

1-8 fr o m m e m o r y. Wri t e A - Din the r i gh t b ox

Which scienti s t or s cienti s t s . ?

I D go t ill after try in g to show t h a t his discovery was h arm less

2 DD m ad e a fata l mi s t a k e du ring an experiment

3 D die d of diseases h e cau ght as a res u lt of his ex p eriment

4 D c a used t h e d eath of other sc ientists

S DD u sed to br eath e i n t oxic s ubsta n ces

6 D w a s d oin g his exper im ent s t o r everse/ stop t he ageing process

7 D is remembe r e d t o d ay for the negative effects of h is discovery

8 D was not ve r y su ccessfu l in his first job

Suffering scientists _

Four scientists who were injured or killed by their own experiments .

C

Sir Humphry Davy, the British chemist and inventor, had a very bumpy start to his science career - as a young apprentice he was fired from his job as an apothecary* because he caused too many explosions! When he eventually took up the field of chemistry, he had a habit of inhaling the various gases he was dealing with. Fortunately, this bad habit led to his discovery of the anaesthetic properties of nitrous oxide Unfortunately, the same habit l ed him to nearly kill himself on many occasions and the frequent poisonings left him an invalid for the last two decades of his life. During thi s time he also permanently damaged his eyes in a nitrogen trichloride explos ion.

Alexander Bogdanov was a Russian physician, philosopher. economist, science fiction writer, and revolutionary In 1924, he began experiments with blood transfusion - in a search for eternal youth . After 11 transfusions (which he performed on himself), he declared that he had stopped going bald, and had improved his eyesight. Unfortunately for Bogdanov, the science of transfusion was not very advanced and Bogdanov had not been testing the health of the blood he wa s using, or of the donors In 1928, Bogdanov took a transfusion of blood infec ted with malaria and tuberculosis , and died soon after.

Thomas

Midgley was an American chemist who helped to develop leaded petrol (lead was added to petrol to make car engines less noisy) General Motors commercialized Midgley' s discovery, but t here were several deaths from lead poisoning at the factory where the additive was produced In 1924, Midgley took part in a press conference to demonstra t e the safety of his product and he inhaled its vapou r for a minute. It took him a year to recover from the harmful effects! Weakened by lead poi soning, he contracted polio at the age of 51 , which left him disabled He invent ed a system of rope s and pull eys so t ha t he could pull h i mself out of bed , but his invention c aused hi s dea t h when h e was strangled by the ropes. The n egative imp act o n the environm ent o f lead ed petrol seriously damaged his r epu t at ion and he ha s been d esc ribed as 'th e h uman re sponsible fo r most deaths in history'

A Sir Humphry Davy (1778-1829)

B Alexander Bogdanov (1873-1928)

Thomas Midgley (1889-1944)

c 5 30 ))) Look at the hi g li ghte d words, which are all related to science and medicine. Do you know what they mean? Are the y similar in your language? How do you think they are pronounced? Listen and check.

5 GRAMMAR quantifiers: all, every, both, etc.

a With a partner rig ht word or phrase.

1 Both/ Both of Sir Humphry Davy and Thomas Midgley damaged their health as a result of inhali ng chemicals.

2 Either /Neither Thomas Midgley nor General Motors were prepared to admit ho w dangero u s lead was.

3 Until 19 73, all/ eve1y cars use d leaded petrol.

4 All the /All blood Bogdanov used in hi s exper iment s might have

b een contaminated, because he never tested any of it.

5 Sir Humphry D avy was fascinated by all/ everythinB to do with gases.

D touis Slotin (1910-1946)

Louis Slotin, a Canadian physicist, worked on the Manhattan project (the American project which designed the first nuclear bomb)

In 1946, during an experiment w ith plutonium, he accidentally dropped a container causing a critical reaction Other scientists in the room witnessed a 'blue glow' and felt a ' heat wave'. Slotin had been exposed to a lethal dose of radiation. He rushed outside and was sick and then was taken to hospital. Although volunteers donated blood for transfusions, he died ni ne days later. Three of the other scientists who were present died later of illnesses r elated to radiation.

b > p.150 Grammar Bank lOA . Learn more about quantifiers, and practise them.

c Do the Science qui z with a partner.

1 In Direct current, the electrons

a move in only one direction

b move in both directions

c don't move at all

2 Helium gas can be found

a on ly in liquid form

b in neither liquid nor solid form

c in both liquid and solid form

3 Adult giraffes remain standing

a some of the day

b all day

c most of the day

4 Of all the water on our planet, is found underground.

a hardly any of it

b about half of it

c most of it

5 Snakes eat

a on ly other an im als

b either other animals or eggs

c either other animals or fruit

6 A diamond can be destroy ed

a by either intense heat or acid

b by both in tense heat and acid

c only by intense heat

7 The hum an brain can continue to live without oxygen for

a nearly two minute s

b nearly s ix minutes

c a few hours

8 In our solar syste m,

a neith er Pluto nor Neptune are now cons idered to be planets

b both Plut o and Nept un e are cons id ered to be pl anets

c Pl uto is no longer considered to be a planet

9 When we breathe out ,

a most of that air is oxygen

b none of that air is oxygen

c some of that air is oxygen

10 An ind ividual blood ce ll makes a whole circu it of the body in

a nearly 60 seconds

b nearly 45 seconds

c a few minutes

d 5 34 ))) Listen and check

1 GRAMMAR articles

a Who was the first man to land on the moon? In what year?

b That's one ___ step for ___ one giant leap for ___

1 What do you think the difference is between a step and a leap?

2 What do you think mankind means?

c 5 36 l)) Listen to an interview about the moon landing. What was the controversy about the words Armstrong actually said? What's the difference in meaning between a man and man? Did new technology prove him right or wrong?

d Listen aga in and answer the questions.

1 When did Armstrong write the words he was p l anning to say when he first stepped on the moon?

2 Does Armstrong say he wrote 'That 's one small st ep fo1· man ' or 'On e small step for a man ' ?

3 Why doesn't the sentence everybody heard make s ense?

4 What did Armstrong think h e said?

5 Who is Peter Shann Ford? What did he discover?

6 How did Armstrong feel when he heard about this?

e Read some more facts about Armstrong. Are the higfi ig ted phrases right or wrong grammatically? Correct the mistakes.

1 Neil Armstrong wa s born in the USA.

2 He was a sby boy, who loved t e books and the music .

3 He studied aeronautical engineering at the universit y

4 He was t e first man who s et foot on oon.

5 Hi s famou s word s were heard b y people all over the wo rld

6 Before becoming a astronaut, h e worked for d i e S nav y

7 After 1994 he refused to give the autographs

8 In 2005 he was involved in a lawsuit with an ex-barber , who tried to sell some of the Armstron g's hair

f > p.151 Grammar Bank 108. Learn more about articles , a nd practise them.

g > Communication Geography true or false A p.108 B p 111. Complete sentences about geography with articles .

Today's politicians can no longer write their own speeches, and there is some evidence that they can't read them either.

2 READING

a Read extracts from four famous inspirational speeches. Match the summary of what they are saying to each speaker EP, WC, NM, and BO.

1 Although people don't believe we are capable of succeeding, if we really want to, we will be able to do it

2 We are prepared to starve ourselves in order to draw attention to inequality.

3 However long it takes, we will carry on resisting the enemy and we will never give up

4 I have fought all my life to end racial inequality.

b Read the speeches again and find words or phrases in the text for these definitions.

Emmeline Pankhurst

1 noun refusing to eat to protest about something

2 mlD about to die

3 noun the people in power, e.g. in government

4 adj very important, to be treated with great respect

Winston Churchill

1 ml& continue 2 adj getting bigger

3 verb give up, stop fighting

Nelson Mandela

1 verb forma l to lov e sth very much

2 mlD formal if n ecessa ry

Barack Obama 1

2

verb resist

__ noun a person who doesn't believe that anything good can happen

____ mlD when you have to think about how things really are, not how you would like them to be

4

noun belief

c Which speeches seems to you to be the most / least inspirational? Why?

d 5 40 l)) Now li sten to the extracts spoken b y the people themselves (except Emmeline Pankhurst's which is read b y an actress). Do you respond to any of them differently? Which do you think is more important, the words themselves or the way the y wer e spoken?

WINSTON CHURCHILL

He was B rit is h Pr ime M in i ster d u ri ng th e second Wo rl d War. He gave t hi s speec h to the Ho use of Commo ns in 1940 w he n a Ger m an invasion of Britain was expec t ed at a ny m o m ent.

' We shall go on to the end. We s ha ll fight in France , we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we sh a ll d efend our island , whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beach es, we sha ll fight on the landing ground s, we shall f ight in the fi e ld s a nd in th e st r eet s, we shall fight in the hills ; we shall ' never surrender

EMMELINE PANKHURST

She was lea d e r of th e suffrage t te m ove m ent. In 191 3 , wh en wo m en were ca m paig n ing for the rig ht to vote. She gave the speech after several su ffrage ttes had bee n i mprisoned for attacking a pol iceman and chain i ng themselves to ra i lings outside the Prime Minister 's house in London

' I have been in audiences where I have seen men smile when they heard the words " hunger strike ", and yet I think there are very few men today who would be prepared to adopt a " hunger strike " for any cause. It is only people who feel an intolerable sense of oppression who would adopt a means of that kind. Well , our women decided to terminate those unjust sentences at the earliest possible moment by the terrible means* of the hunger strike. It means you refuse food until you are at death ' s door, and then the authorities have to choose between letting you die , and letting you go.

NELSON MANDELA

He made th is speec h in 199 0 o n his re l ea se from j a il , w here he had spent 27 y ears for being an activ ist i n the fi g ht aga i nst aparth eid He lat e r b eca m e th e first b lac k pres id ent of Sout h Afri ca

' In conclusion , I wish to go to my own words durin g my trial in 1964. They a re as true today as they were then. I wrote: I have fou ght again st white domination , and I have fought ag ainst bl ack domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democr at ic a nd free society in which all pe rs on s live to g et her in ha rmony and a nd wi t h equ al opportuniti es. It i s a n id eal which I hope to liv e for and t o ac h ie ve B ut , i f nee ds b e, it i s an id ea l for which I a m ' prepared to die .

Human life for us is sacred , but we say if any life is to be sacrificed it shall be ours; we won ' t do it ourselves , but we will put t he enemy in the position where they will have to choose between giving us freedom or giving us death. '

I * means = met hod

BARACK OBAMA

He made this speech duri ng h is f i rs t preside nt ial campaign in 2008 , wh ich h e won t o b eco m e t h e first ever bl ack preside nt of the Un ited St ates.

' We know the battle ahead will be long, but always remember that no matter what obstacles stand in our way, nothing can stand in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change. We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics , and they will on l y grow louder and more dissonant in th e weeks and months to come. We ' ve been asked to pause for a reali t y check. We ' ve been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.

But in the unlikely story that is America , there has never been anything false about hope. F'or when we have f a ced down impossible odds *; when we ' ve been told we ' re not re ady, or that w e shouldn ' t try, or that we can ' t , generations of Americans have responded with a simple creed that sum s up the s pirit of a people.

Yes, we can! Yes , w e can ! Yes , we can! '

* faced down impossib l e odds = had t o de a l with ve ry d i ffi c u lt situ ation s

a Have yo u ever h a d t o make a s p eech or g ive a t alk or present a tion in fr o nt of a lo t of peo ple ? W h en? W h ere? How di d yo u fee l ? Was it a s uccess?

b R ea d p a r t of an a rticl e a b o u t presenta tio n d isas t ers. Which tip fr o m ' Te n To p T ip s' b e low s h o uld the spe a ke r h ave rememb ered?

Presentation Disaster s!

However bad you think your presentation has been, take some comfort from the fact that at least It probably wasn't as bad as these true stories

\ A few years ago I had to give a presentation to the Belgian management team of an international IT company. Not wishing to be the typical 'Brit ' presenting in English, I had carefully prepared my presentation in French. I intended it as a surprise, so I didn't say anything beforehand. After speaking in French for 45 minutes, I was halfway through my presentation and we had a break for coffee. At this point the manager of the company came up to me asked me if I would change to speaking in English "Is my French that bad?" I said. "No," he replied, "it's just that we f are all from the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium."

TEN TOP TIPS FOR SPEAKING IN PUBLIC

1 Prepare your presentation carefully, and if possible practise it beforehand

2 If you are using e.g. PowerPoint or Prezi, make sure that your text is clear and easy to read , and that there are not too many distracting graphics.

3 Get to know as much as possible about your audience beforehand, and about any important or sensitive local issues

4 Dress carefully so that you feel confident about your appearance in front of an audience

5 Get to the place where you are going to speak in plenty of time

6 Make sure that you check that all your equipment is working properly before you start.

7 If you are given a time limit, keep to it .

8 Sound enthusiastic, even passionate, about what you are saying.

9 Look at your audience. Try to make eye contact with individual people as you speak.

10 It's good to make your audience laugh, but make sure any jokes or stories you tell are appropriate .

c 5 41 >)) Listen to four ot h er people talking abo ut a d isastrou s p r esentat ion . Comple t

d Listen to the peop l e again , one b y one, and comp lete the second and t h ird columns .

e Whic h of the Ten T op T ip s do you th i nk are the most important? Have you ever been to a talk or presentation where something went bad ly wrong?

4

VOCABULARY collocation: word pairs

p Word pairs

Some pairs of words in English which go together always come in a certain order, for example we always say 'Ladies and Gentlemen' at the beginning of a speech, but never the other way round, and we always say 'black and white' not 'white and black.' This order may sometimes be different in your language.

a How do you say 'Ladies and Gentlemen' and 'b lack and white' in yo ur language? Are the words in the same order?

5 PRONUNCIATION & SPEAKING pausing and sentence stress

a 5 43 >)) When people g ive a talk they usually divide what they say into small chunks, with a brief pause betw een each chunk. Listen to the beginning of a talk and mark the pauses.

A and match it with another from circle B. Then decide which word comes first. They are all joined with and.

c Look at some common word

pepper bread ice thunder fork quiet

b ed for wards

b Take one word from circle knife peace lemon butter lightning salt breakfast backwards

pairs joined with or. What is the second word? right or __ now or more or

sooner or all or once or

d

dead or

42 >)) Listen and check your answers to b and c , and notice how the phrases are linked and how and is pronounced. Practise saying them.

e Match the word pair idioms with their meanings .

I I'm sick and tire of hearing you complain.

2 I didn't buy much , just a few bits and pieces

3 I've been having headaches now and again

4 A What are yo u making for lunch? B Wait and see

5 Every relationship needs a bit of give and take.

6 We've had our ups and downs , but now we get on really well.

7 The army were called in to restore law an order.

8 Despite flying through a storm we arrived safe an sound .

A good times and bad times

B a situation in which the law is obeyed

C fed up with

D without problem or injury

E compromise

F occasionally

G small things

H You' ll soon find out

f Complete the sentences with a word pair from this page.

I I see my uncle , but not very often.

2 I think this is our la s t chance . It's

3 I much prefer photos to colour ones. T h ey're more atmospheric .

4 After lots of adventure, she ar rive d hom e

5 Could yo u stop making so much noise? I need a bit of ____

6 Naomi will realize that Henr y is not the man for her.

7 A Have you finished?

B . I just h ave one sentence left.

8 After th e riots, the government sent soldier s in to tr y to establish

9 I'm _ of m y bo ss ! I' m going to look for a new job.

I

0 It was an amazing storm There was a lot of ____

Good afternoon everyone / and thank you for coming. I'm going to talk to you today about one of my hobbies, collecting adult comics. Since I was a child I've been mad about comics and comic books. I started reading Tintin and Asterix when I was seven or eight. Later when I was a teenager some friends at school introduced me to Manga, which are Japanese comics. I've been collecting them now for about five years and I'm also learning to draw them.

b Now practise giving the beginning of the talk , pausing and tr yi ng to get the right rhythm.

c You are going to give a five-minute presentation to other students . You can choose what to talk about, for example: a hobby you have or a sport you play an interesting person in your family a famous person you admire the good and bad side of your job

Decide what you are going to talk about and make a plan of what you want to say.

d In groups, take turns to give yo ur presentation. W hile they are listening the other students s hould write down at least one question to ask th e speaker after the presentation is over. Then have a short question and answer session.

pGiving a presentation

Read through the tips in 3 again to help

you to prepare your presentation and to give it successfully. When you give your presentation, don't speak too quickly. Remember to pause and take a breath from time to time. This will help the audience to follow what you are saying. 44 >))

GRAMMAR

Choose a, b, or c.

1 He got a good job, not having the right degree .

a although b despite c in spite

2 My uncle still works , he won the lottery last year.

a in spite of b despite c even though

3 I called my sister to remind her the flowers.

a to buy b for buy c for buying

4 Jane opened the door quietly her parents up.

a to not wake b so that she not wake

c so as not to wake

5 she goes out the paparazzi are always there .

a Whatever b However c Whenever

6 Adrian is looking for in London

a some cheap accommodations b some cheap accommodation c a cheap accommodation

7 Let me give you - don't marry him!

a a piece of advice b an advice c some advices

8 I need to buy a new ___

a trouser b trousers c pair of trousers

9 There's milk. I'll have to get some from the shop.

a no b any c none

10 in that shop is incredibly expensive.

a All b All of them c Everything

11 They shouldn't go sailing because of them can swim.

a both b either c neither

12 I was in hospital for two weeks with a broken leg.

a the b - c a

13 I now live next door to ___ school where I used to go.

a the b -c a

14 Lake Constance is the biggest lake in Switzerland

a The b -c A

15 British Museum is in central London

a The b -c A

VOCABULARY

a Complete with the correct form of the b o ld word.

1 A lot of research is being done into human gene

2 Many important discoveries were made in the 19th century. science

3 We live in a very safe neighbour

4 Many people in big cities suffer from lonely

5 His came as a terrible shock. die

b Add a prefix to the bold word.

1 New Delhi in India i s a very populated city.

2 I asked for an aspirin, but the receptionist didn't understand me because I had pronounced it.

3 A national company is a large company that operates in several different countries.

4 Gandhi wrote most of his biography in 1929

5 Anne i s unhappy with her job, because she 's ____paid

c Complete the missing words.

1 Will the company make al ___ thi s year ?

2 He borrowed £10,000 to s his own business.

3 Ikea is probably the market l in cheap furnitur e.

4 The company are planning to I their new product in the spring.

5 It's a large bank which has hr all over the country.

6 It's a large company with over 1, 000 s ___

7 When there's a property boom, house prices r ___

8 The new drug has some very unpleas ant s effects.

9 We need to c out some more experiments.

10 Would you ever be a g pig in a clinical trial?

d Complete the two-word phrases

1 I'm going to the mountains for some peace and _ _

2 He arrived back from his adventure safe and

3 Sooner or we' re going to have to make a decision

4 It 's a very dangerous city. There's no law and ___

5 This is our last chance to do this It's no w or ___

PRONUNCIATION

a @the word with a different sound.

1 n e ighbourhood b ilingual sc ience n e ither

2 rn government pr ove sl u ms disc overy

3 volunt eer th eory re s earch id ea

4 -o:& "@'(ff) st a ff branch l aunch m arket

5 geolo gist collea gue genes biolo gy

b Underline the main stressed syllable.

1 b ij o llo lgij cal 2 phy lsi lcist 3 mul lt ij cul ltu lral

4 in lcrease (verb) 5 man lu lfac lture

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS TEXT?

a Read the article once. How does Billy Ray Harris feel about the incident?

b Read it again and choose the best words to fill the gaps.

1 a lost b dropped c fallen

2 a relieved b infuriated c shocked

3 a expensive b serious c genuine

4 a often b occa sionally c rarely

5 a realized b noticed c expected

6 a apparently b unluckily c fortunately

7 a appreciation b happiness cluck

8 a according to b related to c belonging to

9 a losing b finding c returning

10 a obviously b actually c eventually

c Choose five new words or phrases from the text. Check their meaning and pronunciation and try to learn them.

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS

VIDEO FILM?

5 45 l)) Watch or listen to a short film on The Museum of the History of Science. Complete the sentences with a number, or one or two words.

The return of the ring

1 There is a device used by Marconi to show how ______ worked.

2 You can see apparatus used by ___ who were developing penicillin.

3 The most popular exhibit in the museum is a ___ Einstein used it to give a class in _ _

4 The museum was opened in ___, when Lewis Evans donated his collection of He collected things related to m a thematics, and navigation.

5 The astrolabes are instruments which predict the position of the , the and the ___

6 The sundials were used for telling the and the quadrants were used for measuring ___

7 There are two beautiful globes which show maps of the and the _ _

8 There is also a ___ microscope which belonged to King ______

A homeless man in Kansas City, Missouri is anticipating a windfall of more than $100 ,000 for his kindness after he returned a diamond engagement ring to its rightful owner, which she had acc identally 1 into his donation cup.

Billy Ray Harr is , who is homeless and often sleeps under a bridge, was 2 to find a diamond ring in his co ll ection cup while begging last Friday. ' The ring was so big I k new that if it was rea l then it must be 3 ,' he said. Rather than sel l it, Harris had a hunch that the owner would return for it and so he stored it in a safe place

The ring belonged to Sarah Darling, who was devastated the next day when she rea l ized she had lost it. She 4 ___ takes the r ing off, but that day she had put it in her purse for safe keeping afte r she had deve loped a slight rash on her finger. She 5 that she must have given Harris the ring by mistake along with some co ins when she took out her purse to give h im some money.

She went back to look for Harris on the Saturday, but couldn 't find him. She tried again the next day and 6 he was in the same spot. ' I said to him " I don't know if you remember me , but I think I gave you something that's very precious to me ," and he said , "Was it a r i ng? Yeah, I have it, I kept it for you" '

To show their 7 , Darling and her husband set up an onl i ne fundraising page for Harris on giveforward.com . So far, more t han 3 ,800 donations have been made , t ota ll ing over $100 ,000. The money will be given to Harris at the end of a 90-day campa ign Darling 's husband , Bill Krejci , met Harris to te l l him about the flood of donations and to get to know him better. ' We ta lked about a lot of things 8 my fami ly's ring and about the many donations. We ta l ked about how one day in the future the ring may be passed dow n to my daughter.'

Harris told Krejci that he has found a p lace to stay where he is 'safe and sound ' He has spoken about the attention he has received since 9 the ring. ' I like it , but I don 't think I deserve it. What I 10 fee l l ike is , "What has the world come to when a person returns something that doesn 't belong to him and a l l this happens? '" he said .

lA EXTREME INTERVIEWS Student

A

a You are giving B an extreme interview for a job in your company. Ask B the questions and ask him / her to give reasons for his / her ans w ers. Then say if you would give him / her the job and why (not) .

1 Which one aspect of your personalit y would you change if you could , and why?

2 If you could have dinner with anyone from history, who would you choose?

3 If you were an animal , which animal would yo u be?

4 What kind of things make you angr y?

S If you had to sp end the rest of your life on a deserted island (with plenty of food and water), what two things would you want to have wi th you?

6 Which TV or film ch aracter would you most like to be?

7 What's the best (or wo r st) decision you' ve ever made?

8 Ifl came to yo ur house for dinner, what would you cook for me?

b Now answer B's questions. Try to think quickly and make a good impres s ion . Give good reasons for your answers.

18 HARD TO BELIEVE? Student A

a Read the story below. Guess the meaning of the highlighted words and then complete the glossar y.

b Tell B the important details from the story y ou read. Explain any ne w words if necessar y.

• When did it happen and w hat was the background to the stor y?

• What was the strange happening? What did Carol do afterwards?

• How do the y feel now about what the y heard? happened to a woman called Carol and her husband Russ

c Now listen to B 's story. If Buses a word or phrase you don' t know, a sk what it means, and ask questions where necessar y to clarify the details of the stor y

NOISES IN THE NIGHT

About si x months ago, my husband Russ and I moved into a house in the country. our house is the middle one of three terraced houses and it's more than a hundred years old. A young couple live in the house on our right, but the house on our left was empty and for sale

We had been living in the house for about two months when we were both suddenly woken up in the middle of the night by a loud noise we could hear the sound of furniture being moved in the empty house next door It sounded as if somebody was moving something very heavy, like a table or a bed, by dragging it across the floor I looked at my watch I said to Russ 'What are they doing moving furniture at this time of the night? It must be the new owners I'll complain to them tomorrow ' Just then the noise stopped, but five minutes later it started again and this time it carried on for several minutes. Finally it stopped completely, and we were able to go back to sleep

The next morning I rang the doorbell next door, but there was no answer, and when I looked through the curtains the house still looked completely empty I called the estate agent and asked him if he had come to the house the previous night to move furniture . He said that he hadn't and he was as mystified as us about the noises

I asked the estate agent who had lived in the house previously and he told me that an old lady had been living there for many years, but she had suddenly died a few months ago I don't really believe in ghosts, but Russ and I can find no logical explanation for the noises we heard that night. carol, Kent

YOU'RE PSYCHIC, AREN'T YOU?

Student A

a Imagine yo u're a psyc hic . Use yo u r p sychic power s to complete the sentences below about B .

I Your favourite co lour is _____, ... ?

2 You were bornin _____ (place) , ... ?

3 You r ea lly like , (a sport or h obby), . ?

4 You (an ac ti vity) l ast weekend, ?

5 Yo u ha ve n ' t been to (a city or co u ntry),. .. ?

6 You wo uld like to be able to , ?

7 Yo u can't _____ very well, . ?

8 You ' re very good at , ?

b Check if yo u r gu esses are true b y saying the sentences to B and checking with a q u es tion tag, e g Your fav ourite co l our i s pink, isn't it? Tr y to use fa llin g intonation

c Now B will check his /her guesses about yo u Respond with a short answer. If the guess is wrong, t ell B the real answer.

d Count yo ur correct g u esses. W h o was the best ps yc hi c?

2A FIRST AID QUIZ Student A

You should hit the person firmly on the back between the shoulder blades to remove the object. This is often enough to clear the blockage , letting the person breathe again. If necessary, call the emergency services or get someone else to do it.

The first thing to do is co ol the burn under cold running water for at least ten minutes This will make the burn less painful , and reduce swelling and scarring. Then cover the burn w ith cling film, or a clean plastic bag if your foot or hand is burned This prevents infection a nd keeps air from the surface of the skin, which redu ces pain. If it' s a serious burn , cal l the emergency services because it may ne ed urgent medical treatmen t.

You should immediately put pressure on the wound to stop or slow down the bleeding

Us e wh a tever is a va ilab le - like a T-shirt or other clean cloth, or even your hand . Get help as soon as possible by calling the emergency services. Keep pres sure on the wound unti l help a r ri v es.

3A FLIGHT STORIES Student A

a Read a newspaper article abou t a flight. Im agine that yo u were o n e of the passe n gers on the plane. Th in k about:

• why yo u were flying to No rth Caro lin a

• who yo u were w it h

• what yo u did during t h e emergency and ho w yo u felt

BRAVE PILOT LANDS PLANE ON THE HUDSON RIVER

0n 15th January US Airways flight 1549 took off from La Guardia airport in New York at 3 26 p m. heading for North Carolina , with 150 passengers and five crew on board. Less t han two minutes after take off, passengers near the wings heard strange noises coming from the engines . The plane started shak ing. and then suddenly began to lose height. Both engines had stopped making any noise, and the plane was st rangely qu iet - the only sound was some people who were cry in g quietly. Most people were looki ng out of the window in horro r. Moments later the captain made an announcement: 'This is the captain, brace for i mpact .' He had decided to try to land the plane on the only large flat empty area that he co ul d reach - the Hudson Rive r. The plane landed on the river, and one passenger shouted ' We 're in the water!' People stood up and starting pushing towards the emergency exits, which the crew had managed to open It was freezing cold outside Some passengers jumped into life rafts, and others stood on the wings waiting for help Amazingly, after only ten minutes fer ri es arrived and rescued all the passengers and crew It was later d isc overed that bi rds had flown in to both engines on the plane which had caused them to stop working.

b Tell B yo ur story in yo ur own wo rd s, e.g . It was in Janumy a few yea rs aBo and I was on a fliBht from New York to North Carolina .. .

c Now listen to B 's story.

d W h at two d eta il s do the stories have in common? Have yo u ever been on a flight where there was a medical or technical e m ergency?

SA IT'S AN EMERGENCY! Student A

a Read your survival tip s and underline things yo u shou ld a nd shou ldn' t do , and why. Try to remember the information.

WHAT TO DO IF...THERE•s AN EMERGENCY ON A PLANE

Your plane is very unlikely to crash, but if it does, the most importa nt thing is to be ready for it. Eighty per cent of all accidents take place during take-off or landing, and if there is an emergency, such as a fire , you w ill probably only have about 90 seconds to get o ff. So w hen you get on the plane (and when it s tar ts the descent) you need to be thinking about what you would do. Pay attention to the safety card and the flight attendant's safety briefing Memorize where the emergency exits are and count how many rows you are away from them. Don't do what many people do which is to relax, take off their shoes, and start reading or listening to music. If something does happen you need to be ready to take action. In fact this is one of the reasons why people are told to switch off electronic devices during take off and landing. Above all don't go to sleep. But once the p lane is flying and the seat belt signs have gone off, you can start to relax and enjoy the flight.

b Now in yo ur own words tell B a nd C how to s ur vive if there's a n e mergenc y on a plane

SA GUESS THE CONDITIONALS Student A

a R ea d th ro ugh sentenc es 1-6 and think ho w yo u could complete the gaps . T he y are either seco nd ot third conditionals . G:] =a positiv e verb phra se, = a n egat ive ver b phra se

b Say yo ur complete sentence 1 to B. If B says That's riBht , w rit e in the words. If B says T1y aBain, think of another possible co mpl e tion and say the sent ence aga in. You can h ave thre e tries.

c Now li s t en t o B say sentences 7- 12 . IfB says exactly w h at yo u h ave, say T hat's riBht . If B says somet hin g differen t , say Try aBain.

1 The cat wo uldn't have got out if yo u G:]

2 IfI sp ent a month in the UK, . G:]

3 We wo uldn ' t have los t the match if our best player ____. G

4 If yo u 'd t old m e ea rlier ab o ut th e co nc ert, ___ G:]

5 IfI 'd kno w n the tr affi c was go in g to b e so bad, ___. G

6 My husband a nd I wo uld go o ut more i f we . G

7 We wo uld h ave playe d tennis if it hadn 't be e n so windy.

8 If yo u h ad n 't r em ind ed m e, I wo uld have fo r gotte n.

9 I wou ld have bought t h e flat if it h ad been ch eaper.

10 I wo uldn ' t u se public trans p ort ifI h ad a car.

11 If yo u h ad wate r ed the plant s, th ey wo uldn't have died

12 If I kn ew th e a n swer , I 'd t ell yo u.

6B THREE THINGS YOU (PROBABLY) DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT SLEEPING Student A Sleeping Beauty

In 2008, when Louisa Ball was fourteen , she had the symptoms of flu and soon after she began falling asleep in class Then one day she went to sleep and didn't wake up for ten days. Doctors diagnosed her as having a rare neurological disorder called Kleine-Levin Syndrome, also known as 'Sleeping Beauty Syndrome.' People who have this medical condition often sleep for long periods without waking up.

Louisa regularly misses long periods of school , her weekly dance lessons (and , once, a whole week of a family holiday) because she is asleep. On one occasion she even missed her final exams When she sleeps for several days her parents have to wake her up once a day to give her something to eat and take her to the bathroom. But then she immediately falls back into a deep sleep.

People who have this syndrome often complain that they lose their friends because they disappear for such long periods of time. Fortunately, Louisa's friends have stayed loyal and they even visit her on days when she is asleep.

Although she sometimes feels frustrated Louisa says, 'I ' ve got used to it now and I' ve learnt to live with it.' Doctors have told her that the syndrome will eventually disappear, but maybe not for ten or fifteen years

a Re ad the art icle and answer t h e questions.

1 W h at exac tly is the sy ndrome?

2 W h at were t h e early symptoms of Lo ui sa's medical problem?

3 What affect does the sy nd ro m e ha ve on h er li fe? How h ave h er fr iend s react e d?

4 What do her p are nts d o w h en she h as o n e of her long sleeps?

5 How does she fee l about h er problem?

b Use th e qu es tions to h elp yo u to tell B about the S leeping B eaut y Syndrome.

c Then listen to B t elling yo u a b o ut how o ur ancestors u sed to sleep

1

ARGUMENT! Student A

WIFE

It's you r birt hday t o day. Yo ur husband (Student B) had promised to c ome home early. You have prepared a grea t dinner. You have bee n d ro ppin g hin ts fo r the p as t m on t h th at w hat you re ally want for yo ur birthday is so me jewel le ry as your par t ne r is usually very unim agina tive a bout c hoo si ng presents. Last Chr istma s he b o ugh t yo u th e Lord of the Rings DVDs which you didn 't part icularly like and he ended u p watching m o re than you.

Tonight he ar riv es ho me la te fro m wo rk (t he di nn er is cold) a nd g ive s yo u a box of c ho cola t es (y ou 're o n a di et, a nd he k no w s this) and some flowers wh ich look as if th ey w e re bough t at a petrol st at ion

You r hu sban d (Student B) sta rts th e co nve rsa tion by givin g you the c ho c olates.

2 MOTHER I FATHER

Your son I daughter (Student B) is in his I her first year of university studying medicine

You are a doctor, and you have always encouraged your child to follow in your footsteps, and he I she was good at science at school, and you think would make an excellent doctor. He I she was quite keen on studying journalism, but you think that this was a 'lazy option ' and nowadays it's very difficult to get a good job in journalism. So you persuaded him I her to study medicine. Although he I she worked hard at school, this year at univ e rsity he I she seems to be out with fri e nds all the time and spends a lot less time studying than you did at the same age. You have just discovered that he I she has failed all the first year exams. You start the conversation: I think we need to talk about your exam results

78 GUESS WHAT IT IS Student A

a Look at the pictures below. You are going to describe them to B. Say w h at kind of thing each one is, and then use looks, smells,feels, or tastes

J ice-lolly I

b Describe yo u r first thing to B in as much detail as possible B can then ask you questions to identify what the thing is.

( !/ kind of vegetable. It looks a bit like a green ball It tastes quite strong think it sme ll s awful when it's being cooked. You can use it to make

c Now li sten to B describe h i s / h er first thing. Don't interrupt until he / she has finished describ i ng. You can ask B questions to identify what the thing is.

d Continue taking turns to describe all your th ings

88 STRANGE, BUT TRUE Student A

a R ead t he article and h i gh li ght the key information that wi ll he lp yo u r emember the story.

Lost tourist finds herself

More than 50 people were involved in a se ar c h a nd re sc ue operation in the volcanic reg i on of Eldgja in south Iceland on Sa tu rday.

Pol ice were called to the area after it was reported that a female member of a tour party who were travelling around the region had failed to return t o the bus.

The tourist was described as being ' of Asian origin, aged 20-30 , and about 160 cm.' She was wearing 'dark clothing ' and spoke fluent English The police asked for a helicopter to assist the rescue operat ion but it was too foggy for it to fl y. So t he pol ice , helped by the tourists themse lv es, bega n to look for the missing woman on foot.

The search continued through the night , but at 3.00 in the morning the search was called off when it was d iscovered that the missing woman was not o n ly al ive and we ll but was actually assisting in the search.

What had happened was that the woman had got off the bus for some fresh air and had changed her clothes. Because of that other peop le didn't recognize her and thought that she was missing The tour organizer had counted the tourists but had miscounted. Police said that the woman had not recognized that the description of the missing person was her. The police said, ' She did not rea lize that she was the person everybody (including herself) was searching for until several ho u rs later.'

b Te ll B yo u r story i n yo u r ow n words, e.g. This happened in Iceland. The police wer e calle d b ecause som eon e had reported that a tourist was missinB

c Now listen to B's story, and ask B to clarify or rephrase if there 's anything you don't understand.

78 TWO PHOTOS Student A

a Look carefully at yo ur photo. Then describe it in detail to B , focusing especially on the people and their body language Say who yo u think the y are and what you think they're d o in g.

b Show yo u r photo to B and see if he / she agrees with yo u .

c Listen to B describe another photo. Try to visua li ze it.

d B wi ll now show you the photo to see if you agree with his / her description and interpretation .

Describing a photo

Thi s photo looks as if it was taken (in the summer, in the 1990s, etc.)

In the centre

In the foreground (of the photo) there is I there are

In the background

The c hild ha s his head in his hands He l ooks as if...

108 GEOGRAPHY TRUE OR FALSE Student A

a Complete the gaps in yo ur sentences with the where necessary.

1 Andes is_ longest mountain range in_ world (T)

lA EXTREME INTERVIEWS Student B

a A is going to give yo u an extreme interview for a job in his / her company. Answer the questions. Try to think quickly and make a good impression. Give good reasons for you r answers.

b Now give A an extreme interview for a job in your company, u sing the questions below. Ask him / her to give reasons for his / her answers. Then say if you would g ive him/ her the job, and why (not).

1 Which three adjectives describe yo u be st?

2 If you were a type of food, what type of food would you be?

3 How do you normally treat animals?

4 Who do you admire most , and why?

5 If you could be a super h ero, what wo uld you want your superpowers to be?

6 Tell me abo ut something in your life that you are really proud of.

7 If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who wou ld you like to see play the lead role as you?

8 If yo u could have six months with no obligations or financial limitations, what wou ld yo u do with the time?

2 Loch Ness is _ lar gest lake in Scotland. (F -It's the second largest . Loch Lomond is the l argest)

3 capital of _ United States is _ New York City. (F - It's Washington DC)

4 _ Ma ll orca is an island in _ Mediterranean sea. (T)

5 _ Uffizi ga llery is _ famous art museum in _ Rome (F - It's in Florence)

6 South America is l arger than _ North America (F)

7 Mount Ves uvius i s a volcano in _ north west Ita ly. (F - It 's in so uth wes t It aly)

8 Brooklyn Bridge connects _ Brooklyn and _ Manhattan. (T)

b Now read your sentence 1 to B. He/ S h e must say if the information true or false. Correct his/ her answer if necessary

c Now listen to B 's sentence 1 and say i f you think it's true or false If you think it's false, say what yo u think the rig ht answer is.

d Continue taking turns to say your sentences. Who got the most right answers?

HARD TO BELIEVE? Student B

a Read the story below. Guess the meaning of the highlighted words and then complete the glossary.

THE STRANGE OBJECT ON THE HILL

T:is happened when I was 16, and I can still remember it ividly. It was a clear morning, sunny but with a breeze . I was going to meet a school friend to go walking in the hills where there were some wonderful views. I'd agreed to meet him at the top of one of the hills

I knew those hills really well, but that morning there was a strange shape in the familiar landscape. It was a mile or so to the north, on the top of the next hill. It was a white object and it looked like a dome or an igloo I was carrying binoculars, so I could see it clearly. It was big, the size of a small house, but it didn't seem to have any doors or windows, and it wasn't moving in spite of the wind.

Then I noticed that some sheep which were on that hill were running away from it. They seemed really frightened. I kept staring at the dome. Then, suddenly, it began to move . It moved slowly, not in the direction of the wind but almost directly against it. It looked as if it might be glid ing a few inches above the grass.

A few seconds later the dome disa ppeared. I never saw it again I had watched it for 15 minutes.

When my friend arrived I asked him if he had seen the object, too, but he hadn't. He had been coming from a different direction.

I have told only a few peop le about what I saw. one of them, a friend of mine who is a doctor, is convinced that I was hallucinating . But I am sure that what I saw wasn't a hallucination. It was really there. Carl, Winchester

Glossary

1 /d;;ium / noun a circu lar thing or a building with a round roof and a flat b ase

2 / 'g la 1d11) / ver b moving s moothl y and qu ietly, as if with no e ffort

3 / h;;i' lu:sme1t11)/ ve r b seeing or hearing thing s th at are not really there, becau se of an illness or drug s

4 / 'v 1v 1dli/ ad v very clearly

5 / b1 ' nokjdl;;iz/ noun an instrument that makes far aw ay ob jects seem n earer

6 / bri: z/ noun a light w ind

happened to a boy called Carl when he was 16...

b Listen to A's story. If A uses a word or phrase you don't know, ask what it means , and ask questions where necessary to clarify the details of the story.

c Now tell A everything you can remember from the story you read . Explain any new words if necessary.

• When did it happen and what was the background to the story? (What was the weather like? What was he BoinB to do?, etc.)

• What was the strange happening? What did Carl do afterwards?

• How does he feel now about what he saw?

18 YOU'RE PSYCHIC, AREN'T YOU? Student B

a Imagine you're a ps y chic . Use you r ps ychic powers to complete the sentences below about A.

1 Youwerebornin (month), ... ?

2 You don ' t like (a kind of music) , ?

3 You're going to (activity) tonight , ?

4 You'veseen (afilm), ?

5 Your favourite season is ? ____ ,

6 You didn't like ___ (kind of food) when you were a child , ... ?

7 You can p lay (musical instrument), ?

8 Yo u wou ldn' t like to liv e in (a place) ,. . . ?

b A is going to make some guesses about you. Re spond with a short answer. If the guess is wrong, tell A the real answer.

c Now check if yo ur guesses a bout A are true, b y saying the sentences and checking with a question tag , e.g You were born in Pisa , weren't you? Try to use a falling intonation Check if yo ur guesses we r e true.

2A FIRST AID QUIZ Student B

4

a If someone you are with has a nosebleed , you should ask them to sit down and lean forward. Ask the person to pinch the soft part of the nose, which they should do for ten minutes. Get medical advice if the b leeding cont inues for more than thirty minutes.

Sb Tilt their head backwards so that their tongue isn 't blocking their airway. Check if they 're breathing by looking to see if their chest is moving , and feel for breath on your cheek . Now move them onto their side and tilt their head back Putting them in this position with the ir head back helps keep the airway open. As soon as possible , call the emergency services or get someone else to do it.

6

b Use a cushion or items of clothing to prevent unnecessary movement. Call the emergency services or get someone else to do it. Don 't try to straighten the person 's leg, but continue supporting the injury until help arrives.

3A FLIGHT STORIES Student B

a Read a n ewspaper articl e about a flight. Imagin e th a t you were one of the p assengers on the flight, and were sittin g just b ehind Mrs F letcher. Think ab o ut :

• why yo u were travelling to F lorida

• w ho yo u were wit h

• what yo u saw and ho w you felt.

SA IT'S AN EMERGENCY! Student B

a Read your survival tips and underline things you should and shouldn' t do , and why. Try to remember the information.

WHAT TO DO IF...YOU GET LOST ON A HIKE IN THE MOUNTAINS

According to experts, people who get lost when they are out hiking typically keep walking (or even running), desperately trying to find the right path to safety, but this is absolutely the wrong thing to do. As a survival expert says, 'Fear is the enemy. Lost people want to run .' They lose their heads and start to panic. Sometimes they even forget to look in their backpacks for food and water.

IS THERE A DOCTOR ON BOARD?

Mrs Dorothy Fletcher was travell i ng with her daughter and her daughter's fiance on a US Airways flight from London to Florida. Her daughter was going to be married there the following week. They had to get a connecting flight in Philadelphia, but the flight landed late and they had to rush between terminals. On their way to the gate, Mrs Fletcher began to feel ill. She didn't say anything to her daughter because she didn't want to worry her. However when the flight from Philadelphia to Florida took off, she suddenly got a terrible pain in her chest, back, and arm - she was having a heart attack

The cabin crew put out a call to passengers: 'We have a medical emergency If there is a doctor on board, could you please press the call bell.' Incredibly, not just one bell sounded but fifteen! There were fifteen doctors on board, and what was even better news. they were all cardiologists! They were travelling to Florida for a conference.

The doctors immediately gave Mrs Fletcher emergency treatment and they managed to save her life. The plane made an emergency landing in North Carolina and she was taken to hospital there. Fortunately she recovered quickly enough to be able to attend her daughter's wedding

b Now listen to A's story.

c Tell A your story in yo ur own words, e.g. A few years aBo I was flyinBfrom London to F lorida on a US AirwaysfliBht

d What two details do the stories have in Have yo u ever been on a flight where there was a medical or technical emergency?

The number one survival tip is to stay where you are or find an open space nearby and wait to be rescued (especially if you have told someone where you were going to walk) . In research done in Canada, only two out of 800 lost people actually did this . If the others had stayed in one place, they would have been found much sooner Look for a sheltered place nearby in case you have to spend the night there, for example under a rock , or make a shelter with tree branches to keep you warm But make sure you stay i n the open during the day so that you can be seen by a helicopter. Make a fire to attract attention . If you don't have matches , tie a piece of bright clothing to a stick and leave it in a v isible place.

b Now in your own words tell A and Chow to survive if yo u get lost in the mountains.

7A ARGUMENT! Student B

Role -play two arguments wi th a partner.

1 HUSBAND

It's your wife's (Student A's) birthday today. You always try to buy her good birthday presents (last year you bought her the Lord of the Rings DVD!). You know that she really wanted some jewellery but you have been very busy at work and haven't had time to go shopping. You had intended to finish work early this evening and go shopping, but you had to work late So you stopped at a petrol station on the way home and bought her some chocolates, which you know she usually likes, and some flowers.

You start the conversation by giving your wife he r present. Happy Birthday, darling. I hope you like them.

SON I DAUGHTER (UNIVERSITY STUDENT)

You're in your first year of university, studying medicine. You ha ven't enjoyed it at all, and have just failed all your first year exams . In fact, you never really wanted to study medicine but your parents are both doctors and you feel t he y pushed you into it. You would like to change cou rses and study journali sm, which you think would suit you better. Yo u want to try to convince your mother I father (Student A) although you know they're not very pleased with your exam res ults

Your mother I father (Student A) will start by asking you about your exam results.

2

SA GUESS THE CONDITIONALS Student B

a Read through sentences 7-12 and think how you could complete the gaps They are either second or third conditionals.[±:]= a positive verb phrase, El = a negative verb phrase.

1 The cat wouldn't have got out if you'd closed the window.

2 IfI spent a month in the UK, m y English would improve a lot.

3 We wouldn't have lost the match if ou r best p layer hadn't been injured.

4 If you'd told me earlier abo ut the concert, I would have gone.

5 IfI'd known the traffic was going to be so bad , I wou ldn't have taken the car.

6 It wo uld be easier to go o ut in the evenings if we didn't have children.

7 We would have played tennis if it G

8 If you hadn ' t reminded me, I [±:]

9 I wou ld have bought the flat if it [±:]

10 I wo uldn 't use public transport if . [±:]

11 If you had watered the plants , G

12 IfI knew the answer, I [±]

b Listen to A saying sentences 1-6. If A says exactly what yo u have, say That's ri[Jht. If A says something different, say T1y aBain

c Say yo u r comp lete sentences 7-12 to A If A says That's ri[Jht, write in the words. If A says Try a[Jain, think of another possib le completion and say the sentence again. You can have three trie s

6B THREE THINGS YOU (PROBABLY) DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT SLEEPING Student B

How our ancestors used to sleep

AnAmerican historian, Roger Ekirch, has done a lot of research (based mainly on literature and diaries) which shows that until the end of the 18th century humans used to sleep in two distinct periods, called 'First sleep' and 'Second sleep'.

First sleep began about two hours after nightfall, and lasted for about four hours. It was followed by a period of between one or two hours when people were awake. During the waking period people were quite active. Most people stayed in bed reading, writing, or praying, etc. but others got up and even used the time to visit neighbours. They then went back to sleep for another four hours.

This research is backed up by an experiment done by a psychiatrist, Thomas Wehr, in the early 1990s, in which a group of people were left in total darkness for 14 hours every day for a month. By the fourth week the people had begun to sleep in a very clear pattern They slept first for four hours, then woke for one or two hours before falling into a second four- hour sleep, in exactly the same way as people had slept in the 18th century The research suggests that today's habit of sleeping seven to eight consecutive hours may not be the most natural way to sleep

a Read the text and answer the question s.

1 What did the historian 's research show?

2 What was the typical sleep routine in those days?

3 What did people do during the period between s leep s?

4 What was Thomas Wehr's exper iment, and what did it show?

b Listen to A tell yo u about the Sleeping Beaut y syndrome.

c Use the questions in a to tell A about how o ur ancestors u sed to sleep

7B GUESS WHAT IT IS Student B

a Look at the pictures below You are going to describe them to A. Say w h at kind of thing each one is, and then use looks, sme lls.feels, or tastes.

b Now l isten to A describe his/ her first thing. Don't interrupt until he / she has finished describing. Yo u can ask A qu estions

c Now describe yo ur first thing in as m u ch detail as possible. A can then ask you questions to identify what t he thing is

( kind of vegetable It's very popular in It 's very hot...

d Continue taking turns to describe all yo u r things . Who g u essed the most right?

108 GEOGRAPHY TRUE OR FALSE Student B

a Complete the gaps in yo ur sentences wi th the where necessary.

1 _capital of _ Netherlands is _ Amsterdam (F - It 's The Hague)

2 _Amazon is _ longest river in _ world. (F - It's T he Nile)

3 Panama Canal connects Atlantic Ocean to_ Pacific Ocea n (T )

4 Atacama des e rt is in north of Chile. (T)

5 Blac k Sea is in _ south wes t Europe (F - It's in south east Europe)

6 _biggest lake in _ world is_ Lake Victoria in_ Africa. (F - It's Lake Superior in Canada/ the USA)

7 Mont Blanc is _ highest mo u ntain in A lps (T)

8 _Hy de Park is in _ central London . (T)

b Now listen to A's sentence 1 and say if you think i t's true or fa lse. If you think it's false, say what yo u th ink the right answer is

c Now read yo ur sentence 1 to A. Correct his/ her answer if necessary

d Continue taking turns to say yo ur sentences. Who got the most right answers?

SA IT'S AN EMERGENCY! Student c

a Read your survival tips and underline things you shou l d a nd shou ldn't do , and why. Tr y to rememb er the information .

WHAT TO DO IF... SOMEBODY BREAKS INTO YOUR HOUSE.

I magine that you wake up in the middle of the night because you can hear somebody moving around in the kitchen. Wha t shou ld you do?

Even if you are brave, it is usually a mistake to go and confront the in truder. You could find yourself face to face with somebody who may have a weapon and who is likely to react violently. The most impor tant thing is to have a plan to follow : lock y ourself and you r family in a safe place, e .g . y our bedroom or bathroom. Move a piece of furnitu re against the door to make it impossible for the intruder to open it. Next, call the police (you should always have a fully charged phone close to hand at night w ith the emergency number programmed in) and wait for help to arriv e.

b Now in yo u r own words tell A and B how to s u rvive if somebody breaks into yo u r ho u se

78 TWO PHOTOS Student B

a Listen to A describe his / her photo . Try t o vis u a lize it

b A w ill now s h ow you the photo to see if yo u agree wi t h h is / her d escription and interpretation .

c Now d escribe yo u r photo . Focus on the people and their b o d y l ang u age, and say who yo u th ink t hey are and w h at you think the y 're doing. Then finall y show your photo to A an d see ifhe /she agrees wit h your interpretation

p Describing a photo

This p hoto look s as if it was t aken (in t he sum m er, in t he 199 0s, etc.)

In th e c entre

In the foreground (of t he ph oto) t here is I t he re are

In the ba ck g ro und

The w om an o n the left has her eyes clos e d Sh e l ooks as if...

88 S T RA NGE , BU T TRUE

Student B

a Read the article a n d highlight th e k ey info r mat ion tha t will help you reme mb er the s tor y.

Dog phones for help

Dogs a re of t en called ' Man's best fr iend' because they sometimes help save their owner 's li f e. But Ge o rge, a two - year-old basset hound in Yorkshire in the north of England, managed to save his own life by d ia ll ing 999.

George had been left at home on hi s ow n and had knocked the phone on t he floo r He became entangled wi t h the cord of t he phone and was choking Somehow he must have touched t he number 9 key of the pho n e wit h his paws a few times , and as a result , h e dialled the UK emergency number : 999 A ll the operator cou ld hear was the the sound of somebody choking and breath i ng heavi ly , so she sent t h e police to the house The po lice got i n wit h t he h elp of a ne ighbour, Pa ul Walker, who had a spa re key. To thei r amazement they found George with the cord round h is nec k He was absolutely terr ified, and cou ldn 't fr ee h imse lf They qu ickly pulled the phone cord ou t of the wa ll. Mr Wa l ker sa id , ' It was inc red ible You could see his paw pr int on the key of the phone He literally saved his own l ife .' George 's owners , Steve Brown and his daugh t er Lydia , 18 , we re as amazed as everybody else . Lyd ia sa id , 'It's no t as if George is par t icular ly clever. In f act, he 's really dopey - he j ust likes to chew soc ks mos t of the t ime .'

b Listen to A 's stor y, and ask A to clarify o r rephras e if there 's any thing yo u d o n ' t under s tand.

c Tell A yo u r stor y in yo u r own w ord s, e. g. A doB ca ll ed GeorB e who live s wi th a fam ily in Yorkshir e in th e UK was left alon e in th e hou se wh en his own ers went out . . .

AN INFORMAL EMAIL

From : Anna

To: johnston586@gmail.com

Subject: News!

Hi Sue,

Sorry that I haven t been in touch for a while , but I've been ill. I got flu last week and I had a temprature of 39 ° C, so I' ve been in bed since four days. I' m feeling a bit better today, so I' ve been catching up on my emails Luckly my classes at university don ' t start till next wee k. How are you? What have you been doing? Anything exc iting. Here everyone are fine (apart from me and my flu!). My brother Ian has just started his new job with a software-company - I think I told you about it when I last wrote - anyway, he 's really enjoying it. How are your family ? I hope their well.

I have some good news - I'm go i ng to a conference in your town in may, from 16th to 20th. Could you recomend a hotel where I could stay in the centre of town? It needs to be somewhere not too ex p ensive because the unive rs ity is paying. I' ll have a free half-day for siteseeing Do you think you'll be able show me around? That would be great.

Well , that's all for now. Please g ive my regards to your family. Hope to hear from you soon.

Take care ,

Anna

pBeginning an informal email

When you are writing an informal email, it is more usual to star t with Hi than with De ar.

a R ead the e m ai l fro m Ann a It h as 12 hi ghli ghte d m i sta k es, fo u r gramma r or vocabul ary, fo u r pu n c tu a t io n , a nd fo u r s p elling . W ith a p a r tner, d ecid e w h at k ind of m istake each o n e i s and co r re ct i t.

b R ead Anna's email again and find se n tences t h at mean

I haven't wri t ten or p h one d . I've b ee n r ea di ng an d rep lying to my ema il s . Have you b een d oing an ything exciting?

c Yo u 're goin g to a n swer A n na's emai l. Look at t h e U seful langua g e express ions a nd t ry to comp le t e t h em .

pUseful language: an informal email

Opening expressions

Thanks 1 your email I letter. It was great 2 hear from you.

Sorry for 3 writing earlier I sorry that I haven 't been in touch for a while / 4 you and your family are well

Responding to news

Sorry s hear about your exam results

Glad to 6 that you 're all well.

Good 7 with the new job.

Hope you a better soon

Closing expressions

Anyway, I Well , that's all 9 now. Hope to hear from you soon. I Looking 10 to hearing from you soon 11 my regards (love) to Take 12 I 13 wishes I Regard s I (Lots of) love from 14 (= something you forgot and want to add) Please send me the photos you promised.

d Plan t he conte n t of yo u r em a il.

1 U nd erline the qu es tions in t h e ema il that C h ris wants yo u to answer.

2 Un d erl i n e oth er pl aces i n th e ema il wh ere yo u t hi n k you n ee d t o re spond , e.g. I've been ill.

3 Think ab out h ow t o respo n d to each of t he th in gs yo u 've und erli n e d.

e Write 120-180 words, i n two or th ree p aragrap h s. Use in forma l l ang u age (co nt rac tio ns, e tc.) , a nd expr ess io n s fr om Us eful language .

f Check yo u r ema il for m i s t akes (gramm ar, pu nc tu a t io n , and spellin g).

p 15

A SHORT STORY

a Read the s t o r y. Wh a t was the 's mall mi s take '? What happ ened in the e nd?

c You m ay wa n t t o wr it e so m e d ia log ue as p ar t of yo u r s t o r y. R e -wri t e t h e fo llowing w ith t h e cor r e ct p u n ctuatio n. Use the dial ogu e i n the s t ory to help yo u

i want to talk to you about an email you sent Mr Simpson said coldly

d Loo k at the !hi g hl ig h ted ti m e express i ons i n U s eful language and co mplete t he m.

pUseful language: time expressions

___ that moment the door opened.

As soon I saw him, I knew someth ing was wrong. Ten minutes I went ba ck to sleep.

___ morning in September I got to work early. We got to the station just time to catch the train

It was only a small mistake , but it changed my life for ever. I had been working at JB Simpson 's for ten years. It was a small 1family-run company which exported garden furniture. I was 2 happy with my job. I got on 3 with the owne r, Arthur Simpson , but not with his wife , Linda. She was a loud, 4 woman , who s used to turn up at the office and start criticizing us for no reason Everyone disliked her

One afternoon Mrs Simpson came in while I was finishing writing a report. She looked at me and sa id, 'If I were you , I wouldn't wear that colour It doesn't suit you at all.' I was wearing a s pink shirt that I was very 7 of, and her comment really annoyed me I typed a a email to Alan Simmonds in Sales. 'Watch out! The old witch is here!' and pressed ' send '. A couple of minutes later I was surprised to receive an email from Mr Simpson asking me to c ome to his office 9 When I opened the door I saw his wife glaring at the computer screen I realized , to my horror, what I had done. I had clicked on Simpson instead of Simmonds. 10 I was packing my things. I had been sacked!

b Us ing a d ve rb s a nd a dj ec tives h e l ps t o m ake a s t o r y co m e a live a nd m a k es it m o r e enj oyable t o rea d.

C omple t e the s tor y with a n a dj ec t ive or a d ve rb fro m the lis t.

agg ress ive an hour l ater qui te ffimily-ruA fond fre qu ently imm ediately new qu ick w ell

e You a r e go ing to w ri te a story begi nn ing w ith one o f t h e se nt en ces below. W ith a par tner , choose w h ich s t o r y to wri t e and d iscu ss wha t the plot co uld be

I It was ele ve n o'clock at night when the phone rang.

2 Alex had been w orking hard all day, and was looking forward to going home.

3 We had been dri v ing fo r four hou rs w hen we s aw the sign for a sm a ll hotel a nd decided to stop.

f Pl a n t h e co nt en t

1 Wr ite w h at h appe n ed simp ly, i n abou t 50 wor d s .

2 T hink a b o ut how yo u co uld imp rove yo u r s t or y by add in g m ore d eta il s, e .g. w ith a dj ectives an d adverb s .

3 T hink a b ou t w h at t enses yo u n ee d for each part of t he s tory, e g. h ow to se t the scene , wha t significa n t eve nt s hap p ened befo r e the s t ory sta rt s.

g Write 12 0 -18 0 wor d s , o r ga nize d in two or t hree p a r ag r aphs . Use a var i e t y of n ar r a tive te n ses and a d ve rb s a n d a dj ec tives t o m ake yo ur stor y more viv id. Use t im e express io n s to m ake th e sequ en ce of eve nt s clea r.

h Check yo u r sh ort sto r y fo r m is t a k es (gra m ma r , punc tu a t ion, and s p elling).

FOR AND AGAINST

a Read a post about adventure sports on a blog site called For and ABainst? Do you think there are more advantages or more disadvantages?

b Read the blog post again and complete it with the linking expressions from the list (two of them are interchangeable).

although another advantage because of for example (x2) furthermore in addition on the other hand t-19-e-FRatA-aEivantage to sum up

c Put the linking expressions from b in the Useful language chart below.

p Useful language: linking expressions

To list advantages I disadvantages the main advantage

To add more points to the same topic

To introduce an example For instance, ...

To make contrasting points However, In spite of (the fact that).

To give a reason

Because (+ clause) (+noun)

To introduce the conclusion In conclusion,

d You are going to write a post for the site Choose one of the titles below.

Going to work abroad: an exciting opportunity or a scary one?

Being a celebrity: a dream or a nightmare?

Everything has t wo sides to it , a posit ive one and a negative one Post your op inions on our blog

Adventure sportsfun or too risky?

Every year, more and more people are tempted by the idea of going on an adventure sports holiday, especially during the summer months.

Spending your holiday being active and enjoying the outdoors has a lot of advantages i The main advantage is that adventure sports, like many other physical activities, offer health benefits. 2 , when you practise extreme sports your brain releases endorphins because of the adrenalin rush and that makes you feel happy 3 is the self-confidence that you gain from doing these activities 4 , the lessons learnt from facing the difficulties and the risks of these extreme sports may be very valuable in everyday life

s , there are also some important disadvantages. 5 ____ they make you feel good, risky sports can be extremely dangerous The possibility of getting ser iously injured wh ile performing these activities is quite high , and some adventure sports, 7 skydiv ing or cliff jumping can even have fatal consequences s these r isks , you need to be extremely fit to prac t ise t hese sports during a holiday, which means that they are not for everyone 9 , they are likely to be expensive because they require a lot of equipment, safety measures, and well-trained and qualified instructors.

i o , adventure sports ho lidays have both advantages and disadvantages Whether they suit you or not depends on your level of fitness , your personality, and how much you can afford.

6 Like I «! Share I .. Comment

e Plan the content.

1 Decide what you could say either about how many young people today choose or are forced to go and work abroad, or about how people today are interested in famous people or want to be famous themselves This will give you material for the introduction.

2 List two or three advantages and disadvantages, and number them in order of importance.

3 Decide if you think there are more advantages than disadvantages.

f Write 120-180 words , organized in four paragraphs: introduction , advantages, disadvantages (or disadvantages then advantages), and conclusion. Use a formal style (no contractions or colloquial expressions). Use the linking expressions in Useful language.

g Check for mistakes (grammar , punctuation, and spell ing).

AN ARTICLE

a Look at the three pictures. What do yo u think the parents should and shouldn't have done? Read the article and check

You probably think that your home is a very safe place. But this may not be true if you have children coming to stay Here are some tips to prevent accidents / First look at the bedroom, where the children are going to sleep Make sure the beds are not under a window, in case a child tries to climb out. If a very small child is going to sleep in the bed, you could put some pillows on the floor next to the bed, in case the child falls out. The next place to check is the bathroom Many people keep medicines in a drawer or on a shelf above the washbasin. But this can be dangerous, as children may find them and think they are sweets. You should leave them in a locked cupboard. Finally, have a look

at the kitchen , which is the most dangerous room in the house for children . Knives should be kept in drawers which children can't reach, and make sure that all cleaning liquids are in high cupboards. If you follow this simple advice, children who come to stay will never be at risk in your home.

b This article was originally written in five short paragraphs. Mark / where each new paragraph should begin

c You are going to write an article for a school magazine. With a partner, choose one of the titles below. How to keep safe if you go walking in the mountains. How to keep safe on a day at the beach. How to keep safe online.

d Plan the content.

1 Think of at least three useful tips

2 Think of a good introductory sentence (or sentences)

e Write 120-180 words. Use expressions from Useful language below, and write in a neutral or i nformal s t yle

pUseful language: giving advice

Don't forget to I Remember to Make sure you You should Never Reasons ...in case ... so (that) .because it might

f Check your article for mistakes (grammar, punctuation , and s pelling).

-lll(p.47

DESCRIBING A PHOTO

a Look at the photo and read the description. D o yo u agree with what th e writer says abou t the people?

b Complete the description with a word or phrase from the list.

behind in fro nt of in the background i n the centre foreground to her right opposite outside

pUseful language: describing a photo or picture

In the foreground I background I centre of the photo

The (man) looks as if I looks as though It looks as if I as though

The (woman) may I might be I Perhaps the woman is The photo reminds me of.

c You are going to write a description of the photo below. Plan the content. With a partner, look at the photo carefully and decide what yo u think the people are thinking or feeling. Decide how to organize what you want to say into two paragraphs.

I think this is a family photo, although none of the family members is actually looking at the camera. i/n the foreground we see the inside of a room with a glass door leading into a garden. 2 of the photo there is a girl sitting at the table , resting her head on one hand, with an open book 3 ____ her. There are two other empty chairs around the table. The girl is smiling; she looks as if she ' s daydreaming, maybe about something she's read in the book. 4 , there is another woman, who looks older than the girl , perhaps her mother. She's standing with her arms folded, looking out of the glass doors into the garden. She seems to be watching what's happening s , and she looks a bit worried .

6 , we can see a terrace, and 7 that a beautiful garden. Outside the glass doors on the right you can see a boy and a man who may be father and son. The boy is standing looking at the man, who is crouching a him . It looks as though they're having a serious conversation. Maybe the boy has been naughty, because it seems as if he's looking at the ground. This photo reminds me of a David Hockney or Edward Hopper painting, and it immediately makes you speculate about who the people are and what they are thinking.

d Write 120-180 words. Use the phrases in Useful language to help yo u.

e Check your description for mistakes (grammar, punctuation, and spelling).

... p .71

EXPRESSING YOUR OPINION

a Rea d the title of th e magazine article. Do yo u agree or disagree? T h en q uick ly read the a rticle and see i f the writer 's opinio n is the s am e a s y ours.

b Comp lete the article with a word or phrase from the list below

fina lly f irst ly for instance in addition in conclusion in most ca ses Aew-ael-ays second ly so wh ere as

c Yo u are going to write an ar ticle for a magazin e. With a partner, choose one of the titles bel ow Dow nlo a d i ng m usi c o r fi l ms with ou t pay i ng is as m uc h o f a cr i m e as s t eali ng fr o m a shop. S qu at t e r s wh o li v e i n an u n o cc up ie d p r op e r ty s hould no t b e fo r c e d to l eave i t.

d Pla n the conten t The article sho uld have fo u r or fiv e paragrap h s

1 The introduction : T h ink ab o u t wh at the cu rrent situat ion is and what your op inion is

2 T h e ma i n paragraphs : Tr y to think of at least two or th ree clear reasons to support your opinion . You could a lso inclu d e examp les to back up yo u r reasons

3 T he conclusion: Think of how to express yo u r conclusion (a su mmar y of your opinion)

e Wr i te 120-18 0 words, organized in four or five paragrap h s (i ntroduct ion, reasons , and conclusion). Use a fo r ma l styl e (no con t ractions or collo qui a l expressions) . Use the p hrases in b an d in U s efu l la n guage.

p Useful language: ways of giving your opinion

(P e rsonally) I think I I be lie ve

In my opinion .. .

In a ddition I Also

In c onclu sio n I To sum up

Ways of giving examples

There are several things we c an do, for ex ample I for instance I such as ...

Another thing we can do is

We can also

f Ch e ck your arti cle for mistakes (grammar , p u nc tu ation , and spell i ng)

<Ill( p .7 7

Community service is

best punishment for young people who commit a minor offence.

i Nowadays i n t he UK when a young person commits a mino r offence, he o r she is normally sentenced to prison , given a fine, or community service 2 I believe that community service is t he b est opt i on

3 community ser vi ce often persuades a young person not to re-offend 4 ____ working with sick children or old people makes young offenders realize that th e re are people who hav e more d iffi cult lives than they do So community service can b e an educational experience, s going to p rison or paying a fine is not.

6 spending t ime i n prison results in young p eople mee t ing other criminal s and learning more about the criminal world, which m ay t em pt th e m into comm itting mor e crimes 7 in prisons many of the inmates t ake drugs and this is a terrible example fo r young offenders.

a I do not think that a fine is a suitable punishment for young people. They do not usually have much money t hemselves, 9 it is often the i r parents who pay th e fine fo r them

io I bel ieve that community service has important advantages both for mino r offenders and for the commun ity.

the

A REPORT

a Read the report on restaurants. With a partner, and think of s uitable headings for paragraphs 1, 3, and 4.

b You have been asked to write a report on either good places for eating out or entertainment in your town for an English language magazine. With a partner, plan the content.

1 Decide which report yo u are going to write 2 Decide what headings yo u can u se to divide up yo ur report.

3 Decide what information to includ e under each heading.

c Write 120-180 words, organized in three or four paragraphs with a heading . Use a neutral/ formal style, an d u se expr essio n s from Useful language for generalizing.

pUseful language: talking in general fvlost I The majority of (cinemas in my town ) (Cinemas) are usually I tend to be (quite cheap) In general.. I Generally speaking almost always I nearly always

d Check your report for mistakes (grammar, punctuation, and spelling).

p.91

Eating out in London

This report describes various options for students who want to eat out while staying in London.

1

Fast food - The majority of fast-food restaurants are c heap and clean and the service is fast, but they are often noisy and crowded , and of course t he food is the same all over the world World food - London has restaurants offering food from many parts of the world, for example India , and China. These are often relatively inexpensive and have good-quality food and a nice atmosphere.

2 Va lue far money

Gastropubs - These are pubs which serve high-quality food but tend to be slightly cheaper than the majority of mid-range restaurants. Generally speaking, t he food is well-cooked and some have very imaginative menus.

Italian restaurants - You can normally get a good pasta dish and a salad in most Italian restaurants without spending too much, but be careful, some restaurants have very expensive wine lists.

3

There are many options if you want to try somewhere special, but be aware that this nearly always means spending a lot of money French restaurants, for example, are often expensive , and also restaurants run by celebrity chefs.

4

• Don't make your meal cost more by order ing ex pensive drinks

• If you have a special restaurant in mind, don't forget to book in advance because the best restaurants are usually full, espec ially at weekends.

• Even if you have a limited budget, take advantage of the different restaurants that London has to offer.

9>))

1 I was being inre r v iewed for a job with an advertising age n cy and th e inter v iewer kept checking inform at ion o n my CV a nd th e n ask in g me about it , and be s aw that I'd s tudied philoso phy at uni versity, and he said , 'Oh , I see that you stud ied Philosophy at university. D o you s till practise philosophy ?' So I sa id , ' Well , I still think a l ot'. Anyway h e obvious ly lik ed th e answe r b eca us e Tgot the job.

2 At m y job interview to become a n editor wi th a publi s hing compa ny , there were three people ask in g question s : tw o managers, a nd a w o man from Human Resources. A ll the question s h ad been pretty n orma l, they were about my s tudies and exper ience, and then s udd en ly the woman from Huma n R eso urces asked m e, ' What wou ld make yo u kick a dog? ' I was totally flustered but I managed to answer- I said, 'I ' d o nl y kick it if the dog had bad grammar and cou ldn ' t punctuate prope rly'. l thought it was quite a cleve r answer and , in fac t , I got the job!

3 W h e n I wa s app ly in g for a teaching job in Kor ea, they were d o ing the i nterviews b y phon e becau se I was in the US. And because of the time differe nce they were a ll very early in the morning, wh ich is not m y b es t time. An yw a y, the Director of Studi es of this particular s chool as ked me, 'How ta ll are yo u?' and, 'How much do yo u weig h?' I answered bis que s tions but after the inte rview, when I thought about it , I decided that I didn't want to work in a school that would jud ge me by my height or my weight. So later, when they offered me th e job, I turned it down.

4 I was being interviewed for a job with a company in Swit ze rland and the interv iewer asked me, ' Wha t animal wou ld you like to b e reinc arnated as?' So I said a cat, because it was the first thing I tho u ght of and because cats have a good li fe - well at least in Britain they do. And then the inte rviewer immediately lo oked a bit embarrassed and said that he had been told to ask me that question to see ho w I would react , but that he thought it was a stup id question In th e end 1 didn ' t get the job, so maybe the interviewer wasn ' t very fond of cats

5 I went for a job in a la wyer's office. There we re t wo of us waiting to be inter v iewed - me and a man about the sa me age as me - and be was ni ce so we we re chatting before we we nt in , and we ag reed to ha ve a coffee afterwards. Well, I went in fir st , and they asked me the usual sort s of questions about my previous job. Th ey had a ll my personal inform ation on my CV and so they kne w I was married and sudden ly the y asked me, 'Are yo u planning to have children?' I sa id 'not in the immediate future but maybe one day'. Afterwards whe n I was having coffee with the other candidate, I asked him if h e'd been asked the same question , and be said no, even though be was married, too. In fact we both got offered jobs , but I sti ll think it was a very sexist question to a s k

1 10 >))

Adam Faros b egan to look very carefully at the coffee grounds in Chris ' cup and to tell him what she could see. I r emem b er that the first thin g she sa id was that s be could see 'sacks of money' -and this wa s very acc urate because Chris h ad worked in Sau di Arabia for severa l years and h ad earned a lot of money there She also said that she could see 'a blonde lad y' Well , Ca rl a, Chr is 's girlfriend at that time , was blonde so that was spot on, too But then Faro s suddenl y looked very serious and she said , ' l ca n see somebody in yo ur family who is ill, ver y ill, at this moment.'

I remember thinking, ' Oh no! Don't ruin a nice eve ning!' But C hri s is quite a la id-back sort of p e r so n a nd be didn ' t seem to be too worried b y what she'd s aid. He just said , ' Well, as far as I know the people in m y family are OK' C hris is an only child and his mother lived with he r s is t e r in London. They w e re b o th in their sevent ies Fatos said one or t wo more things and then we asked

the waiter for the bill and sa id o ur goodbyes. le was a slightly weird e nd to what h a d b een a very e nj oyab le evening. I can r eme mber fee lin g quite r el ie ved that I had sa id ' n o' wh e n Faros asked me if s h e co uld re a d m y coffee cup. Chris and I got a t ax i back to our hotel. The next da y Chris h ad a free m ornin g , b ec ause it was my turn to do the teacher trainfog sess io n in the h o tel , so b e went off ea rl y co go s ightseeing in Istanbul. Aro un d nine o'cl ock I got a call on my m o bile. It was Chris's girlfriend, Ca rl a, calling from th e U K. She told me that s h e n eeded to talk to C hr is ur ge ntly but ch at he was n ' t a ns we rin g bis mobile. I could cell b y h e r voice chat s h e bad some ver y bad n e ws for him a nd l immediately th o ught of w hat Fatos had sa id the ni g ht before and I felt a shiver run down m y spine.

l asked Carla what had happen e d a nd s he told m e that Chris's a unt h ad died s uddenl y in t he ni g ht. So, was it jus t a spooky coi ncide nce, or did Faros really see what s h e sa id she saw in t h e coffee cup? I spoke to her b efo r e I left Istanbu l and I told her that Chr is ' s a unt b a d di ed the night th a t we h a d dinner. Sh e wasn' t at a ll surprised and she just sa id , ' Yes , I saw in th e cup th at someone in his family was n ea r to death , but I didn ' t wa ne to fri g hten him so I just sa id that the person was very ill .' All I can say is th a t I alwa ys u sed t o be very sceptica l a b o ut fortune celling bur n ow, well , I'm n o r so s ure.

17 >))

What's in yo ur signatu re?

Our s ignature is very muc h part of the way in which we pres e nt o urselves to the world , so it can d e finit e ly give u s s ome clues abou t the kind of pers on we are and h ow we fee l about o urselves.

As yo u know, a p e r son 's s ignature usually consis t s o f a first name a nd a s urn a m e, or an initial a nd a s urname. Yo ur first n ame re prese nts yo ur priva t e self-how yo u are with your fam il y; and yo ur s urname represents your publi c se lf-the way y ou a r e at work or s chool , and in your socia l life

If yo u u se o nly initials e ithe r for yo ur first name o r yo ur surname in y our signature, ch.is mea n s chat you are mo re secre ti ve and protective a bout eith er yo ur private or public self

Now look at th e space between yo ur name and s urname. Are the two names very close to gethe r , or is there a reaso n a ble space between the m? Th e more space there is b e twee n yo ur name and yo ur surname, the m ore yo u wish to kee p the se two parts of yo ur p e r so nalit y se para te.

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The size ofyour signature

Now le t 's look at th e size of yo ur s i g nature. If yo ur fir st name is bigger and more pro minent in yo ur s igna ture this norniall y m ea ns th at yo ur ' pri va t e' self is m o re imp o rtant to yo u than yo ur ' public' self. If your s urn ame is bigger and more pro min e nt , thi s probab ly means that yo ur 'public' se lf is m ore importa nt to yo u.

If yo ur who le s ignatur e i s ver y bi g compared with th e re s t ofyo ur writ in g thi s n o rmall y means ch a t you are quite a self- confide n t p e r so n. Some people act u ally sign in ca pita l letters , whi c h s ugg ests that th ey may be bi ghe aded or even arrogant rather th a n just self-confident. On the other h a nd , p eo ple w ho sign their nam e w ith a very sma ll signature tend t o be ins ec ure and ha ve low self-esteem.

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The legibility ofyour signature

Another important factor is how legible your signature is- in othe r words how easy it is to r ead. A l eg ibl e signat ure rends to mean char you ' re a per so n with cl ea r ideas and object ives. On the other h and if you r signature is difficult to read this m ay impl y that yo u 're someb ody who doe s n't think very clearly a nd cha t yo u m ay be disorgani zed or inde cisive It can a lso me a n that yo u ' re quit e secretive.

Generally s p ea kin g the m ore illeg ible yo ur signature i s , the less assert ive yo u probabl y a r e as a person.

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The angle ofyo ur signature

Finally l want to say something about the angle of yo ur s igna tu re, that 's to say whe ther your sig n a ture is h o ri zo nt a l , or goes up or goes d ow n o n t h e pa ge.

A risi n g signature, one which goes up, means that you are t he k i nd of per son w h o , when y ou ' re faced with p ro blem s , will work hard to over com e chem You're a determined person a nd probably opt im istic and ambitious. A d escend ing s ignatur e, that i s o n e whic h goes down, sugges t s that you' r e the kind of per so n who gets disheartened or d epressed w h en yo u 're face d w ith problems , perhaps because yo u a re not ve r y se lf- co nfident. A h o ri zo ntal s i g n ature, o n e w h ic h goes straight across cbe p age, us u a ll y indicates a person w h o is we ll-balanc ed a nd e m o tionall y s table, and so me one who is gene r ally sa t isfied with the way their life i s going. But it 's wort h be ar i ng in mi nd that the a ngle of o u r signature m ay c h ange at different times of ou r li ves , d ependin g o n h ow we are feeling.

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Part 1

Interviewer W h at 's the first t hing yo u ' re looking for in a candidate for a job?

Ryan The first thing yo u ' re looki n g fo r with a jo b ca ndida te is an enthu s i as m for the ro le, yo u ' re a ls o loo kin g for them to de mo n strate experience, er, r e levant to the pos ition.

Interviewer How do you get candidates to relax in the inte r view?

Ryan It's imp o rtant to e ngage wit h t h e can did ate st r a igh t away, so when yo u collect them from reception o r fr o m th e, the front of t he building wh atever it may b e , yo u want t o kind of greet t h em in a friendly ma n ner , yo u want to ask them some ge n e ral qu es ti o n s, just tal king about their jo u rney into the in terv iew or, u rn, the weath er or h ave t h ey been to the city be fo re.

Interviewer And durin g t he inte rvie w?

Ryan During a n interv iew, once it h as commenced I w ill always try to s t a rt the interview with some gen eral q u es ti ons, just to allow the candida te to talk a b o ut t h emselves, to talk abo u t th eir CV, thei r background , um, and ofte n w h e n a candidate is talking abo u t so m e thing they know, w hich i s themselves and t h at they've b een doin g, urn, t h ey' r e able to se ttl e d ow n much m o re quickly and have an elemen t of confid e nce aro und, er, w hat they ' r e ca lking.

Interviewer Is it important for candidates to as k t h e int erv iewer questions and i f so wh at k ind of questions should cand idates ask?

Ry a n Q u es tions can b e r e lated to any thi ng , so I personally woul d e n cou ra ge candid ates to ask questions r ace d to any aspect of employment and most recruiters wo uld welcome that sor t o f inte r action as an oppo rtunit y to actually give a little mo r e information about the com pany.

Interviewer l s it OK fo r ca ndid ates to ask a bout the money o r the sa lary at th e interview?

Ryan Of course, and ca ndid ates s h ould be honest and rea list ic abo ut the ir ex pe ctat ions too ; an inter v iew is a n appropr iate environ m ent to ask such a question es p ecia ll y if salary o r , er, salary ba ndin g was n ot id e ntified i n the job adv e rt.

Interviewer How imp ort ant are CVs and cover ing letters?

Ryan CVs a r e very i mp orta n t to a rec ruiter because it ac tu a ll y provides an overview of a candidate' s background , their e mpl oy m ent, wha t they 've been doi ng to dac e, but a cover letter can ac tu ally be mo r e i m p o rt a nt b ec ause th at's w h e r e a candidate will actua ll y li st a nd identify how they m eet t h e criter ia for the post , so it allows a ca ndid ate to be ve r y spec ific about demonst rati ng what skills and

expe rience they h ave that would be r elevant and o fr e n that skill and experience ma y be missed on a CV whe n you'r e loo kin g at a wider ca r eer histo r y

Interviewer What's rh e worst thin g a jo b ca ndidate ca n do when they ' r e app ly ing for a job?

Ryan First thing , is o bvio usl y, m aki n g mistakes o n their a ppli ca ti o n , um , ch at 's a lways viewed negatively depending on the ro le th ey' re a ppl ying for. Um, a lso coming to an inrerview lat e, coming to an interv iew unprepared. 24 >))

Part2

Interviewer Ca n yo u give us an examp le of so me of the more difficulc inter views yo u 've been involved in?

R ya n I've been in interviews where ca ndidates h aven' t been prepared a nd h ave not b ee n a ble t o, from the s tart, answer some of the qu est io n s, um, one particular s itu a ti o n was whe n a ca ndida te actually thoug ht rh ey were being inte rvi ew ed for some thin g co mpl etel y different, um , so again yo u h ave to actually think h ow d o yo u deal with that s itu a ti on, do yo u s t o p th e inte rvi ew o r do yo u ca rr y o n ?

Interviewer An y thing e lse that h as s urprised yo u durin g an interview?

Ryan There was another s itu a tion where, e r, a ca ndidate act u a lly produced food durin g th e inte rvi ew, e r , in the middle o f answer ing a question, rh ey stoppe d a nd rumm aged in th eir bag ro pull o ut a KitKat , um , which took b oth myself and the inter viewing m anager by s urprise, we did ask and enq uire as to what s h e was d o in g, er, at w hi c h point s he actually a dv ised s h e was a diabet ic and just felt a t that particular m o m e nt , um , that s he ju s t needed a li ttle, e r , something t o eat to ca lm things, w hic h was abso lu tely fin e, but again durin g th e inte r v iew when she hadn't anno un ced that 's why she was doing it, it was a bit of a s urprise.

Interviewer H ow important is the way a candidate dresses fo r a n inte r view?

Ryan A ca ndid ate's dress for interview is important because it s h ows h ow ser ious they take rh e s it u a ti on. Um , howeve r , I would a lways recommend th at candjdat es wou ld come to interview, um , in a dress that is approp ri a te for the r ole th ey' re applyi n g for. In to d ay's modern, er, recruitment , er, environment it 's no t a lways necessary for a , a g uy co wear a s uit co an interv iew, h oweve r yo u would expect to see a s hirt , yo u would expect to see a blaze r, yo u wo uld expect, ex p ec t t o see ap propri ate footwear and th e same fo r a, a lad y as well, um , certa in clothes , certain types of footwea r would be in app ropri ate to come into an interview and may se t a perception of th at candidate w hic h is perhaps incorrect

Intervi ewer H ave you ever h ad an interview with someone who was dressed very i n appropr ia tel y?

Ryan I h a d a n interview o n one occasion where a ca ndid a te act u a ll y arrived in t e nni s gea r, a white T-s hirt a nd s horts, they 'd lite rally come s t ra ight from t h e tennis co urt a nd t hey b ad simply forgo tten th e inte r view was o n t h at d ay, had s udd e nl y had the remjnder that actua ll y they we re d ue co be at the inte r view, so th ey th ought t h ey would co m e a nyway as they were , um , I d id see the ca ndidate and they were ac tu a ll y very impress ive, we ju s t had to m ove past the , the cl othin g aspect but actua ll y it was quite funny and a ll owed a rea l opportu ru ty co engage with that particular candidate from rhe s t a rt.

Interviewer Did that perso n get the job?

Ryan No, they didn'c. 25 >))

Part3

Interviewer What ca n yo u te ll u s abo ut ex t reme interview in g, tha t is askjng candidates very s tran ge qu estion s like 'What d inosa ur would yo u be?'?

Ryan OK, extreme inte rviewing is a technique used by rec ruite r s to p ut the candidate in a situation that they may not h ave been in b efo re , um , o r co, put them, g ive t hem a scenar io w h e r e t h ey h ave co chink quickl y, wh ere they h ave co di gest informatio n , wh ere they perhaps have co probl e m so lve b efore giving an answer

Interviewer Have you u sed ir yo urse l f?

Ryan It 's nor som ething t h at l h ave direct experience of, but I am awa re of some of the techniques that t hey u se an d som e of the qu estions that co uld be use d. U m , l was reading recently a bout, um, extreme inte r view in g techniques use d fo r an ins ur a n ce

company, they asked candidates to describe , they asked candidates during the interview how they wou ld desc rib e Facebook to their g r a ndmother?

W h at the recruiter was lookin g fo r was fo r ch at ca ndid a t e to display an e lemenc of, um , recbnica l skills and technkal aware ness, a lso co d isplay com munication s skills and bow they wo uld explai n Facebook to an a udi ence or co somebody who doesn ' t understand modern technology or modern social me di a.

Interviewer Do you have any others?

R yan One l was readi n g about re centl y was posed to ca ndid a tes dur ing an interview, er , where they we r e looki n g to assess a ca nrud are's ab ility ro multitask. The candidates we r e asked whether rhey wo uld want co fight a horse-sized duck or a hundred duck-sized horses. Depending on the answ er one or a hundred that wo uld porenrially dictate whether t h a t cand id ate was most co m fo rtabl e multitas kin g o r d ealin g with o ne, er, situ ation o r o n e o bj ective at a time.

Inter viewer What would your answer to char qu estio n have been?

R ya n I, w hen I read it I b ad to re-read it fo ur times, and that 's just m e reading it. In an inrerview I would h ave bad to have asked for that q uestio n to be repeated a nd I' m not eve n su re ifl wo uld h ave been ab le to give an im mediate respon se b ecau se I wou ld still be trying to und erstand w h at exactl y rhey we re ask i ng of me I g uess for me personally, when 1thought about it , 1wo uld have said one horse-s ized duck , um, but that would potentially mean that I'm not able to multitask! So

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Interviewer W h en did yo u las t h ave a n interview for a job or a place on a cou r se?

Jeanine The last time 1had an interview for a job was in 20 11.

Interviewer How did yo u prepare for the interview?

Jeanine I took a lot of Rescue Remedy to help my nerves and I, J just practi se d every question that the y co uld as k me i n my h ead.

Interviewer Did th e inre rview go we ll ?

Jeanine No, it didn't I didn' t get t h e job.

Interviewer When did you last have a n interview for a job o r a place on a course?

Jo Err, abou t two months ago.

Interv iewe r How did yo u prepare for the int erv iew?

Jo Well, I looked at th e job description and thou g ht abo ut my experie n ce, um, a nd t he n tr ie d to m a tch my experie n ce ro the various different poi nts o n rbe job interview.

Interviewer D id the interview go well?

Jo ltd id.

Interviewer How do you know it went well?

Jo Becau se they offered me the job

Interviewer When did yo u lase have an interview for a job or a place on a co urs e?

Iva n ! last bad an intervi ew for a job a few weeks ago, um , that's the las e time I bad an intervi ew for a job.

Interviewer H ow did yo u prepare for the interview?

Ivan To prepare for the job interview I read about the co mpany and learned abo ut whar they d id and to see if ! liked t h e work that th ey did.

Interviewer Did the interview go we ll ?

Ivan I chink it went we ll because they fo llowed up wit h an ema il , um , co ta l k about, um, further opportunities at th a t company.

Interviewer W h en did yo u last have an i nterview for a job or a pla ce on a co urse?

Yasuko Um, the last interview ch at I h ad was fo r m y c urrent compa n y that I work for, and t h at was a b o ur two years ago.

Interviewer How did yo u prepare fo r rb e interview?

Yasuko I prepared fo r the interview by, um , res doing a little research on the compa ny, rhe kind of prod u cts t h at t hey make, um, the, their philosophy, th e his tory and rhe background of the company.

Interviewer Did the interview go well ?

Yasuko I think th e interview we nt we ll beca use it was actua ll y a long inte r view. I h a d a lot of good conversarion with the managers there, a n d I also gor a few more interviews afte rward s, a nd even tually got the job, so the, the interviews wenr well.

Interviewer When did you las t have a n interview for a job or a place o n a co ur se?

Joos t About three months ago.

Interviewer How did you prepare fo r the inte r view?

Joost 1read about the company a nd I knew wh ar the job content was , a nd I kn ew everyt hin g that I had to know for the inte r view, I was well-pr epared to answer their questions.

Interviewer Did the interview go well?

Joost Jc wenr well. In the end they said I was too you ng, so they rudn 't hire me , but, yea h. t h ey wou ld have ifl was older , they said.

41>))

So, Dr Ca nn o n , D o yo u m eet a lot of cybercho ndriacs in yo ur wor k ?

D A ll the time, I' m afra id. It's very common nowadays for people to look up t h eir symp to m s on health websites on the internet and to diagnose themselves with weird or exotic illnesses! For example the ot her day I had a patient who came in because his b ack was ve r y red and itchy. H e h ad been look in g o n internet medical sites and was abso lute ly convinced th a t h e bad an extreme ly r are skin con di t ion - he even knew the medical name : nodul ar panniculitis But , in fac t w he n I exa mine d him and talked ro him it tu rn ed out rbar h e bad spenc the weekend gardening in the sun a nd hi s back was s unburnt.

So yo u would prefer yo ur parients not to ch eck their sympto m s o n t h e inter net?

D No, d o n ' t get me wrong, I ' m not anti health websites, I just want people to use rhem sensib ly. The problem is th at diagnosis of a condition or an ill ness does n 't jusr depend on one specific symptom t h at yo u can type into Google. le depends on all sorts of ocher thi n gs li ke a patient 's appearan ce, their blood pressure, th eir heart rate, and so o n I Of co urse.

D A nd diagnosis a lso depends on whe r e yo u l ive. For exa mple, if yo u li ve in west Lo n don and yo u have n 't rrave lled abroad, it's very unlike ly that yo u have malaria even if yo u h ave some of the symptom s. What o th er problems are there when people use h ea lth web s it es?

D Well , yo u have to c heck carefu ll y what ki nd of site it is thar yo u ar e looking a t Some websites loo k as if the y h ave been created by hea lth professio n als, but in fact they've been se c up by commercial companies t h at are cry ing to sell yo u something. Also, some American healthca r e s ites recommend expe nsive treatments or medicine that is not availa ble h ere in the UK.

I Are there any websi res which yo u wo uld r eco mmend?

D O h yes, abso lute ly. For example, peop le with c h ronic diseases lik e as thma can get a lot of h el p a nd in format io n from o n line suppo r t gro ups. These websites have forums whe r e you can talk co oc her people who have the same condition and illness and you ca n usuall y get in fo rmation about t h e latest research and new treatmenrs. And there are often on lin e support gro ups for people w ho h ave unusual illn esses, too.

Finall y, do yo u have any rips for a ll t hose cy bercbondriacs out the r e?

D Yes, I have three. First, only look o nline after you've been to the d octor If you'r e not feeling well, make a lis t of the sy mptoms yo u h ave that are worry ing yo u , and go and see yo ur doctor wit h thi s li st. The n when your doctor b as to ld yo u what h e o r s he chi nks, you co uld have a look o n line.

Second ly, make s ure yo u 're looking at a reliable and professio n al medical website. And finally, re member that commo n sy m ptoms us uall y h ave comm o n ca use s -so if yo u have diarrhoea , for example, it 's much more likely to be food po isoni n g than the Ebola virus.

Doc tor Cannon , thank yo u very much.

45 >))

P Welcome to today's programme in our series on age. T h e topic is cloch es, and the qu es tion is, do people n owadays dress their age, and s h ou ld they? O ur guests are b o th fas hi o n jo u rnal is t s with well-known m agazines. He ll o, Li za a nd Adrian.

L +A H e ll o. Hi!

P Lee's sta r t with yo u , Li za.

L We ll , the first thing I'd li ke to say co a ll the young peop le out rhere is next time you give yo ur granny a warm cardigan and some s li ppers for her b irt hd ay, don 't be s ur prised i f s h e asks for the receipt, because she' ll probably wan t to go o ut a n d c h a n ge them for so mething more excit in g.

P So yo u think no wadays women in their s i xties a nd seve nti es dress mu c h yo unger th a n they u se d co?

L Oh, a b solure ly. Think of wome n like Sophia Loren, Catherine D e n e uv e , Helen Mirren, a nd Jan e Fonda. Ja n e Fonda is in her late seve ntie s and las t m ont h s h e was on a US ralk show wearing a leath er mini s kirt -s h e loo ked fabulous! Bur , of co ur se , it is n't just famous wo m e n who are dress in g yo un ger; some rece nt r esea rc h says char nin e out o f ten women say char th ey tr y to dre ss yo un ge r than their years.

P Do yo u chink that 's tru e?

L Well , it d e p e nd s o n yo ur age of course. A lo t of t ee na ge girls rr y ro dress olde r than t h ey a re, maybe to ge t int o pubs and bars. Bur I would say th at fr om 30 o nward s mos t women tr y to dress yo un ger th an the y are.

P And d o you think th e r e's a nyt hing wrong with th at?

L Actually, I think it 's n o t a qu es ti o n of dressing o ld e r or you n ge r , it 's a question of wearing what suits you And if yo u looke d good in jeans w h e n you were 15 , if yo u kee p yo ur figure yo u'll p r obably look good in th e m when yo u ' re 80. There a re a few th i n gs which ca n look a bit ridi c ul o u s o n an o lder wo m a n , lik e , le t 's see, ve r y s h o rt s h o res bur nor m a n y

P So your fashion rul e wou ld be ?

L W ea r whatever yo u chink s uits yo u a nd m akes yo u fee l good

P Adri a n , w h a t abo ut m e n? D o yo u think they a lso cry ro look yo unger than the ir age?

A Well , inte res tin g ly, in che resea rc h Liza m e ntio n ed , o nl y 12 %ofrhe men who were qu est ioned sa id they had eve r th o u g ht a b o ut dressing to loo k yo un ger. Bur act u a ll y I think a lot o f chem we ren't t e llin g the truth. Look a c a ll th ose middl e -aged men yo u see wearing jeans which a r e coo ri g hc an d incredibly bright T - s hirt s.

P You don't a pprove?

A o, I don't. Pe r so n a ll y I think th a t m e n s h o uld rake their age in to accounc when they ' re b u y in g clothes.

P Do yo u think th a t som e men ac tuall y dress o lder than th e ir age?

A Yes, d e finit e ly , so me do. Some men in th ei r tw e nti es loo k as i frhey we r e 20 yea r s o ld er b y wearing bl azers and chinos , o r wea rin g s uits and ti es a lJ the rim e w h e n th ey don 't h ave to. They've m ay b e just started work a nd they want t h eir bosses to rake th e m m o r e se riou s ly. And a lo t o f m e n in th e ir thirties re a lize that they ca n ' t dress like a ree na ge r any more , but ch ey go t o rh e op p os ite ex trem e a nd th ey sta rt buying th e so rt o f clothes tha t their fa thers wea r.

P So what would your fashion rule be for men?

A Dress for the age you a r e, not for the age yo u wish yo u were

P Li za a nd Adrian, th a nk yo u ve r y much.

2 >))

Ladi es a nd ge ntl e m e n , welcom e on b oard this flight t o H o n g K o ng Please pla ce a ll hand lu ggage in th e ove rh ea d co mpa rtm ents or und e rn ea th ch e sea r in front of yo u. W e as k char yo u please fasten yo ur seatb e lts a nd , for safe t y r easo n s , we a d v ise yo u co keep th e m faste n e d throu g h o ut the fli g ht.

2 We a lso ask th at yo u m ake s ur e yo ur seats and table trays are in the upright position for take-off. Please turn off a ll personal e lec troni c d evices, in cl udin g laptops a nd ce ll phones We remind yo u that s moking is pro hibited for the duration of ch e flighc

3 Ladies and ge ntl emen, may we h ave yo ur spec ia l a ttent io n for th e fo ll ow in g safety insc ru c ci o n s. Please r ead t h e safety instructions card which is located in che pocket of t h e sea r in front ofyo u . T h e re a re s i x e m e rge n cy ex its o n chis aircraft, a ll marked wi th exit s ig n s. Take a minute to lo ca t e the ex it cl osest co yo u. Note t h at th e n ea rest ex ic m ay be behind yo u

4 The safe t y inst ru ctio n card is in rhe pocket o f che sear in fron t ofyo u P lease read it It s h o w s yo u th e e quipm e nt carri e d o n t hi s ai r craft for your safety. Your life jacker is loca ted under yo ur sear In the unlike ly event o f the a irc raft la ndin g on wacer, p lace the Ii fe jacket over yo ur head , fasten the straps a t the fronc, a nd pu ll t h em tight. Do n or inflate the jacker inside the a irc raft. As you leave the a ircraft, p ull d own rhe red tabs to inflate th e vesc. I f n ecessary, the life jacket c an be inflated by blowing through t h ese rubes. 7 >))

Interviewer With me in th e s tudi o today I h ave Richard, w h o's a piloc, and Brynn, who' s a n air craffic contro ll er, and t h ey a re go in g to a n s w e r so m e of rhe

m os t frequently asked questions a b out flying and ai r travel. Hell o co both of yo u

Richard and Brynn H ello.

Interviewer Right , we ' re go in g co start with you, Richard. The first question is what weacher co nditions a re the mosc dangerous when flying a plane?

Richard Probably th e most dangerous weat h e r co nditi o n s are when the wi nd c h a n ges direction ve r y s udd e nl y. E r this re nd s ro h appen during thunderscorms a nd typhoons a nd it ' s es p ec ia ll y dangerous during rake-off a nd lan ding. Bur it 's quite unusu a l- I 've been fl y ing fo r 37 yea r s n ow and I ' ve o nly experienced this three o r fou r rim es.

Interviewer What abo u t turbu le n ce? l s ch ar dangerous?

Richard Ir ca n ve r y bumpy and ve r y un comfo rtab le bur it is n ' t dangerous. Even strong turbule n ce won't d amage the plane Pilots a lways cry co avoid turbulence , bur ic ca n some tim es occur wich ouc any warning, whfr h is why we a lways advise passengers co wear their sea tb e lt a ll the time during rhe flight.

Interviewer Which is more dangerous, rake-off or landin g?

Richard Boc h cake-off a nd la ndin g ca n be dangerous. They ' re th e m ost dangerous moments of a fli g ht. Pilots t a lk a b o u t th e ' criti cal e ighc minutes' - th e chree minutes after rake-off a nd the five minutes before landing. Most accide nts happe n in this period. Bur I wo uld say thac cake-off is probably s lig htl y m o re d a n gerous t h a n la ndin g. T h e re is a critical moment just before take-off whe n th e plane is acce le r a t i n g , bur ic h asn't yet reached rhe speed co be ab le ro fly. If the pilot has a problem with the pla n e at this point, h e h as very liccle time - maybe only a second - to abort the cake-off.

Interviewer Are some airports more dangerous tha n othe r s?

Richard Yes , some a r e - pa rti c ul a rl y ai rp o rts with hi g h m o uncajns around them a nd a ir ports in countri es wich o ld er o r m ore basic n avigation eq uipm e nt. Fo r so m e diffi cul t a irp o rts lik e, let ' s say Kathmandu , they o nl y a llow ve r y expe ri e n ced pi lots ro la nd rh e re And for so m e of these a irp o rt s , pilots h ave to practise o n a s imul ator first b efo re th ey are g ive n permission to la nd a pla n e there.

Inte rviewer Thanks , R icha rd Over co yo u , Brynn. What perso n a l qu a lities d o yo u think you n eed co be an a ir craffic co nt ro ll er?

Brynn I think co nfid ence is number o n e. You need to be a self-confident person, yo u h ave be sure of yourself a nd ofrhe deci ions you ' re making.

Interviewer Most people im agine char be i ng an air traffic controll e r is very s rr essfu I. Do yo u ag r ee?

Bry nn Actually, o n a da il y basi , the job isn' t as st r essfu l as people chink Obvious ly it's cru e char s tressful s itu at io n s do arise, bur w h e n yo u ' r e very busy, yo u just d on ' t h ave rim e ro get st r esse d Interviewer Why is it important fo r pil ots a nd co ntro ll e r s to h ave goo d , clear E n g li s h ?

Brynn Englis h is th e officia l lang ua ge of a i r t r affic control. We commu nicate wi th pilocs u s ing very specific phrases like ru11way, 111ind , cl earedfor takeoff. turbulen ce, traffic a/1ead, to your left , to y o u rig/it, things Like ch ar, and it 's true that yo u could just learn these speci fi e phrases Bur chen in a n eme r genc y yo u don't know what language yo u might need, ic 's mu ch less pred ictable, w hi ch is why it's v iral for pi lots and air tr affic cont r o llers co speak reall y good , clea r Engli s h

Richard I f! could just interrupt h e re, in fact there h ave been seve r a l air crash es w hi c h happened because the a ir traffic contro ll er misunderstood so m et hin g char the pilo t had sa id in E n g li s h , o r vice ve r sa , b eca u se their pron un c iat ion was n ' t cl ear eno u g h

Brynn Yes, th at 's ri g ht.

Intervi e w Fina ll y, people rend to think t h at m os t p il ots a nd airr r affic contro ll ers are m e n. Wou Id you say ch a t was true?

Bry nn Nor in a ir traffic control - th e re are lots of women. Ir may n ot be fifty- fifty, b ur there are p lenty of u s.

Richard Ir's t ru e about pilots, though. I mean there are some women pilo t s , b ur it's s till quite a ma ledom in ared job, I'd say.

Int e r viewe r Why do you think that is?

Richard Pe op le say it 's b e ca use men have a beccer s ens e of d irection

Brynn Very funny.

Interviewer Ri cha rd , Brynn, chank you very muc h. 20 l))

Part2

' How does it feel?' houced S ca n

Susa n sm iled The little gun was s urpri si ngl y pleasant co hold. S h e h e ld it in h e r ri g ht hand, ai m ed it as Stan h ad i nstructed h e r, felt a n gry o n ce aga in w h e n s h e thought of th e mugging, a nd pulled the trigger.

' H ey, that's good !' S t a n s h o ute d.

S h e'd n eve r h ea r d him s h out before, but then that was rhe o nl y p oss ible way to co mmuni cate a r rhe Ta r gec S h oot in g R a n ge. S u sa n wa nte d to blow the s m o k e away from the end ofr h e g un like Jo hn W ay n e.

' I want to s h oo t another r o und ,' s he sa id , confid e ntl y.

' Good eve nin g, lad ies .'

The expert in se l f·defense scood bes ide a la r ge projected screen.

'The victim of a mugging u sua ll y looks like this .'

A picture of a littl e o ld woma n now ap p ea r ed on rhe sc reen. She was carrying a shopp ing bag in one h a nd a nd a purse in rh e ocher.

' S h e looks v ulnerable a nd weak. The mu gger likes her-it'll be easy fo r him co rake what h e wa nts and run H e wo n ' t c h oose a vic tim w h o looks as if she might fi g ht back.'

A picture of a yo un ger woman n ow appea r e d o n rh e sc reen. She loo ked stro n g and fit, an d her hand s were free.

' If you want to avo id being mugged, walk confid ently! Keep yo u r h ead up Pull yo u r s h o ulders back. Don't ca rry a lot of packages a nd keep yo ur hand s free. Carry your p urse un de r yo ur arm. Look as if you know where yo u 're go in g , even if yo u don ' t. Thar mugger should thi nk you're roug h Any questions so fa r ?'

Susan raised h er h a nd

'Is there a n y way ro id entify a typical mugger?'

The in structor s miled

'He 's the o n e wearing d ark cloches, hiding in che bushes.'

Eve r yo n e bur S u sa n la u g h ed This was the third week of the self-d efe n se co urse. Th e first week , they'd lea rn e d to sc r ea m lo udl y a nd to run away fast. T h e seco nd , th ey'd loo ked at keys a nd scissors as potential defence weapons. This week the copic was , ' Who l s a Li kely Mugging Vict im ?'

Ar the end of the class, the women a ll walked o ur co nfid ently, with their h eads high. T h ey didn 't walk near any bushes on t h e ir way co their cars.

Stan was delighted ar how much stronge r a nd more confident S u sa n seemed after o nl y chree weeks of se l fdefense classes.

'You ' re r ea ll y doing well ,' h e said , an d kissed rh e top of h er head. 'I've never seen yo u so sing le-m ind ed. "

'Well, some thin gs in li fe a r e important,' S u san said. 'And, anyway, I' m s till so a n g r y abouc being robbe d! ' Nobody was go in g to mistak e h e r for a vic tim agai n. 23 >))

Part 1

Int e r viewer What was your favo u rite book w h e n yo u we r e a c hild ?

Julia Ir 's a lways ve r y difficult thinking b ack to one 's favourite book as a ch ild because, e r , d i ffere nt rimes were different favour ite books , b ur t he book chat I remember be r that I go back to in rimes of wanting to have a q ui et moment of, er, reflection is a book by Rosemary S ut cliffe called Warrior Scarle t , a nd why it appea led co me is ve r y h ard ro say, it' s abo ut a boy with a w it h e r ed a rm in th e Iro n Age who can ' t gee hi s p lace in rhe tribe becau se h e can't kil l a wolf. l probably r ead it o n ce a year even n ow.

Int erv iewer Even n ow?

Juli a We ll , yes because there is a specia l thing about reading a book that you love d as a c hild it rakes you back co ch a r rim e. You , t y pically i f yo u ask people about th e ir favourite book as, as a ch il d or t h e book ch ar made chem a read e r , wh ic h I chink is anot h er way oflook in g at it , they can remember a fantast ic a m ount about it, they can often remember w h o gave it to them or who read ic to them or w h ere ch e y read it or, and I have exactly that e xp e ri e nce with , wit h that book

Int erv i ewer When yo u were a small child , who read to you , your mother o r yo ur fa r h e r ?

Julia Well , I 'm t hird of fo ur c hild ren and I, t hi s is a terrib le t hin g co say, I don ' t t h ink anybod y read ro

me , I chink I remember li s tening in o n my o ld e r s is ters being read co, so I was cb e yo unges t of three g irl s a nd th en I' ve got a yo unger broth e r And L very mu c h remember m y mother r ead in g the La ur a lngall s Wilder, Little Ho u se on the Prairi e sequence to m y bro ther a nd that's w hen I b eard them too. bur I ce rt a inl y neve r had chem read to me. And th e n m y father rea d m e Rumer Godden's Mo use House, a nd again chi s is a very profound mem ory, probab ly because he didn ' t actuall y ve ry ofte n read a lo ud , so it's logged in m y brain as so mething char he r ead to me

Interviewer And who read to yo ur c hi ldren, yo u o r yo ur husband?

Julia Well, that's interesting b eca u se ifl chink bac k co it, I chink , p e rhaps beca u se I wo rk e d in boo ks and m y hu sba nd didn ' t, he see m s to h ave done more of th e reading a lo ud th a n I did , um, h e loved re a ding a loud, he has in credible stamina for ic a nd b e would read for a n h o ur quite h app il y, I think , ar rhe end of a working d ay it was quite a ni ce thing for him to d o.

Interviewer D o yo u h ave a favo urite chi ldre n 's writer?

Julia I think my favo urite a uth or at ch e moment is Philip Pullman I chink h e gave u s a cla ssic b oo k in Northern Lights, rh e first o f hi s Dark Mat erials tril ogy wh ich o p e ned up to a ve r y wide r a n ge of c hildren , whar imaginati ve fict io n can be at irs best a nd th e r e's n oth in g ch ar Philip h as writte n char is n't interes ting , b ea utifull y c ra ft e d , um , s urpris ing a nd a sto r y chat yo u r e flect on. H e, he r a ises so man y questions , g iving open in gs fo r c hildre n to think , that 's the besc kind of writing as far as I' m concerned. So if yo u as k me now o f a co ntemporar y writer, he would b e the p er so n who l think is the greatest.

24 >))

Part2

Interviewer Wh a r d o yo u th ink is the one big thing that he lp s to m a ke a child a r eader ?

Julia One of the extraordinary thin gs abo ut reading chat isn ' t ta lke d abo u t e n o u g h , I think , there's a lot of, ofca lk about how c hildren lea rn t o read a nd all of this but act uall y, and what s trategy might b e best, but actua ll y w h at makes a reader, a book, it's findin g the book that yo u re a ll y want to read , and so ch a t 's rh e ch e mistr y, ch at's the c h e mic a l mom e nt when rh e c hild finds somethin g char they reall y wane to read.

Interviewer Teenagers ca n a lso b e quire negat ive abo ut readin g, wh a t do yo u chink ca n he lp insp ire teenagers t o r ead?

Julia We ll , I think che bi gges t ins piration ch a r l , I wou ld , I mea n I w o uld lik e to s ay aga in , co get b ac k to th e idea th at it is the ri g ht b ook , bu t I chink th e r e a r e lo t s of wa ys inro r ea din g a nd o ne of the t hin gs tha t 's ve r y ev id e nt is that , um , good film s, fa r fr o m puttin g c hildren o ff readin g the boo k o ften t a ke c hildre n o r teenagers to rea d th e book. Yo u take a book like The Beach , a ll r ig h t it wasn't a boo k th a t was w rit te n for childre n , b ur it was a, yo u know, it was a great t ee n nove l , it was a so rt o f a lmost a tee n ant h em nove l and um , a lo t of t ee n age r s read rh e book after they'd see n rhe film

Interviewer H ow d o yo u feel about ch ildren reading b oo ks w hi ch a r e badl y written?

Julia W hat I certai nl y wo uldn 't do is make judge ments abo ut q ua lit y of wr itin g. One of th e w e irdes t things th at h appens in c hildre n 's b ook s is that as soo n as a c hild find s a n auth o r t h at t hey love ch e pa re nts te nd to chink it 's no r s uitabl e because r h ey chink if th e child is lov ing ir, it's too easy o r coo trivia l or roo w h atever a nd Jacq ue line Wi lso n is a ve r y good exa mple of thi s, s h e is an aut hor who, g irl s part ic ul ar ly, fou nd a nd loved for yea rs a nd it 's t ake n rh e pare nts a very long tim e to rea li ze th at s he is a very good a uthor And what do yo u say abo ut so meone like JKRowlin g who is , yo u know, n ot a great lit erary s t y lise but has some rea ll y r e markable qualities in he r b ooks a nd will b e c r ed ited over probably three mo re ge nerations fo r h avi ng made childre n rea d e rs. I wou ldn ' t w a nt t o say c hildre n s ho uldn ' t ha ve read h e r books becau se t h ey' re not a g reat li terary qua li ty. 25 >))

Part3

Interviewer For th e most pa rt do yo u r ea d paper b ooks o r e- b ooks?

Julia A h , I' m , I' m almost e ntire ly a print book reade r but th a t is n o t o ut of prejudice th a t's ju s t o ut of, um

th e fact thac I get se nt all th e books, so it 's easy fo r me to find the book I want co read a nd pick it up Um , I read on my, um , iPad, so met im es, um , I think w e a r e, ought co, so re of, stop seeing the two in po larity I think , yo u kn o w, everybody is going to r ead b o th , I r ea d the ne wspaper on lin e a nd I r ead it in print a t th e weekends. I chink we a re all just goi n g to get very us ed to re ad ing in differe nt ways.

Interviewer H as a ll the n ew med ia made yo ung pe o pl e rea d less?

Julia When tel ev is io n fi rst hit, as it were, everyone said c hildren would sto p reading , and th e c uri o u s thing is that children 's books a nd even books fo r t eenage r s a re st ronger n ow, mu c h stronger t h a n they were when tele v isi o n , c hildre n 's t e lev ision first roo k h o ld. C hildren 's televi s io n h as s li g htl y dwindled, bo oks h ave inc r eased. So th e book has always been und e r ch rear fr o m these o cher medi a bur som e h ow read in g s u rvives , so there mu st be something very imp o rt a nt a b o ut it or it wo uld h ave gone, we wo uld a ll ha ve taken to seeing things in film whic h is a mu c h easier way of accessi n g th e sa m e wonderful s tori es o r , 1, l a lwa ys chink the thing that really threatens readin g is li ste nin g to mu sic, [know yo u can do b o th but m ost peop le don 't, b u r yo u know, even with th e ex pl os io n o f music that ch i ldren h ave access to the y s till ha ve fo und rime for r ead in g.

Interviewer D o yo u st ill read for pl eas ur e?

Julia Well I sti ll do read fo r pleas ur e, um , but it 's h arde r to gee back to th at magical ex p e rien ce, which I do re memb er ve r y clearly from c hildh ood, I do re m e mb e r th at being totally absorbed in the book , but as yo u ge e o ld er it 's ju st hard e r to carve o ut time lik e that and there i always something e lse press in g a nd of course , th a t 's got more so wi th , yo u kn ow, I have a Blac kB e rr y I lo o k at it a ll the time, a nd , e r , I h ave co sto p m yse l f d o in g th a r, ifl 'm go in g to e nter chis a m azing fictional w o rld , so for me the place ch ar, char it really works b est is a lo n g tra in jo urn ey, 'ca u se I don ' t h ave to look at anything. I can be our of m y o rdinar y life and I ca n jus t have char experie n ce of ge ttin g complete ly lo se in th e stor y Bue it on ly r ea ll y works w h e n the sto r y co m es to yo u a nd yo u h ave ch at ki n d of chemica l m oment whe n the stor y g r abs yo u a nd yo u know yo u ' r e nor going to stop until yo u 've got to the e nd of it or w h a t ever, you know, yo u know yo u wane to read it as lon g as poss ible So I can s t ill r ead fo r p leas ure bur I h ave co find th e right book.

27 >))

Interviewer What was yo ur favourite b ook w he n yo u were a child ?

Charlie My favou rite b ook was Dea r Zoo.

Interviewer Wh y did yo u like it so mu ch ?

Charlie I Liked che fac e that the boy got lo t s of different a nim a ls ch ro ugh the post and th at , act u a ll y, a ll he wanted was a d og, um , fo r a pet. And that grow in g up , m y p a rents wou ldn' t le t m e have a pee, so it was q uire a ni ce idea of, you know, lots of a nimal s com in g to s t ay a nd h av in g to go backwards and fo rw a rd s.

Intervie wer Was there a c h arac ter in a c hildre n 's book t h at yo u identifie d with ?

C harlie E rr, yes, George, um , in E n id Blyton 's The Famous Five was a g irl , a nd it was just, s h e was like a tomboy so I quite like d th e idea ofbeing quit e a d ve nturou s a nd d o in g thin gs th a t boys t e nde d to do whe n I was g rowin g up.

Intervie wer What was yo ur favo urite book whe n you were a child ?

Sean Probably Tire Lion, The Witch a11d Tire Wardrob e Interviewer Why did yo u lik e it so mu ch ?

Sean Um , I re m e mber w e ha d a reac h e r a c sch oo l who read it a lo ud to u s, a n d um , wh en I was pro bab ly six o r seve n , w h e n I was coo yo un g to read it m yse lf, um , a nd I re membe r gettin g t he b oo k a nd then s irri n g down by myself a nd reading it I think it was th e fir s t rime I r ea li zed how mu c h you cou ld ge e out of a book , I think

Inte rvi e wer Was th e re a charac t e r in a c hild ren's book that yo u identified with ?

Sean I ca n 't think o f a n y s pecific c h a r acte r s. I chink

I was quite a scr u ffy chil d. I a lways h ad dirt y knees a nd torn clothes a nd things lik e chat , so wheneve r t h e re was a b oy who got into lots of troubl e, I u s uall y th o u g ht th a t was a li cc le bit like me, bur I can't think of o ne part icular o ne.

Interviewer \ V h at wa s yo ur favou rite book w he n you were a child ?

Lucy U m , I really loved anythi n g b y Michael Morpurgo, um , all the Roald D ah l books a nd the Nort he rn Lights series by Philip Pullm an. Inter viewer Wh y did yo u lik e chem?

Lucy I reall y enjoyed th e Ro a ld D a hl boo ks be ca u s e of th e great illu st r at ions that Quentin Blake did , um , I jus t fou nd chem really inve nti ve and viv id a nd they re a ll y kind of contributed to my und er sta nding of those stori es. And the North e rn Lights I love d because it just offered a re a ll y d era iled ot her world , co just di ve into, and chis kind o f id ea of alcern a ti ve unive r ses and weird future s char could poss ibly h appe n

Interviewer \Va s t he re a c harac te r in a c hildre n's boo k that you identified wit h ?

Luc y U m , not rea ll y s ur e, I u sed to love r eading sch oo l s tories , lik e books about boarding sc hoo ls offi n rh e, um Swiss A lps o r a ny thin g lik e that , and well , I didn ' t necessarily identify wit h a s p ec ifi c c haracte r , I liked the kind of genera l idea o f it , I suppose , a nd , um , the kind of jolly jape th a t t h ey wou ld get up to, so I kind of id e nrified with t h em in a m ore general way as a schoo lgi rl , I s upp ose.

36 >))

l e was a few yea r s ago n ow, I think , ah , it was 2010, m y wife a nd I h a d booked to s pe nd ew Year's Eve in a pub in Yorks h ire in the n o rth of En gla nd Ir's a ve r y famous pub beca u se it 's s uppose d t o be th e hi g hest pub in the UK, a nd ir h as b e autifu l v iews. Well , we knew ch a r th e weather wasn't goi ng to be goo d - th e fo r ecast sa id it would s n ow, bur it didn't really worr y u s - we're fr o m the no rth and we're u ed to the s now Anyway, we arrived in the afternoon a nd then we got dressed up fo r dinn er There we re abour, um , 30 g ues t s and we w e r e h av in g a great rime, bu r as it gor n ea r er ro mi dnight I no ticed that it h ad s tarte d s n ow in g very heav ily. We went to bed lace of co urse - l mean it was ew Year 's Eve- bur when we woke up che n ex t m o rnin g there was so much s now char we rea l ized it w as goi n g to be imp oss ible to leave the pub. T he roads were co mple t ely blocked a nd o ur ca rs we r e buried under mo unt a in s of s now. Eve r y b o d y wa s st u c k t here in the pub fo r tw o more ni g hts. But it wasn ' t a problem ac a ll. The r e a re wo rs e places t o b e st u ck than in a pub! In face , we had a g rea t rim e We a ll helped a bi t w ith preparing th e food a nd we did ch e washing u p afte r th e meal s And in che evenin gs we orga ni zed quizzes a nd we a ll gor to know each ot h e r. On Ja nu ary 3rd t h ey fina ll y cleared th e roads w ith s no w p lo u g h s a nd we were able to leave But I h ave to say th a t it wa s o n e of the bes t N ew Year 's Eves eve r 2 T hi s was in ch e s umm e r of2003 a nd there was a terr ibl e he a r wave in London. I re memb e r it reall y w e ll b e cause it wa s m y daughter's 6th b irthd ay on th e 7th of Augu s t and we'd in vi t e d so m e of her friends ro und to o ur h o use fo r a p a rt y in the ga rd e n Wh e n th e children a rri ve d ch at afte rn oo n , it was ju s t unb ea rabl y hot- I m ea n it was about 36 d eg r ees which is abso lu te ly scorc hin g fo r us - it w as ju s t too hot to be outs id e, a nd it was too h oc to be inside , coo , b eca use we didn ' t ha ve a ir co ndi tioning-ver y few ho u ses d o in Britain. And a ll the little g irl s were starring to gee really ex h a usted from t he h eat a nd I just didn 't kn ow what to d o with th e m But rh ea m y hu sba nd sa id , ' Wh y d on' t we a ll go to m y clini c?'

H e's a doctor and hi s private clini c i ju st d ow n the road a nd ch e clinic h as air-condit ion in g. So we took che childre n to the cli ni c a nd h ad the pa rt y th e r e le was love ly and coo l t h e r e a nd th e g irl s p layed pa rt y ga m es in the wait in g room, bur t he n th ey s carred runnin g around the clini c as well and I go t rea ll y wo rri ed th at they w e r e go in g to break so me thin g. T h e w h o le day was a bit of a ni g htm are, t o te ll the rrurh.

3 In October 198 7 1was s i xteen and I was ac a g irl s' boa rdin g sch oo l, a sc hoo l in Kent in ch e south ease of En gland. le was a b ig o ld ho use a nd ir had r ea ll y beautifu l gro und s. T hat ni g h t I wo ke up in th e middle of th e night because o ur b edroo m wi nd ow was rattling lo udl y. W e could a lso h ear ve r y lo ud ba n g in g o urside. I loo ke d o uts ide and I co uld see chat it w as inc r edib ly wind y. The w ind was how lin g and trees were b e nding right over and things were being bl own a ll over the pl ace. I'd n ever seen s uc h a s trong w ind Soon a ll cbe g irl s in my d o rmi tory h ad woken up , a nd the room w as fu ll of confu sed , s lee py t eenagers Sudde nl y, a g ro up of g irl s ca m e runnin g in from t h e room next do o r - a tree h a d falle n and bro ke n

the w ind ow by o ne of the beds and had covered it in g la ss.

It was quite scary but it was exciting as well. Then a teacher came in and told u s not to worry and to go back to s leep bur ir was very difficult to get to s leep b eca u se of t h e noise of th e wind , and we we re awake for hours until finally the wind died down and we could ge t to s leep

The nex t day when we woke up we looked outside. Ir looked as if somebody had dropped a bomb. There were fallen trees and b r anches eve r ywhe re. Just in our sc h oo l grounds 200 trees had been blown down. On the radio rhey said that it had been a hurricane and that 18 people had been killed. Later we found out that a ll over Brit ain I 5 million trees had blown down during the night 38 >))

Yes , I think I am, or anyway m o re than I used to be. l think my att itud e to risk has changed as I've got o lder, for exa m p le I' m more open to risking a change in appeara nce, because I think I' m less self-conscious now. I often change hairst y les and colour but when I was younger I had the same hairst yle for yea rs and yea.rs. I also think I would rake more ri s ks trave llin g now becau se I ' m m o re se lf-confident , so I' m pretty sure I could cope with any problem s.

2 Yes, I'm definitely a risk raker. I rake risks to do things that I enjoy l ike s kiing or cycling in London , which is pretty dangerous In fact I think the element of risk prob a bly makes them even more enjoyable The only time l wou ldn 't rake a risk would be ifl cou ldn't see that I was going to get any pleasure from ir-1 wo uldn 't do something risky ju st for the sake ofir.

3 I 'm the son of person who likes co know exactly what I 'm d o in g an d when I' m doing it, so there 's nor much room for risk in m y li fe. For me , risk means not being comple t e ly in control and that can make me feel really nervous For examp le, ifl ' m meeting a friend for dinner, I a lways make sure we have a t ab le booked somewhe re nice. I wou ldn 't risk just t urnin g up and h oping that the re was a cable. And I never buy cloches on line because I don ' t wa nt to run the risk of them being rh e wrong s ize and h aving ro send che m back.

4 I'm definitely nor a ri sk raker. I might l ike to t hink that I am , as it seems excit in g, b u r I' m not. I live in a suburb of London and I'd never walk h o me on my own in the eveni n g when it's dark, as that ju st seems like an unnecessar y risk to rake. And I'd never get into a taxi on m y own a t night But on the o ther hand , I wo uld love to do somethi n g like bungee jumping o r paragliding w hi c h oc her people would probably chi nk is risk y.

5 I don't see myself as a ri s k raker I' ve done a lot of mountain climbin g, and eve ryone assumes, becau se of this , that I' m attracted to risk, bur it isn' t reall y rrue. In fact when yo u 're climbing high mountains yo u're a lways trying to minimize the risk. The biggest risk I've ever taken in m y li fe was a professional one - after 20 yea.rs in the same job, I left an d sec u p my own company - and that's given m e a lot more sleepless nights than climbing in rhe Andes or the Himalayas.

6 I am happ y to rak e risks. I love driving fast , in face I bought my se l f a s ports car when I had some money a nd I got quire a few speedi n g tickers- th o ugh probably n o r as m a ny as I deserved! I a lso rak e risks with money, li ke lending to peop le who p r oba bly won ' t pay me back , or spending all I have on something a bit unn ecessary. Lase year I went on a balloon rid e and I was amazed that so many people said, 'Ooh, I wou ldn ' t do that!' I loved it and I'd happily do it agai n - it was fantastic! 44 >))

Pre senter For most of u s, rhe riskiest thing we e ver d o is to gee into a ca r and drive And as thi s is something that we do almost eve r y day of our lives , we need co rake the risks invol ve d in driving very seriou sly Sandra , you ' r e an expert in road safet y How dr iving compared to other ways of getting aro und ?

Sandra Driving gets a lot of bad p ubli city. Statistics show char, mile for mil e, it 's riskier to be a pedestrian or a jogger than t o drive a car or ride a motorbike. Presenter Bur ca r accidents do happ en. What's rhe main reason?

Sandra Fifty per cent of a ll fatal accidents occur b eca us e someone h as broken t h e law The most

frequent cause of fatal accidents in rhe UK is driving too fast, and rhe second most frequent is drinkdriving. And rh e third major ca use of fatal accidents is w hen a driver falls asleep ar rhe wheel.

Presenter Is that very common?

Sandra Yes, iris. A surpris ing ten per cent of accidents are caused by chis.

Pre se nter Tell us about some of rhe other factors char can increase our chances of having an accident.

Sandra Well , rbe rime of day we ·re on the road is a very significant factor. Generally speaking, driving ac night , for exa mpl e, is four times as dangerous as d u ri n g the da y. This is mainly because visibility is so much worse when it 's dark. By day, a driver's v is ibilit y is roughly 500 yards, but ac night , driving with headlights, it can be as little as 120 yards.

Presenter A re ch ere any rimes of day or night char are particularly risky?

Sandra Research shows chat you're m ost likely to have a n accident between five and seve n p.m. during the week, chat's to say during rhe evening rush hour, and especially in the winter when it ' s dark. And the day of the week when you' r e most likely co ha ve a n accident is Friday. In the UK, more accidents h ap p en on a Friday between 5.00 and 7.00 pm than ac any other rime.

Presenter Why do yo u chink that is?

Sandra It 's probably because peopl e are finishing work for the week and are rushing home co start their weekend. Their mind may already be on what they're planning co do , and they may not be concentrating 100 per cent on rhe road. So this is a rime of che week when car drivers n eed to be especially carefu l.

Prese nter Which brings us to where accidents happen.

Sandra Sixty per cent of accidents happen within two miles of where we live Statistically rhe m ost commo n kind of accident is crashfog into a parked car n ea r our home Research shows that drivers concentrate less well when they' re driving on familiar roads Fortunately most of these accidents are nor fatal.

Prese nter So what about fatal accidents? Where do these rend to happen?

Sandra As far as fatal accidents are concerned, th e riskiest kind of road to drive o n is a country road. A lm ost half of all fata l car crashes in the UK rake place on country roads. In fact yo u 're twice as likely to have an accident on a counrr y road than on an urban road.

Presenter And why is char?

Sandra Drivers ofte n chink char it 's OK co break the speed limit o n these r oads because there 's less traffic and consequently they take more risks.

Prese nter And the safest kind of road to drive on ?

Sandra A motorway is by far the safest kind of road

Prese nter People - u s uall y men -say chat women ha ve more accidents than men. Is char true?

Sandra Well , it is true char, mile for mile , women have more minor accide nts than men, but a man is twice as likel y co be killed in a car accide nt as a woman

Prese nter So m e n really a re more dangerous drivers then?

Sandra Women , by n at ure , are usually mu ch more ca re ful and cautiou s d r ivers than men In general men rake far more unnecessary risks when they're driving than women.

Presenter The age of a drive r must be an important facto r , too?

Sandra Yes, in fact it's probably Ifil mo st important factor. A driver aged between 17 and 24 has do u b le the risk of having a n accident than an older driver.

The reasons for chis are obvious. This is the age when drivers have very limited experie nce of dri vi ng but it 's also when they' re most like ly to drive too fast and rake unnecessar y risks , parrjcularly if there are other yo ung people in the car.

Presenter Whic h is why a lot of people wou ld l ike to see the age limit for havin g a driving licence rai sed to 21?

Sandra I think it would be a very good id ea.

Presenter Well. that 's all we have rime for. Thank yo u very much for coming into the s tudi o today, Sandra. And to all you drivers o ur there who are li ste nin g drive safely!

6>))

Yossi and Kevin soo n realized that going by river was a big mi s take. The river got faster and fas t er, and soon the y were in rapids.

The ra ft was swept down the river at an incredible speed until it hit a rock Both men were thrown into the water. Kevin was a s tro n g sw imm er a nd he managed to

swim co land , but Yo si was swept awa y by the rapids. Bur Yossi didn ' t drown. He was carried several kilometres downriver by ch e rapids but he eventually managed to swim t o the river bank. He was totally exhausted. By an incredible piece ofluck he found their backpack floating in the river The backpack contained a little food , insect repellent , a lighter, and most important of all. the map. Bue rhe cwo friends were now separated b y a canyon and six or seven kilometres of jungle 3 7 >))

Kevin was feeling desperate. He didn't know ifYossi was alive or dead, but h e sta rted walking downriver to lo ok for him. He felt resp o n sible for w ha t had happened to his friend because he had persuaded him to go with him on the river.

Yossi, however, was feeling quite optimistic. He was sure that Kevin wo uld look for hjm so be started walking upriver calling his friend's name But nobody answered. At night Yossi tried to sleep but he felt terrified. The jungle was full of noise s. Suddenly he woke up because he heard a branch breakin g. He turned on hi s flash light. There was a jaguar s taring at him

Yossi was trembling with fear. But then he remembered something that he had once seen in a film. He used the ciga rette lighter to set fire to the insect repellent spray and he managed to scare the jaguar away.

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After five days alone, Yossi was exhausted and starv in g Suddenly, as h e was walking, he saw a footprint on the era ii- it was a biking boot. It had to be Kevin 's foorprinc! He fo llowed che trail u ntil he discovered another foot print and then another. But sudden ly he realized chat t he footprints weren't Kevin 's footprints. The y were b is ow n He had been wa l ki n g around in a circle Ar that moment Yossi rea lized that h e wou ld never find Kevin. In fact be felt sure that Kevin must be dead. H e felt tota ll y depressed and o n th e point of giving up.

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But Kevin wasn't dead. He was still looking fo r Yossi. But after nearly a week he was also weak and exhausted from lack of food and lack of sleep. He decided that it was time to forger Yossi and try to save himse l f. He had just eno ugh stren gth left to hold onto a log a nd let himself float down the rive r

Kevin was incredibly lucky- he was rescued by two Bolivian hunters wbo were travelling down river in a canoe. The men o nl y hu med in that pa rt of the rainforest once a year , so if they had passed by a short time earlier or later, they wou ldn ' t h ave seen Kevin. They took him back to the town of San Jose where he spent two days recovering.

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As soon as Kevin felt well enough, he went co a Bolivian army base and asked chem to look for Yossi. ('My friend is lost in the jungle. You must look for him .' )The ar my officer he spoke to was sure that Yossi m ust be dead, but in the e nd Kevin persuaded them to take him up in a plane and fly over the part of th e rainforest where Yossi might be But the plane had to fly too high over the rain forest and th e forest was too dense. They couldn ' t see anything at all. It was a hopeless search Kevin fe lt terribl y g uil ty. He was convinced that it was a ll his fault that Yossi was going to die in the jungle. Kevin's last hope was to pay a local man with a boat to take him up the river to look for his friend.

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By now, Yossi had been on his own in the jungle for nearly three weeks He hadn't eaten for days. He was starv in g, ex h austed, and slowly losing his mind. !twas evening. H e lay down by the side of t h e ri ver read y for anothe r night alone in rhe jungle.

Sudden ly h e heard the so und of a bee bu zz ing in his ear. He thought a bee h ad got inside his mosquito net. But when he opened his eyes , he saw that the bu z zing noise wasn't a bee

It was a boat. Yossi was too weak to shout, but Kevin had already seen him It was a one-in-a-million chance that Kevin would find his friend. But he did Yossi was saved.

When Yossi had recovered , he and Kevin flew co the city of La Paz a nd they went directly to the ho tel where they had agreed co meet Marcus and Karl.

Bur Marcus and Karl were nor at the hote l. The two men had never arrived back in the town of Ap o lo. The Bolivian army o r ga ni ze d a search of the rainforest, but Marcus and Karl were n ever seen again.

The on ly thing I reall y regret is , is noc having had rhe courage to chat up a girl who I met at a parcy lase su mmer. I really fancied h er -she was very artraccive- but I just wasn' t brave enough to sta rt a co n versation. I wish I'd tried. I'm absolutely positive we would have got on well. Now it 's coo late - she's engaged to anot h e r guy!

2 At th e ri sk of sounding really negative, I think the one thing I really regret in my life is getti n g married, and I wished I had listened to my s ister, who said to me in the car on the way to the registry office 'Someone ha s to say to you that yo u really don't have to do this you know ' a nd , um , I really wish I'd li stened ro her becau e it was che biggest mistake of my life , and in face the next day when I woke up I realized it was a terrible mistake, and I pent the next 15 years trying to get out of it. So, and I would never do it aga in. So that's probably my biggest regret.

3 Um, I really wish I 'd been ab le to know my grandmother better She died when! was 12, and since then I've discovered that she muse have been a really fascinating person, and there are so many things I wou ld love to have been able to talk to her abo ut. She was Polish but s h e was in Russia, in Sc Petersburg, during the Russian Revolution and she knew all sorts of interesting people at the time: painters, writers, people l ike that. I was on ly a chi ld so I n ever asked her much about her own life. ow, I'm discovering all about her throu gh reading her o ld letters and papers , but I wish she'd lived longer so chat I cou ld have ta lked co her about chose times face - to-face

4 When I was 15 I had a Saturday job , um , in a superma rk et-stacking shelves and that kind of thing. M y friend also worked there, and he persuaded me one day to help him steal a canon of cigarettes, 200 cigarettes, from the s tock room It was a crazy idea , and totally out of c h aracter for me to do somet hin g like that. L'd a lways been very honest unril then. Anyway, the manager of the shop fou nd where we'd hidden the c iga rettes-and he called the police. So when we came to work that evening the police were waiting for us. Although we got off with just a warning-we were only kids-the police came to m y house and talked to my mum I felt so awful. But in the long run it was probably a good thing becaus e it meant that I never, ever thought about stealing somerhing again.

5 When I was I 61 gor the chance to change schools and go to a better school to do my last two years. M y parents were really keen for me to change because they thought I'd probably get better marks in th e un iversity ent r ance exams and so have a better cha n ce of goin g to uni versity But I was tota ll y against the idea b ecause I didn't want to leave a ll my friends behind and I didn't know anyone at the other school. So, in the end I manage d to convince them and I stayed at my o ld sc hool. I did OK in my exams but not brilliantly Um, now I regret not li stening to my parents becau se I cliink it would have been bett e r for my future career, but at the time I just cou ldn 't see it.

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Part 1

Interviewer What were yo u hoping to do by making the film Trashed?

Candida Well, I think , um , the role ofche film, um, for me was to raise awareness, um, on the topi c and gee it into the pres s so that people could start having a, a meaningful co nv ersation about waste which, um , is not a particularly, um , attractive subject, let's say.

Interviewer How many cou ntries did yo u film in ?

Candida We ended up actually filming in eleven countries, um , but the stories that I've chosen are universal and obviously I spoke to, to people in co mmunities , um, in more countries, um , than we actuaHy filmed in , um , but their s torie s are certa inl y not isolated , they were repeated around th e world , sadly wherever yo u kind of want to pick actua ll y.

Interviewer How did yo u persuade Jeremy Irons to get involved in the film?

Candida I had worked with Jeremy some years ago on a, on a different film and l was genera ll y aware that he doe s n't like waste ei th er, um , be will, you know, wear bis jumpers untiJ they're worn out, h e'll keep his cars until they're falling apart, yo u know, he'll

repair everything, so he's always seen, you know, the value in reusing things, it's just something natural to him as well, so he just felt like a natural, um first approach, and , and so I sent him the treatment and amazingly he he loved it

Interviewer And how did yo u get Vangelis to write the soundtrack?

Candida Well , Jeremy and Vangelis have been friends for years, so, um , Jeremy sent him the rough c ut of the film and Vangelis absolute ly loved it , he, h e is also a com mitted env i ronmentalist, so he's a lw ays been aware, um , he was aware b ecau se he worked witli, um Co u stea u , sort of various people, you know, he was aware of issues for the seas and so on, um , buc generally again he was very shocked, um , by the film and really wanted to gee involved, so Interviewer What research did you do before you started making the film?

Candida I spent about a year, um , ta lking to communities, cal king co experts, um, you know, obviously reading an awful loc, um, and, um, just ingesting it all because obviou s ly again it's s u ch an enormous topic to take on.

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Part2

I nterviewer Rubbish isn't very attractive v isu a ll y Was chat a problem for you as a film maker?

Candida Er, yes and no, um , strangely enough obv iousl y I had a wonderful , um , DOP, Director of Photography so, um he can pretty much make anything look beautiful , I chink, but , um , I wanted to choose, as I've , as I ' ve said earlier, um , you know, l did a lot of research and so sadly these t hin gs were repeatable and, and in eve r y country around the world , so I wanted to choose, um , beautiful places wherever possible, um , that had been ruined unfortunately by, um man-made rubbish, so, um , the ancient port ofSaida in Lebanon, um the fact that, you know, you've got this huge mountain ofwaste w hich was formerly a flat sa ndy beach.

Interviewer Documentaries a bout h ow we're destroying the planet can be very depressing, was that al so a challenge for you?

Candida A huge challenge, yes, um, I would bave preferred to have made a much more cheerful, um , documentary than, um , I think Trashed is, I think it ha s go t hope , um , I think we were very much aware that we wanted co offer solutions at the end of it , but yo u are , um, tbe subject is not a cheerful s ubject , um, I could have gone further I think with it but I didn ' t want to because actually, you kn ow, yo u could sore of end up feeling that yo u just want to go and shoot yo urself which is not whac I wanted I wanted to feel, you know, p eo ple feel that they can make a difference to thi s topic.

Interviewer In the film you focus on air pollution, land pollution, and water pollution , which do you think is the most worr y ing?

Candida Um , ifl had to pick o ne, um , which I would be reluctant to do, e r , it would be water without a doubt, I chink that what has happened to all of the oceans a nd b eac hes ac tuall y as well , um , in the world in the last 30 years is astonishing in the scale and the speed, um , yo u know, there are ce rtain places in rhe world, that yo u know, that you have to dig down on a beach , um over a foot , before you'll find sand chat does n't have plast ic in it Unfortunately what 's happened with the way that soft plastic de g rade in water is that, um , the pieces becom e so fra g mented that they're the same s ize as the zooplankton , um , which is obviously in the food chain.

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Part3

Interviewer Who do you think is mostly to blame for th e problems we bave with waste?

Candida [tried very hard actually not to blame one person or things, um , in the film, actually quite delib e rately because I think in a way, um, it lets us off the hook, um , and it also, um, I think we all need to work on the, the problem together because it's too co mplicated to blam e one person or one thing or one act or, um , yo u know, I think it 's, it 's multi -face ted unfortunately.

Interviewer Your film finish es on an optimistic nore with the example of San Francisco's ze ro waste policy. Can yo u tell us a bit about that?

Candida Well , I , I actually in the film e nded up , um ,

using San Francisco as the example because I wanted to show, er , that zero waste could be achieved on a big scale. When you go and stay in San Francisco in yo ur h otel room , yo u'll have four different bins and you' ll have signs on the wall of whar goes into each bin, so ir's very, very easy to, to recycle and I tbink that's a huge part of what we should be doing.

Interviewer Has the film changed yo ur own habits regarding waste?

Candida I don't chink rbe film has particularly changed my own habits dramatically, urn , becau s e I've always been thrifty, um , by n at ur e because, um , I was lucky enough to spend a lo t of time with my grandparents when I was growing up and the post war, sort of, philosophy of never wasting anything it just, you know, it was instilled in me. I ride the same bicycle chat I've had s in ce l was 15 years old and over the years obviously had it repaired and repaired, but I take tremendous pride in rhe fact that I've always, um, ridden the same bike and you know l have lovely memories of it , so and with it, so, um I think , 1think we need a slight change of mind set to make things cool the longer you have them in a way, than actually thi s perpetual thing of buying new things for the sake ofit.

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Interviewer How much rec ycling do people in yo ur country do?

Sally 1don ' r think we do enough, I think we could do a little bit more I'm n ot wonderful myselfbut we try and do a little bit of recy cling.

Interviewer How responsible are yo u personally?

Sally Well, we probably do about , probably about 30 % we rec ycle

Interviewer What do you think the government, or individuals, cou ld do to make people recycle more?

Sally Well, they cou ld give yo u all these , um , boxes a nd bins and things at home to help you recycle, the Germans seem to do it quite well.

Interviewer How much recycling do peop le in your cou ncr ydo?

Jo I think people are quite good at recycling , I think, um , now that the , t h e waste compa ni es come and collect recycling from the h ouses, people have n ' t r eally got an excuse not to recycle any more.

Interviewer How responsible are you personally?

Jo E rr, I, I recycle as much as I can.

Interviewer What do you think the government, or individuals, could do to make people recycle more?

Jo Um, well ma y be they could offer a financial incentive for, for recycling, um, or maybe for producing less rubbish that can't be recycled.

Interviewer How much recycling do people in your co untr y do?

Jill I chink that recycling is getting b e tter in this co untr y, I think we st ill have a long ways to go. I think it 's still done l arge ly in pockets and not n ecessar il y nati o nwide as much as it cou ld be.

Interviewer How r espo nsible are yo u personally ?

Jill Actua ll y, in the town where I live we have a very s trong rec ycl ing program and so I participate in , um , filling it up with cans and bottles, newspapers and a ll kinds of stuff, and they come and get it every other week , o. Easy, too.

Interviewer What do you think the government, or individual s, could do to make people recycle more?

Jill Well , incentives always work. Besides , above and beyond monetary incentives , ju s t incentives to promote, you kn ow, ben efits to the e nvironment

I nterviewer How much recycling do people in your countr y do ?

Pranjal I don ' t think people in t h e US recycle enough. I tbink we shou ld recycle more and I'm eve n , uh , you kn o w, I ' m even gu ilt y of not recycling enough , but I don ' t think we recycle enough.

Interv iewer How responsible are you personall y?

Pranjal Personally, I ' m not really that responsib le in cycl ing , I don ' t really recycle tbat often, but ifl do get the opportunity to recycle, I will.

Interviewer What do you think the government , or individua ls, could do to make people recy cle more ?

Pranjal Well , I think it 's important for individuals to r ealize that eve n the sma llest difference makes a big difference , and so if everyone cou ld just get in that mindset that the sma ll est c h ange they can make in their Ji ves makes a big difference. l think that will, in fact, make a bi g difference.

34l))

I think it 's very i nteres ting that huma n be in gs are t he only animals which lis te n to mus ic for pl easure . A lo t o f research has been d o ne to find out why we Lis ten t o music, and there s e e m to be three main reaso n s. Firs tl y, we lis te n to music to make us remembe r impo rt a n t m o m e nts in the pa s t, for exa mple wh e n we met s om eon e for the fir st Think o f Humphrey Bo gart in the film C asab lan ca sayrn g 'Darling, they ' re playing our s ong' When we hear a ce rt a in piece of music, we re member hearing it for the first time in some ve ry s pe cial circum stances. Obv ious ly, this mus ic varies from person to pe rson

S econdly, we li s te n to mu s ic to help us chan ge a c tivitie s lfwe want to go fr o m o ne a c ti v it y to a noth e r, we o ften use music to h e lp us make th e c h a n ge. Fo r ex ample , we might pl ay a ce rtain kind o f mu s ic to prepare u s to go out in the e venfo g, o r we might pl ay ano th er kind of mu s ic to r e la x u s when we ge t h o m e fro m work. That's mainl y w hy p eo ple li s te n to music in cars, and th ey o ften li s ten t o o ne kind of mu s ic wh e n they ' r e going t o wo rk a nd a no ther kind when th ey' re coming hom e. The sa m e is true of p eo pl e o n bu ses a nd train s with th eir iPo ds. Th e third r ea so n wh y we li s t e n to music is to inte n s ify the e mo ti o n that we' r e feelin g. Fo r ex ample, if we' re feelin g sad , so metimes we want t o ge t even sadder, so we play s ad mu s ic. Or we' re fe eling an g r y and we want to inte n s ify th e ange r th e n we play an g r y music Or wh en we're pl a nnin g a r o m a nti c dinner, we lay the table , we light ca ndl es, a nd th e n we think , ' Wh a t mu s ic wo uld m a ke thi s e ve n m o re rom a ntic ?'

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Let's take thre e important human e motio ns : happin ess, s adness, a nd a n ge r Whe n pe ople are ha ppy the y s p ea k fa s te r , and th e ir voice is hi g he r Wh e n they a r e sad they s peak m o r e s lo wl y a nd their vo ice is lo we r , and whe n people a re an g r y the y r a ise their vo ices o r s h o ut. Ba bi es can tell wh e th er their m o th e r is happy o r n o t s impl y by the s ound o f he r voice , n o t by h e r wo rd s Wh a t mus ic d oes is it co pi es thi s, and it pro duces th e sa me em o ti o n s. So fa s te r , highe r-pitc h ed mu s ic will sound h a ppy. Sl ow mu s ic with lo ts o f falling pitc hes will so und sad Loud music with irregular rh y thms will s ound an g ry It d oesn' t m atter h o w good o r b ad the mus ic is, ifit h as th ese ch a rac te ris tics it will m a ke you ex p e ri ence this emoti o n Le t m e g ive yo u some exa mples Fo r h appy, for exa mple, the first m o ve m e nt o f Bee th o ve n 's Se ve nth Sy mpho ny Fo r an g ry, say M a rs , fr o m Th e Plane ts by H o ls t And for sad , something like Albinoni's AdaBio f o r S trinBs. Of co urse th e p eo ple who ex plo it thi s m ost a re t he p eo pl e wh o write film so undtra cks. T hey ca n t a ke a scen e which vis u a ll y ha s n o e m o ti o n a nd they ca n make the sce n e e ith e r s cary o r calm o r happy ju s t by t he mus ic th ey write to go with it . T hink o f th e mus ic in the s ho wer sce ne in Hitch cock 's film Psycho. All you ca n see i s a wo m a n h aving a s h o we r, but th e mu s ic m a kes it absolute ly te rrify in g.

40 >))

I I Wh y d o yo u ha ve problems s lee pin g?

S We ll I' m S p a nis h but I moved to Lo nd o n a fe w ye a rs ago whe n l m a rri ed a Briti s h wo m a n I've b een li vin g he re fo r tbree yea rs n ow I have a lo t o f pro ble m s ge ttin g to s lee p at ni ght becau se o ur bedroo m ju s t is n ' t d a rk e n o u g h I ca n't ge t u se d to s lee pin g in a b e dr oom where th e r e's lig ht co min g in fro m the s tree tli ghts outs id e. In Sp a in I a lw ays u se d to s lee p in compl e te darkn ess b ecause my be droom window had blind s and wh e n I went to b ed I u sed to cl ose the blind s co mpl e t ely. But here in E n gla nd o ur b e d roo m windo w jus t h as curta ins a nd c urtain s d o n ' t bloc k o ut rh e li g ht pro p e rl y. It ra k es m e a lo n g rime to ge t to sleep at night a nd I a lways wake up m o re ofte n than I u sed t o do in Spain

I So w hy d o n ' t yo u ju s t ge t th icke r cur ta in s?

S Beca use my wife d oesn ' t like s lee pin g in a com p le tel y d a rk r oom. Sh e says tha t s he fe e ls cl a u s trophobic i f the ro om is too d a rk. Ah , yes, a lo t of p eo pl e d o fe el like th a t.

2

41 >))

I Why do yo u have problems s lee ping?

S We ll , I' m a p o lice m a n a nd s o I h ave to do s hift wo rk whic h m ean s I wo rk a t night e ve ry o th e r week , so I s ta rt wo rk at I 0 o'cl oc k at nig ht a nd fini s h a t 6. 00 in the m o rnin g rh e foll o win g d ay. T he m a in pro bl e m is

th a t my bo dy's u sed co s lee pin g at nig ht , no t durin g th e da y So it's ve r y hard to ge e u sed co be in g awake a ll night a n d cry in g to wo rk an d con centrat e wh e n yo ur b o dy is ju s t te llin g yo u to go to b ed

I But is n 't it so m e thin g yo u ge t u sed to ?

S Actua ll y no, b eca u se I wo r k dur ing t h e d ay fo r o ne week a nd t h e n th e n ext week I wo rk a t ni ght w hic h m e an s th a t jus t w he n my b o dy h as go t u sed to b e i ng awa ke at night th e n I go b ack to wo rkin g in th e d ay a nd the n of co urse I can't ge t t o s lee p a t ni ght b eca use m y b o d y thinks it's go in g to h ave to wo rk all ni g ht

The o the r pro bl e m i s th a t when I ge t h o m e afte r wo rk i n g a ni ght s hift, everyo n e else is ju s t s t a rtin g to wa ke up so th at m ean s th a t it can be rea ll y n o isy.

T he neig hbo urs put th e ra di o on , an d ban g d oo r s a nd s h o ut to w a ke the ir c hi ldre n up So even th o u g h I'm r eall y tire d it's ju s t ve r y h a rd to ge t to s lee p

I How man y h o urs do yo u us uall y s le ep ?

S Before I b eca m e a p o licem a n I u se d to s lee p a b o ut e ight o r nine ho urs a ni gh t b ur I chink now I p ro bab ly do n ' t slee p m o re th a n s ix ho urs.

3

42 >))

I Wh y do yo u h ave pro ble m s s lee p ing?

S I h ave a lo t of pro bl e m s s lee pin g beca u se of je tl ag. I have to trave l a lo t in my jo b a nd l ta ke a lo t o fl o n g h a ul fli ghts. I fl y to N e w Yo rk qu ire ofte n a nd I a rri ve ma ybe at 6. 00 in the evenin g my time , but w he n it 's o nl y o ne o'cl ock in t he aft e rn oo n in New Yo r k. So a t 5.0 0 in t h e a ft e rn oon loca l tim e, I' IJ b e fee lin g t ired and rea d y for b e d because it 's my b ed tim e. But I ca n ' t go t o s lee p b ecaus e I' m pro babl y s till workin g o r h av in g dinn e r with m y Am e r ican colleag ues. Th e n w h en I d o fi n a lly ge t to b ed a t say midni ght loca l t im e, I fi n d th a t I w ake up in th e middle of the n ight b eca use my b o d y thi n ks th a t it's mo rnin g b eca u se it 's s tilJ workin g o n U K time

I And ca n yo u ge t bac k t o s lee p wh e n yo u wake up ?

S N o, that 's t h e probl em I ca n 't ge t bac k to s lee p. And th e n the n ext d ay w h e n I h ave m eeti n gs I feel r ealJ y s lee p y. It's ve r y h a rd t o stay awa ke a ll d ay. A nd jus t w h e n I' m fin a ll y us ed to b e in g o n New Yo rk tim e, th e n it 's ti m e co fl y ho m e And fl y in g west co east is eve n wo r se.

I Oh! Why's th a t ?

S Becau se wh e n I ge t o ff t h e pl a n e it 's ea rl y mo rning in th e U K But for m e , o n Ne w Yo rk time, it 's th e mid d le o f th e night. It ca kes me four o r fi ve d ays co r ecove r fr o m o n e o f these trip s.

I Gos h , tha t mu s t b e r eall y diffi cult fo r yo u S Yes it is.

47 >))

Presenter And fin a ll y to d ay th e s to r y o f a s lee pwalke r fro m Fife in Scotland w ho ge ts u p in the middle o f th e night a nd goes co the kitc h e n a nd s ta rts . you 've gu essed ic, cook in g. Ro b ert Wood , who 's 55 years o ld , u se d to b e a c h e f until h e r e tire d la s t year We h ave Rob e rt a nd hi s wi fe, Ele ano r, with us in the s tudi o to day. R o b e rt, te ll us wha t h a ppe n s

Robert WelJ , I've b ee n a s lee pwa lker fo r abo ut 4 0 yea rs no w. I think it firs t s ta rt ed w h e n I was abo ut 14 o r so. An y wa y th ese d ays I ge t up a b o ut fo ur o r fi ve tim es a wee k a nd I a lways e nd up in th e kit che n a nd I s tar t cookin g som e thin g.

Presenter D o you alw ays cook ?

Robert No, n o t a lways. I've d o n e o the r thin gs, coo I r e m e mbe r o n ce I put t h e TV o n - at full vo lume - a nd o n ce I fill e d th e ba th w ith wa t e r , a ltho u gh I didn't ge t in it But I u s u a ll y cook

Pre s enter E lea n or, d o yo u w a ke up whe n this h a ppe n s?

Eleanor Yes, I u s u a ll y wa ke up b ecau s e he 's m a king a n o is e I go dow nstairs a nd u s ua lly I find him in th e kit che n On ce h e wa s jus t lay in g the t a bl e but o th e r times he 's bee n cookin g.

Presenter What sort of t hings d oes h e cook?

Eleanor ALI sorts of t hings I' ve ca u gh t him cookin g o m e le ttes a nd s p ag h e t t i bo log n a is e , a nd I eve n c au ght him fr y in g chi ps o n ce. T hat w as a bit sca r y b eca use be co uld easily have burnt him se lf o r s t a rted a fi r e.

Presenter D o yo u eve r eat t h e thin gs th at Ro be rt cooks ?

E l eanor No It a lways looks love ly but I mus t admit I' ve n ever tri ed it - not a t three o ' cl oc k in th e mo rnin g. And the t ro uble is h e a lways leaves the k itch en in a te rribl e m ess T h e las t t ime h e s lee pwa lke d h e s pilt milk all ove r the p la ce

Presenter So, Ro b e rt , yo u h ave n o id ea t h a t yo u ' r e cookin g?

Robert No, I h aven ' t I r ea ll y am as lee p a nd a ft e rw a rd s I ju s t h ave no re coll ecti o n of h av in g cooked a nyt b i n g.

Presenter Yo u ' re ge ttin g so me h e lp to see if yo u ca n c ure yo ur s leep wa lkin g, a r e n' t yo u?

Robert Yes , I've bee n go in g t o a s lee p clini c in Edinbur gh w he r e they think th ey' ll b e ab le to h e lp me.

Presenter Well good lu ck w it h tha t, a n d th a nk yo u bot h fo r co min g i n to t be s tud io to d ay Now we 're go in g to a brea k , but jo in u s aga in in a few minutes.

48 l))

Presenter We ' ve b ee n ta lkin g co Ro be rt , t he s lee p wa lkin g coo k a nd his wife, E lea no r . A nd we' r e n o w joi n e d by P r ofesso r Mauri ce fro m Roc hes te r , Ne w Yo rk , w ho is a n ex p e r t in s leepwalking. H e ll o. We lco m e , Pro fesso r M a uri ce , does th is s t o r y s urpri se yo u?

Professor No, it d oes n ' t , not a t a ll. I' ve trea te d peo pl e w ho h ave dri ven ca r s, ridd en h o r s es , a nd r h a d o ne m a n w h o e ve n trie d to fl y a he lico p te r w hil e he was as lee p

Presenter D o peo pl e u s u a ll y h ave the ir eyes o p e n w h en th ey s lee pwalk?

Professor Yes , s lee pwa lk e r s d o u s u a ll y h ave th eir eyes o pen Th a r's wh y so m e tim es it 's diffi c ult t o kn o w i f som eo n e is s lee p wa lking o r not.

Presenter H ow commo n is s lee p wa lkin g?

Professor M o re co mmo n th a n yo u m ig ht think R esea r c h s h ows t h a t a b o ut 18 p er ce nt of the p o pul a ti o n h ave a te nde n cy t o s lee p wa lk. But it's muc h m o r e commo n in c hildre n th a n in tee n age rs o r ad ul ts And , c uri o u s ly, it's mo r e comm o n a m o ng b oys t h a n g irl s. Adults w h o s lee p wa lk a r e no rm a ll y p eo pl e wh o use d to s lee pwa lk w he n th ey were ch ildre n Th ey might d o it a ft e r a s tressful eve nt , fo r exa mpl e, a ft e r a traffic acc id e nt

Presenter Peo ple a lways say th a t yo u s h o uld n eve r wa ke a s lee pw a lke r up wh e n they'r e w a lkin g. Is th at t ru e?

Profess or No, it is n't Peo pl e u sed t o think that it was d a n ge rou s to wa ke up a s lee p wa lke r But in fa c t thi s is n ' t t he case. Yo u ca n wa ke a s lee pwa lke r u p wi th o ut any pro bl em , a lt h o u gh i f yo u d o, it is quite co mm o n fo r th e s lee pwalke r to b e confu sed , so h e o r s h e pro b a bly wo n' t kn ow w here they a r e fo r a fe w m o m e nts.

Presenter So, if we see som eo n e s lee pwa lkin g , s h o uld we wake th e m u p?

Professor Yes, yo u s h o uld r e m e m be r th at a no the r of th e my th s a b o u t s lee pw a lke r s is that th ey ca n ' t i n jure th e m se lves while th ey a r e s leepwa lkin g But thi s is n ' t true. l fa s leepwa l ke r is walkin g a r o und th e ho u se , th ey m ight trip o r fa ll o ver a ch a ir o r e ve n fa ll d ow n s t a irs. The r e was a case a whil e ago o f a nin e -yea r -o ld girl w h o o p e n ed he r b e droom windo w while s he s lee pwa l k i n g and fe ll 3 0 feet to t h e gro und Lu c kil y, s he was n ' t seri o u s ly injured. So yo u see, Elea n o r, yo u ' r e quite ri ght to wo rr y th a t Ro b e rt mi ght burn hi mse l f w h e n he's coo kin g Yo u need co w ake him u p a nd ge t him b ac k to bed

Presenter H o w lo n g d oes s lee pwalkin g u s uall y last?

Professor It ca n b e ve ry brie f , fo r exa mpl e, a few minutes. T h e most ty pica l cases a r e p eo ple ge ttin g up a nd ge ttin g d r essed , o r p eop le go ing to th e ba throo m Bur it ca n occas iona ll y las t muc h lo n ger, m ayb e h a l f a n h o ur o r even m o re , as in Rob e rt's ca se.

Presenter A n d wh a t h ap pe n s whe n s leepwalke r s wa ke up? D o th ey r em e mbe r the thin gs t h ey did w hil e t h ey we r e slee pwa lking ?

Professor N o, as Ro b e rt says, a s lee pwa lke r us u a ll y does n ' t re m e mbe r a n ythin g a fte r wa rd s

Presenter So, is a s leep wa lk er r espon s ible fo r hi s o r he r ac ti o n s?

Professor T h a t 's a ve r y good qu es ti o n , ac tu a lJ y. A few yea r s ago a m a n fro m Ca nad a got up in the middl e of th e ni ght and dro ve 2 0 mil es fr o m hi s h o m e t o th e h o use whe re his pare nts- in -la w li ved a nd , fo r no a ppa r e nt re a son , h e kille d his m oth e r -in-l aw T h e m a n was c h a r ged w it h murde r b ut he was fo und not g uilty b eca use h e h a d bee n as lee p a t th e tim e he c ommitte d th e c rim e 2 >))

Conversation I

Fema l e student Wb e r e's my milk ? It 's n o t h e re. Male student I h ave n ' t seen it Yo u mu st h ave fini s hed it

Female student I d e finit e ly didn' t fini s h it. I was keep i ng a bit for my cerea l this m o rnin g. Yo u mus t have u sed it

Male st ude nt M e ? I n e ve r take anythin g from th e frid ge tha t is n ' t mine. Yo u might have given it t o the c at las t night a nd th e n forgo tten a b o ut it

Fema l e stude nt Th e ca t drinks wate r n o t milk , so I ca n't have g ive n it to th e cat. Las t ni g ht there was h a lf a ca rton o f milk in the frid ge MY milk

Male student Well, I d o n' t know wh a t 's h a pp en e d to it

Fema le stude nt What a r e you drinkin g?

Male student Ju s t coffee.

Fema le st ud ent Yes, white c offe e . T ha t 's where my milk went We ll , yo u ca n go to th e s up e rm a rk e t and ge t m e so m e m o r e.

Male student O K , OK , ca lm d o wn. I' ll go a nd ge t yo u som e milk

Conversation 2

Satnav voice At th e ro und a b o ut, take th e s eco nd ex it.

Woman Wh y ar e yo u t a king th e third ex it? She sa id th e second exi t.

Man I'm s ur e it 's thi s o n e. I r e m emb e r wh e n w e ca m e he re las t tim e.

Woman Acco rdin g t o that s ig n this is th e A2 4 5.

Man Th e A 2 45? Oh n o ! We mu s t ha ve go ne wro n g.

Woman Of cours e w e've gon e wron g. We s h o uld h a ve t a ke n the s econd ex it a t the ro und a b o u t. Wh a t 's th e p o int o f h avin g a Sat n av if yo u d o n' t do wh a t it s ays ?

Man O K , I m ay have m ad e a mis t a ke. But if yo u kn ew th e w ay to yo ur cou s in 's ho use, th en w e wo uldn ' t h a ve t o u se th e Sa tn av.

Satnav voice T urn ro und as s o o n as p oss ib le 7> ))

In li fe , we s om e tim es h ave disag ree m e nt s wi t h p eople. It co uld b e w ith yo ur p a rtn e r , w ith yo ur boss, w it h yo ur p arents, o r with a fr ie nd. Wh e n th is h a p pe n s , th e im po rt a nt th i n g is t o tr y n o t to let a d i ffer e nce of o pin io n turn into a h ea t ed a r g ume nt But , ofco urse, it' s easie r sa id than d o ne Th e fir s t thin g I wo uld say is th a t th e wa y yo u b egin th e co nve rs ati o n is ve r y impo rt a nt Im ag ine yo u ' r e a s tud e nt a nd yo u s ha re a fl at w ith a n o th e r s tud e nt w ho you thin k is n ' t d o in g h e r s h a re o f th e ho u sewo rk If you say, ' Loo k , yo u n ever d o you r s h a r e of th e ho u sework. Wh at a r e we going to d o a b o ut it?' th e di scuss ion w il l ve r y soo n turn into a n a rg ume n t It ' s muc h m o r e co n s tru c ti ve t o say som e thin g like, ' I think w e'd b e tter h ave anoth er loo k a b o ut h o w w e divid e up the h o u sew o rk M ay b e the r e's a b e tter way o f d o in g it.' M y seco nd pi ece o f a d vice is s impl e. I f yo u ' r e th e pe rso n wh o's in th e w ro n g, ju s t admit it ! T h is is the easies t and best way t o avo id a n a r g um e n t. Ju s t a p o log ize t o yo ur fl a tm a t e, yo ur pare nts, o r yo u r hus b a nd , a nd m ove o n Th e o th e r p er son w ill h ave mu ch mo r e res p ect fo r you ifyo u d o th a t Th e next tip is d o n' t exagger a t e. T r y n o t t o say thin gs like , ' Yo u a lways co me h o m e late w he n m y m o th e r co m es to d inne r ' w h en p e rh a ps thi s h as o nly happ e n e d o nce befo r e, o r, 'You n eve r reme mb er t o bu y t h e t oo thp as t e .' T his w ill ju s t m a ke t he ot he r pe rso n get ve r y d e fe n s ive b ecau se w h at yo u' r e say in g abo ut th e m ju s t is n ' t true. l f yo u fo ll o w th ese tip s , yo u may o ft e n b e a ble t o avo id a n a r g um e nt But if a n a r gu m e nt d oes s t a rt , it 's importa nt to keep thin gs und er co ntro l a nd th e re a r e ways t o d o thi s.

T h e mos t i mpo rt a n t t h ing is n o t to r a ise yo ur voice. R a is in g yo ur voice w ill ju s t m ake the o che r pe r so n lose th e ir t e mpe r , too. If yo u find yo urse l f r a is in g yo u r voice, s t op fo r a mo m e nt a nd t a ke a d eep br eat h Say, ' I' m so rr y I s h o uted , but thi s is ve r y imp o rt a n t t o me ' a nd co n ti nue ca lmly. If yo u can t a lk ca lm ly a nd qui e tl y, yo u ' ll find t h e ot h e r pe r so n will be m o re r ea d y t o t hink ab o ut w h a t yo u ' r e sayin g.

It 's a lso ve r y i mpo rt a nt t o s ti c k t o t he poi nt. T ry to keep to th e t opic yo u' r e t a lk i n g abo u t Don 't brin g u p o ld a r g um e nts, o r tr y t o brin g in o th e r iss u e s. Ju st con ce ntra t e on so lvin g th e o n e prob lem you ' r e h av in g , a nd lea ve th e o th e r thin gs fo r a n o th er t ime. So, fo r exa mpl e, if yo u 'r e a rg uin g a bout the h o u se work , d o n ' t s t a rt t a lkin g a b o ut m o b ile ph o n e bills a s we ll.

A nd my fin a l tip is th at, if necessary, ca ll 'Ti m e out ' li ke in a sport s m a tc h If yo u thin k tha t a n a r g u ment is ge ttin g o u t of co ntro l , t h e n yo u can say t o th e oth e r pe rson , 'Lis t e n , I'd r a th e r t alk abo ut th is to m o rr o w w h e n we ' ve b o th ca lme d d own .' Yo u ca n th e n co ntinu e t a lkin g a b o ut it the n ext d ay wh en p erh a ps b o th o f you a re feelin g less te n se an d a n g r y. T h at way, th er e 's muc h

mo r e c hanc e th a t yo u ' ll b e able to re ac h a n ag reem e nt. Yo u ' ll al so pro bab ly fin d th at the probl e m is muc h easie r t o solve wh en yo u've b o th h a d a goo d ni g ht 's s leep

But I w a nt t o say o n e las t thin g which I think is very imp o rtant Som e pe o pl e think that a r g uin g i s a lwa ys b a d , b ut that is n't t ru e. Confli c t is a n o rm a l part o f li fe, a nd d e aling with confl ic t is an imp o rt a nt pa rt o f a ny r e latio n s hip, wh e th e r it's three p e opl e s h a rin g a fl at , a m a rri e d co upl e, o r ju s t t wo good frie nd s. I f yo u d o n ' t lea rn t o a rg u e properl y, th e n whe n a re al pro bl e m c o m es a lo n g, yo u wo n ' t be pre pare d t o fa ce it t o geth e r Think o f th e s mall e r a r g um e nts a s training sess ions. Le arn h o w t o a r g ue cleanly a nd fa irl y. It will he lp yo ur rel ati o n s hip becom e s tron ge r an d last lo n ge r.

11> ))

I lo ve this ph o to, es p ecia ll y the w ay s he's u s ing h e r h a nds and th e ex press io n in h e r eyes a nd h er mo uth H e r e s h e is in th e ro le o f a yo u ng s ingle m o th er , wh o has jus t h e ard a no ise in the kit c h e n in th e middl e of the n ig ht. Yo u ca n see t h e fear in h e r eyes, th a t s h e's worrie d a bo ut he r ch ild I think s h e s ugge s t s a ll that b ea ut i full y

14 >))

A Here's ac tress C he r y l H i nes. I f yo u th i n k s he loo ks furi o u s, th a t 's b ec ause s h e is ! Sh e's pl ay in g a w i fe who's ope nin g the d oor t o h e r hu s band a t o ne o'clock in th e m o rnin g. H er hu s b a nd fo rgot th at s he w as g iv ing a dinn er pa rty, a nd h e we nt off t o pl ay p o ke r w ith h is fri e nd s a nd turned hi s ph o n e off S h e loo ks as if s h e's go ing to t el l him to leave a n d neve r co m e b ack

B I lo ve thi s o n e. T hi s is Jaso n Schw a rt z m a n a nd h e's play in g a fi ve-yea r- o ld boy. H e's in th e process o f quie tly putcin g hi s pe t ra t into hi s seve n -year- o ld s is t e r 's clo th es dra we r H e lo ok s prett y confident a b o ut wh a t h e's d oing, and as if he's re all y lookin g forw a rd to hea rin g h e r s cream w h en s he find s it !

C Here , Ell en Bu rs t y n is pl ay ing a hi g h sch ool dram a t each e r . S he is in th e a udi e nce a t t h e O sca r cer em o ny a nd o n e of the wi nne rs is a n ex-s tude nt of he r s. H er ex-s tud e nt ac tu a ll y m e nti o n s h e r n a m e whe n s h e m a kes he r w i nn er 's s p ee c h. Yo u ca n see ho w proud s h e is , a nd h ow m oved s h e is t o h ave b ee n me ntio ned

D lo this p hoto I see pure h o r ro r a n d fea r T h is is the acro r D a n H e d aya . H e 's play ing th e pa rt of a long d is t a nce tru c k dri ve r who w as tir ed a nd d osed h is eyes fo r a few m o m e nts . H e o p en s th e m t o see th a t h e's -you ' ve g uessed it, o n the wro n g s id e of th e r oa d , with c ars racin g ro w a rds him D o yo u thin k he looks as if h e ' s go in g to r eact in time? I think p ro b ably n o t.

E H e r e the ac tress Ja ne Ly nc h was g ive n th e ro le of a ch ild She's swa ll owi n g a s p oo nful of m e di c ine th at h er mo m promise d wo uld tas t e good Of co urse it didn ' t , a nd no w s he's t e llin g he r th at ifit didn ' t t as t e aw ful it wo uldn ' t wo r k. S he looks as if s he's ab o ut t o s pit it o u t ! I ca n r e me mbe r reactin g ju s t like th a t whe n I was ki d , a nd my M o m say i n g th ose exac t sa me wo rd s!

F Wh e n yo u look at t hi s last o n e of S t eve G u tte nb e r g , I t hin k yo u ca n im med ia t e ly see fr o m his ex press io n th a t h e 's wo rri ed , a nd m aybe n e r vou s Look a t the w ay he 's h o ld in g h is h a nds , al m os t as i f b e we re prayi n g. H e 's p layi n g t h e ro le of a m a rri e d m a n , who's b egg in g hi s w i fe ro g ive him o n e mo r e ch a n ce Bue I think h e look s as i f be's d o n e som e thin g ba d , a nd is pre t ty des pera t e , so I' m no t s ure i f his wife is go in g to fo r g ive hi m!

15>))

In terviewer How di ffic ult is it to ex press fee lin gs when yo u can 't u se b o d y la n g u age?

Tim We ll , r adi o actin g is a diffe re nt s t y le o f ac tin g fro m v is ua l act ing becau se, obv io u s ly, yo u o nl y h ave you r vo ice to, to use. But yo u can use yo ur voice a nd yo u ca n u se ti min g to convey eve r yth i n g W he n I start ed off as a ra di o acto r somebo d y said to m e 'yo u h ave to be a bl e to ra ise o n e eye brow w ith yo ur voice', w h ic h l loved . Be cau se yo u h ave n' t got yo u r body, you h a ve to put it in to yo ur vo ice and so th e r efo r e t h e w ay t h at a r a di o acto r wo rks is n 't t otall y n a tu ra li s tic in th e way t h a t it wo uld b e o n t h e te lev is io n or o n fil m.

Interviewer W h a t t echniqu es d o you use to h e lp yo u to exp r ess emoti o n s, fee li ngs?

T im Mmm , we ll , t here's a big d ifference be t wee n s p ea ki ng w it h a s mile , a nd no t speak ing wi th a s mile.

T h ere's a hu ge d iffe r en ce betwee n be ing h a ppy, and b e ing r eal ly s a d , a nd r eall y a n g r y

Interviewer ls it h ard fo r acto rs w h o d o n ' t h ave

e xperie n ce in r a di o ro d o r a di o a c tin g?

Tim Well , pe o ple do n ' t r e ali z e tha t it is a di ffe re nt t e chniqu e Yo u wo uld get fa mo u s p eopl e co min g in , not re a liz in g that there w as a tec hniqu e to r a dio ac tin g a nd thinkin g th a t you co uld d o t o t a l natur alis m , a nd it is n ' t t o tall y n a tura listic It 's a s n a turalis ti c as you ca n m a ke it so und - t o lift it o ff t h e page, t o m ake it so un d as th o u g h you ' r e no t r eadin g i t 23 >))

To uc hing o r s trokin g the ir n eck is a ve r y t y pica l s ig n that a p e r son is nervo u s , and is tr y in g t o ca l m th e m s elves d o wn A wo m a n m ay a lso pl ay with a n eckl ace, a nd a m a n may tighte n hi s t ie

2 Wh e n so m e b o d y's sta ndin g a nd th ey p o int o n e o f th e ir toes upw a rd s , thi s is a clea r s ig n that the person is in a good m ood , o ften b eca u se th ey a r e thinkin g a bout, o r have just b ea rd, s ome thin g p osit ive. I f you see som e on e s t a ndin g t a lkin g on th e pho n e and th ey s udd enl y p o int o n e foo t up , yo u ca n b e s ur e that they h a ve ju s t bee n rold some good n e ws.

3 C r oss ing th e ir le gs, whe ther t he y' r e s it tin g o r s t a nding , is a s ig n th a t a p e r so n feel s re laxe d a nd com fo rtable . I f th e pe r son is s ittin g w ith th eir legs c rosse d a nd their feet t o w a rd s anot he r pe r s on , that sh o ws that they a r e interested in thi s pe r so n H owe ve r, if so meon e t h ey d o n ' t like a pp ea r s, you may find that t hey quickl y un c ross th e ir legs

4 T his pos iti o n , s t a ndin g with yo ur h a nd s o n yo ur h ips a nd yo ur elbows p o inting o ut, i s a pose u sed t o s h o w do min a nce If yo u w atch p o lice o ffi ce r s o r soldiers yo u' ll n o ti ce th a t th ey o ften u se thi s p ose. Me n tend to u se it m o r e than wome n , a nd it's so m e thin g we t each wo m e n exe c u tive s t o d o in m eeti n gs whe re there a r e a lo t o f m e n prese nt , ro s ho w th at th ey a r e confiden t a nd won ' t b e bullied

S We a ll kn o w th a t thumbs up is a positive s ig n , m ea nin g we feel good o r a ppro ve o f som e thin g. But what a b o ut wh e n so m e b o d y pu ts t h e ir thumb s d ow nwa rd s, in th e ir p oc kets? A s yo u mi g ht g uess, thi s u s u a ll y m ea n s tha t th e ir co n fi de n ce is lo w, a nd t h ey a r e fee lin g un s u re o f th e m se lves. So tr y no t ro d o this if yo u a re i n a s it u atio n where yo u n eed t o look con fi d en t a nd in co ntro l.

6 Putt i n g th e ir he ad t o o n e s ide is a powe r fu l s ign tha t a pe r son fe el s fri e ndl y a nd in te res t e d i n so m eo n e o r so me thin g. It 's a n a uto m a ti c, ge nuin e ges ture , unli ke a s mil e, whi ch mi g ht b e a rti fici al , a nd so it 's a good s ig n o f r ea l inte r e st It 's a lso ve r y diffi c ul t to do n a tura ll y a ro und p eo ple yo u d o n' t like.

7 If yo u look a t p eop le i n a s tressfu l s it u at io n , fo r ex amp le w im esse s wh o a re ans we r i n g qu es ti o n s in courts, yo u ' ll often see that it looks as i f the ir lip s h ave di sa ppea r ed in w ards In fact thi s is o n e o f t h e m os t uni ve r sa l s ig n s o f stress, as iJ a pe rso n wa nted to di sa ppea r com p le t e ly

24 >))

Part 1

Interviewer H ow d id yo u ge t into ac tin g?

Simon I was abo u t 18, it w as m y firs t rea l jo b a nd it was a ve r y unu s u a l jo b becau se I was wor kin g in the b ox o ffi ce of t h e O ld Vi c T h e atre A nd n o t o nl y d id I get to see a n awful lo t of p lays b u t I al so m e t th e ac tors a nd I w as a b le to s nea k in t o re h e arsa ls, in th e the atre, q uite illega lly, a nd I b eca m e fasc in ate d by th e wo r k of t he t heat r e.

Interviewer W ha t in pa rtic ul ar fasci n ated yo u ?

Simon T h e thin g th a t fasc in a te d m e , as 1sa id , was, was w h e n I was in r e hea rsa ls th e re was this , th e w ork of the th ea tre , th e sort of wo rk it w a s , so I'd s t a nd a t th e bac k of th e O ld Vic T h ea tre w h e n the ac t o r s w e re r e hea r s in g, but mos tl y it con s is t ed of peo ple s itt ing ra th e r g luml y abo u t say in g ' I d o n ' t k n o w how to d o t bi.s, I do n 't kn ow how t o d o th is , I do n ' t k n o w how to m ake this sce ne wo rk , I do n ' t und e r s tand my c h arac t er ' a nd th e Di r ector wo uld tr y to h elp t h em t o und e r sta nd th e c h arac t er o r s u ggest a m o ve he r e o r a m o ve t he r e o r m ay be th ey 'd tr y wa l k in g in a di ffe r e nt way o r puttin g o n a d iffe r e nt h a t , a nd bit by bi t it started to fa ll in ro p lace a nd I t ho ug ht wh a t a won d e r fu l jo b , w h at a fa nt as t ica ll y in t e r estin g jo b to wres tle w it h th e se ki n d s o f prob le m s, cry t o un de r s t a n d t he ch a r ac te r s , t r y to fi nd o ut b o w b es t to exp r ess th e m an d s h o w the m off, so I, I ca m e t o ac tin g ve r y mu c h fro m t h a t po in t of view.

Interviewer T h e ro le th a t fi r s t m a de yo u fa m o u s as a yo un g acro r w as pl ay ing Mozar t in t h e o ri g in a l

theatre production of Amadeus, which later we nt o n co become a film Wh at was the mos t c hall e nging thin g about play in g the part of Moza rt?

Simon What was a challenge wa s th a t Moza r t was a person who'd ac tu a ll y lived and was ind ee d o ne of the g r ea te st a rti s ti c geni u ses of th e whol e Western civilizatio n , a nd I was a great love r a nd admirer of Mozart 's mu s ic, so there was a tremendous , e r , challe nge to brid ge th e cha r acter that Peter S haffer h ad written , Pete r Shaffer knows all abo ut Mozart, he could so that Mozart was, was, er, er sort of a s murry, e r , h ys teri ca l child really, e r, in a lo t of the play. My job was to rec o n ci le th a t with the fact that h e wrote Th e MarriaBe of Fi Ba ro and that was tr eme nd o u s ly hard. Interviewer Wa s Moza rt one o f yo ur m os t sa tis fying roles?

Simon No, I wouldn't say that, that it was the m ost sat isfyin g, it was the most exciting because it s, its fame er, almost fr o m the mo m e nt it was a nnounce d was overw h el mingl y g reater t h a n a ny thing I had ever done , and co b e ho n est ever have d o ne since. T h e fact that the play was ve r y very controversial w h en it o p ened prove d co be, er, very, um , um s h ocking for m a ny people , only increased t h e exci tement a r o und it, and it was , e r , er asro ni s hlng to look o ur into th e a udi roriu m eve r y night a nd to see Paul ew m a n o r , or, or, or Roberr Red ford or o r , o r Ava Gardner, o r Margaret T h atc h er s ittin g o u t th ere b ecause every b o d y had to see that play. 25 >))

Part2

Interviewer Over yo ur ca reer you have acted in the the atre, a nd yo u have a lso ac ted in m a ny films. Which d o yo u prefer?

Simon T h ey ' re ab solute ly different m edia , they require d ifferent thin gs fr o m yo u as an actor, I love che m boch Bue they are each of the m comp letely different, you bring comp letely different thin gs co chem. Obvious ly the c ru cia l difference w ith the th eatre is that there 's a n a udience an d chat 's s uch an important as p ect of it in eve r y way. It's impo rt ant becau se yo u have co re ac h o ur co ch em, m a ke s ur e char everybody ca n h ea r and see w h at yo u' re do ing. The beauty of the chea t re is that every single performance is utte rl y differe nr from eve r y ot her one.

Interviewer H ow do yo u m o tiva te yourse lf co pl ay th e sa m e c h a racter again night after night?

Simon I think as yo u gee o ld er yo u realize chat, um, yo u neve r gee it right , I, 1m ea n I' ve, l 've probab ly ab o ut h a lf a d oze n tim es in my 40 ye ars of actin g have thou ght we ll that was a really good performance, e r , but it ca n always b e bette r And so o ne goes to the theatre eve r y day hoping chat it wi ll be in someway bette r , er, er, yo u k n ow there is always the possibility yo u might get it right , I mean yo u n eve r do, yo u never ca n

Interviewer So wh a t for yo u is th e m a in diffe r e n ce wit h film ac tin g?

Simon Er, in movies or, o r t e levision film which is wh a t al most a ll te levision is nowadays um , a lo t of those respon s ibiliti es a r e, li e wi th the Director a nd the E ditor And h av in g directed a film m yselfl kn ow perfectly we ll th a t yo u ca n m a ke a sa d scene fu nn y, yo u ca n mak e a s low scen e fas t , e r , e r, in the editing s uite, it 's, it 's an astonishing, e r , power ch ar a Director a nd Editor h ave. Um, e r , yo u ca n make a charac te r see m s tupid just by editin g th e m a certa in way o r make them see m brill ia nt by e ditin g the m in a diffe re nt way. So in that sense the acror is rather powe rl ess.

Interviewer Anything e lse?

Simon T he ocher thin g th a t 's ve r y h a rd a bout acting o n film is rh a r hil a ri o u s ly it's re ga rd e d as a so rt of naturalis tic me dium but in no sense is it th a t for the acro r , beca u se you' r e, yo u ' re, yo u know, first of all th ere are some li ttle m eta l o bj ects right in front of you, sort of, stari n g a t yo u as yo u ' r e d oing yo ur love sce ne o r w h a tever else it mig ht b e. 26 >))

Part3

Interviewer Do yo u en joy watching o th er acrors ac tin g?

Simon I love watching o th e r acro rs act in g, I've been o b sessed by acti n g s in ce I was a c hild a nd I' m a great co nn o isse ur ofi r a nd! think I'm qu ire a good judge of it , a nd so I adore watching o th er acto rs work when it's goo d , when it 's n o t it 's a g rea t pain co me.

Listening

Inte rviewer Who were the fi rs t great actors you saw?

Simon As a yo u ng man , and a boy, I was extraord ina rily lu c ky to see that fabled gene r at io n of actors, of, of Gielgu d and Ri ch a rd son, Olivier, Ed ith Evans, Peggy Ashcroft, people now, almost all completel y forgotten. Er, er, e r even if they made m ovies it's unlikel y that people of a yo un ger generation know who they are, but , but er, when, whe n the y were alive a nd kickin g a nd , er doing their extrao rdina ry work o n stage it, it, it was so m eth ing quire , quire remarkable, I mean it was , it was the so rt of thing t h at nobody atte mpts any more.

Interviewer Do a ny m oder n acro r s come close co rhar golde n generation?

S imon In movies, not a lways but , bur someti mes Daniel D ay Lewis does , er, I thi nk probably approach a role in the way a lo t of the m might have approached it Intervi e wer l s there anythi n g yo u don ' t like about acting?

Simon I d o n't much li ke wearing m ake up, I s wear a lo t , it comes off, it 's un com fo rt a bl e, its st icky, a nd I d o ever y thin g I ca n t o avo id wear in g mak e up Interviewer D o yo u sti ll get s t age frig ht ?

Simon I don ' t get s t age frig ht but I do ge t sel f consc io u s a nd I hate th at and I wish I didn't , particularly a t events like fi r st nigh rs, beca u se I do n ' t k n ow how it 's impossible to ig no r e th e fac t th a t th e r e a re at least 100 pe ople sittin g out th e re jud gi ng yo u , yo u know, [think a lm os t all ac to r s feel treme nd o u s longing for the first ni g ht to be over , but it has co happ en, it's like a sort of operati o n , it's, yo u know it's got co h appe n , it 's goi n g co hurt but you will feel better afterwards.

28 >))

Interviewer What actors do yo u partic ul a rl y e njoy watc hin g?

Nathan E rr, Kev in Spacey, um , R obert De Niro , M att Sm ith , um , O li via Colman , u m , Jodi e Foste r.

Interviewer Why do yo u lik e them?

Nathan I think , well there 's two things with acto r s , one is the a bility to take o n a no th e r c h arac te r a nd perform it o utsi de of th emselves but a lso I think yo u tend t o find t h at, that acto r s w h o a re t h a t famo us h ave some so rt o f star qualit y, for want of a better expr ess io n , a p ull towards th em , like g r ea t sport sta r s.

Interviewer Which p erformances particularly?

Nathan Ow, um , e rr, we ll Robert D e iro in Taxi Driver is some thin g co be beheld, um , I've see n Kevin Spacey a few times on stage a nd h e's been in credibly im pressive , um , so, yea h

Interviewer Wh at acrors do you particu la rl y enjoy watching?

Sean I don ' t reall y h ave a favou rit e acror I don't think , but, um , I a lways enjoy watc hin g Rob err De iro.

Interviewer Wh y do yo u like him?

Sean I think h e ju st has an intensity, and a presence that makes yo u want to watch him , makes yo u want co ch in k abo ut why he 's doin g what h e's doing , I think even if it's somet h ing qu ire s illy, um, it 's s rill a lways inte r esting co watc h

Interviewer What performance of his do yo u particularly enjoy?

Sean I think my favourite film and my favo urite performance of a ll t i me is The Deer Hunt e r Interviewer What actors do yo u particula rly enjoy watching?

Jo 'I r ea ll y lik e Judi Dench a nd I also like Russe ll Crowe Interviewer Wh y do yo u like them? Wh at is it a b out che m t h at yo u like ?

Jo Um, I think they s h ow a lot of emotion w h e n they're acti n g

Interviewer Wh a t r o les in partic ul a r do yo u e nj oy watc hing them in?

Jo Um, I l ike Judi Dench in h er r o le, um , in the Bond film s and I really e nj oyed, um , Russell Crowe in Gladiator.

Intervi e w e r What ac t o r s do you particul arly e n joy watching?

Mairi U m , Audrey Hepburn and Natali e Portman.

Interviewer Wh y d o yo u l ike them ?

Mairi Urn , I li ke A u drey Hepburn because I th i nk she was ve r y genu in e an d I feel like she p ut her h ea rt into everythin g, I es p ecia ll y like watching films where she dances beca u se she looks very happy. Um, I like aralie Portman b ecause, u m, I feel like she is a very good ac tor, um , I don ' t think 'o h that 's Nata lie Portman in a film ' 1t h i nk 'O h

t h a t 's, th a t 's a charac ter ' and I like that she does di ff, a lo t of different c haracters, um , a nd doesn 't just s tick to t h e sa m e kind of film a ll the t im e.

Interviewer Which of the i r performances d id yo u partic ularl y e nj oy?

Mairi Um, for Audre y Hepburn I like, er r, he r performance in Fu1111y Face a nd for Natalie Portm a n I like Back Black Swan 30 >))

Presenter So, welco m e to the programme, Danny. Now yo u're an ex-b urgla r yourse lf so yo u ca n obviou s ly g ive us the ins ide sto r y he r e. Tell m e, h ow lo ng does a burglar u sua ll y ta ke co burgle a house?

Danny I'd say that an experi enced burglar would never spend more than 20 minutes in a ho use. 1\venty minutes maximum and t h e n o ut.

Presenter And how much would they p robably cake in that time?

Danny Maybe 2 , 000 o r 3,000 quid 's worth of goods It depends on th e ho use.

Pre senter A nd w hat are rhe favo uri te t hings for burglars ro stea l?

Danny Well, these days they ' r e u s u ally looking for things like laptops and tablets. The y' re easy co sell, yo u see, a nd not so easy fo r t h e ow n er to identify if, yo u , i f the burgla r lacer ge ts caught.

Presenter W h at one thin g wou ld be likely to srop a burgla r from brea kin g into a h o use?

Danny l 'd say defrnitely a dog, especially a n oisy o ne. Burglars don ' t like dogs becau se t h ey' re unpredictable.

Presenter Wbar kind of things would act u a lly make a burglar choose a pa rtic ul ar house co break into?

Danny Well it 's got co look like a ho u se w h ere there'll be things worth t ak in g, so a burglar will normally go fo r a h o u se that look s quite expensive, in a good area. And they' ll a lso often ch oose a house where there are trees or bushes outside which are good places to hide while they' re watc h ing rhe ho u se before they break in-and also where they cou ld hide w he n t h ey co m e o ut of the house. T ha t wa y there 's less chance of n eighb o u rs seeing them A nd , o b vio u s ly, they' ll n orma ll y wait for the house co be empty before they break in.

Presenter So a burglar wo uldn't b reak in if they t h o u ght the owners were at home?

D a nny Noc usuall y, n o, though there are some burglars who act u ally prefer it if the owners a r e at home in bed. T h at way the y wo n 't get s ur prised by che m s ud den ly co ming home when they're in the middle of thin gs.

Presen ter Oh, not a very nice thought. What's the most co mmon time of day for a burg la r co b r eak into your house?

Danny People al ways t hink ofb urglars as working at night , and of co urse some do but the majority of burglaries happen between around 10.00 in t he morning and lunch time. A bu rglar will watd1 a house a nd th e n wait for t he adults to go to work and the kids go co school and t hen he can be s ure the house is empty.

Presenter What 's th e easiest way for a burglar co break into a house ?

Danny The eas ies t wa y is just caking o ut a wi ndow or a patio d oor, u s uall y at the back of the ho use. Yo u can do tliis re a ll y quickl y a nd it doesn ' t m ake much n oise if yo u ' ve got good equ ipment, whic h a seriou s burglar wo uld u sua ll y h ave.

Presenter And finally what 's the safest room co hide yo ur val u ab les in ? What 's the last place a burglar wo u ld look?

Danny There's a typical o rder b ur glars us e w h en they search a ho u se. They start with t h e m ain bedroom , because that 's often where p eople leave their valuables, an d then th e living room Um, after that probably the dining roo m if there is one, the study, and th en the kitchen. The last place wo uld probably be a kid 's bedroom. Yo u wou ldn 't normally expec t co find anything wo rth taking there.

Presenter So a c hild 's bedr oom is the best place co hi de things ?

Danny We ll , in theor y, though of course if a ny burglars out the re h ave been liste nin g co this pr ogramme, they might sta rt looki n g there fi r st 35 >))

And last o n o ur crime news srories from round the wo rld , a burglar w ho's been fooling eve n the most intelligent stud ents. T he area between Broadway and 9t h Street in New York is whe r e s rudenrs ofte n head ro whe n

chey ' re looking for a flat share. This was something well known to Daniel Scewart Cooper, who also knew chac scudencs in a shared house ofcengo ouc and leave che door unlocked , maybe thinking that anocher flacmate is still inside. This sicuacion suiced Cooper perfeccly, and he is choughc to have commicced becween SO and 100 burglaries in cbe area le is beljeved chac he was mainly inceresced in finding drugs, but thac ifhe found eleccronics or ocher gad gees lying around, he took ch ose, too. A nd he didn't jusc sceal things Cooper is also said to ha ve made himself at home in the h o u ses, helping him se lf to food from the fridge a nd even having a shower Although h e normally rried to make sure thac the residents were our, ifhe did meet people, it's thought that he would pretend to know someone there, and so was able to leave without raising s uspi cions.

However on September 5th, Cooper was finally caught after cwo studencs saw him in che area wich a laptop and a backpack which he had jusc stolen from their house. Dylan John, one of the viccims, told CBS news that Cooper had taken some food, too Cooper, who ran off as soon as he realized char the students suspected him, was found by the police hiding behfod some nearby bushes.

38 >))

And for our last story today, have yo u ever wondered what would it be like to be eaten by a tiger? Well, now we know, thanks to Soundari, a seven-year-old Siberian tiger living ac Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire Last week when it snowed, the animal keepers decided to build some snowmen , to encercain che tigers, and chey hid a tiny video camera inside one of the snowmen to film rhe tigers' reactions At first, the cigers just sniffed at the snowman, but then one of them, called Soundari , began accacking che snowman and starced to ear it and the camera. However she didn'c like the caste of che camera, so after a while she spat it ouc. Amazingly, the camera had never stopped recording, and was scill working when the anima l keepers recovered ic. The film that t h e hidden camera had taken was incredible. For the first rime you cou ld feel what it would be like to be attacked by a tiger, a nd see ics open mouch coming at you a nd see its e nor mous razo r sharp teeth and its ro u gh tongue. [n fact a spokesman for the safar i park said that the s hots ofSound ari ' s teeth were so clear chat it gave them che opportunity to have a quick health check on her mouth, gums, and teeth!

46 >))

Interviewer Brad Picc said recently, ' They call my kids by cheir names. They shove cameras in cheir faces. f really believe chere shou ld be a l aw against ic.' He was cal king , of course, abo uc paparazzi. Bue are che paparazzi really as bad as Brad Picc says chey are? Today in che studio wich me is Jen nifer Buhl, who is an actual - is ic paparazzi or paparazzo?

Jennifer Buhl Paparazzo for a man, paparazza for a woman. Paparazzi is the plural.

Interviewer So Jennifer are yo u good, bad, or in between?

Jennifer Well, I think I'm a good girl. But some people would probably nor like me.

Interviewer A lot of people say there's a working relacionsbip becween celebricies and paparazzi. Would you say chac was crue? Thac celebrities accua ll y cell you where chey ' re going to be?

Jennifer Yes , of course. Thac happens all che time. Bue I think cha e's whac a lot of cbe public doesn'c realize. You know, people shout at us and insult us when chere's a big crowd of us aro und, let's say, Bricney Spears or Lindsay Lohan. I ju st wane to cell chem that chey called us. And , after we've sold th e photos, we split the m o ne y between the stars and us.

Interviewer I've ofcen choughc that must be true. I mean , nobody just goes to the gym with cheir hair done a nd make-up on unless they're actually expeccing to be photographed.

Jennifer Exaccly. But don ' t gee me wrong, it 's noc like all the celebrities wane to be photographed. If a celebricy wanes to go ouc and avoid the paparazzi, ic's preccy easy to do. Ce lebrities that don't like ic rarely gee phocographed , they very rarely get photographed. Interviewer Give me some example of celebrities who genuinely don ' c wane to be photographed? Like , who really haces ic?

Jennifer Julia Robercs hates ic Kace Bosworch hates ic.

Interviewer A re photos of them worth more money if chey hare it?

Jennifer le depends. No , noc necessarily. Because chey don ' c gee photographed often , chen nobody sees them in magazines, and they lose interest in them. Because they become boring

Interviewer Wbac shot have you caken chat you goc cbe mosc money for?

Jennifer Probably one of the s hoes chac sold the besc, cbac I didn'c expecc, didn't even know, was Paris Hilton carrying che Bible righc before she wenc to jail. There were lots of paparazzi there but I was rhe o nl y one that go t the Bible.

Interviewer Do yo u chink we need scr icter laws to keep paparazzi away?

Jennifer There are a lready enough laws. We don'c need more laws, or anti- paparazzi laws or anything else There are places where celebricies can go to where chey know chey won't be fo ll owed , and places where chey know chey will be.

Interviewer For example?

Jennifer We don ' t go into rescaurancs , we don't go into stores , and of course we don' c go into people's homes. Thac 's privace propercy Bue a beach or a park isn't. Interviewer So you don'c chin k chac being followed and photographed by the paparazzi is really stressful for celebricies?

Jennifer f chink there are only a few people for whom it 's really and cruly stressful. I'd say chat in rnosc cases the scar noc only doesn't mind , but has actually told the paparazzi , 'This is where I'm going to be this afternoon.'

Interviewer Fascinating. Thank you very much for corning in to cbe studio. Jennifer Buhl everybody! 5 2 >))

The first point co bear in mind is thac nothing, but noching, is ever free. How often have you seen adverts saying things like 'Gee a free mp3 player when you subscribe to our magazine for six months'. There's something abouc che wo rd ' free ' that immediacely acrracts us- I wane it! It makes us fee l clever, as if we're going to gecsomeching for noching. Bue, of course, thac mp3 player (wh ich, inc identally, w ill probably break the second cirne you use ic) wasn ' t free ac all. In spice of whac che adverc said , ic s price was really included in cbe magazine subscripcion. So don ' c cruse any adverc which offers someching for free

A second crick which advertisers use is when they rell us , 'There are only a few left! Buy now while stocks lase!' Whac happens to us when we read or hear chese words? Even cbougb we don'c really need che produces , and maybe don'c even like chem , we imrnediacely want to be among the lucky few who have chem. Bue - lee 's be clear abouc chis-companies jusc don ' r run ouc of produces. Do you really chink che manufacturers co uldn ' c produce a few more, if cbey choughc chey could sell them? Of course they could

When ir comes to new produces we , che consumers, are like sheep and we follow each o ch er. So anocher way advertisers have of geccin g us to use somech ing is to cell us , 'Everybody's using ir ' And of course, we chink everybody can ' c be wrong, so che produce muse be fanrastic. So as to make us believe it , cbey use expressions like , ·re's a muse-have ' or 'lc 's che inching ', and they combine chis wich a photograph of a large group of people , so tbac we can' r fail to gee cbe message. But don ' t be fooled. Even ific everybody is using ic (and chey may noc be), everybody can be wrong.

Anocher favourice message is ' You, too, can look like chis', accompanied by a photo of a fab ul ous- looking man or woman. Bue rhe problem is , you can'c look like chis b ecau se accually the woman or man in che photo is a model and also because he or she doesn'c really look like chac, eicher. The photo has been airbrushed in o rd er to make the models look even s l immer, wich perfecc skin, and even more accraccive chan chey are in rea l life

Finally, whac most anno ys me is, 'Trusc me, I'm a doccor ' or 'Trust me, I ' m a celebricy '. The idea is that if a celebricy i.s using the product, it muse be fantascic , or if a doctor recommends ic , ic muse really work. Bue be careful. Alcbough che accress is holding che produce in che photo, do you really think she colo urs her hair wich ic at home? And che doctor in the advert, is he really a doctor or just an actor wearing a wbice coac? Adverts also ofcen mention a parcicular organizacion which recommends cheir produce- for example things li ke, 'Our dog biscuics are recommended by che lncerna ci onal Associacion of Dog Nucritioniscs' -well, rhac's probably an organization which che company s e c up ch ernselves. Or , 'A r ecent independenc study fo und

chac our toochpasce cleans your ceecb beccer chan any ocher brand'. Whac scudy was ic? Who commissioned che srudy? Ir was probably produced for the company icself, and paid for by chem , too

5 6 >))

When Paul Feldm an scarced his business, you know, he really choughc cbac a c leas e 95 per cent of the people would pay for cheir bagels. This was presumably because th ac was che payment race cbac he got in his ow n office. Bue, in face, chis race wasn'c represencacive ac all. I mean, in his office, most people paid probably just because Feldman worked chere himself, and chey knew him personally, and probably liked him.

So when Feldma n sold his bagels in ocher offices, he had to accepc less. After a while, he considered chac a company was ' h ones t ' if over 90 per cent of che people paid. Between 80 and 90 per cent was what he considered to be normal, yo u know, che average race. He didn ' c like it , bur he had to accepc ic. le was on ly if a company habitually paid less chan 80 per cent-which luckily noc many did-cbac he wou ld fee l be had to do something. Firsc be would leave a noce, sort of giving chem a warning, and then, if things didn'c improve , he would s impl y stop selling there. Jncerescingly, since he sea reed che business , che boxes he leaves to collect che cash have hardly eve r been sto le n. Obviously in che mind of an office worker, co s cea l a bagel isn'c a crime, but to sreal che money box is.

So, whacdoes che bagel daca cell u s about che kind of offices chac were noc honesc, che ones rhat didn ' t pay? Well , firsc of a ll , it shows cbac small e r offices a r e more honesc cban big ones. An office wich 20 to 30 emp loyees generally pays chree to five per ce nt more chan an office wich cwo to chree hundred employees. This seems co be because in a smaller community people are more worried about being dishonest- probably because they would feel worse if they were caughc.

The bagel daca a lso s ug gescs chac your mood, how yo u feel, affeccs how bonesc yo u are For example, che weacber is a really important factor. When cbe weacher is unu s u ally good, more people pay, but if ic's unusu a ll y cold o r rainy, fewer people pay. And people a r e also affecced by public holidays, buc in different ways-ic depe11ds which public h o lid ay Before Christmas and Thanksgiving , people are less bonesc, buc just before the 4th of July and Labour Day they are more honesc. This seems to be because holidays like the 4ch of July are jusc a day off work, and people always look forward to them. But Chrisrmas and Thanksgiving are holidays where people ofren feel quice scressed or miserable. So their bad mood makes chem less honest.

The other thing Feldman believes affects how honest p eop le are is cbe morale in an office When employees like cheir boss and like cheir job , chen che office is more honest. He also thinks chat the higher people are promoced, ch e less h onesc they are. H e reached chis concl u sion because, over seve ral years, he'd been delivering chree baskecs of bagels to a company chac was on chree floors. The cop floor was the executive floor, and che lower cwo floors were people who worked in sales, and service, and adminiscracive employees. Well , ic turned our chac che least honesc floor was che execuci ve floor! le makes you wonder whee h er maybe chese g uys goc to be executives because chey were good ac cheacing!

Bue in general che story of Feldm an 's bagel business is a really posicive one. !e 's crue thac some people do sceal from him, but the vase majority, even chough no one is wacching them, are bonesc.

5 17 >))

I So, Miles, you're going to cell us abouc your top five cities.

M Yes le was a difficulc quescion for me because, of course, as a crave) wricer I've been co so many places. Bue , in che end , I decided chat if( was making a personal choice, chey had to be cicies thac meant someching co me personally, char had a perso11al conneccion. So , cbese aren' r necessa ril y big tourisc cities, chough some of chem a re , but che cicies thac are my own personal top five. Incidencally, these five aren' c in any parcicular order

I So, whac 's che firsc one in your top five?

M Well , che firsc one is Sydney. The personal conneccion is chac my son and his family live chere , so of course my wife and I have been chere quice ofre n a nd goc to know ic well. Of cou rse, chere are lo cs of amazing chin gs abouc Sydney. For one ching ic's a wacerfronc cicy, ic h as the sea all around ic; chere' s

wonderful s urfing on Bondi beach and pl e nty of g r ea r lirrle bays for sunba thin g and sw imming Ir 's a lso a very cosmopolit a n city Sydneys iders - which is whar peopl e from Sy dney are ca ll ed -co m e from all corners of th e wor ld , so for example th e c h o ice of places ro eat is e nd less Yo u ca n find eve r y thing from simple so up kitc he ns ro elega nt, worldclass r estau rants so yo u can ch oose to ear Thai, Vietn a mese , Greek , It alian and man y, many o th e r kind s of c ui s in e.

I And your seco nd ci t y?

M My w ife a nd I s p e nt o ur ho ne y moo n in Edinburgh so it 's always b ee n a spec ia l pla ce for me. But I think it 's especia ll y excit in g during the Festival , which h appe n s every Au g u st. Of co urse, there's a fantastic programme o f music, a nd danc e, a nd t he a rts But wha t gives the ci t y a s pecial bu zz during rh e festival is ' th e Fringe'. Th e Frin ge is a massive alternative festival, a nd ir has litera lly hundr ed s of eve nt scomed y, theatre, amate ur st ud e nt gro ups, s treet e nte rta in e r s. And, of co urse, the pubs s tay ope n until mu ch la t e r th a n usual during th e Festiva l a nd that adds ro the atmosphere roo. However, it 's reall y hard ro get accom m odat io n during the Fes ti va l so yo u need to boo k well in adva nce.

I mu s t say, I've neve r b een to th e fest ival , th o u gh I' ve o ft e n tho u g ht a bout going. Next yea r I mu st reall y rr y roge r there. Wh a t a bo ut your third cit y?

M My third city is Ca i ro. We lived there for fiv e years in the 70s and both o ur so ns we r e b o rn there , beside th e Riv e r Nil e. Peop le a lways assoc iat e Ca iro with t he P y ramid s, and o f course th ey are amazing, bur for me the best thing a bout it is rh e mu se um s, which are abso lut ely fantasric. The Egyp ti an Muse um has the world's larges t a nd b es t collection from Pharao nic times. Then the Copt ic mus e um , which is in the s uburb of A l Fu s rar h as th e best of Egy pt 's Chr ist ian c ulture And rh e Museum of Islamic Art has a w h o le lo r of exq uis ite pieces fr o m Mu s lim times. So if yo u ' re som eo n e who likes mus eums and antiquities , my adv ice is go to Ca iro I must say that I ha ve been ro Ca iro a nd I co mpl e t ely ag r ee with yo u And your n ex t one?

M For my ne xt one we' r e back in Europe in Ita ly. I've c hosen Lucca, in Tuscany. Tuscan y's tw o m ajor tourist tow n s, Flore nce a nd Pisa , a re abso lutely jam-pa cked wit h tou ri s ts all yea r ro und , but most of th e m n ever get ro Lucca. Yo u can o nl y rea ll y explore iron foot, wh ich is the way I like ro m o ve a ro und a town, and in abo ut a n hou r yo u ca n do rhe fo ur-ki lometr e ci rc uit all around it s Re nai ssa nce town wa ll s. These wa ll s are a mazing- they' re compl et e ly intact , a nd yo u ca n p ee r into people 's living roo ms as yo u wa lk pa s t. Or you can wa lk fro m o n e e nd of rh e town to the other along Via Fi llun go. Al so, Lu cca is th e birthpl ace of Pucci ni , who's o ne of my all-rime favo urite composers. H e p layed the orga n ofth e town 's mag nificent cathed ra l w hen h e was a yo un g m a n , a nd th ere's a wonde rful open-a ir festival every year w h er e th ey perform hi s o p era s at a place ca lled To rr e d el Lago, which is ju s t nea rby.

I A nd yourlas rcir y?

M My las t c it y is o ne rhar n or m a ny people ha ve bee n to-i t 's n or o n the u s ua l t o urist route. I'd ju s t finished unive r s it y a nd I was c uri o u s about rh e wide r wor ld , so I went to Laos in So uth Ea s t Asia Laos a nd its capital, Vi e nti a ne, were my fir s t ex perience ofl iv ing a nd working outs id e w es tern Europ e T he Lao ti a n s a re a love ly, gentle , la id - back peop le. They taught me to relax A nd th ey s howed me h o w it's quire poss ibl e to b e h a pp y w ith ve r y littl e m o n ey. The sce n e r y is s pec tacular, ro o. T h e impre ss ive Me ko n g Ri ve r fl ows far away ove r th e sands in th e dr y seaso n and s p ee d s b y th e c it y lik e a wide, rus hin g tor re n t once th e rain y seaso n b eg in s l r eme mb er look in g d ow n o n it from one o f the r estaurant s along its banks, and feeling that it was swee pin g away a ll my troubles. 1>))

Pa r t 1

Inte r viewer What fir st drew yo u to advertising as a ca ree r ch o ice ?

George What dr ew m e ro a dv e rti s ing was act u a ll y, in a weird way, I h ad no c hoice, I ' m a t h ird ge ne rati o n advertising g uy. My fa th e r 's brot h er, my uncle, who was 15 yea r s o lder tha n h e, was in ad ve rti si n g belie ve ir or n ot in th e 1940s in P hil a d e lp hi a. My fa th e r kind of took th e b a t o n fr o m h i m a nd was in adv e rti s ing an d I g rew up with it, so I' ve bee n makin g a livin g in t h e bu s iness s inc e 1984. It 's a lo n g tim e. It 's 30 yea rs.

I nterviewer D o yo u still remembe r any commercials fro m yo ur ch ildhoo d?

George I r e memb e r a lo t of commercial s, yo u know, growi ng up in a n a d ve rtisin g h o u sehold as we djd , TV was more of a socia l event in th ose d ays. Th ere was n ' t a TV in eve r y r oo m lik e the family would gather ro watch t e lev is io n And we we r e to ld n ot to talk durin g the commercia ls, we could t a lk durin g rhe shows, so I grew up kind of watching co mmerci a ls I remember a lot of commercia ls. I bet yo u m ost p eop le of m y ge ne ration w o uld re m e mber a lot of, I feel kind of guilty say ing thi s b eca us e the y a r e usu a ll y d ec ried as no r very c reat ive, b ur [rem e mb er a lo t of ji n gles. Interviewer What d o yo u think makes jing les m emorable?

George Among purists in rhe field jingles a re, yo u kn ow, laughed at, scoffed at, b ur God yo u r emembe r th e m You kn o w rh ey, w h at do th ey ca ll th e m , ea r worms? They get into yo u r head a nd yo u ca n't get rhem o u t somerim es a nd yo u add rhar t o a lmost everyday exposu re six ri mes a day, it's goi n g ro get i n there. I ca n do, t h e re was a, yo u know, there was a , t h ere was a , I could s ing one fo r you , there was a kid s hot ce real , a hot ce rea l fo r children ca lle d H 0. Fa rin a a nd it was an a n im a ted ca rtoo n , it was very rudim entary. It yo u saw it today yo u wou ldn 't bel ieve it was a nati o nall y broadcast ca r rooa and it wa s a little story of Willie an d Wi lh el mina and Willie trips o n a rock and he goes, 'Every day I trip over that ro ck W ilhe lmin a.' And she says, 'Move it Willie.' And he says, 'Can' t, to o big.' And I bet yo u I' m ge ttin g this word for word if you could find ir. And s he says. ' I will.' And he says, 'Huh, yo u' re a girl.' And s h e picks it up and t hen the jingl e comes up a nd it goes 'S tro n g Wilhelm ina ea ts her Farina .' Like I sa id , I probably h ea r d rhat 500 rimes , m ay be m o re , w hen I was growing up beca u se ir was ve ry wee kend for ab o ut e ig ht yea rs.

5 22 >))

Part2

Interviewer Whar e lements of a commercial are rhe m os t imp orta nt?

George To me a commercia l basically is built in three p arts. If yo u think of it as a py ramid , the t op part of rh e py ram id I wou ld say is impa c t. I h ave ro intrude up o n yo ur li fe b eca use yo u a r e probab ly working o n yo ur co mputer while yo u' re watching TV or yo u' re doing som e thing , and whe n I'm talking abo ut a TV comm e rci a l it 's the same for a web ad o r a n app. S o yo u h ave t o ge t im pact , yo u h ave to intrude , yo u have to kind of kno ck on th e d oor . T h e seco nd thin g is co mmuni ca tio n , what do yo u want th e perso n to know A nd, a nd , t h at needs t o b e cl ea r a nd prec ise. And the third thing is th e h a rd est , it 's pers u asion becau se ultimate ly you a re runnin g a co mm e rcia l ro ge t p eo ple ro do so methin g, so it 's th at a m a lga m a ti o n Anot h e r way of t a lking abou t it-and chis is o ld schoo l - bur th ere 's an ac ron y m that probably comes from the M ad M en era tha t is ca lled AIDA , yo u know li ke t he ope ra: Att e nti on, lnreres r , D es ire, Act ion Interviewer H ow do you fee l about u s in g ce lebriti es to se ll thin gs?

George Som etim es it 's a short, usin g a ce lebrity i s a s ho rt c ur ro intru s ion b eca u se peopl e pay arreari oa to celebr ities. Hop e full y, it 's a ce le brity t h at has some bearin g o n the b r and. I don't think , ifl was working on a depilator y, I wo uld want to u se Tommy Lee Jones, that wo uld ju s t be gross. Bur yo u kn ow if yo u fi nd th e right perso n , th ey ca n ha ve spec ia l m ea nin g, I chink , a nd we do live in a ce lebr ity c ulture, a nd people, yo u know their ea r s perk up when th ey see a celebr ity So, if yo u go back ro th e py r a mid I drew, it 's a way of getting impac t. I' m no t a g iant fan ofir , but so m etim es yo u do things yo u ' r e n ot a giant fan of.

Interviewer On yo u r we bs ite yo u say, ' I ca n make p eople la ugh.' H ow im portant is humo ur in ad ve rti s ing?

George I tend nor robe funny in TV com m ercials, I'm ju s t , partly beca u se I a m a kind of cereb ral g uy a nd I wind u p havin g rouse that more th an humour, but I think humo ur is in c r edib ly important in the business and a lo t of the co mm e rc ial s that r ea ll y r esonate with people I thi nk a re funn y, a lot of th e movies, a [or of ever y thin g, you kno w §>2 3 >))

Part3

Interviewer With a ll rhe techno logy, v iral adv e r rising, etc, d o yo u thin k billboa rds and TV co mm e rcial s hav e h ad th e ir d ay?

George Ha ve billboards and TV co mme r cia ls had t h e ir d ay? You know what, I don't think so. I mean , I can tell yo u e mpiric a ll y a nd I can tell you rati o n a ll y tha t 753 of a ll media dollars is s pent on broa dcas t , a nd I know it's current to say, 'I don't h ave a TV,' or' [ never watch TV.' Bur , rh e fact is , TV v iewersh ip is at an a ll -rime hi g h. So I don ' t think TV is dead and I don ' t think billboards will be , yo u know, so mething as kin d of passe as a billboard will be dead as long as , like, the h ig hways a r e crowded , because yo u 've got a capt ive audience , a nd unril we can kind of p ixi lise o urse lves a nd beam o urse lves ro wo rk , I think t h ere will be billb oa rd s. They can be effective

Interviewer As a co n s ume r , a nd obviou s ly as an adve rtis er d oes advertising influence th e decisions yo u make?

George Yes , you know, I'm very, I' m very susceptible to a dvertising. I think because I t e nd to notice it. You know, I th i nk I a m ve ry se nsi ti ve ro, I think I' m very sen s iti ve to stuff that isn ' t true. But when I see so m et hing that 's well c rafted an d a ppea ls, I think to both my head and my heart, I chink I regist e r t hose things

I nterviewer l s t h ere an existi n g advertising campa ig n yo u wish yo u 'd come up wi th , a nd wh y d o yo u chi nk it is so effective?

George Is there an ex is tin g adve rti s in g campa ign? Yes, rhar I wis h I did ? Th e re 's a few I t hink t he stuff th at is being done fo r Nike just in ge n era l fo r 30 yea r s has been exemp lar y, yo u kn ow. They rapped into a mi nd- set, and the y m a de everyo n e fee l like they we re a t h le ti c, a nd they b eca m e kind of the gold standard , a nd they rarely hit a false n ote. The sa m e thing with App le, though people are just stre ssed in the industr y a b o ut rh e latest direction Apple ha s been t a kin g, w hich seem s le ss sincere.

Interviewer Wh y d o yo u thin k t he Apple ca mpaign i s so effec ti ve?

George You kn ow App le rook I th i nk App le is effect ive beca use they looked at a n industry and they said, 'He re's what 's wron g with th e indust ry and everythin g that industry does we' re goi ng ro d o differentl y.' So , that industry fo r yea rs a nd years and yea rs and years was ta lkin g about s p eeds and feed s, a nd they were talking about 697 mega hertz a nd 4 megaby tes of RAM or gigabytes of RAM , or whatever it is , an d Apple jus t sa id, ' Ir works.' And wh at th ey di d was ro say, ' You wa nt to be creative? This mac hine makes you c reative.' A nd they simplified, they simplified , a nd they were compelling , a nd they never lied, yea h

5 S>))

Interviewer D o yo u think yo u ' r e influenced b y advertising ca mpa ig n s?

Jeanine Most d efi n ite ly.

Interviewer l s there a n y prod u ct ch at s houldn 't be advertised, i n yo ur o pinion?

Jeanine Alcoh o l and ju nk food to c hildre n. I nterviewer Wh y s h ou ld those ads be bann e d ?

Jeanine Beca u se it' s promoti n g some thin g th a t 's unh ea lth y a nd that , especiall y junk foo d for c hildren, w hen they see it th ey' r e very susceptible ro th e adverts and t h en they wa nr it immediately and it 's a problem.

I n terv i ewer D o yo u think you're influ enced by a dverti si ng ca mpa ign s?

Dustin I am s u re I am, proba bly n o t co n sc iously but I a m sure subconscious ly.

Interviewer l s there any prod u c t ch a t shouldn't be adver tised, in yo u r o p inion? Wh y s h o uld those ad b e banned?

Dustin I m ean I, I d o n 't ca r e for , for c igarette a d s or a lcohol a d s, bur s h o uld they be ad , o r s hould rhey n o t be advert ised ? T h at is not a decision I s h o uld make , so, I d o n ' t t h i n k so.

Interviewer D o yo u think yo u'r e influenced by advert isi n g campa ign s?

Elvira I ' m n o t ve r y influen ced by ad campa ig ns , I' m influence d b y reviews.

Inter v iewer Is t h e re any prod u ct t h at sho uldn ' t be adve rtis e d , in yo u r op inion ? Wh y s h o uld those a d s be b an n e d ?

Elvira The on ly thing that comes co mind that s h o uld be banned from adve rti sements is, I think they tend to u se the fem a le body, urn , inappropriate ly ro se ll t hin gs a nd items. T h a t 's pretty m u c h th e o nl y thin g chat I ca n chink of.

Interviewer Do you think you're influe nced b y advertising campaigns?

Ivan I think that everyo ne is somewhat influ e nced by advert isin g campa i gns, even on a minor level. Interviewer l s the re any product tha t s h o uldn't b e adve rti sed, in your opinion? Why s hould tho se a d s be banne d?

Ivan Perhaps cigarettes s houldn't b e a dv e rti se d becau se children , um, probably shouldn't be seeing them adverti sed in a coo l or exciting manner.

Interviewer Do you think yo u ' r e influ e n ced b y advertis ing campaigns?

Yasuko l think a lot of p eo ple are u s uall y influ e nce d , yo u know, a littl e by advertisement, es pecially b eca u se we' ve, th e r e's so much advertisement on media And we watc h a lot ofT V, yo u know, inte rn e t. r try n ot to b e, I try to resea r c h the product on m y ow n u s ing inte rnet o r whatnot, and choose th e, a nd tr y to choose the best product. Not b eca u se of the a dvertisement Interv iewer ls t h e r e any product that shouldn' t be adve rti sed, in yo ur opinion? Why s hould those ads b e banned?

Yasuko Advertisements for cigare ttes , I think s h o uld be banned. U m , I d o n't chink there's a n y thin g positive about cigarette s m o king, so I think th at anything t h at cau ses h ea lth iss ues o r bad influe nces or ad di c ti o n s ho uld be bann ed from b e ing o n commercia ls. 7

Lee's s ca re with t h e fir s t one a bout the co in Many peop le chink chat a coi n dropp ed fr o m th e top o f t h e Empi r e State building , for examp le, would be trave llin g so fas t that ifit hit a perso n o n th e g round it wo uld kill th e m. H oweve r this ju s t is n ' t true. Coi n s a r e n ot aero dy n am ic and they are a lso re lati ve ly s m a ll and light so, a ltho ugh a p e rso n o n th e g ro und wo uld certainly feel che impac t, th e co in wou ldn' t kill him - it wou ldn' t even hurt him very much!

N umbe r tw o is o n e of che mo s t p op ul a r sc ientific my th s, th at we o nl y use te n per cent of our brain s. Perhaps chis is b eca us e people would like co chink th a t t h ey co uld be mu ch mo re inte lli ge nt if they were ab le to find a way to u se the or he r 90 per cent! In fact, neurologists h ave n ' t been ab le to find any area of o u r brain s whic h is n ' t bein g use d for some thin g.

N umbe r thr ee Th e d a rk s ide of the mo o n? Well , th a t o nl y exists as the titl e of a Pink Floyd a lbum. People use d to think that th e r e was a s id e of th e m oo n that was a lways d ar k , chat n ever go t the s un , but, of co urse, that isn ' t true T h e s un illuminates every part of the moon ar so me point during the 24- ho ur cycl e. It is tru e th a t there's a si de of th e m oo n that we never see, that 's to say we a lways s ee the sa m e s id e of the mo o n , b ut th e ot h e r si d e is n't a lways d a rk.

Now numb e r fo u r, th e o ne a bo ut rubbe r tyres. A lot of p eo ple think that rubb e r t y res o n a ca r w ill protect yo u from li ghtnin g in t he same way that wear in g rubb er s h oes w ill protect yo u from an e lectric s hock. Well , it 's certa inl y tru e ch at if yo u 're cau g ht in a thundersto rm , it 's mu c h safe r to be ins ide a ca r tha n outs id e. But the ry r es h ave not hin g to do with it Whe n li g htnin g s trikes a ca r, it 's ac tu a ll y t h e car's m e tal b o dy t h at p ro t ec ts the passengers. It ac ts as a co ndu c tor a nd passes th e e lectrica l c urr e nt down to the gro und N um ber fiv e. Poo r o ld Ei nstein! Ove r t h e yea rs h e's often been u se d as an examp le t o s h ow that yo u can do ve r y badly at sc h ool a n d s till b e very s uccess ful in life And p eop le h ave act u a ll y sa id that h e wasn 't very good a t mat h s o r sc ie n ce. But, in fact, r ecords s h ow that the yo ung A lb e rt , as yo u would expect , go t very hi gh marks in m at h s a nd scien ce N umb e r s ix. Antibiotic s don't kill viruses. No, t hey d o n' t, and it 's a w as t e of time taking t he m i f yo u have a v iru s. Antibio t ics he lp yo ur bo dy to kill ba c teria, not vi ru ses. Wh a t 's more, yo u ca n' t exac tl y ' kill ' a v iru s a t a ll , s in ce a v iru s is no t rea ll y a live to begin with. St ic k to yo ur doctor's advice a nd o n ly take a n tibiotics wh e n he or s he specifica ll y p resc r ib es the m . T he prob lem is th a t it's o fte n ver y diffi c ult fo r a d octo r to know if yo u 're s u ffe rin g from a v iru s o r fro m a b ac ter ia l infec ti o n Num b e r seve n I love t he id ea ch a t a full m oon can make peop le go mad , but I chink this is o nl y tru e fo r werewolves. For centu ries, n ea rl y a ll c ul t u res h ave at tributed spec ia l mys ti ca l powers to th e full m oon , a nd in fa c t ch e E n g li s h word ' lu n a tic ', w hi ch ca n be used to

describe a mad person, comes from the wo rd ' lun a r 'which mean s ' t o d o with the moon'. Bu t, in spite of a Joe of sc ien tific resea r c h , n o b o d y has found any link at a ll betwee n the full m oo n a nd insanity o r c rime

And ftnally, numb er e ight , a re bats rea ll y blind? Most Briti s h peop le probab ly th i nk that they a re, because we h ave th e expressio n in English 'as blind as a bat'. But it 's just not true. In fact, bats ca n see ju s t as well as human s, eve n ifchey d on't depend on their sight in the sa m e way. Like dogs , ba ts r e ly hea v il y o n o ther se n ses like h eari ng and s mell. They h ave a very advanced so undbase d sys te m ca lle d ech o location, w hi c h a ll ows them to know where they a re w h e n the y' r e fl y in g at night. But th ey can certainl y see.

6>))

Presenter When Neil Armstro ng b eca m e th e fir s t man to walk o n the M oon o n July 20th 1969 , a glo bal a ud ience of 500 million peo ple were watchi n g a nd li s tening. As h e climbed down th e s te p s fro m th e s pacecra ft a nd s t ep ped o nto th e moo n t hey h eard him say, 'Th at 's o ne small step for man, o ne giant leap for ma nkind ' le see m ed like the perfec t qu ote for s uc h a mo me nto u s occasion. But from t h e mo me nt he sa id it , people h ave argued abo u t whethe r Armstrong got hi s lin es wrong and m ad e a mistake Jam es, t ell us abo ut it.

James We ll , Armstrong a lways said th a t h e wrote th ose words him sel f, w hi c h became so m e of the m os t famous a nd memorable words in his t ory, during the time between landing on ch e moon and ac tually s teppin g out of the ca p s ul e o nto th e m oo n . T h at was nea rly seve n h ou r s.

Presenter And so w h at is th e co ntrove r sy about what Ar m strong sa id when he s t e ppe d d o wn che ladder o nto the m oo n ?

James The qu es ti o n is , did h e say, 'o ne s m a ll s te p for man' o r 'on e s m a ll step for a man '? T h at's to say did h e use the indefinite art icl e o r not? Lt 's just a litcl e word but there's a big difference in meaning Armstrong always in s is t e d that h e wrote 'one s m a ll s tep for a m a n , o ne g iant lea p fo r m a nkind ,' Of co urse thi s wou ld h ave b een a meaningful se nten ce. I f yo u say 'a m a n ' t h e n it clearly m eans that thi s wa s o ne s m a ll step for a n ind ivid ual man, i.e. him se lf, but one giant leap for mankind , t h at's to say, m e n a nd wome n in ge n e r al. But w h at e ver yb ody acruall y h ea rd wa s, 'O ne s mall s tep fo r m a n , o n e giant leap for m a nkind ', with no inde finite article , a nd that se nte n ce mea n s, 'O ne s m a ll s t ep for peop le i n ge n e r a l, one g ia nt lea p for peopl e in gene r a l.' A nd th at does n ' t rea ll y m aJce se nse Presenter S o, did h e ju s t get t h e line wron g whe n he sa id it?

James Well , Ar m strong h imse l f was neve r sure ifhe actua ll y said what he wrote Jn hi s biograph y Fim Man he to ld th e a u t ho r Ja mes H a n se n, ' I mu s e ad mit that it does n ' t so und like th e word 'a' is the re. On the ot he r band , ce rtainl y che 'a' was inte nded, b eca u se t h at's che o nl y way it makes se n se.' He a lways reg r etted t h a t th e re h a d bee n so mu ch confus ion a bo ut it But , a lm ost fo ur decades later, Arm s tron g was proved to be ri ght. Pete r S h a nn Ford, an Australian co mpute r ex p ert , used very hi -tec h sound techniq ues to a na lyse hi s se ntence a nd he discove red that the 'a' wa s sa id by A rm stron g. It 's ju s t t h at h e sa id it so qu ick ly t ha t yo u co uldn ' t hea r it o n t he r eco rdin g w h ic h was broadcast to the world o n 20t h Jul y 1969. Presenter Was Armst ro n g re lieved to h ear t hi s? Jam es Yes, h e was. I thin k it meant a lo t to h im to kn o w that he didn't m ake a mi s take.

5 l >))

[was d o in g a to ur of Asia w he re I was g iving a pre se ntat ion a b o ut dat abase progra m s. I ass um ed the aud ie nces would und erstand E n g li h -r h e o rgani ze r s knew that I co ul d n ' t spea k C hinese - and I knew they wo uld be fami liar with the, um , wit h th e tec hnica l lang uage of ch e products I w as goi n g to ta lk a b o ut , whic h we r e dba se a nd C li pper Well , fo r m osc of th e tour che cal ks see m ed to go ex tre me ly we ll ; rhere were big a udien ces and th e venues were great. T h e qu es tion s I wa s asked by rh e a udi e n ce at the end of the ra l ks s howe d th a c, um , eve r yo n e h ad r ea ll y under rood what I w as sayin g. When we arr ived in the p e nultim ate city, w h ose name I'm n o t goin g to mention. I s carre d my sess io n as I, as I u s ua ll y did w ith a few qu es ti o n s co ge t to k n ow some thin g about t h e audie n ce. So, first I as ked

th em " H ow m a ny of yo u u se db ase?" I r a ised my own hand, because I use it myse l f and pretty much the w h o le audience rai sed th e i r hand s So then I as ked , ' H ow many ofyo u he re use C li pper? ' And, o n ce agai n , nea rl y I 00 pe r cent of the a udi e nce raised their hands Thi s was , um , thi s was extremely unu s u a lin fact almost impossible. Wi th a s inkin g feeling I t h e n asked chem , ' H ow m a n y of yo u want to b e an astronaut? ' and I watched as eve r yo ne's h a nd s we nt up. I might as well h ave be e n speaki n g to a gro up of a lie n s-as it turned o u t m ost of che a udie n ce s p o ke C hinese, and o nl y C hinese. But I co uld see that two o r thre e peop le in the a udi e n ce spoke E nglish , beca u se they were practically roll in g o n the floor la u g hin g.

2 I was giv in g a ta l k in Hun gary co a group of a bout 200 English teac h e r s. I go t to th e place w here I was giv in g the talk a bit late, o nly a bo ut ten minutes before I was s upp osed to s t art I ru s hed t o t he room , a nd s a w chat everyt hin g was set up a nd m os t o f the audience were a lrea dy waiting a nd Ltold the orga nisers th at I jus t needed to quickly go co the toilet and th en I wo uld s tart. They pointed me in the ri ght direction but, wh en I go t to the toilets, I saw that the r e we r e t wo doors with words o n them in Hung a ri a n but no s ig n s. I loo ke d at t he words an d d ecided thac o n e of the m mus t be che me n's coi ler a nd I went i n a nd went into a c ubi cle S ud denl y I heard vo ices of o ther peop le co min g in - bu t, to my ho rror, the y we r e women 's voices , and I rea li zed that I had g ue ssed wro n gly a nd had gone in to th e wom e n 's co ile cs I guessed that these wo m en must b e teachers coming to my t al k, so there was no way I co uld open the d oo r and co me out. I waited a nd waite d , ge ttin g m ore and m o r e s tre ssed by th e minute and worrying about being late to sta rt my talk. After a b o ut five minute s o r so, everyth ing went qui et a nd I was ab le to ru s h ou t a nd go ba ck to the roo m where the a udi e n ce was waiting for me to start as it was a lread y five minutes pa s t the s ta rt time. T h a nk G ood n ess n o b o dy saw m e

3 My first ever presentation was at a con fe r e n ce fo r E ngli s h teach e r s in Spa in in abo ut 1988. I wa nte d to s how th e a udi ence so me good ideas fo r u s in g v id eo in the classroom. I exp lain e d o n e of the ideas a nd then I went to turn o n th e v id eo playe r a nd n ot hing h appe n ed and th e n agai n n oc hing a nd again By this tim e I was so s tressed a nd a nn oye d that in ch e end I sa id , ' OK , i f it d oes n ' t wo rk this tim e, I'm lea ving ', a nd I r ea ll y m ea nt it. Ama zi n gly, al m o st as if it h ad hea rd m e , it wo r ked. I never fo r go t t h at t a lk and it caught me to ne ve r re ly I 00 p er ce nt o n tec hn o logy in a p r esent at io n.

4 So m e yea r s ago. I h ad to d o a p rese n tation to a gro up of con stru ction worke r s abo ut h ea lth a n d safety at work Wh e n I was getting d resse d ch at morning I put o n a s ilk sk irt , a nd as I was d o in g it up , the b utto n at th e waist broke. I didn ' t b o th er to c ha nge, b eca use the skirt h a d a z ip a nd a nyway I was in a hurr y. During t h e presentat io n , as I walke d backwards and forwa rd s across che s t age, I s ta rt ed to fee l so m ethin g si lk y hit the b ac k o f my ankles. My skirt was falling down! T h e a udi e n ce was a bsolutely e ntr a nced - a nd no t by what I was say in g. I quick ly pull e d it up and sa id , 'Now that I h ave yo ur attentio n .'. T he audi e n ce r oa r e d wit h la ug hter, a nd one of them s h o u ted o uc , 'I th o u ght th at w as pa rt ofyo ur presentati o n! ' I fe lt terrib ly e mbarrasse d , a nd I cou ld hea r my moth e r 's voice in my ear say i ng, 'You should a lways wea r nice und erwear, in case yo u a r e eve r in a n accident.' I managed to fin is h m y presentat io n a nd I ru s h e d o ut s id e and s carred to sha ke. That a udi e n ce m ay n ever r e m e mb e r a thin g I sa id, buc I' m s ur e they won't forge t me.

question formation

1 Should we buy her a present? How long have 1 2 >)) you been waiting? How many children does your sister have?

2 Why didn't you like the film? Isn't this a beautiful place?

3 What are they talking ab o ut ? Who does this bag belong t o ?

4 Who lives in that house? How many people foll o w you on Twitter?

1 We make questions with modal verbs and with tenses where there is an auxiliary verb (be, have, etc.) by inverting the subject and the modal/ auxiliary verb. With the present and past simple, we add the auxiliary verb do / does or did before the subject.

2 We often use negative questions to show surprise or when we expect somebody to agree with us.

3 If a verb is followed by a preposition, the preposition comes at the end of the question, not at the beginning NOT libottt what a:i eyott talking?

• We often just use the question word and the preposition , e.g. A I'm thinkinB. B What about?

4 When who /what/ which, etc. is the subject of the question, we don't use do/ did, e.g. Who wrote this? NOTV9ql0 did w1 ite this?

indirect questions

Could you tell me what time the shop next door 3 >)) opens ? Do you know if (whether) Mark 's coming to the meeting ?

We use indirect questions when we want to ask a question in a more polite way, and begin with Can / Could you tell me ? or when we introduce a question with, e.g. Do you know ? Do you remember . . . ?

Compare

What time does the shop next door open? (direct question) , and Could you tell me what time the shop next door opens? (indirect question)

• In indirect questions the order is subject+ verb. Can you tell me where it is? NOT Ca:nyott tell me whe1 e is it?

• We don't use do /did in the second part of the question. Do you know where he lives? NOT whe1 e does he li11e.

• You can use if or whether in questions without a question word (What, How many, etc .) and after Can you tell me, Do you know , etc

pOther expressions followed by the word order of indirect questions

The word order of indirect questions is used after: I wonder ., e.g I wonder why they didn't come.

I'm not sure ., e.g. I'm not sure what time it starts. I can't remember , e.g. I can't remember where I left my phone.

I want to know , e.g. I want to know what time you're coming home.

Do you have any idea ?, e.g. Do you have any idea if (whether) James is on holiday this week?

a Order the words to make questions.

b Complete the questions with the words in brackets

Where didyou&o on holiday last year? ( you / go)

1 How often exercise? (you / usually do)

2 Who Olive r Twist? (write)

3 Could you tell me how much ? (this book/ cost)

4 I can ' t remember where _______ m y car this morning. (I /park)

tomorrow can ' t Why come you ?

Why can't you come tomorrow?

I Should her tell I feel how ?

friend known long best have How you your ? tell when you train next leaves the Could me ? housework family in Who your the does ? are What about you thinking ?

at don't weekend you What doing the like ?

music to does What Jane kind like listening of ? you time film know finishes Do what the ?

class students yesterday to many came How ? you remember is where Do the restaurant ?

5 _______ your trip to Paris last weekend? (you/ enjo y)

6 What kind of work ? ( your sister / do)

7 Who the l a st biscuit? (eat)

8 Do you know what time on a Saturday? (the swimming pool / open)

9 the present you gave her? (your sister / not like)

10 play your music so loud? I can't concentrate . (you / have to)

-<Ill( p.5

auxiliary verbs

I like cats, but my husband doesn ' t . Sally's coming tonight, but Angela isn't .

2 A I loved his latest novel.

B So did I.

A I haven't finished yet.

B Neither (N o r) have I. Andrew 's a doctor and s o is his wife .

3 A I don't like shopping online

B I do I buy a lot of my clothes online

4 A I went to a psychic yesterday.

B Didyou?

A I'll make the dinner.

B Will you? That's great!

5 A You didn't lock the door!

B I did lock it , I know I did .

A Silvia isn't coming.

B She is coming. I've just spoken to her.

6 You won't forget, will you? She can speak Italian, can't she?

a Complete the mini-dialogues with an auxiliary or modal verb.

A You didn't remember to buy coffee .

B I did remember. It's in the cupboard.

1 A He's booked the flights , he?

B Yes, I think so.

2 A It's hot today, ____ it?

B Yes, it's boiling.

3 A Why didn't you go to the meeting?

B I go to the meeting, but I left early.

4 A I wou ldn 't like to be a celebrity.

B Neither I.

5 A Emma doesn't like me .

B She like yo u. She just doesn't want to go out with yo u.

6 A Mike's arriving tomorrow!

B he? I thought he was arriving today.

7 A What did yo u think of the film?

B Tom liked it, but I . I thought it was awful.

8 A Are you a vegetarian?

B Yes, I am and so my boyfriend

9 A You'll remember to call me, you?

B Yes, of course!

10 I really want to go to Egypt, but unfortunately my husband ____ . He hates the heat.

We u se auxiliar y verb s (do , have , etc ) or moda l ver bs (can , must , etc ):

1 to avoid repeati n g t he m ain verb / ver b p hrase , e g. NOT I lik e cats but my husband do esn't li k e cats

2 wit h so and n ei th er to say tha t someone or somethi ng is t he same. Use so + auxiliar y + subj ect wit h a p ositive verb , a nd n eith er (or nor ) + au xiliar y + s ubj ect wit h a n egative verb .

3 to say t ha t so m eone or somet hing is di ffe re nt.

4 t o make ' reply qu estio n s', to show i n teres t o r surp rise .

5 to s how emp h a si s i n a p ositive s ente n ce, often when you w an t t o contradict what some b ody says . Wit h the present / past simp le, we add do / do es / did before t h e m ai n verb. Wi t h o t her au x ili arie s , e.g. be, have, will the au x i liar y verb is s t ressed and not contracted

6 to make quest ion t ags , us ually to check infor ma t ion We use a positive auxilia r y w ith a negative verb and a negative auxiliary wit h a positive ver b.

• Question t ags ar e often used simply to ask another person t o ag r ee with yo u, e .g. I t's a ni ce day, isn't it ? In this case t h e qu est ion t ag is sa id w it h falling i ntona tion , i.e. t h e voice goes dow n.

• Q uestio n tags can a lso be u sed to check someth ing you t hi nk is true, e.g Sh e's a pain te r, isn't sh e? I n this case t he question tag is said with rising inton ation, as in a nor m al yes / no questi on .

b Complete the conversation with a suitable auxiliary verb.

A You're Tom's sister, 1aren ' t yo u?

B Yes, I'm Carla.

A It's a great club , 2 __ it?

B Well , it's OK. But I don ' t like the music much .

A 3 __ you? I love it! I've never been here before

B Neither 4 I don 't go clubb ing very often.

A Oh 5 __ ? I 6 __ In fact , I usually go most weekends.

B 7 __ you? I can't afford to go out every weeke nd .

A I didn' t see yo u at Tom 's birthday party last Saturday. Why 8 __ you go?

B I 9 __ go but I arrived really late because my car broke dow n.

A Oh, th at's why I didn't see you. I left early.

B I fancy a drink. I'm really thirst y after all that dancing.

A So 10 __ I. Let's go to the bar.

present perfect simple and continuous

present perfect simple: have I has+ past participle

1 H a ve you ever written a blog?

1 37 l))

2 We' ve just landed but we haven't got off the plane yet . I 've alread y told you three times

3 It 's the best book I' ve ever read

4 M y computer's crashed! Look , it 's started s nowing.

5 I 've known Miriam sinc e I wa s a child.

M y si s ter has had flu for ten days no w.

6 How man y Agatha Christie no vels have you read? They've seen each other twice this w eek.

We use the present perfect simple:

1 to talk about past experiences when you don't say when something happened.

2 with just, yet , and already.

3 with superlatives and the first , second , last tim e, etc.

4 for finished actions (when no time is specified) which have present results

5 with non-action verbs (= verbs not usually used in the continuous form , e g be , have , know , lik e, etc.) to say that something started in the past and is still true now

• This use is common with time expressions like How lonB· · .?, for or since, all day/ eveninB, etc

• Don't use the present simple or continuous in this situation: NOT {know Mi1 iam since {was a child

6 when we say or ask how much/ many w e have done or how often we have done something up to now

present perfect continuous: have I has+ been+ verb + -ing

1 How lon g have you been feeling ill?

H e 's been chatting online all eve nin g .

1 38 l))

2 I haven't been sleeping well. It 's been raining all d ay

3 I 've been shopping all m or nin g I'm ex haus t e d.

A Tak e your sho e s off. They'r e filth y

B Yes, I know I 've been working in the g ard e n

a @ the correct form of the v e rb. T ick (v') if both a r e pos s ible .

H a ve y ou ev e r @ b ee n tryinB c avi a r ?

1 She 's worked/ bee n wor kin B he re s ince July

2 Your mothe r has phon ed/ b ee n p honinB three times this morning !

3 T h e kid s a r e ex hau s t e d b e c a u se th ey ' ve run/ bee n runnin B a round all d ay.

4 T im a nd Lu cy h ave n ' t see n / b ee n see inB our n ew h o u se

5 I'v e n eve r m et / b een m ee tin B h e r b oy fri e nd. H ave yo u ?

6 It 's ra ined/ b ee n m ininB a ll m o rnin g .

7 Bill h as ju s t &o n e / be en BOi n B t o w ork. H e w o n ' t b e b ack till thi s e v e nin g .

8 M y s i s t e r h as liv ed/ bee n livinB a lon e si nc e h e r divorc e.

We use the pre s ent perfect continuous:

1 with action verbs , to say that an action started in the past and is s till happening now.

• This use is common with time expressions like How lonB ?, for or since, all day / evenin8 , etc

• Don't use the present simple or continuous in this situation NOT I know i\fil iam since I was a child .

2 for repeated actions , especially with a time expression , e.g. all day, recently

3 for continuous actions which have jus t finished (but which have present results) .

1 I' ve been learning F re n ch for the la s t three 1 39 l)) yea r s He' s liked cl ass ic a l mu s ic s ince he w as a teen ager.

2 Sh e' s been having pia no le sso n s since s h e w as a child .

T h ey' ve had th a t car for at lea s t ten year s .

3 We ' ve lived in this town sinc e 1980 W e 've been living in a rented flat for the la s t two months

4 I 've painted the kitchen . I 've been painting t he kit ch e n

1 To talk about an unfinis hed action we normally use the pre sent perfect continuou s with action verbs and the present perfec t simple with non- a ction verbs.

2 Some verbs can be action or non- action depending on their meaning, e.g. have piano lessons = action, have a car= non-action .

3 With the verbs li ve or work you can often use the present perfect simple or continuous. However, we normally use the present perfect continuous for shorter, more temporary actions.

4 The present perfect simple emphasizes the completion of an action(= the kitchen ha s b e en painted). The present perfect continuous emphasizes th e duration of an action , which ma y or may not be finished (= the painting of the kitchen may not be fini shed yet)

b C omple t e the se nt e nce with the b e st form of th e ve rb in br a ck e t s, pr esent p e r fec t s imple o r c o ntinu o u s

I ' ve bouBht a n e w car. D o yo u lik e i t? (buy)

1 W e Jac k and Ann for y ear s. (kno w )

2 You look r e all y hot at th e g y m? (yo u / w ork o u t)

3 E mil y h e r home w ork ye t , so I'm a fr aid s h e ca n ' t go o ut (no t d o )

4 T h e y don ' t live in Lond o n , they (m ove)

5 I tim e to co o k a n y thing (no t h a ve)

6 W e fo r h o ur s . I s thi s the ri ght w ay? (wa lk)

7 y ou m y di ar y again ? (r ea d)

8 Oh n o ! I m y fin ge r on thi s knife . (c ut)

adjectives as nouns, adjective order

adjectives as nouns

1 The English are famous for 1 43 >)) drinking tea.

The Chine s e invented paper.

The Dutch make wonderful cheeses

2 The poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer.

The government needs to create more jobs for the unemployed

• You can use the+ some adjectives to talk about groups of people, e.g. 1 nationalities that end in -ch, -sh, -ese, and -ss, e.g. the French, the Spanish, the British, the Japanese, the Irish , the Swiss, etc. (but the Czechs) (most other nationality words are nouns and are u sed in the plural , e.g. The Brazilians, the Poles, the Turks, the HunBarians , the ArBentinians, etc .) 2 specific groups in society, e g. the younB , the old (or the elderly) , the sick (=people who are ill), the blind, the deaf, the homeless, the dead

• To talk about one person use , e g a Japanese woman, a 1·ich man, etc. NOT a Japanese, a rich

You can also use adjective+ people to talk about a group of people , e.g. poor people , homeless people, old people, French people.

adjec tive o rd er

We've got a lov ely old cottage just outside Bath She has long fair hair.

I bought a beautiful Italian leather belt.

• You can put more than one a djective before a noun (often two and occasionally three). These ad jectives go in a part icular order, e .g. NOT an old lovely cottage

1 44>))

• Opinion adjectives, e g. beautiful, nice, lovely, always go b efore descriptive ad jectives , e.g biB, old, round.

• If there is more than one descriptive adjective, they go in this order:

OPINIO N SIZE AGE SHAPE COLOUR PAT T ERN expensive l ittle bra nd n e w lon g purp l e st r ip ed b eautifu l

ORIGIN I PLACE MATER IAL NOUN Fre nch silk scarf Italian car

a Re-write the underlined phrase using the + an adjective .

Peop le from Spain enjoy eating out The Spanish

1 People from the Netherlands tend to be good at languages .

2 F l orence Nightingale looked after the people who weren't well d u ring the Crimean war.

3 The system of reading for peop le who can't see is called Braille.

4 People from France think that their cuisine is the best in the world.

5 Amb ul ances arrived to take the peop l e who had been inju red to hospital.

6 Peopl e from Switzerland are usually very punctual.

7 The worst season for peopl e without a home is winter.

8 There is a discount for students and people without a job.

9 The monument was erected to honour the people who died from the Second World War

10 There are special TV programmes for peop le who can' t hear w h ich use sign language.

b Write the adjectives in brackets in the right place.

Change a to an where necessar y

a big car park (empty) a biB empty car park

1 a man (young/ attractive)

2 shoes (o l d/ dirty)

3 a ve lvet jacket (b l ack/ beautiful)

4 a woman (fat/ short / American)

5 a beach (sandy / long)

6 a countr y house (lovely / old)

7 a leather bag (Italian/ st yl ish)

8 eyes ( h uge/ dark)

9 a dog (black/ friendly / old)

10 a T-shirt (striped / cotton)

narrative tenses : past simple , past continuous , past perfect, past perfect continuous narrative tenses

1 We arrived at the airport and checked in . B l))

2 We were having dinner w hen the plane hit some turbulence

At nine o'clo ck most p e ople on the plan e were reading or were trying to sleep

3 When we arrive d at the a irp o rt , we suddenly rea li z ed that we had left one of the suitcas es in the taxi.

4 We 'd been flying for about t w o hour s when s udd en ly th e captain told u s to fa s ten our sea t belts b ecau se w e w er e fl y ing into some ver y bad we a ther

1 We use the past simple to talk about consecutive actions or situations in the past, i.e. for the main events in a stor y

2 We use the past continuous (was/ were +verb + -inB) to describe a longer continuous past action or situation which was in progress when another action happened , or to describe an action or situation that was not complete at a past time .

3 We use the past perfect (h ad+ past participle) to talk about the ' earlier past', i.e. things which happened before the main event(s)

4 W e use the past perfect continuous (had bee n+ verb + -inB) with action verbs to talk about longer continuous actions or situations that started before the main events h a ppened and have continued up to that point. Non-act ion verbs (e g be , have, know, lik e, etc ) are not normally used in the past continuous or past perfect continuous

past perfect simple or continuous?

Lin a was cry in g be cau se s h e 'd been reading a 9 l)) ver y sa d boo k Lina didn' t w ant to se e the film , bec au s e s h e'd a lre a dy read the b ook.

• The past perfect continuous emphasizes the continuation of an activity The past perfect simple emphasizes the completion of an activ ity.

b Put t h e ve r b in br a cke t s in t he p as t perfe ct s imple (h ad don e) or con tinuo u s (had been do i n B)· If yo u think bo t h ar e pos s ible, use th e c o ntinu o u s form.

H is E nglish was ver y goo d. He 'd been lea r ning i t fo r fi ve ye ars . ( l e arn)

1 I w a s r eally fe d up b e c a u s e we __ for hou rs. (queue)

2 She w ent t o th e p o li ce t o r e p o rt that s o meone ______ h e r b ag . (s tea l)

3 It a ll m o rning. T h e s tree t s w ere w e t , and the r e wer e p uddles eve r yw here (r a in)

4 She got to w ork l a te b e cause s he ________ her phone a t h o m e a n d go b a ck and get it . (leave, h ave to)

Meg and Liam McGowan €9 / were Be ttinB a na s t y surprise when the y 1had check ed in / w ere chec kin B in at Heathrow airport yesterday w ith the ir bab y Shaun . They 2 had won/ w on three fr ee pl a n e tickets to R o me in a competition , and th ey 3w ere lookinBforw ard to / had bee n lookinBforward to their trip for month s . But, unfortunately, they 4 had bee n forB etti nB f had forB otten to get a passport for their son, so Shaun couldn' t fl y. Luckily, the y 5 had arriv ed/ were arrivinB ve r y e arly for their flight , so they s till had time to do some thing about it. T h ey 6 had 1·un / ran to the police station in the airport t o apply for a n emergency passport. Meg 7 was BOi nB / went with Sh a un to the photo machine while Liam 8 had f i ll ed in/ was f i lli n B in the forms. The p a ssport was read y in an hour , so the y 9 hurri ed /w ere hurry inB to the g a te and 10Bot / had Bot on the plane

5 I almost didn' t rec og nize Tony a t the p ar t y. H e _________ a lo t s ince I l ast saw him (ch ange)

6 Th e touri s t s' fa ce s w e r e ve r y r e d Th ey ___ in the s u n all morning a nd they an y s un cre am . (s it , not put on)

7 I could see fro m the ir express i o n s th at m y par ent s (argue)

8 Je s s had a b a ndage on he r a rm becau se s h e _______ off her bike t hat mo rning. (fall )

9 I was a m az ed b e cau se I s uch a n eno r m o us plane b efore . (n ev er see)

10 How lon g before yo u realize d th a t y ou wer e lo s t? (wa lk)

the position of adverbs and adverbial phrases

1 He walks very slowly I speak five languages 13 >)) fluently The driver was seriou s ly injured in the accident.

2 I hardly eve r have time for breakfast. Liam 's alway s late for work . I would never have thought you were 40 .

3 My parents will be here i n half an h o ur. It rained all day yes t erd a y.

4 I've nearly finished. We 're incre dibly tired. M y husband works a lo t but he doesn't earn much .

5 U nfortunately, the parcel never arrived . Ideally, we should leave here at 10.00.

2 Adverbs of frequency go before the main verb but after the verb to be.

• Sometimes, usually, and normally can also be put at the beginning of the phrase or sentence for emphasis.

• If there are two auxiliary verbs, the adverb goes after the first one .

3 Adverbs of time and place usually go at the end of a sentence or clause. Place adverbs normally go before time adverbs. NOT 1\1.y pa:i ents will be in half an hot:t1 he1 e.

4 Adverbs of degree describe how much something is done, or modify an adjective

• extremely, incredibly, very, etc . are used with adjectives and adverbs and go before them.

• a lot and much are often used with verbs and go after the verb or verb phrase.

• a little/ a bit (of) can be used with adjectives or verbs, e .g. I'm a bit/ a littl e tired. We rested a bit of/ a littl e aft er the fliBht

5 Comment adverbs (which give the speaker's opinion) usually go at the beginning of a sentence or clause. Other common comment adverbs are luckily, basically, clearly, obviously, apparently, eventually , etc.

Adverbs can describe an action (e .g. he walks slowly) or modify adjectives or other adverbs (e g. it's incredibly expensive, he works very hard). They can either be one word (e.g. often) or a phrase (e.g. once a week).

1 Adverbs of manner describe how somebody does something. They usually go after the verb or verb phrase, however, with passive verbs they usually go in mid-position (before the main verb but after an auxiliary verb).

a Underline the adverbs or adverbial phrases an d correct the sentences where the order is wrong. We're going to be unfortunately late. X Unfortunately, we 're BOinB to b e late. He can speak German fluently ./

1 She liked very much the present.

2 Mark came last night very l ate home.

3 T h e ambulance arrived at the scene of the accident after a few minutes.

4 A young man was injured badly and was taken to hospital.

5 I was extremely tired last night

6 She's l azy a bit about doing her homework.

7 I forgot your birthday almost, but fortunatel y my sister reminded me.

8 We luckily had taken an umbrella , because it started to rain just after we'd left.

9 Mary doesn' t always eat healthily, because she often has snacks between meals .

10 Jack has been apparently sacked

Otheradverbs

Most other adverbs go in mid-position , e g. I just need ten more minutes She didn't even say goodbye. She 'll probably come in the end.

b Put the adve rb s in brackets in the normal position in these sentences serious ly

She wasn't ,,{ injured when she fell. (seriously)

1 Their hous e wa s damaged in the fire (badly, last week)

2 Ben is at his friend' s hous e (often , in the evening)

3 My father has a nap . (usually, in the afternoon)

4 Julia left a nd she didn' t say goodb ye . (early, even)

5 Martin talks fast. (a l w ay s , incredibly)

6 His brother died in a skiing accident (apparen tly, nearly)

7 We 're going to the cinema. (probably, tonight)

8 I send emails . (rarely, nowadays)

9 I' ve bought a beautiful new coat. (just , really)

10 Karen realized that she was going to learn to drive (eventually, ne ver)

My parents will be here in half an hour.

future perfect and future continuous future per f ect: will have + past participle

The decorators wi ll have finished painting by 2 9 l)) Tuesday, so we can move back into the flat then. The footba ll club say that they 'll have built the new stadium in six months.

Laura w o n't h ave arr iv e d before dinner so I'll leave some food in the oven for her. When w i ll t h ey h ave learnt enough English to be able to communicate fluently?

We u se the future perfect (will have+ past particip le) to say something will be finished before a certain time in the future

• This tense is frequently u sed with the time expressions by Saturday JMarch/ 2030, etc . or in two weeks/ months, etc.

• By + a time expression= at the l atest. With in, you can say in six months or in six months ' time.

• We form the negative with won' t have+ past participle and make quest ions by inverting the sub ject and will/ won't .

a Complete the sentences using the future perfect or future continu ous.

The film starts at 7. 0 0. I will arrive at 7.15. When I arrive at the cinema the film will have started. (start)

I The flight to Geneva takes off at 9.00 and lands at 10 30. At 10.00 they to Geneva. (fly)

2 I usually save €200 a month. By the end of the year, I €2,400. (save)

3 Rebecca l eaves at 6.30 It takes her an hour get to work At 7.00 tomorrow she to work. (drive)

4 The meeting starts at 2.00 and finishes at 3 . 30 . Don't call me at 2.30 beca u se we a meeting. (have)

5 Sam is paying for his car. The l ast payment is in May. By June he for his car. (pay)

6 Their last exam is on May 31st

By the end of May they their exams. (finish)

7 She writes a chapter of her novel a week This week she's on chapter five.

By the end of this week she five chapters. (write)

8 Sonia is u sually at the gym between 6 30 and 7.30

There 's no point phoning Sonia now. It's 7.00 and she

_______ at the gym. (work out)

9 The film started down loading at 7.30. It will take another hour.

The fi l m at 8.30 (download)

f utu r e continuous: w ill be + verb + -ing

Don't phone between 7.00 and 8.00 as we'll be 30l)) having dinner then. Good luck with your test tomorrow I'll be thinking of you. This time tomorrow I' ll be s i tting at a cafe drinking a beer. Come at 7 00 because we won't be starting dinner until 8 00. Will yo u be waiting for me when 1 get off the train?

I' ll be g o ing to the supermarket later. Do you want anything?

• Use the future continuous (will be+ verb + inB) to say that an action will be in progress at a certain time in the future. Compare:

We'll have dinner at 8 00 (=we will start d i nner at 8.00) We'll be having dinner at 8.00 (=at 8.00 we will already have started having dinner)

• We sometimes use the future continuous , li ke the present continuous , to talk ab out things which are already planned or decided.

• We form the negative w ith won' t be+ verb + inB and make questions by inverting the subject and will/ won't.

b Comp l ete the dia l ogue with the verbs in brackets in the future perfect or continuous .

A Well , it looks like we'll be having very different weather in the future if climate change continues.

B What do you mean?

A Well , they say we'll be having much higher temperatures here in London, as high as 30 ° . And remember, we i on the beach , we 2 in 30°, which is quite different. And isl ands like the Ma ldives

3 by 2150 because of the rise in the sea level. They say the number of storms and tsunamis

4 by the middle of the century too , so even more people s by then to the cities looking for work. Big cities

6 even bigger by then Can you i magine the traffic?

B I don't think there will be a problem with the traffic. Petrol

7 completely by then anyway, so nobody will have a car. Someone 8 _________ a new method of transport, so we

9 around in air cars or something.

-1111( p.35

zero and first condit ionals, future time clauses (with all present and future forms)

zero conditional

Ifyou want to be fit, you need to do some exercise every day.

Ifpeople are wearing headphones in the str eet , they often don't notice other people

If you haven't been to New York, you haven't lived

To ta l k abo u t something w h ich is always true or a lways happens as a res ul t of somethin g else, we use if+ present simpl e, and the pr esen t si mple in t he othe r clause

• Yo u can also use the present continuou s or present perfect in either cl ause .

first conditional

If the photo s are good, I' ll send them to you. 2 4 0 >))

If you 're not g o ing to Jason's party, I ' m not going to go either.

I fl haven't come back by 9 00 , start dinner without m e. I' ll have finished in a n hour if you don't disturb me

To ta lk abo ut something w h ich will prob ably happen in the fut u re, we use if+ a p resen t tense, and a future tense in the other clause

• Yo u can u se any present form i n the if- cl au se (present simp le , continuous, or perfect) an d any future form (will, BoinB to , future perfect, future cont inuous) or an imp era t ive in the other clause

futu re time clauses

I'll be r ea dy a s soo n as I've had a cup o f coffee . 2 41 >))

S e nd me a me ssage w hen your t r ain's coming into the s tation .

I'm not going t o buy the new model until the price has gone down a bit

I'm not go ing t o w ork ove rtime this weekend unless I get paid for it.

Take your umbre lla in case it 's raining w h en yo u leave w or k.

When you a r e t a l king abo u t the future, use a p r esent tense after these expressions: as soon as , when , until , unless, before, after, a nd in case. T h is can b e any present form , e.g . present simple, present continuous, present perfect.

• We u se in case when we d o someth i ng i n order to b e ready for fut u re sit u ations / p roblems. Compare the use of if and in case:

I ' ll take an umbrella ifit rains . =I won't take an u mbrella if d oesn't rain.

I'll take an umbrella in case it rains. =I'll t ake an umbrella anyway because it m ight ra i n

a correct form . b Comp lete the s entence s with a time expre s sio n fr om the li s t. Don't worry has passe d the exam if he 's studied enough.

1 If you 'r e not f ee linB / won' t b e f ee linB better tomorrow, you should go to the doctor's

2 If we ' re lucky, we ' ll hav e sold/ 've sold our house by Christma s

3 I'll pay for dinner - ifI have / 'll hav e enough money !

4 If we carry on play ing lik e thi s , w e ' ll have sco r ed/ have scored ten goals b y half time

5 Don't call Sophie now. If it's 8 o 'clock, she'll bath / 'll b e bathinB the bab y.

6 If you don't h u rr y up , you don ' t Bet/ won 't Bet to school on time

7 You can be fined if you ar en ' t w earinB / won' t b e w earinB a seat belt in your c a r.

8 If you go out with w e t hair, y ou ' ll cat ch/ 'll b e catchinB a cold .

9 My s u i t case a lways Be t s / will always Be t lo s t ifI have a connecting flight.

10 I won ' t BO / don't BO to work on Monday if m y daught er is s till ill.

Yo u h ave to use some words more than once.

after as soon as (x 2) befo r e if in case (x2) un less (x2) until when

I'll c a ll you as s oon as my p l ane land s

1 I'm going to pack m y suitcas e _____ I go to b e d.

2 Do you want to borrow m y satnav ______ yo u get los t?

3 I'll be l eaving w o rk e arly tom or row m y bo ss ha s a crisis

4 I'll b e m e eting an o ld friend _____ I'm in Londo n n ext week.

5 Don't w o rr y. I'll c a ll you ____ I o p en th e l e tt er with m y exa m result s .

6 I'm l ate tomorrow, s tart the m e et i ng w i thout m e.

7 Lily will h ave packed so me s and w iche s we g et hungr y

8 The children will be p l aying in the park it get s d a rk.

9 ______ w e 've h ad lunch w e cou l d go for a w a lk.

10 Don ' t call the emer g enc y n u mb e r _ it 's a r ea l em erge nc y

unreal condi t ion als

second conditional sentences: if+ past simple, would I wouldn't+ infinitive

1 If th ere was a fire in this hotel, it would b e very 3 12 l))

difficult to escape.

I wouldn't have a car ifl didn ' t live in the countr y.

2 If you weren' t making so much noise, I could concentrat e better.

3 Ifl were yo u , I'd make Jimmy wear a helmet when he 's cycling.

1 We use second conditional sentences to talk about a hypothetic al or imaginary situation in the present or future and its consequences

2 In the if-clause you can also use the past continuous. In the other clause you can use could or miBht instead of would.

3 With the verb be you can use was or were for I , he , and she in the if-clause, e.g. If Dan was/ were here, he would know what to do. However, in conditionals beginning If I were you to give advice, we always use w ere.

1 We use third conditional sentences to talk about a h y pothetical past situation and its consequences.

2 You can also use the past perfect continuous in the if-clause. You can also use could have or miBht have instead of would have in the other clause.

second or third conditional?

1 If yo u came to class more often, 14 l)) you would probably pa s s the exam.

2 If yo u had come to class more often, you w ould probably have passed the exam.

Compare the two conditionals.

1 = You don't come to class enough. You need to come more often if you want to pass the exam.

2 =You didn' t come to class enough, so you failed.

Mixed conditionals third conditional sentences: if+ past perfect, would I wouldn't have+ past participle

1 If you had c o me to class more often, you would have done better in the exams.

I wouldn't have been late ifl hadn ' t overslept

2 He would have died if he hadn't been wearing a helmet. If the jacket had been a bit cheaper, I might have bought it .

a Complete with the correct form of the ver b in brackets , u si n g a second or third conditional.

If Tim hadn' t Bot injured, he wo uld have playe d in the final. (not get injured)

1 I so much food if you'd told me you weren't hun gry. (not made)

2 IfI were yo u , I mone y to members of your family. (not l end)

3 I Jack to help m e ifhe was n 't so busy. (ask)

4 Joe an accident ifhe hadn' t been driving so fast. (not have)

5 I'd run the marathon if! _ a bit fitter. (be)

6 If yo u w h ere yo u were going , you wouldn ' t have fallen over. (look)

7 I'm sure yo u dancing if you came to the classes with me. (enjoy)

8 We 'd go to the l oca l restaurant if they ______ the menu from time to time. (change)

9 Nina wou ldn' t have gone abroad if she ___ to find a job h ere. (b e able)

10 If yo u for a discount in the shop, the y might have given you one. (ask)

pWe sometimes mix second and third conditionals if a hypothetica l situation in the past has a present I future consequence, e.g. You wouldn't be so tired if you had gone to bed earlier last night.

If he really loved you, he would have asked you to marry him.

b Comp l ete using a second or third conditional. You did n ' t wait ten minutes You did n't see Jim. Ifyou 'd waited ten minutes you would have seen Jim

1 L uke missed the train. He was late for the inter v iew If Luke the train , he late for the int erview

2 Millie didn't buy the top. She didn't have any money. Millie the top if she some money.

3 It started s n owing. We didn 't reach the top. If snowing, we the top .

4 Rebecca drinks too much coffee . She sl eeps badly. If Rebecca so much coffee, she badly.

5 I don't drive to work. T h ere's so much traffic. I to work if so m u ch tr affic.

6 Matt doesn' t treat Sue well. She won' t stay with him. If Matt his girlfriend better , she ____ with him.

7 You don't do any exercise. You don't fee l h ealthy. You a lot healthier if yo u some exercise.

8 The tax i driver had satnav. He found the s treet easily The driver the street ifhe satnav.

9 Jim bought t h e wrong size. I had to change the sweater

If Jim the right size, I the sweater.

10 You get up late. You waste half the morning . Ifyo u earlier, yo u half the morning.

structures after wish

w ish + would I wouldn 't

I wish cyclists wouldn't cycle on the pavement ! 3 15 >))

I wish you 'd spend a bit mor e time with the chi ldren . I wish the bu s would come . I'm freezing.

I wish yo u wouldn't leave yo ur shoes ther e. I almost fell over the m

a Write sentences with I wis h would/ wou ldn't.

It annoys m e th at . .. yo u don 't put away yo ur cloth es.

I wish you'd put away yo ur clothes !

It annoys me that

1 shop assistants aren't more polite

2 yo u turn the heating up all the time

3 m y sis ter do es n ' t tidy o ur room

4 the neighbour 's do g barks at night

5 it do es n ' t s top rainin g

6 Ja n e talks about h er boyfr iend so mu ch

7 m y d a d sings in front of m y friends

8 you drive so fas t!

9 m y hu s band do es n 't d o t h e washing- up

10 the bus doesn't come p.48

We u s e wish+ person / thing + would to talk about things we want to happen, or s top happening because they annoy us.

• You can' t use wi sh+ would for a wish about yourself, e.g NOT I wish I would

wish + past simp l e o r pas t pe rfect

1 I wish I was ten years yo unge r!

I wish I could und erstand what they're saying.

2 I w ish I hadn't bought t ho se shoes.

I w is h you'd told m e the truth.

1 We use wish+ past simple to talk about things we would like to be different in the present / future (but which are impossible or unlikely).

• After wish you can use was or w ere with J, he , she , and it, e g. I wish I was/ were taller.

2 We use wish+ past perfect to ta lk about things that happened or didn't happen in the past and which you now regret.

pIf only

We can also use If only instead of I wish in all these structures, e g. If only he'd hurry up! If only I had a bit more money. If only she hadn't told him about the affair!

b Complete with the verb in the past s imple or past perfect. I w is h I was a bit thinner! My clothes don ' t fit me! (be)

1 I wis h I natu rally blonde hair! (have)

2 Suzanne w is hes h er parents so far away. (not live)

3 I wish I le arning English w hen I was a child! (start)

4 This flat 's so cold! I wis h i t ce ntr al heating. (have)

5 I wish we m ore exp ensive seats I can't see a th ing. (buy)

6 The party sound s as if it was great fun I wish I _ _ there . (be)

7 Is it only five o'clock? I wis h it dark so early in winter. (not ge t)

8 I wis h I speak Fr ench . It would b e useful in t his job . (can)

9 T hi s s uitcase is too heav y. I wish I so many clothe s! (not pack)

10 I 'm really tired. I wish we by car instead of d eciding to wa lk. (go)

11 I wis h I _ an o nly chi ld I'd love to have brothers and sisters. (n ot b e)

12 I'd love to b e ab l e to play the p i a n o. I wish I ____ w h en I was a ch ild. (learn)

gerunds and infinitives

verbs followed by the gerund and verbs followed by the infinitive

1 I enjoy listening to music. I couldn't help laughing . 3 37 l))

2 I want to s peak to you . They can ' t afford to buy a new car.

3 It might rain tonight I'd rather eat in than go out tonight

When one verb follows another, the fir st verb determines the form of the second. This can be the gerund (verb + -inB) or the infinitive (with or without to).

1 Use the gerund after certain verbs and expressions , e g. enjoy, can't he lp

• When a phrasal verb is followed by another verb, the verb is the gerund , e.g. carry on, keep on , Bive up, lookforward to , etc.

2 Use the infinitive (with to) after certain verbs and expressions, e.g. want, afford.

3 Use the infinitive (without to) after modal verbs and some expressions, e.g. miBht , would rather, and after the verbs make and let.

• In the passive , make is followed by the infinitive with to. Compare My boss makes us work hard At school we were made to wear a uniform.

)ii- p.164 Appendix Verb patterns: verbs followed by the gerund or infinitive

p like, love, hate, and prefer

like, love, hate, and prefer are usually used with the gerund in British English but can also be used with the infin itive.

We tend to use the gerund when we talk generally and the infinitive when we talk specifically e g.

I like swimming (general)

I like to swim first thing in the morning when there aren't many people there (specific)

I prefer cycling to driving (general)

You don't need to give me a lift to the station. I prefer to walk (specific) When like, love , hate, and prefer are used with would, they are always followed by to+ infinitive, e g. I'd prefer to stay at home tonight, I'd love to come with you .

a Complete with a gerund or infinitive with to of a verb from the list.

carry call come do drive eat out ge--et:ff take tidy wait work

I'm exhausted! I don't fancy BOinB out tonight.

1 I suggest a taxi to the airport tomorrow. It ' ll be much quicker.

2 Even though the snow was really deep, we managed _____ to the local shop and b ack.

3 We'd better some s hopping- there isn ' t much food for the weekend.

4 I'm very impatient. I can't stand in queues.

5 I wasn't well and a yo ung man offered my bags

6 My parents u se d to make me my room.

7 We threatened the police if the boys didn't stop throwing stones.

8 Do yo u feel like _____ to the gym with me?

9 I'd prefer instead of getting a takeaway.

10 I don't mind lat e tonight if you want me to.

verbs that can be followed by either gerund or infinitive with to

1 It s tarted to rain . It s tart e d raining . 3 38 l))

2 Remember to lock the door.

I remember going to Venice as a child. Sorry, I forgot to do it.

I 'll never forget s eeing the Taj Mahal. I tried to open the window

Try calling Miriam on her mobile. You need to cle an the car.

The car needs cleaning.

1 Some verbs can be followed by the gerund or infinitive (with to) with no difference in meaning. The most common verbs like this are start , beBin, and continue.

2 Some verbs can be followed by the gerund or infinitive (with to) with a change of meaning.

- remember + infinitive =you remember first, then you do something . Remember + gerund = you do something then you remember it

- forBet + infinitive = you didn't remember to do something. forBet +gerund= You did something and you won't forget it. It is more common in the negative.

- try + infinitive = make an effort to do something. try + gerund = experiment to see if something works.

- need+ gerund is a passive construction, e.g. needs cleaninB = needs to be cleaned NOT nttttr to cleaii.

b correct form.

Yo ur hair needs @J to cut. It's really long!

1 I'll never forget to see/ seeinB the Grand Canyon for the first time.

2 I need to call/ callinB the helpline. My computer has crashed.

3 Have you tried to take/ takinB a tablet to help yo u sleep?

4 I must have my keys somewhere. I can remember to lock / lockinB the door this morning.

5 I had to run home because I had forgotten to turn/ turninB the oven off.

6 Our house needs to paint/ paintinB· Do you know any good house painters?

7 Did you remember to send/ sendinB your sister a card? It's her birthday today.

8 We tried to learn/ learninB to ski last winter , but we weren't very good at it.

<Ill( p. 5 7

used to , be used to , get used to

used to I didn ' t use to + infini t ive

1 I u se d to sleep for eight hours e ve r y ni ght , 3 43 l)) but now I only sleep for s ix

I didn't recogni ze him . H e didn't use to have a be ard.

2 When I lived in Franc e as a child w e used to have croissants for bre a kfa s t We would buy them eve r y morning fr om the loca l ba ke r.

1 We u se used to /didn 't use to + infinitive to tal k about past habits or repeated actions or situations / states which have changed

• used to doesn't exist in the present tense . For present habits, use usually+ the presen t simple, e.g . I usually walk to work. NOT I use to walk to wo 1k

2 We can al so u se would to refer to repeated actions in the past. However, we don't use would for non -action verbs (e.g. be, have , know, like, etc.) . NOT I didn't 1ecogniu him. Ile wouldn' t hat1e a beai d.

be used to I get used to + gerund

1 I'm not used to sleeping w ith a du ve t . I've always 3 44 l)) s le pt with bl a nkets

Ca rlos has live d in London for yea r s . H e's used to driving o n the le ft.

2 A I c an' t get used to working a t nig h t. I fee l tir e d a ll the tim e

B D o n ' t w o rr y, yo u ' ll s oon get used to it .

1 Use be used to + gerund to tal k about a new situation w h ich is n o w fam i liar or less strange.

2 Use Bet used to + gerund to talk about a new situation which is b ec o ming familiar or less strange

The d ifference between be used to an d Bet used to is exactly the same as the di fference b etween be and Bet+ adjective.

a Right (/" ) or wrong (X)? Corre ct the m i stakes in the hig lighted phrases.

[ can't get usea to getting up s o e arly I' She isn't used to have a bi g dinn e r in the eve nin g X i sn 't u se d to h a vinB

1 When we were children we use to p aying footb a ll in th e ro a d.

2 When w e vi s it e d our Britis h fri e nd s in Lo ndon we couldn't get use to drink t e a w ith brea k fas t.

3 ave you got used to live in th e countr y or do you s till miss the c it y ?

4 I'm really s l eep y [ 'm not used to staying up s o lat e I'm u s ually in b e d b y midn i g ht.

5 There use to be a cine m a in our v ill age, but it clo se d down t h r ee y ears a go

6 Paul is used to having ver y long hair w h e n h e was younger

7 A I don't think I c o uld wo rk a t ni ght

B It's not s o bad. ['m use to i no w.

8 Did you use to wear a uniform to s c hoo l ?

9 It's t a kin g me a long time to e used to living on my own

10 Wh en I h a d exams a t unive r s it y [used to stay up a ll night rev is in g.

b Comple te with used to, be u sed to, o r Be t used t o ( positive o r n eg ative) a nd the ve rb i n br ac ket s

M y b oy fri e nd is S pa nis h , s o h e isn't u sed to driving on the left. (d r iv e)

1 W h en Nath a n s t a r t ed hi s fir s t jo b he couldn ' t _____ at 6 a .m. (ge t up)

2 I didn ' t r e co g ni ze y ou! Yo u lo n g hair, didn' t y ou ? ( h ave)

3 Isab elle a fl a t w h e n s h e was at unive r s ity, but n ow she h as a hous e o f h e r o w n. (r e nt)

4 Wh e n we we r e childre n w e a ll d ay pl ay ing fo otb a ll in the p a r k. (spend)

5 Jas mine h as b ee n a nur se a ll her l i fe, s o s h e _____ ni ghts. (wo rk )

6 I 've n ever wo r n gl asses b efore, but now I'll h ave t o ______ t h em (wea r)

7 Am eli a i s a n o n ly ch ild Sh e he r thin gs. (sh a r e)

8 Alth o u gh I've lived in S p a in for yea r s, I 've n ever

_____ dinner a t 9 o r 10 o'clo c k a t ni ght. (h ave)

9 I sp i nac h , b u t n o w I love i t (l i ke)

1 0 If yo u wa nt t o l ose we i ght , th e n yo u ' ll have to ____ l ess. (ea t)

past modals

must I might I may I can't I couldn't+ have+ past participle

1 We use must have whe n we are almost s ure that something h a ppened or wa s true.

pThe opposite of must have is can't have - see 3 below NOT mustn 't have

2 We use miBht /may hav e when we think it's possible that s omething happened or was true We can also use could ha ve w ith this meaning , e .g. S o m e b o dy could have sto l en yo ur wall et w h en yo u we re BettinB off th e train

1 I must have left my phone at Anna's. I definitely remember having it there

You must have seen something. You were there when the accident happened

2 Somebody might have stolen your wallet when yo u were getting off the train

He st ill hasn ' t arrived. I may not have given him the right directions .

3 She can't have gone to bed. It's only ten o'clock!

Yo u can't have seen their faces very clearly. It was too dark.

• We use must/ may/ miBht / can't+ hav e + past participle to make deductions or speculate about past actions.

a Rewrite the bold sentences u sing must / might (not) / can't + hav e + verb.

I'm certain I left m y umbrella at home It 's not in the office.

I must have left my umbrella at hom e

1 Holly's crying Perhap s she's had an argument with her bo yfr iend. She

2 I'm sure Ben has read m y email. I se nt it first thing this morning. Ben

3 I'm sure Sam and Ginny haven't got lost They h ave sa tnav in their car. Sam and Ginny

4 You saw E llie yesterday? That's impo ssible. She was in bed w ith flu. You

5 Perhaps John didn't see y ou That's why he didn 't say hello John

6 I'm s ure Lucy has bought a new car I saw her driving a blue VW Golf! Lucy

7 I'm sure Alex wasn't very ill. He was only off work for one day. Alex ...

8 They didn't come to o u r wedding . Maybe they didn't receive the invitation They

9 This tastes very sweet. I'm s ure yo u us e d too much sugar. You

10 It definite l y wasn't my phone that rang in the cinema. Mine was on silent . It

3 We use can 't h a ve when we are almost sure some thing didn ' t happen or that it is impossible We can also use couldn' t have when the speculation is about t he distant pa s t, e.g. You couldn't have see n th eir fac es v ery clearly , e.g. Sh e couldn' t have Bone to b ed It 's only t en o 'clo ck.

should have I ought to have + past participle

We've gone the wrong way. We shouldn't have 4 S >)) turn e d left at the traffic li ghts .

It's my fau lt. I ought to have told yo u earlier that m y mother was coming.

• Use should have + past participle to say that somebody didn' t do the r i ght thing , or to expres s regret or criticism.

• You can use ouBht t o have as an alternative to should have, e g I ouBht to have t o ld y ou earli er.

b Re spond to the fir s t sentence using should/ shouldn't have or ought/ oughtn't to have + a verb in the list

buy come eat go invite le-am sit write take

A We couldn't understand anybody in Paris.

B You should hav e learnt some French before yo u we nt .

A Sue is in bed with a stomach ache.

B She ouBhtn't to have eaten so much chocolate cake yesterda y.

I A Tom told me the date of his party, but I've forgotten it.

B You it down.

2 A I was l ate because t h ere was so much traffic.

B You ____ b y car. The metro is much faster.

3 A Amanda was rude to everyone at my party.

B You h er. Youknowwhatshe'slike.

4 A I don't have any money left after going shopping yes terday.

B You so many s hoes. Did yo u rea lly need three pairs?

5 A You look really tired.

B I know. I to bed earlier l as t night .

6 A The chicken's st ill frozen so lid

B I know. You it out of the freezer earl ier.

7 A I think I've bu rnt my face.

B I'm not s ur prised. You ______ in the su n all afternoo n without any sunscreen.

verbs of the senses

look I feel I smell I sound I taste

1 Yo u l o ok tired 4 12 >)) T h a t cake smells go od !

T h ese jeans don ' t feel comfortable

2 T i m looks like his father. This materi al feels like silk - is it ? .,.,..

Are yo u sur e thi s is coffee ? It tastes like tea

3 She looks as if she 's been crying It smells as if something's burning It sounds a s ifit's raining

1 U s e look.fee l, etc . + a djec t ive.

2 Use look.fee l , etc. + lik e + noun

3 Use look.feel, etc . + as if+ clau s e.

• You can use like or as thouB h instead of as if, e.g. It sounds lik e / as thouBh it 's raininB

p

Feel like

fe e l like ca n a l so be use d as a verb me ani ng ' want' I ' wou l d like' It is foll ow e d by a noun o r a v erb in th e ge r u nd , e g I feel like pasta f o r lun ch today(= I'd like p ast a for lun c h today). I don 't feel like going to bed (= I d o n't wan t t o go t o bed).

a Match the senten ce h a lves .

1 T h at gro u p sound s like

2 T h at boy looks

3 Nora looks like

4 T h at g u itar so u nd s

5 Tom looks a s if

6 Our car s ounds a s if

7 Your n ew jac ket feel s

8 T hi s apple t a stes

9 It s m e lls as if

10 Yo u r p e rfume s m ells l i ke

11 Thi s rice t as t es a s if

D D D D D D D D D

A h er mother.

B awful! Yo u n ee d to t u n e it

C ver y soft.

D s om e one h as b e en smoking in her e

E re a lly s w ee t

F Coldpl ay.

G to o youn g t o b e drinkin g b ee r

H it 's burnt

I ro ses.

J it 's goin g to br eak d ow n a ny mome nt.

K h e's ju st run a m ara tho n

b Q th e corre ct fo r m Yo u r b o y frien d lo o k s r u gb y p lay er He 's hu ge !

1 You' ve gon e c omp le t ely w hit e You look/ l ook as if yo u 've see n a gh os t!

2 Wha t 's for dinner ? It sme ll s/ sm e lls like d elicio u s !

3 I think John and M e ga n have a rri ve d T hat so unds/ sounds li k e t h e i r c a r

4 Hav e you e ve r tri e d fr o gs ' le gs? A pp a r e ntl y t h ey t as t e like/ tas t e a s if ch icken .

5 Ar e yo u OK? Yo u sound/ so un d as if yo u ' ve got a co ld

6 Can yo u p ut th e h ea ting o n ? It fee ls/ f ee ls li ke really co ld in h ere

7 You l ook / look li k e r eally h appy Do es th a t m ean yo u go t t h e jo b ?

8 Your n e w b agfee ls / feels li ke r eal lea th er. Is it ?

9 L e t's throw this m il k awa y. It ta s t es / t as t es like a bit off.

10 C an you close th e wi nd ow? It sm e lls/ sme lls as if someo n e is h avi n g a b ar b ec u e.

the passive (all forms); it is said that. .., he is thought to... , et c. the passive (all forms)

present simple present continuo u s present perfect past simple

Murderers are usually s e ntenced to life imprisonment. The trial is being he l d at the moment

4 36 >)) My car h as b een s tolen

Jim was arrested last month. past continuous past perfect

The cinema w a s being rebuilt when it was set on fire. We saw that one of the windows had been broken future infinitive with to infinitive without to gerund

The prisoner will b e released next month. The ve rdi ct i s going to be given tomorrow. People used t o be imp ri s o ned for stealing bread.

You can be fine d for parking on a yellow line . He paid a fine to avoid being sent to jail.

• Use the passive when yo u want to talk about an action, but you are not so interested in saying w h o or what d oes / did the action

it is said that , he is thought to , etc

active

1 They say that the fire was started deliberatel y. People think that the mayor will resign.

2 People say th e man is in his 40s . The police believe he ha s left the country.

• This formal structure is used especia lly in news reports and on TV with the verb s know, tell , understand, report, expect, say, and think It makes the information so u nd more impersonal.

• If you also want to mention the person or thing that did the action (the agent), use by. However, in the majority of passive sentences the agent is not mentioned.

passive 4 37>))

It is sai d t h at the fir e was started deliberately It is thought that the mayor will resign. The man is said to be in his 40s. He is believed to have left t h e country.

You can use It is said, believed , etc. + that+ clause. You can use He, The man, etc. (i.e. the subject of the clause) +is said, believed, etc.+ to+ infinitive (e.g . to be) or perfect infinitive (e.g to have been).

a Rewrite the sentences in the passive , without the agent. b R ephrase the sent ences in two ways to make them

The police caught the burglar immediately. The burBlar was cauBht immediately.

1 Police closed the road after the accident. The road .. .

2 Somebody ha s stolen my handba g. My handbag

3 They are painting m y house

My house

4 They'll hold a meeting tomorrow to discuss the problem. A meeting ...

5 If the y hadn't found the b omb in time, it wo uld have exploded.

If the bomb

6 The police ca n arrest yo u for driving witho ut a li cence You

7 Miranda thinks so m eo n e was following her la st ni g ht.

Miranda thinks she

8 I hate som ebo d y waking me up when I'm fast asleep. I h ate

9 They're going to close the l ocal police station

The local police station

more formal.

People think the murderer is a wo m an It is thouBht that the murderer is a woman. The murd erer is thouBht to be a woman.

1 Police b e l ieve the burglar is a loca l man. It ...

The burglar

2 Peop l e say the m u ggers are very dangerous It ...

The muggers . . .

3 Police think the robber entered through an open w indow It

T h e robber.

4 Police say the murderer has disappeared. It

The murder er

5 Lawye rs expec t that the t ria l will last three weeks. It

The trial. ..

reporting verbs

st ructures after repo rt ing ve r bs

1 Jack offered to drive me to the airport. 4 3 9 l))

I pr o mised not to tell anybody.

2 The doctor advised me to have a rest. I per suaded my sister not to go out with George.

3 I apologized for being so late . The po lice ac c used Karl of stealing the car.

To report what other p eople h ave s aid , you can u se say or a specific verb , e.g. 'I'll dr ive you t o th e ai rport .'

Ja ck sai d h e would drive m e to th e airport

Ja ck offer ed to driv e m e t o th e airport

• After s p e cific reporting verb s, there a r e one to three differ ent grammatica l patterns (see chart on t h e right)

• In negative sentences , use the negative infinitive (not to do) or the negative gerund (not d o inB), e .g. H e rem in d ed m e n o t t o b e lat e. Sh e reBrett ed n o t BOinB t o t h e par ty

a Complete with the gerund or infinitive of the verb in brackets.

The garage advised a new car. (buy)

1 Jamie insisted on for the meal. (pay)

2 Lauren has agreed late next week. (work)

3 I warned Jane through the park at night . (not walk)

4 The man admitted the woman's handbag (steal)

5 The doctor advised Lily drinking coffee. (give up)

6 The boss persuaded Megan the company. (not leave)

7 Freya accused me of _ to steal her boyfriend. (try)

8 I apologized to Evie for her birthday. (not remember)

9 Did you manage to convinc e your parent s ___ tonight instead of tomorrow? (come)

10 My neighbour denies my car , but I'm sure it was him. (damage)

1 + to + infin itive

2 + person + to + infinitive

3 + -inB form

agree refuse th reaten adv ise ask convince encourage invite

offer promise pers u ade remind tell wa r n apologize (to sb) for insist on accuse sh of recommend adm it regret b lame sh for suggest deny

pVerbs that use a that clause

(not) to do something somebody (not) t o do s omething

(not) doing some t hing

With agree, admit , de ny, p ro m ise, regret, yo u can also use that+ claus e. Leo admitted stea ling the watc h. Leo adm i tted that he had stolen the watch .

b Complete using a reporting verb from the list and the correct form of the verb in brackets. Use an object where necessary.

accuse invite e#ef promise recommend refuse remind suggest threaten

Diana said to me, 'I'll take you to the station.'

Diana offer ed to tak e (take) me to the station.

1 Ryan said , ' Let's go for a walk. It's a beautiful day.'

Ryan (go) for a walk.

2 'You copied Anna's exam!' the teacher said to him. The teacher (cop y) Anna's exam.

3 Sam's neighbour told him, 'I'll call the police if yo u have any more parties.'

Sam's neighbour (call) the police ifhe had any more parties.

4 The children said , 'We ' re not going to bed. It's much too early ' The children (go) to bed

5 Simon said to me, 'Wou ld you like to have dinner with me?'

Simon (have) dinner with him.

6 Molly s aid to Jack , ' Don't forg e t to phone the electrician. ' Molly (phone) the electrician.

7 Ricky said , ' I'll nev er do it again ' Rick y ___________ (do) it again.

8 Sarah s a id , 'You r e ally must tr y Giacobazzi's It's a fantastic restaurant .' Sarah (tr y) Giacobazzi 's. She said it was fantastic. -oll( p .78

clauses of contrast and pu r pose clauses of contrast

1 Although the advert said it wou ld last 5 4l)) for years, mine broke after two month s I went to work even though I wasn't feeling very well. I l ike Ann, though she sometimes annoys me

2 In spite of (Despite) her age, she is still very active. being 85, she is still very act ive. the fact that she's 85, she is sti ll very active.

Use althouBh, thouBh , even thouBh , and in spite of or despite to expresss a contrast .

1 Use althouBh , thouBh , even thouBh + a clause

AlthouBh and even thouBh can b e used at the beginning or in the middle of a sentence.

• Ev en thouBh is stronger than althouBh and is u sed to express a big or surprising contrast

• ThouBh is more informal than althouBh. It can only be used in the midd le of a sentence.

2 After in spite of or despit e, use a noun, a verb in the -inB form , or the fact that+ subject +verb

• Remember not to use of after d espit e NOT Despite of the rain clau se s o f pu r pose to

1 I went to the bank in order to so as to

5 S l)) talk to m y bank manager.

2 I went to the bank for a meeting with my bank manager.

3 I went to the bank so that I cou ld talk to the manager in person.

4 I wrote down what he said so as not to forget it.

Use to , in order to, so as to,Jor, and so that to express purpose

1 After to, in order to , and so as to, use an infinitive

2 Use fo1 · +a noun, e g. for a meetinB · You can also use for+ gerund to describe the exact purpose of a thing, e .g. This liquid is for cleaninB m etal.

3 After so that , use a subject+ modal verb (can, could, would, etc.)

4 To express a negative purpose , use so as not to or in order not to , e g I wrote down what he said in order not to forBet it. NOT to notfo1Bet it .

a Complete the sentences with one word .

We're very happy in our new house , thouBh there ' s a lot to do.

We loved the film the fact that it was nearl y three hours long! Carl doesn't like spending money ____ though he 's very well off.

They went down to the harbour ____ see if the y had fresh fish.

I'll put your number straight into m y p h one so ___ not to forget it.

M y mother called the doctor's in to make an appointment.

The cake tasted good in of not looking lik e the photo in the recipe book.

I've put the heat i ng on quite high so the hou se will warm up quickly.

I must say that the service was poor, the meal was del icious.

I stopped at a motorway cafe a quick meal b efo r e continu i ng on my journey.

____ not being very fit , he managed to walk th e three mi l es to the village.

b Rewrite the sentences.

Despite not getting very good reviews, I thought the book was fantastic.

Even though the book didn't Bet ve1y Bood reviews, I thouBht it was fantastic.

1 W e stayed at a bed and breakfast so as not to spend too much money on accommodation.

We stayed at a bed and breakfa s t so that

2 Despite ear ning a fortune, she drives a very old car. Although ...

3 Everyone e njo yed the film even though the ending was sa d.

Everyone enjoyed th e film in spite of.

4 The plane managed to land despite the terrible weather condit ions.

The plane manage d to l an d even though

5 I told h er I enjoyed th e m ea l s h e had coo ked me so that I wouldn't offend h er.

I to l d her I enjoyed the meal she had cooked me so as

6 The manager ca lled a meeting so as to exp l ain the n ew policy.

The manager called a meeting in order.

uncountable and plural nouns

3 Some nouns can be either countable or uncountable, but uncountable nouns

1 The weat h er is fantastic th ere, and ther e's very 5 19 >))

the meaning changes, e g. Blass= the material used to make windows, a Blass= the thing you drink out of Other examples: iron, business, paper, liBht, time, space little traffic so yo u can walk everywhere.

The scenery is b ea utiful here , but it 's spoiled b y all the rubb is h people leave

2 Could you give me some advice about where to stay? One u seful p iece o f a d vice is to get a travel card.

3 The new opera house is made mainly of g l ass . Can I have a glass of tap water pleas e ?

1 The following nouns are a lways uncountable : behaviour, t1"affic, weathe,., accommodation, health , proBress, scenery, rubbish, work, politics (and other words ending in -ics, e.g. athletics, economics).

• They always need a singular verb, they don't have plurals, and they can't be used with a/ an .

2 These nouns are also uncountable :furniture , information, advice, homework, research , news, luck, bread , toast, luBBaB e, equipment. Use a piece of to talk a bout an individual item.

a Right (./) or w rong (X)? Correct the mistakes in the hi g hlig hted phrases.

Our accommodation isn'n satisfacto ry. ./ he news are good X The news is

1 We had a beautiful weather when we were on h o lid ay.

2 They've got some love ly furnitures in their hou se.

3 M y brother gave me a useful piece of advice

4 Do yo u have a sci ssors ? I ne e d to w rap this present.

5 I n eed to buy a new tro u sers for m y interview t o morrow.

6 he staff is very unh ap p y a b o ut the n ew dre ss co d e .

7 Your glasses are rea lly dirt y. Can yo u see a nythin g?

8 T h e h omeworks were ve r y difficult las t night.

9 h ere isn't any more space in my s uitca se. Can I put thi s jacket in yo ur s?

10 he police is sure t hat t h ey know w ho was responsible for the vanda li s m.

plural and collective nouns

1 One of the b es t mus e um s is on the outskirts of 5 20 l)) the c it y.

My clothes are filth y. I'll put o n some clean trousers/ I' ll put o n a pair of clean trousers

2 The hotel staff are very efficient. The cabin crew are coming roun d wi th the drinks trolley in just a few minutes.

1 Arms(= guns, etc.), belonBinBs, clothes, manners, outskirts, scissors, trousers/ shorts are plural nouns with no singular. They need a plural verb and they can't be used with a / an.

• If they consist of two parts, e.g scissors , trousers, shorts, etc. they can be used with a pair of or some.

2 Crew, police, staff, etc. are colle ctive nouns and refer to a group of people. You can use a singular or plural verb w ith these, except police, which needs a plural verb.

b Q the correct form. Tick(./) if b oth are correct.

T he traffic@/ are awful durin g the rush hour.

I Athletics is/ are m y favourit e s port

2 I b o ught a pair of/ som e n ew jeans.

3 Harvey 's clothes look/ looks really ex p en sive.

4 The flight c r ew wo rk/ works h a rd to m a ke passengers comforta ble.

5 I fo und o ut some/ a piece of u se ful in fo rma tio n at the m eetin g.

6 Could I have a paper/ a piece ofpaper to write d ow n the new words?

7 I think I'll h ave a /some time a fter lunch to h elp you with that report.

8 I 've got a /some good news fo r yo u a b o ut yo ur job app li cat i on.

9 We 've m ade a l ot of prowess/ proBresses thi s term

10 Hello , Reception? Do yo u h ave an/ so m e iron I could u se?

lOA

quantifiers:

all, every, most

all, every, both , etc .

1 All anim a ls need fo o d All fruit co nt a ins s u ga r. All (of) the animals in thi s zoo loo k s ad. The a nim als all look sad .

2 Everybody is here . Everything is ver y ex p en s ive.

3 Most people live in cities.

Most of the people in thi s cl ass a re wo men

5 31 >))

4 All of us wo rk ha r d and most of us co m e to cl ass ever y wee k.

S Every ro o m h as a ba thro o m. I wo rk every S aturd ay

1 We use all or all (of) the+ a plural or uncountable noun

All= in genera l, all (of) the= specific All can be used before a main verb (and after be) .

2 We use everythinB / everybody (=all things , all peop le) + singu l ar verb, e.g EverythinB is very expensive NOTAH is very expensi'\le

3 We use most to say t h e majority ; most= genera l, most of= specific.

4 We often u se all/ most of+ an object pronoun , e.g . all ofus , most of them , all ofyou, most ofit.

S Use every + sing ular countable noun to mean 'all of a group'.

p every and all+ time expressions

Note the differe nc e between every and all+ time expressions. Every day= Mo nday to Sunday. A ll day= from morn ing to night

no, none, any

1 Is there any milk ? 5 32 >))

So rr y, there 's no mil k Ther e isn't any (milk).

2 A Is there a n y foo d?

B No , none / T her e's none But none ofus ar e hungr y

3 Co me any w ee kend! Anyone ca n com e.

1 We use no + a noun after a G verb , or any+ noun after a G verb to refer to zero quantity. Any can also be used without a noun

2 We u se none in short answers , or with a G verb to refer to zero quantit y. You can a lso use none+ of+ pronoun/ noun

3 We u se any (and anythinB, anyone , etc ) and a[8ver b to mean it d oesn' t matter w h at, w h o , etc

both, neither, either

1 Both Pierre and Ma rie C urie w ere scientis t s . 33 >)) Neither Pi e rre nor Ma rie wa s (were) awa r e of the d a n gers of ra di a ti o n M a rie C u r ie w ante d to s tud y either phys ic s or mathe matics In the end s h e s tud ie d both at th e So rb o nne in Pa ri s

2 She a nd her hu s ba nd both w on No bel pri z e s . Pi erre and M arie w ere both interested in radium

3 Neither of them rea lize d ho w d angerous r adium was

1 We use a G verb with both and neither. T h e verb is plural wit h both, and either singular or plural with n eith er

2 When both refers to the subject of a clause , it can also be used before a main verb but after b e

3 We often use both/ eith er/ n either+ of+ object pronoun, e .g. us , th em , etc. or + of th e + noun .

I usually go running every day but today I'm ill, so I stayed in bed all day

a Q th e cor rect word or phra se

W e've ea t en@ / all c a k e.

1 Most of/ Most m y closes t fri end s live near m e .

2 Yo u c an come ro und at any/ no tim e o n Sa tu r d ay. We' ll b e h o m e a ll d ay.

3 A ll / Eve 1y thinB is r ea d y for th e p ar t y. We' r e just waitin g fo r the g u es t s t o a rri ve .

4 Most/ M os t of p e opl e e njo y th e s umme r h er e , but fo r so m e it 's too hot

5 G in a goes danc ing a ll / e ve1y F rida y nig ht.

6 W e h ave n ' t got a ny / no o nion s fo r the s o u p

7 A ny/ No n e of u s wa n t to go ou t to ni ght We' r e a ll b ro ke

8 No b ody / A ny b o dy ca n go to the f es ti va l. It 's fr ee

9 I 've got t wo ve r y cl ose fri e nd s, but un fo rtuna t e ly e it h e r / n eith er of th em lives n ear m e

10 I 'd like t o h ave a bigge r t a ble , bu t t h e r e ' s no/ n o'!'l- e ro o m in m y kit ch e n.

b Ri ght (v" ) or wro n g (X) ? C orr e ct t he w ron g sent e nc es

Both Mike a nd A l a n p a sse d th e ex a m. v"

He n eith er wa t ch es th e n ews or re ad s a n ews p a p er. X H e neith e r wat ch es th e n e ws nor r eads a newspap er

1 Bo th th e k i t ch en a nd the b a th ro om n eeds clea ni ng.

2 T h e foo d was n ' t ch e a p n o r t asty.

3 We ca n go o n h o liday e ither in July or in A u g u st

4 Bo th th e jo urney was l o n g and bo r in g.

5 It 's o r Jane ' s o r Ka r en 's b i r t hd ay today. I c a n ' t r em e mb er whi ch

6 My b ro ther h as n e i t h er the en ergy n o r th e s t a min a t o run a mara th on.

7 He r a unt a nd h er co u sin ca m e to v is it b o th.

8 We ca n wa l k ei the r o r ta k e t h e bu s

9 I h ave t wo childr en but n e ith er of the m look li k e m e

10 M y p a r ents l ove h o r ses, a nd b o th of th ey ride ever y day

bas i c r ul es: a I an I t he, n o art icle

1 My neighbour has jus t bought a dog The dog is an Als a tian 5 3 7 l)) He got into the car and drov e to the Town Ha l l.

2 Men are better at parking th a n women I don ' t like sport or classical m u sic I s tayed at home last wee kend.

I Use a or an when you mention somebody or something for the first time or say who or what somebody or something is . Use the when it's clear who or what somebody or something is (e g. it has been mentioned before or it's unique).

2 Don' t use an article to speak in general with plural and uncountable nouns , or in phrases like at home / work , BO home/ to bed , n ex t/ last (w ee k) , etc .

ins t itutio n s

M y father's in hospital.

They're building a new hospital in m y town

He was sent to prison for two years

My grandmoth er used to work in the prison as a cleaner.

more r ules: geograph ical names

1 Tunisia is i n Nor th Africa 5 39 l))

2 Selfridges , on e o f Lo ndon's b igg es t dep artment s tore s, is in Oxford Street

3 Lake Victoria and Mount Kilimanjaro are both in Africa.

4 The River Danube fl ow s int o the Black Sea.

5 The National Gallery a nd the British Mus e um are London touri s t attra ctions

We d on't n ormally u se th e with:

I most countrie s, continents , regions ending with the name of a countr y/ continent, e.g. N o rth Ame ri ca , South Eas t Asia , island s, states, provinces , town s, and cit ies (exceptions : Th e USA , th e UK / Un i t ed KinBdom , th e N e th erlands , th e C zec h R epubli c)

3 8 l))

With words like prison, church , school , hospital , a nd university , don' t use an article when you are thinking about the institution and the normal purpose it is u sed it for. If you are just thinking about the building, use a or th e.

2 roads, streets , parks , bridges , shops , and restaurants (exceptions : motorways a nd numbered ro ads , th e M6 , th e A25).

3 individu al mountains and lakes.

We n o r mally u se th e with:

4 mountain ranges , rivers , seas , canal s , des erts , and island group s

5 the names of theatres, cinemas , hotels, galleries , and museums.

a correct article.

James th e /( -) new suit at the w e ekend.

1 The w e ather was awful, so we staye d at a / th e/ (-) h o m e .

2 A/ Th e/ (- ) dishw as h e r w e bought l as t week ha s s t o pp e d w o rkin g a lr ea d y

3 I love readin g a/ t he/ (-) hi s torical novels

4 Sarah had had an exhau s ting da y, s o sh e went to a/ th e/ (-)bed ea rly.

5 I s aw a m a n walking with a woman in th e p a rk. A/ T he/ (-) woma n wa s c r y ing.

6 The te ac h ers are on s trike, s o the childr en ar en ' t g oin g to a/ th e/ (-) school.

7 T urn le ft immedi a t ely a ft e r a/ t he/ (-) churc h and go up the hill

8 M y n e ighbour 's in a / the/ (-) pri s on b eca u se h e didn' t p ay his ta xes.

9 Pe opl e are comp l aining bec au s e th e council have re fu se d to build a/ th e /(-) n ew ho spit a l.

10 Vi s itor s w ill not be allo wed to en te r a/ the/ (-) ho s pit a l after 7 p.m.

b Compl e t e w ith th e or(- )

They' r e going to th e U S A to vi sit famil y.

1 Sicily i s the l a r ges t isl a nd in M e di terra n ea n.

2 C airo is o n Ri ve r Nile.

3 W e didn ' t h ave tim e t o v isit L o u v r e w h e n w e we r e in P a ri s .

4 south w e s t E n gl a nd is fa m o u s for it s b eautifu l cou n tr ysid e a nd be a ches .

5 Mount Ev er es t is in Hima l ayas.

6 T he lar ges t inl a nd l a ke is C a s pi a n Se a

7 We s t aye d a t P a l ace H ote l w hile we we r e in M a d r id.

8 R om eo and Jul ie t is on at G l o b e T h ea tre.

9 Mont Blanc is th e high es t mounta in in Alp s

10 I' ve a lw ays w a nt e d to v is it Indi a .

Illnesses and injuries

1 MINOR ILLNESSES AND CONDITIONS

a Match the sentences with the pictures.

She has/ She's got a cough /kof/ a headache /'hede1k / (earache, stomach ache, toothache, etc .)

1 a rash /rref/ a temperature /'temprdtfd/

sunburn / 1s/\nb3:n/

She's being sick / She's vomiting / 'vomrt11J /

She's sneezing /'sni:zrl) /

Her ankle is swollen /'swduldn /

Her back hurts / h3:ts/ /

Her back aches /e1ks /

Her finger is bleeding / 'bli:dII]/

b 29 >)) Listen and check.

c Match the illnesses and conditions with their symptoms or causes.

1 B He has a sore throat

2 He has diarrhoea /dard'nd/.

3 He feels sick /' h:lz sik/.

4 He 's fainted /'femt1d /.

5 He has a blister / ' blrstd/ on his foot.

6 He has a cold /g kduld /.

7 He has flu /flu: /

8 He fee ls dizzy /'d1zi /.

9 He's cut himself / kAt hrm'self/

A He has a temperature and he aches all over.

B It hurts when he talks or swallows food.

C It's so hot in the room that he 's lost consciousness .

D He's been to the toilet five times this morning

E He feels that he 's going to vomit.

F He's sneezing a lot and he has a cough.

G He feels that everything is spinning round.

H He's been walking in uncomfortable shoes.

I He's bleeding.

d

1 30 >)) Listen and check.

2 INJURIES AND MORE SERIOUS CONDITIONS

a Match the injuries with their causes or symptoms.

1 C He's unconscious //\n'konfds /

2 He 's had an allergic reaction /gb:d31k/

3 He's twisted his ankle /'tw1st1d / / He's sprained his ankle /sprernd/

4 He has high (low) blood pressure / 'bl/\d preJ'J/

5 He has food poisoning / 'fu:d p;)IZ'dnIIJ/

6 He's choking /tf'Juk11J/

7 He's burnt himself / b3:nt/

A He spilt some boiling water on himself.

B He fell badly and now it's swollen.

C He's breathing, but his eyes are closed and he can't hear or feel anything.

D It's 18 over 14 (or 180 over 140).

E He ate some prawns that were off.

F He was eating a steak and a piece got stuck in his throat.

G He was stung by a wasp and now he has a rash and has difficulty breathing

p Common treatments for b

a cut minor: put a plaster on it (AmE band aid) and antiseptic cre am, major: have stitches

headaches take painkillers

an infection take antibiotics

a sprained ankle put ice on it and bandage it an allergic reaction take antihistamine tablets or cream

31 >)) Listen and check.

3 PHRASAL VERBS CONNECTED WITH ILLNESS

a Match the bold phrasal verbs to their meanings. Please lie down on the couch . I'm going to examine you . I'd been standing for such a long time that I passed out, and when I came round I was lying on the floor

It often takes a long time to get over flu.

A few minutes after drinking the liquid I h a d to run to the bathroom to throw up.

faint

____ put your body in a horizontal position

____ vomit , be sick

____ get better / recover from sth

____ become conscious again

b 1 32 >)) Listen and check.

Clothes and fashion

1 DESCRIBING CLOTHES

a Match the adjectives and pic tures.

Fit

loo se / lu: s/

1 tight /ta1t/

Style

h ooded / 1 hud1d / long sleeved / loo s li:vd/

(a lso s h ort sleeved)

sleeveless / 'sli

V-neck /' vi: nek /

Pattern

checked /tJckt/ / 'pretand / plain / plern / spotted / 1spot1d / striped /stra1pt /

b 1 46 >)) Listen and check .

c Match th e phras es and pictures.

Mate rial s

a cot t on ves t

la 'kotn vest /

a denim wa istcoa t

/-;;, 'denim 1we1sbut /

a fur coll ar /a fa: 'kol ;;>/

a lace top /g le is top/

1 a linen suit

/g 'lrnm s u: t/

a !;:'.era swims ui t

/ -;;, 1la 1kr;) 1sw1msu:t /

a sil k scarf /;:;> s ilk ska:f/ []]

a ve lvet bow tie

/g 1ve lv 1t 1ta1 /

a wool( len) cardigan

/g 'wu l(an) 'ka:d tg;;>n /

leather sanda ls

/' lea-;;, 'srendlz/

su ede boot s

/swetd bu:ts /

d 1 47 >)) Listen and ch eck.

p wear and dress

Be ca r eful with the differenc e between wear and dress Compare: The English don't dress very sty lis hly Sh e usually dresses in b l ack. I u sua lly wear a skir t and ja cke t to work. She a lways wears black clothes.

VOCABULARY BANK

2 ADJECTIVES TO DESCRIBE THE WAY PEOPLE DRESS

ptrendy, stylish, and fashionable

Fashionable is a general adjective, and means following a style that is popular at a particula r time. Trendy is very similar, but is more informal. Stylish means fashionable and att ractive.

a Comp lete the sentences with an adjective. fashionable /'freJn;:,bl/ old-fashioned /dUld scruffy / 'skrAfi / smart I mo:t l fillish / 's ta11IJ/ trendy /1tre nd i/

1 Long skirts are really fashionabl e now.

2 She 's very . She a lways wears the lates t fashio n s.

3 T h e Italians h ave a reputation for b e ing very - th ey wear fas h ionable and attractive clothes.

4 He looks really His clothes are o ld a nd a bit dirt y.

5 Jane loo ke d very in her new suit . She wanted to make a good impress ion.

6 That tie's a bit ! Is it yo ur dad 's?

b 1 48 >)) Listen and check.

3 VERB PHRASES

a Match the sentences.

1 C I' m going to dress up tonight.

2 P lease hang up yo ur coat.

3 T h ese jea ns don't fit m e .

4 T h at skirt rea lly s uits yo u .

5 Yo ur b ag matches your shoes.

6 I need to get changed.

7 Hurr y up and get undre sse d

8 Get u p and ge t dresse d

9 T hat tie doesn' t r eally go with your shirt

A D o n 't leave it on the chair .

B I ' ve ju s t spilt coffee on m y shirt.

C I'm go in g to a p a rt y.

D The y don't lo ok good together.

E It's bath time .

F T h ey ' re too small.

G They're a lmost the s ame colour.

H Yo u look great in it

I Breakfas t i s on the table.

b 1 49 >)) Listen a nd c h ec k.

Air travel

1 AT THE AIRPORT

a Match the words and definitions.

1 2 3 4 s

A Airport terminal 6 Bag(gage) drop off 7 Baggage reclaim 8

Check-in desk 9 Customs 10

Departures board Gate Runway Security VIP lounge

A a building a t an airport divided into Arrivals and Departures (domestic and international flights )

B an electronic display showing flight times and if the flight is on time , boarding , closed , or delayed

C wh ere yo u give in any checked-in luggage (ba gs, cases, etc.) a nd are given a boarding pass

D where yo u take your luggage to check it in if you already have your boarding pass

E where the y check that yo u are not tr y ing to take prohibited items (e g. liquid s or sharp objects) onto the plane , b y scanning yo ur hand luggage , and making yo u walk through a metal detector

F w her e passengers w h o are travelling business or first class can wai t for their flight

G where yo u show your boarding pass and ID and board your flight

H where planes take off and land

I where you collect yo ur luggage on arrival, and there ar e usually trolleys for carr y ing heav y case s J where yo ur luggage may be checked to see if yo u are bringing illegal goods into the country

b 3 l)) Listen and check.

2 ONBOARD

a Comp lete the t ex t with the words in the li s t

ais le /ail / cabi n crew / 'krebm kru: / seat belts / ' i:t belt I con ne cting flight /kd'nekt 11J fla 1t / turbulence / 't3:bj ::il;:ms/ direct flights /dd'rekt fl aits/ jet lag / 'd3e t lreg/ l ong-hau l fli g hts / lmJ h::i: I fl a 1t s/

I often fly to Chi le on busine ss. I always choose an 'aisl e seat , so that I can get up and wa lk around more easily. Sometimes ther e is 2 when th e plane flie s over the Andes, which I don' t e njoy, and the 3 tell the passengers to put their 4 o n

There aren't any 5 to C hil e from London, so I u s u a lly have to get a 6 in Madrid. Whenever I take 7 I always suffer from 8 because of the time difference a nd I feel tir e d for severa l d ays

b 4 l)) Liste n and check

VOCABULARY BANK

3 TRAVEL, TRIP, OR JOURNEY?

a Comple t e th e sentences w ith trav el (verb or noun), trip, or;ourney.

1 We're going on a five-day tr_.ip___ to the mountains

2 A Did yo u have a good here?

B No , my flight was delayed for six hours

3 Do you have to ____ much in your job?

4 Have a good . See yo u when you get back.

b 5 l)) Listen and check.

c What's the differences between the three words?

4 PHRASAL VERBS RELATED TO AIR TRAVEL

a Complete the sentences with a phrasal verb from the li st in the past tense. check in drop off fill in ge t off get on pick up take off

1 My husband dropped me off a t the airport two hours before the flight.

2 I on line the day before I was going to fl y.

3 As soon as I __ the plane I sat down in the first empty seat.

4 T he plane ________ late because of the bad weather

5 I the immigration form for th e US, w hich the cabin crew gave me shortly before landing.

6 When I the plane I felt ex hausted after the long fli ght.

7 When I my luggage at b aggage r eclaim I bumped into an old friend who had been on the same flight.

b 6 l)) Listen and check.

-ll(p 2 4

1 CONFUSING ADVERBS AND ADVERBIAL PHRASES

a Match each pair of adverbs with a pair of sentences. Then decide which adverb goes where and write it in the adverb column.

at the moment / actually in the end / at the end especially / specially late / lately / near / nearly

1 hard / hardly still / yet

1 He trains very - at least three hours a day

It's incredibly foggy. I can see anyt hing.

2 I hate it when people arrive for meetings.

I haven 't heard from Mike He must be very busy.

3 of a film I always stay and watch the credits roll.

I didn't want to go, but they p ersuaded me

4 I love most kinds of music , but jazz.

My wedding dress was made for me b y a dressmaker.

5 She looks yo unger than me , but she 's two years older. they 're renting a flat , but the y're hoping to buy one soon.

6 I've finished m y book. I'm on the last chapt er.

Excuse me , is there a bank here?

7 Have yo u found a job ?

He's 35, but he lives with his parent s

8 Have you been to the USA?

I've been all over the USA- I 've been to Alaska!

b 15 >)) Listen and check.

2 COMMENT ADVERBS

a Read the sentences. Then match the bold adverbs with definitions 1-8.

I thought the job was going to be difficult , but in fact it's quite easy.

It took us over five hours to get there , but eventually we were able to relax /r've ntfu ;'.lli/

Ideally we would go to Australia if we could afford it. /a1 1di:gli / Basically it's quite a simple idea / 1be1s1k li/.

I thought they 'd broken up , but aPJli!rently the y're b ack together again /d'prer;'.l n t li/.

so you can see it was a really awful weekend. Anyway, let's forget about it and talk about something else /' e n iwe1 /.

She's only 14, so obviously she can't stay at home on her own /' obv igs lif

She's been ill for weeks, but gradually she's beginning to feel better / 1g rred3 ugli/

1 ideally

in a perfect wo rld

-

the truth is; actually (used to emphasize something, especially the opposite of what was previously said) in the most important ways clearly (u sed to give information yo u expect other people to know or agree wi th) little by little according to what you have heard or read in any case (used to change or finish a conversation)

•

1 WHAT ' S THE WEATHER LIKE?

a Put the words or phrases in the right place in the chart .

below zero / b1'l;;iu 'z1;;ir'Ju/ bo iling / 'b:>il11J/ breeze / bri:z/ chilly /'tfili / cool / ku:I/ damp /dremp / drizzling / 'dnzhlJ / freezing /'f ri:z11J / humid /'hju:m1d / mild / maild / pouring /'p :>:nlJ/ (with rain) showers /'fau'Jz/ warm / w:J:m /

8 It's (a bit wet but C:PC)

5 It's (pleasant not rain in g)

1 It's cool (quite cold) and not cold)

2 It's

9 It's (rain ing lightly)

6 It's (a pleasantly 10 It's (short period

13 The r e's a

T(unpleasantly co ld) high temperature) of rain) (a light wind)

It's cold. It's hot

3 It's (very co ld)

7 It's I

It's raining I wet

11 There ar e (raining

4 It's (-10 0) It's scorching intermittently) (u npleasant ly hot) 12 It 's (raining a lot)

b Complete the sentences with foB , mist, and smoB.

When the weather's foggy or misty, or there is smog, it is difficult to see.

_ isn't usually very thick, and often occurs in the mountains or near the sea.

2 ____ is thicker, and can be found in towns and in the countr y.

3 ____ is caused by pollution and usually occurs in big cities

c 2 3 1 l)) Listen and check a and b

2 EXTREME WEATHER

a Match the words and definitions

blizzard /' bhz'Jcl / drought /clraut/ flood /flAd / hail / heil / heatwave /'hi:twe1v/ hurricane / 'hAr1bn/ l ightning /'la1tn11J / monsoon / mon'su:n / thunder 1'8And'J/

h eatwave ____ n a period of unusually hot weather

_____ n a long, usually hot, dr y period when there is little or no rain

n and v small balls of ice that fall like rain

n a flash of very bright light in the sky caused by electricity

____

n and v the loud noise that yo u hear during a storm

____ n a snow storm with very strong winds

____ v and n when everything become s covered with water

____ n a v iolent storm with very strong winds (also cyclone, tornado)

n the season when it rains a lot in -southern Asia

b 32 l)) Listen and check.

It 's wind y.

3 ADJECTIVES TO DESCRIBE WEATHER

a Complete the weather forecast with these adjectives bright / bra1t / changeable /' tJemd3;;ibl/ clear / kll'J/ heavy /'hevi/ icy /'aisi/ settled / ' et ld/ (= not likely to change) strong /strol)/ sunny /'sAni / thick /81k /

In the north of England and Scotland it will be ver y cold, with ist1'0n(J w inds and 2 rain. There will also be 3 fog in the hills and near the coast , though it should clear by midday Driving will be dangerous as the roads will be 4 However, the south of E ngland and the Midlands will have s skies and it w ill b e 6 and s unny, though the temper a ture will still be quite low. Over the next few days the weather will be 7 , with some showers , but occa s ional a ____ periods It should become more 9 over the weekend.

b 3 3 l)) Listen and check.

Feelings

1 ADJECTIVES

a Match the feelings and the situations.

I J ' I'm very offended /a1fend1 d /.'

2 'I feel a bit homesick /' h;:)ums1k /.'

3 'I'm a bit disappointed /d1s;'.)1p::n nt 1d /.'

4 ' I ' m very lonely

5 ' I'm incredibly proud /praud /.'

6 'I'm really nervous / 'n3:vas/ '

7 ' I ' m very grateful / 1gre1tfl /.'

8 'I'm shocked /Jokt /.'

9 'I'm so relieved /n'li:vd /.'

10 'I feel a bit guilty / 'grlt i/.'

A You discover that y ou have a brother yo u had never known about.

B You haven't visited yo ur grandparents for a long time.

C A stranger gives you a lot of help with a problem.

D You are abroad and yo u think someone has stolen your passport , but then you find it.

E You don ' t ge t a job you were hoping to get.

F You go to study abroad and you're missing your family and friends.

G You move to a new to w n and don't have any friend s.

H You are going to talk in public for the first tim e

I Someone in yo ur family wins an important pri ze.

J A friend do esn't invite you to hi s wedding.

fed up and upset

fed up= bored or frustrated and unhappy (especially with a situation which has gone on too long)

I'm really fed up with my job. I think I'm going to quit.

upset = unhappy when something bad happens

Kate was terribly upset when her dog disappeared

b 3 2 >)) Listen and check .

2 STRONG ADJECTIVES

a Match the s trong adjectives describing feelings with their definitions.

astonished /g'sto mft / bewildered /br'wlidgd / de11.gb.ted /d1 ' la1t1d / desperate / 'desp;;ir;;it / devastated /' dev;;i ste1t1d/ horrified / 1honfa 1d/ overwhelmed /guv;;i'welmd / stunned /s tAnd / thrilled /8nld/

I

stunned "-'-'-'-"'-'"'-'-"-'-'- very surprised and unable to move or react

____ extremely upset

____ incredibly pleased

_ very excited

____ (amazed) /very surprised

___ w ith little hope, and read y to do anything to improve the situation

__ feeling such strong emotions that you don ' t know how to react

____ extremely confused

____ extremely shocked or disg u sted

pModifiers with strong adjectives

Remember you can't use a bit, quite, or very with these adjectives. NOT f was very astonished. If you want to use an intensifier, use really I absolutely I totally I completely.

b 3 >)) List en and check.

3 INFORMAL OR SLANG WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS

a Look at the hig li ghted words and phra ses and tr y to work o ut their meaning.

1 B I was sca rea stiff when I heard the bedroom door opening /s kedd st1f/.

2 You look a bit Clown What 's the problem?

3 I'm absolutely shattered I want to relax and put m y feet up I 'Jretad /.

4 I was complet ely gobsmacked when I heard that Tin a was gett in g married /' gob smrekt / !

5 I'm sick of h earing yo u complain a bout your job.

6 When h e missed th a t penalt y I was absolut ely gutteCl / 19At1d /

b Match the words and phrase s to the feelings.

A sad or depre sse d D ex h au sted

B t errifi ed

C very disappointed

c 3 4 >)) Liste n and check.

p.45

E fed up or irritate d

F as tonished

Verbs often confused

a Complete the verbs column with the correct verb in the right form.

argue / discuss

1 I need to the problem with my boss.

2 I often with my parents about doing housework.

verbs

(= talk about sth)

(=speak angrily to sb) notice / realize

3 I didn ' t you were so unhappy.

4 I didn ' t that Karen had changed her hair colour.

(= under s tand fully, become aware of sth)

(=see, observe) avoid / prevent

5 Jack always tries to arguing with me.

6 My dad can't me from seeing my friends.

(= tr y not to do something)

(=stop) look/ seem

7 I've spoken to her husband twice and he very nice.

8 Carol doesn ' t very well I think she's working too hard.

(= general impression)

(=physical appearance) mind / matter

9 My parents don' t ifl stay out late.

10 It doesn't if we're five minutes late.

(= get get annoyed or upset)

(=be a problem) remember / remind

11 Can you me to call my mum later?

12 to turn off the lights before you go.

(= help sb to remember)

(= not forget) expect / wait

13 I that Daniel will forget our anniversary. He always does.

14 We'll have to half an hour for the next train

(= think that sth will happ en)

(= stay where you are until something happ ens) wish/ hope

15 I I was a bit taller!

16 I that yo u can come on Friday. I haven't seen yo u for ages.

(=want st h to be true eve n if it is unlikely)

(= want st h to h appen) beat/ win

17 Arsenal the match 5-2.

18 Arsenal Manche s te r United 5-2.

(= be success ful in a competit ion)

(= defeat s b) refuse/

19 Tom always to dis c u ss the problem.

20 Tom always that h e has a problem.

raise/ rise

21 The cost ofliving is going to again this month.

22 It's hard not to yo ur voice when yo u 're arguing with someone.

(= say yo u don't want to do sth)

(= say that sth isn't true)

(=go up)

(=make sth go up) lay (past laid) / lie (past lay)

23 Last night I came home and on the sofa and went to sleep.

24 I the baby on the bed an d changed hi s nappy.

(= put yo ur body in a horizontal position)

(= put sth or s b in a horizontal position) steal/ rob

25 T h e men h a d b een planning to the b a nk.

26 If yo u le ave yo ur bike unlocke d , somebody might it.

(= take sth from a person or place by threat or force)

(= take money or property that i sn't yours) advise / warn

27 I think I should yo u that Liam doesn' t a lw ays tell the truth.

28 My teachers are going to me what subj ects to st ud y next year.

b 9>)) Listen and check

-1111( p 67

(= tell sb that sth unpleasant is about to h appen)

(= tell sb what you think they should do)

The body

1 PARTS OF THE BODY AND ORGANS

a Match the words and pictures

ankle l'ccokl/

1 calf / ka:f/ (pl calve s)

h eel / hi:I /

elbow /'clbau/

fist / f 1st/

nails / nc1lz/

palm / pa:m/

wrist Inst /

bottom /'bot'Jm /

chest /tfest /

hip / hip/

thigh /8a1 /

waist /we 1st/

brain / bre1n/

heart / ha:t /

kidneys / 1k1dniz /

liver /' II V'J/

lungs / IArJZ/

b 17l)) Listen and check.

2 VERBS AND VERB PHRASES

a Complete the verb phrases with the parts of the body

arms eyebrows hair (x2) hand hands

head nails nose shoulders teeth

thumb toes

1 bite yo ur nails / bait/

2 blow yo ur ___ / bl'Ju/

3 brush yo ur / brush yo ur /b rAf/

4 comb yo ur / bum /

5 fold your /fau ld/

6 hold so mebod y's ___ / h'Juld /

7 touch yo ur ___ / tAtJ/

8 suck yo ur ___ /s Ak /

9 shake /fe1k /

10 shrug your ___ /frAg /

11 shake yo ur ___

12 raise your _ _ / re1z/

b

18 >)) Listen and check .

c Read the sentences. Write the part of the body related to the bold verb.

1 He winked at me to show that he was only joking. ___ / w1okt /

2 The steak was tough and difficult to chew. / tJu: /

3 When we met , we were so happ y we hugged each other. ___ / hAgd/

4 Don ' t scratch the mosquito bite You'll only make it worse ___ I krretJ/

5 She waved goodbye sadly to her bo yfr iend as the train left th e s t at ion / we 1vd /

6 Some women think a man should kneel down when he proposes marriage. / ni:l/

7 The teacher frowned when s he saw all the mistakes I had made. /fraund /

8 The painting was so strange I stared at it for a long time . /s t e'Jd/

9 She got out of bed , and yawned and stretched. ___ / / j;:,:nd /

10 If yo u don ' t know the word for something , just point at what you want / p ;:, 111t /

19 >)) Listen and check.

Crime and punishment

1 CRIMES AND CRIMINALS

a Match the examples to the crimes in the chart.

A They took away a rich man 's son and then asked for money for his safe return.

B She went to her ex- husband's house and shot him dead .

C Two passengers took control of the plane and made the pilot land in the desert.

D After the party, the man made the woman have sex against her will.

E We came home from ho l iday and found that our TV had gone.

F A teenager got into the Pentagon's computer system and downloaded some secret data.

G Someone tried to sell me some marijuana during a concert

H When the border police searched his car, it was full of cigarettes

I Someone threw paint on the statue in the park.

J He said he ' d send the photos to a newspaper if the actress didn't pay him a lot of mone y.

K An armed man in a mask walked into a shop and shouted, ' Give me all the money in the till!'

L The company accountant was transferring money into his own bank account

M The builder offered the mayor a free flat in return for giving his company permission to build new flats on a piece of green land.

N They left a bomb in the supermarket car park which exploded.

0 Somebody stole m y car last night from outside m y hou se

P A man held out a knife and made me give him m y wa llet.

Q A woman followed a pop singer every where he went, watching him and sending him constant messages on the internet

Crime Cr iminal Ve r b

1 b lackmail / 'blrekme11/ b l ackmailer b l ackmai l

2 bribery / 'bra1b;:iri / - b r ibe

3 burg lar y /'b3 :gl;:,ri/ burg l ar b r eak in I burgle

4 drug deali ng /drAg 'di: l10 / d r ug dealer se ll drugs

5 fraud /fr:>:d / fraudster commit fraud

6 ha cking / hrek 10 / hacker hack (into)

7 hijacking / 'ha1d3rek1IJ/ hijacker hijack

8 k idnapping / 'k1dnrep1IJ/ k idnapper k idnap

9 mugging / 1mAg 10/ mugger mug

10 murde r / 'm3:d;:,/ mu r derer murder

11 r ape / re 1p/ rapist rape

12 robbe r y / 'rob;:,ri/ robber rob

13 smuggling / 's m Ag l11J / smugg l er smuggle

14 sta l ki ng /'s t:>:k1IJ / sta l ker sta l k

15 te r rorism / 'tcr;:inz;:im/ terroris t set off bombs , etc.

16 theft /8cf t / thief steal

17 vanda li sm / 'vre nd::> l1z;:m1 / vandal vandalize

b 4 32 >)) Listen and check.

VOCABULARY BANK

2 WHAT HAPPENS TO A CRIMINAL

a Complete the sentences w i th the words in the list . The crime

arrested /;:i'res t1d / questioned / 'kwcstf;:md / charged /tfa:d3d / committed / k;)'m1t1d / inves t igated /m 'vest1ge1t1d / caught / b:t/

1 Carl and Adam committed a crime. They robbed a large supermarket.

2 The police the crime.

3 Carl and Adam were driving to the airport in a s tolen car.

4 They were and taken t o a police station.

5 The police them for ten hours.

6 Finally the y we r e wit h(= officially accused of) armed robber y The trial

accused /::> ' kju: zd/ acquitted /::i'kwrt1d / court / b:t / evidence / 'evrd:ms/ fil!fily (opposite innocent) / 'g1lti / judge /d3Acl3f illry / 'd3u::>ri / proof /pru:f/ Q.1!.nishment / 'pAnifm;)nt / sente nc ed /'s ent::>nst/ verdict / 'v3:d1 kt / witnesses / 'w1t n::i s1z/ - -

7 Two months later, Carl and Adam appeared in ____

8 They were of ar med robbery and car theft

9 told the court wha t the y had seen or kne w.

10 The , (of 12 people) lo oked at and heard all the

11 After two days the jur y reached their

12 Carl was found His fingerprints were on the gun us ed in the robber y.

13 The decided what Carl's should be.

14 He him to ten years in prison (jail) .

15 There was no that Adam had committed the crime .

16 He was a nd allowed to go free.

b 4 33 l)) Listen and check.

The media

1 JOURNALISTS AND PEOPLE IN THE MEDIA

a Match the words and definitions.

§.gony aunt / '<egJni a: n t/ commentator /' kom;mtc1t;;i/ cri t ic /'kn t 1k / gditor / 'ed 1t;;i/ freelance journalist /' fri:la:ns 'd33:n;;il1st / newsreader /'nju:zri:d;;i/ paparazzi (pl) / prep;;i'rretsi / presenter /pn'zent;;i/ reQ.Qrter / n'p;):t;;i/

1 critic "-'--'-'--'-"--- a person who writes (a review) about the good/ bad qualities of books , concerts, theatre, films , etc .

2 3 ____ a person who describes a sports event whi l e it's happening on TV or radio

4

__ a person who collects and reports news for newspapers , radio, or TV

_ a person in charge of a newspaper or magazine, or part of one, and decides what should be in it

5 6 _____ a person who introduces the different sections of a radio or TV programme

___ a person who writes articles for different papers and is not employe d by any one paper

7 ___ a person who reads the news on TV or radio

8 9

_____ photographers who follow famou s people around to get photos of them to sell to newspaper s and magazines

__ a person who writes in a newspaper or magazine giving advice to people in reply to their letters

b 4 43 l)) Listen and check.

2 ADJECTIVES TO DESCRIBE THE MEDIA

a Match the sentences.

1 The reporting in the paper was very sensational /s en l/.

2 The news on Channel 12 is really biased /'ba Tdst/

3 I think The Observer is the most objective /d b 1d3ckt1v/ of the Sunday papers .

4 The film review was quite accurate

5 I think the report was censored / ' sensgd/.

A It said the plot was poor but the acting good, which was true.

B It bases its stories just on facts, not on feelings or beliefs.

C The newspaper wasn't allowed to publish a ll the details.

D It made the story seem more shocking than it really was.

E You can't believe anything you hear on it . It 's ob v ious what political party they favour!

b 4 44 l)) Listen and check.

3 THE LANGUAGE OF HEADLINES

pThe language of headlines

Newspaper headlines, especially in *tab lo ids, often use short snappy words. These words use up less space and are more emotive, which helps to sell newspapers. *newspapers with smaller pages that print short articles with lots of photos, often about famous people

a Match the h igh li ghted 'headline phrases ' with their meamng.

1 A Famous actress in restaurant bill row

2 United boss to q u i t after shock cup defeat 3 Prince to wed 18-year-old TV soap star

Prime minister backs his Chancellor in latest scandal

Tarantino ti pp e d to win Best Director

Thousands of jobs axed by UK firms

Stock market hit by oil fears

Police quiz w itness in murder tria l

Astronaut bids to be first man on Mars

Ministers clas h over new car tax proposal

Bayern Munich boss vows to avenge defeat

Footballer and wife split over affair with cl eane r argument G is going to marr y have been cut H promises question , interrogate I is predicted is going to attempt J disagree is going to leave K has been badly affected separate L supports

4 45 l)) Listen and check.

Business

1 VERBS AND EXPRESSIONS

a Complete the sentences with a verb from the list in the right form (present simple , past simple, or past participle).

become / b1 1kAm / close down / kl;:iuz daun / drop /drop/ grows /grguz/ expand /Ik'sprend/ export /Jk'sp::i:t / import /Jm'p::i: t/ launch / b:ntJ/ manufacture / mrenju'frekt j ';:)/ market /'ma:k1t/ merge / m3:d :y' produce / pr;:i'dju:s / set up I et Ap/ take over /tc 1k 'guv;:i/

1 Although GAP stands for Genuine American Product, most of its clothes are manufactu1'ed in Asia.

2 In 1989 Pepsi-Cola a new product called Pepsi A.M , which was aimed at the 'breakfast cola drinker'. It was an immediate flop

3 The Spanish airline Iberia ___ with British Airways in 2011.

4 Apple is considered one of the best companies in the

world for the way they their products.

5 Prosciutto is a kind ofltalian ham. Two of the best known kinds are San Daniele and Parma , which are in the Friuli and Emilia

I regions ofltaly, and are all over the 1501111 world.

6 The Royal Bank of Scotland _ NatWest Bank in 2000, even though it was in fact a smaller rival.

7 The supermarket chain Tesco ___ the market leader in 19 9 5, and is still the UK's biggest-selling chain.

9 Nowadays it is quite a risk to a new

•

'

VOCABULARY BANK

c Do or make? Put the phrases in the right column. business (with) /' brzn;:is/ a deal /di:! / (= business agreement) a decision /clr' s 13 n/ a job /d3ob/ a loss (opposite profit) / los/ market research /1ma:k1t n' s3:tf/ money /' mAni! somebody redundant / n 'd And;:int / (=sack somebody because he I she isn't needed any more) well I badly do make business (with)

d 8 ))) Listen and check.

2 ORGANIZATIONS AND PEOPLE

a Organizations Match the words and definitions. a business / 'b1zn;:is/ (or firm I company)

a branch / bro:ntji' a chain /tfem / head Qff ice / hed 'of1s/ a multinational / mA lti'meJn,gl/

1 a chain a group of shops , hotels , etc owned b y the same person or company

2 an organization which produces or sells goods or provides a service

3 a company that has offices or factories in many countries

4 the main office of a company

5 an office or shop that is part of a larger organization, e .g. a bank

b People Match the words and definitions

the CEQ /si: i: '';}{)/ (= chief executive officer)

a client /'kla1gnt/ a colleague /' koli :g/ a customer /'kAstgmg/

a manager /' mrenid3g/ the owner /''Ju ng/ the staff /s ta : f/

business. In the UK, 203 of businesses fail in their first year.

10 The cost ofliving in Iceland is so high because so many food products have to be

11 During a boom period, the economy quickly and living standards improve.

12 During a recession, many companies _ and living standards ___

1

2

the group of people who work for an organization

someone who buys goods or services , for example from a shop or restaurant

someone who receives a service from a professional person , for example from a law y er 4

3

a person who works with you

5

6

the person with the highest rank in a company

the person who owns a business

7 the person in charge of part of an organization, for example a shop or a branch

c 9 ))) Listen and check your answers to a and b .

Word building

1 PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES WHICH ADD MEANING

a Match the bold prefixes in sentences 1-11 to their meanings A-K.

1 G Mumbai is a very overcrowded city.

2 Tokyo is one of20 megacities.

3 This part of the city is very poor and underdeveloped .

4 London is a very multicultural city, with many different races and religions.

5 The quickest way to get around New York is on the subway.

6 Montreal is probably the most bilingual city in the world - most inhabitants speak English and French.

7 If yo u want to avoid the traffic jams in Bangkok, get the monorail.

8 The autopilot was switched on after the plane had taken off.

9 Vandalism, especially breaking public property, is very antisocial behaviour

10 I misunderstood the directions that man gave me, and now I'm completely lost.

11 He's doing a postgraduate degree in aeronautical engineering. A against G too mnch B c D

b 5 12 >)) Listen and check.

c Match the bold suffixes to their meaning.

1 There are a lot of homeless people in this city. The situation is hopeless.

2 Be careful how you drive! The instructions were very useful.

3 The police usually wear bullet-proof vests. My watch is waterproof.

4 Their new laptops are completely unbreakable. I don' t think the tap water here is drinkable.

A with C resistant to B can be done D without

d 13>)) Listen and check.

VOCABULARY BANK

2 NOUNS FORMED WITH SUFFIXES

pNoun suffixes

Comm o n endings for no u ns made from verbs:

-ion I -(a)tion alienate - alienation

-ment -

Common endings for nou ns made from adjectives:

-ness lonely - loneliness

-ence I -ance violent - violence - -

Common endings for abstract nouns made from nouns:

-hood neighbour - neighbourhood

-ism vandal - vandalism -

a Make nouns from the words in the list and put them in the right column.

absent /'rebs;:mt/ accommodate /d'komdde1t / alcoho l /'celkdhol/ brother / 'br11.o;;i/ child / tJa1 ld/ cold / bold / convenient / bn'vi:ni;;int/ distant /'d1st;;int / entertain /entd'tern/ excite /Ik'sa1t / frien dly /'frcndli/ govern / '911.vn/ ignorant /' 1gndr;;int/ improve /Irn'pru:v/ intend / rn ' tend / pollute /p;)' lu:t / race /re1s / reduce / n'dju:s / ug ly / '11.gli/ weak / wi:k /

- ion I -(a)tion -ment -ness -ence I -ance - ism -hood accommodation

b 5 14l)) Listen and check.

3 NOUNS WHICH ARE DIFFERENT WORDS

pNoun formati on with spelling or word change

Some nouns made from verbs or adjectives are complete ly different words, e.g. choose - choice, poor - poverty.

a Write the verb or adjective for the following nouns .

Verb patterns: verbs followed by the gerund or infinitive

Gerund admit avoid be worth can't help can 't stand carry on * deny enjoy fancy feel like finish give up * keep (on)

In court the accused admitted (to) stolen the documents.

I always try to avoid driving in the rush hour

It isn't worth going to the exhibition. It's really boring

We can't help laughing when my dad tries to speak French His accent is awful!

I can 't stand talking to people who only talk about themselves

We carried on chatting until about 2 00 in the morning.

Miriam denied killing her husband but the jury didn't believe her.

I used to enjoy flying but now I don't.

Do you fancy seeing a film this evening?

I don't feel like going out tonight.

Have you finished writing the report yet?

Karen has given up eating meat but she still eats fish

I can ' t afford to go on holiday this summer.

I have agreed to pay David back the money he lent me next week

The results appear to support the scientist 's theory.

I've arranged to meet Sally outside the re staurant

I won ' t be able to work for two weeks after the operation

We c an 't wait to see your new flat - it sounds fantastic

I chose to study abroad for a year, and it's the best thing I've ever done

They 've decided to call off the wedding

Kim deserves to get the job. She 's a very strong candidate

We' re expecting to get our exam resu lts on Friday.

Tom happened to be at Alan 's when I called in so I invited him to our party as well.

The organization I work for helps young people to find work abroad. Don't hesitate to ask a member of staff if you need anything

I'm hoping to set up my own company if I can get a bank loan

I wish I had learnt to play t he guitar when I was younger.

When I was at school , we were made to wear a uniform. It was awful. Did you manage to get to the airport in time?

Lucy has offered to give me a lift to the station.

We're planning to have a big party to celeb rate

I pretended to be enthusiast ic but really I didn't lik e the idea at all. Sarah always promises to help me in the kitchen but she never does. My neighbour refused to turn down the music and I had to call the police

Something seems to be wrong with the washing machine.

you again.

I can' t imagine living in the country I think I would get bored afte r a week

My boyfriend 's job involves travelling at least once a month.

I don't mind do i ng housework. I find it quite relaxing.

Does your father miss working now that he has retired?

We'll have to postpone going to the beach until the weather improves

The more you practise speaking English the more fluent you'll get.

I recommend doing a double decker bus tour as the best way to see London.

I regret not travelling more before I got my first job.

If were you I wou ldn 't risk walking t hro ugh the park at night.

I spen t half an hour looking for my g l asses this morning.

Once I open a box of chocolates , I can't stop eating them

I keep (on) telling my husband to lose some weight but he just won ' t listen. look forward to We are really looking forward to seeing imagine involve mi nd miss postpone practise recommend regret risk spend stop suggest

A friend of mine suggested visiting London in the autumn.

* All phrasal verbs which are followed b y a nother verb, e g canyon, give up, etc. are followed b y the gerund.

Jack 's father taught him to drive when he was seventeen tend My boss tends to lose her temper when she 's feeling stressed threaten The teacher threatened to call my paren t s and tell them what I had done. want The police want to interview anyone who witnessed the crime. would like Would you like to try the dress on? The changing rooms are over there

* help can be followed by the infinitive with or without to Th e organi z ation I work for help s young p eople (to) find work abroad

Infinitive (without to)

Can you help me carry these suitcases?

There's a lot of traffic today, so we may be a bit late. It might rain tomorrow, so please bring an umbrella or a raincoat.

I must remember to phone Harry - it 's his birthday today.

Should we book a table for tomorrow night? It's a very popu l ar restaurant

You'd better leave now if you want to catch that train

You look tired. Would you rather stay in this evening and watch a fi lm?

Sue makes her two teenagers do the washing up every evening after dinner

Let me pay for coffee - it must be my turn.

Infinitive (with to) afford agree appear arrange be able can't wait choose decide deserve expect happen help* hesitate hope learn make manage offer plan pretend promise refuse seem teach

can may might must should had better would rather make let

5 46>))

Infinitive Past simp le Past pa rticiple

be / bi/ was I were been /b i:n / /w oz/ /w3 :/ beat /bi: t/ beat beaten /l bi:tn / become / br'kAm / became /b1'kerm/ become begin / br'gm / began /b1 1gren/ begun / br'gAn / bite / bart/ bit / brt/ bitten /' brtn/ break / bre1k / broke /brduk/ broken / 'brdukdn / bring /bnu/ brought /br;):t/ brought build / bild / bui lt / brlt/ built burn / b3:n / burnt fb3:nt / burnt (burned) /b3:nd/ (burned) buy / b ar/ bought /b;):t/ bought can / keen/ could /kud/catch / kretJ/ caught /b:t/ caught choose / tJu:z/ chose /tJduz/ chosen come lkA m l came /kerm/ come cost /k ost/ cost cost cut /k At / cut cut deal /di:J / dealt /delt / dealt do /du:/ did /d1d/ done /dA n/ draw /drJ :/ drew /dru:/ drawn /drJ:n / dream /dri:m/ dreamt /dremt/ dreamt (dreamed /dri:md/) (dreamed)

drink /dnuk/ drank /drreJJk/ drunk /d rAIJk / drive /dra1v/ drove /dr;;,uv/ driven /' drrvn / eat / i:t/ ate /e1t/ eaten / 'i:tn/ fall /fo:l/ fell /fell fallen / 'fo:ldn/ feel /fi :L/ felt /felt / felt find /fa rnd / found /faund/ found

fly /fla il flew /flu:/ flown /fldun/ forget /fa'get/ forgot /fa'got/ forgotten /fa'gotn / get /get / got /got/ got

give /g1v/ gave /ge1v/ given /'g1vn/ go /gdu/ went /went/ gone /gon/ grow /grdu/ grew /gru:/ grown /grdon/ hang / hreu/ hung /hAIJ/ hung have / hrev/ had / bred / had hear / hrd/ heard /h3:d/ heard

hi t / hrt/ hit hit

hur t/h3:t/ hurt hurt keep /ki:p/ kept /kept/ kept

kneel /ni:l/ knelt / nelt / knelt know /ndo/ knew /nju:/ known /n';;m n/

Infin itive lay /lei/ learn / b:n/ leave / li:v/ lend / lend / let / let / lie / l aJ/ lose / lu: z/ make /me 1k/ mean / mi:n/ meet / mi:t / pay /pe1 / put /put / read /ri:d / ride /rard/ ring /nu/ rise / ra1z / run / rAn / say /s e1/ see /s i: / sell /s el l send /send/ set /se t / shake /Je 1k/ shine /Jam / shut /JAt/ sing /s ru / sit /sit/ sleep /s li:p/ speak /sp i:k/ spend /s pend/ stand /stre nd / steal /sti:l/ swim /swi m/ take /te1k / teach /ti:tJ/ tell /tell think /8ruk/ throw /8rno/ understand /A ndd' stre nd / wake /we1k/ wear /wed/ win / wm / write / ra1t /

Past simple Past participle laid /lerd/ laid

learnt / b:nt / learn t left / l eft/ left

lent /le nt / lent

let let

lay / leJ/ lain / lem / lost / lost / lost made /me1d/ made meant /ment/ meant met /met/ met

paid /pe1d/ paid put put

read /re d / read / r ed/ rode /rdud/ r idden / 'ndn / rang /rreu/ rung /rnu / rose / rduz/ r isen /' n zn/ ran /rre n/ run

said /sed/ said

saw /sJ:/ seen /s i:n/ so l d /sduld/ sold sent /s ent/ sent set set

shook /Juk/ shaken shone /Jon / shone shut shut

sang /sre u/ sung /s AIJ / sat /sret/ sat slept /s lept/ slept

spo k e /s pduk/ spoken /' spdubn / spent /s pent/ spent stood /s tud / stood stole /st dul/ stolen / 'stduldn/ swam /swre m/ swum /s wAm/ took /t uk/ taken / 'te1kan/ taught /t J:t / taught told /tduld / told thought /8J:t/ thoug ht threw /8 ru: / thro wn /8rdun / understood unde rstood /A ndd'stud/

woke /wauk/ woken

wore /wJ:/ worn /wJ:n/ won /wA n/ won wrote /rdut/ written / 'ntn/

fis h Cit tr ee c a t

I@ @ c a r ·!_ · cl ock h or se

usual spelling ! butalso

ii l i nen s ilk pr e tty w o m e n tr ip fi t g u ilty d e cid e d fi ll p i.ck vill a ge phys ics

ee bl ee d snee ze p eo ple thief ea b ea t stea l k e y rel ieved rec ei pt e even m e dium

a r ash b a ck ankle m a tch h a ng tr ave l

ar sc a r f sm a r t au nt l a ugh sh a r p h ar dly h ea r t a c a lf br a nch

0 c o tton t o p w a tch w ant d ro p c o st bec a u se o ff o n c o u gh

( o )or s o r e fl oo r w a r m w a r n p o uring al st a l ker w all t ho ug h t c augh t aw y aw n dr aw exh a usted l a u nch

u fu ll p u t co uld sh o uld 00 h oo ded w oollen w o u ld w o man st oo d goo d

b ull

00 loo se c oo l s ui t jui ce u * arg u e re fu se sh oe p ro ve ew ch ew n ews thr o u g h qu eu e

b oo t

c o mput er b ir d r j

e gg

Many different spellings. /';JI is always unstressed coll a r IIBtt e r ned a dvise c o mplain in fo r matio n sand a ls

usual spelling

mu c u t sc ru ffy l u ngs st u nned u pset disc u ss

up tr a in pho ne b ike o wl b oy ea r ch air t o ur ist /

a * a che la ce ai fa int pl ai n ay m ay l ay

o * cho ke ch o s e fr o ze fo ld oa t oa st app ro ach

i * str iped ice y l ycra st ylish igh t ig h t fl igh t

OU h o u r m o u th p ro u d a ro u nd ow sh ow ers fr ow n

!

butalso

m o ney

s o me o ne en o u gh to uch fl oo d bl oo d

brea k stea k grea t w e i gh t su e de ob ey grey

th ro w elb ow bel o w altho u gh sho u lders

b u y eye s h e igh t ai sle d ro u gh t

* especially before consonant + e

short vo w els

oi

b oi ling av o id p oi nt av oi d oy enj oy employer

eer car eer volunt ee r ere h er e w e ' r e ear n ea rly clea r

air a ir port upst a ir s fa ir h air are sc a r e d st a re

A very unusual sound . e u ro ju ry s ur e pl u ral

r ea lize id ea lly s eriously z e ro

th eir the r e w ea r area

A sound between hi an d li :I Consonant+ y at the end of words is pronounced I i i wind y sunny fogg y

An unusual sound between / u / and / u :/ ed ucation us u ally sit u a ti on long vowe ls 0 diphthongs

Consonant sounds

usual spelling

p p ost p one p olluted ho p e dam p pp disa pp ointed kidnapp ing

p arrot key shower television

b rain b ri b e o b jective biased ro bb ery ho bby

c k ck f ph ff

c ourt critic k idneys shak e sho cked homesick

re g ret g rateful colleague for get hu gged mu gging

fi st thef t physicist symphony o ffended sta ff

velvet ' andalism

nen ous preven t e \ idence re view

t as re rend s t and ches t man er bo ttom

d eny murd er e d itor re d und ant a d d ictive s uddenly

s s top uck ss witne lo s ce/cino tice c ensored

! but also _

usual spelling ! but also

th th under th ick

hea lt h y th igh

dea th tee th

th th e th at wi th fur th er bro th erhood

ch oir orchestra stomach- a che question ex pect a cc use

tough

enou gh lau gh

ch ch ecked ch illy

tch scra tch stre tch

t (+ure) dep arture

o f

produced pass ed

fail ed bored

ch ess

tempera t ure

j jet-lag hijack

g sugg est manager dge knowle dge ju dge

1 lie Liver heel lone ly ll co ll eague p illow

r r ise r ide written

r isky p r etend w ro ng rr te r ro rism a rrested

w w in w aste o ne o nce w aist w ave wh wh ile wherever

bree z e free z ing di zzy blizz ard no s e rai e s pends agree s

sh sh rug brus h wish cla sh ti(+ vowel )

ambi ti ous sensati onal ci (+vowel) spaci ous so ci able

An unusu al sound . decision confus ion u sually genre

sc ience sc enery fan cy

sugar s ure ch ic

w itch s inger h ouse

y yet yearly youth yourself before u u nivers it y arg u e

m m ild rem ind comb seem re m em ber mm comm i t comm entator

n n ails ho n esty kneel nn a nn ounce begi nn ing knew

ng leng th arrangi ng ha ng bri ng

before g / k wi n k si n k

h humid h ail who beh aviour in h abitant s whose in h erit perh aps wh ole

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors would like to thank all the teachers and students round the world whose feedback has helped us to shape English File. The authors would also like to thank: all those at Oxford University Press (both in Oxford and around the world) and the design team who have contributed their skills and ideas to producing this course.

A very special thanks from Qive to Maria Angeles, Lucia, and Eric, and from Christina to Cristina, for all their support and encouragement. Christina would also like to thank her children Joaquin, Marco, and Krysia for their constant inspiration

The publisher and authors would also like to thank the followingfor their invaluable feedback on the materials: Robert Anderson, ElifBarbaros, Kinga Beiley, Brian Brennan , Rachel Buttery-Graciani, Erika

Edit, M6nica G6mez Ruiz , Gill Hamilton, Jane Hudson , Deborah Keeping, Petra Krasser, Rebecca Lennox, Martin Mani, Beatriz Martin Garcia, Magdalena Miszczak-Berbec, Daniela Moren, Magdalena Muszyilska, Wayne Rimmer, Graham Rumbelow, Louise Rutter, Rachael Smith, Joanna Sosnowska, Raphael Stoll, Pavlina Zoss.

The Publisher and Authors are very grateful to the following who have provided information, personal stories, and/or photographs: Ryan Judd (pp.12-13), Julia Eccleshare (pp.32-33), Candida Brady (pp.42-43). Simon Callow (pp.52-53), and George Tannenbaum (pp.62-63) for agreeing to b e interviewed for the Class DVD and iTutor; john Sloboda (p.56) and Miles Roddis (p.90) for agreeing to be interviewed for the Class DVD and iTutor; Krysia Cogollos for her invaluable research; Fran Drescher, Cheryl Hines, Jason Schwartzman, Ellen Burstyn, Dan Hedaya,Jane Lynch, and Steve Guttenberg (pp 68-69) for giving us permission to print their Actors Acting photographs; Joe Navarro (p 71) for allowing us to use the photographs from his book.

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Pronunciation chart artwork: by Ellis Nadler

fllu.strations by: The Art Market/David McConochie pp.8, 9 , 44, 56-57 , 157; Colagene/Jerome Mirault p.60, 100; Dutch Uncle Agency/Atsushi Hara pp.27, 132 , 133, 135, 136, 137, 139, 141, 143, 144, 145, 148, 149, 150 , 151; Good illustration/Oliver Latyk pp.74. 75, 160; illustration Ltd/Matthew Hollings pp.14, 30-31, 105, 109, 116, 152, 153; Tim Marrs pp.48-49;joe Mclaren p.58-59; Roger Penwill p.156; PeppercookiesfLisa Billvik pp.28, 29, 66, 67, 96. 97, 114. 155

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Eng li sh Sounds Pronunciation Chart based on an original idea and de s ign by Paul Selig son and Carmen Dol z

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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

By J.K. Rowling

CHAPTER ONE

The Worst Birthday

Not for the first time, an argument had broken out over breakfast at number four, Privet Drive. Mr. Vernon Dursley had been woken in the early hours of the morning by a loud, hooting noise from his nephew Harry’s room.

“Third time this week!” he roared across the table. “If you can’t control that owl, it’ll have to go!”

Harry tried, yet again, to explain.

“She’s bored,” he said. “She’s used to flying around outside. If I could just let her out at night -”

“Do I look stupid?” snarled Uncle Vernon, a bit of fried egg dangling from his bushy mustache.

“I know what’ll happen if that owl’s let out.”

He exchanged dark looks with his wife, Petunia.

Harry tried to argue back but his words were drowned by a long, loud belch from the Dursleys’ son, Dudley.

“I want more bacon.”

“There’s more in the frying pan, sweetums,” said Aunt Petunia, turning misty eyes on her massive son. “We must build you up while we’ve got the chance… I don’t like the sound of that school food…”

“Nonsense, Petunia, I never went hungry when I was at Smeltings,” said Uncle Vernon heartily. “Dudley gets enough, don’t you, son?”

Dudley, who was so large his bottom drooped over either side of the kitchen chair, grinned and turned to Harry.

“Pass the frying pan.”

“You’ve forgotten the magic word,” said Harry irritably.

The effect of this simple sentence on the rest of the family was incredible: Dudley gasped and fell off his chair with a crash that shook the whole kitchen; Mrs. Dursley gave a small scream and clapped her hands to her mouth; Mr. Dursley jumped to his feet, veins throbbing in his temples.

“I meant ‘please’!” said Harry quickly. “I didn’t mean —”

“WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU,” thundered his uncle, spraying spit over the table, “ABOUT SAYING THE ‘M’ WORD IN OUR HOUSE?”

“But I —”

“HOW DARE YOU THREATEN DUDLEY!” roared Uncle Vernon, pounding the table with his fist.

“I just —”

“I WARNED YOU! I WILL NOT TOLERATE MENTION OF YOUR ABNORMALITY UNDER THIS ROOF!”

Harry stared from his purple-faced uncle to his pale aunt, who was trying to heave Dudley to his feet.

“All right,” said Harry, “all right…”

Uncle Vernon sat back down, breathing like a winded rhinoceros and watching Harry closely out of the corners of his small, sharp eyes.

Ever since Harry had come home for the summer holidays, Uncle Vernon had been treating him like a bomb that might go off at any moment, because Harry Potter wasn’t a normal boy. As a matter of fact, he was as not normal as it is possible to be.

Harry Potter was a wizard — a wizard fresh from his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And if the Dursleys were unhappy to have him back for the holidays, it was nothing to how Harry felt.

He missed Hogwarts so much it was like having a constant stomachache. He missed the castle, with its secret passageways and ghosts, his classes (though perhaps not Snape, the Potions master), the mail arriving by owl, eating banquets in the Great Hall, sleeping in his four-poster bed in the tower dormitory, visiting the gamekeeper, Hagrid, in his cabin next to the Forbidden Forest in the grounds, and, especially, Quidditch, the most popular sport in the wizarding world (six tall goal posts, four flying balls, and fourteen players on broomsticks).

All Harry’s spellbooks, his wand, robes, cauldron, and top-of-the-line Nimbus Two Thousand broomstick had been locked in a cupboard under the stairs by Uncle Vernon the instant Harry had come home. What did the Dursleys care if Harry lost his place on the House Quidditch team

because he hadn’t practiced all summer? What was it to the Dursleys if Harry went back to school without any of his homework done? The Dursleys were what wizards called Muggles (not a drop of magical blood in their veins), and as far as they were concerned, having a wizard in the family was a matter of deepest shame. Uncle Vernon had even padlocked Harry’s owl, Hedwig, inside her cage, to stop her from carrying messages to anyone in the wizarding world.

Harry looked nothing like the rest of the family. Uncle Vernon was large and neckless, with an enormous black mustache; Aunt Petunia was horse-faced and bony; Dudley was blond, pink, and porky. Harry, on the other hand, was small and skinny, with brilliant green eyes and jet-black hair that was always untidy. He wore round glasses, and on his forehead was a thin, lightningshaped scar.

It was this scar that made Harry so particularly unusual, even for a wizard. This scar was the only hint of Harry’s very mysterious past, of the reason he had been left on the Dursleys’ doorstep eleven years before.

At the age of one year old, Harry had somehow survived a curse from the greatest Dark sorcerer of all time, Lord Voldemort, whose name most witches and wizards still feared to speak. Harry’s parents had died in Voldemort’s attack, but Harry had escaped with his lightning scar, and somehow — nobody understood why —Voldemort’s powers had been destroyed the instant he had failed to kill Harry.

So Harry had been brought up by his dead mother’s sister and her husband. He had spent ten years with the Dursleys, never understanding why he kept making odd things happen without meaning to, believing the Dursleys’ story that he had got his scar in the car crash that had killed his parents.

And then, exactly a year ago, Hogwarts had written to Harry, and the whole story had come out. Harry had taken up his place at wizard school, where he and his scar were famous… but now the school year was over, and he was back with the Dursleys for the summer, back to being treated like a dog that had rolled in something smelly.

The Dursleys hadn’t even remembered that today happened to be Harry’s twelfth birthday. Of course, his hopes hadn’t been high; they’d never given him a real present, let alone a cake — but to ignore it completely…

At that moment, Uncle Vernon cleared his throat importantly and said, “Now, as we all know, today is a very important day.”

Harry looked up, hardly daring to believe it.

“This could well be the day I make the biggest deal of my career,” said Uncle Vernon.

Harry went back to his toast. Of course, he thought bitterly, Uncle Vernon was talking about the stupid dinner party. He’d been talking of nothing else for two weeks. Some rich builder and his wife were coming to dinner and Uncle Vernon was hoping to get a huge order from him (Uncle

Vernon’s company made drills).

“I think we should run through the schedule one more time,” said Uncle Vernon. “We should all be in position at eight o’clock. Petunia, you will be —?”

“In the lounge,” said Aunt Petunia promptly, “waiting to welcome them graciously to our home.”

“Good, good. And Dudley?”

“I’ll be waiting to open the door.” Dudley put on a foul, simpering smile. “May I take your coats, Mr. and Mrs. Mason?”

“They’ll love him!” cried Aunt Petunia rapturously.

“Excellent, Dudley,” said Uncle Vernon. Then he rounded on Harry. “And you?”

“I’ll be in my bedroom, making no noise and pretending I’m not there,” said Harry tonelessly.

“Exactly,” said Uncle Vernon nastily. “I will lead them into the lounge, introduce you, Petunia, and pour them drinks. At eight-fifteen —”

“I’ll announce dinner,” said Aunt Petunia.

“And, Dudley, you’ll say —”

“May I take you through to the dining room, Mrs. Mason?” said Dudley, offering his fat arm to an invisible woman.

“My perfect little gentleman!” sniffed Aunt Petunia.

“And you?” said Uncle Vernon viciously to Harry.

“I’ll be in my room, making no noise and pretending I’m not there,” said Harry dully.

“Precisely. Now, we should aim to get in a few good compliments at dinner. Petunia, any ideas?”

“Vernon tells me you’re a wonderful golfer, Mr. Mason… Do tell me where you bought your dress, Mrs. Mason…”

“Perfect… Dudley?”

“How about —‘We had to write an essay about our hero at school, Mr. Mason, and I wrote about you.’”

This was too much for both Aunt Petunia and Harry. Aunt Petunia burst into tears and hugged her son, while Harry ducked under the table so they wouldn’t see him laughing.

“And you, boy?”

Harry fought to keep his face straight as he emerged.

“I’ll be in my room, making no noise and pretending I’m not there,” he said.

“Too right, you will.” said Uncle Vernon forcefully. “The Masons don’t know anything about you and it’s going to stay that way. When dinner’s over, you take Mrs. Mason back to the lounge for coffee, Petunia, and I’ll bring the subject around to drills. With any luck, I’ll have the deal signed and sealed before the news at ten. Be shopping for a vacation home in Majorca this time tomorrow.”

Harry couldn’t feel too excited about this. He didn’t think the Dursleys would like him any better in Majorca than they did on Privet Drive.

“Right — I’m off into town to pick up the dinner jackets for Dudley and me. And you,” he snarled at Harry. “You stay out of your aunt’s way while she’s cleaning.”

Harry left through the back door. It was a brilliant, sunny day. He crossed the lawn, slumped down on the garden bench, and sang under his breath:

“Happy birthday to me… happy birthday to me…”

No cards, no presents, and he would be spending the evening pretending not to exist. He gazed miserably into the hedge. He had never felt so lonely. More than anything else at Hogwarts, more even than playing Quidditch, Harry missed his best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. They, however, didn’t seem to be missing him at all. Neither of them had written to him all summer, even though Ron had said he was going to ask Harry to come and stay.

Countless times, Harry had been on the point of unlocking Hedwig’s cage by magic and sending her to Ron and Hermione with a letter, but it wasn’t worth the risk. Underage wizards weren’t allowed to use magic outside of school. Harry hadn’t told the Dursleys this; he knew it was only their terror that he might turn them all into dung beetles that stopped them from locking him in the cupboard under the stairs with his wand and broomstick. For the first couple of weeks back, Harry had enjoyed muttering nonsense words under his breath and watching Dudley tearing out of the room as fast as his fat legs would carry him. But the long silence from Ron and Hermione had made Harry feel so cut off from the magical world that even taunting Dudley had lost its appeal — and now Ron and Hermione had forgotten his birthday.

What wouldn’t he give now for a message from Hogwarts? From any witch or wizard? He’d almost be glad of a sight of his archenemy, Draco Malfoy, just to be sure it hadn’t all been a dream…

Not that his whole year at Hogwarts had been fun. At the very end of last term, Harry had come face-to-face with none other than Lord Voldemort himself. Voldemort might be a ruin of his former self, but he was still terrifying, still cunning, still determined to regain power. Harry had

slipped through Voldemort’s clutches for a second time, but it had been a narrow escape, and even now, weeks later, Harry kept waking in the night, drenched in cold sweat, wondering where Voldemort was now, remembering his livid face, his wide, mad eyes —

Harry suddenly sat bolt upright on the garden bench. He had been staring absent-mindedly into the hedge — and the hedge was staring back. Two enormous green eyes had appeared among the leaves.

Harry jumped to his feet just as a jeering voice floated across the lawn.

“I know what day it is,” sang Dudley, waddling toward him.

The huge eyes blinked and vanished.

“What?” said Harry, not taking his eyes off the spot where they had been.

“I know what day it is,” Dudley repeated, coming right up to him.

“Well done,” said Harry. “So you’ve finally learned the days of the week.”

“Today’s your birthday,” sneered Dudley. “How come you haven’t got any cards? Haven’t you even got friends at that freak place?”

“Better not let your mum hear you talking about my school,” said Harry coolly.

Dudley hitched up his trousers, which were slipping down his fat bottom.

“Why’re you staring at the hedge?” he said suspiciously.

“I’m trying to decide what would be the best spell to set it on fire,” said Harry.

Dudley stumbled backward at once, a look of panic on his fat face.

“You c-can’t — Dad told you you’re not to do m-magic — he said he’ll chuck you out of the house — and you haven’t got anywhere else to go — you haven’t got any friends to take you —”

“Jiggery pokery!” said Harry in a fierce voice. “Hocus pocus — squiggly wiggly —”

“MUUUUUUM!” howled Dudley, tripping over his feet as he dashed back toward the house. “MUUUUM! He’s doing you know what!”

Harry paid dearly for his moment of fun. As neither Dudley nor the hedge was in any way hurt, Aunt Petunia knew he hadn’t really done magic, but he still had to duck as she aimed a heavy blow at his head with the soapy frying pan. Then she gave him work to do, with the promise he wouldn’t eat again until he’d finished.

While Dudley lolled around watching and eating ice cream, Harry cleaned the windows, washed the car, mowed the lawn, trimmed the flowerbeds, pruned and watered the roses, and repainted the garden bench. The sun blazed overhead, burning the back of his neck. Harry knew he shouldn’t have risen to Dudley’s bait, but Dudley had said the very thing Harry had been thinking himself… maybe he didn’t have any friends at Hogwarts…

Wish they could see famous Harry Potter now, he thought savagely as he spread manure on the flower beds, his back aching, sweat running down his face.

It was half past seven in the evening when at last, exhausted, he heard Aunt Petunia calling him.

“Get in here! And walk on the newspaper!”

Harry moved gladly into the shade of the gleaming kitchen. On top of the fridge stood tonight’s pudding: a huge mound of whipped cream and sugared violets. A loin of roast pork was sizzling in the oven.

“Eat quickly! The Masons will be here soon!” snapped Aunt Petunia, pointing to two slices of bread and a lump of cheese on the kitchen table. She was already wearing a salmon-pink cocktail dress.

Harry washed his hands and bolted down his pitiful supper. The moment he had finished, Aunt Petunia whisked away his plate. “Upstairs! Hurry!”

As he passed the door to the living room, Harry caught a glimpse of Uncle Vernon and Dudley in bow ties and dinner jackets. He had only just reached the upstairs landing when the door bell rang and Uncle Vernon’s furious face appeared at the foot of the stairs.

“Remember, boy — one sound —”

Harry crossed to his bedroom on tiptoe slipped inside, closed the door, and turned to collapse on his bed. The trouble was, there was already someone sitting on it.

CHAPTER TWO

Dobby’s Warning

Harry managed not to shout out, but it was a close thing. The little creature on the bed had large, bat-like ears and bulging green eyes the size of tennis balls. Harry knew instantly that this was what had been watching him out of the garden hedge that morning.

As they stared at each other, Harry heard Dudley’s voice from the hall.

“May I take your coats, Mr. and Mrs. Mason?”

The creature slipped off the bed and bowed so low that the end of its long, thin nose touched the carpet. Harry noticed that it was wearing what looked like an old pillowcase, with rips for armand leg-holes.

“Er — hello,” said Harry nervously.

“Harry Potter!” said the creature in a high-pitched voice Harry was sure would carry down the stairs. “So long has Dobby wanted to meet you, sir… Such an honor it is…”

“Th-thank you,” said Harry, edging along the wall and sinking into his desk chair, next to Hedwig, who was asleep in her large cage. He wanted to ask, “What are you?” but thought it would sound too rude, so instead he said, “Who are you?”

“Dobby, sir. Just Dobby. Dobby the house-elf,” said the creature.

“Oh — really?” said Harry. “Er — I don’t want to be rude or anything, but — this isn’t a great time for me to have a house-elf in my bedroom.”

Aunt Petunias high, false laugh sounded from the living room. The elf hung his head.

“Not that I’m not pleased to meet you,” said Harry quickly, “but, er, is there any particular reason you’re here?”

“Oh, yes, sir,” said Dobby earnestly. “Dobby has come to tell you, sir… it is difficult, sir… Dobby wonders where to begin…”

“Sit down,” said Harry politely, pointing at the bed.

To his horror, the elf burst into tears — very noisy tears.

“S-sit down!” he wailed. “Never… never ever…”

Harry thought he heard the voices downstairs falter.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, “I didn’t mean to offend you or anything —”

“Offend Dobby!” choked the elf. “Dobby has never been asked to sit down by a wizard — like an equal —”

Harry, trying to say “Shh!” and look comforting at the same time, ushered Dobby back onto the bed where he sat hiccoughing, looking like a large and very ugly doll. At last he managed to control himself, and sat with his great eyes fixed on Harry in an expression of watery adoration.

“You can’t have met many decent wizards,” said Harry, trying to cheer him up.

Dobby shook his head. Then, without warning, he leapt up and started banging his head furiously on the window, shouting, “Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby!”

“Don’t — what are you doing?” Harry hissed, springing up and pulling Dobby back onto the bed — Hedwig had woken up with a particularly loud screech and was beating her wings wildly against the bars of her cage.

“Dobby had to punish himself, sir,” said the elf, who had gone slightly cross-eyed. “Dobby almost spoke ill of his family, sir…”

“Your family?”

“The wizard family Dobby serves, sir… Dobby is a house-elf — bound to serve one house and one family forever…”

“Do they know you’re here?” asked Harry curiously.

Dobby shuddered.

“Oh, no, sir, no… Dobby will have to punish himself most grievously for coming to see you, sir. Dobby will have to shut his ears in the oven door for this. If they ever knew, sir —”

“But won’t they notice if you shut your ears in the oven door?”

“Dobby doubts it, sir. Dobby is always having to punish himself for something, sir. They lets Dobby get on with it, sir. Sometimes they reminds me to do extra punishments…”

“But why don’t you leave? Escape?”

“A house-elf must be set free, sir. And the family will never set Dobby free… Dobby will serve the family until he dies, sir…”

Harry stared.

“And I thought I had it bad staying here for another four weeks,” he said. “This makes the

Dursleys sound almost human. Can’t anyone help you? Can’t I?”

Almost at once, Harry wished he hadn’t spoken. Dobby dissolved again into wails of gratitude.

“Please,” Harry whispered frantically, “please be quiet. If the Dursleys hear anything, if they know you’re here —”

“Harry Potter asks if he can help Dobby… Dobby has heard of your greatness, sir, but of your goodness, Dobby never knew…”

Harry, who was feeling distinctly hot in the face, said, “Whatever you’ve heard about my greatness is a load of rubbish. I’m not even top of my year at Hogwarts; that’s Hermione, she —”

But he stopped quickly, because thinking about Hermione was painful.

“Harry Potter is humble and modest,” said Dobby reverently, his orb-like eyes aglow. “Harry Potter speaks not of his triumph over He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named —”

“Voldemort?” said Harry.

Dobby clapped his hands over his bat ears and moaned, “Ah, speak not the name, sir! Speak not the name!”

“Sorry,” said Harry quickly. “I know lots of people don’t like it. My friend Ron —”

He stopped again. Thinking about Ron was painful, too.

Dobby leaned toward Harry, his eyes wide as headlights.

“Dobby heard tell,” he said hoarsely, “that Harry Potter met the Dark Lord for a second time just weeks ago… that Harry Potter escaped yet again.”

Harry nodded and Dobby’s eyes suddenly shone with tears.

“Ah, sir,” he gasped, dabbing his face with a corner of the grubby pillowcase he was wearing. “Harry Potter is valiant and bold! He has braved so many dangers already! But Dobby has come to protect Harry Potter, to warn him, even if he does have to shut his ears in the oven door later… Harry Potter must not go back to Hogwarts.”

There was a silence broken only by the chink of knives and forks from downstairs and the distant rumble of Uncle Vernon’s voice.

“W-what?” Harry stammered. “But I’ve got to go back — term starts on September first. It’s all that’s keeping me going. You don’t know what it’s like here. I don’t belong here. I belong in your world — at Hogwarts.”

“No, no, no,” squeaked Dobby, shaking his head so hard his ears flapped. “Harry Potter must stay where he is safe. He is too great, too good, to lose. If Harry Potter goes back to Hogwarts, he will be in mortal danger.”

“Why?” said Harry in surprise.

“There is a plot, Harry Potter. A plot to make most terrible things happen at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry this year,” whispered Dobby, suddenly trembling all over. “Dobby has known it for months, sir. Harry Potter must not put himself in peril. He is too important, sir!”

“What terrible things?” said Harry at once. “Who’s plotting them?”

Dobby made a funny choking noise and then banged his head frantically against the wall.

“All right!” cried Harry, grabbing the elf’s arm to stop him. “You can’t tell me. I understand. But why are you warning me?” A sudden, unpleasant thought struck him. “Hang on — this hasn’t got anything to do with Vol — sorry — with You-Know-Who, has it? You could just shake or nod,” he added hastily as Dobby’s head tilted worryingly close to the wall again.

Slowly, Dobby shook his head.

“Not — not He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, sir —”

But Dobby’s eyes were wide and he seemed to be trying to give Harry a hint. Harry, however, was completely lost.

“He hasn’t got a brother, has he?”

Dobby shook his head, his eyes wider than ever.

“Well then, I can’t think who else would have a chance of making horrible things happen at Hogwarts,” said Harry. “I mean, there’s Dumbledore, for one thing — you know who Dumbledore is, don’t you?”

Dobby bowed his head.

“Albus Dumbledore is the greatest headmaster Hogwarts has ever had. Dobby knows it, sir. Dobby has heard Dumbledore’s powers rival those of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named at the height of his strength. But, sir” — Dobby’s voice dropped to an urgent whisper — “there are powers Dumbledore doesn’t… powers no decent wizard…”

And before Harry could stop him, Dobby bounded off the bed, seized Harry’s desk lamp, and started beating himself around the head with earsplitting yelps.

A sudden silence fell downstairs. Two seconds later Harry, heart thudding madly, heard Uncle Vernon coming into the hall, calling, “Dudley must have left his television on again, the little

tyke!”

“Quick! In the closet!” hissed Harry, stuffing Dobby in, shutting the door, and flinging himself onto the bed just as the door handle turned.

“What — the —devil — are — you — doing?” said Uncle Vernon through gritted teeth, his face horribly close to Harry’s. “You’ve just ruined the punch line of my Japanese golfer joke… One more sound and you’ll wish you’d never been born, boy!”

He stomped flat-footed from the room.

Shaking, Harry let Dobby out of the closet.

“See what it’s like here?” he said. “See why I’ve got to go back to Hogwarts? It’s the only place I’ve got — well, I think I’ve got friends.”

“Friends who don’t even write to Harry Potter?” said Dobby slyly.

“I expect they’ve just been — wait a minute,” said Harry, frowning. “How do you know my friends haven’t been writing to me?”

Dobby shuffled his feet.

“Harry Potter mustn’t be angry with Dobby. Dobby did it for the best —”

“Have you been stopping my letters?”

“Dobby has them here, sir,” said the elf. Stepping nimbly out of Harry’s reach, he pulled a thick wad of envelopes from the inside of the pillowcase he was wearing. Harry could make out Hermione’s neat writing, Ron’s untidy scrawl, and even a scribble that looked as though it was from the Hogwarts gamekeeper, Hagrid.

Dobby blinked anxiously up at Harry.

“Harry Potter mustn’t be angry… Dobby hoped… if Harry Potter thought his friends had forgotten him… Harry Potter might not want to go back to school, sir…”

Harry wasn’t listening. He made a grab for the letters, but Dobby jumped out of reach.

“Harry Potter will have them, sir, if he gives Dobby his word that he will not return to Hogwarts. Ah, sir, this is a danger you must not face! Say you won’t go back, sir!”

“No,” said Harry angrily. “Give me my friends’ letters!”

“Then Harry Potter leaves Dobby no choice,” said the elf sadly.

Before Harry could move, Dobby had darted to the bedroom door, pulled it open, and sprinted down the stairs.

Mouth dry, stomach lurching, Harry sprang after him, trying not to make a sound. He jumped the last six steps, landing catlike on the hall carpet, looking around for Dobby. From the dining room he heard Uncle Vernon saying, “… tell Petunia that very funny story about those American plumbers, Mr. Mason. She’s been dying to hear…”

Harry ran up the hall into the kitchen and felt his stomach disappear.

Aunt Petunia’s masterpiece of a pudding, the mountain of cream and sugared violets, was floating up near the ceiling. On top of a cupboard in the corner crouched Dobby.

“No,” croaked Harry. “Please… they’ll kill me…”

“Harry Potter must say he’s not going back to school —”

“Dobby… please…”

“Say it, sir —”

“I can’t —”

Dobby gave him a tragic look.

“Then Dobby must do it, sir, for Harry Potter’s own good.”

The pudding fell to the floor with a heart-stopping crash. Cream splattered the windows and walls as the dish shattered. With a crack like a whip, Dobby vanished.

There were screams from the dining room and Uncle Vernon burst into the kitchen to find Harry, rigid with shock, covered from head to foot in Aunt Petunia’s pudding.

At first, it looked as though Uncle Vernon would manage to gloss the whole thing over. (“Just our nephew —very disturbed — meeting strangers upsets him, so we kept him upstairs…”) He shooed the shocked Masons back into the dining room, promised Harry he would flay him to within an inch of his life when the Masons had left, and handed him a mop. Aunt Petunia dug some ice cream out of the freezer and Harry, still shaking, started scrubbing the kitchen clean.

Uncle Vernon might still have been able to make his deal — if it hadn’t been for the owl.

Aunt Petunia was just passing around a box of after-dinner mints when a huge barn owl swooped through the dining room window, dropped a letter on Mrs. Mason’s head, and swooped out again. Mrs. Mason screamed like a banshee and ran from the house shouting about lunatics. Mr. Mason stayed just long enough to tell the Dursleys that his wife was mortally afraid of birds of all shapes and sizes, and to ask whether this was their idea of a joke.

Harry stood in the kitchen, clutching the mop for support, as Uncle Vernon advanced on him, a demonic glint in his tiny eyes.

“Read it!” he hissed evilly, brandishing the letter the owl had delivered. “Go on — read it!”

Harry took it. It did not contain birthday greetings.

Dear Mr. Potter,

We have received intelligence that a Hover Charm was used at your place of residence this evening at twelve minutes past nine.

As you know, underage wizards are not permitted to perform spells outside school, and further spellwork on your part may lead to expulsion from said school. (Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, 1875, Paragraph C).

We would also ask you to remember that any magical activity that risks notice by members of the non magical community (Muggles) is a serious offense under section 13 of the International Confederation of Warlocks’ Statute of Secrecy.

Enjoy your holidays!

Yours sincerely,

Mafalda Hopkirk

IMPROPER USE OF MAGIC OFFICE

Ministry of Magic

Harry looked up from the letter and gulped.

“You didn’t tell us you weren’t allowed to use magic outside school,” said Uncle Vernon, a mad gleam dancing in his eyes. “Forgot to mention it… Slipped your mind, I daresay…”

He was bearing down on Harry like a great bulldog, all his teeth bared. “Well, I’ve got news for you, boy… I’m locking you up… You’re never going back to that school… never… and if you try and magic yourself out — they’ll expel you!”

And laughing like a maniac, he dragged Harry back upstairs.

Uncle Vernon was as bad as his word. The following morning, he paid a man to fit bars on Harry’s window. He himself fitted a cat-flap in the bedroom door, so that small amounts of food could be pushed inside three times a day. They let Harry out to use the bathroom morning and evening. Otherwise, he was locked in his room around the clock.

Three days later, the Dursleys were showing no sign of relenting, and Harry couldn’t see any way out of his situation. He lay on his bed watching the sun sinking behind the bars on the window and wondered miserably what was going to happen to him.

What was the good of magicking himself out of his room if Hogwarts would expel him for doing it? Yet life at Privet Drive had reached an all-time low. Now that the Dursleys knew they weren’t going to wake up as fruit bats, he had lost his only weapon. Dobby might have saved Harry from horrible happenings at Hogwarts, but the way things were going, he’d probably starve to death anyway.

The cat-flap rattled and Aunt Petunias hand appeared, pushing a bowl of canned soup into the room. Harry, whose insides were aching with hunger, jumped off his bed and seized it. The soup was stone-cold, but he drank half of it in one gulp. Then he crossed the room to Hedwig’s cage and tipped the soggy vegetables at the bottom of the bowl into her empty food tray. She ruffled her feathers and gave him a look of deep disgust.

“It’s no good turning your beak up at it — that’s all we’ve got,” said Harry grimly.

He put the empty bowl back on the floor next to the cat-flap and lay back down on the bed, somehow even hungrier than he had been before the soup.

Supposing he was still alive in another four weeks, what would happen if he didn’t turn up at Hogwarts? Would someone be sent to see why he hadn’t come back? Would they be able to make the Dursleys let him go?

The room was growing dark. Exhausted, stomach rumbling, mind spinning over the same unanswerable questions, Harry fell into an uneasy sleep.

He dreamed that he was on show in a zoo, with a card reading UNDERAGE WIZARD attached to his cage. People goggled through the bars at him as he lay, starving and weak, on a bed of straw. He saw Dobby’s face in the crowd and shouted out, asking for help, but Dobby called, “Harry Potter is safe there, sir!” and vanished. Then the Dursleys appeared and Dudley rattled the bars of the cage, laughing at him.

“Stop it,” Harry muttered as the rattling pounded in his sore head. “Leave me alone… cut it out… I’m trying to sleep…”

He opened his eyes. Moonlight was shining through the bars on the window. And someone was goggling through the bars at him: a freckle-faced, red-haired, long-nosed someone.

Ron Weasley was outside Harry’s window.

CHAPTER THREE

The Burrow

“Ron.” breathed Harry, creeping to the window and pushing it up so they could talk through the bars. “Ron, how did you —? What the —?”

Harry’s mouth fell open as the full impact of what he was seeing hit him. Ron was leaning out of the back window of an old turquoise car, which was parked in midair. Grinning at Harry from the front seats were Fred and George, Ron’s elder twin brothers.

“All right, Harry?” asked George.

“What’s been going on?” said Ron. “Why haven’t you been answering my letters? I’ve asked you to stay about twelve times, and then Dad came home and said you’d got an official warning for using magic in front of Muggles —”

“It wasn’t me — and how did he know?”

“He works for the Ministry,” said Ron. “You know we’re not supposed to do spells outside school —”

“You should talk,” said Harry, staring at the floating car.

“Oh, this doesn’t count,” said Ron. “We’re only borrowing this. It’s Dad’s, we didn’t enchant it. But doing magic in front of those Muggles you live with —”

“I told you, I didn’t — but it’ll take too long to explain now — look, can you tell them at Hogwarts that the Dursleys have locked me up and won’t let me come back, and obviously I can’t magic myself out, because the Ministry’ll think that’s the second spell I’ve done in three days, so —”

“Stop gibbering,” said Ron. “We’ve come to take you home with us.”

“But you can’t magic me out either —”

“We don’t need to,” said Ron, jerking his head toward the front seat and grinning. “You forget who I’ve got with me.”

“Tie that around the bars,” said Fred, throwing the end of a rope to Harry.

“If the Dursleys wake up, I’m dead,” said Harry as he tied the rope tightly around a bar and Fred revved up the car.

“Don’t worry,” said Fred, “and stand back.”

Harry moved back into the shadows next to Hedwig, who seemed to have realized how important this was and kept still and silent. The car revved louder and louder and suddenly, with a crunching noise, the bars were pulled clean out of the window as Fred drove straight up in the air. Harry ran back to the window to see the bars dangling a few feet above the ground. Panting, Ron hoisted them up into the car. Harry listened anxiously, but there was no sound from the Dursleys’ bedroom.

When the bars were safely in the back seat with Ron, Fred reversed as close as possible to Harry’s window.

“Get in,” Ron said.

“But all my Hogwarts stuff — my wand — my broomstick —”

“Where is it?”

“Locked in the cupboard under the stairs, and I can’t get out of this room —”

“No problem,” said George from the front passenger seat. “Out of the way, Harry.”

Fred and George climbed catlike through the window into Harry’s room. You had to hand it to them, thought Harry, as George took an ordinary hairpin from his pocket and started to pick the lock.

“A lot of wizards think it’s a waste of time, knowing this sort of Muggle trick,” said Fred, “but we feel they’re skills worth learning, even if they are a bit slow.”

There was a small click and the door swung open.

“So — we’ll get your trunk — you grab anything you need from your room and hand it out to Ron,” whispered George.

“Watch out for the bottom stair — it creaks,” Harry whispered back as the twins disappeared onto the dark landing.

Harry dashed around his room, collecting his things and passing them out of the window to Ron. Then he went to help Fred and George heave his trunk up the stairs. Harry heard Uncle Vernon cough.

At last, panting, they reached the landing, then carried the trunk through Harry’s room to the open window. Fred climbed back into the car to pull with Ron, and Harry and George pushed from the bedroom side. Inch by inch, the trunk slid through the window.

Uncle Vernon coughed again.

“A bit more,” panted Fred, who was pulling from inside the car. “One good push —”

Harry and George threw their shoulders against the trunk and it slid out of the window into the back seat of the car.

“Okay, let’s go,” George whispered.

But as Harry climbed onto the windowsill there came a sudden loud screech from behind him, followed immediately by the thunder of Uncle Vernon’s voice.

“THAT RUDDY OWL!”

“I’ve forgotten Hedwig!”

Harry tore back across the room as the landing light clicked on — he snatched up Hedwig’s cage, dashed to the window, and passed it out to Ron. He was scrambling back onto the chest of drawers when Uncle Vernon hammered on the unlocked door — and it crashed open.

For a split second, Uncle Vernon stood framed in the doorway; then he let out a bellow like an angry bull and dived at Harry, grabbing him by the ankle.

Ron, Fred, and George seized Harry’s arms and pulled as hard as they could.

“Petunia!” roared Uncle Vernon. “He’s getting away! HE’S GETTING AWAY!”

But the Weasleys gave a gigantic tug and Harry’s leg slid out of Uncle Vernon’s grasp — Harry was in the car — he’d slammed the door shut —

“Put your foot down, Fred!” yelled Ron, and the car shot suddenly toward the moon.

Harry couldn’t believe it — he was free. He rolled down the window, the night air whipping his hair, and looked back at the shrinking rooftops of Privet Drive. Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia, and Dudley were all hanging, dumbstruck, out of Harry’s window.

“See you next summer!” Harry yelled.

The Weasleys roared with laughter and Harry settled back in his seat, grinning from ear to ear.

“Let Hedwig out,” he told Ron. “She can fly behind us. She hasn’t had a chance to stretch her wings for ages.”

George handed the hairpin to Ron and, a moment later, Hedwig soared joyfully out of the window to glide alongside them like a ghost.

“So — what’s the story, Harry?” said Ron impatiently. “What’s been happening?”

Harry told them all about Dobby, the warning he’d given Harry and the fiasco of the violet pudding. There was a long, shocked silence when he had finished.

“Very fishy,” said Fred finally.

“Definitely dodgy” agreed George. “So he wouldn’t even tell you who’s supposed to be plotting all this stuff?”

“I don’t think he could,” said Harry. “I told you, every time he got close to letting something slip, he started banging his head against the wall.”

He saw Fred and George look at each other.

“What, you think he was lying to me?” said Harry.

“Well,” said Fred, “put it this way — house-elves have got powerful magic of their own, but they can’t usually use it without their master’s permission. I reckon old Dobby was sent to stop you coming back to Hogwarts. Someone’s idea of a joke. Can you think of anyone at school with a grudge against you?”

“Yes,” said Harry and Ron together, instantly.

“Draco Malfoy,” Harry explained. “He hates me.”

“Draco Malfoy?” said George, turning around. “Not Lucius Malfoy’s son?”

“Must be, it’s not a very common name, is it?” said Harry.

“I’ve heard Dad talking about him,” said George. “He was a big supporter of You-Know-Who.”

“And when You-Know-Who disappeared,” said Fred, craning around to look at Harry, “Lucius Malfoy came back saying he’d never meant any of it. Load of dung — Dad reckons he was right in You- Know-Who’s inner circle.”

Harry had heard these rumors about Malfoy’s family before, and they didn’t surprise him at all. Malfoy made Dudley Dursley look like a kind, thoughtful, and sensitive boy…

“I don’t know whether the Malfoys own a house-elf…” said Harry.

“Well, whoever owns him will be an old wizarding family, and they’ll be rich,” said Fred.

“Yeah, Mum’s always wishing we had a house-elf to do the ironing,” said George. “But all we’ve got is a lousy old ghoul in the attic and gnomes all over the garden. House-elves come with big old manors and castles and places like that; you wouldn’t catch one in our house…”

Harry was silent. Judging by the fact that Draco Malfoy usually had the best of everything, his family was rolling in wizard gold; he could just see Malfoy strutting around a large manor house. Sending the family servant to stop Harry from going back to Hogwarts also sounded exactly like the sort of thing Malfoy would do. Had Harry been stupid to take Dobby seriously?

“I’m glad we came to get you, anyway,” said Ron. “I was getting really worried when you didn’t answer any of my letters. I thought it was Errol’s fault at first —”

“Who’s Errol?”

“Our owl. He’s ancient. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d collapsed on a delivery. So then I tried to borrow Hermes —”

“Who?”

“The owl Mum and Dad bought Percy when he was made prefect,” said Fred from the front.

“But Percy wouldn’t lend him to me,” said Ron. “Said he needed him.”

“Percy’s been acting very oddly this summer,” said George, frowning. “And he has been sending a lot of letters and spending a load of time shut up in his room… I mean, there’s only so many times you can polish a prefect badge… You’re driving too far west, Fred,” he added, pointing at a compass on the dashboard. Fred twiddled the steering wheel.

“So, does your dad know you’ve got the car?” said Harry, guessing the answer.

“Er, no,” said Ron, “he had to work tonight. Hopefully we’ll be able to get it back in the garage without Mum noticing we flew it.”

“What does your dad do at the Ministry of Magic, anyway?”

“He works in the most boring department,” said Ron. “The Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office.”

“The what?”

“It’s all to do with bewitching things that are Muggle-made, you know, in case they end up back in a Muggle shop or house. Like, last year, some old witch died and her tea set was sold to an antiques shop. This Muggle woman bought it, took it home, and tried to serve her friends tea in it. It was a nightmare — Dad was working overtime for weeks.”

“What happened?”

“The teapot went berserk and squirted boiling tea all over the place and one man ended up in the hospital with the sugar tongs clamped to his nose. Dad was going frantic — it’s only him and an old warlock called Perkins in the office — and they had to do Memory Charms and all sorts of stuff to cover it up —”

“But your dad — this car —”

Fred laughed. “Yeah, Dad’s crazy about everything to do with Muggles; our shed’s full of Muggle stuff. He takes it apart, puts spells on it, and puts it back together again. If he raided our

house he’d have to put himself under arrest. It drives Mum mad.”

“That’s the main road,” said George, peering down through the windshield. “We’ll be there in ten minutes… Just as well, it’s getting light…”

A faint pinkish glow was visible along the horizon to the east.

Fred brought the car lower, and Harry saw a dark patchwork of fields and clumps of trees.

“We’re a little way outside the village,” said George. “Ottery St. Catchpole.”

Lower and lower went the flying car. The edge of a brilliant red sun was now gleaming through the trees.

“Touchdown!” said Fred as, with a slight bump, they hit the ground. They had landed next to a tumbledown garage in a small yard, and Harry looked out for the first time at Ron’s house.

It looked as though it had once been a large stone pigpen, but extra rooms had been added here and there until it was several stories high and so crooked it looked as though it were held up by magic (which Harry reminded himself, it probably was). Four or five chimneys were perched on top of the red roof. A lopsided sign stuck in the ground near the entrance read, THE BURROW. Around the front door lay a jumble of rubber boots and a very rusty cauldron. Several fat brown chickens were pecking their way around the yard.

“It’s not much,” said Ron.

“It’s wonderful,” said Harry happily, thinking of Privet Drive.

They got out of the car.

“Now, we’ll go upstairs really quietly,” said Fred, “and wait for Mum to call us for breakfast Then, Ron, you come bounding downstairs going, ‘Mum, look who turned up in the night!’ and she’ll be all pleased to see Harry and no one need ever know we flew the car.”

“Right,” said Ron. “Come on, Harry, I sleep at the — at the top —”

Ron had gone a nasty greenish color, his eyes fixed on the house. The other three wheeled around.

Mrs. Weasley was marching across the yard, scattering chickens, and for a short, plump, kindfaced woman, it was remarkable how much she looked like a saber-toothed tiger.

“Ah, “said Fred.

“Oh, dear,” said George.

Mrs. Weasley came to a halt in front of them, her hands on her hips, staring from one guilty face to the next. She was wearing a flowered apron with a wand sticking out of the pocket.

“So,” she said.

“Morning, Mum,” said George, in what he clearly thought was a jaunty, winning voice.

“Have you any idea how worried I’ve been?” said Mrs. Weasley in a deadly whisper.

“Sorry, Mum, but see, we had to —”

All three of Mrs. Weasley’s sons were taller than she was, but they cowered as her rage broke over them.

“Beds empty! No note! Car gone — could have crashed — out of my mind with worry — did you care? — never, as long as I’ve lived — you wait until your father gets home, we never had trouble like this from Bill or Charlie or Percy —”

“Perfect Percy,” muttered Fred.

“YOU COULD DO WITH TAKING A LEAF OUT OF PERCY’S BOOK!” yelled Mrs. Weasley, prodding a finger in Fred’s chest. “You could have died, you could have been seen, you could have lost your father his job —”

It seemed to go on for hours. Mrs. Weasley had shouted herself hoarse before she turned on Harry, who backed away.

“I’m very pleased to see you, Harry, dear,” she said. “Come in and have some breakfast.”

She turned and walked back into the house and Harry, after a nervous glance at Ron, who nodded encouragingly, followed her.

The kitchen was small and rather cramped. There was a scrubbed wooden table and chairs in the middle, and Harry sat down on the edge of his seat, looking around. He had never been in a wizard house before.

The clock on the wall opposite him had only one hand and no numbers at all. Written around the edge were things like Time to make tea, Time to feed the chickens, and You’re late. Books were stacked three deep on the mantelpiece, books with titles like Charm Your Own Cheese, Enchantment in Baking, and One Minute Feasts — It’s Magic! And unless Harry’s ears were deceiving him, the old radio next to the sink had just announced that coming up was “Witching Hour, with the popular singing sorceress, Celestina Warbeck.”

Mrs. Weasley was clattering around, cooking breakfast a little haphazardly, throwing dirty looks at her sons as she threw sausages into the frying pan. Every now and then she muttered things like “don’t know what you were thinking of,” and “never would have believed it.”

“I don’t blame you, dear,” she assured Harry, tipping eight or nine sausages onto his plate. “Arthur and I have been worried about you, too. Just last night we were saying we’d come and get you ourselves if you hadn’t written back to Ron by Friday. But really,” (she was now adding three fried eggs to his plate) “flying an illegal car halfway across the country — anyone could have seen you —”

She flicked her wand casually at the dishes in the sink, which began to clean themselves, clinking gently in the background.

“It was cloudy, Mum!” said Fred.

“You keep your mouth closed while you’re eating!” Mrs. Weasley snapped.

“They were starving him, Mum!” said George.

“And you!” said Mrs. Weasley, but it was with a slightly softened expression that she started cutting Harry bread and buttering it for him.

At that moment there was a diversion in the form of a small, redheaded figure in a long nightdress, who appeared in the kitchen, gave a small squeal, and ran out again.

“Ginny,” said Ron in an undertone to Harry. “My sister. She’s been talking about you all summer.”

“Yeah, she’ll be wanting your autograph, Harry,” Fred said with a grin, but he caught his mother’s eye and bent his face over his plate without another word. Nothing more was said until all four plates were clean, which took a surprisingly short time.

“Blimey, I’m tired,” yawned Fred, setting down his knife and fork at last. “I think I’ll go to bed and —”

“You will not,” snapped Mrs. Weasley. “It’s your own fault you’ve been up all night. You’re going to de-gnome the garden for me; they’re getting completely out of hand again —”

“Oh, Mum —”

“And you two,” she said, glaring at Ron and Fred. “You can go up to bed, dear,” she added to Harry. “You didn’t ask them to fly that wretched car —”

But Harry, who felt wide awake, said quickly, “I’ll help Ron. I’ve never seen a de-gnoming —”

“That’s very sweet of you, dear, but it’s dull work,” said Mrs. Weasley. “Now, let’s see what Lockhart’s got to say on the subject —”

And she pulled a heavy book from the stack on the mantelpiece. George groaned.

“Mum, we know how to de-gnome a garden —”

Harry looked at the cover of Mrs. Weasley’s book. Written across it in fancy gold letters were the words Gilderoy Lockhart’s Guide to Household Pests. There was a big photograph on the front of a very good-looking wizard with wavy blond hair and bright blue eyes. As always in the wizarding world, the photograph was moving; the wizard, who Harry supposed was Gilderoy Lockhart, kept winking cheekily up at them all. Mrs. Weasley beamed down at him.

“Oh, he is marvelous,” she said. “He knows his household pests, all right, it’s a wonderful book…”

“Mum fancies him,” said Fred, in a very audible whisper.

“Don’t be so ridiculous, Fred,” said Mrs. Weasley, her cheeks rather pink. “All right, if you think you know better than Lockhart, you can go and get on with it, and woe betide you if there’s a single gnome in that garden when I come out to inspect it.”

Yawning and grumbling, the Weasleys slouched outside with Harry behind them. The garden was large, and in Harry’s eyes, exactly what a garden should be. The Dursleys wouldn’t have liked it — there were plenty of weeds, and the grass needed cutting — but there were gnarled trees all around the walls, plants Harry had never seen spilling from every flower bed, and a big green pond full of frogs.

“Muggles have garden gnomes, too, you know,” Harry told Ron they crossed the lawn.

“Yeah, I’ve seen those things they think are gnomes,” said Ron, bent double with his head in a peony bush, “like fat little Santa Clauses with fishing rods…”

There was a violent scuffling noise, the peony bush shuddered, and Ron straightened up. “This is a gnome,” he said grimly.

“Gerroff me! Gerroff me!” squealed the gnome.

It was certainly nothing like Santa Claus. It was small and leathery looking, with a large, knobby, bald head exactly like a potato. Ron held it at arm’s length as it kicked out at him with its horny little feet; he grasped it around the ankles and turned it upside down.

“This is what you have to do,” he said. He raised the gnome above his head (“Gerroff me!”) and started to swing it in great circles like a lasso. Seeing the shocked look on Harry’s face, Ron added, “It doesn’t hurt them —you’ve just got to make them really dizzy so they can’t find their way back to the gnome holes.”

He let go of the gnome’s ankles: It flew twenty feet into the air and landed with a thud in the field over the hedge.

“Pitiful,” said Fred. “I bet I can get mine beyond that stump.”

Harry learned quickly not to feel too sorry for the gnomes. He decided just to drop the first one he caught over the hedge, but the gnome, sensing weakness, sank its razor-sharp teeth into Harry’s finger and he had a hard job shaking it off — until —

“Wow, Harry — that must’ve been fifty feet…”

The air was soon thick with flying gnomes.

“See, they’re not too bright,” said George, seizing five or six gnomes at once. “The moment they know the de-gnoming’s going on they storm up to have a look. You’d think they’d have learned by now just to stay put.”

Soon, the crowd of gnomes in the field started walking away in a straggling line, their little shoulders hunched.

“They’ll be back,” said Ron as they watched the gnomes disappear into the hedge on the other side of the field. “They love it here… Dad’s too soft with them; he thinks they’re funny…”

Just then, the front door slammed.

“He’s back!” said George. “Dad’s home!”

They hurried through the garden and back into the house.

Mr. Weasley was slumped in a kitchen chair with his glasses off and his eyes closed. He was a thin man, going bald, but the little hair he had was as red as any of his children’s. He was wearing long green robes, which were dusty and travel-worn.

“What a night,” he mumbled, groping for the teapot as they all sat down around him. “Nine raids. Nine! And old Mundungus Fletcher tried to put a hex on me when I had my back turned…”

Mr. Weasley took a long gulp of tea and sighed.

“Find anything, Dad?” said Fred eagerly.

“All I got were a few shrinking door keys and a biting kettle,” yawned Mr. Weasley. “There was some pretty nasty stuff that wasn’t my department, though. Mortlake was taken away for questioning about some extremely odd ferrets, but that’s the Committee on Experimental Charms, thank goodness…”

“Why would anyone bother making door keys shrink?” said George.

“Just Muggle-baiting,” sighed Mr. Weasley. “Sell them a key that keeps shrinking to nothing so they can never find it when they need it.. Of course, it’s very hard to convict anyone because no Muggle would admit their key keeps shrinking — they’ll insist they just keep losing it. Bless

them, they’ll go to any lengths to ignore magic, even if it’s staring them in the face… But the things our lot have taken to enchanting, you wouldn’t believe —”

“LIKE CARS, FOR INSTANCE?”

Mrs. Weasley had appeared, holding a long poker like a sword. Mr. Weasley’s eyes jerked open. He stared guiltily at his wife.

“C-cars, Molly, dear?”

“Yes, Arthur, cars,” said Mrs. Weasley, her eyes flashing. “Imagine a wizard buying a rusty old car and telling his wife all he wanted to do with it was take it apart to see how it worked, while really he was enchanting it to make it fly.”

Mr. Weasley blinked.

“Well, dear, I think you’ll find that he would be quite within the law to do that, even if — er — he maybe would have done better to, um, tell his wife the truth… There’s a loophole in the law, you’ll find… As long as he wasn’t intending to fly the car, the fact that the car could fly wouldn’t —”

“Arthur Weasley, you made sure there was a loophole when you wrote that law!” shouted Mrs. Weasley. “Just so you could carry on tinkering with all that Muggle rubbish in your shed! And for your information, Harry arrived this morning in the car you weren’t intending to fly!”

“Harry?” said Mr. Weasley blankly. “Harry who?”

He looked around, saw Harry, and jumped.

“Good lord, is it Harry Potter? Very pleased to meet you, Ron’s told us so much about —”

“Your sons flew that car to Harry’s house and back last night!” shouted Mrs. Weasley. “What have you got to say about that, eh?”

“Did you really?” said Mr. Weasley eagerly. “Did it go all right? I — I mean,” he faltered as sparks flew from Mrs. Weasley’s eyes, “that — that was very wrong, boys — very wrong indeed…”

“Let’s leave them to it,” Ron muttered to Harry as Mrs. Weasley swelled like a bullfrog. “Come on, I’ll show you my bedroom.”

They slipped out of the kitchen and down a narrow passageway to an uneven staircase, which wound its way, zigzagging up through the house. On the third landing, a door stood ajar. Harry just caught sight of a pair of bright brown eyes staring at him before it closed with a snap.

“Ginny,” said Ron. “You don’t know how weird it is for her to be this shy. She never shuts up

normally —”

They climbed two more flights until they reached a door with peeling paint and a small plaque on it, saying RONALD’S ROOM.

Harry stepped in, his head almost touching the sloping ceiling, and blinked. It was like walking into a furnace: Nearly everything in Ron’s room seemed to be a violent shade of orange: the bedspread, the walls, even the ceiling. Then Harry realized that Ron had covered nearly every inch of the shabby wallpaper with posters of the same seven witches and wizards, all wearing bright orange robes, carrying broomsticks, and waving energetically.

“Your Quidditch team?” said Harry.

“The Chudley Cannons,” said Ron, pointing at the orange bedspread, which was emblazoned with two giant black C’s and a speeding cannonball. “Ninth in the league.”

Ron’s school spellbooks were stacked untidily in a corner, next to a pile of comics that all seemed to feature The Adventures of Martin Miggs, the Mad Muggle. Ron’s magic wand was lying on top of a fish tank full of frog spawn on the windowsill, next to his fat gray rat, Scabbers, who was snoozing in a patch of sun.

Harry stepped over a pack of Self-Shuffling playing cards on the floor and looked out of the tiny window. In the field far below he could see a gang of gnomes sneaking one by one back through the Weasleys’ hedge. Then he turned to look at Ron, who was watching him almost nervously, as though waiting for his opinion.

“It’s a bit small,” said Ron quickly. “Not like that room you had with the Muggles. And I’m right underneath the ghoul in the attic; he’s always banging on the pipes and groaning…”

But Harry, grinning widely, said, “This is the best house I’ve ever been in.”

Ron’s ears went pink.

CHAPTER FOUR

At Flourish and Blotts

Life at the Burrow was as different as possible from life on Privet Drive. The Dursleys liked everything neat and ordered; the Weasleys’ house burst with the strange and unexpected. Harry got a shock the first time he looked in the mirror over the kitchen mantelpiece and it shouted, “Tuck your shirt in, scruffy!” The ghoul in the attic howled and dropped pipes whenever he felt things were getting too quiet, and small explosions from Fred and George’s bedroom were considered perfectly normal. What Harry found most unusual about life at Ron’s, however, wasn’t the talking mirror or the clanking ghoul: It was the fact that everybody there seemed to like him.

Mrs. Weasley fussed over the state of his socks and tried to force him to eat fourth helpings at every meal. Mr. Weasley liked Harry to sit next to him at the dinner table so that he could bombard him with questions about life with Muggles, asking him to explain how things like plugs and the postal service worked.

“Fascinating.” he would say as Harry talked him through using a telephone. “Ingenious, really, how many ways Muggles have found of getting along without magic.”

Harry heard from Hogwarts one sunny morning about a week after he had arrived at the Burrow. He and Ron went down to breakfast to find Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Ginny already sitting at the kitchen table. The moment she saw Harry, Ginny accidentally knocked her porridge bowl to the floor with a loud clatter. Ginny seemed very prone to knocking things over whenever Harry entered a room. She dived under the table to retrieve the bowl and emerged with her face glowing like the setting sun. Pretending he hadn’t noticed this, Harry sat down and took the toast Mrs. Weasley offered him.

“Letters from school,” said Mr. Weasley, passing Harry and Ron identical envelopes of yellowish parchment, addressed in green ink. “Dumbledore already knows you’re here, Harry — doesn’t miss a trick, that man. You two’ve got them, too,” he added, as Fred and George ambled in, still in their pajamas.

For a few minutes there was silence as they all read their letters. Harry’s told him to catch the Hogwarts Express as usual from King’s Cross station on September first. There was also a list of the new books he’d need for the coming year.

SECOND-YEAR STUDENTS WILL REQUIRE:

The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2by Miranda Goshawk

Break with a Banshee by Gilderoy Lockhart

Gadding with Ghouls by Gilderoy Lockhart

Holidays with Hags by

Gilderoy Lockhart

43 Travels with Trolls by Gilderoy Lockhart

Voyages with Vampires by Gilderoy Lockhart

Wanderings with Werewolves by Gilderoy Lockhart

Year with the Yeti by Gilderoy Lockhart

Fred, who had finished his own list, peered over at Harry’s.

“You’ve been told to get all Lockhart’s books, too!” he said. “The new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher must be a fan — bet it’s a witch.”

At this point, Fred caught his mother’s eye and quickly busied himself with the marmalade.

“That lot won’t come cheap,” said George, with a quick look at his parents. “Lockhart’s books are really expensive…”

“Well, we’ll manage,” said Mrs. Weasley, but she looked worried. “I expect we’ll be able to pick up a lot of Ginny’s things secondhand.”

“Oh, are you starting at Hogwarts this year?” Harry asked Ginny.

She nodded, blushing to the roots of her flaming hair, and put her elbow in the butter dish. Fortunately no one saw this except Harry, because just then Ron’s elder brother Percy walked in. He was already dressed, his Hogwarts prefect badge pinned to his sweater vest.

“Morning, all,” said Percy briskly. “Lovely day.”

He sat down in the only remaining chair but leapt up again almost immediately, pulling from underneath him a molting, gray feather duster — at least, that was what Harry thought it was, until he saw that it was breathing.

“Errol!” said Ron, taking the limp owl from Percy and extracting a letter from under its wing. “Finally— he’s got Hermione’s answer. I wrote to her saying we were going to try and rescue you from the Dursleys.”

He carried Errol to a perch just inside the back door and tried to stand him on it, but Errol flopped straight off again so Ron lay him on the draining board instead, muttering, “Pathetic.” Then he ripped open Hermione’s letter and read it out loud:

“`Dear Ron, and Harry if you’re there,

“`I hope everything went all right and that Harry is okay and that you didn’t do anything illegal

to get him out, Ron, because that would get Harry into trouble, too. I’ve been really worried and if Harry is all right, will you please let me know at once, but perhaps it would be better if you used a different owl because I think another delivery might finish your one off.

“I’m very busy with schoolwork, of course’— How can she be?” said Ron in horror. “We’re on vacation! —‘and we’re going to London next Wednesday to buy my new books. Why don’t we meet in Diagon Alley?

Let me know what’s happening as soon as you can. Love from Hermione.’”

“Well, that fits in nicely, we can go and get all your things then, too,” said Mrs. Weasley, starting to clear the table. “What’re you all up to today?”

Harry, Ron, Fred, and George were planning to go up the hill to a small paddock the Weasleys owned. It was surrounded by trees that blocked it from view of the village below, meaning that they could practice Quidditch there, as long as they didn’t fly too high.

They couldn’t use real Quidditch balls, which would have been hard to explain if they had escaped and flown away over the village; instead they threw apples for one another to catch. They took turns riding Harry’s Nimbus Two Thousand, which was easily the best broom; Ron’s old Shooting Star was often outstripped by passing butterflies.

Five minutes later they were marching up the hill, broomsticks over their shoulders. They had asked Percy if he wanted to join them, but he had said he was busy. Harry had only seen Percy at mealtimes so far; he stayed shut in his room the rest of the time.

“Wish I knew what he was up to,” said Fred, frowning. “He’s not himself. His exam results came the day before you did; twelve O.W.L.s and he hardly gloated at all.”

“Ordinary Wizarding Levels,” George explained, seeing Harry’s puzzled look. “Bill got twelve, too. If we’re not careful, we’ll have another Head Boy in the family. I don’t think I could stand the shame.”

Bill was the oldest Weasley brother. He and the next brother, Charlie, had already left Hogwarts. Harry had never met either of them, but knew that Charlie was in Romania studying dragons and Bill in Egypt working for the wizard’s bank, Gringotts.

“Dunno how Mum and Dad are going to afford all our school stuff this year,” said George after a while. “Five sets of Lockhart books! And Ginny needs robes and a wand and everything…”

Harry said nothing. He felt a bit awkward. Stored in an underground vault at Gringotts in London was a small fortune that his parents had left him. Of course, it was only in the wizarding world that he had money; you couldn’t use Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts in Muggle shops. He had never mentioned his Gringotts bank account to the Dursleys; he didn’t think their horror of anything connected with magic would stretch to a large pile of gold.

Mrs. Weasley woke them all early the following Wednesday. After a quick half a dozen bacon sandwiches each, they pulled on their coats and Mrs. Weasley took a flowerpot off the kitchen mantelpiece and peered inside.

“We’re running low, Arthur,” she sighed. “We’ll have to buy some more today… Ah well, guests first! After you, Harry dear!”

And she offered him the flowerpot.

Harry stared at them all watching him.

“W-what am I supposed to do?” he stammered.

“He’s never traveled by Floo powder,” said Ron suddenly. “Sorry, Harry, I forgot.”

“Never?” said Mr. Weasley. “But how did you get to Diagon Alley to buy your school things last year?”

“I went on the Underground —”

“Really?” said Mr. Weasley eagerly. “Were there escapators? How exactly —”

“Not now, Arthur,” said Mrs. Weasley. “Floo powder’s a lot quicker, dear, but goodness me, if you’ve never used it before —”

“He’ll be all right, Mum,” said Fred. “Harry, watch us first.”

He took a pinch of glittering powder out of the flowerpot, stepped up to the fire, and threw the powder into the flames.

With a roar, the fire turned emerald green and rose higher than Fred, who stepped right into it, shouted, “Diagon Alley!” and vanished.

“You must speak clearly, dear,” Mrs. Weasley told Harry as George dipped his hand into the flowerpot. “And be sure to get out at the right grate…”

“The right what?” said Harry nervously as the fire roared and whipped George out of sight, too.

“Well, there are an awful lot of wizard fires to choose from, you know, but as long as you’ve spoken clearly —”

“He’ll be fine, Molly, don’t fuss,” said Mr. Weasley, helping himself to Floo powder too.

“But, dear, if he got lost, how would we ever explain to his aunt and uncle?”

“They wouldn’t mind,” Harry reassured her. “Dudley would think it was a brilliant joke if I got

lost up a chimney, don’t worry about that —”

“Well… all right… you go after Arthur,” said Mrs. Weasley. “Now, when you get into the fire, say where you’re going.”

“And keep your elbows tucked in,” Ron advised.

“And your eyes shut,” said Mrs. Weasley. “The soot —”

“Don’t fidget,” said Ron. “Or you might well fall out of the wrong fireplace —”

“But don’t panic and get out too early; wait until you see Fred and George.”

Trying hard to bear all this in mind, Harry took a pinch of Floo powder and walked to the edge of the fire. He took a deep breath, scattered the powder into the flames, and stepped forward; the fire felt like a warm breeze; he opened his mouth and immediately swallowed a lot of hot ash.

“D-Dia-gon Alley,” he coughed.

It felt as though he was being sucked down a giant drain. He seemed to be spinning very fast — the roaring in his ears was deafening — he tried to keep his eyes open but the whirl of green flames made him feel sick —something hard knocked his elbow and he tucked it in tightly, still spinning and spinning — now it felt as though cold hands were slapping his face — squinting through his glasses he saw a blurred stream of fireplaces and snatched glimpses of the rooms beyond — his bacon sandwiches were churning inside him — he closed his eyes again wishing it would stop, and then…

He fell, face forward, onto cold stone and felt the bridge of his glasses snap.

Dizzy and bruised, covered in soot, he got gingerly to his feet, holding his broken glasses up to his eyes. He was quite alone, but where he was, he had no idea. All he could tell was that he was standing in the stone fireplace of what looked like a large, dimly lit wizard’s shop — but nothing in here was ever likely to be on a Hogwarts school list.

A glass case nearby held a withered hand on a cushion, a bloodstained pack of cards, and a staring glass eye. Evil-looking masks stared down from the walls, an assortment of human bones lay upon the counter, and rusty, spiked instruments hung from the ceiling. Even worse, the dark, narrow street Harry could see through the dusty shop window was definitely not Diagon Alley.

The sooner he got out of here, the better. Nose still stinging where it had hit the hearth, Harry made his way swiftly and silently toward the door, but before he’d got halfway toward it, two people appeared on the other side of the glass — and one of them was the very last person Harry wanted to meet when he was lost, covered in soot, and wearing broken glasses: Draco Malfoy.

Harry looked quickly around and spotted a large black cabinet to his left; he shot inside it and pulled the doors closed, leaving a small crack to peer through. Seconds later, a bell clanged, and

Malfoy stepped into the shop.

The man who followed could only be Draco’s father. He had the same pale, pointed face and identical cold, gray eyes. Mr. Malfoy crossed the shop, looking lazily at the items on display, and rang a bell on the counter before turning to his son and saying, “Touch nothing, Draco.”

Malfoy, who had reached for the glass eye, said, “I thought you were going to buy me a present.”

“I said I would buy you a racing broom,” said his father, drumming his fingers on the counter.

“What’s the good of that if I’m not on the House team?” said Malfoy, looking sulky and badtempered. “Harry Potter got a Nimbus Two Thousand last year. Special permission from Dumbledore so he could play for Gryffindor. He’s not even that good, it’s just because he’s famous… famous for having a stupid scar on his forehead…”

Malfoy bent down to examine a shelf full of skulls.

“… everyone thinks he’s so smart, wonderful Potter with his scar and his broomstick —”

“You have told me this at least a dozen times already,” said Mr. Malfoy, with a quelling look at his son. “And I would remind you that it is not — prudent — to appear less than fond of Harry Potter, not when most of our kind regard him as the hero who made the Dark Lord disappear — ah, Mr. Borgin.”

A stooping man had appeared behind the counter, smoothing his greasy hair back from his face.

“Mr. Malfoy, what a pleasure to see you again,” said Mr. Borgin in a voice as oily as his hair. “Delighted — and young Master Malfoy, too — charmed. How may I be of assistance? I must show you, just in today, and very reasonably priced —”

“I’m not buying today, Mr. Borgin, but selling,” said Mr. Malfoy.

“Selling?” The smile faded slightly from Mr. Borgin’s face.

“You have heard, of course, that the Ministry is conducting more raids,” said Mr. Malfoy, taking a roll of parchment from his inside pocket and unraveling it for Mr. Borgin to read. “I have a few — ah — items at home that might embarrass me, if the Ministry were to call…”

Mr. Borgin fixed a pair of pince-nez to his nose and looked down the list.

“The Ministry wouldn’t presume to trouble you, sir, surely?”

Mr. Malfoy’s lip curled.

“I have not been visited yet. The name Malfoy still commands a certain respect, yet the Ministry grows ever more meddlesome. There are rumors about a new Muggle Protection Act — no doubt

that flea-bitten, Muggle-loving fool Arthur Weasley is behind it —”

Harry felt a hot surge of anger.

“— and as you see, certain of these poisons might make it appear —”

“I understand, sir, of course,” said Mr. Borgin. “Let me see…”

“Can I have that?” interrupted Draco, pointing at the withered hand on its cushion.

“Ah, the Hand of Glory!” said Mr. Borgin, abandoning Mr. Malfoy’s list and scurrying over to Draco. “Insert a candle and it gives light only to the holder! Best friend of thieves and plunderers! Your son has fine taste, sir.”

“I hope my son will amount to more than a thief or a plunderer, Borgin,” said Mr. Malfoy coldly, and Mr. Borgin said quickly, “No offense, sir, no offense meant —”

“Though if his grades don’t pick up,” said Mr. Malfoy, more coldly still, “that may indeed be all he is fit for —”

“It’s not my fault,” retorted Draco. “The teachers all have favorites, that Hermione Granger —”

“I would have thought you’d be ashamed that a girl of no wizard family beat you in every exam,” snapped Mr. Malfoy.

“Ha!” said Harry under his breath, pleased to see Draco looking both abashed and angry.

“It’s the same all over,” said Mr. Borgin, in his oily voice. “Wizard blood is counting for less everywhere —”

“Not with me,” said Mr. Malfoy, his long nostrils flaring.

“No, sir, nor with me, sir,” said Mr. Borgin, with a deep bow.

“In that case, perhaps we can return to my list,” said Mr. Malfoy shortly. “I am in something of a hurry, Borgin, I have important business elsewhere today —”

They started to haggle. Harry watched nervously as Draco drew nearer and nearer to his hiding place, examining the objects for sale. Draco paused to examine a long coil of hangman’s rope and to read, smirking, the card propped on a magnificent necklace of opals, Caution: Do Not Touch. Cursed — Has Claimed the Lives of Nineteen Muggle Owners to Date.

Draco turned away and saw the cabinet right in front of him. He walked forward — he stretched out his hand for the handle “Done,” said Mr. Malfoy at the counter. “Come, Draco —”

Harry wiped his forehead on his sleeve as Draco turned away.

“Good day to you, Mr. Borgin. I’ll expect you at the manor tomorrow to pick up the goods.”

The moment the door had closed, Mr. Borgin dropped his oily manner.

“Good day yourself, Mister Malfoy, and if the stories are true, you haven’t sold me half of what’s hidden in your manor…”

Muttering darkly, Mr. Borgin disappeared into a back room. Harry waited for a minute in case he came back, then, quietly as he could, slipped out of the cabinet, past the glass cases, and out of the shop door.

Clutching his broken glasses to his face, Harry stared around. He had emerged into a dingy alleyway that seemed to be made up entirely of shops devoted to the Dark Arts. The one he’d just left, Borgin and Burkes, looked like the largest, but opposite was a nasty window display of shrunken heads and, two doors down, a large cage was alive with gigantic black spiders. Two shabby-looking wizards were watching him from the shadow of a doorway, muttering to each other. Feeling jumpy, Harry set off, trying to hold his glasses on straight and hoping against hope he’d be able to find a way out of here.

An old wooden street sign hanging over a shop selling poisonous candles told him he was in Knockturn Alley. This didn’t help, as Harry had never heard of such a place. He supposed he hadn’t spoken clearly enough through his mouthful of ashes back in the Weasleys’ fire. Trying to stay calm, he wondered what to do.

“Not lost are you, my dear?” said a voice in his ear, making him jump.

An aged witch stood in front of him, holding a tray of what looked horribly like whole human fingernails. She leered at him, showing mossy teeth. Harry backed away.

“I’m fine, thanks,” he said. “I’m just —”

“HARRY! What d’yeh think yer doin’ down there?”

Harry’s heart leapt. So did the witch; a load of fingernails cascaded down over her feet and she cursed as the massive form of Hagrid, the Hogwarts’ gamekeeper, came striding toward them, beetle-black eyes flashing over his great bristling beard.

“Hagrid!” Harry croaked in relief. “I was lost — Floo powder —”

Hagrid seized Harry by the scruff of the neck and pulled him away from the witch, knocking the tray right out of her hands. Her shrieks followed them all the way along the twisting alleyway out into bright sunlight. Harry saw a familiar, snow-white marble building in the distance — Gringotts Bank. Hagrid had steered him right into Diagon Alley.

“Yer a mess!” said Hagrid gruffly, brushing soot off Harry so forcefully he nearly knocked him into a barrel of dragon dung outside an apothecary. “Skulkin’ around Knockturn Alley, I dunno

dodgy place, Harry — don’ want no one ter see yeh down there —”

“I realized that,” said Harry, ducking as Hagrid made to brush him off again. “I told you, I was lost — what were you doing down there, anyway?”

“I was lookin’ fer a Flesh-Eatin’ Slug Repellent,” growled Hagrid. “They’re ruinin’ the school cabbages. Yer not on yer own?”

“I’m staying with the Weasleys but we got separated,” Harry explained. “I’ve got to go and find them…”

They set off together down the street.

“How come yeh never wrote back ter me?” said Hagrid as Harry jogged alongside him (he had to take three steps to every stride of Hagrid’s enormous boots). Harry explained all about Dobby and the Dursleys.

“Lousy Muggles,” growled Hagrid. “If I’d’ve known —”

“Harry! Harry! Over here!”

Harry looked up and saw Hermione Granger standing at the top of the white flight of steps to Gringotts. She ran down to meet them, her bushy brown hair flying behind her.

“What happened to your glasses? Hello, Hagrid — Oh, it’s wonderful to see you two again — Are you coming into Gringotts, Harry?”

“As soon as I’ve found the Weasleys,” said Harry.

“Yeh won’t have long ter wait,” Hagrid said with a grin.

Harry and Hermione looked around: Sprinting up the crowded street were Ron, Fred, George, Percy, and Mr. Weasley.

“Harry,” Mr. Weasley panted. “We hoped you’d only gone one grate too far…” He mopped his glistening bald patch. “Molly’s frantic — she’s coming now —”

“Where did you come out?” Ron asked.

“Knockturn Alley,” said Hagrid grimly.

“Excellent!” said Fred and George together.

“We’ve never been allowed in,” said Ron enviously.

“I should ruddy well think not,” growled Hagrid. Mrs. Weasley now came galloping into view,

her handbag swinging wildly in one hand, Ginny just clinging onto the other.

“Oh, Harry — oh, my dear — you could have been anywhere —”

Gasping for breath she pulled a large clothes brush out of her bag and began sweeping off the soot Hagrid hadn’t managed to beat away. Mr. Weasley took Harry’s glasses, gave them a tap of his wand, and returned them, good as new.

“Well, gotta be off,” said Hagrid, who was having his hand wrung by Mrs. Weasley (“Knockturn Alley! If you hadn’t found him, Hagrid!”). “See yer at Hogwarts!” And he strode away, head and shoulders taller than anyone else in the packed street.

“Guess who I saw in Borgin and Burkes?” Harry asked Ron and Hermione as they climbed the Gringotts steps. “Malfoy and his father.”

“Did Lucius Malfoy buy anything?” said Mr. Weasley sharply behind them.

“No, he was selling —”

“So he’s worried,” said Mr. Weasley with grim satisfaction. “Oh, I’d love to get Lucius Malfoy for something…”

“You be careful, Arthur,” said Mrs. Weasley sharply as they were bowed into the bank by a goblin at the door. “That family’s trouble. Don’t go biting off more than you can chew —”

“So you don’t think I’m a match for Lucius Malfoy?” said Mr. Weasley indignantly, but he was distracted almost at once by the sight of Hermione’s parents, who were standing nervously at the counter that ran all along the great marble hall, waiting for Hermione to introduce them.

“But you’re Muggles!” said Mr. Weasley delightedly. “We must have a drink! What’s that you’ve got there? Oh, you’re changing Muggle money. Molly, look!” He pointed excitedly at the ten-pound notes in Mr. Granger’s hand.

“Meet you back here,” Ron said to Hermione as the Weasleys and Harry were led off to their underground vaults by another Gringotts goblin.

The vaults were reached by means of small, goblin-driven carts that sped along miniature train tracks through the bank’s underground tunnels. Harry enjoyed the breakneck journey down to the Weasleys’ vault, but felt dreadful, far worse than he had in Knockturn Alley, when it was opened. There was a very small pile of silver Sickles inside, and just one gold Galleon. Mrs. Weasley felt right into the corners before sweeping the whole lot into her bag. Harry felt even worse when they reached his vault. He tried to block the contents from view as he hastily shoved handfuls of coins into a leather bag.

Back outside on the marble steps, they all separated. Percy muttered vaguely about needing a new quill. Fred and George had spotted their friend from Hogwarts, Lee Jordan. Mrs. Weasley

and Ginny were going to a secondhand robe shop. Mr. Weasley was insisting on taking the Grangers off to the Leaky Cauldron for a drink.

“We’ll all meet at Flourish and Blotts in an hour to buy your schoolbooks,” said Mrs. Weasley, setting off with Ginny. “And not one step down Knockturn Alley!” she shouted at the twins’ retreating backs.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione strolled off along the winding, cobbled street. The bag of gold, silver, and bronze jangling cheerfully in Harry’s pocket was clamoring to be spent, so he bought three large strawberry-and-peanut-butter ice creams, which they slurped happily as they wandered up the alley, examining the fascinating shop windows. Ron gazed longingly at a full set of Chudley Cannon robes in the windows of Quality Quidditch Supplies until Hermione dragged them off to buy ink and parchment next door. In Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke Shop, they met Fred, George, and Lee Jordan, who were stocking up on Dr. Filibuster’s Fabulous Wet-Start, No-Heat Fireworks, and in a tiny junk shop full of broken wands, lopsided brass scales, and old cloaks covered in potion stains they found Percy, deeply immersed in a small and deeply boring book called Prefects Who Gained Power

“A study of Hogwarts prefects and their later careers,” Ron read aloud off the back cover. “That sounds fascinating…”

“Go away,” Percy snapped.

“’Course, he’s very ambitious, Percy, he’s got it all planned out… He wants to be Minister of Magic…” Ron told Harry and Hermione in an undertone as they left Percy to it.

An hour later, they headed for Flourish and Blotts. They were by no means the only ones making their way to the bookshop. As they approached it, they saw to their surprise a large crowd jostling outside the doors, trying to get in. The reason for this was proclaimed by a large banner stretched across the upper windows:

GILDEROY LOCKHART

will be signing copies of his autobiography

MAGICAL ME

today 12:30P.M.to 4:30P.M.

“We can actually meet him!” Hermione squealed. “I mean, he’s written almost the whole booklist!”

The crowd seemed to be made up mostly of witches around Mrs. Weasley’s age. A harassedlooking wizard stood at the door, saying, “Calmly, please, ladies… Don’t push, there… mind the books, now…”

Harry, Ron, and Hermione squeezed inside. A long line wound right to the back of the shop, where Gilderoy Lockhart was signing his books. They each grabbed a copy of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 and sneaked up the line to where the rest of the Weasleys were standing with Mr. and Mrs. Granger.

“Oh, there you are, good,” said Mrs. Weasley. She sounded breathless and kept patting her hair. “We’ll be able to see him in a minute…”

Gilderoy Lockhart came slowly into view, seated at a table surrounded by large pictures of his own face, all winking and flashing dazzlingly white teeth at the crowd. The real Lockhart was wearing robes of forget-me-not blue that exactly matched his eyes; his pointed wizard’s hat was set at a jaunty angle on his wavy hair.

A short, irritable-looking man was dancing around taking photographs with a large black camera that emitted puffs of purple smoke with every blinding flash.

“Out of the way, there,” he snarled at Ron, moving back to get a better shot. “This is for the Daily Prophet —”

“Big deal,” said Ron, rubbing his foot where the photographer had stepped on it.

Gilderoy Lockhart heard him. He looked up. He saw Ron — and then he saw Harry. He stared. Then he leapt to his feet and positively shouted, “It can’t be Harry Potter?”

The crowd parted, whispering excitedly; Lockhart dived forward, seized Harry’s arm, and pulled him to the front. The crowd burst into applause. Harry’s face burned as Lockhart shook his hand for the photographer, who was clicking away madly, wafting thick smoke over the Weasleys.

“Nice big smile, Harry,” said Lockhart, through his own gleaming teeth. “Together, you and I are worth the front page.”

When he finally let go of Harry’s hand, Harry could hardly feel his fingers. He tried to sidle back over to the Weasleys, but Lockhart threw an arm around his shoulders and clamped him tightly to his side.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” he said loudly, waving for quiet. “What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I’ve been sitting on for some time!

“When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography — which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge —” The crowd applauded again. “He had no idea,” Lockhart continued, giving Harry a little shake that made his glasses slip to the end of his nose, “that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, Magical Me. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!”

The crowd cheered and clapped and Harry found himself being presented with the entire works of Gilderoy Lockhart. Staggering slightly under their weight, he managed to make his way out of the limelight to the edge of the room, where Ginny was standing next to her new cauldron.

“You have these,” Harry mumbled to her, tipping the books into the cauldron. “I’ll buy my own —”

“Bet you loved that, didn’t you, Potter?” said a voice Harry had no trouble recognizing. He straightened up and found himself face-to-face with Draco Malfoy, who was wearing his usual sneer.

“Famous Harry Potter,” said Malfoy. “Can’t even go into a bookshop without making the front page.”

“Leave him alone, he didn’t want all that!” said Ginny. It was the first time she had spoken in front of Harry. She was glaring at Malfoy.

“Potter, you’ve got yourself a girlfriend!” drawled Malfoy. Ginny went scarlet as Ron and Hermione fought their way over, both clutching stacks of Lockhart’s books.

“Oh, it’s you,” said Ron, looking at Malfoy as if he were something unpleasant on the sole of his shoe. “Bet you’re surprised to see Harry here, eh?”

“Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley,” retorted Malfoy. “I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for all those.”

Ron went as red as Ginny. He dropped his books into the cauldron, too, and started toward Malfoy, but Harry and Hermione grabbed the back of his jacket.

“Ron!” said Mr. Weasley, struggling over with Fred and George. “What are you doing? It’s too crowded in here, let’s go outside.”

“Well, well, well — Arthur Weasley.”

It was Mr. Malfoy. He stood with his hand on Draco’s shoulder, sneering in just the same way.

“Lucius,” said Mr. Weasley, nodding coldly.

“Busy time at the Ministry, I hear,” said Mr. Malfoy. “All those raids… I hope they’re paying you overtime?”

He reached into Ginny’s cauldron and extracted, from amid the glossy Lockhart books, a very old, very battered copy of A Beginner’s Guide to Transfiguration

“Obviously not,” Mr. Malfoy said. “Dear me, what’s the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don’t even pay you well for it?”

Mr. Weasley flushed darker than either Ron or Ginny.

“We have a very different idea of what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy,” he said.

“Clearly,” said Mr. Malfoy, his pale eyes straying to Mr. and Mrs. Granger, who were watching apprehensively. “The company you keep, Weasley… and I thought your family could sink no lower.”

There was a thud of metal as Ginny’s cauldron went flying; Mr. Weasley had thrown himself at Mr. Malfoy, knocking him backward into a bookshelf. Dozens of heavy spellbooks came thundering down on all their heads; there was a yell of, “Get him, Dad!” from Fred or George; Mrs. Weasley was shrieking, “No, Arthur, no!”; the crowd stampeded backward, knocking more shelves over; “Gentlemen, please — please!” cried the assistant, and then, louder than all —

“Break it up, there, gents, break it up —”

Hagrid was wading toward them through the sea of books. In an instant he had pulled Mr. Weasley and Mr. Malfoy apart. Mr. Weasley had a cut lip and Mr. Malfoy had been hit in the eye by an Encyclopedia of Toadstools. He was still holding Ginny’s old Transfiguration book. He thrust it at her, his eyes glittering with malice.

“Here, girl — take your book — it’s the best your father can give you —” Pulling himself out of Hagrid’s grip he beckoned to Draco and swept from the shop.

“Yeh should’ve ignored him, Arthur,” said Hagrid, almost lifting Mr. Weasley off his feet as he straightened his robes. “Rotten ter the core, the whole family, everyone knows that — no Malfoy’s worth listenin’ ter — bad blood, that’s what it is — come on now — let’s get outta here.”

The assistant looked as though he wanted to stop them leaving, but he barely came up to Hagrid’s waist and seemed to think better of it. They hurried up the street, the Grangers shaking with fright and Mrs. Weasley beside herself with fury.

“A fine example to set for your children… brawling in public… what Gilderoy Lockhart must’ve thought —”

“He was pleased,” said Fred. “Didn’t you hear him as we were leaving? He was asking that bloke from the Daily Prophet if he’d be able to work the fight into his report — said it was all publicity —”

But it was a subdued group that headed back to the fireside in the Leaky Cauldron, where Harry, the Weasleys, and all their shopping would be traveling back to the Burrow using Floo powder. They said good-bye to the Grangers, who were leaving the pub for the Muggle street on the other side; Mr. Weasley started to ask them how bus stops worked, but stopped quickly at the look on Mrs. Weasley’s face.

Harry took off his glasses and put them safely in his pocket before helping himself to Floo powder. It definitely wasn’t his favorite way to travel.

CHAPTER FIVE

The Whomping Willow

The end of the summer vacation came too quickly for Harry’s liking. He was looking forward to getting back to Hogwarts, but his month at the Burrow had been the happiest of his life. It was difficult not to feel jealous of Ron when he thought of the Dursleys and the sort of welcome he could expect next time he turned up on Privet Drive.

On their last evening, Mrs. Weasley conjured up a sumptuous dinner that included all of Harry’s favorite things, ending with a mouthwatering treacle pudding. Fred and George rounded off the evening with a display of Filibuster fireworks; they filled the kitchen with red and blue stars that bounced from ceiling to wall for at least half an hour. Then it was time for a last mug of hot chocolate and bed.

It took a long while to get started next morning. They were up at dawn, but somehow they still seemed to have a great deal to do. Mrs. Weasley dashed about in a bad mood looking for spare socks and quills; people kept colliding on the stairs, half-dressed with bits of toast in their hands; and Mr. Weasley nearly broke his neck, tripping over a stray chicken as he crossed the yard carrying Ginny’s trunk to the car.

Harry couldn’t see how eight people, six large trunks, two owls, and a rat were going to fit into one small Ford Anglia. He had reckoned, of course, without the special features that Mr. Weasley had added.

“Not a word to Molly,” he whispered to Harry as he opened the trunk and showed him how it had been magically expanded so that the luggage fitted easily.

When at last they were all in the car, Mrs. Weasley glanced into the back seat, where Harry, Ron, Fred, George, and Percy were all sitting comfortably side by side, and said, “Muggles do know more than we give them credit for, don’t they?” She and Ginny got into the front seat, which had been stretched so that it resembled a park bench. “I mean, you’d never know it was this roomy from the outside, would you?”

Mr. Weasley started up the engine and they trundled out of the yard, Harry turning back for a last look at the house. He barely had time to wonder when he’d see it again when they were back. George had forgotten his box of Filibuster fireworks. Five minutes after that, they skidded to a halt in the yard so that Fred could run in for his broomstick. They had almost reached the highway when Ginny shrieked that she’d left her diary. By the time she had clambered back into the car, they were running very late, and tempers were running high.

Mr. Weasley glanced at his watch and then at his wife.

“Molly, dear —”

No, Arthur —–”

“No one would see — this little button here is an Invisibility Booster I installed — that’d get us up in the air — then we fly above the clouds. We’d be there in ten minutes and no one would be any the wiser —”

“I said no, Arthur, not in broad daylight —”

They reached King’s Cross at a quarter to eleven. Mr. Weasley dashed across the road to get trolleys for their trunks and they all hurried into the station.

Harry had caught the Hogwarts Express the previous year. The tricky part was getting onto platform nine and three-quarters, which wasn’t visible to the Muggle eye. What you had to do was walk through the solid barrier dividing platforms nine and ten. It didn’t hurt, but it had to be done carefully so that none of the Muggles noticed you vanishing.

“Percy first,” said Mrs. Weasley, looking nervously at the clock overhead, which showed they had only five minutes to disappear casually through the barrier.

Percy strode briskly forward and vanished. Mr. Weasley went next; Fred and George followed.

“I’ll take Ginny and you two come right after us,” Mrs. Weasley told Harry and Ron, grabbing Ginny’s hand and setting off. In the blink of an eye they were gone.

“Let’s go together, we’ve only got a minute,” Ron said to Harry.

Harry made sure that Hedwig’s cage was safely wedged on top of his trunk and wheeled his trolley around to face the barrier. He felt perfectly confident; this wasn’t nearly as uncomfortable as using Floo powder. Both of them bent low over the handles of their trolleys and walked purposefully toward the barrier, gathering speed. A few feet away from it, they broke into a run and —

CRASH.

Both trolleys hit the barrier and bounced backward; Ron’s trunk fell off with a loud thump, Harry was knocked off his feet, and Hedwig’s cage bounced onto the shiny floor, and she rolled away, shrieking indignantly; people all around them stared and a guard nearby yelled, “What in blazes d’you think you’re doing?”

“Lost control of the trolley,” Harry gasped, clutching his ribs as he got up. Ron ran to pick up Hedwig, who was causing such a scene that there was a lot of muttering about cruelty to animals from the surrounding crowd.

“Why can’t we get through?” Harry hissed to Ron.

“I dunno —”

Ron looked wildly around. A dozen curious people were still watching them.

“We’re going to miss the train,” Ron whispered. “I don’t understand why the gateway’s sealed itself —”

Harry looked up at the giant clock with a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach. Ten seconds… nine seconds…

He wheeled his trolley forward cautiously until it was right against the barrier and pushed with all his might. The metal remained solid.

Three seconds… two seconds… one second…

“It’s gone,” said Ron, sounding stunned. “The train’s left. What if Mum and Dad can’t get back through to us? Have you got any Muggle money?”

Harry gave a hollow laughed. “The Dursleys haven’t given me pocket money for about six years.”

Ron pressed his ear to the cold barrier.

“Can’t hear a thing,” he said tensely, “What’re we going to do? I don’t know how long it’ll take Mum and Dad to get back to us.”

They looked around. People were still watching them, mainly because of Hedwig’s continuing screeches.

“I think we’d better go and wait by the car,” said Harry. “We’re attracting too much atten —”

“Harry!” said Ron, his eyes gleaming. “The car!”

“What about it?”

“We can fly the car to Hogwarts!”

“But I thought —”

“We’re stuck, right? And we’ve got to get to school, haven’t we? And even underage wizards are allowed to use magic if it’s a real emergency, section nineteen or something of the Restriction of Thingy —”

“But your Mum and Dad…” said Harry, pushing against the barrier again in the vain hope that it would give way. “How will they get home?”

“They don’t need the car!” said Ron impatiently. “They know how to Apparate! You know, just vanish and reappear at home! They only bother with Floo powder and the car because we’re all

underage and we’re not allowed to Apparate yet…”

Harry’s feeling of panic turned suddenly to excitement.

“Can you fly it?”

“No, problem,” said Ron, wheeling his trolley around to face the exit. “C’mon, let’s go. If we hurry we’ll be able to follow the Hogwarts Express —”

And they marched off through the crowd of curious Muggles, out of the station and back onto the side road where the old Ford Anglia was parked.

Ron unlocked the cavernous trunk with a series of taps from his wand. They heaved their luggage back in, put Hedwig on the back seat, and got into the front.

“Check that no one’s watching,” said Ron, starting the ignition with another tap of his wand. Harry stuck his head out of the window: Traffic was rumbling along the main road ahead, but their street was empty.

“Okay,” he said.

Ron pressed a tiny silver button on the dashboard. The car around them vanished — and so did they. Harry could feel the seat vibrating beneath him, hear the engine, feel his hands on his knees and his glasses on his nose, but for all he could see, he had become a pair of eyeballs, floating a few feet above the ground in a dingy street full of parked cars.

“Let’s go,” said Ron’s voice from his right.

And the ground and the dirty buildings on either side fell away, dropping out of sight as the car rose; in seconds, the whole of London lay, smoky and glittering, below them.

Then there was a popping noise and the car, Harry, and Ron reappeared.

“Uh-oh,” said Ron, jabbing at the Invisibility Booster. “It’s faulty —”

Both of them pummeled it. The car vanished. Then it flickered back again.

“Hold on!” Ron yelled, and he slammed his foot on the accelerator; they shot straight into the low, woolly clouds and everything turned dull and foggy.

“Now what?” said Harry, blinking at the solid mass of cloud pressing in on them from all sides.

“We need to see the train to know what direction to go in,” said Ron.

“Dip back down again — quickly —”

They dropped back beneath the clouds and twisted around in their seats, squinting at the ground.

“I can see it!” Harry yelled. “Right ahead — there!”

The Hogwarts Express was streaking along below them like a scarlet snake.

“Due north,” said Ron, checking the compass on the dashboard. “Okay, we’ll just have to check on it every half hour or so — hold on —”

And they shot up through the clouds. A minute later, they burst out into a blaze of sunlight.

It was a different world. The wheels of the car skimmed the sea of fluffy cloud, the sky a bright, endless blue under the blinding white sun.

“All we’ve got to worry about now are airplanes,” said Ron.

They looked at each other and started to laugh; for a long time, they couldn’t stop.

It was as though they had been plunged into a fabulous dream. This, thought Harry, was surely the only way to travel — past swirls and turrets of snowy cloud, in a car full of hot, bright sunlight, with a fat pack of toffees in the glove compartment, and the prospect of seeing Fred’s and George’s jealous faces when they landed smoothly and spectacularly on the sweeping lawn in front of Hogwarts castle.

They made regular checks on the train as they flew farther and farther north, each dip beneath the clouds showing them a different view. London was soon far behind them, replaced by neat green fields that gave way in turn to wide, purplish moors, a great city alive with cars like multicolored ants, villages with tiny toy churches.

Several uneventful hours later, however, Harry had to admit that some of the fun was wearing off. The toffees had made them extremely thirsty and they had nothing to drink. He and Ron had pulled off their sweaters, but Harry’s T-shirt was sticking to the back of his seat and his glasses kept sliding down to the end of his sweaty nose. He had stopped noticing the fantastic cloud shapes now and was thinking longingly of the train miles below, where you could buy ice-cold pumpkin juice from a trolley pushed by a plump witch. Why hadn’t they been able to get onto platform nine and three-quarters?

“Can’t be much further, can it?” croaked Ron, hours later still, as the sun started to sink into their floor of cloud, staining it a deep pink. “Ready for another check on the train?”

It was still right below them, winding its way past a snowcapped mountain. It was much darker beneath the canopy of clouds.

Ron put his foot on the accelerator and drove them upward again, but as he did so, the engine began to whine.

Harry and Ron exchanged nervous glances.

“It’s probably just tired,” said Ron. “It’s never been this far before…”

And they both pretended not to notice the whining growing louder and louder as the sky became steadily darker. Stars were blossoming in the blackness. Harry pulled his sweater back on, trying to ignore the way the windshield wipers were now waving feebly, as though in protest.

“Not far,” said Ron, more to the car than to Harry, “not far now,” and he patted the dashboard nervously.

When they flew back beneath the clouds a little while later, they had to squint through the darkness for a landmark they knew.

“There!” Harry shouted, making Ron and Hedwig jump. “Straight ahead!”

Silhouetted on the dark horizon, high on the cliff over the lake, stood the many turrets and towers of Hogwarts castle.

But the car had begun to shudder and was losing speed.

“Come on,” Ron said cajolingly, giving the steering wheel a little shake, “nearly there, come on —”

The engine groaned. Narrow jets of steam were issuing from under the hood. Harry found himself gripping the edges of his seat very hard as they flew toward the lake.

The car gave a nasty wobble. Glancing out of his window, Harry saw the smooth, black, glassy surface of the water, a mile below. Ron’s knuckles were white on the steering wheel. The car wobbled again.

“Come on,” Ron muttered.

They were over the lake — the castle was right ahead — Ron put his foot down.

There was a loud clunk, a splutter, and the engine died completely.

“Uh-oh,” said Ron, into the silence.

The nose of the car dropped. They were falling, gathering speed, heading straight for the solid castle wall.

“Noooooo!” Ron yelled, swinging the steering wheel around; they missed the dark stone wall by inches as the car turned in a great arc, soaring over the dark greenhouses, then the vegetable patch, and then out over the black lawns, losing altitude all the time.

Ron let go of the steering wheel completely and pulled his wand out of his back pocket —

“STOP! STOP!” he yelled, whacking the dashboard and the windshield, but they were still plummeting, the ground flying up toward them —

“WATCH OUT FOR THAT TREE!” Harry bellowed, lunging for the steering wheel, but too late — CRUNCH.

With an earsplitting bang of metal on wood, they hit the thick tree trunk and dropped to the ground with a heavy jolt. Steam was billowing from under the crumpled hood; Hedwig was shrieking in terror; a golfball-size lump was throbbing on Harry’s head where he had hit the windshield; and to his right, Ron let out a low, despairing groan.

“Are you okay?” Harry said urgently.

“My wand,” said Ron, in a shaky voice. “Look at my wand —”

It had snapped, almost in two; the tip was dangling limply, held on by a few splinters.

Harry opened his mouth to say he was sure they’d be able to mend it up at the school, but he never even got started. At that very moment, something hit his side of the car with the force of a charging bull, sending him lurching sideways into Ron, just as an equally heavy blow hit the roof.

“What’s happen —?”

Ron gasped, staring through the windshield, and Harry looked around just in time to see a branch as thick as a python smash into it. The tree they had hit was attacking them. Its trunk was bent almost double, and its gnarled boughs were pummeling every inch of the car it could reach.

“Aaargh!” said Ron as another twisted limb punched a large dent into his door; the windshield was now trembling under a hail of blows from knuckle-like twigs and a branch as thick as a battering ram was pounding furiously on the roof, which seemed to be caving in.

“Run for it!” Ron shouted, throwing his full weight against his door, but next second he had been knocked backward into Harry’s lap by a vicious uppercut from another branch.

“We’re done for!” he moaned as the ceiling sagged, but suddenly the floor of the car was vibrating — the engine had restarted.

“Reverse!” Harry yelled, and the car shot backward; the tree was still trying to hit them; they could hear its roots creaking as it almost ripped itself up, lashing out at them as they sped out of reach.

“That,” panted Ron, “was close. Well done, car —”

The car, however, had reached the end of its tether. With two sharp clunks, the doors flew open and Harry felt his seat tip sideways: Next thing he knew he was sprawled on the damp ground. Loud thuds told him that the car was ejecting their luggage from the trunk; Hedwig’s cage flew through the air and burst open; she rose out of it with an angry screech and sped off toward the castle without a backward look. Then, dented, scratched, and steaming, the car rumbled off into the darkness, its rear lights blazing angrily.

“Come back!” Ron yelled after it, brandishing his broken wand. “Dad’ll kill me!”

But the car disappeared from view with one last snort from its exhaust.

“Can you believe our luck?” said Ron miserably, bending down to pick up Scabbers. “Of all the trees we could’ve hit, we had to get one that hits back.”

He glanced over his shoulder at the ancient tree, which was still flailing its branches threateningly.

“Come on,” said Harry wearily, “we’d better get up to the school…”

It wasn’t at all the triumphant arrival they had pictured. Stiff, cold, and bruised, they seized the ends of their trunks and began dragging them up the grassy slope, toward the great oak front doors.

“I think the feast’s already started,” said Ron, dropping his trunk at the foot of the front steps and crossing quietly to look through a brightly lit window. “Hey — Harry — come and look — it’s the Sorting!”

Harry hurried over and, together, he and Ron peered in at the Great Hall.

Innumerable candles were hovering in midair over four long, crowded tables, making the golden plates and goblets sparkle. Overhead, the bewitched ceiling, which always mirrored the sky outside, sparkled with stars.

Through the forest of pointed black Hogwarts hats, Harry saw a long line of scared-looking first years filing into the Hall. Ginny was among them, easily visible because of her vivid Weasley hair. Meanwhile, Professor McGonagall, a bespectacled witch with her hair in a tight bun, was placing the famous Hogwarts Sorting Hat on a stool before the newcomers.

Every year, this aged old hat, patched, frayed, and dirty, sorted new students into the four Hogwarts houses (Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin). Harry well remembered putting it on, exactly one year ago, and waiting, petrified, for its decision as it muttered aloud in his ear. For a few horrible seconds he had feared that the hat was going to put him in Slytherin, the house that had turned out more Dark witches and wizards than any other but he had ended up in Gryffindor, along with Ron, Hermione, and the rest of the Weasleys. Last term, Harry and

Ron had helped Gryffindor win the House Championship, beating Slytherin for the first time in seven years.

A very small, mousy-haired boy had been called forward to place the hat on his head. Harry’s eyes wandered past him to where Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster, sat watching the Sorting from the staff table, his long silver beard and half-moon glasses shining brightly in the candlelight. Several seats along, Harry saw Gilderoy Lockhart, dressed in robes of aquamarine. And there at the end was Hagrid, huge and hairy, drinking deeply from his goblet.

“Hang on…” Harry muttered to Ron. “There’s an empty chair at the staff table… Where’s Snape?”

Professor Severus Snape was Harry’s least favorite teacher. Harry also happened to be Snape’s least favorite student. Cruel, sarcastic, and disliked by everybody except the students from his own house (Slytherin), Snape taught Potions.

“Maybe he’s ill!” said Ron hopefully.

“Maybe he’s left,” said Harry, “because he missed out on the Defense Against Dark Arts job again!”

“Or he might have been sacked!” said Ron enthusiastically. “I mean, everyone hates him —”

“Or maybe,” said a very cold voice right behind them, “he’s waiting to hear why you two didn’t arrive on the school train.”

Harry spun around. There, his black robes rippling in a cold breeze, stood Severus Snape. He was a thin man with sallow skin, a hooked nose, and greasy, shoulder-length black hair, and at this moment, he was smiling in a way that told Harry he and Ron were in very deep trouble.

“Follow me,” said Snape.

Not daring even to look at each other, Harry and Ron followed Snape up the steps into the vast, echoing entrance hall, which was lit with flaming torches. A delicious smell of food was wafting from the Great Hall, but Snape led them away from the warmth and light, down a narrow stone staircase that led into the dungeons.

“In!” he said, opening a door halfway down the cold passageway and pointing.

They entered Snape’s office, shivering. The shadowy walls were lined with shelves of large glass jars, in which floated all manner of revolting things Harry didn’t really want to know the name of at the moment. The fireplace was dark and empty. Snape closed the door and turned to look at them.

“So,” he said softly, “the train isn’t good enough for the famous Harry Potter and his faithful sidekick Weasley. Wanted to arrive with a bang, did we, boys?”

“No, sir, it was the barrier at King’s Cross, it —”

“Silence!” said Snape coldly. “What have you done with the car?” Ron gulped. This wasn’t the first time Snape had given Harry the impression of being able to read minds. But a moment later, he understood, as Snape unrolled today’s issue of the Evening Prophet. “You were seen,” he hissed, showing them the headline: FLYING FORD ANGLIA MYSTIFIES MUGGLES. He began to read aloud: “Two Muggles in London, convinced they saw an old car flying over the Post Office tower… at noon in Norfolk, Mrs. Hetty Bayliss, while hanging out her washing… Mr. Angus Fleet, of Peebles, reported to police… Six or seven Muggles in all. I believe your father works in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office?” he said, looking up at Ron and smiling still more nastily. “Dear, dear… his own son…”

Harry felt as though he’d just been walloped in the stomach by one of the mad tree’s larger branches. If anyone found out Mr. Weasley had bewitched the car… he hadn’t thought of that…

“I noticed, in my search of the park, that considerable damage seems to have been done to a very valuable Whomping Willow,” Snape went on.

“That tree did more damage to us than we —” Ron blurted out.

“Silence!” snapped Snape again. “Most unfortunately, you are not in my House and the decision to expel you does not rest with me. I shall go and fetch the people who do have that happy power. You will wait here.”

Harry and Ron stared at each other, white-faced. Harry didn’t feel hungry any more. He now felt extremely sick. He tried not to look at a large, slimy something suspended in green liquid on a shelf behind Snape’s desk. If Snape had gone to fetch Professor McGonagall, head of Gryffindor House, they were hardly any better off. She might be fairer than Snape, but she was still extremely strict.

Ten minutes later, Snape returned, and sure enough it was Professor McGonagall who accompanied him. Harry had seen Professor McGonagall angry on several occasions, but either he had forgotten just how thin her mouth could go, or he had never seen her this angry before. She raised her wand the moment she entered; Harry and Ron both flinched, but she merely pointed it at the empty fireplace, where flames suddenly erupted.

“Sit,” she said, and they both backed into chairs by the fire.

“Explain,” she said, her glasses glinting ominously.

Ron launched into the story, starting with the barrier at the station refusing to let them through.

“— so we had no choice, Professor, we couldn’t get on the train.”

“Why didn’t you send us a letter by owl? I believe you have an owl?” Professor McGonagall said coldly to Harry.

Harry gaped at her. Now she said it, that seemed the obvious thing to have done.

“I — I didn’t think —”

“That,” said Professor McGonagall, “is obvious.”

There was a knock on the office door and Snape, now looking happier than ever, opened it. There stood the headmaster, Professor Dumbledore.

Harry’s whole body went numb. Dumbledore was looking unusually grave. He stared down his very crooked nose at them, and Harry suddenly found himself wishing he and Ron were still being beaten up by the Whomping Willow.

There was a long silence. Then Dumbledore said, “Please explain why you did this.”

It would have been better if he had shouted. Harry hated the disappointment in his voice. For some reason, he was unable to look Dumbledore in the eyes, and spoke instead to his knees. He told Dumbledore everything except that Mr. Weasley owned the bewitched car, making it sound as though he and Ron had happened to find a flying car parked outside the station. He knew Dumbledore would see through this at once, but Dumbledore asked no questions about the car. When Harry had finished, he merely continued to peer at them through his spectacles.

“We’ll go and get our stuff,” said Ron in a hopeless sort of voice.

“What are you talking about, Weasley?” barked Professor McGonagall.

“Well, you’re expelling us, aren’t you?” said Ron. Harry looked quickly at Dumbledore.

“Not today, Mr. Weasley,” said Dumbledore. “But I must impress upon both of you the seriousness of what you have done. I will be writing to both your families tonight. I must also warn you that if you do anything like this again, I will have no choice but to expel you.”

Snape looked as though Christmas had been canceled. He cleared his throat and said, “Professor Dumbledore, these boys have flouted the Decree for the Restriction of Underage Wizardry, caused serious damage to an old and valuable tree — surely acts of this nature —”

“It will be for Professor McGonagall to decide on these boys’ punishments, Severus,” said Dumbledore calmly. “They are in her House and are therefore her responsibility.” He turned to Professor McGonagall. “I must go back to the feast, Minerva, I’ve got to give out a few notices. Come, Severus, there’s a delicious-looking custard tart I want to sample —”

Snape shot a look of pure venom at Harry and Ron as he allowed himself to be swept out of his office, leaving them alone with Professor McGonagall, who was still eyeing them like a wrathful eagle.

“You’d better get along to the hospital wing, Weasley, you’re bleeding.”

“Not much,” said Ron, hastily wiping the cut over his eye with his sleeve.

“Professor, I wanted to watch my sister being Sorted —”

“The Sorting Ceremony is over,” said Professor McGonagall. “Your sister is also in Gryffindor.”

“Oh, good,” said Ron.

“And speaking of Gryffindor —” Professor McGonagall said sharply, but Harry cut in: “Professor, when we took the car, term hadn’t started, so — so Gryffindor shouldn’t really have points taken from it — should it?” he finished, watching her anxiously.

Professor McGonagall gave him a piercing look, but he was sure she had almost smiled. Her mouth looked less thin, anyway.

“I will not take any points from Gryffindor,” she said, and Harry’s heart lightened considerably. “But you will both get a detention.” It was better than Harry had expected. As for Dumbledore’s writing to the Dursleys, that was nothing. Harry knew perfectly well they’d just be disappointed that the Whomping Willow hadn’t squashed him flat.

Professor McGonagall raised her wand again and pointed it at Snape’s desk. A large plate of sandwiches, two silver goblets, and a jug of iced pumpkin juice appeared with a pop.

“You will eat in here and then go straight up to your dormitory,” she said. “I must also return to the feast.”

When the door had closed behind her, Ron let out a long, low whistle.

“I thought we’d had it,” he said, grabbing a sandwich.

“So did I,” said Harry, taking one, too.

“Can you believe our luck, though?” said Ron thickly through a mouthful of chicken and ham. “Fred and George must’ve flown that car five or six times and no Muggle ever saw them.” He swallowed and took another huge bite. “Why couldn’t we get through the barrier?”

Harry shrugged. “We’ll have to watch our step from now on, though,” he said, taking a grateful swig of pumpkin juice. “Wish we could’ve gone up to the feast…”

“She didn’t want us showing off,” said Ron sagely. “Doesn’t want people to think it’s clever, arriving by flying car.”

When they had eaten as many sandwiches as they could (the plate kept refilling itself) they rose and left the office, treading the familiar path to Gryffindor Tower. The castle was quiet; it

seemed that the feast was over. They walked past muttering portraits and creaking suits of armor, and climbed narrow flights of stone stairs, until at last they reached the passage where the secret entrance to Gryffindor Tower was hidden, behind an oil painting of a very fat woman in a pink silk dress.

“Password?” she said as they approached.

“Er —” said Harry.

They didn’t know the new year’s password, not having met a Gryffindor prefect yet, but help came almost immediately; they heard hurrying feet behind them and turned to see Hermione dashing toward them.

“There you are! Where have you been? The most ridiculous rumors — someone said you’d been expelled for crashing a flying car!”

“Well, we haven’t been expelled,” Harry assured her.

“You’re not telling me you did fly here?” said Hermione, sounding almost as severe as Professor McGonagall.

“Skip the lecture,” said Ron impatiently, “and tell us the new password.”

“It’s ‘wattlebird,’” said Hermione impatiently, “but that’s not the point —”

Her words were cut short, however, as the portrait of the fat lady swung open and there was a sudden storm of clapping. It looked as though the whole of Gryffindor House was still awake, packed into the circular common room, standing on the lopsided tables and squashy armchairs, waiting for them to arrive. Arms reached through the portrait hole to pull Harry and Ron inside, leaving Hermione to scramble in after them.

“Brilliant!” yelled Lee Jordan. “Inspired! What an entrance! Flying a car right into the Whomping Willow, people’ll be talking about that one for years —”

“Good for you,” said a fifth year Harry had never spoken to; someone was patting him on the back as though he’d just won a marathon; Fred and George pushed their way to the front of the crowd and said together, “Why couldn’t we’ve come in the car, eh?”

Ron was scarlet in the face, grinning embarrassedly, but Harry could see one person who didn’t look happy at all. Percy was visible over the heads of some excited first years, and he seemed to be trying to get near enough to start telling them off. Harry nudged Ron in the ribs and nodded in Percy’s direction. Ron got the point at once.

“Got to get upstairs — bit tired,” he said, and the two of them started pushing their way toward the door on the other side of the room, which led to a spiral staircase and the dormitories.

“‘Night,” Harry called back to Hermione, who was wearing a scowl just like Percy’s.

They managed to get to the other side of the common room, still having their backs slapped, and gained the peace of the staircase. They hurried up it, right to the top, and at last reached the door of their old dormitory, which now had a sign on it saying SECOND YEARS. They entered the familiar, circular room, with its five four-posters hung with red velvet and its high, narrow windows. Their trunks had been brought up for them and stood at the ends of their beds.

Ron grinned guiltily at Harry.

“I know I shouldn’t’ve enjoyed that or anything, but…”

The dormitory door flew open and in came the other second year Gryffindor boys, Seamus Finnigan, Dean Thomas, and Neville Longbottom.

“Unbelievable!” beamed Seamus.

“Cool,” said Dean.

“Amazing,” said Neville, awestruck.

Harry couldn’t help it. He grinned, too.

CHAPTER SIX

Gilderoy Lockhart

The next day, however, Harry barely grinned once. Things started to go downhill from breakfast in the Great Hall. The four long house tables were laden with tureens of porridge, plates of kippers, mountains of toast, and dishes of eggs and bacon, beneath the enchanted ceiling (today, a dull, cloudy gray). Harry and Ron sat down at the Gryffindor table next to Hermione, who had her copy of Voyages with Vampires propped open against a milk jug. There was a slight stiffness in the way she said “Morning,” which told Harry that she was still disapproving of the way they had arrived. Neville Longbottom, on the other hand, greeted them cheerfully. Neville was a round-faced and accident-prone boy with the worst memory of anyone Harry had ever met.

“Mail’s due any minute — I think Gran’s sending a few things I forgot.”

Harry had only just started his porridge when, sure enough, there was a rushing sound overhead and a hundred or so owls streamed in, circling the hall and dropping letters and packages into the chattering crowd. A big, lumpy package bounced off Neville’s head and, a second later, something large and gray fell into Hermione’s jug, spraying them all with milk and feathers.

“Errol!” said Ron, pulling the bedraggled owl out by the feet. Errol slumped, Unconscious, onto the table, his legs in the air and a damp red envelope in his beak.

“Oh, no —” Ron gasped.

“It’s all right, he’s still alive,” said Hermione, prodding Errol gently with the tip of her finger.

“It’s not that — it’s that.”

Ron was pointing at the red envelope. It looked quite ordinary to Harry, but Ron and Neville were both looking at it as though they expected it to explode.

“What’s the matter?” said Harry.

“She’s — she’s sent me a Howler,” said Ron faintly.

“You’d better open it, Ron,” said Neville in a timid whisper. “It’ll be worse if you don’t. My gran sent me one once, and I ignored it and” — he gulped —“it was horrible.”

Harry looked from their petrified faces to the red envelope.

“What’s a Howler?” he said.

But Ron’s whole attention was fixed on the letter, which had begun to smoke at the corners.

“Open it,” Neville urged. “It’ll all be over in a few minutes —”

Ron stretched out a shaking hand, eased the envelope from Errol’s beak, and slit it open. Neville stuffed his fingers in his ears. A split second later, Harry knew why. He thought for a moment it had exploded; a roar of sound filled the huge hall, shaking dust from the ceiling.

“—STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY’D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON’T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE —”

Mrs. Weasleys yells, a hundred times louder than usual, made the plates and spoons rattle on the table, and echoed deafeningly off the stone walls. People throughout the hall were swiveling around to see who had received the Howler, and Ron sank so low in his chair that only his crimson forehead could be seen.

“—LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN’T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD BOTH HAVE DIED —”

Harry had been wondering when his name was going to crop up. He tried very hard to look as though he couldn’t hear the voice that was making his eardrums throb.

“—ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED — YOUR FATHER’S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT’S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE’LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME.”

A ringing silence fell. The red envelope, which had dropped from Ron’s hand, burst into flames and curled into ashes. Harry and Ron sat stunned, as though a tidal wave had just passed over them. A few people laughed and, gradually, a babble of talk broke out again.

Hermione closed Voyages with Vampires and looked down at the top of Ron’s head.

“Well, I don’t know what you expected, Ron, but you —”

“Don’t tell me I deserved it,” snapped Ron.

Harry pushed his porridge away. His insides were burning with guilt. Mr. Weasley was facing an inquiry at work. After all Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had done for him over the summer…

But he had no time to dwell on this; Professor McGonagall was moving along the Gryffindor table, handing out course schedules. Harry took his and saw that they had double Herbology with the Hufflepuffs first.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione left the castle together, crossed the vegetable patch, and made for the greenhouses, where the magical plants were kept. At least the Howler had done one good thing:

Hermione seemed to think they had now been punished enough and was being perfectly friendly again.

As they neared the greenhouses they saw the rest of the class standing outside, waiting for Professor Sprout. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had only just joined them when she came striding into view across the lawn, accompanied by Gilderoy Lockhart. Professor Sprout’s arms were full of bandages, and with another twinge of guilt, Harry spotted the Whomping Willow in the distance, several of its branches now in slings.

Professor Sprout was a squat little witch who wore a patched hat over her flyaway hair; there was usually a large amount of earth on her clothes and her fingernails would have made Aunt Petunia faint. Gilderoy Lockhart, however, was immaculate in sweeping robes of turquoise, his golden hair shining under a perfectly positioned turquoise hat with gold trimming.

“Oh, hello there!” he called, beaming around at the assembled students. “Just been showing Professor Sprout the right way to doctor a Whomping Willow! But I don’t want you running away with the idea that I’m better at Herbology than she is! I just happen to have met several of these exotic plants on my travels…”

“Greenhouse three today, chaps!” said Professor Sprout, who was looking distinctly disgruntled, not at all her usual cheerful self.

There was a murmur of interest. They had only ever worked in greenhouse one before — greenhouse three housed far more interesting and dangerous plants. Professor Sprout took a large key from her belt and unlocked the door. Harry caught a whiff of damp earth and fertilizer mingling with the heavy perfume of some giant, umbrella-sized flowers dangling from the ceiling. He was about to follow Ron and Hermione inside when Lockhart’s hand shot out.

“Harry! I’ve been wanting a word — you don’t mind if he’s a couple of minutes late, do you, Professor Sprout?”

Judging by Professor Sprout’s scowl, she did mind, but Lockhart said, “That’s the ticket,” and closed the greenhouse door in her face.

“Harry,” said Lockhart, his large white teeth gleaming in the sunlight as he shook his head.

“Harry, Harry, Harry.”

Completely nonplussed, Harry said nothing.

“When I heard — well, of course, it was all my fault. Could have kicked myself.”

Harry had no idea what he was talking about. He was about to say so when Lockhart went on, “Don’t know when I’ve been more shocked. Flying a car to Hogwarts! Well, of course, I knew at once why you’d done it. Stood out a mile. Harry, Harry, Harry.”

It was remarkable how he could show every one of those brilliant teeth even when he wasn’t

talking.

“Gave you a taste for publicity, didn’t I?” said Lockhart. “Gave you the bug. You got onto the front page of the paper with me and you couldn’t wait to do it again.”

“Oh, no, Professor, see —”

“Harry, Harry, Harry,” said Lockhart, reaching out and grasping his shoulder. “I understand. Natural to want a bit more once you’ve had that first taste — and I blame myself for giving you that, because it was bound to go to your head — but see here, young man, you can’t start flying cars to try and get yourself noticed. Just calm down, all right? Plenty of time for all that when you’re older. Yes, yes, I know what you’re thinking! ‘It’s all right for him, he’s an internationally famous wizard already!’ But when I was twelve, I was just as much of a nobody as you are now. In fact, I’d say I was even more of a nobody! I mean, a few people have heard of you, haven’t they? All that business with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!” He glanced at the lightning scar on Harry’s forehead. “I know, I know — it’s not quite as good as winning Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award five times in a row, as I have — but it’s a start, Harry, it’s a start.”

He gave Harry a hearty wink and strode off. Harry stood stunned for a few seconds, then, remembering he was supposed to be in the greenhouse, he opened the door and slid inside.

Professor Sprout was standing behind a trestle bench in the center of the greenhouse. About twenty pairs of different-colored ear muffs were lying on the bench. When Harry had taken his place between Ron and Hermione, she said, “We’ll be repotting Mandrakes today. Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?”

To nobody’s surprise, Hermione’s hand was first into the air.

“Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative,” said Hermione, sounding as usual as though she had swallowed the textbook. “It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state.”

“Excellent. Ten points to Gryffindor,” said Professor Sprout. “The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is also, however, dangerous. Who can tell me why?”

Hermione’s hand narrowly missed Harry’s glasses as it shot up again.

“The cry of the Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it,” she said promptly.

“Precisely. Take another ten points,” said Professor Sprout. “Now, the Mandrakes we have here are still very young.”

She pointed to a row of deep trays as she spoke, and everyone shuffled forward for a better look. A hundred or so tufty little plants, purplish green in color, were growing there in rows. They looked quite unremarkable to Harry, who didn’t have the slightest idea what Hermione meant by

the “cry” of the Mandrake.

“Everyone take a pair of earmuffs,” said Professor Sprout.

There was a scramble as everyone tried to seize a pair that wasn’t pink and fluffy.

“When I tell you to put them on, make sure your ears are completely covered,” said Professor Sprout. “When it is safe to remove them, I will give you the thumbs-up. Right — earmuffs on.”

Harry snapped the earmuffs over his ears. They shut out sound completely. Professor Sprout put the pink, fluffy pair over her own ears, rolled up the sleeves of her robes, grasped one of the tufty plants firmly, and pulled hard.

Harry let out a gasp of surprise that no one could hear.

Instead of roots, a small, muddy, and extremely ugly baby popped out of the earth. The leaves were growing right out of his head. He had pale green, mottled skin, and was clearly bawling at the top of his lungs.

Professor Sprout took a large plant pot from under the table and plunged the Mandrake into it, burying him in dark, damp compost until only the tufted leaves were visible. Professor Sprout dusted off her hands, gave them all the thumbs-up, and removed her own earmuffs.

“As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won’t kill yet,” she said calmly as though she’d just done nothing more exciting than water a begonia. “However, they will knock you out for several hours, and as I’m sure none of you want to miss your first day back, make sure your earmuffs are securely in place while you work. I will attract your attention when it is time to pack up.

“Four to a tray — there is a large supply of pots here — compost in the sacks over there — and be careful of the Venemous Tentacula, it’s teething.”

She gave a sharp slap to a spiky, dark red plant as she spoke, making it draw in the long feelers that had been inching sneakily over her shoulder.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were joined at their tray by a curly-haired Hufflepuff boy Harry knew by sight but had never spoken to.

“Justin Finch-Fletchley,” he said brightly, shaking Harry by the hand. “Know who you are, of course, the famous Harry Potter… And you’re Hermione Granger — always top in everything” (Hermione beamed as she had her hand shaken too) “— and Ron Weasley. Wasn’t that your flying car?”

Ron didn’t smile. The Howler was obviously still on his mind.

“That Lockhart’s something, isn’t he?” said Justin happily as they began filling their plant pots

with dragon dung compost. “Awfully brave chap. Have you read his books? I’d have died of fear if Id been cornered in a telephone booth by a werewolf, but he stayed cool and — zap — just fantastic

“My name was down for Eton, you know. I can’t tell you how glad I am I came here instead. Of course, Mother was slightly disappointed, but since I made her read Lockhart’s books I think she’s begun to see how useful it’ll be to have a fully trained wizard in the family…”

After that they didn’t have much chance to talk. Their earmuffs were back on and they needed to concentrate on the Mandrakes. Professor Sprout had made it look extremely easy, but it wasn’t. The Mandrakes didn’t like coming out of the earth, but didn’t seem to want to go back into it either. They squirmed, kicked, flailed their sharp little fists, and gnashed their teeth; Harry spent ten whole minutes trying to squash a particularly fat one into a pot.

By the end of the class, Harry, like everyone else, was sweaty, aching, and covered in earth. Everyone traipsed back to the castle for a quick wash and then the Gryffindors hurried off to Transfiguration.

Professor McGonagall’s classes were always hard work, but today was especially difficult. Everything Harry had learned last year seemed to have leaked out of his head during the summer. He was supposed to be turning a beetle into a button, but all he managed to do was give his beetle a lot of exercise as it scuttled over the desktop avoiding his wand.

Ron was having far worse problems. He had patched up his wand with some borrowed Spellotape, but it seemed to be damaged beyond repair. It kept crackling and sparking at odd moments, and every time Ron tried to transfigure his beetle it engulfed him in thick gray smoke that smelled of rotten eggs. Unable to see what he was doing, Ron accidentally squashed his beetle with his elbow and had to ask for a new one. Professor McGonagall wasn’t pleased.

Harry was relieved to hear the lunch bell. His brain felt like a wrung sponge. Everyone filed out of the classroom except him and Ron, who was whacking his wand furiously on the desk.

“Stupid — useless — thing —”

“Write home for another one,” Harry suggested as the wand let off a volley of bangs like a firecracker.

“Oh, yeah, and get another Howler back,” said Ron, stuffing the now hissing wand into his bag.

“‘It’s your own fault your wand got snapped — ’”

They went down to lunch, where Ron’s mood was not improved by Hermione’s showing them the handful of perfect coat buttons she had produced in Transfiguration.

“What’ve we got this afternoon?” said Harry, hastily changing the subject.

“Defense Against the Dark Arts,” said Hermione at once.

“Why,” demanded Ron, seizing her schedule, “have you outlined all Lockhart’s lessons in little hearts?”

Hermione snatched the schedule back, blushing furiously. They finished lunch and went outside into the overcast courtyard. Hermione sat down on a stone step and buried her nose in Voyages with Vampires again. Harry and Ron stood talking about Quidditch for several minutes before Harry became aware that he was being closely watched. Looking up, he saw the very small, mousy-haired boy he’d seen trying on the Sorting Hat last night staring at Harry as though transfixed. He was clutching what looked like an ordinary Muggle camera, and the moment Harry looked at him, he went bright red.

“All right, Harry? I’m — I’m Colin Creevey,” he said breathlessly, taking a tentative step forward. “I’m in Gryffindor, too. D’you think — would it be all right if — can I have a picture?” he said, raising the camera hopefully.

“A picture?” Harry repeated blankly.

“So I can prove I’ve met you,” said Colin Creevey eagerly, edging further forward. “I know all about you. Everyone’s told me. About how you survived when You-Know-Who tried to kill you and how he disappeared and everything and how you’ve still got a lightning scar on your forehead” (his eyes raked Harry’s hairline) “and a boy in my dormitory said if I develop the film in the right potion, the pictures’ll move.” Colin drew a great shuddering breath of excitement and said, “It’s amazing here, isn’t it? I never knew all the odd stuff I could do was magic till I got the letter from Hogwarts. My dad’s a milkman, he couldn’t believe it either. So I’m taking loads of pictures to send home to him. And it’d be really good if I had one of you” — he looked imploringly at Harry — “maybe your friend could take it and I could stand next to you? And then, could you sign it?”

“Signed photos? You’re giving out signed photos, Potter?”

Loud and scathing, Draco Malfoy’s voice echoed around the courtyard. He had stopped right behind Colin, flanked, as he always was at Hogwarts, by his large and thuggish cronies, Crabbe and Goyle.

“Everyone line up!” Malfoy roared to the crowd. “Harry Potter’s giving out signed photos!”

“No, I’m not,” said Harry angrily, his fists clenching. “Shut up, Malfoy.”

“You’re just jealous,” piped up Colin, whose entire body was about as thick as Crabbe’s neck.

“Jealous?” said Malfoy, who didn’t need to shout anymore: half the courtyard was listening in.

“Of what? I don’t want a foul scar right across my head, thanks. I don’t think getting your head cut open makes you that special, myself.”

Crabbe and Goyle were sniggering stupidly.

“Eat slugs, Malfoy,” said Ron angrily. Crabbe stopped laughing and started rubbing his knuckles in a menacing way.

“Be careful, Weasley,” sneered Malfoy. “You don’t want to start any trouble or your Mommy’ll have to come and take you away from school.” He put on a shrill, piercing voice. “‘If you put another toe out of line’—”

A knot of Slytherin fifth-years nearby laughed loudly at this.

“Weasley would like a signed photo, Potter,” smirked Malfoy. “It’d be worth more than his family’s whole house —”

Ron whipped out his Spellotaped wand, but Hermione shut Voyages with Vampires with a snap and whispered, “Look out!”

“What’s all this, what’s all this?” Gilderoy Lockhart was striding toward them, his turquoise robes swirling behind him. “Who’s giving out signed photos?”

Harry started to speak but he was cut short as Lockhart flung an arm around his shoulders and thundered jovially, “Shouldn’t have asked! We meet again, Harry!”

Pinned to Lockhart’s side and burning with humiliation, Harry saw Malfoy slide smirking back into the crowd.

“Come on then, Mr. Creevey,” said Lockhart, beaming at Colin. “A double portrait, can’t do better than that, and we’ll both sign it for you.”

Colin fumbled for his camera and took the picture as the bell rang behind them, signaling the start of afternoon classes.

“Off you go, move along there,” Lockhart called to the crowd, and he set off back to the castle with Harry, who was wishing he knew a good Vanishing Spell, still clasped to his side.

“A word to the wise, Harry,” said Lockhart paternally as they entered the building through a side door. “I covered up for you back there with young Creevey — if he was photographing me, too, your schoolmates won’t think you’re setting yourself up so much…”

Deaf to Harry’s stammers, Lockhart swept him down a corridor lined with staring students and up a staircase.

“Let me just say that handing out signed pictures at this stage of your career isn’t sensible — looks a tad bigheaded, Harry, to be frank. There may well come a time when, like me, you’ll need to keep a stack handy wherever you go, but” — he gave a little chortle — “I don’t think you’re quite there yet.”

They had reached Lockhart’s classroom and he let Harry go at last. Harry yanked his robes straight and headed for a seat at the very back of the class, where he busied himself with piling all seven of Lockhart’s books in front of him, so that he could avoid looking at the real thing.

The rest of the class came clattering in, and Ron and Hermione sat down on either side of Harry.

“You could’ve fried an egg on your face” said Ron. “You’d better hope Creevey doesn’t meet Ginny, or they’ll be starting a Harry Potter fan club.”

“Shut up,” snapped Harry. The last thing he needed was for Lockhart to hear the phrase “Harry Potter fan club”

When the whole class was seated, Lockhart cleared his throat loudly and silence fell. He reached forward, picked up Neville Longbottom’s copy of Travels with Trolls, and held it up to show his own, winking portrait on the front.

“Me,” he said, pointing at it and winking as well. “Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award but I don’t talk about that. I didn’t get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at her!”

He waited for them to laugh; a few people smiled weakly.

“I see you’ve all bought a complete set of my books — well done. I thought we’d start today with a little quiz. Nothing to worry about — just to check how well you’ve read them, how much you’ve taken in —”

When he had handed out the test papers he returned to the front of the class and said, “You have thirty minutes — start —now!”

Harry looked down at his paper and read:

1. What is Gilderoy Lockhart’s favorite color?

2. What is Gilderoy Lockhart’s secret ambition?

3. What, in your opinion, is Gilderoy Lockhart’s greatest achievement to date?

On and on it went, over three sides of paper, right down to:

54. When is Gilderoy Lockhart’s birthday, and what would his ideal gift be?

Half an hour later, Lockhart collected the papers and rifled through them in front of the class.

“Tut, tut — hardly any of you remembered that my favorite color is lilac. I say so in Year with the Yeti. And a few of you need to read Wanderings with Werewolves more carefully — I clearly

state in chapter twelve that my ideal birthday gift would be harmony between all magic and nonmagic peoples — though I wouldn’t say no to a large bottle of Ogdeds Old Firewhisky!”

He gave them another roguish wink. Ron was now staring at Lockhart with an expression of disbelief on his face; Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas, who were sitting in front, were shaking with silent laughter. Hermione, on the other hand, was listening to Lockhart with rapt attention and gave a start when he mentioned her name.

“… but Miss Hermione Granger knew my secret ambition is to rid the world of evil and market my own range of hair-care potions — good girl! In fact” — he flipped her paper over — “full marks! Where is Miss Hermione Granger?”

Hermione raised a trembling hand.

“Excellent!” beamed Lockhart. “Quite excellent! Take ten points for Gryffindor! And so — to business —”

He bent down behind his desk and lifted a large, covered cage onto it.

“Now — be warned! It is my job to arm you against the foulest creatures known to wizardkind! You may find yourselves facing your worst fears in this room. Know only that no harm can befall you whilst I am here. All I ask is that you remain calm.”

In spite of himself, Harry leaned around his pile of books for a better look at the cage. Lockhart placed a hand on the cover. Dean and Seamus had stopped laughing now. Neville was cowering in his front row seat.

“I must ask you not to scream,” said Lockhart in a low voice. “It might provoke them.”

As the whole class held its breath, Lockhart whipped off the cover.

“Yes,” he said dramatically. “Freshly caught Cornish pixies.”

Seamus Finnigan couldn’t control himself. He let out a snort of laughter that even Lockhart couldn’t mistake for a scream of terror.

“Yes?” He smiled at Seamus.

“Well, they’re not — they’re not very —dangerous, are they?” Seamus choked.

“Don’t be so sure!” said Lockhart, waggling a finger annoyingly at Seamus. “Devilish tricky little blighters they can be!”

The pixies were electric blue and about eight inches high, with pointed faces and voices so shrill it was like listening to a lot of budgies arguing. The moment the cover had been removed, they had started jabbering and rocketing around, rattling the bars and making bizarre faces at the

people nearest them.

“Right, then,” Lockhart said loudly. “Let’s see what you make of them!” And he opened the cage.

It was pandemonium. The pixies shot in every direction like rockets. Two of them seized Neville by the ears and lifted him into the air. Several shot straight through the window, showering the back row with broken glass. The rest proceeded to wreck the classroom more effectively than a rampaging rhino. They grabbed ink bottles and sprayed the class with them, shredded books and papers, tore pictures from the walls, up-ended the waste basket, grabbed bags and books and threw them out of the smashed window; within minutes, half the class was sheltering under desks and Neville was swinging from the iron chandelier in the ceiling.

“Come on now — round them up, round them up, they’re only pixies,” Lockhart shouted. He rolled up his sleeves, brandished his wand, and bellowed, “Peskipiksi Pesternomi!”

It had absolutely no effect; one of the pixies seized his wand and threw it out of the window, too. Lockhart gulped and dived under his own desk, narrowly avoiding being squashed by Neville, who fell a second later as the chandelier gave way.

The bell rang and there was a mad rush toward the exit. In the relative calm that followed, Lockhart straightened up, caught sight of Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who were almost at the door, and said, “Well, I’ll ask you three to just nip the rest of them back into their cage.” He swept past them and shut the door quickly behind him.

“Can you believe him?” roared Ron as one of the remaining pixies bit him painfully on the ear.

“He just wants to give us some hands-on experience,” said Hermione, immobilizing two pixies at once with a clever Freezing Charm and stuffing them back into their cage.

“Hands on? “said Harry, who was trying to grab a pixie dancing out of reach with its tongue out. “Hermione, he didn’t have a clue what he was doing —”

“Rubbish,” said Hermione. “You’ve read his books — look at all those amazing things he’s done —”

“He says he’s done,” Ron muttered.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Mudbloods and Murmurs

Harry spent a lot of time over the next few days dodging out of sight whenever he saw Gilderoy Lockhart coming down a corridor. Harder to avoid was Colin Creevey, who seemed to have memorized Harry’s schedule. Nothing seemed to give Colin a bigger thrill than to say, “All right, Harry?” six or seven times a day and hear, “Hello, Colin,” back, however exasperated Harry sounded when he said it.

Hedwig was still angry with Harry about the disastrous car journey and Ron’s wand was still malfunctioning, surpassing itself on Friday morning by shooting out of Ron’s hand in Charms and hitting tiny old Professor Flitwick squarely between the eyes, creating a large, throbbing green boil where it had struck. So with one thing and another, Harry was quite glad to reach the weekend. He, Ron, and Hermione were planning to visit Hagrid on Saturday morning. Harry, however, was shaken awake several hours earlier than he would have liked by Oliver Wood, Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

“Whassamatter?” said Harry groggily.

“Quidditch practice!” said Wood. “Come on!”

Harry squinted at the window. There was a thin mist hanging across the pink-and-gold sky. Now that he was awake, he couldn’t understand how he could have slept through the racket the birds were making.

“Oliver,” Harry croaked. “It’s the crack of dawn.”

“Exactly,” said Wood. He was a tall and burly sixth year and, at the moment, his eyes were gleaming with a crazed enthusiasm. “It’s part of our new training program. Come on, grab your broom, and let’s go,” said Wood heartily. “None of the other teams have started training yet; we’re going to be first off the mark this year —”

Yawning and shivering slightly, Harry climbed out of bed and tried to find his Quidditch robes.

“Good man,” said Wood. “Meet you on the field in fifteen minutes.”

When he’d found his scarlet team robes and pulled on his cloak for warmth, Harry scribbled a note to Ron explaining where he’d gone and went down the spiral staircase to the common room, his Nimbus Two Thousand on his shoulder. He had just reached the portrait hole when there was a clatter behind him and Colin Creevey came dashing down the spiral staircase, his camera swinging madly around his neck and something clutched in his hand.

“I heard someone saying your name on the stairs, Harry! Look what I’ve got here! I’ve had it developed, I wanted to show you —”

Harry looked bemusedly at the photograph Colin was brandishing under his nose.

A moving, black-and-white Lockhart was tugging hard on an arm Harry recognized as his own. He was pleased to see that his photographic self was putting up a good fight and refusing to be dragged into view. As Harry watched, Lockhart gave up and slumped, Panting, against the white edge of the picture.

“Will you sign it?” said Colin eagerly.

“No,” said Harry flatly, glancing around to check that the room was really deserted. “Sorry, Colin, I’m in a hurry — Quidditch practice —”

He climbed through the portrait hole.

“Oh, wow! Wait for me! I’ve never watched a Quidditch game before!”

Colin scrambled through the hole after him.

“It’ll be really boring,” Harry said quickly, but Colin ignored him, his face shining with excitement.

“You were the youngest House player in a hundred years, weren’t you, Harry? Weren’t you?” said Colin, trotting alongside him. “You must be brilliant. I’ve never flown. Is it easy? Is that your own broom? Is that the best one there is?”

Harry didn’t know how to get rid of him. It was like having an extremely talkative shadow.

“I don’t really understand Quidditch,” said Colin breathlessly. “Is it true there are four balls? And two of them fly around trying to knock people off their brooms?”

“Yes,” said Harry heavily, resigned to explaining the complicated rules of Quidditch. “They’re called Bludgers. There are two Beaters on each team who carry clubs to beat the Bludgers away from their side. Fred and George Weasley are the Gryffindor Beaters.”

“And what are the other balls for?” Colin asked, tripping down a couple of steps because he was gazing open-mouthed at Harry.

“Well, the Quaffle — that’s the biggish red one — is the one that scores goals. Three Chasers on each team throw the Quaffle to each other and try and get it through the goal posts at the end of the pitch — they’re three long poles with hoops on the end.”

“And the fourth ball —”

“— is the Golden Snitch,” said Harry, “and it’s very small, very fast, and difficult to catch. But that’s what the Seeker’s got to do, because a game of Quidditch doesn’t end until the Snitch has been caught. And whichever team’s Seeker gets the Snitch earns his team an extra hundred and

fifty points.”

“And you’re the Gryffindor Seeker, aren’t you?” said Colin in awe.

“Yes,” said Harry as they left the castle and started across the dew-drenched grass. “And there’s the Keeper, too. He guards the goal posts. That’s it, really.”

But Colin didn’t stop questioning Harry all the way down the sloping lawns to the Quidditch field, and Harry only shook him off when he reached the changing rooms; Colin called after him in a piping voice, “I’ll go and get a good seat, Harry!” and hurried off to the stands.

The rest of the Gryffindor team were already in the changing room. Wood was the only person who looked truly awake. Fred and George Weasley were sitting, puffy-eyed and touslehaired, next to fourth year Alicia Spinnet, who seemed to be nodding off against the wall behind her. Her fellow Chasers, Katie Bell and Angelina Johnson, were yawning side by side opposite them.

“There you are, Harry, what kept you?” said Wood briskly. “Now, I wanted a quick talk with you all before we actually get onto the field, because I spent the summer devising a whole new training program, which I really think will make all the difference…”

Wood was holding up a large diagram of a Quidditch field, on which were drawn many lines, arrows, and crosses in different colored inks. He took out his wand, tapped the board, and the arrows began to wiggle over the diagram like caterpillars. As Wood launched into a speech about his new tactics, Fred Weasley’s head drooped right onto Alicia Spinnet’s shoulder and he began to snore.

The first board took nearly twenty minutes to explain, but there was another board under that, and a third under that one. Harry sank into a stupor as Wood droned on and on.

“So,” said Wood, at long last, jerking Harry from a wistful fantasy about what he could be eating for breakfast at this very moment up at the castle. “Is that clear? Any questions?”

“I’ve got a question, Oliver,” said George, who had woken with a start. “Why couldn’t you have told us all this yesterday when we were awake?”

Wood wasn’t pleased.

“Now, listen here, you lot,” he said, glowering at them all. “We should have won the Quidditch cup last year. We’re easily the best team. But unfortunately — owing to circumstances beyond our control —”

Harry shifted guiltily in his seat. He had been unconscious in the hospital wing for the final match of the previous year, meaning that Gryffindor had been a player short and had suffered their worst defeat in three hundred years.

Wood took a moment to regain control of himself. Their last defeat was clearly still torturing

him.

“So this year, we train harder than ever before… Okay, let’s go and put our new theories into practice!” Wood shouted, seizing his broomstick and leading the way out of the locker rooms. Stiff-legged and still yawning, his team followed.

They had been in the locker room so long that the sun was up completely now, although remnants of mist hung over the grass in the stadium. As Harry walked onto the field, he saw Ron and Hermione sitting in the stands.

“Aren’t you finished yet?” called Ron incredulously.

“Haven’t even started,” said Harry, looking jealously at the toast and marmalade Ron and Hermione had brought out of the Great Hall. “Wood’s been teaching us new moves.”

He mounted his broomstick and kicked at the ground, soaring up into the air. The cool morning air whipped his face, waking him far more effectively than Wood’s long talk. It felt wonderful to be back on the Quidditch field. He soared right around the stadium at full speed, racing Fred and George.

“What’s that funny clicking noise?” called Fred as they hurtled around the corner.

Harry looked into the stands. Colin was sitting in one of the highest seats, his camera raised, taking picture after picture, the sound strangely magnified in the deserted stadium.

“Look this way, Harry! This way!” he cried shrilly.

“Who’s that?” said Fred.

“No idea,” Harry lied, putting on a spurt of speed that took him as far away as possible from Colin.

“What’s going on?” said Wood, frowning, as he skimmed through the air toward them. “Why’s that first year taking pictures? I don’t like it. He could be a Slytherin spy, trying to find out about our new training program.”

“He’s in Gryffindor,” said Harry quickly.

“And the Slytherins don’t need a spy, Oliver,” said George.

“What makes you say that?” said Wood testily.

“Because they’re here in person,” said George, pointing.

Several people in green robes were walking onto the field, broomsticks in their hands.

“I don’t believe it!” Wood hissed in outrage. “I booked the field for today! We’ll see about this!”

Wood shot toward the ground, landing rather harder than he meant to in his anger, staggering slightly as he dismounted. Harry, Fred, and George followed.

“Flint!” Wood bellowed at the Slytherin Captain. “This is our practice time! We got up specially! You can clear off now!”

Marcus Flint was even larger than Wood. He had a look of trollish cunning on his face as he replied, “Plenty of room for all of us, Wood.”

Angelina, Alicia, and Katie had come over, too. There were no girls on the Slytherin team, who stood shoulder to shoulder, facing the Gryffindors, leering to a man.

“But I booked the field!” said Wood, positively spitting with rage. “I booked it!”

“Ah,” said Flint. “But I’ve got a specially signed note here from Professor Snape. ‘I, Professor S. Snape, give the Slytherin team permission to practice today on the Quidditch field owing to the need to train their new Seeker’. ”

“You’ve got a new Seeker?” said Wood, distracted. “Where?”

And from behind the six large figures before them came a seventh, smaller boy, smirking all over his pale, pointed face. It was Draco Malfoy.

“Aren’t you Lucius Malfoy’s son?” said Fred, looking at Malfoy with dislike.

“Funny you should mention Draco’s father,” said Flint as the whole Slytherin team smiled still more broadly. “Let me show you the generous gift he’s made to the Slytherin team.”

All seven of them held out their broomsticks. Seven highly polished, brand-new handles and seven sets of fine gold lettering spelling the words Nimbus Two Thousand and One gleamed under the Gryffindors’ noses in the early morning sun.

“Very latest model. Only came out last month,” said Flint carelessly, flicking a speck of dust from the end of his own. “I believe it outstrips the old Two Thousand series by a considerable amount. As for the old Cleansweeps” — he smiled nastily at Fred and George, who were both clutching Cleansweep Fives —“ sweeps the board with them.”

None of the Gryffindor team could think of anything to say for a moment. Malfoy was smirking so broadly his cold eyes were reduced to slits.

“Oh, look,” said Flint. “A field invasion.”

Ron and Hermione were crossing the grass to see what was going on.

“What’s happening?” Ron asked Harry. “Why aren’t you playing? And what’s he doing here?”

He was looking at Malfoy, taking in his Slytherin Quidditch robes.

“I’m the new Slytherin Seeker, Weasley,” said Malfoy, smugly. “Everyone’s just been admiring the brooms my father’s bought our team.

Ron gaped, open-mouthed, at the seven superb broomsticks in front of him.

“Good, aren’t they?” said Malfoy smoothly. “But perhaps the Gryffindor team will be able to raise some gold and get new brooms, too. You could raffle off those Cleansweep Fives; I expect a museum would bid for them.”

The Slytherin team howled with laughter.

“At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in,” said Hermione sharply. “They got in on pure talent.”

The smug look on Malfoy’s face flickered.

“No one asked your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood,” he spat.

Harry knew at once that Malfoy had said something really bad because there was an instant uproar at his words. Flint had to dive in front of Malfoy to stop Fred and George jumping on him, Alicia shrieked, “How dare you!” and Ron plunged his hand into his robes, pulled out his wand, yelling, “You’ll pay for that one, Malfoy!” and pointed it furiously under Flint’s arm at Malfoys face.

A loud bang echoed around the stadium and a jet of green light shot out of the wrong end of Ron’s wand, hitting him in the stomach and sending him reeling backward onto the grass.

“Ron! Ron! Are you all right?” squealed Hermione.

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. Instead he gave an almighty belch and several slugs dribbled out of his mouth onto his lap.

The Slytherin team were paralyzed with laughter. Flint was doubled up, hanging onto his new broomstick for support. Malfoy was on all fours, banging the ground with his fist. The Gryffindors were gathered around Ron, who kept belching large, glistening slugs. Nobody seemed to want to touch him.

“We’d better get him to Hagrid’s, it’s nearest,” said Harry to Hermione, who nodded bravely, and the pair of them pulled Ron up by the arms.

“What happened, Harry? What happened? Is he ill? But you can cure him, can’t you?” Colin had run down from his seat and was now dancing alongside them as they left the field. Ron gave a

huge heave and more slugs dribbled down his front.

“Oooh,” said Colin, fascinated and raising his camera. “Can you hold him still, Harry?”

“Get out of the way, Colin!” said Harry angrily. He and Hermione supported Ron out of the stadium and across the grounds toward the edge of the forest.

“Nearly there, Ron,” said Hermione as the gamekeeper’s cabin came into view. “You’ll be all right in a minute — almost there —”

They were within twenty feet of Hagrid’s house when the front door opened, but it wasn’t Hagrid who emerged. Gilderoy Lockhart, wearing robes of palest mauve today, came striding out.

“Quick, behind here,” Harry hissed, dragging Ron behind a nearby bush. Hermione followed, somewhat reluctantly.

“It’s a simple matter if you know what you’re doing!” Lockhart was saying loudly to Hagrid. “If you need help, you know where I am! I’ll let you have a copy of my book. I’m surprised you haven’t already got one — I’ll sign one tonight and send it over. Well, good-bye!” And he strode away toward the castle.

Harry waited until Lockhart was out of sight, then pulled Ron out of the bush and up to Hagrid’s front door. They knocked urgently.

Hagrid appeared at once, looking very grumpy, but his expression brightened when he saw who it was.

“Bin wonderin’ when you’d come ter see me — come in, come in — thought you mighta bin Professor Lockhart back again —”

Harry and Hermione supported Ron over the threshold into the one-roomed cabin, which had an enormous bed in one corner, a fire crackling merrily in the other. Hagrid didn’t seem perturbed by Ron’s slug problem, which Harry hastily explained as he lowered Ron into a chair.

“Better out than in,” he said cheerfully, plunking a large copper basin in front of him. “Get ‘em all up, Ron.”

“I don’t think there’s anything to do except wait for it to stop,” said Hermione anxiously, watching Ron bend over the basin. “That’s a difficult curse to work at the best of times, but with a broken wand —”

Hagrid was bustling around making them tea. His boarhound, Fang, was slobbering over Harry.

“What did Lockhart want with you, Hagrid?” Harry asked, scratching Fang’s ears.

“Givin’ me advice on gettin’ kelpies out of a well,” growled Hagrid, moving a half-plucked rooster off his scrubbed table and setting down the teapot. “Like I don’ know. An’ bangin’ on about some banshee he banished. If one word of it was true, I’ll eat my kettle.”

It was most unlike Hagrid to criticize a Hogwarts’ teacher, and Harry looked at him in surprise. Hermione, however, said in a voice somewhat higher than usual, “I think you’re being a bit unfair. Professor Dumbledore obviously thought he was the best man for the job —”

“He was the on’y man for the job,” said Hagrid, offering them a plate of treacle fudge, while Ron coughed squelchily into his basin. “An’ I mean the on’y one. Gettin’ very difficult ter find anyone fer the Dark Arts job. People aren’t too keen ter take it on, see. They’re startin’ ter think it’s jinxed. No one’s lasted long fer a while now. So tell me,” said Hagrid, jerking his head at Ron. “Who was he tryin’ ter curse?”

“Malfoy called Hermione something — it must’ve been really bad, because everyone went wild.”

“It was bad,” said Ron hoarsely, emerging over the tabletop looking pale and sweaty. “Malfoy called her ‘Mudblood,’ Hagrid —”

Ron dived out of sight again as a fresh wave of slugs made their appearance. Hagrid looked outraged.

“He didn’!” he growled at Hermione.

“He did,” she said. “But I don’t know what it means. I could tell it was really rude, of course —”

“It’s about the most insulting thing he could think of,” gasped Ron, coming back up. “Mudblood’s a really foul name for someone who is Muggle-born — you know, non-magic parents. There are some wizards — like Malfoy’s family — who think they’re better than everyone else because they’re what people call pure-blood.” He gave a small burp, and a single slug fell into his outstretched hand. He threw it into the basin and continued, “I mean, the rest of us know it doesn’t make any difference at all. Look at Neville Longbottom — he’s pure-blood and he can hardly stand a cauldron the right way up.”

“An’ they haven’t invented a spell our Hermione can’ do,” said Hagrid proudly, making Hermione go a brilliant shade of magenta.

“It’s a disgusting thing to call someone,” said Ron, wiping his sweaty brow with a shaking hand. “Dirty blood, see. Common blood. It’s ridiculous. Most wizards these days are half-blood anyway. If we hadn’t married Muggles we’d’ve died out.”

He retched and ducked out of sight again.

“Well, I don’ blame yeh fer tryin’ ter curse him, Ron,” said Hagrid loudly over the thuds of more slugs hitting the basin. “Bu’ maybe it was a good thing yer wand backfired. ’Spect Lucius

Malfoy would’ve come marchin’ up ter school if yeh’d cursed his son. Least yer not in trouble.”

Harry would have pointed out that trouble didn’t come much worse than having slugs pouring out of your mouth, but he couldn’t; Hagrid’s treacle fudge had cemented his jaws together.

“Harry,” said Hagrid abruptly as though struck by a sudden thought. “Gotta bone ter pick with yeh. I’ve heard you’ve bin givin’ out signed photos. How come I haven’t got one?”

Furious, Harry wrenched his teeth apart.

“I have not been giving out signed photos,” he said hotly. “If Lockhart’s still spreading that around —”

But then he saw that Hagrid was laughing.

“I’m on’y jokin’,” he said, patting Harry genially on the back and sending him face first into the table. “I knew yeh hadn’t really. I told Lockhart yeh didn’ need teh. Yer more famous than him without tryin’.”

“Bet he didn’t like that,” said Harry, sitting up and rubbing his chin.

“Don’ think he did,” said Hagrid, his eyes twinkling. “An’ then I told him I’d never read one o’ his books an’ he decided ter go. Treacle fudge, Ron?” he added as Ron reappeared.

“No thanks,” said Ron weakly. “Better not risk it.”

“Come an’ see what I’ve bin growin’,” said Hagrid as Harry and Hermione finished the last of their tea.

In the small vegetable patch behind Hagrid’s house were a dozen of the largest pumpkins Harry had ever seen. Each was the size of a large boulder.

“Gettin’ on well, aren’t they?” said Hagrid happily. “Fer the Halloween feast… should be big enough by then.”

“What’ve you been feeding them?” said Harry.

Hagrid looked over his shoulder to check that they were alone.

“Well, I’ve bin givin’ them — you know — a bit o’ help —”

Harry noticed Hagrid’s flowery pink umbrella leaning against the back wall of the cabin. Harry had had reason to believe before now that this umbrella was not all it looked; in fact, he had the strong impression that Hagrid’s old school wand was concealed inside it. Hagrid wasn’t supposed to use magic. He had been expelled from Hogwarts in his third year, but Harry had never found out why — any mention of the matter and Hagrid would clear his throat loudly and

become mysteriously deaf until the subject was changed.

“An Engorgement Charm, I suppose?” said Hermione, halfway between disapproval and amusement. “Well, you’ve done a good job on them.”

“That’s what yer little sister said,” said Hagrid, nodding at Ron. “Met her jus’ yesterday.” Hagrid looked sideways at Harry, his beard twitching. “Said she was jus’ lookin’ round the grounds, but I reckon she was hopin’ she might run inter someone else at my house.” He winked at Harry. “If yeh ask me, she wouldn’ say no ter a signed —”

“Oh, shut up,” said Harry. Ron snorted with laughter and the ground was sprayed with slugs.

“Watch it!” Hagrid roared, pulling Ron away from his precious pumpkins.

It was nearly lunchtime and as Harry had only had one bit of treacle fudge since dawn, he was keen to go back to school to eat. They said good-bye to Hagrid and walked back up to the castle, Ron hiccoughing occasionally, but only bringing up two very small slugs.

They had barely set foot in the cool entrance hall when a voice rang out, “There you are, Potter — Weasley.” Professor McGonagall was walking toward them, looking stern. “You will both do your detentions this evening.”

“What’re we doing, Professor?” said Ron, nervously suppressing a burp.

“You will be polishing the silver in the trophy room with Mr. Filch,” said Professor McGonagall. “And no magic, Weasley — elbow grease.”

Ron gulped. Argus Filch, the caretaker, was loathed by every student in the school.

“And you, Potter, will be helping Professor Lockhart answer his fan mail,” said Professor McGonagall.

“Oh n — Professor, can’t I go and do the trophy room, too?” said Harry desperately.

“Certainly not,” said Professor McGonagall, raising her eyebrows. “Professor Lockhart requested you particularly. Eight o’clock sharp, both of you.”

Harry and Ron slouched into the Great Hall in states of deepest gloom, Hermione behind them, wearing a well-you-did-break-school-rules sort of expression. Harry didn’t enjoy his shepherd’s pie as much as he’d thought. Both he and Ron felt they’d got the worse deal.

“Filch’ll have me there all night,” said Ron heavily. “No magic! There must be about a hundred cups in that room. I’m no good at Muggle cleaning.”

“I’d swap anytime,” said Harry hollowly. “I’ve had loads of practice with the Dursleys. Answering Lockhart’s fan mail… he’ll be a nightmare…”

Saturday afternoon seemed to melt away, and in what seemed like no time, it was five minutes to eight, and Harry was dragging his feet along the second-floor corridor to Lockhart’s office. He gritted his teeth and knocked.

The door flew open at once. Lockhart beamed down at him.

“Ah, here’s the scalawag!” he said. “Come in, Harry, come in —”

Shining brightly on the walls by the light of many candles were countless framed photographs of Lockhart. He had even signed a few of them. Another large pile lay on his desk.

“You can address the envelopes!” Lockhart told Harry, as though this was a huge treat.

“This first one’s to Gladys Gudgeon, bless her — huge fan of mine —”

The minutes snailed by. Harry let Lockhart’s voice wash over him, occasionally saying, “Mmm” and “Right” and “Yeah.” Now and then he caught a phrase like, “Fame’s a fickle friend, Harry,” or “Celebrity is as celebrity does, remember that.”

The candles burned lower and lower, making the light dance over the many moving faces of Lockhart watching him. Harry moved his aching hand over what felt like the thousandth envelope, writing out Veronica Smethley’s address. It must be nearly time to leave, Harry thought miserably, please let it be nearly time…

And then he heard something — something quite apart from the spitting of the dying candles and Lockhart’s prattle about his fans.

It was a voice, a voice to chill the bone marrow, a voice of breathtaking, ice-cold venom.

“Come… come to me… Let me rip you.. .Let me tear you.. .Let me kill you…”

Harry gave a huge jump and a large lilac blot appeared on Veronica Smethley’s street.

“What?” he said loudly.

“I know!” said Lockhart. “Six solid months at the top of the best-seller list! Broke all records!”

“No,” said Harry frantically. “That voice!”

“Sorry?” said Lockhart, looking puzzled. “What voice?”

“That — that voice that said — didn’t you hear it?”

Lockhart was looking at Harry in high astonishment.

“What are you talking about, Harry? Perhaps you’re getting a little drowsy? Great Scott — look

at the time! We’ve been here nearly four hours! I’d never have believed it — the time’s flown, hasn’t it?”

Harry didn’t answer. He was straining his ears to hear the voice again, but there was no sound now except for Lockhart telling him he mustn’t expect a treat like this every time he got detention. Feeling dazed, Harry left.

It was so late that the Gryffindor common room was almost empty. Harry went straight up to the dormitory. Ron wasn’t back yet. Harry pulled on his pajamas, got into bed, and waited. Half an hour later, Ron arrived, nursing his right arm and bringing a strong smell of polish into the darkened room.

“My muscles have all seized up,” he groaned, sinking on his bed. “Fourteen times he made me buff up that Quidditch cup before he was satisfied. And then I had another slug attack all over a Special Award for Services to the School. Took ages to get the slime off… How was it with Lockhart?”

Keeping his voice low so as not to wake Neville, Dean, and Seamus, Harry told Ron exactly what he had heard.

“And Lockhart said he couldn’t hear it?” said Ron. Harry could see him frowning in the moonlight. “D’you think he was lying? But I don’t get it — even someone invisible would’ve had to open the door.”

“I know,” said Harry, lying back in his four-poster and staring at the canopy above him. “I don’t get it either.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

The Deathday Party

October arrived, spreading a damp chill over the grounds and into the castle. Madam Pomfrey, the nurse, was kept busy by a sudden spate of colds among the staff and students. Her Pepperup potion worked instantly, though it left the drinker smoking at the ears for several hours afterward. Ginny Weasley, who had been looking pale, was bullied into taking some by Percy. The steam pouring from under her vivid hair gave the impression that her whole head was on fire. Raindrops the size of bullets thundered on the castle windows for days on end; the lake rose, the flower beds turned into muddy streams, and Hagrid’s pumpkins swelled to the size of garden sheds. Oliver Wood’s enthusiasm for regular training sessions, however, was not dampened, which was why Harry was to be found, late one stormy Saturday afternoon a few days before Halloween, returning to Gryffindor Tower, drenched to the skin and splattered with mud.

Even aside from the rain and wind it hadn’t been a happy practice session. Fred and George, who had been spying on the Slytherin team, had seen for themselves the speed of those new Nimbus Two Thousand and Ones. They reported that the Slytherin team was no more than seven greenish blurs, shooting through the air like missiles. As Harry squelched along the deserted corridor he came across somebody who looked just as preoccupied as he was. Nearly Headless Nick, the ghost of Gryffindor Tower, was staring morosely out of a window, muttering under his breath, “… don’t fulfill their requirements… half an inch, if that…”

“Hello, Nick,” said Harry.

“Hello, hello,” said Nearly Headless Nick, starting and looking round. He wore a dashing, plumed hat on his long curly hair, and a tunic with a ruff, which concealed the fact that his neck was almost completely severed. He was pale as smoke, and Harry could see right through him to the dark sky and torrential rain outside.

“You look troubled, young Potter,” said Nick, folding a transparent letter as he spoke and tucking it inside his doublet.

“So do you,” said Harry.

“Ah,” Nearly Headless Nick waved an elegant hand, “a matter of no importance… It’s not as though I really wanted to join… Thought I’d apply, but apparently I ‘don’t fulfill requirements’ —”

In spite of his airy tone, there was a look of great bitterness on his face.

“But you would think, wouldn’t you,” he erupted suddenly, pulling the letter back out of his pocket, “that getting hit forty-five times in the neck with a blunt axe would qualify you to join the Headless Hunt?”

“Oh — yes,” said Harry, who was obviously supposed to agree.

“I mean, nobody wishes more than I do that it had all been quick and clean, and my head had come off properly, I mean, it would have saved me a great deal of pain and ridicule. However—” Nearly Headless Nick shook his letter open and read furiously:

“‘We can only accept huntsmen whose heads have parted company with their bodies. You will appreciate that it would be impossible otherwise for members to participate in hunt activities such as Horseback Head-Juggling and Head Polo. It is with the greatest regret, therefore, that I must inform you that you do not fulfill our requirements. With very best wishes, Sir Patrick Delaney-Podmore.’”

Fuming, Nearly Headless Nick stuffed the letter away.

“Half an inch of skin and sinew holding my neck on, Harry! Most people would think that’s good and beheaded, but oh, no, it’s not enough for Sir Properly Decapitated-Podmore.”

Nearly Headless Nick took several deep breaths and then said, in a far calmer tone, “So — what’s bothering you? Anything I can do?”

“No,” said Harry. “Not unless you know where we can get seven free Nimbus Two Thousand and Ones for our match against Sly—”

The rest of Harry’s sentence was drowned out by a high-pitched mewling from somewhere near his ankles. He looked down and found himself gazing into a pair of lamp-like yellow eyes. It was Mrs. Norris, the skeletal gray cat who was used by the caretaker, Argus Filch, as a sort of deputy in his endless battle against students.

“You’d better get out of here, Harry,” said Nick quickly. “Filch isn’t in a good mood — he’s got the flu and some third years accidentally plastered frog brains all over the ceiling in dungeon five. He’s been cleaning all morning, and if he sees you dripping mud all over the place —”

“Right,” said Harry, backing away from the accusing stare of Mrs. Norris, but not quickly enough. Drawn to the spot by the mysterious power that seemed to connect him with his foul cat, Argus Filch burst suddenly through a tapestry to Harry’s right, wheezing and looking wildly about for the rule-breaker. There was a thick tartan scarf bound around his head, and his nose was unusually purple.

“Filth!” he shouted, his jowls aquiver, his eyes popping alarmingly as he pointed at the muddy puddle that had dripped from Harry’s Quidditch robes. “Mess and muck everywhere! I’ve had enough of it, I tell you! Follow me, Potter!”

So Harry waved a gloomy good-bye to Nearly Headless Nick and followed Filch back downstairs, doubling the number of muddy footprints on the floor. Harry had never been inside Filch’s office before; it was a place most students avoided. The room was dingy and windowless, lit by a single oil lamp dangling from the low ceiling. A faint smell of fried fish lingered about

the place. Wooden filing cabinets stood around the walls; from their labels, Harry could see that they contained details of every pupil Filch had ever punished. Fred and George Weasley had an entire drawer to themselves. A highly polished collection of chains and manacles hung on the wall behind Filch’s desk. It was common knowledge that he was always begging Dumbledore to let him suspend students by their ankles from the ceiling.

Filch grabbed a quill from a pot on his desk and began shuffling around looking for parchment.

“Dung,” he muttered furiously, “great sizzling dragon bogies… frog brains… rat intestines… I’ve had enough of it… make an example… where’s the form… yes…”

He retrieved a large roll of parchment from his desk drawer and stretched it out in front of him, dipping his long black quill into the ink pot.

“Name… Harry Potter. Crime…”

“It was only a bit of mud!” said Harry.

“It’s only a bit of mud to you, boy, but to me it’s an extra hour scrubbing!” shouted Filch, a drip shivering unpleasantly at the end of his bulbous nose. “Crime… befouling the castle… suggested sentence…”

Dabbing at his streaming nose, Filch squinted unpleasantly at Harry who waited with bated breath for his sentence to fall.

But as Filch lowered his quill, there was a great BANG! on the ceiling of the office, which made the oil lamp rattle.

“PEEVES!” Filch roared, flinging down his quill in a transport of rage. “I’ll have you this time, I’ll have you!”

And without a backward glance at Harry, Filch ran flat-footed from the office, Mrs. Norris streaking alongside him.

Peeves was the school poltergeist, a grinning, airborne menace who lived to cause havoc and distress. Harry didn’t much like Peeves, but couldn’t help feeling grateful for his timing. Hopefully, whatever Peeves had done (and it sounded as though he’d wrecked something very big this time) would distract Filch from Harry.

Thinking that he should probably wait for Filch to come back, Harry sank into a moth-eaten chair next to the desk. There was only one thing on it apart from his half-completed form: a large, glossy, purple envelope with silver lettering on the front. With a quick glance at the door to check that Filch wasn’t on his way back, Harry picked up the envelope and read:

Kwikspell

A Correspondence Course in Beginners’ Magic.

Intrigued, Harry flicked the envelope open and pulled out the sheaf of parchment inside. More curly silver writing on the front page said:

Feel out of step in the world of modern magic? Find yourself making excuses not to perform simple spells? Ever been taunted for your woeful wandwork?

There is an answer!

Kwikspell is an all-new, fail-safe, quick-result, easy-learn course. Hundreds of witches and wizards have benefited from the Kwikspell method!

Madam Z. Nettles of Topsham writes:

“I had no memory for incantations and my potions were a family joke! Now, after a Kwikspell course, I am the center of attention at parties and friends beg for the recipe of my Scintillation Solution!”

Warlock D. J. Prod of Didsbury says:

“My wife used to sneer at my feeble charms, but one month into your fabulous Kwikspell course and I succeeded in turning her into a yak! Thank you, Kwikspell!”

Fascinated, Harry thumbed through the rest of the envelope’s contents. Why on earth did Filch want a Kwikspell course? Did this mean he wasn’t a proper wizard? Harry was just reading Lesson One: Holding Your Wand (Some Useful Tips) when shuffling footsteps outside told him Filch was coming back. Stuffing the parchment back into the envelope, Harry threw it back onto the desk just as the door opened.

Filch was looking triumphant.

“That vanishing cabinet was extremely valuable!” he was saying gleefully to Mrs. Norris. “We’ll have Peeves out this time, my sweet —”

His eyes fell on Harry and then darted to the Kwikspell envelope, which, Harry realized too late, was lying two feet away from where it had started.

Filch’s pasty face went brick red. Harry braced himself for a tidal wave of fury. Filch hobbled across to his desk, snatched up the envelope, and threw it into a drawer.

“Have you — did you read —?” he sputtered.

“No,” Harry lied quickly.

Filch’s knobbly hands were twisting together.

“If I thought you’d read my private —not that it’s mine — for a friend — be that as it may — however —”

Harry was staring at him, alarmed; Filch had never looked madder. His eyes were popping, a tic was going in one of his pouchy cheeks, and the tartan scarf didn’t help.

“Very well — go — and don’t breathe a word — not that — however, if you didn’t read — go now, I have to write up Peeves’ report — go —”

Amazed at his luck, Harry sped out of the office, up the corridor, and back upstairs. To escape from Filch’s office without punishment was probably some kind of school record.

“Harry! Harry! Did it work?”

Nearly Headless Nick came gliding out of a classroom. Behind him, Harry could see the wreckage of a large black-and-gold cabinet that appeared to have been dropped from a great height.

“I persuaded Peeves to crash it right over Filch’s office,” said Nick eagerly. “Thought it might distract him —”

“Was that you?” said Harry gratefully. “Yeah, it worked, I didn’t even get detention. Thanks, Nick!”

They set off up the corridor together. Nearly Headless Nick, Harry noticed, was still holding Sir Patrick’s rejection letter…

“I wish there was something I could do for you about the Headless Hunt,” Harry said. Nearly Headless Nick stopped in his tracks and Harry walked right through him. He wished he hadn’t; it was like stepping through an icy shower.

“But there is something you could do for me,” said Nick excitedly. “Harry — would I be asking too much — but no, you wouldn’t want —”

“What is it?” said Harry.

“Well, this Halloween will be my five hundredth deathday,” said Nearly Headless Nick, drawing himself up and looking dignified.

“Oh,” said Harry, not sure whether he should look sorry or happy about this. “Right.”

“I’m holding a party down in one of the roomier dungeons. Friends will be coming from all over the country. It would be such an honor if you would attend. Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger would be most welcome, too, of course — but I daresay you’d rather go to the school feast?” He

watched Harry on tenterhooks.

“No,” said Harry quickly, “I’ll come —”

“My dear boy! Harry Potter, at my deathday party! And —” he hesitated, looking excited “— do you think you could possibly mention to Sir Patrick how very frightening and impressive you find me?”

“Of — of course,” said Harry.

Nearly Headless Nick beamed at him.

“A deathday party?” said Hermione keenly when Harry had changed at last and joined her and Ron in the common room. “I bet there aren’t many living people who can say they’ve been to one of those — it’ll be fascinating!”

“Why would anyone want to celebrate the day they died?” said Ron, who was halfway through his Potions homework and grumpy. “Sounds dead depressing to me…”

Rain was still lashing the windows, which were now inky black, but inside all looked bright and cheerful. The firelight glowed over the countless squashy armchairs where people sat reading, talking, doing homework or, in the case of Fred and George Weasley, trying to find out what would happen if you fed a Filibuster firework to a salamander. Fred had “rescued” the brilliant orange, fire-dwelling lizard from a Care of Magical Creatures class and it was now smoldering gently on a table surrounded by a knot of curious people.

Harry was at the point of telling Ron and Hermione about Filch and the Kwikspell course when the salamander suddenly whizzed into the air, emitting loud sparks and bangs as it whirled wildly round the room. The sight of Percy bellowing himself hoarse at Fred and George, the spectacular display of tangerine stars showering from the salamander’s mouth, and its escape into the fire, with accompanying explosions, drove both Filch and the Kwikspell envelope from Harry’s mind.

By the time Halloween arrived, Harry was regretting his rash promise to go to the deathday party. The rest of the school was happily anticipating their Halloween feast; the Great Hall had been decorated with the usual live bats, Hagrid’s vast pumpkins had been carved into lanterns large enough for three men to sit in, and there were rumors that Dumbledore had booked a troupe of dancing skeletons for the entertainment.

“A promise is a promise,” Hermione reminded Harry bossily. “You said you’d go to the deathday party.”

So at seven o’clock, Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked straight past the doorway to the packed Great Hall, which was glittering invitingly with gold plates and candles, and directed their steps instead toward the dungeons.

The passageway leading to Nearly Headless Nick’s party had been lined with candles, too,

though the effect was far from cheerful: These were long, thin, jet-black tapers, all burning bright blue, casting a dim, ghostly light even over their own living faces. The temperature dropped with every step they took. As Harry shivered and drew his robes tightly around him, he heard what sounded like a thousand fingernails scraping an enormous blackboard.

“Is that supposed to be music?” Ron whispered. They turned a corner and saw Nearly Headless Nick standing at a doorway hung with black velvet drapes.

“My dear friends,” he said mournfully. “Welcome, welcome… so pleased you could come…”

He swept off his plumed hat and bowed them inside.

It was an incredible sight. The dungeon was full of hundreds of pearly-white, translucent people, mostly drifting around a crowded dance floor, waltzing to the dreadful, quavering sound of thirty musical saws, played by an orchestra on a raised, black-draped platform. A chandelier overhead blazed midnight-blue with a thousand more black candles. Their breath rose in a mist before them; it was like stepping into a freezer.

“Shall we have a look around?” Harry suggested, wanting to warm up his feet.

“Careful not to walk through anyone,” said Ron nervously, and they set off around the edge of the dance floor. They passed a group of gloomy nuns, a ragged man wearing chains, and the Fat Friar, a cheerful Hufflepuff ghost, who was talking to a knight with an arrow sticking out of his forehead. Harry wasn’t surprised to see that the Bloody Baron, a gaunt, staring Slytherin ghost covered in silver bloodstains, was being given a wide berth by the other ghosts.

“Oh, no,” said Hermione, stopping abruptly. “Turn back, turn back, I don’t want to talk to Moaning Myrtle —”

“Who?” said Harry as they backtracked quickly.

“She haunts one of the toilets in the girls’ bathroom on the first floor,” said Hermione.

“She haunts a toilet?”

“Yes. It’s been out-of-order all year because she keeps having tantrums and flooding the place. I never went in there anyway if I could avoid it; it’s awful trying to have a pee with her wailing at you —”

“Look, food!” said Ron.

On the other side of the dungeon was a long table, also covered in black velvet. They approached it eagerly but next moment had stopped in their tracks, horrified. The smell was quite disgusting. Large, rotten fish were laid on handsome silver platters; cakes, burned charcoal-black, were heaped on salvers; there was a great maggoty haggis, a slab of cheese covered in furry green mold and, in pride of place, an enormous gray cake in the shape of a tombstone, with tar-like

icing forming the words,

SIR NICHOLAS DE MIMSY-PORPINGTON

DIED 31ST OCTOBER, 1492

Harry watched, amazed, as a portly ghost approached the table, crouched low, and walked through it, his mouth held wide so that it passed through one of the stinking salmon.

“Can you taste it if you walk though it?” Harry asked him.

“Almost,” said the ghost sadly, and he drifted away.

“I expect they’ve let it rot to give it a stronger flavor,” said Hermione knowledgeably, pinching her nose and leaning closer to look at the putrid haggis.

“Can we move? I feel sick,” said Ron.

They had barely turned around, however, when a little man swooped suddenly from under the table and came to a halt in midair before them.

“Hello, Peeves,” said Harry cautiously.

Unlike the ghosts around them, Peeves the Poltergeist was the very reverse of pale and transparent. He was wearing a bright orange party hat, a revolving bow tie, and a broad grin on his wide, wicked face.

“Nibbles?” he said sweetly, offering them a bowl of peanuts covered in fungus.

“No thanks,” said Hermione.

“Heard you talking about poor Myrtle,” said Peeves, his eyes dancing. “Rude you was about poor Myrtle.” He took a deep breath and bellowed, “OY! MYRTLE!”

“Oh, no, Peeves, don’t tell her what I said, she’ll be really upset,” Hermione whispered frantically. “I didn’t mean it, I don’t mind her — er, hello, Myrtle.”

The squat ghost of a girl had glided over. She had the glummest face Harry had ever seen, halfhidden behind lank hair and thick, pearly spectacles.

“What?” she said sulkily.

“How are you, Myrtle?” said Hermione in a falsely bright voice. “It’s nice to see you out of the toilet.”

Myrtle sniffed.

“Miss Granger was just talking about you —” said Peeves slyly in Myrtle’s ear. “Just saying —” “Just saying — saying — how nice you look tonight,” said Hermione, glaring at Peeves.

Myrtle eyed Hermione suspiciously.

“You’re making fun of me,” she said, silver tears welling rapidly in her small, see-through eyes.

“No — honestly — didn’t I just say how nice Myrtle’s looking?” said Hermione, nudging Harry and Ron painfully in the ribs.

“Oh, yeah —”

“She did —”

“Don’t lie to me,” Myrtle gasped, tears now flooding down her face, while Peeves chuckled happily over her shoulder. “D’you think I don’t know what people call me behind my back? Fat Myrtle! Ugly Myrtle! Miserable, moaning, moping Myrtle!”

“You’ve forgotten pimply,” Peeves hissed in her ear.

Moaning Myrtle burst into anguished sobs and fled from the dungeon. Peeves shot after her, pelting her with moldy peanuts, yelling, “Pimply! Pimply!”

“Oh, dear,” said Hermione sadly.

Nearly Headless Nick now drifted toward them through the crowd.

“Enjoying yourselves?”

“Oh, yes,” they lied.

“Not a bad turnout,” said Nearly Headless Nick proudly. “The Wailing Widow came all the way up from Kent… It’s nearly time for my speech, I’d better go and warn the orchestra…”

The orchestra, however, stopped playing at that very moment. They, and everyone else in the dungeon, fell silent, looking around in excitement, as a hunting horn sounded.

“Oh, here we go,” said Nearly Headless Nick bitterly.

Through the dungeon wall burst a dozen ghost horses, each ridden by a headless horseman. The assembly clapped wildly; Harry started to clap, too, but stopped quickly at the sight of Nick’s face.

The horses galloped into the middle of the dance floor and halted, rearing and plunging. At the front of the pack was a large ghost who held his bearded head under his arm, from which

position he was blowing the horn. The ghost leapt down, lifted his head high in the air so he could see over the crowd (everyone laughed), and strode over to Nearly Headless Nick, squashing his head back onto his neck.

“Nick!” he roared. “How are you? Head still hanging in there?”

He gave a hearty guffaw and clapped Nearly Headless Nick on the shoulder.

“Welcome, Patrick,” said Nick stiffly.

“Live ’uns!” said Sir Patrick, spotting Harry, Ron, and Hermione and giving a huge, fake jump of astonishment, so that his head fell off again (the crowd howled with laughter).

“Very amusing,” said Nearly Headless Nick darkly.

“Don’t mind Nick!” shouted Sir Patrick’s head from the floor. “Still upset we won’t let him join the Hunt! But I mean to say — look at the fellow —”

“I think,” said Harry hurriedly, at a meaningful look from Nick, “Nick’s very — frightening and — er —”

“Ha!” yelled Sir Patrick’s head.

“Bet he asked you to say that!”

“If I could have everyone’s attention, it’s time for my speech!” said Nearly Headless Nick loudly, striding toward the podium and climbing into an icy blue spotlight.

“My late lamented lords, ladies, and gentlemen, it is my great sorrow…”

But nobody heard much more. Sir Patrick and the rest of the Headless Hunt had just started a game of Head Hockey and the crowd were turning to watch. Nearly Headless Nick tried vainly to recapture his audience, but gave up as Sir Patrick’s head went sailing past him to loud cheers.

Harry was very cold by now, not to mention hungry.

“I can’t stand much more of this,” Ron muttered, his teeth chattering, as the orchestra ground back into action and the ghosts swept back onto the dance floor.

“Let’s go,” Harry agreed.

They backed toward the door, nodding and beaming at anyone who looked at them, and a minute later were hurrying back up the passageway full of black candles.

“Pudding might not be finished yet,” said Ron hopefully, leading the way toward the steps to the entrance hall.

And then Harry heard it.

“… rip tear kill…”

It was the same voice, the same cold, murderous voice he had heard in Lockhart’s office.

He stumbled to a halt, clutching at the stone wall, listening with all his might, looking around, squinting up and down the dimly lit passageway.

“Harry, what’re you —?”

“It’s that voice again — shut up a minute —”

“… soo hungry… for so long…”

“Listen!” said Harry urgently, and Ron and Hermione froze, watching him.

“… kill… time to kill…”

The voice was growing fainter. Harry was sure it was moving away — moving upward. A mixture of fear and excitement gripped him as he stared at the dark ceiling; how could it be moving upward? Was it a phantom, to whom stone ceilings didn’t matter?

“This way,” he shouted, and he began to run, up the stairs, into the entrance hall. It was no good hoping to hear anything here, the babble of talk from the Halloween feast was echoing out of the Great Hall. Harry sprinted up the marble staircase to the first floor, Ron and Hermione clattering behind him.

“Harry, what’re we —”

“SHH!”

Harry strained his ears. Distantly, from the floor above, and growing fainter still, he heard the voice: “… I smell blood I SMELL BLOOD!”

His stomach lurched —

“It’s going to kill someone!” he shouted, and ignoring Ron’s and Hermione’s bewildered faces, he ran up the next flight of steps three at a time, trying to listen over his own pounding footsteps — Harry hurtled around the whole of the second floor, Ron and Hermione panting behind him, not stopping until they turned a corner into the last, deserted passage.

“Harry, what was that all about?” said Ron, wiping sweat off his face. “I couldn’t hear anything…”

But Hermione gave a sudden gasp, pointing down the corridor.

“Look!”

Something was shining on the wall ahead. They approached slowly, squinting through the darkness. Foot-high words had been daubed on the wall between two windows, shimmering in the light cast by the flaming torches.

THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED.

ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE

“What’s that thing — hanging underneath?” said Ron, a slight quiver in his voice.

As they edged nearer, Harry almost slipped — there was a large puddle of water on the floor; Ron and Hermione grabbed him, and they inched toward the message, eyes fixed on a dark shadow beneath it. All three of them realized what it was at once, and leapt backward with a splash.

Mrs. Norris, the caretaker’s cat, was hanging by her tail from the torch bracket. She was stiff as a board, her eyes wide and staring.

For a few seconds, they didn’t move. Then Ron said, “Let’s get out of here.”

“Shouldn’t we try and help —” Harry began awkwardly.

“Trust me,” said Ron. “We don’t want to be found here.”

But it was too late. A rumble, as though of distant thunder, told them that the feast had just ended. From either end of the corridor where they stood came the sound of hundreds of feet climbing the stairs, and the loud, happy talk of well-fed people; next moment, students were crashing into the passage from both ends.

The chatter, the bustle, the noise died suddenly as the people in front spotted the hanging cat. Harry, Ron, and Hermione stood alone, in the middle of the corridor, as silence fell among the mass of students pressing forward to see the grisly sight.

Then someone shouted through the quiet.

“Enemies of the Heir, beware! You’ll be next, Mudbloods!”

It was Draco Malfoy. He had pushed to the front of the crowd, his cold eyes alive, his usually bloodless face flushed, as he grinned at the sight of the hanging, immobile cat.

CHAPTER NINE

The Writing on the Wall

“What’s going on here? What’s going on?”

Attracted no doubt by Malfoy’s shout, Argus Filch came shouldering his way through the crowd. Then he saw Mrs. Norris and fell back, clutching his face in horror.

“My cat! My cat! What’s happened to Mrs. Norris?” he shrieked. And his popping eyes fell on Harry.

“You!” he screeched. “You! You’ve murdered my cat! You’ve killed her! I’ll kill you! I’ll —”

“Argus!”

Dumbledore had arrived on the scene, followed by a number of other teachers. In seconds, he had swept past Harry, Ron, and Hermione and detached Mrs. Norris from the torch bracket.

“Come with me, Argus,” he said to Filch. “You, too, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger.”

Lockhart stepped forward eagerly.

“My office is nearest, Headmaster — just upstairs — please feel free —”

“Thank you, Gilderoy,” said Dumbledore.

The silent crowd parted to let them pass. Lockhart, looking excited and important, hurried after Dumbledore; so did Professors McGonagall and Snape.

As they entered Lockhart’s darkened office there was a flurry of movement across the walls; Harry saw several of the Lockharts in the pictures dodging out of sight, their hair in rollers. The real Lockhart lit the candles on his desk and stood back. Dumbledore lay Mrs. Norris on the polished surface and began to examine her. Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged tense looks and sank into chairs outside the pool of candlelight, watching.

The tip of Dumbledore’s long, crooked nose was barely an inch from Mrs. Norris’s fur. He was looking at her closely through his half-moon spectacles, his long fingers gently prodding and poking. Professor McGonagall was bent almost as close, her eyes narrowed. Snape loomed behind them, half in shadow, wearing a most peculiar expression: It was as though he was trying hard not to smile. And Lockhart was hovering around all of them, making suggestions.

“It was definitely a curse that killed her — probably the Transmogrifian Torture — I’ve seen it used many times, so unlucky I wasn’t there, I know the very countercurse that would have saved

her…”

Lockhart’s comments were punctuated by Filch’s dry, racking sobs. He was slumped in a chair by the desk, unable to look at Mrs. Norris, his face in his hands. Much as he detested Filch, Harry couldn’t help feeling a bit sorry for him, though not nearly as sorry as he felt for himself If Dumbledore believed Filch, he would be expelled for sure.

Dumbledore was now muttering strange words under his breath and tapping Mrs. Norris with his wand but nothing happened. She continued to look as though she had been recently stuffed.

“… I remember something very similar happening in Ouagadogou,” said Lockhart, “a series of attacks, the full story’s in my autobiography, I was able to provide the townsfolk with various amulets, which cleared the matter up at once…”

The photographs of Lockhart on the walls were all nodding in agreement as he talked. One of them had forgotten to remove his hair net.

At last Dumbledore straightened up.

“She’s not dead, Argus,” he said softly.

Lockhart stopped abruptly in the middle of counting the number of murders he had prevented.

“Not dead?” choked Filch, looking through his fingers at Mrs. Norris. “But why’s she all — all stiff and frozen?”

“She has been Petrified,” said Dumbledore (“Ah! I thought so!” said Lockhart). “But how, I cannot say…”

“Ask him!” shrieked Filch, turning his blotched and tearstained face to Harry.

“No second year could have done this,” said Dumbledore firmly. “it would take Dark Magic of the most advanced —”

“He did it, he did it!” Filch spat, his pouchy face purpling. “You saw what he wrote on the wall! He found — in my office — he knows I’m a — I’m a —” Filch’s face worked horribly. “He knows I’m a Squib!” he finished.

“I never touched Mrs. Norris!” Harry said loudly, uncomfortably aware of everyone looking at him, including all the Lockharts on the walls. “And I don’t even know what a Squib is.”

“Rubbish!” snarled Filch. “He saw my Kwikspell letter!”

“If I might speak, Headmaster,” said Snape from the shadows, and Harry’s sense of foreboding increased; he was sure nothing Snape had to say was going to do him any good.

“Potter and his friends may have simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he said, a slight sneer curling his mouth as though he doubted it. “But we do have a set of suspicious circumstances here. Why was he in the upstairs corridor at all? Why wasn’t he at the Halloween feast?”

Harry, Ron and Hermione all launched into an explanation about the deathday party. “… there were hundreds of ghosts, they’ll tell you we were there —”

“But why not join the feast afterward?” said Snape, his black eyes glittering in the candlelight. “Why go up to that corridor?”

Ron and Hermione looked at Harry.

“Because — because —” Harry said, his heart thumping very fast; something told him it would sound very far-fetched if he told them he had been led there by a bodiless voice no one but he could hear, “because we were tired and wanted to go to bed,” he said.

“Without any supper?” said Snape, a triumphant smile flickering across his gaunt face. “I didn’t think ghosts provided food fit for living people at their parties.”

“We weren’t hungry,” said Ron loudly as his stomach gave a huge rumble.

Snape’s nasty smile widened.

“I suggest, Headmaster, that Potter is not being entirely truthful,” he said. “It might be a good idea if he were deprived of certain privileges until he is ready to tell us the whole story. I personally feel he should be taken off the Gryffindor Quidditch team until he is ready to be honest.”

“Really, Severus,” said Professor McGonagall sharply, “I see no reason to stop the boy playing Quidditch. This cat wasn’t hit over the head with a broomstick. There is no evidence at all that Potter has done anything wrong.”

Dumbledore was giving Harry a searching look. His twinkling light-blue gaze made Harry feel as though he were being X-rayed.

“Innocent until proven guilty, Severus,” he said firmly.

Snape looked furious.

So did Filch.

“My cat has been Petrified!” he shrieked, his eyes popping. “I want to see some punishment!”

“We will be able to cure her, Argus,” said Dumbledore patiently. “Professor Sprout recently managed to procure some Mandrakes. As soon as they have reached their full size, I will have a

potion made that will revive Mrs. Norris.”

“I’ll make it,” Lockhart butted in. “I must have done it a hundred times. I could whip up a Mandrake Restorative Draught in my sleep —”

“Excuse me,” said Snape icily. “But I believe I am the Potions master at this school.”

There was a very awkward pause.

“You may go,” Dumbledore said to Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

They went, as quickly as they could without actually running. When they were a floor up from Lockhart’s office, they turned into an empty classroom and closed the door quietly behind them. Harry squinted at his friends’ darkened faces.

“D’you think I should have told them about that voice I heard?”

“No,” said Ron, without hesitation. “Hearing voices no one else can hear isn’t a good sign, even in the wizarding world.”

Something in Ron’s voice made Harry ask, “You do believe me, don’t you?”

“’Course I do,” said Ron quickly. “But — you must admit it’s weird…”

“I know it’s weird,” said Harry. “The whole thing’s weird. What was that writing on the wall about? The Chamber Has Been Opened… What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You know, it rings a sort of bell,” said Ron slowly. “I think someone told me a story about a secret chamber at Hogwarts once… might’ve been Bill…”

“And what on earth’s a Squib?” said Harry.

To his surprise, Ron stifled a snigger.

“Well — it’s not funny really — but as it’s Filch,” he said. “A Squib is someone who was born into a wizarding family but hasn’t got any magic powers. Kind of the opposite of Muggle-born wizards, but Squibs are quite unusual. If Filch’s trying to learn magic from a Kwikspell course, I reckon he must be a Squib. It would explain a lot. Like why he hates students so much.” Ron gave a satisfied smile. “He’s bitter.”

A clock chimed somewhere.

“Midnight,” said Harry. “We’d better get to bed before Snape comes along and tries to frame us for something else.”

For a few days, the school could talk of little else but the attack on Mrs. Norris. Filch kept it fresh in everyone’s minds by pacing the spot where she had been attacked, as though he thought the attacker might come back. Harry had seen him scrubbing the message on the wall with Mrs. Skower’s All-Purpose Magical Mess Remover, but to no effect; the words still gleamed as brightly as ever on the stone. When Filch wasn’t guarding the scene of the crime, he was skulking red-eyed through the corridors, lunging out at unsuspecting students and trying to put them in detention for things like “breathing loudly’ and “looking happy.”

Ginny Weasley seemed very disturbed by Mrs. Norris’s fate. According to Ron, she was a great cat lover.

“But you haven’t really got to know Mrs. Norris,” Ron told her bracingly. “Honestly, we’re much better off without her.” Ginny’s lip trembled. “Stuff like this doesn’t often happen at Hogwarts,” Ron assured her. “They’ll catch the maniac who did it and have him out of here in no time. I just hope he’s got time to Petrify Filch before he’s expelled. I’m only joking —” Ron added hastily as Ginny blanched.

The attack had also had an effect on Hermione. It was quite usual for Hermione to spend a lot of time reading, but she was now doing almost nothing else. Nor could Harry and Ron get much response from her when they asked what she was up to, and not until the following Wednesday did they find out.

Harry had been held back in Potions, where Snape had made him stay behind to scrape tubeworms off the desks. After a hurried lunch, he went upstairs to meet Ron in the library, and saw Justin Finch-Fletchley, the Hufflepuff boy from Herbology, coming toward him. Harry had just opened his mouth to say hello when Justin caught sight of him, turned abruptly, and sped off in the opposite direction.

Harry found Ron at the back of the library, measuring his History of Magic homework. Professor Binns had asked for a three foot long composition on “The Medieval Assembly of European Wizards.”

“I don’t believe it, I’m still eight inches short said Ron furiously, letting go of his parchment, which sprang back into a roll. “And Hermione’s done four feet seven inches and her writing’s tiny.”

“Where is she?” asked Harry, grabbing the tape measure and unrolling his own homework.

“Somewhere over there,” said Ron, pointing along the shelves. “Looking for another book. I think she’s trying to read the whole library before Christmas.”

Harry told Ron about Justin Finch-Fletchley running away from him.

“Dunno why you care. I thought he was a bit of an idiot,” said Ron, scribbling away, making his writing as large as possible. “All that junk about Lockhart being so great —”

Hermione emerged from between the bookshelves. She looked irritable and at last seemed ready to talk to them.

“All the copies of Hogwarts, A History have been taken out,” she said, sitting down next to Harry and Ron. “And there’s a two-week waiting list. I wish I hadn’t left my copy at home, but I couldn’t fit it in my trunk with all the Lockhart books.”

“Why do you want it?” said Harry.

“The same reason everyone else wants it,” said Hermione, “to read up on the legend of the Chamber of Secrets.”

“What’s that?” said Harry quickly.

“That’s just it. I can’t remember,” said Hermione, biting her lip. “And I can’t find the story anywhere else —”

“Hermione, let me read your composition,” said Ron desperately, checking his watch.

“No, I won’t,” said Hermione, suddenly severe. “You’ve had ten days to finish it —”

“I only need another two inches, come on —”

The bell rang. Ron and Hermione led the way to History of Magic, bickering.

History of Magic was the dullest subject on their schedule. Professor Binns, who taught it, was their only ghost teacher, and the most exciting thing that ever happened in his classes was his entering the room through the blackboard. Ancient and shriveled, many people said he hadn’t noticed he was dead. He had simply got up to teach one day and left his body behind him in an armchair in front of the staff room fire; his routine had not varied in the slightest since.

Today was as boring as ever. Professor Binns opened his notes and began to read in a flat drone like an old vacuum cleaner until nearly everyone in the class was in a deep stupor, occasionally coming to long enough to copy down a name or date, then falling asleep again. He had been speaking for half an hour when something happened that had never happened before. Hermione put up her hand.

Professor Binns, glancing up in the middle of a deadly dull lecture on the International Warlock Convention of 1289, looked amazed.

“Miss — er —?”

“Granger, Professor. I was wondering if you could tell us anything about the Chamber of Secrets,” said Hermione in a clear voice.

Dean Thomas, who had been sitting with his mouth hanging open, gazing out of the window,

jerked out of his trance; Lavender Brown’s head came up off her arms and Neville Longbottom’s elbow slipped off his desk.

Professor Binns blinked.

“My subject is History of Magic,” he said in his dry, wheezy voice. “I deal with facts, Miss Granger, not myths and legends.” He cleared his throat with a small noise like chalk slipping and continued, “In September of that year, a subcommittee of Sardinian sorcerers —”

He stuttered to a halt. Hermione’s hand was waving in the air again.

“Miss Grant?”

“Please, sir, don’t legends always have a basis in fact?”

Professor Binns was looking at her in such amazement, Harry was sure no student had ever interrupted him before, alive or dead.

“Well,” said Professor Binns slowly, “yes, one could argue that, I suppose.” He peered at Hermione as though he had never seen a student properly before. “However, the legend of which you speak is such a very sensational, even ludicrous tale —”

But the whole class was now hanging on Professor Binns’s every word. He looked dimly at them all, every face turned to his. Harry could tell he was completely thrown by such an unusual show of interest.

“Oh, very well,” he said slowly. “Let me see… the Chamber of Secrets…

“You all know, of course, that Hogwarts was founded over a thousand years ago — the precise date is uncertain — by the four greatest witches and wizards of the age. The four school Houses are named after them: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. They built this castle together, far from prying Muggle eyes, for it was an age when magic was feared by common people, and witches and wizards suffered much persecution.”

He paused, gazed blearily around the room, and continued.

“For a few years, the founders worked in harmony together, seeking out youngsters who showed signs of magic and bringing them to the castle to be educated. But then disagreements sprang up between them. A rift began to grow between Slytherin and the others. Slytherin wished to be more selective about the students admitted to Hogwarts. He believed that magical learning should be kept within all-magic families. He disliked taking students of Muggle parentage, believing them to be untrustworthy. After a while, there was a serious argument on the subject between Slytherin and Gryffindor, and Slytherin left the school.”

Professor Binns paused again, pursing his lips, looking like a wrinkled old tortoise.

“Reliable historical sources tell us this much,” he said. “But these honest facts have been obscured by the fanciful legend of the Chamber of Secrets. The story goes that Slytherin had built a hidden chamber in the castle, of which the other founders knew nothing.

“Slytherin, according to the legend, sealed the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true heir arrived at the school. The heir alone would be able to unseal the Chamber of Secrets, unleash the horror within, and use it to purge the school of all who were unworthy to study magic.”

There was silence as he finished telling the story, but it wasn’t the usual, sleepy silence that filled Professor Binns’s classes. There was unease in the air as everyone continued to watch him, hoping for more. Professor Binns looked faintly annoyed.

“The whole thing is arrant nonsense, of course,” he said. “Naturally, the school has been searched for evidence of such a chamber, many times, by the most learned witches and wizards. It does not exist. A tale told to frighten the gullible.”

Hermione’s hand was back in the air.

“Sir — what exactly do you mean by the ‘horror within’ the Chamber?”

“That is believed to be some sort of monster, which the Heir of Slytherin alone can control,” said Professor Binns in his dry, reedy voice.

The class exchanged nervous looks.

“I tell you, the thing does not exist,” said Professor Binns, shuffling his notes. “There is no Chamber and no monster.”

“But, sir,” said Seamus Finnigan, “if the Chamber can only be opened by Slytherin’s true heir, no one else would be able to find it, would they?”

“Nonsense, O’Flaherty,” said Professor Binns in an aggravated tone. “If a long succession of Hogwarts headmasters and headmistresses haven’t found the thing —”

“But, Professor,” piped up Parvati Patil, “you’d probably have to use Dark Magic to open it —”

“Just because a wizard doesn’t use Dark Magic doesn’t mean he can’t, Miss Pennyfeather,” snapped Professor Binns. “I repeat, if the likes of Dumbledore —”

“But maybe you’ve got to be related to Slytherin, so Dumbledore couldn’t —” began Dean Thomas, but Professor Binns had had enough.

“That will do,” he said sharply. “It is a myth! It does not exist! There is not a shred of evidence that Slytherin ever built so much as a secret broom cupboard! I regret telling you such a foolish story! We will return, if you please, to history, to solid, believable, verifiable fact!”

And within five minutes, the class had sunk back into its usual torpor.

“I always knew Salazar Slytherin was a twisted old loony,” Ron told Harry and Hermione as they fought their way through the teeming corridors at the end of the lesson to drop off their bags before dinner. “But I never knew he started all this pure-blood stuff. I wouldn’t be in his house if you paid me. Honestly, if the Sorting Hat had tried to put me in Slytherin, I’d’ve got the train straight back home…”

Hermione nodded fervently, but Harry didn’t say anything. His stomach had just dropped unpleasantly.

Harry had never told Ron and Hermione that the Sorting Hat had seriously considered putting him in Slytherin. He could remember, as though it were yesterday, the small voice that had spoken in his ear when he’d placed the hat on his head a year before: You could be great, you know, it’s all here in your head, and Slytherin would help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that…

But Harry, who had already heard of Slytherin House’s reputation for turning out Dark wizards, had thought desperately, Not Slytherin! and the hat had said, Oh, well, if you’re sure better be Gryffindor…

As they were shunted along in the throng, Colin Creevy went past.

“Hiya, Harry!”

“Hullo, Colin,” said Harry automatically.

“Harry — Harry — a boy in my class has been saying you’re —”

But Colin was so small he couldn’t fight against the tide of people bearing him toward the Great Hall; they heard him squeak, “See you, Harry!” and he was gone.

“What’s a boy in his class saying about you?” Hermione wondered.

“That I’m Slytherin’s heir, I expect,” said Harry, his stomach dropping another inch or so as he suddenly remembered the way Justin Finch-Fletchley had run away from him at lunchtime.

“People here’ll believe anything,” said Ron in disgust.

The crowd thinned and they were able to climb the next staircase without difficulty.

“D’you really think there’s a Chamber of Secrets?” Ron asked Hermione.

“I don’t know,” she said, frowning. “Dumbledore couldn’t cure Mrs. Norris, and that makes me think that whatever attacked her might not be — well — human.”

As she spoke, they turned a corner and found themselves at the end of the very corridor where the attack had happened. They stopped and looked. The scene was just as it had been that night, except that there was no stiff cat hanging from the torch bracket, and an empty chair stood against the wall bearing the message “The Chamber of Secrets has been Opened.”

“That’s where Filch has been keeping guard,” Ron muttered.

They looked at each other. The corridor was deserted.

“Can’t hurt to have a poke around,” said Harry, dropping his bag and getting to his hands and knees so that he could crawl along, searching for clues.

“Scorch marks!” he said. “Here — and here —”

“Come and look at this!” said Hermione. “This is funny…”

Harry got up and crossed to the window next to the message on the wall. Hermione was pointing at the topmost pane, where around twenty spiders were scuttling, apparently fighting to get through a small crack. A long, silvery thread was dangling like a rope, as though they had all climbed it in their hurry to get outside.

“Have you ever seen spiders act like that?” said Hermione wonderingly.

“No,” said Harry, “have you, Ron? Ron?”

He looked over his shoulder. Ron was standing well back and seemed to be fighting the impulse to run.

“What’s up?” said Harry.

“I — don’t — like — spiders,” said Ron tensely.

“I never knew that,” said Hermione, looking at Ron in surprise. “You’ve used spiders in Potions loads of times…”

“I don’t mind them dead,” said Ron, who was carefully looking anywhere but at the window. “I just don’t like the way they move…”

Hermione giggled.

“It’s not funny,” said Ron, fiercely. “If you must know, when I was three, Fred turned my — my teddy bear into a great big filthy spider because I broke his toy broomstick… You wouldn’t like them either if you’d been holding your bear and suddenly it had too many legs and…”

He broke off, shuddering. Hermione was obviously still trying not to laugh. Feeling they had better get off the subject, Harry said, “Remember all that water on the floor? Where did that

come from? Someone’s mopped it up.”

“It was about here,” said Ron, recovering himself to walk a few paces past Filch’s chair and pointing. “Level with this door.”

He reached for the brass doorknob but suddenly withdrew his hand as though he’d been burned.

“What’s the matter?” said Harry.

“Can’t go in there,” said Ron gruffly. “That’s a girls’ toilet.”

“Oh, Ron, there won’t be anyone in there,” said Hermione standing up and coming over. “That’s Moaning Myrtle’s place. Come on, let’s have a look.”

And ignoring the large OUT OF ORDER sign, she opened the door.

It was the gloomiest, most depressing bathroom Harry had ever set foot in. Under a large, cracked, and spotted mirror were a row of chipped sinks. The floor was damp and reflected the dull light given off by the stubs of a few candles, burning low in their holders; the wooden doors to the stalls were flaking and scratched and one of them was dangling off its hinges.

Hermione put her fingers to her lips and set off toward the end stall. When she reached it she said, “Hello, Myrtle, how are you?”

Harry and Ron went to look. Moaning Myrtle was floating above the tank of the toilet, picking a spot on her chin.

“This is a girls’ bathroom,” she said, eyeing Ron and Harry suspiciously. “They’re not girls.”

“No,” Hermione agreed. “I just wanted to show them how er — nice it is in here.”

She waved vaguely at the dirty old mirror and the damp floor.

“Ask her if she saw anything,” Harry mouthed at Hermione.

“What are you whispering?” said Myrtle, staring at him.

“Nothing,” said Harry quickly. “We wanted to ask —”

“I wish people would stop talking behind my back!” said Myrtle, in a voice choked with tears. “I do have feelings, you know, even if I am dead —”

“Myrtle, no one wants to upset you,” said Hermione. “Harry only —”

“No one wants to upset me! That’s a good one!” howled Myrtle. “My life was nothing but misery at this place and now people come along ruining my death!”

“We wanted to ask you if you’ve seen anything funny lately,” said Hermione quickly. “Because a cat was attacked right outside your front door on Halloween.”

“Did you see anyone near here that night?” said Harry.

“I wasn’t paying attention,” said Myrtle dramatically. “Peeves upset me so much I came in here and tried to kill myself. Then, of course, I remembered that I’m — that I’m —”

“Already dead,” said Ron helpfully.

Myrtle gave a tragic sob, rose up in the air, turned over, and dived headfirst into the toilet, splashing water all over them and vanishing from sight, although from the direction of her muffled sobs, she had come to rest somewhere in the U-bend.

Harry and Ron stood with their mouths open, but Hermione shrugged wearily and said, “Honestly, that was almost cheerful for Myrtle… Come on, let’s go.”

Harry had barely closed the door on Myrtle’s gurgling sobs when a loud voice made all three of them jump.

“RON!”

Percy Weasley had stopped dead at the head of the stairs, prefect badge agleam, an expression of complete shock on his face.

“That’s a girls’ bathroom!” he gasped. “What were you —?”

“Just having a look around,” Ron shrugged. “Clues, you know —”

Percy swelled in a manner that reminded Harry forcefully of Mrs. Weasley.

“Get — away — from — there —” Perry said, striding toward them and starting to bustle them along, flapping his arms. “Don’t you care what this looks like? Coming back here while everyone’s at dinner —”

“Why shouldn’t we be here?” said Ron hotly, stopping short and glaring at Percy. “Listen, we never laid a finger on that cat!”

“That’s what I told Ginny,” said Percy fiercely, “but she still seems to think you’re going to be expelled, I’ve never seen her so upset, crying her eyes out, you might think of her, all the first years are thoroughly overexcited by this business —”

“You don’t care about Ginny,” said Ron, whose ears were now reddening. “You’re just worried I’m going to mess up your chances of being Head Boy —”

“Five points from Gryffindor!” Percy said tersely, fingering his prefect badge. “And I hope it

teaches you a lesson! No more detective work, or I’ll write to Mum!”

And he strode off, the back of his neck as red as Ron’s ears.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione chose seats as far as possible from Percy in the common room that night. Ron was still in a very bad temper and kept blotting his Charms homework. When he reached absently for his wand to remove the smudges, it ignited the parchment. Fuming almost as much as his homework, Ron slammed The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 shut. To Harry’s surprise, Hermione followed suit.

“Who can it be, though?” she said in a quiet voice, as though continuing a conversation they had just been having. “Who’d want to frighten all the Squibs and Muggle-borns out of Hogwart’s?”

“Let’s think,” said Ron in mock puzzlement. “Who do we know who thinks Muggle-borns are scum?”

He looked at Hermione. Hermione looked back, unconvinced.

“If you’re talking about Malfoy —”

“Of course I am!” said Ron. “You heard him — ‘You’ll be next, Mudbloods!’— come on, you’ve only got to look at his foul rat face to know it’s him —”

“Malfoy, the Heir of Slytherin?” said Hermione skeptically.

“Look at his family,” said Harry, closing his books, too. “The whole lot of them have been in Slytherin; he’s always boasting about it. They could easily be Slytherin’s descendants. His father’s definitely evil enough.”

“They could’ve had the key to the Chamber of Secrets for centuries!” said Ron. “Handing it down, father to son…”

“Well,” said Hermione cautiously, “I suppose it’s possible…”

“But how do we prove it?” said Harry darkly.

“There might be a way,” said Hermione slowly, dropping her voice still further with a quick glance across the room at Percy. “Of course, it would be difficult. And dangerous, very dangerous. We’d be breaking about fifty school rules, I expect —”

“If, in a month or so, you feel like explaining, you will let us know, won’t you?” said Ron irritably.

“All right,” said Hermione coldly. “What we’d need to do is to get inside the Slytherin common room and ask Malfoy a few questions without him realizing it’s us.”

“But that’s impossible,” Harry said as Ron laughed.

“No, it’s not,” said Hermione. “All we’d need would be some Polyjuice Potion.”

“What’s that?” said Ron and Harry together.

“Snape mentioned it in class a few weeks ago —”

“D’you think we’ve got nothing better to do in Potions than listen to Snape?” muttered Ron.

“It transforms you into somebody else. Think about it! We could change into three of the Slytherins. No one would know it was us. Malfoy would probably tell us anything. He’s probably boasting about it in the Slytherin common room right now, if only we could hear him.”

“This Polyjuice stuff sounds a bit dodgy to me,” said Ron, frowning. “What if we were stuck looking like three of the Slytherins forever?”

“It wears off after a while,” said Hermione, waving her hand impatiently. “But getting hold of the recipe will be very difficult. Snape said it was in a book called Moste Potente Potions and it’s bound to be in the Restricted Section of the library.” There was only one way to get out a book from the Restricted Section: You needed a signed note of permission from a teacher. “Hard to see why we’d want the book, really,” said Ron, “if we weren’t going to try and make one of the potions.” “I think,” said Hermione, “that if we made it sound as though we were just interested in the theory, we might stand a chance…

“Oh, come on, no teacher’s going to fall for that,” said Ron. “They’d have to be really thick…”

CHAPTER TEN

The Rogue Bludger

Since the disastrous episode of the pixies, Professor Lockhart had not brought live creatures to class. Instead, he read passages from his books to them, and sometimes reenacted some of the more dramatic bits. He usually picked Harry to help him with these reconstructions; so far, Harry had been forced to play a simple Transylvanian villager whom Lockhart had cured of a Babbling Curse, a yeti with a head cold, and a vampire who had been unable to eat anything except lettuce since Lockhart had dealt with him.

Harry was hauled to the front of the class during their very next Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson, this time acting a werewolf. If he hadn’t had a very good reason for keeping Lockhart in a good mood, he would have refused to do it.

“Nice loud howl, Harry — exactly — and then, if you’ll believe it, I pounced — like this — slammed him to the floor — thus with one hand, I managed to hold him down — with my other, I put my wand to his throat — I then screwed up my remaining strength and performed the immensely complex Homorphus Charm - he let out a piteous moan — go on, Harry — higher than that — good — the fur vanished — the fangs shrank — and he turned back into a man. Simple, yet effective — and another village will remember me forever as the hero who delivered them from the monthly terror of werewolf attacks.”

The bell rang and Lockhart got to his feet.

“Homework — compose a poem about my defeat of the Wagga Wagga Werewolf! Signed copies of Magical Me to the author of the best one!”

The class began to leave. Harry returned to the back of the room, where Ron and Hermione were waiting.

“Ready?” Harry muttered.

“Wait till everyone’s gone,” said Hermione nervously. “All right…”

She approached Lockhart’s desk, a piece of paper clutched tightly in her hand, Harry and Ron right behind her.

“Er — Professor Lockhart?” Hermione stammered. “I wanted to — to get this book out of the library. Just for background reading.” She held out the piece of paper, her hand shaking slightly.

“But the thing is, it’s in the Restricted Section of the library, so I need a teacher to sign for it — I’m sure it would help me understand what you say in Gadding with Ghouls about slow-acting venoms.”

“Ah, Gadding with Ghouls!” said Lockhart, taking the note from Hermione and smiling widely

at her. “Possibly my very favorite book. You enjoyed it?”

“Oh, yes,” said Hermione eagerly. “So clever, the way you trapped that last one with the teastrainer —”

“Well, I’m sure no one will mind me giving the best student of the year a little extra help,” said Lockhart warmly, and he pulled out an enormous peacock quill. “Yes, nice, isn’t it?” he said, misreading the revolted look on Ron’s face. “I usually save it for book-signings.”

He scrawled an enormous loopy signature on the note and handed it back to Hermione.

“So, Harry,” said Lockhart, while Hermione folded the note with fumbling fingers and slipped it into her bag. “Tomorrow’s the first Quidditch match of the season, I believe? Gryffindor against Slytherin, is it not? I hear you’re a useful player. I was a Seeker, too. I was asked to try for the National Squad, but preferred to dedicate my life to the eradication of the Dark Forces. Still, if ever you feel the need for a little private training, don’t hesitate to ask. Always happy to pass on my expertise to less able players…”

Harry made an indistinct noise in his throat and then hurried off after Ron and Hermione.

“I don’t believe it,” he said as the three of them examined the signature on the note. “He didn’t even look at the book we wanted.”

“That’s because he’s a brainless git,” said Ron. “But who cares, we’ve got what we needed—”

“He is not a brainless git,” said Hermione shrilly as they half ran toward the library.

“Just because he said you were the best student of the year —”

They dropped their voices as they entered the muffled stillness of the library. Madam Pince, the librarian, was a thin, irritable woman who looked like an underfed vulture.

“Moste Potente Potions?” she repeated suspiciously, trying to take the note from Hermione; but Hermione wouldn’t let go.

“I was wondering if I could keep it,” she said breathlessly.

“Oh, come on,” said Ron, wrenching it from her grasp and thrusting it at Madam Pince. “We’ll get you another autograph. Lockhart’ll sign anything if it stands still long enough.”

Madam Pince held the note up to the light, as though determined to detect a forgery, but it passed the test. She stalked away between the lofty shelves and returned several minutes later carrying a large and moldy-looking book. Hermione put it carefully into her bag and they left, trying not to walk too quickly or look too guilty.

Five minutes later, they were barricaded in Moaning Myrtle’s out-of-order bathroom once again.

Hermione had overridden Ron’s objections by pointing out that it was the last place anyone in their right minds would go, so they were guaranteed some privacy. Moaning Myrtle was crying noisily in her stall, but they were ignoring her, and she them.

Hermione opened Moste Potente Potions carefully, and the three of them bent over the dampspotted pages. It was clear from a glance why it belonged in the Restricted Section. Some of the potions had effects almost too gruesome to think about, and there were some very unpleasant illustrations, which included a man who seemed to have been turned inside out and a witch sprouting several extra pairs of arms out of her head.

“Here it is,” said Hermione excitedly as she found the page headed The Polyjuice Potion. It was decorated with drawings of people halfway through transforming into other people. Harry sincerely hoped the artist had imagined the looks of intense pain on their faces.

“This is the most complicated potion I’ve ever seen,” said Hermione as they scanned the recipe. “Lacewing flies, leeches, fluxweed, and knotgrass,” she murmured, running her finger down the list of ingredients. “Well, they’re easy enough, they’re in the student store-cupboard, we can help ourselves… Oooh, look, powdered horn of a bicorn — don’t know where we’re going to get that — shredded skin of a boomslang — that’ll be tricky, too and of course a bit of whoever we want to change into.”

“Excuse me?” said Ron sharply. “What d’you mean, a bit of whoever we’re changing into? I’m drinking nothing with Crabbe’s toenails in it —”

Hermione continued as though she hadn’t heard him.

“We don’t have to worry about that yet, though, because we add those bits last…”

Ron turned, speechless, to Harry, who had another worry.

“D’you realize how much we’re going to have to steal, Hermione? Shredded skin of a boomslang, that’s definitely not in the students’ cupboard. What’re we going to do, break into Snape’s private stores? I don’t know if this is a good idea…”

Hermione shut the book with a snap.

“Well, if you two are going to chicken out, fine,” she said. There were bright pink patches on her cheeks and her eyes were brighter than usual. “I don’t want to break rules, you know. I think threatening Muggle-borns is far worse than brewing up a difficult potion. But if you don’t want to find out if it’s Malfoy, I’ll go straight to Madam Pince now and hand the book back in.’

“I never thought I’d see the day when you’d be persuading us to break rules,” said Ron. “All right, we’ll do it. But not toenails, okay?”

“How long will it take to make, anyway?” said Harry as Hermione, looking happier, opened the book again.

“Well, since the fluxweed has got to be picked at the full moon and the lacewings have got to be stewed for twenty-one days… I’d say it’d be ready in about a month, if we can get all the ingredients.”

“A month?” said Ron. “Malfoy could have attacked half the Muggle-borns in the school by then!” But Hermione’s eyes narrowed dangerously again, and he added swiftly, “But it’s the best plan we’ve got, so full steam ahead, I say.”

However, while Hermione was checking that the coast was clear for them to leave the bathroom, Ron muttered to Harry, “It’ll be a lot less hassle if you can just knock Malfoy off his broom tomorrow.”

Harry woke early on Saturday morning and lay for a while thinking about the coming Quidditch match. He was nervous, mainly at the thought of what Wood would say if Gryffindor lost, but also at the idea of facing a team mounted on the fastest racing brooms gold could buy. He had never wanted to beat Slytherin so badly. After half an hour of lying there with his insides churning, he got up, dressed, and went down to breakfast early, where he found the rest of the Gryffindor team huddled at the long, empty table, all looking uptight and not speaking much.

As eleven o’clock approached, the whole school started to make its way down to the Quidditch stadium. It was a muggy sort of day with a hint of thunder in the air. Ron and Hermione came hurrying over to wish Harry good luck as he entered the locker rooms. The team pulled on their scarlet Gryffindor robes, then sat down to listen to Wood’s usual pre-match pep talk.

“Slytherin has better brooms than us,” he began. “No point denying it. But we’ve got better people on our brooms. We’ve trained harder than they have, we’ve been flying in all weathers — ”(“Too true,” muttered George Weasley. “I haven’t been properly dry since August”) “— and we’re going to make them rue the day they let that little bit of slime, Malfoy, buy his way onto their team.”

Chest heaving with emotion, Wood turned to Harry.

“It’ll be down to you, Harry, to show them that a Seeker has to have something more than a rich father. Get to that Snitch before Malfoy or die trying, Harry, because we’ve got to win today, we’ve got to.”

“So no pressure, Harry” said Fred, winking at him.

As they walked out onto the pitch, a roar of noise greeted them; mainly cheers, because Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were anxious to see Slytherin beaten, but the Slytherins in the crowd made their boos and hisses heard, too. Madam Hooch, the Quidditch teacher, asked Flint and Wood to shake hands, which they did, giving each other threatening stares and gripping rather harder than was necessary.

“On my whistle,” said Madam Hooch. “Three… two… one…”

With a roar from the crowd to speed them upward, the fourteen players rose toward the leaden sky. Harry flew higher than any of them, squinting around for the Snitch.

“All right there, Scarhead?” yelled Malfoy, shooting underneath him as though to show off the speed of his broom.

Harry had no time to reply. At that very moment, a heavy black Bludger came pelting toward him; he avoided it so narrowly that he felt it ruffle his hair as it passed.

“Close one, Harry!” said George, streaking past him with his club in his hand, ready to knock the Bludger back toward a Slytherin. Harry saw George give the Bludger a powerful whack in the direction of Adrian Pucey, but the Bludger changed direction in midair and shot straight for Harry again.

Harry dropped quickly to avoid it, and George managed to hit it hard toward Malfoy. Once again, the Bludger swerved like a boomerang and shot at Harry’s head.

Harry put on a burst of speed and zoomed toward the other end of the pitch. He could hear the Bludger whistling along behind him. What was going on? Bludgers never concentrated on one player like this; it was their job to try and unseat as many people as possible…

Fred Weasley was waiting for the Bludger at the other end. Harry ducked as Fred swung at the Bludger with all his might; the Bludger was knocked off course.

“Gotcha!” Fred yelled happily, but he was wrong; as though it was magnetically attracted to Harry, the Bludger pelted after him once more and Harry was forced to fly off at full speed.

It had started to rain; Harry felt heavy drops fall onto his face, splattering onto his glasses. He didn’t have a clue what was going on in the rest of the game until he heard Lee Jordan, who was commentating, say, “Slytherin lead, sixty points to zero.’

The Slytherins’ superior brooms were clearly doing their jobs, and meanwhile the mad Bludger was doing all it could to knock Harry out of the air. Fred and George were now flying so close to him on either side that Harry could see nothing at all except their flailing arms and had no chance to look for the Snitch, let alone catch it.

“Someone’s — tampered — with — this — Bludger —” Fred grunted, swinging his bat with all his might at it as it launched a new attack on Harry.

“We need time out,” said George, trying to signal to Wood and stop the Bludger breaking Harry’s nose at the same time.

Wood had obviously got the message. Madam Hooch’s whistle rang out and Harry, Fred, and George dived for the ground, still trying to avoid the mad Bludger.

“What’s going on?” said Wood as the Gryffindor team huddled together, while Slytherins in the

crowd jeered. “We’re being flattened. Fred, George, where were you when that Bludger stopped Angelina scoring?”

“We were twenty feet above her, stopping the other Bludger from murdering Harry, Oliver,” said George angrily. “Someone’s fixed it — it won’t leave Harry alone. It hasn’t gone for anyone else all game. The Slytherins must have done something to it.”

“But the Bludgers have been locked in Madam Hooch’s office since our last practice, and there was nothing wrong with them then…” said Wood, anxiously. Madam Hooch was walking toward them. Over her shoulder, Harry could see the Slytherin team jeering and pointing in his direction.

“Listen,” said Harry as she came nearer and nearer, “with you two flying around me all the time the only way I’m going to catch the Snitch is if it flies up my sleeve. Go back to the rest of the team and let me deal with the rogue one.”

“Don’t be thick,” said Fred. “It’ll take your head off.”

Wood was looking from Harry to the Weasleys.

“Oliver, this is insane,” said Alicia Spinner angrily. “You can’t let Harry deal with that thing on his own. Let’s ask for an inquiry…”

“If we stop now, we’ll have to forfeit the match!” said Harry. “And we’re not losing to Slytherin just because of a crazy Bludger! Come on, Oliver, tell them to leave me alone!”

“This is all your fault,” George said angrily to Wood. “‘Get the Snitch or die trying,’ what a stupid thing to tell him —”

Madam Hooch had joined them.

“Ready to resume play?” she asked Wood.

Wood looked at the determined look on Harry’s face.

“All right,” he said. “Fred, George, you heard Harry — leave him alone and let him deal with the Bludger on his own.”

The rain was falling more heavily now. On Madam Hooch’s whistle, Harry kicked hard into the air and heard the telltale whoosh of the Bludger behind him. Higher and higher Harry climbed; he looped and swooped, spiraled, zigzagged, and rolled. Slightly dizzy, he nevertheless kept his eyes wide open, rain was speckling his glasses and ran up his nostrils as he hung upside down, avoiding another fierce dive from the Bludger. He could hear laughter from the crowd; he knew he must look very stupid, but the rogue Bludger was heavy and couldn’t change direction as quickly as Harry could; he began a kind of roller-coaster ride around the edges of the stadium, squinting through the silver sheets of rain to the Gryffindor goal posts, where Adrian Pucey was

trying to get past Wood.

A whistling in Harry’s ear told him the Bludger had just missed him again; he turned right over and sped in the opposite direction.

“Training for the ballet, Potter?” yelled Malfoy as Harry was forced to do a stupid kind of twirl in midair to dodge the Bludger, and he fled, the Bludger trailing a few feet behind him; and then, glaring back at Malfoy in hatred, he saw it — the Golden Snitch. It was hovering inches above Malfoy’s left ear — and Malfoy, busy laughing at Harry, hadn’t seen it.

For an agonizing moment, Harry hung in midair, not daring to speed toward Malfoy in case he looked up and saw the Snitch.

WHAM.

He had stayed still a second too long. The Bludger had hit him at last, smashed into his elbow, and Harry felt his arm break. Dimly, dazed by the searing pain in his arm, he slid sideways on his rain-drenched broom, one knee still crooked over it, his right arm dangling useless at his side — the Bludger came pelting back for a second attack, this time zooming at his face — Harry swerved out of the way, one idea firmly lodged in his numb brain: get to Malfoy.

Through a haze of rain and pain he dived for the shimmering, sneering face below him and saw its eyes widen with fear: Malfoy thought Harry was attacking him.

“What the —” he gasped, careening out of Harry’s way.

Harry took his remaining hand off his broom and made a wild snatch; he felt his fingers close on the cold Snitch but was now only gripping the broom with his legs, and there was a yell from the crowd below as he headed straight for the ground, trying hard not to pass out.

With a splattering thud he hit the mud and rolled off his broom. His arm was hanging at a very strange angle; riddled with pain, he heard, as though from a distance, a good deal of whistling and shouting. He focused on the Snitch clutched in his good hand.

“Aha,” he said vaguely. “We’ve won.”

And he fainted.

He came around, rain falling on his face, still lying on the field, with someone leaning over him. He saw a glitter of teeth.

“Oh, no, not you,” he moaned.

“Doesn’t know what he’s saying,” said Lockhart loudly to the anxious crowd of Gryffindors pressing around them. “Not to worry, Harry. I’m about to fix your arm.”

“No!” said Harry. “I’ll keep it like this, thanks…”

He tried to sit up, but the pain was terrible. He heard a familiar clicking noise nearby.

“I don’t want a photo of this, Colin,” he said loudly.

“Lie back, Harry,” said Lockhart soothingly. “It’s a simple charm I’ve used countless times —”

“Why can’t I just go to the hospital wing?” said Harry through clenched teeth.

“He should really, Professor,” said a muddy Wood, who couldn’t help grinning even though his Seeker was injured. “Great capture, Harry, really spectacular, your best yet, I’d say —”

Through the thicket of legs around him, Harry spotted Fred and George Weasley, wrestling the rogue Bludger into a box. It was still putting up a terrific fight.

“Stand back,” said Lockhart, who was rolling up his jade-green sleeves.

“No — don’t —” said Harry weakly, but Lockhart was twirling his wand and a second later had directed it straight at Harry’s arm.

A strange and unpleasant sensation started at Harry’s shoulder and spread all the way down to his fingertips. It felt as though his arm was being deflated. He didn’t dare look at what was happening. He had shut his eyes, his face turned away from his arm, but his worst fears were realized as the people above him gasped and Colin Creevey began clicking away madly. His arm didn’t hurt anymore — nor did it feel remotely like an arm.

“Ah,” said Lockhart. “Yes. Well, that can sometimes happen. But the point is, the bones are no longer broken. That’s the thing to bear in mind. So, Harry, just toddle up to the hospital wing — ah, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, would you escort him? — and Madam Pomfrey will be able to — er — tidy you up a bit.”

As Harry got to his feet, he felt strangely lopsided. Taking a deep breath he looked down at his right side. What he saw nearly made him pass out again.

Poking out of the end of his robes was what looked like a thick, flesh-colored rubber glove. He tried to move his fingers. Nothing happened.

Lockhart hadn’t mended Harry’s bones. He had removed them.

Madam Pomfrey wasn’t at all pleased.

“You should have come straight to me!” she raged, holding up the sad, limp remainder of what, half an hour before, had been a working arm. “I can mend bones in a second — but growing them back —”

“You will be able to, won’t you?” said Harry desperately.

“I’ll be able to, certainly, but it will be painful,” said Madam Pomfrey grimly, throwing Harry a pair of pajamas. “You’ll have to stay the night…”

Hermione waited outside the curtain drawn around Harry’s bed while Ron helped him into his pajamas. It took a while to stuff the rubbery, boneless arm into a sleeve.

“How can you stick up for Lockhart now, Hermione, eh?” Ron called through the curtain as he pulled Harry’s limp fingers through the cuff. “If Harry had wanted deboning he would have asked.”

“Anyone can make a mistake,” said Hermione. “And it doesn’t hurt anymore, does it, Harry?”

“No,” said Harry, getting into bed. “But it doesn’t do anything else either.”

As he swung himself onto the bed, his arm flapped pointlessly.

Hermione and Madam Pomfrey came around the curtain. Madam Pomfrey was holding a large bottle of something labeled Skele-Gro.

“You’re in for a rough night,” she said, pouring out a steaming beakerful and handing it to him. “Regrowing bones is a nasty business.”

So was taking the Skele-Gro. It burned Harry’s mouth and throat as it went down, making him cough and splutter. Still tut-tutting about dangerous sports and inept teachers, Madam Pomfrey retreated, leaving Ron and Hermione to help Harry gulp down some water. “We won, though,” said Ron, a grin breaking across his face. “That was some catch you made. Malfoy’s face… he looked ready to kill…”

“I want to know how he fixed that Bludger,” said Hermione darkly.

“We can add that to the list of questions we’ll ask him when we’ve taken the Polyjuice Potion,” said Harry, sinking back onto his pillows. “I hope it tastes better than this stuff…”

“If it’s got bits of Slytherins in it? You’ve got to be joking,” said Ron.

The door of the hospital wing burst open at that moment. Filthy and soaking wet, the rest of the Gryffindor team had arrived to see Harry. “Unbelievable flying, Harry,” said George. “I’ve just seen Marcus Flint yelling at Malfoy. Something about having the Snitch on top of his head and not noticing. Malfoy didn’t seem too happy.” They had brought cakes, sweets, and bottles of pumpkin juice; they gathered around Harry’s bed and were just getting started on what promised to be a good party when Madam Pomfrey came storming over, shouting, “This boy needs rest, he’s got thirty-three bones to regrow! Out! OUT!” And Harry was left alone, with nothing to distract him from the stabbing pains in his limp arm.

Hours and hours later, Harry woke quite suddenly in the pitch blackness and gave a small yelp of pain: His arm now felt full of large splinters. For a second, he thought that was what had woken

him. Then, with a thrill of horror, he realized that someone was sponging his forehead in the dark.

“Get off!” he said loudly, and then, “Dobby!”

The house-elf’s goggling tennis ball eyes were peering at Harry through the darkness. A single tear was running down his long, pointed nose.

“Harry Potter came back to school,” he whispered miserably. “Dobby warned and warned Harry Potter. Ah sir, why didn’t you heed Dobby? Why didn’t Harry Potter go back home when he missed the train?”

Harry heaved himself up on his pillows and pushed Dobby’s sponge away.

“What’re you doing here?” he said. “And how did you know I missed the train?”

Dobby’s lip trembled and Harry was seized by a sudden suspicion.

“It was you!” he said slowly. “You stopped the barrier from letting us through!”

“Indeed yes, sir,” said Dobby, nodding his head vigorously, ears flapping. “Dobby hid and watched for Harry Potter and sealed the gateway and Dobby had to iron his hands afterward” — he showed Harry ten long, bandaged fingers — “but Dobby didn’t care, sir, for he thought Harry Potter was safe, and never did Dobby dream that Harry Potter would get to school another way!”

He was rocking backward and forward, shaking his ugly head.

“Dobby was so shocked when he heard Harry Potter was back at Hogwarts, he let his master’s dinner burn! Such a flogging Dobby never had, sir…”

Harry slumped back onto his pillows.

“You nearly got Ron and me expelled,” he said fiercely. “You’d better get lost before my bones come back, Dobby, or I might strangle you.”

Dobby smiled weakly.

“Dobby is used to death threats, sir. Dobby gets them five times a day at home.”

He blew his nose on a corner of the filthy pillowcase he wore, looking so pathetic that Harry felt his anger ebb away in spite of himself.

“Why d’you wear that thing, Dobby?” he asked curiously.

“This, sir?” said Dobby, plucking at the pillowcase. “‘Tis a mark of the house-elf’s enslavement, sir. Dobby can only be freed if his masters present him with clothes, sir. The family is careful not

to pass Dobby even a sock, sir, for then he would be free to leave their house forever.”

Dobby mopped his bulging eyes and said suddenly, “Harry Potter must go home! Dobby thought his Bludger would be enough to make —”

“Your Bludger?” said Harry, anger rising once more. “What d’you mean, your Bludger? You made that Bludger try and kill me?”

“Not kill you, sir, never kill you!” said Dobby, shocked. “Dobby wants to save Harry Potter’s life! Better sent home, grievously injured, than remain here sir! Dobby only wanted Harry Potter hurt enough to be sent home!”

“Oh, is that all?” said Harry angrily. “I don’t suppose you’re going to tell me why you wanted me sent home in pieces?”

“Ah, if Harry Potter only knew!” Dobby groaned, more tears dripping onto his ragged pillowcase. “If he knew what he means to us, to the lowly, the enslaved, we dregs of the magical world! Dobby remembers how it was when He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was at the height of his powers, sir! We house-elves were treated like vermin, sir! Of course, Dobby is still treated like that, sir,” he admitted, drying his face on the pillowcase. “But mostly, sir, life has improved for my kind since you triumphed over He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Harry Potter survived, and the Dark Lord’s power was broken, and it was a new dawn, sir, and Harry Potter shone like a beacon of hope for those of us who thought the Dark days would never end, sit… And now, at Hogwarts, terrible things are to happen, are perhaps happening already, and Dobby cannot let Harry Potter stay here now that history is to repeat itself, now that the Chamber of Secrets is open once more.”

Dobby froze, horrorstruck, then grabbed Harry’s water jug from his bedside table and cracked it over his own head, toppling out of sight. A second later, he crawled back onto the bed, crosseyed, muttering, “Bad Dobby, very bad Dobby…”

“So there is a Chamber of Secrets?” Harry whispered. “And did you say it’s been opened before? Tell me, Dobby!”

He seized the elf’s bony wrist as Dobby’s hand inched toward the water jug. “But I’m not Muggle-born — how can I be in danger from the Chamber?”

“Ah, sir, ask no more, ask no more of poor Dobby,” stammered the elf, his eyes huge in the dark. “Dark deeds are planned in this place, but Harry Potter must not be here when they happen — go home, Harry Potter, go home. Harry Potter must not meddle in this, sir, ‘tis too dangerous —”

“Who is it, Dobby?” Harry said, keeping a firm hold on Dobby’s wrist to stop him from hitting himself with the water jug again. “Who’s opened it? Who opened it last time?”

“Dobby can’t, sir, Dobby can’t, Dobby mustn’t tell!” squealed the elf. “Go home, Harry Potter, go home!”

“I’m not going anywhere!” said Harry fiercely. “One of my best friends is Muggle-born; she’ll be first in line if the Chamber really has been opened —”

“Harry Potter risks his own life for his friends!” moaned Dobby in a kind of miserable ecstasy. “So noble! So valiant! But he must save himself, he must, Harry Potter must not —”

Dobby suddenly froze, his bat ears quivering. Harry heard it, too. There were footsteps coming down the passageway outside.

“Dobby must go!” breathed the elf, terrified. There was a loud crack, and Harry’s fist was suddenly clenched on thin air. He slumped back into bed, his eyes on the dark doorway to the hospital wing as the footsteps drew nearer.

Next moment, Dumbledore was backing into the dormitory, wearing a long woolly dressing gown and a nightcap. He was carrying one end of what looked like a statue. Professor McGonagall appeared a second later, carrying its feet. Together, they heaved it onto a bed.

“Get Madam Pomfrey,” whispered Dumbledore, and Professor McGonagall hurried past the end of Harry’s bed out of sight. Harry lay quite still, pretending to be asleep. He heard urgent voices, and then Professor McGonagall swept back into view, closely followed by Madam Pomfrey, who was pulling a cardigan on over her nightdress. He heard a sharp intake of breath.

“What happened?” Madam Pomfrey whispered to Dumbledore, bending over the statue on the bed.

“Another attack,” said Dumbledore. “Minerva found him on the stairs.”

“There was a bunch of grapes next to him,” said Professor McGonagall. “We think he was trying to sneak up here to visit Potter.”

Harry’s stomach gave a horrible lurch. Slowly and carefully, he raised himself a few inches so he could look at the statue on the bed. A ray of moonlight lay across its staring face.

It was Colin Creevey. His eyes were wide and his hands were stuck up in front of him, holding his camera.

“Petrified?” whispered Madam Pomfrey.

“Yes,” said Professor McGonagall. “But I shudder to think… If Albus hadn’t been on the way downstairs for hot chocolate — who knows what might have —”

The three of them stared down at Colin. Then Dumbledore leaned forward and wrenched the camera out of Colin’s rigid grip.

“You don’t think he managed to get a picture of his attacker?” said Professor McGonagall eagerly.

Dumbledore didn’t answer. He opened the back of the camera.

“Good gracious!” said Madam Pomfrey.

A jet of steam had hissed out of the camera. Harry, three beds away, caught the acrid smell of burnt plastic.

“Melted,” said Madam Pomfrey wonderingly. “All melted…”

“What does this mean, Albus?” Professor McGonagall asked urgently.

“It means,” said Dumbledore, “that the Chamber of Secrets is indeed open again.”

Madam Pomfrey clapped a hand to her mouth. Professor McGonagall stared at Dumbledore.

“But, Albus… surely… who?”

“The question is not who,” said Dumbledore, his eyes on Colin. “The question is, how…” And from what Harry could see of Professor McGonagall’s shadowy face, she didn’t understand this any better than he did.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

The Dueling Club

Harry woke up on Sunday morning to find the dormitory blazing with winter sunlight and his arm reboned but very stiff. He sat up quickly and looked over at Colin’s bed, but it had been blocked from view by the high curtains Harry had changed behind yesterday. Seeing that he was awake, Madam Pomfrey came bustling over with a breakfast tray and then began bending and stretching his arm and fingers.

“All in order,” she said as he clumsily fed himself porridge left-handed. “When you’ve finished eating, you may leave.”

Harry dressed as quickly as he could and hurried off to Gryffindor Tower, desperate to tell Ron and Hermione about Colin and Dobby, but they weren’t there. Harry left to look for them, wondering where they could have got to and feeling slightly hurt that they weren’t interested in whether he had his bones back or not.

As Harry passed the library, Percy Weasley strolled out of it, looking in far better spirits than last time they’d met.

“Oh, hello, Harry,” he said. “Excellent flying yesterday, really excellent. Gryffindor has just taken the lead for the House Cup — you earned fifty points!”

“You haven’t seen Ron or Hermione, have you?” said Harry.

“No, I haven’t,” said Percy, his smile fading. “I hope Ron’s not in another girls’ toilet…”

Harry forced a laugh, watched Percy walk out of sight, and then headed straight for Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. He couldn’t see why Ron and Hermione would be in there again, but after making sure that neither Filch nor any prefects were around, he opened the door and heard their voices coming from a locked stall.

“It’s me,” he said, closing the door behind him. There was a clunk, a splash, and a gasp from within the stall and he saw Hermione’s eye peering through the keyhole.

“Harry!” she said. “You gave us such a fright — come in. How’s your arm?”

“Fine,” said Harry, squeezing into the stall. An old cauldron was perched on the toilet, and a crackling from under the rim told Harry they had lit a fire beneath it. Conjuring up portable, waterproof fires was a speciality of Hermione’s.

“We’d’ve come to meet you, but we decided to get started on the Polyjuice Potion,” Ron explained as Harry, with difficulty, locked the stall again. “We’ve decided this is the safest place to hide it.”

Harry started to tell them about Colin, but Hermione interrupted.

“We already know — we heard Professor McGonagall telling Professor Flitwick this morning. That’s why we decided we’d better get going —”

“The sooner we get a confession out of Malfoy, the better,” snarled Ron. “D’you know what I think? He was in such a foul temper after the Quidditch match, he took it out on Colin.”

“There’s something else,” said Harry, watching Hermione tearing bundles of knotgrass and throwing them into the potion. “Dobby came to visit me in the middle of the night.”

Ron and Hermione looked up, amazed. Harry told them everything Dobby had told him — or hadn’t told him. Hermione and Ron listened with their mouths open.

“The Chamber of Secrets has been opened before?” Hermione said.

“This settles it,” said Ron in a triumphant voice. “Lucius Malfoy must’ve opened the Chamber when he was at school here and now he’s told dear old Draco how to do it. It’s obvious. Wish Dobby’d told you what kind of monster’s in there, though. I want to know how come nobody’s noticed it sneaking around the school.”

“Maybe it can make itself invisible,” said Hermione, prodding leeches to the bottom of the cauldron. “Or maybe it can disguise itself — pretend to be a suit of armor or something — I’ve read about Chameleon Ghouls —”

“You read too much, Hermione,” said Ron, pouring dead lacewings on top of the leeches. He crumpled up the empty lacewing bag and looked at Harry.

“So Dobby stopped us from getting on the train and broke your arm.” He shook his head. “You know what, Harry? If he doesn’t stop trying to save your life he’s going to kill you.”

The news that Colin Creevey had been attacked and was now lying as though dead in the hospital wing had spread through the entire school by Monday morning. The air was suddenly thick with rumor and suspicion. The first years were now moving around the castle in tight-knit groups, as though scared they would be attacked if they ventured forth alone.

Ginny Weasley, who sat next to Colin Creevey in Charms, was distraught, but Harry felt that Fred and George were going the wrong way about cheering her up. They were taking turns covering themselves with fur or boils and jumping out at her from behind statues. They only stopped when Percy, apoplectic with rage, told them he was going to write to Mrs. Weasley and tell her Ginny was having nightmares.

Meanwhile, hidden from the teachers, a roaring trade in talismans, amulets, and other protective devices was sweeping the school. Neville Longbottom bought a large, evil-smelling green onion, a pointed purple crystal, and a rotting newt tail before the other Gryffindor boys pointed out that he was in no danger; he was a pure-blood, and therefore unlikely to be attacked.

“They went for Filch first,” Neville said, his round face fearful. “And everyone knows I’m almost a Squib.”

In the second week of December Professor McGonagall came around as usual, collecting names of those who would be staying at school for Christmas. Harry, Ron, and Hermione signed her list; they had heard that Malfoy was staying, which struck them as very suspicious. The holidays would be the perfect time to use the Polyjuice Potion and try to worm a confession out of him.

Unfortunately, the potion was only half finished. They still needed the bicorn horn and the boomslang skin, and the only place they were going to get them was from Snape’s private stores. Harry privately felt he’d rather face Slytherin’s legendary monster than let Snape catch him robbing his office.

“What we need,” said Hermione briskly as Thursday afternoon’s double Potions lesson loomed nearer, “is a diversion. Then one of us can sneak into Snape’s office and take what we need.”

Harry and Ron looked at her nervously.

“I think I’d better do the actual stealing,” Hermione continued in a matter-of-fact tone. “You two will be expelled if you get into any more trouble, and I’ve got a clean record. So all you need to do is cause enough mayhem to keep Snape busy for five minutes or so.”

Harry smiled feebly. Deliberately causing mayhem in Snape’s Potions class was about as safe as poking a sleeping dragon in the eye.

Potions lessons took place in one of the large dungeons. Thursday afternoon’s lesson proceeded in the usual way. Twenty cauldrons stood steaming between the wooden desks, on which stood brass scales and jars of ingredients. Snape prowled through the fumes, making waspish remarks about the Gryffindors’ work while the Slytherins sniggered appreciatively. Draco Malfoy, who was Snape’s favorite student, kept flicking puffer-fish eyes at Ron and Harry, who knew that if they retaliated they would get detention faster than you could say “Unfair.”

Harry’s Swelling Solution was far too runny, but he had his mind on more important things. He was waiting for Hermione’s signal, and he hardly listened as Snape paused to sneer at his watery potion. When Snape turned and walked off to bully Neville, Hermione caught Harry’s eye and nodded.

Harry ducked swiftly down behind his cauldron, pulled one of Fred’s Filibuster fireworks out of his pocket, and gave it a quick prod with his wand. The firework began to fizz and sputter. Knowing he had only seconds, Harry straightened up, took aim, and lobbed it into the air; it landed right on target in Goyle’s cauldron.

Goyle’s potion exploded, showering the whole class. People shrieked as splashes of the Swelling Solution hit them. Malfoy got a faceful and his nose began to swell like a balloon; Goyle blundered around, his hands over his eyes, which had expanded to the size of a dinner plate — Snape was trying to restore calm and find out what had happened. Through the confusion, Harry

saw Hermione slip quietly into Snape’s office.

“Silence! SILENCE!” Snape roared. “Anyone who has been splashed, come here for a Deflating Draft — when I find out who did this —”

Harry tried not to laugh as he watched Malfoy hurry forward, his head drooping with the weight of a nose like a small melon. As half the class lumbered up to Snape’s desk, some weighted down with arms like clubs, others unable to talk through gigantic puffed-up lips, Harry saw Hermione slide back into the dungeon, the front of her robes bulging.

When everyone had taken a swig of antidote and the various swellings had subsided, Snape swept over to Goyle’s cauldron and scooped out the twisted black remains of the firework. There was a sudden hush.

“If I ever find out who threw this,” Snape whispered, “I shall make sure that person is expelled.”

Harry arranged his face into what he hoped was a puzzled expression. Snape was looking right at him, and the bell that rang ten minutes later could not have been more welcome.

“He knew it was me,” Harry told Ron and Hermione as they hurried back to Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. “I could tell.”

Hermione threw the new ingredients into the cauldron and began to stir feverishly.

“It’ll be ready in two weeks,” she said happily.

“Snape can’t prove it was you,” said Ron reassuringly to Harry. “What can he do?”

“Knowing Snape, something foul,” said Harry as the potion frothed and bubbled.

A week later, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were walking across the entrance hall when they saw a small knot of people gathered around the notice board, reading a piece of parchment that had just been pinned up. Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas beckoned them over, looking excited.

“They’re starting a Dueling Club!” said Seamus. “First meeting tonight! I wouldn’t mind dueling lessons; they might come in handy one of these days…”

“What, you reckon Slytherin’s monster can duel?” said Ron, but he, too, read the sign with interest.

“Could be useful,” he said to Harry and Hermione as they went into dinner. “Shall we go?”

Harry and Hermione were all for it, so at eight o’clock that evening they hurried back to the Great Hall. The long dining tables had vanished and a golden stage had appeared along one wall, lit by thousands of candles floating overhead. The ceiling was velvety black once more and most of the school seemed to be packed beneath it, all carrying their wands and looking excited.

“I wonder who’ll be teaching us?” said Hermione as they edged into the chattering crowd. “Someone told me Flitwick was a dueling champion when he was young — maybe it’ll be him.”

“As long as it’s not —” Harry began, but he ended on a groan: Gilderoy Lockhart was walking onto the stage, resplendent in robes of deep plum and accompanied by none other than Snape, wearing his usual black.

Lockhart waved an arm for silence and called “Gather round, gather round! Can everyone see me? Can you all hear me? Excellent!

“Now, Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this little dueling club, to train you all in case you ever need to defend yourselves as I myself have done on countless occasions — for full details, see my published works.

“Let me introduce my assistant, Professor Snape,” said Lockhart, flashing a wide smile. “He tells me he knows a tiny little bit about dueling himself and has sportingly agreed to help me with a short demonstration before we begin. Now, I don’t want any of you youngsters to worry — you’ll still have your Potions master when I’m through with him, never fear!”

“Wouldn’t it be good if they finished each other off?” Ron muttered in Harry’s ear.

Snape’s upper lip was curling. Harry wondered why Lockhart was still smiling; if Snape had been looking at him like that he’d have been running as fast as he could in the opposite direction.

Lockhart and Snape turned to face each other and bowed; at least, Lockhart did, with much twirling of his hands, whereas Snape jerked his head irritably. Then they raised their wands like swords in front of them.

“As you see, we are holding our wands in the accepted combative position,” Lockhart told the silent crowd. “On the count of three, we will cast our first spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill, of course.”

“I wouldn’t bet on that,” Harry murmured, watching Snape baring his teeth.

“One — two — three —”

Both of them swung their wands above their heads and pointed them at their opponent; Snape cried: “Expelliarmus!” There was a dazzling flash of scarlet light and Lockhart was blasted off his feet: He flew backward off the stage, smashed into the wall, and slid down it to sprawl on the floor.

Malfoy and some of the other Slytherins cheered. Hermione was dancing on tiptoes. “Do you think he’s all right?” she squealed through her fingers.

“Who cares?” said Harry and Ron together.

Lockhart was getting unsteadily to his feet. His hat had fallen off and his wavy hair was standing on end.

“Well, there you have it!” he said, tottering back onto the platform. “That was a Disarming Charm — as you see, I’ve lost my wand — ah, thank you, Miss Brown — yes, an excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape, but if you don’t mind my saying so, it was very obvious what you were about to do. If I had wanted to stop you it would have been only too easy — however, I felt it would be instructive to let them see…”

Snape was looking murderous. Possibly Lockhart had noticed, because he said, “Enough demonstrating! I’m going to come amongst you now and put you all into pairs. Professor Snape, if you’d like to help me —”

They moved through the crowd, matching up partners. Lockhart teamed Neville with Justin Finch-Fletchley, but Snape reached Harry and Ron first.

“Time to split up the dream team, I think,” he sneered. “Weasley, you can partner Finnigan. Potter —”

Harry moved automatically toward Hermione.

“I don’t think so,” said Snape, smiling coldly. “Mr. Malfoy, come over here. Let’s see what you make of the famous Potter. And you, Miss Granger — you can partner Miss Bulstrode.”

Malfoy strutted over, smirking. Behind him walked a Slytherin girl who reminded Harry of a picture he’d seen in Holidays with Hags. She was large and square and her heavy jaw jutted aggressively. Hermione gave her a weak smile that she did not return.

“Face your partners!” called Lockhart, back on the platform. “And bow!”

Harry and Malfoy barely inclined their heads, not taking their eyes off each other.

“Wands at the ready!” shouted Lockhart. “When I count to three, cast your charms to disarm your opponents — only to disarm them — we don’t want any accidents — one… two… three —

Harry swung his wand high, but Malfoy had already started on “two”: His spell hit Harry so hard he felt as though he’d been hit over the head with a saucepan. He stumbled, but everything still seemed to be working, and wasting no more time, Harry pointed his wand straight at Malfoy and shouted, “Rictusempra!”

A jet of silver light hit Malfoy in the stomach and he doubled up, wheezing.

“I said disarm only!” Lockhart shouted in alarm over the heads of the battling crowd, as Malfoy sank to his knees; Harry had hit him with a Tickling Charm, and he could barely move for laughing. Harry hung back, with a vague feeling it would be unsporting to bewitch Malfoy while

he was on the floor, but this was a mistake; gasping for breath, Malfoy pointed his wand at Harry’s knees, choked, “Tarantallegra!” and the next second Harry’s legs began to jerk around out of his control in a kind of quickstep.

“Stop! Stop!” screamed Lockhart, but Snape took charge. “Finite Incantatem!” he shouted; Harry’s feet stopped dancing, Malfoy stopped laughing, and they were able to look up.

A haze of greenish smoke was hovering over the scene. Both Neville and Justin were lying on the floor, panting; Ron was holding up an ashen-faced Seamus, apologizing for whatever his broken wand had done; but Hermione and Millicent Bulstrode were still moving; Millicent had Hermione in a headlock and Hermione was whimpering in pain; both their wands lay forgotten on the floor. Harry leapt forward and pulled Millicent off. It was difficult: She was a lot bigger than he was.

“Dear, dear,” said Lockhart, skittering through the crowd, looking at the aftermath of the duels. “Up you go, Macmillan…”

“Careful there, Miss Fawcett… Pinch it hard, it’ll stop bleeding in a second,”

“I think I’d better teach you how to block unfriendly spells,” said Lockhart, standing flustered in the midst of the hall. He glanced at Snape, whose black eyes glinted, and looked quickly away. “Let’s have a volunteer pair — Longbottom and Finch-Fletchley, how about you —”

“A bad idea, Professor Lockhart,” said Snape, gliding over like a large and malevolent bat. “Longbottom causes devastation with the simplest spells. We’ll be sending what’s left of FinchFletchley up to the hospital wing in a matchbox.” Neville’s round, pink face went pinker. “How about Malfoy and Potter?” said Snape with a twisted smile.

“Excellent idea!” said Lockhart, gesturing Harry and Malfoy into the middle of the hall as the crowd backed away to give them room.

“Now, Harry,” said Lockhart. “When Draco points his wand at you, you do this.”

He raised his own wand, attempted a complicated sort of wiggling action, and dropped it. Snape smirked as Lockhart quickly picked it up, saying, “Whoops— my wand is a little overexcited—”

Snape moved closer to Malfoy, bent down, and whispered something in his ear. Malfoy smirked, too. Harry looked up nervously at Lockhart and said, “Professor, could you show me that blocking thing again?”

“Scared?” muttered Malfoy, so that Lockhart couldn’t hear him.

“You wish,” said Harry out of the corner of his mouth.

Lockhart cuffed Harry merrily on the shoulder. “Just do what I did, Harry!”

“What, drop my wand?”

But Lockhart wasn’t listening.

“Three — two — one — go!” he shouted.

Malfoy raised his wand quickly and bellowed, “Serpensortia!”

The end of his wand exploded. Harry watched, aghast, as a long black snake shot out of it, fell heavily onto the floor between them, and raised itself, ready to strike. There were screams as the crowd backed swiftly away, clearing the floor.

“Don’t move, Potter,” said Snape lazily, clearly enjoying the sight of Harry standing motionless, eye to eye with the angry snake. “I’ll get rid of it…”

“Allow me!” shouted Lockhart. He brandished his wand at the snake and there was a loud bang; the snake, instead of vanishing, flew ten feet into the air and fell back to the floor with a loud smack. Enraged, hissing furiously, it slithered straight toward Justin Finch-Fletchley and raised itself again, fangs exposed, poised to strike.

Harry wasn’t sure what made him do it. He wasn’t even aware of deciding to do it. All he knew was that his legs were carrying him forward as though he was on casters and that he had shouted stupidly at the snake, “Leave him alone!” And miraculously — inexplicably — the snake slumped to the floor, docile as a thick, black garden hose, its eyes now on Harry. Harry felt the fear drain out of him. He knew the snake wouldn’t attack anyone now, though how he knew it, he couldn’t have explained.

He looked up at Justin, grinning, expecting to see Justin looking relieved, or puzzled, or even grateful — but certainly not angry and scared.

“What do you think you’re playing at?” he shouted, and before Harry could say anything, Justin had turned and stormed out of the hall.

Snape stepped forward, waved his wand, and the snake vanished in a small puff of black smoke. Snape, too, was looking at Harry in an unexpected way: It was a shrewd and calculating look, and Harry didn’t like it. He was also dimly aware of an ominous muttering all around the walls. Then he felt a tugging on the back of his robes.

“Come on,” said Ron’s voice in his ear. “Move — come on —”

Ron steered him out of the hall, Hermione hurrying alongside them. As they went through the doors, the people on either side drew away as though they were frightened of catching something. Harry didn’t have a clue what was going on, and neither Ron nor Hermione explained anything until they had dragged him all the way up to the empty Gryffindor common room.

Then Ron pushed Harry into an armchair and said, “You’re a Parselmouth. Why didn’t you tell

us?”

“I’m a what?” said Harry.

“A Parselmouth!” said Ron. “You can talk to snakes!”

“I know,” said Harry. “I mean, that’s only the second time I’ve ever done it. I accidentally set a boa constrictor on my cousin Dudley at the zoo once — long story — but it was telling me it had never seen Brazil and I sort of set it free without meaning to that was before I knew I was a wizard —”

“A boa constrictor told you it had never seen Brazil?” Ron repeated faintly.

“So?” said Harry. “I bet loads of people here can do it.”

“Oh, no they can’t,” said Ron. “It’s not a very common gift. Harry, this is bad.”

“What’s bad?” said Harry, starting to feel quite angry. “What’s wrong with everyone? Listen, if I hadn’t told that snake not to attack Justin —”

“Oh, that’s what you said to it?”

“What d’you mean? You were there — you heard me —”

“I heard you speaking Parseltongue,” said Ron. “Snake language. You could have been saying anything — no wonder Justin panicked, you sounded like you were egging the snake on or something — it was creepy, you know —”

Harry gaped at him.

“I spoke a different language? But — I didn’t realize — how can I speak a language without knowing I can speak it?”

Ron shook his head. Both he and Hermione were looking as though someone had died. Harry couldn’t see what was so terrible.

“D’you want to tell me what’s wrong with stopping a massive snake biting off Justin’s head?” he said. “What does it matter how I did it as long as Justin doesn’t have to join the Headless Hunt?”

“It matters,” said Hermione, speaking at last in a hushed voice, “because being able to talk to snakes was what Salazar Slytherin was famous for. That’s why the symbol of Slytherin House is a serpent.”

Harry’s mouth fell open.

“Exactly,” said Ron. “And now the whole school’s going to think you’re his great-great-greatgreat-grandson or something —”

“But I’m not,” said Harry, with a panic he couldn’t quite explain.

“You’ll find that hard to prove,” said Hermione. “He lived about a thousand years ago; for all we know, you could be.”

Harry lay awake for hours that night. Through a gap in the curtains around his four-poster he watched snow starting to drift past the tower window and wondered…

Could he be a descendant of Salazar Slithering? He didn’t know anything about his father’s family, after all. The Dursleys had always forbidden questions about his wizarding relatives.

Quietly, Harry tried to say something in Parseltongue. The words wouldn’t come. It seemed he had to be face-to-face with a snake to do it.

But I’m in Gryffindor, Harry thought. The Sorting Hat wouldn’t have put me in here if I had Slytherin blood…

Ah, said a nasty little voice in his brain, but the Sorting Hat wanted to put you in Slytherin, don’t you remember?

Harry turned over. He’d see Justin the next day in Herbology and he’d explain that he’d been calling the snake off, not egging it on, which (he thought angrily, pummeling his pillow) any fool should have realized.

By next morning, however, the snow that had begun in the night had turned into a blizzard so thick that the last Herbology lesson of the term was canceled: Professor Sprout wanted to fit socks and scarves on the Mandrakes, a tricky operation she would entrust to no one else, now that it was so important for the Mandrakes to grow quickly and revive Mrs. Norris and Colin Creevey.

Harry fretted about this next to the fire in the Gryffindor common room, while Ron and Hermione used their time off to play a game of wizard chess.

“For heaven’s sake, Harry,” said Hermione, exasperated, as one of Ron’s bishops wrestled her knight off his horse and dragged him off the board. “Go and find Justin if it’s so important to you.”

So Harry got up and left through the portrait hole, wondering where Justin might be.

The castle was darker than it usually was in daytime because of the thick, swirling gray snow at every window. Shivering, Harry walked past classrooms where lessons were taking place, catching snatches of what was happening within. Professor McGonagall was shouting at someone who, by the sound of it, had turned his friend into a badger. Resisting the urge to take a look, Harry walked on by, thinking that Justin might be using his free time to catch up on some work, and deciding to check the library first.

A group of the Hufflepuffs who should have been in Herbology were indeed sitting at the back of the library, but they didn’t seem to be working. Between the long lines of high bookshelves, Harry could see that their heads were close together and they were having what looked like an absorbing conversation. He couldn’t see whether Justin was among them. He was walking toward them when something of what they were saying met his ears, and he paused to listen, hidden in the Invisibility section.

“So anyway,” a stout boy was saying, “I told Justin to hide up in our dormitory. I mean to say, if Potter’s marked him down as his next victim, it’s best if he keeps a low profile for a while. Of course, Justin’s been waiting for something like this to happen ever since he let slip to Potter he was Muggle-born. Justin actually told him he’d been down for Eton. That’s not the kind of thing you bandy about with Slytherin’s heir on the loose, is it?”

“You definitely think it is Potter, then, Ernie?” said a girl with blonde pigtails anxiously.

“Hannah,” said the stout boy solemnly, “he’s a Parselmouth. Everyone knows that’s the mark of a Dark wizard. Have you ever heard of a decent one who could talk to snakes? They called Slytherin himself Serpent-tongue.”

There was some heavy murmuring at this, and Ernie went on, “Remember what was written on the wall? Enemies of the Heir, Beware. Potter had some sort of run-in with Filch. Next thing we know, Filch’s cat’s attacked. That first year, Creevey, was annoying Potter at the Quidditch match, taking pictures of him while he was lying in the mud. Next thing we know — Creevey’s been attacked.”

“He always seems so nice, though,” said Hannah uncertainly, “and, well, he’s the one who made You-Know-Who disappear. He can’t be all bad, can he?”

Ernie lowered his voice mysteriously, the Hufflepuffs bent closer, and Harry edged nearer so that he could catch Ernie’s words.

“No one knows how he survived that attack by You-Know-Who. I mean to say, he was only a baby when it happened. He should have been blasted into smithereens. Only a really powerful Dark wizard could have survived a curse like that.” He dropped his voice until it was barely more than a whisper, and said, “That’s probably why You- Know-Who wanted to kill him in the first place. Didn’t want another Dark Lord competing with him. I wonder what other powers Potter’s been hiding?”

Harry couldn’t take anymore. Clearing his throat loudly, he stepped out from behind the bookshelves. If he hadn’t been feeling so angry, he would have found the sight that greeted him funny: Every one of the Hufflepuffs looked as though they had been Petrified by the sight of him, and the color was draining out of Ernie’s face.

“Hello,” said Harry. “I’m looking for Justin Finch-Fletchley.”

The Hufflepuffs’ worst fears had clearly been confirmed. They all looked fearfully at Ernie. “What do you want with him?” said Ernie in a quavering voice.

“I wanted to tell him what really happened with that snake at the Dueling Club,” said Harry.

Ernie bit his white lips and then, taking a deep breath, said, “We were all there. We saw what happened.”

“Then you noticed that after I spoke to it, the snake backed off?” said Harry.

“All I saw,” said Ernie stubbornly, though he was trembling as he spoke, “was you speaking Parseltongue and chasing the snake toward Justin.”

“I didn’t chase it at him!” Harry said, his voice shaking with anger. “It didn’t even touch him!”

“It was a very near miss,” said Ernie. “And in case you’re getting ideas,” he added hastily, “I might tell you that you can trace my family back through nine generations of witches and warlocks and my blood’s as pure as anyone’s, so —”

“- I don’t care what sort of blood you’ve got!” said Harry fiercely. “Why would I want to attack Muggle-borns?”

“I’ve heard you hate those Muggles you live with,” said Ernie swiftly.

“It’s not possible to live with the Dursleys and not hate them,” said Harry. “I’d like to see you try it.”

He turned on his heel and stormed out of the library, earning himself a reproving glare from Madam Pince, who was polishing the gilded cover of a large spellbook.

Harry blundered up the corridor, barely noticing where he was going, he was in such a fury. The result was that he walked into something very large and solid, which knocked him backward onto the floor.

“Oh, hello, Hagrid,” Harry said, looking up.

Hagrid’s face was entirely hidden by a woolly, snow-covered balaclava, but it couldn’t possibly be anyone else, as he filled most of the corridor in his moleskin overcoat. A dead rooster was hanging from one of his massive, gloved hands.

“All righ’, Harry?” he said, pulling up the balaclava so he could speak. “Why aren’t yeh in class?”

“Canceled,” said Harry, getting up. “What’re you doing in here?”

Hagrid held up the limp rooster.

“Second one killed this term,” he explained. “It’s either foxes or a Blood-Suckin Bugbear, an’ I need the Headmaster’s permission ter put a charm around the hen coop.”

He peered more closely at Harry from under his thick, snowflecked eyebrows.

“Yeh sure yeh’re all righ’? Yeh look all hot an’ bothered —”

Harry couldn’t bring himself to repeat what Ernie and the rest of the Hufflepuffs had been saying about him.

“It’s nothing,” he said. “I’d better get going, Hagrid, it’s Transfiguration next and I’ve got to pick up my books.”

He walked off, his mind still full of what Ernie had said about him.

“Justin’s been waiting for something like this to happen ever since he let slip to Potter he was Muggle-born…”

Harry stamped up the stairs and turned along another corridor, which was particularly dark; the torches had been extinguished by a strong, icy draft that was blowing through a loose windowpane. He was halfway down the passage when he tripped headlong over something lying on the floor.

He turned to squint at what he’d fallen over and felt as though his stomach had dissolved.

Justin Finch-Fletchley was lying on the floor, rigid and cold, a look of shock frozen on his face, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. And that wasn’t all. Next to him was another figure, the strangest sight Harry had ever seen.

It was Nearly Headless Nick, no longer pearly-white and transparent, but black and smoky, floating immobile and horizontal, six inches off the floor. His head was half off and his face wore an expression of shock identical to Justin’s.

Harry got to his feet, his breathing fast and shallow, his heart doing a kind of drumroll against his ribs. He looked wildly up and down the deserted corridor and saw a line of spiders scuttling as fast as they could away from the bodies. The only sounds were the muffled voices of teachers from the classes on either side.

He could run, and no one would ever know he had been there. But he couldn’t just leave them lying here… He had to get help… Would anyone believe he hadn’t had anything to do with this?

As he stood there, panicking, a door right next to him opened with a bang. Peeves the Poltergeist came shooting out.

“Why, it’s potty wee Potter!” cackled Peeves, knocking Harry’s glasses askew as he bounced

past him. “What’s Potter up to? Why’s Potter lurking —” Peeves stopped, halfway through a midair somersault. Upside down, he spotted Justin and Nearly Headless Nick. He flipped the right way up, filled his lungs and, before Harry could stop him, screamed, “ATTACK! ATTACK! ANOTHER ATTACK! NO MORTAL OR GHOST IS SAFE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! ATTAAAACK!”

Crash — crash — crash — door after door flew open along the corridor and people flooded out. For several long minutes, there was a scene of such confusion that Justin was in danger of being squashed and people kept standing in Nearly Headless Nick. Harry found himself pinned against the wall as the teachers shouted for quiet. Professor McGonagall came running, followed by her own class, one of whom still had black-and-white-striped hair. She used her wand to set off a loud bang, which restored silence, and ordered everyone back into their classes. No sooner had the scene cleared somewhat than Ernie the Hufflepuff arrived, panting, on the scene.

“Caught in the act!” Ernie yelled, his face stark white, pointing his finger dramatically at Harry.

“That will do, Macmillan!” said Professor McGonagall sharply.

Peeves was bobbing overhead, now grinning wickedly, surveying the scene; Peeves always loved chaos. As the teachers bent over Justin and Nearly Headless Nick, examining them, Peeves broke into song:

“Oh, Potter, you rotter, oh, what have you done, You’re killing off’ students, you think it’s good fun —”

“That’s enough Peeves!” barked Professor McGonagall, and Peeves zoomed away backward, with his tongue out at Harry.

Justin was carried up to the hospital wing by Professor Flitwick and Professor Sinistra of the Astronomy department, but nobody seemed to know what to do for Nearly Headless Nick. In the end, Professor McGonagall conjured a large fan out of thin air, which she gave to Ernie with instructions to waft Nearly Headless Nick up the stairs. This Ernie did, fanning Nick along like a silent black hovercraft. This left Harry and Professor McGonagall alone together.

“This way, Potter,” she said.

“Professor,” said Harry at once, “I swear I didn’t —”

“This is out of my hands, Potter,” said Professor McGonagall curtly.

They marched in silence around a corner and she stopped before a large and extremely ugly stone gargoyle.

“Lemon drop!” she said. This was evidently a password, because the gargoyle sprang suddenly to life and hopped aside as the wall behind him split in two. Even full of dread for what was coming, Harry couldn’t fail to be amazed. Behind the wall was a spiral staircase that was moving

smoothly upward, like an escalator. As he and Professor McGonagall stepped onto it, Harry heard the wall thud closed behind them. They rose upward in circles, higher and higher, until at last, slightly dizzy, Harry saw a gleaming oak door ahead, with a brass knocker in the shape of a griffin.

He knew now where he was being taken. This must be where Dumbledore lived.

CHAPTER TWELVE

The Polyjuice Potion

They stepped off the stone staircase at the top, and Professor McGonagall rapped on the door. It opened silently and they entered. Professor McGonagall told Harry to wait and left him there, alone.

Harry looked around. One thing was certain: of all the teachers’ offices Harry had visited so far this year, Dumbledore’s was by far the most interesting. If he hadn’t been scared out of his wits that he was about to be thrown out of school, he would have been very pleased to have a chance to look around it.

It was a large and beautiful circular room, full of funny little noises. A number of curious silver instruments stood on spindle legged tables, whirring and emitting little puffs of smoke. The walls were covered with portraits of old headmasters and headmistresses, all of whom were snoozing gently in their frames. There was also an enormous, claw-footed desk, and, sitting on a shelf behind it, a shabby, tattered wizard’s hat — the Sorting Hat.

Harry hesitated. He cast a wary eye around the sleeping witches and wizards on the walls. Surely it couldn’t hurt if he took the hat down and tried it on again? Just to see… just to make sure it had put him in the right House.

He walked quietly around the desk, lifted the hat from its shelf, and lowered it slowly onto his head. It was much too large and slipped down over his eyes, just as it had done the last time he’d put it on. Harry stared at the black inside of the hat, waiting. Then a small voice said in his ear, “Bee in your bonnet, Harry Potter?”

“Er, yes,” Harry muttered. “Er — sorry to bother you — I wanted to ask —”

“You’ve been wondering whether I put you in the right House,” said the hat smartly. “Yes… you were particularly difficult to place. But I stand by what I said before —” Harry’s heart leapt — “you would have done well in Slytherin —”

Harry’s stomach plummeted. He grabbed the point of the hat and pulled it off. It hung limply in his hand, grubby and faded. Harry pushed it back onto its shelf, feeling sick.

“You’re wrong,” he said aloud to the still and silent hat. It didn’t move. Harry backed away, watching it. Then a strange, gagging noise behind him made him wheel around.

He wasn’t alone after all. Standing on a golden perch behind the door was a decrepit-looking bird that resembled a half-plucked turkey. Harry stared at it and the bird looked balefully back, making its gagging noise again. Harry thought it looked very ill. Its eyes were dull and, even as Harry watched, a couple more feathers fell out of its tail.

Harry was just thinking that all he needed was for Dumbledore’s pet bird to die while he was alone in the office with it, when the bird burst into flames.

Harry yelled in shock and backed away into the desk. He looked feverishly around in case there was a glass of water somewhere but couldn’t see one; the bird, meanwhile, had become a fireball; it gave one loud shriek and next second there was nothing but a smoldering pile of ash on the floor.

The office door opened. Dumbledore came in, looking very somber.

“Professor,” Harry gasped. “Your bird — I couldn’t do anything — he just caught fire —”

To Harry’s astonishment, Dumbledore smiled.

“About time, too,” he said. “He’s been looking dreadful for days; I’ve been telling him to get a move on.”

He chuckled at the stunned look on Harry’s face.

“Fawkes is a phoenix, Harry. Phoenixes burst into flame when it is time for them to die and are reborn from the ashes. Watch him…”

Harry looked down in time to see a tiny, wrinkled, newborn bird poke its head out of the ashes. It was quite as ugly as the old one.

“It’s a shame you had to see him on a Burning Day,” said Dumbledore, seating himself behind his desk. “He’s really very handsome most of the time, wonderful red and gold plumage. Fascinating creatures, phoenixes. They can carry immensely heavy loads, their tears have healing powers, and they make highly faithful pets.”

In the shock of Fawkes catching fire, Harry had forgotten what he was there for, but it all came back to him as Dumbledore settled himself in the high chair behind the desk and fixed Harry with his penetrating, light-blue stare.

Before Dumbledore could speak another word, however, the door of the office flew open with an almighty bang and Hagrid burst in, a wild look in his eyes, his balaclava perched on top of his shaggy black head and the dead rooster still swinging from his hand.

“It wasn’ Harry, Professor Dumbledore!” said Hagrid urgently. “I was talkin’ ter him seconds before that kid was found, he never had time, sir —”

Dumbledore tried to say something, but Hagrid went ranting on, waving the rooster around in his agitation, sending feathers everywhere.

“it can’t’ve bin him, I’ll swear it in front o’ the Ministry o’ Magic if I have to.”

“Hagrid, I —”

“— yeh’ve got the wrong boy, sir, I know Harry never —”

“Hagrid!” said Dumbledore loudly. “I do not think that Harry attacked those people.”

“Oh,” said Hagrid, the rooster falling limply at his side. “Right. I’ll wait outside then, Headmaster.”

And he stomped out looking embarrassed.

“You don’t think it was me, Professor?” Harry repeated hopefully as Dumbledore brushed rooster feathers off his desk.

“No, Harry, I don’t,” said Dumbledore, though his face was somber again. “But I still want to talk to you.”

Harry waited nervously while Dumbledore considered him, the tips of his long fingers together.

“I must ask you, Harry, whether there is anything you’d like to tell me,” he said gently. “Anything at all.”

Harry didn’t know what to say. He thought of Malfoy shouting, “You’ll be next, Mudbloods!” and of the Polyjuice Potion simmering away in Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. Then he thought of the disembodied voice he had heard twice and remembered what Ron had said: “Hearing voices no one else can hear isn’t a good sign, even in the wizarding world.” He thought, too, about what everyone was saying about him, and his growing dread that he was somehow connected with Salazar Slytherin…

“No,” said Harry. “There isn’t anything, Professor…”

The double attack on Justin and Nearly Headless Nick turned what had hitherto been nervousness into real panic. Curiously, it was Nearly Headless Nick’s fate that seemed to worry people most. What could possibly do that to a ghost? people asked each other; what terrible power could harm someone who was already dead? There was almost a stampede to book seats on the Hogwarts Express so that students could go home for Christmas.

“At this rate, we’ll be the only ones left,” Ron told Harry and Hermione. “Us, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. What a jolly holiday it’s going to be.”

Crabbe and Goyle, who always did whatever Malfoy did, had signed up to stay over the holidays, too. But Harry was glad that most people were leaving. He was tired of people skirting around him in the corridors, as though he was about to sprout fangs or spit poison; tired of all the muttering, pointing, and hissing as he passed.

Fred and George, however, found all this very funny. They went out of their way to march ahead of Harry down the corridors, shouting, “Make way for the Heir of Slytherin, seriously evil wizard coming through…”

Percy was deeply disapproving of this behavior.

“It is not a laughing matter,” he said coldly.

“Oh, get out of the way, Percy,” said Fred. “Harry’s in a hurry.”

“Yeah, he’s off to the Chamber of Secrets for a cup of tea with his fanged servant,” said George, chortling.

Ginny didn’t find it amusing either.

“Oh, don’t,” she wailed every time Fred asked Harry loudly who he was planning to attack next, or when George pretended to ward Harry off with a large clove of garlic when they met.

Harry didn’t mind; it made him feel better that Fred and George, at least, thought the idea of his being Slytherin’s heir was quite ludicrous. But their antics seemed to be aggravating Draco Malfoy, who looked increasingly sour each time he saw them at it.

“It’s because he’s bursting to say it’s really him,” said Ron knowingly. “You know how he hates anyone beating him at anything, and you’re getting all the credit for his dirty work.”

“Not for long,” said Hermione in a satisfied tone. “The Polyjuice Potion’s nearly ready. We’ll be getting the truth out of him any day now.”

At last the term ended, and a silence deep as the snow on the grounds descended on the castle. Harry found it peaceful, rather than gloomy, and enjoyed the fact that he, Hermione, and the Weasleys had the run of Gryffindor Tower, which meant they could play Exploding Snap loudly without bothering anyone, and practice dueling in private. Fred, George, and Ginny had chosen to stay at school rather than visit Bill in Egypt with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Percy, who disapproved of what he termed their childish behavior, didn’t spend much time in the Gryffindor common room. He had already told them pompously that he was only staying over Christmas because it was his duty as a prefect to support the teachers during this troubled time.

Christmas morning dawned, cold and white. Harry and Ron, the only ones left in their dormitory, were woken very early by Hermione, who burst in, fully dressed and carrying presents for them both.

“Wake up,” she said loudly, pulling back the curtains at the window.

“Hermione — you’re not supposed to be in here —” said Ron, shielding his eyes against the light.

“Merry Christmas to you, too,” said Hermione, throwing him his present. “I’ve been up for nearly an hour, adding more lacewings to the potion. It’s ready.”

Harry sat up, suddenly wide awake.

“Are you sure?”

“Positive,” said Hermione, shifting Scabbers the rat so that she could sit down on the end of Ron’s four-poster. “If we’re going to do it, I say it should be tonight.”

At that moment, Hedwig swooped into the room, carrying a very small package in her beak.

“Hello,” said Harry happily as she landed on his bed. “Are you speaking to me again?”

She nibbled his ear in an affectionate sort of way, which was a far better present than the one that she had brought him, which turned out to be from the Dursleys. They had sent Harry a toothpick and a note telling him to find out whether he’d be able to stay at Hogwarts for the summer vacation, too.

The rest of Harry’s Christmas presents were far more satisfactory. Hagrid had sent him a large tin of treacle fudge, which Harry decided to soften by the fire before eating; Ron had given him a book called Flying with the Cannons, a book of interesting facts about his favorite Quidditch team, and Hermione had bought him a luxurious eagle-feather quill. Harry opened the last present to find a new, hand-knitted sweater from Mrs. Weasley and a large plum cake. He read her card with a fresh surge of guilt, thinking about Mr. Weasley’s car (which hadn’t been seen since its crash with the Whomping Willow), and the bout of rule-breaking he and Ron were planning next.

No one, not even someone dreading taking Polyjuice Potion later, could fail to enjoy Christmas dinner at Hogwarts.

The Great Hall looked magnificent. Not only were there a dozen frost-covered Christmas trees and thick streamers of holly and mistletoe crisscrossing the ceiling, but enchanted snow was falling, warm and dry, from the ceiling. Dumbledore led them in a few of his favorite carols, Hagrid booming more and more loudly with every goblet of eggnog he consumed. Percy, who hadn’t noticed that Fred had bewitched his prefect badge so that it now read “Pinhead,” kept asking them all what they were sniggering at. Harry didn’t even care that Draco Malfoy was making loud, snide remark about his new sweater from the Slytherin table. With a bit of luck, Malfoy would be getting his comeuppance in a few hours’ time.

Harry and Ron had barely finished their third helpings of Christmas pudding when Hermione ushered them out of the hall to finalize their plans for the evening.

“We still need a bit of the people you’re changing into,” said Hermione matter-of-factly, as though she were sending them to the supermarket for laundry detergent. “And obviously, it’ll be best if you can get something of Crabbe’s and Goyle’s; they’re Malfoys best friends, he’ll tell

them anything. And we also need to make sure the real Crabbe and Goyle can’t burst in on us while we’re interrogating him.

“I’ve got it all worked out,” she went on smoothly, ignoring Harry’s and Ron’s stupefied faces. She held up two plump chocolate cakes. “I’ve filled these with a simple Sleeping Draught. All you have to do is make sure Crabbe and Goyle find them. You know how greedy they are, they’re bound to eat them. Once they’re asleep, pull out a few of their hairs and hide them in a broom closet.”

Harry and Ron looked incredulously at each other.

“Hermione, I don’t think —”

“That could go seriously wrong —”

But Hermione had a steely glint in her eye not unlike the one Professor McGonagall sometimes had.

“The potion will be useless without Crabbe’s and Goyle’s hair,” she said sternly. “You do want to investigate Malfoy, don’t you?”

“Oh, all right, all right,” said Harry. “But what about you? Whose hair are you ripping out?”

“I’ve already got mine!” said Hermione brightly, pulling a tiny bottle out of her pocket and showing them the single hair inside it. “Remember Millicent Bulstrode wrestling with me at the Dueling Club? She left this on my robes when she was trying to strangle me! And she’s gone home for Christmas — so I’ll just have to tell the Slytherins I’ve decided to come back.”

When Hermione had bustled off to check on the Polyjuice Potion again, Ron turned to Harry with a doom-laden expression.

“Have you ever heard of a plan where so many things could go wrong?”

But to Harry’s and Ron’s utter amazement, stage one of the operation went just as smoothly as Hermione had said. They lurked in the deserted entrance hall after Christmas tea, waiting for Crabbe and Goyle who had remained alone at the Slytherin table, shoveling down fourth helpings of trifle. Harry had perched the chocolate cakes on the end of the banisters. When they spotted Crabbe and Goyle coming out of the Great Hall, Harry and Ron hid quickly behind a suit of armor next to the front door.

“How thick can you get?” Ron whispered ecstatically as Crabbe gleefully pointed out the cakes to Goyle and grabbed them. Grinning stupidly, they stuffed the cakes whole into their large mouths. For a moment, both of them chewed greedily, looks of triumph on their faces. Then, without the smallest change of expression, they both keeled over backward onto the floor.

By far the hardest part was hiding them in the closet across the hall. Once they were safely

stowed among the buckets and mops, Harry yanked out a couple of the bristles that covered Goyle’s forehead and Ron pulled out several of Crabbe’s hairs. They also stole their shoes, because their own were far too small for Crabbe - and Goyle-size feet. Then, still stunned at what they had just done, they sprinted up to Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom.

They could hardly see for the thick black smoke issuing from the stall in which Hermione was stirring the cauldron. Pulling their robes up over their faces, Harry and Ron knocked softly on the door.

“Hermione?”

They heard the scrape of the lock and Hermione emerged, shiny-faced and looking anxious. Behind her they heard the gloop gloop of the bubbling, glutinous potion. Three glass tumblers stood ready on the toilet seat.

“Did you get them?” Hermione asked breathlessly.

Harry showed her Goyle’s hair.

“Good. And I sneaked these spare robes out of the laundry,” Hermione said, holding up a small sack. “You’ll need bigger sizes once you’re Crabbe and Goyle.”

The three of them stared into the cauldron. Close up, the potion looked like thick, dark mud, bubbling sluggishly.

“I’m sure I’ve done everything right,” said Hermione, nervously rereading the splotched page of Moste Potente Potions. “It looks like the book says it should… once we’ve drunk it, we’ll have exactly an hour before we change back into ourselves.”

“Now what?” Ron whispered.

“We separate it into three glasses and add the hairs.”

Hermione ladled large dollops of the potion into each of the glasses. Then, her hand trembling, she shook Millicent Bulstrode’s hair out of its bottle into the first glass.

The potion hissed loudly like a boiling kettle and frothed madly. A second later, it had turned a sick sort of yellow.

“Urgh — essence of Millicent Bulstrode,” said Ron, eyeing it with loathing. “Bet it tastes disgusting.”

“Add yours, then,” said Hermione.

Harry dropped Goyle’s hair into the middle glass and Ron put Crabbe’s into the last one. Both glasses hissed and frothed: Goyle’s turned the khaki color of a booger, Crabbe’s a dark, murky

brown.

“Hang on,” said Harry as Ron and Hermione reached for their glasses. “We’d better not all drink them in here… Once we turn into Crabbe and Goyle we won’t fit. And Millicent Bulstrode’s no pixie.”

“Good thinking,” said Ron, unlocking the door. “We’ll take separate stalls.”

Careful not to spill a drop of his Polyjuice Potion, Harry slipped into the middle stall.

“Ready?” he called.

“Ready,” came Ron’s and Hermione’s voices.

“One — two — three —”

Pinching his nose, Harry drank the potion down in two large gulps. It tasted like overcooked cabbage.

Immediately, his insides started writhing as though he’d just swallowed live snakes — doubled up, he wondered whether he was going to be sick — then a burning sensation spread rapidly from his stomach to the very ends of his fingers and toes — next, bringing him gasping to all fours, came a horrible melting feeling, as the skin all over his body bubbled like hot wax — and before his eyes, his hands began to grow, the fingers thickened, the nails broadened, the knuckles were bulging like bolts — his shoulders stretched painfully and a prickling on his forehead told him that hair was creeping down toward his eyebrows — his robes ripped as his chest expanded like a barrel bursting its hoops — his feet were agony in shoes four sizes too small.

As suddenly as it had started, everything stopped. Harry lay facedown on the stone-cold floor, listening to Myrtle gurgling morosely in the end toilet. With difficulty, he kicked off his shoes and stood up. So this was what it felt like, being Goyle. His large hand trembling, he pulled off his old robes, which were hanging a foot above his ankles, pulled on the spare ones, and laced up Goyle’s boatlike shoes. He reached up to brush his hair out of his eyes and met only the short growth of wiry bristles, low on his forehead. Then he realized that his glasses were clouding his eyes because Goyle obviously didn’t need them — he took them off and called, “Are you two okay?” Goyle’s low rasp of a voice issued from his mouth.

“Yeah,” came the deep grunt of Crabbe from his right.

Harry unlocked his door and stepped in front of the cracked mirror. Goyle stared back at him out of dull, deep-set eyes. Harry scratched his ear. So did Goyle.

Ron’s door opened. They stared at each other. Except that he looked pale and shocked, Ron was indistinguishable from Crabbe, from the pudding-bowl haircut to the long, gorilla arms.

“This is unbelievable,” said Ron, approaching the mirror and prodding Crabbe’s flat nose. “Unbelievable.”

“We’d better get going,” said Harry, loosening the watch that was cutting into Goyle’s thick wrist. “We’ve still got to find out where the Slytherin common room is. I only hope we can find someone to follow…”

Ron, who had been gazing at Harry, said, “You don’t know how bizarre it is to see Goyle thinking.” He banged on Hermione’s door. “C’mon, we need to go —”

A high-pitched voice answered him.

“I — I don’t think I’m going to come after all. You go on without me.”

“Hermione, we know Millicent Bulstrode’s ugly, no one’s going to know it’s you —”

“No — really — I don’t think I’ll come. You two hurry up, you’re wasting time —”

Harry looked at Ron, bewildered.

“That looks more like Goyle,” said Ron. “That’s how he looks every time a teacher asks him a question.”

“Hermione, are you okay?” said Harry through the door.

“Fine — I’m fine — go on —”

Harry looked at his watch. Five of their precious sixty minutes had already passed.

“We’ll meet you back here, all right?” he said.

Harry and Ron opened the door of the bathroom carefully, checked that the coast was clear, and set off.

“Don’t swing your arms like that,” Harry muttered to Ron.

“Eh?”

“Crabbe holds them sort of stiff…”

“How’s this?”

“Yeah, that’s better…”

They went down the marble staircase. All they needed now was a Slytherin that they could follow to the Slytherin common room, but there was nobody around.

“Any ideas?” muttered Harry.

“The Slytherins always come up to breakfast from over there,” said Ron, nodding at the entrance to the dungeons. The words had barely left his mouth when a girl with long, curly hair emerged from the entrance.

“Excuse me,” said Ron, hurrying up to her. “We’ve forgotten the way to our common room.”

“I beg your pardon?” said the girl stiffly. “Our common room? I’m a Ravenclaw.”

She walked away, looking suspiciously back at them.

Harry and Ron hurried down the stone steps into the darkness, their footsteps echoing particularly loudly as Crabbe’s and Goyle’s huge feet hit the floor, feeling that this wasn’t going to be as easy as they had hoped.

The labyrinthine passages were deserted. They walked deeper and deeper under the school, constantly checking their watches to see how much time they had left. After a quarter of an hour, just when they were getting desperate, they heard a sudden movement ahead.

“Ha!” said Ron excitedly. “There’s one of them now!”

The figure was emerging from a side room. As they hurried nearer, however, their hearts sank. It wasn’t a Slytherin, it was Percy.

“What’re you doing down here?” said Ron in surprise.

Percy looked affronted.

“That,” he said stiffly, “is none of your business. It’s Crabbe, isn’t it?”

“Wh — oh, yeah,” said Ron.

“Well, get off to your dormitories,” said Percy sternly. “It’s not safe to go wandering around dark corridors these days.”

“You are,” Ron pointed out.

“I,” said Percy, drawing himself up, “am a prefect. Nothing’s about to attack me.”

A voice suddenly echoed behind Harry and Ron. Draco Malfoy was strolling toward them, and for the first time in his life, Harry was pleased to see him.

“There you are,” he drawled, looking at them. “Have you two been pigging out in the Great Hall all this time? I’ve been looking for you; I want to show you something really funny.”

Malfoy glanced witheringly at Percy.

“And what’re you doing down here, Weasley?” he sneered.

Percy looked outraged.

“You want to show a bit more respect to a school prefect!” he said. “I don’t like your attitude!”

Malfoy sneered and motioned for Harry and Ron to follow him. Harry almost said something apologetic to Percy but caught himself just in time. He and Ron hurried after Malfoy, who said as they turned into the next passage, “That Peter Weasley —”

“Percy,” Ron corrected him automatically.

“Whatever,” said Malfoy. “I’ve noticed him sneaking around a lot lately. And I bet I know what he’s up to. He thinks he’s going to catch Slytherin’s heir single-handed.”

He gave a short, derisive laugh. Harry and Ron exchanged excited looks.

Malfoy paused by a stretch of bare, damp stone wall.

“What’s the new password again?” he said to Harry.

“Er —” said Harry.

“Oh, yeah — pure-blood!” said Malfoy, not listening, and a stone door concealed in the wall slid open. Malfoy marched through it, and Harry and Ron followed him.

The Slytherin common room was a long, low underground room with rough stone walls and ceiling from which round, greenish lamps were hanging on chains. A fire was crackling under an elaborately carved mantelpiece ahead of them, and several Slytherins were silhouetted around it in high-backed chairs.

“Wait here,” said Malfoy to Harry and Ron, motioning them to a pair of empty chairs set back from the fire. “I’ll go and get it my father’s just sent it to me —”

Wondering what Malfoy was going to show them, Harry and Ron sat down, doing their best to look at home.

Malfoy came back a minute later, holding what looked like a newspaper clipping. He thrust it under Ron’s nose.

“That’ll give you a laugh,” he said.

Harry saw Ron’s eyes widen in shock. He read the clipping quickly, gave a very forced laugh, and handed it to Harry.

It had been clipped out of the Daily Prophet, and it said:

INQUIRY AT THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC

Arthur Weasley, Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, was today fined fifty Galleons for bewitching a Muggle car.

Mr. Lucius Malfoy, a governor of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where the enchanted car crashed earlier this year, called today for Mr. Weasley’s resignation. “Weasley has brought the Ministry into disrepute,” Mr. Malfoy told our reporter. “He is clearly unfit to draw up our laws and his ridiculous Muggle Protection Act should be scrapped immediately.”

Mr. Weasley was unavailable for comment, although his wife told reporters to clear off or she’d set the family ghoul on them.

“Well?” said Malfoy impatiently as Harry handed the clipping back to him. “Don’t you think it’s funny?”

“Ha, ha,” said Harry bleakly.

“Arthur Weasley loves Muggles so much he should snap his wand in half and go and join them,” said Malfoy scornfully. “You’d never know the Weasleys were pure-bloods, the way they behave.”

Ron’s — or rather, Crabbe’s — face was contorted with fury.

“What’s up with you, Crabbe?” snapped Malfoy.

“Stomachache,” Ron grunted.

“Well, go up to the hospital wing and give all those Mudbloods a kick from me,” said Malfoy, snickering. “You know, I’m surprised the Daily Prophet hasn’t reported all these attacks yet,” he went on thoughtfully. “I suppose Dumbledore’s trying to hush it all up. He’ll be sacked if it doesn’t stop soon. Father’s always said old Dumbledore’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to this place. He loves Muggle-borns. A decent headmaster would never’ve let slime like that Creevey in.”

Malfoy started taking pictures with an imaginary camera and did a cruel but accurate impression of Colin: “‘Potter, can I have your picture, Potter? Can I have your autograph? Can I lick your shoes, please, Potter?”’

He dropped his hands and looked at Harry and Ron.

“What’s the matter with you two?”

Far too late, Harry and Ron forced themselves to laugh, but Malfoy seemed satisfied; perhaps Crabbe and Goyle were always slow on the uptake.

“Saint Potter, the Mudbloods’ friend,” said Malfoy slowly. “He’s another one with no proper wizard feeling, or he wouldn’t go around with that jumped up Granger Mudblood. And people think he’s Slytherin’s heir!”

Harry and Ron waited with bated breath: Malfoy was surely seconds away from telling them it was him — but then “I wish I knew who it is,” said Malfoy petulantly. “I could help them.”

Ron’s jaw dropped so that Crabbe looked even more clueless than usual. Fortunately, Malfoy didn’t notice, and Harry, thinking fast, said, “You must have some idea who’s behind it all…”

“You know I haven’t, Goyle, how many times do I have to tell you?” snapped Malfoy. “And Father won’t tell me anything about the last time the Chamber was opened either. Of course, it was fifty years ago, so it was before his time, but he knows all about it, and he says that it was all kept quiet and it’ll look suspicious if I know too much about it. But I know one thing — last time the Chamber of Secrets was opened, a Mudblood died. So I bet it’s a matter of time before one of them’s killed this time… I hope it’s Granger,” he said with relish.

Ron was clenching Crabbe’s gigantic fists. Feeling that it would be a bit of a giveaway if Ron punched Malfoy, Harry shot him a warning look and said, “D’you know if the person who opened the Chamber last time was caught?”

“Oh, yeah… whoever it was was expelled,” said Malfoy. “They’re probably still in Azkaban.”

“Azkaban?” said Harry, puzzled.

“Azkaban — the wizard prison, Goyle,” said Malfoy, looking at him in disbelief “Honestly, if you were any slower, you’d be going backward.”

He shifted restlessly in his chair and said, “Father says to keep my head down and let the Heir of Slytherin get on with it. He says the school needs ridding of all the Mudblood filth, but not to get mixed up in it. Of course, he’s got a lot on his plate at the moment. You know the Ministry of Magic raided our manor last week?”

Harry tried to force Goyle’s dull face into a look of concern.

“Yeah…” said Malfoy. “Luckily, they didn’t find much. Father’s got some very valuable Dark Arts stuff. But luckily, we’ve got our own secret chamber under the drawing-room floor —”

“Ho!” said Ron.

Malfoy looked at him. So did Harry. Ron blushed. Even his hair was turning red. His nose was also slowly lengthening — their hour was up, Ron was turning back into himself, and from the look of horror he was suddenly giving Harry, he must be, too.

They both jumped to their feet.

“Medicine for my stomach,” Ron grunted, and without further ado they sprinted the length of the Slytherin common room, hurled themselves at the stone wall, and dashed up the passage, hoping against hope that Malfoy hadn’t noticed anything. Harry could feel his feet slipping around in Goyle’s huge shoes and had to hoist up his robes as he shrank; they crashed up the steps into the dark entrance hall, which was full of a muffled pounding coming from the closet where they’d locked Crabbe and Goyle. Leaving their shoes outside the closet door, they sprinted in their socks up the marble staircase toward Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom.

“Well, it wasn’t a complete waste of time,” Ron panted, closing the bathroom door behind them. “I know we still haven’t found out who’s doing the attacks, but I’m going to write to Dad tomorrow and tell him to check under the Malfoys’ drawing room.”

Harry checked his face in the cracked mirror. He was back to normal. He put his glasses on as Ron hammered on the door of Hermione’s stall.

“Hermione, come out, we’ve got loads to tell you —”

“Go away!” Hermione squeaked.

Harry and Ron looked at each other.

“What’s the matter?” said Ron. “You must be back to normal by now, we are.”

But Moaning Myrtle glided suddenly through the stall door. Harry had never seen her looking so happy.

“Ooooooh, wait till you see,” she said. “It’s awful —”

They heard the lock slide back and Hermione emerged, sobbing, her robes pulled up over her head.

“What’s up?” said Ron uncertainly. “Have you still got Millicent’s nose or something?”

Hermione let her robes fall and Ron backed into the sink.

Her face was covered in black fur. Her eyes had turned yellow and there were long, pointed ears poking through her hair.

“It was a c-cat hair!” she howled. “M-Millicent Bulstrode m-must have a cat! And the p-potion isn’t supposed to be used for animal transformations!”

“Uh-oh,” said Ron.

“You’ll be teased something dreadful,” said Myrtle happily.

“It’s okay, Hermione,” said Harry quickly. “We’ll take you up to the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey never asks too many questions…”

It took a long time to persuade Hermione to leave the bathroom. Moaning Myrtle sped them on their way with a hearty guffaw. “Wait till everyone finds out you’ve got a tail!”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The Very Secret Diary

Hermione remained in the hospital wing for several weeks. There was a flurry of rumor about her disappearance when the rest of the school arrived back from their Christmas holidays, because of course everyone thought that she had been attacked. So many students filed past the hospital wing trying to catch a glimpse of her that Madam Pomfrey took out her curtains again and placed them around Hermione’s bed, to spare her the shame of being seen with a furry face.

Harry and Ron went to visit her every evening. When the new term started, they brought her each day’s homework.

“If I’d sprouted whiskers, I’d take a break from work,” said Ron, tipping a stack of books onto Hermione’s bedside table one evening.

“Don’t be silly, Ron, I’ve got to keep up,” said Hermione briskly. Her spirits were greatly improved by the fact that all the hair had gone from her face and her eyes were turning slowly back to brown. “I don’t suppose you’ve got any new leads?” she added in a whisper, so that Madam Pomfrey couldn’t hear her.

“Nothing,” said Harry gloomily.

“I was so sure it was Malfoy,” said Ron, for about the hundredth time.

“What’s that?” asked Harry, pointing to something gold sticking out from under Hermione’s pillow.

“Just a get well card,” said Hermione hastily, trying to poke it out of sight, but Ron was too quick for her. He pulled it out, flicked it open, and read aloud:

“To Miss Granger, wishing you a speedy recovery, from your concerned teacher, Professor Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award.”

Ron looked up at Hermione, disgusted.

“You sleep with this under your pillow?”

But Hermione was spared answering by Madam Pomfrey sweeping over with her evening dose of medicine.

“Is Lockhart the smarmiest bloke you’ve ever met, or what?” Ron said to Harry as they left the infirmary and started up the stairs toward Gryffindor Tower.

Snape had given them so much homework, Harry thought he was likely to be in the sixth year before he finished it. Ron was just saying he wished he had asked Hermione how many rat tails you were supposed to add to a Hair Raising Potion when an angry outburst from the floor above reached their ears.

“That’s Filch,” Harry muttered as they hurried up the stairs and paused, out of sight, listening hard.

“You don’t think someone else’s been attacked?” said Ron tensely.

They stood still, their heads inclined toward Flich’s voice, which sounded quite hysterical.

“Even more work for me! Mopping all night, like I haven’t got enough to do! No, this is the final straw, I’m going to Dumbledore —”

His footsteps receded along the out-of-sight corridor and they heard a distant door slam.

They poked their heads around the corner. Filch had clearly been manning his usual lookout post: They were once again on the spot where Mrs. Norris had been attacked. They saw at a glance what Filch had been shouting about. A great flood of water stretched over half the corridor, and it looked as though it was still seeping from under the door of Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. Now that Filch had stopped shouting, they could hear Myrtle’s wails echoing off the bathroom walls.

“Now what’s up with her?” said Ron.

“Let’s go and see,” said Harry, and holding their robes over their ankles they stepped through the great wash of water to the door bearing its OUT OF ORDER sign, ignored it as always, and entered.

Moaning Myrtle was crying, if possible, louder and harder than ever before. She seemed to be hiding down her usual toilet. It was dark in the bathroom because the candles had been extinguished in the great rush of water that had left both walls and floor soaking wet.

“What’s up, Myrtle?” said Harry.

“Who’s that?” glugged Myrtle miserably. “Come to throw something else at me?”

Harry waded across to her stall and said, “Why would I throw something at you?”

“Don’t ask me,” Myrtle shouted, emerging with a wave of yet more water, which splashed onto the already sopping floor. “Here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it’s funny to throw a book at me…”

“But it can’t hurt you if someone throws something at you,” said Harry, reasonably. “I mean, it’d just go right through you, wouldn’t it?”

He had said the wrong thing. Myrtle puffed herself up and shrieked, “Let’s all throw books at Myrtle, because she can’t feel it! Ten points if you can get it through her stomach! Fifty points if it goes through her head! Well, ha, ha, ha! What a lovely game, I don’t think!”

“Who threw it at you, anyway?” asked Harry.

“I don’t know… I was just sitting in the U-bend, thinking about death, and it fell right through the top of my head,” said Myrtle, glaring at them. “It’s over there, it got washed out…”

Harry and Ron looked under the sink where Myrtle was pointing. A small, thin book lay there. It had a shabby black cover and was as wet as everything else in the bathroom. Harry stepped forward to pick it up, but Ron suddenly flung out an arm to hold him back.

“What?” said Harry.

“Are you crazy?” said Ron. “It could be dangerous.”

“Dangerous?” said Harry, laughing. “Come off it, how could it be dangerous?”

“You’d be surprised,” said Ron, who was looking apprehensively at the book. “Some of the books the Ministry’s confiscated Dad’s told me — there was one that burned your eyes out. And everyone who read Sonnets of a Sorcerer spoke in limericks for the rest of their lives. And some old witch in Bath had a book that you could never stop reading! You just had to wander around with your nose in it, trying to do everything one-handed. And —”

“All right, I’ve got the point,” said Harry.

The little book lay on the floor, nondescript and soggy.

“Well, we won’t find out unless we look at it,” he said, and he ducked around Ron and picked it up off the floor.

Harry saw at once that it was a diary, and the faded year on the cover told him it was fifty years old. He opened it eagerly. On the first page he could just make out the name “T M. Riddle” in smudged ink.

“Hang on,” said Ron, who had approached cautiously and was looking over Harry’s shoulder. “I know that name… T. M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago.”

“How on earth d’you know that?” said Harry in amazement.

“Because Filch made me polish his shield about fifty times in detention,” said Ron resentfully. “That was the one I burped slugs all over. If you’d wiped slime off a name for an hour, you’d remember it, too.”

Harry peeled the wet pages apart. They were completely blank. There wasn’t the faintest trace of

writing on any of them, not even Auntie Mabel’s birthday, or dentist, half-past three.

“He never wrote in it,” said Harry, disappointed.

“I wonder why someone wanted to flush it away?” said Ron curiously.

Harry turned to the back cover of the book and saw the printed name of a variety store on Vauxhall Road, London.

“He must’ve been Muggle-born,” said Harry thoughtfully. “To have bought a diary from Vauxhall Road…”

“Well, it’s not much use to you,” said Ron. He dropped his voice. “Fifty points if you can get it through Myrtle’s nose.”

Harry, however, pocketed it.

Hermione left the hospital wing, de-whiskered, tail-less, and furfree, at the beginning of February. On her first evening back in Gryffindor Tower, Harry showed her T. M. Riddle’s diary and told her the story of how they had found it.

“Oooh, it might have hidden powers,” said Hermione enthusiastically, taking the diary and looking at it closely.

“If it has, it’s hiding them very well,” said Ron. “Maybe it’s shy. I don’t know why you don’t chuck it, Harry.”

“I wish I knew why someone did try to chuck it,” said Harry. “I wouldn’t mind knowing how Riddle got an award for special services to Hogwarts either.”

“Could’ve been anything,” said Ron. “Maybe he got thirty O.W.L.s or saved a teacher from the giant squid. Maybe he murdered Myrtle; that would’ve done everyone a favor…”

But Harry could tell from the arrested look on Hermione’s face that she was thinking what he was thinking.

“What?” said Ron, looking from one to the other.

“Well, the Chamber of Secrets was opened fifty years ago, wasn’t it?” he said. “That’s what Malfoy said.”

“Yeah…” said Ron slowly.

“And this diary is fifty years old,” said Hermione, tapping it excitedly.

“So?”

“Oh, Ron, wake up,” snapped Hermione. “We know the person who opened the Chamber last time was expelled fifty years ago. We know T. M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago. Well, what if Riddle got his special award for catching the Heir of Slytherin? His diary would probably tell us everything — where the Chamber is, and how to open it, and what sort of creature lives in it — the person who’s behind the attacks this time wouldn’t want that lying around, would they?”

“That’s a brilliant theory, Hermione,” said Ron, “with just one tiny little flaw. There’s nothing written in his diary.”

But Hermione was pulling her wand out of her bag.

“It might be invisible ink!” she whispered.

She tapped the diary three times and said, “Aparecium!”

Nothing happened. Undaunted, Hermione shoved her hand back into her bag and pulled out what appeared to be a bright red eraser.

“It’s a Revealer, I got it in Diagon Alley,” she said.

She rubbed hard on January first. Nothing happened.

“I’m telling you, there’s nothing to find in there,” said Ron. “Riddle just got a diary for Christmas and couldn’t be bothered filling it in.”

Harry couldn’t explain, even to himself, why he didn’t just throw Riddle’s diary away. The fact was that even though he knew the diary was blank, he kept absentmindedly picking it up and turning the pages, as though it were a story he wanted to finish. And while Harry was sure he had never heard the name T. M. Riddle before, it still seemed to mean something to him, almost as though Riddle was a friend he’d had when he was very small, and had half-forgotten. But this was absurd. He’d never had friends before Hogwarts, Dudley had made sure of that.

Nevertheless, Harry was determined to find out more about Riddle, so next day at break, he headed for the trophy room to examine Riddle’s special award, accompanied by an interested Hermione and a thoroughly unconvinced Ron, who told them he’d seen enough of the trophy room to last him a lifetime.

Riddle’s burnished gold shield was tucked away in a corner cabinet. It didn’t carry details of why it had been given to him (“Good thing, too, or it’d be even bigger and I’d still be polishing it,” said Ron). However, they did find Riddle’s name on an old Medal for Magical Merit, and on a list of old Head Boys.

“He sounds like Percy,” said Ron, wrinkling his nose in disgust. “Prefect, Head Boy… probably top of every class —”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” said Hermione in a slightly hurt voice.

The sun had now begun to shine weakly on Hogwarts again. Inside the castle, the mood had grown more hopeful. There had been no more attacks since those on Justin and Nearly Headless Nick, and Madam Pomfrey was pleased to report that the Mandrakes were becoming moody and secretive, meaning that they were fast leaving childhood.

“The moment their acne clears up, they’ll be ready for repotting again,” Harry heard her telling Filch kindly one afternoon. “And after that, it won’t be long until we’re cutting them up and stewing them. You’ll have Mrs. Norris back in no time.”

Perhaps the Heir of Slytherin had lost his or her nerve, thought Harry. It must be getting riskier and riskier to open the Chamber of Secrets, with the school so alert and suspicious. Perhaps the monster, whatever it was, was even now settling itself down to hibernate for another fifty years…

Ernie Macmillan of Hufflepuff didn’t take this cheerful view. He was still convinced that Harry was the guilty one, that he had “given himself away” at the Dueling Club. Peeves wasn’t helping matters; he kept popping up in the crowded corridors singing “Oh, Potter, you rotter…” now with a dance routine to match.

Gilderoy Lockhart seemed to think he himself had made the attacks stop. Harry overheard him telling Professor McGonagall so while the Gryffindors were lining up for Transfiguration. “I don’t think there’ll be any more trouble, Minerva,” he said, tapping his nose knowingly and winking. “I think the Chamber has been locked for good this time. The culprit must have known it was only a matter of time before I caught him. Rather sensible to stop now, before I came down hard on him.

“You know, what the school needs now is a morale-booster. Wash away the memories of last term! I won’t say any more just now, but I think I know just the thing…”

He tapped his nose again and strode off.

Lockhart’s idea of a morale-booster became clear at breakfast time on February fourteenth. Harry hadn’t had much sleep because of a late-running Quidditch practice the night before, and he hurried down to the Great Hall, slightly late. He thought, for a moment, that he’d walked through the wrong doors.

The walls were all covered with large, lurid pink flowers. Worse still, heart-shaped confetti was falling from the pale blue ceiling. Harry went over to the Gryffindor table, where Ron was sitting looking sickened, and Hermione seemed to have been overcome with giggles.

“What’s going on?” Harry asked them, sitting down and wiping confetti off his bacon.

Ron pointed to the teachers’ table, apparently too disgusted to speak. Lockhart, wearing lurid pink robes to match the decorations, was waving for silence. The teachers on either side of him

were looking stony-faced. From where he sat, Harry could see a muscle going in Professor McGonagall’s cheek. Snape looked as though someone had just fed him a large beaker of SkeleGro.

“Happy Valentine’s Day!” Lockhart shouted. “And may I thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all — and it doesn’t end here!”

Lockhart clapped his hands and through the doors to the entrance hall marched a dozen surlylooking dwarfs. Not just any dwarfs, however. Lockhart had them all wearing golden wings and carrying harps.

“My friendly, card-carrying cupids!” beamed Lockhart. “They will be roving around the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn’t stop here! I’m sure my colleagues will want to enter into the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion! And while you’re at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I’ve ever met, the sly old dog!”

Professor Flitwick buried his face in his hands. Snape was looking as though the first person to ask him for a Love Potion would be force-fed poison.

“Please, Hermione, tell me you weren’t one of the forty-six,” said Ron as they left the Great Hall for their first lesson. Hermione suddenly became very interested in searching her bag for her schedule and didn’t answer.

All day long, the dwarfs kept barging into their classes to deliver valentines, to the annoyance of the teachers, and late that afternoon as the Gryffindors were walking upstairs for Charms, one of the dwarfs caught up with Harry.

“Oy, you! ‘Arry Potter!” shouted a particularly grim-looking dwarf, elbowing people out of the way to get to Harry.

Hot all over at the thought of being given a valentine in front of a line of first years, which happened to include Ginny Weasley, Harry tried to escape. The dwarf, however, cut his way through the crowd by kicking people’s shins, and reached him before he’d gone two paces.

“I’ve got a musical message to deliver to ‘Arry Potter in person,” he said, twanging his harp in a threatening sort of way.

“Not here,” Harry hissed, trying to escape.

“Stay still!” grunted the dwarf, grabbing hold of Harry’s bag and pulling him back.

“Let me go!” Harry snarled, tugging.

With a loud ripping noise, his bag split in two. His books, wand, parchment, and quill spilled

onto the floor and his ink bottle smashed over everything.

Harry scrambled around, trying to pick it all up before the dwarf started singing, causing something of a holdup in the corridor.

“What’s going on here?” came the cold, drawling voice of Draco Malfoy. Harry started stuffing everything feverishly into his ripped bag, desperate to get away before Malfoy could hear his musical valentine.

“What’s all this commotion?” said another familiar voice as Percy Weasley arrived.

Losing his head, Harry tried to make a run for it, but the dwarf seized him around the knees and brought him crashing to the floor.

“Right,” he said, sitting on Harry’s ankles. “Here is your singing valentine:

His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad, His hair is as dark as a blackboard,

I wish he was mine, he’s really divine,

The hero who conquered the Dark Lord

Harry would have given all the gold in Gringotts to evaporate on the spot. Trying valiantly to laugh along with everyone else, he got up, his feet numb from the weight of the dwarf, as Percy Weasley did his best to disperse the crowd, some of whom were crying with mirth.

“Off you go, off you go, the bell rang five minutes ago, off to class, now,” he said, shooing some of the younger students away. “And you, Malfoy —”

Harry, glancing over, saw Malfoy stoop and snatch up something. Leering, he showed it to Crabbe and Goyle, and Harry realized that he’d got Riddle’s diary.

“Give that back,” said Harry quietly.

“Wonder what Potter’s written in this?” said Malfoy, who obviously hadn’t noticed the year on the cover and thought he had Harry’s own diary. A hush fell over the onlookers. Ginny was staring from the diary to Harry, looking terrified.

“Hand it over, Malfoy,” said Percy sternly.

“When I’ve had a look,” said Malfoy, waving the diary tauntingly at Harry.

Percy said, “As a school prefect —” but Harry had lost his temper. He pulled out his wand and shouted, “Expelliarmus!” and just as Snape had disarmed Lockhart, so Malfoy found the diary shooting out of his hand into the air. Ron, grinning broadly, caught it.

“Harry!” said Percy loudly. “No magic in the corridors. I’ll have to report this, you know!”

But Harry didn’t care, he was one-up on Malfoy, and that was worth five points from Gryffindor any day. Malfoy was looking furious, and as Ginny passed him to enter her classroom, he yelled spitefully after her, “I don’t think Potter liked your valentine much!”

Ginny covered her face with her hands and ran into class. Snarling, Ron pulled out his wand, too, but Harry pulled him away. Ron didn’t need to spend the whole of Charms belching slugs.

It wasn’t until they had reached Professor Flitwick’s class that Harry noticed something rather odd about Riddle’s diary. All his other books were drenched in scarlet ink. The diary, however, was as clean as it had been before the ink bottle had smashed all over it. He tried to point this out to Ron, but Ron was having trouble with his wand again; large purple bubbles were blossoming out of the end, and he wasn’t much interested in anything else.

Harry went to bed before anyone else in his dormitory that night. This was partly because he didn’t think he could stand Fred and George singing, “His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad” one more time, and partly because he wanted to examine Riddle’s diary again, and knew that Ron thought he was wasting his time.

Harry sat on his four-poster and flicked through the blank pages, not one of which had a trace of scarlet ink on it. Then he pulled a new bottle out of his bedside cabinet, dipped his quill into it, and dropped a blot onto the first page of the diary.

The ink shone brightly on the paper for a second and then, as though it was being sucked into the page, vanished. Excited, Harry loaded up his quill a second time and wrote, “My name is Harry Potter.”

The words shone momentarily on the page and they, too, sank without trace. Then, at last, something happened.

Oozing back out of the page, in his very own ink, came words Harry had never written.

“Hello, Harry Potter. My name is Tom Riddle. How did you come by my diary?”

These words, too, faded away, but not before Harry had started to scribble back.

“Someone tried to flush it down a toilet.”

He waited eagerly for Riddle’s reply.

“Lucky that I recorded my memories in some more lasting way than ink. But I always knew that

there would be those who would not want this diary read.”

“What do you mean?” Harry scrawled, blotting the page in his excitement.

“I mean that this diary holds memories of terrible things. Things that were covered up. Things that happened at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.”

“That’s where I am now,” Harry wrote quickly. “I’m at Hogwarts, and horrible stuff’s been happening. Do you know anything about the Chamber of Secrets?”

His heart was hammering. Riddle’s reply came quickly, his writing becoming untidier, as though he was hurrying to tell all he knew.

“Of course I know about the Chamber of Secrets. In my day, they told us it was a legend, that it did not exist. But this was a lie. In my fifth year, the Chamber was opened and the monster attacked several students, finally killing one. I caught the person who’d opened the Chamber and he was expelled. But the Headmaster, Professor Dippet, ashamed that such a thing had happened at Hogwarts, forbade me to tell the truth. A story was given out that the girl had died in a freak accident. They gave me a nice, shiny, engraved trophy for my trouble and warned me to keep my mouth shut. But I knew it could happen again. The monster lived on, and the one who had the power to release it was not imprisoned.”

Harry nearly upset his ink bottle in his hurry to write back.

“It’s happening again now. There have been three attacks and no one seems to know who’s behind them. Who was it last time?”

“I can show you, if you like, “came Riddle’s reply. “You don’t have to take my word for it. I can take you inside my memory of the night when I caught him.”

Harry hesitated, his quill suspended over the diary. What did Riddle mean? How could he be taken inside somebody else’s memory? He glanced nervously at the door to the dormitory, which was growing dark. When he looked back at the diary, he saw fresh words forming.

“Let me show you.”

Harry paused for a fraction of a second and then wrote two letters.

The pages of the diary began to blow as though caught in a high wind, stopping halfway through the month of June. Mouth hanging open, Harry saw that the little square for June thirteenth seemed to have turned into a miniscule television screen. His hands trembling slightly, he raised the book to press his eye against the little window, and before he knew what was happening, he was tilting forward; the window was widening, he felt his body leave his bed, and he was pitched headfirst through the opening in the page, into a whirl of color and shadow.

He felt his feet hit solid ground, and stood, shaking, as the blurred shapes around him came suddenly into focus.

He knew immediately where he was. This circular room with the sleeping portraits was Dumbledore’s office — but it wasn’t Dumbledore who was sitting behind the desk. A wizened, frail-looking wizard, bald except for a few wisps of white hair, was reading a letter by candlelight. Harry had never seen this man before.

“I’m sorry,” he said shakily. “I didn’t mean to butt in —”

But the wizard didn’t look up. He continued to read, frowning slightly. Harry drew nearer to his desk and stammered, “Er — I’ll just go, shall I?”

Still the wizard ignored him. He didn’t seem even to have heard him. Thinking that the wizard might be deaf, Harry raised his voice.

“Sorry I disturbed you. I’ll go now,” he half-shouted.

The wizard folded up the letter with a sigh, stood up, walked past Harry without glancing at him, and went to draw the curtains at his window.

The sky outside the window was ruby-red; it seemed to be sunset. The wizard went back to the desk, sat down, and twiddled his thumbs, watching the door.

Harry looked around the office. No Fawkes the phoenix — no whirring silver contraptions. This was Hogwarts as Riddle had known it, meaning that this unknown wizard was Headmaster, not Dumbledore, and he, Harry, was little more than a phantom, completely invisible to the people of fifty years ago.

There was a knock on the office door.

“Enter,” said the old wizard in a feeble voice.

A boy of about sixteen entered, taking off his pointed hat. A silver prefect’s badge was glinting on his chest. He was much taller than Harry, but he, too, had jet-black hair.

“Ah, Riddle,” said the Headmaster.

“You wanted to see me, Professor Dippet?” said Riddle. He looked nervous.

“Sit down,” said Dippet. “I’ve just been reading the letter you sent me.”

“Oh,” said Riddle. He sat down, gripping his hands together very tightly.

“My dear boy,” said Dipper kindly, “I cannot possibly let you stay at school over the summer. Surely you want to go home for the holidays?”

“No,” said Riddle at once. “I’d much rather stay at Hogwarts than go back to that — to that —”

“You live in a Muggle orphanage during the holidays, I believe?” said Dippet curiously.

“Yes, sir,” said Riddle, reddening slightly.

“You are Muggle-born?”

“Half-blood, sir,” said Riddle. “Muggle father, witch mother.”

“And are both your parents —?”

“My mother died just after I was born, sir. They told me at the orphanage she lived just long enough to name me — Tom after my father, Marvolo after my grandfather.”

Dipper clucked his tongue sympathetically.

“The thing is, Tom,” he sighed, “Special arrangements might have been made for you, but in the current circumstances…”

“You mean all these attacks, sir?” said Riddle, and Harry’s heart leapt, and he moved closer, scared of missing anything.

“Precisely,” said the headmaster. “My dear boy, you must see how foolish it would be of me to allow you to remain at the castle when term ends. Particularly in light of the recent tragedy… the death of that poor little girl… You will be safer by far at your orphanage. As a matter of fact, the Ministry of Magic is even now talking about closing the school. We are no nearer locating the — er — source of all this unpleasantness…”

Riddle’s eyes had widened.

“Sir — if the person was caught — if it all stopped —”

“What do you mean?” said Dippet with a squeak in his voice, sitting up in his chair. “Riddle, do you mean you know something about these attacks?”

“No, sir,” said Riddle quickly.

But Harry was sure it was the same sort of “no” that he himself had given Dumbledore.

Dippet sank back, looking faintly disappointed.

“You may go, Tom…”

Riddle slid off his chair and slouched out of the room. Harry followed him.

Down the moving spiral staircase they went, emerging next to the gargoyle in the darkening corridor. Riddle stopped, and so did Harry, watching him. Harry could tell that Riddle was doing some serious thinking. He was biting his lip, his forehead furrowed.

Then, as though he had suddenly reached a decision, he hurried off, Harry gliding noiselessly behind him. They didn’t see another person until they reached the entrance hall, when a tall wizard with long, sweeping auburn hair and a beard called to Riddle from the marble staircase.

“What are you doing, wandering around this late, Tom?”

Harry gaped at the wizard. He was none other than a fifty-year-younger Dumbledore.

“I had to see the headmaster, sir,” said Riddle.

“Well, hurry off to bed,” said Dumbledore, giving Riddle exactly the kind of penetrating stare Harry knew so well. “Best not to roam the corridors these days. Not since…”

He sighed heavily, bade Riddle good night, and strode off. Riddle watched him walk out of sight and then, moving quickly, headed straight down the stone steps to the dungeons, with Harry in hot pursuit.

But to Harry’s disappointment, Riddle led him not into a hidden passageway or a secret tunnel but to the very dungeon in which Harry had Potions with Snape. The torches hadn’t been lit, and when Riddle pushed the door almost closed, Harry could only just see him, standing stock-still by the door, watching the passage outside.

It felt to Harry that they were there for at least an hour. All he could see was the figure of Riddle at the door, staring through the crack, waiting like a statue. And just when Harry had stopped feeling expectant and tense and started wishing he could return to the present, he heard something move beyond the door.

Someone was creeping along the passage. He heard whoever it was pass the dungeon where he and Riddle were hidden. Riddle, quiet as a shadow, edged through the door and followed, Harry tiptoeing behind him, forgetting that he couldn’t be heard.

For perhaps five minutes they followed the footsteps, until Riddle stopped suddenly, his head inclined in the direction of new noises. Harry heard a door creak open, and then someone speaking in a hoarse whisper.

“C’mon… gotta get yeh outta here… C’mon now… in the box…”

There was something familiar about that voice…

Riddle suddenly jumped around the corner. Harry stepped out behind him. He could see the dark outline of a huge boy who was crouching in front of an open door, a very large box next to it.

“Evening, Rubeus,” said Riddle sharply.

The boy slammed the door shut and stood up.

“What yer doin’ down here, Tom?”

Riddle stepped closer.

“It’s all over,” he said. “I’m going to have to turn you in, Rubeus. They’re talking about closing Hogwarts if the attacks don’t stop.”

“‘N at d’yeh —”

“I don’t think you meant to kill anyone. But monsters don’t make good pets. I suppose you just let it out for exercise and —”

“It never killed no one!” said the large boy, backing against the closed door. From behind him, Harry could hear a funny rustling and clicking.

“Come on, Rubeus,” said Riddle, moving yet closer. “The dead girl’s parents will be here tomorrow. The least Hogwarts can do is make sure that the thing that killed their daughter is slaughtered…”

“It wasn’t him!” roared the boy, his voice echoing in the dark passage. “He wouldn’! He never!”

“Stand aside,” said Riddle, drawing out his wand.

His spell lit the corridor with a sudden flaming light. The door behind the large boy flew open with such force it knocked him into the wall opposite. And out of it came something that made Harry let out a long, piercing scream unheard by anyone.

A vast, low-slung, hairy body and a tangle of black legs; a gleam of many eyes and a pair of razor-sharp pincers — Riddle raised his wand again, but he was too late. The thing bowled him over as it scuttled away, tearing up the corridor and out of sight. Riddle scrambled to his feet, looking after it; he raised his wand, but the huge boy leapt on him, seized his wand, and threw him back down, yelling, “NOOOOOO!”

The scene whirled, the darkness became complete; Harry felt himself falling and, with a crash, he landed spread-eagled on his four-poster in the Gryffindor dormitory, Riddle’s diary lying open on his stomach.

Before he had had time to regain his breath, the dormitory door opened and Ron came in.

“There you are,” he said.

Harry sat up. He was sweating and shaking.

“What’s up?” said Ron, looking at him with concern.

“It was Hagrid, Ron. Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Cornelius Fudge

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had always known that Hagrid had an unfortunate liking for large and monstrous creatures. During their first year at Hogwarts he had tried to raise a dragon in his little wooden house, and it would be a long time before they forgot the giant, three-headed dog he’d christened “Fluffy.” And if, as a boy, Hagrid had heard that a monster was hidden somewhere in the castle, Harry was sure he’d have gone to any lengths for a glimpse of it. He’d probably thought it was a shame that the monster had been cooped up so long, and thought it deserved the chance to stretch its many legs; Harry could just imagine the thirteen-year-old Hagrid trying to fit a leash and collar on it. But he was equally certain that Hagrid would never have meant to kill anybody.

Harry half wished he hadn’t found out how to work Riddle’s diary. Again and again Ron and Hermione made him recount what he’d seen, until he was heartily sick of telling them and sick of the long, circular conversations that followed.

“Riddle might have got the wrong person,” said Hermione. “Maybe it was some other monster that was attacking people…”

“How many monsters d’you think this place can hold?” Ron asked dully.

“We always knew Hagrid had been expelled,” said Harry miserably. “And the attacks must’ve stopped after Hagrid was kicked out. Otherwise, Riddle wouldn’t have got his award.”

Ron tried a different tack.

“Riddle does sound like Percy — who asked him to squeal on Hagrid, anyway?”

“But the monster had killed someone, Ron,” said Hermione.

“And Riddle was going to go back to some Muggle orphanage if they closed Hogwarts,” said Harry. “I don’t blame him for wanting to stay here…”

“You met Hagrid down Knockturn Alley, didn’t you, Harry?”

“He was buying a Flesh-Eating Slug Repellent,” said Harry quickly.

The three of them fell silent. After a long pause, Hermione voiced the knottiest question of all in a hesitant voice.

“Do you think we should go and ask Hagrid about it all?”

“That’d be a cheerful visit,” said Ron. “‘Hello, Hagrid. Tell us, have you been setting anything

mad and hairy loose in the castle lately?’”

In the end, they decided that they would not say anything to Hagrid unless there was another attack, and as more and more days went by with no whisper from the disembodied voice, they became hopeful that they would never need to talk to him about why he had been expelled. It was now nearly four months since Justin and Nearly Headless Nick had been Petrified, and nearly everybody seemed to think that the attacker, whoever it was, had retired for good. Peeves had finally got bored of his “Oh, Potter, you rotter” song, Ernie Macmillan asked Harry quite politely to pass a bucket of leaping toadstools in Herbology one day, and in March several of the Mandrakes threw a loud and raucous party in greenhouse three. This made Professor Sprout very happy.

“The moment they start trying to move into each other’s pots, we’ll know they’re fully mature,” she told Harry. “Then we’ll be able to revive those poor people in the hospital wing.”

The second years were given something new to think about during their Easter holidays. The time had come to choose their subjects for the third year, a matter that Hermione, at least, took very seriously.

“… it could affect our whole future,” she told Harry and Ron as they pored over lists of new subjects, marking them with checks.

“I just want to give up Potions,” said Harry.

“We can’t,” said Ron gloomily. “We keep all our old subjects, or I’d’ve ditched Defense Against the Dark Arts.”

“But that’s very important!” said Hermione, shocked.

“Not the way Lockhart teaches it,” said Ron. “I haven’t learned anything from him except not to set pixies loose.”

Neville Longbottom had been sent letters from all the witches and wizards in his family, all giving him different advice on what to choose. Confused and worried, he sat reading the subject lists with his tongue poking out, asking people whether they thought Arithmancy sounded more difficult than the study of Ancient Runes. Dean Thomas, who, like Harry, had grown up with Muggles, ended up closing his eyes and jabbing his wand at the list, then picking the subjects it landed on. Hermione took nobody’s advice but signed up for everything.

Harry smiled grimly to himself at the thought of what Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia would say if he tried to discuss his career in wizardry with them. Not that he didn’t get any guidance: Percy Weasley was eager to share his experience.

“Depends where you want to go, Harry,” he said. “It’s never too early to think about the future, so I’d recommend Divination. People say Muggle Studies is a soft option, but I personally think wizards should have a thorough understanding of the non-magical community, particularly if

they’re thinking of working in close contact with them — look at my father, he has to deal with Muggle business all the time. My brother Charlie was always more of an outdoor type, so he went for Care of Magical Creatures. Play to your strengths, Harry.”

But the only thing Harry felt he was really good at was Quidditch. In the end, he chose the same new subjects as Ron, feeling that if he was lousy at them, at least he’d have someone friendly to help him.

Gryffindor’s next Quidditch match would be against Hufflepuff. Wood was insisting on team practices every night after dinner, so that Harry barely had time for anything but Quidditch and homework. However, the training sessions were getting better, or at least drier, and the evening before Saturday’s match he went up to his dormitory to drop off his broomstick feeling Gryffindor’s chances for the Quidditch cup had never been better.

But his cheerful mood didn’t last long. At the top of the stairs to the dormitory, he met Neville Longbottom, who was looking frantic.

“Harry — I don’t know who did it — I just found —”

Watching Harry fearfully, Neville pushed open the door.

The contents of Harry’s trunk had been thrown everywhere. His cloak lay ripped on the floor. The bedclothes had been pulled off his four-poster and the drawer had been pulled out of his bedside cabinet, the contents strewn over the mattress.

Harry walked over to the bed, open-mouthed, treading on a few loose pages of Travels with Trolls. As he and Neville pulled the blankets back onto his bed, Ron, Dean, and Seamus came in. Dean swore loudly.

“What happened, Harry?”

“No idea,” said Harry. But Ron was examining Harry’s robes. All the pockets were hanging out.

“Someone’s been looking for something,” said Ron. “Is there anything missing?”

Harry started to pick up all his things and throw them into his trunk. It was only as he threw the last of the Lockhart books back into it that he realized what wasn’t there.

“Riddle’s diary’s gone,” he said in an undertone to Ron.

“What?”

Harry jerked his head toward the dormitory door and Ron followed him out. They hurried down to the Gryffindor common room, which was half-empty, and joined Hermione, who was sitting alone, reading a book called Ancient Runes Made Easy

Hermione looked aghast at the news.

“But — only a Gryffindor could have stolen — nobody else knows our password —”

“Exactly,” said Harry.

They woke the next day to brilliant sunshine and a light, refreshing breeze.

“Perfect Quidditch conditions!” said Wood enthusiastically at the Gryffindor table, loading the team’s plates with scrambled eggs. “Harry, buck up there, you need a decent breakfast.”

Harry had been staring down the packed Gryffindor table, wondering if the new owner of Riddle’s diary was right in front of his eyes. Hermione had been urging him to report the robbery, but Harry didn’t like the idea. He’d have to tell a teacher all about the diary, and how many people knew why Hagrid had been expelled fifty years ago? He didn’t want to be the one who brought it all up again.

As he left the Great Hall with Ron and Hermione to go and collect his Quidditch things, another very serious worry was added to Harry’s growing list. He had just set foot on the marble staircase when he heard it yet again.

“Kill this time… let me rip… tear…”

He shouted aloud and Ron and Hermione both jumped away from him in alarm.

“The voice!” said Harry, -looking over his shoulder. “I just heard it again — didn’t you?”

Ron shook his head, wide-eyed. Hermione, however, clapped a hand to her forehead.

“Harry — I think I’ve just understood something! I’ve got to go to the library!”

And she sprinted away, up the stairs.

“What does she understand?” said Harry distractedly, still looking around, trying to tell where the voice had come from.

“Loads more than I do,” said Ron, shaking his head.

“But why’s she got to go to the library?”

“Because that’s what Hermione does,” said Ron, shrugging. “When in doubt, go to the library.”

Harry stood, irresolute, trying to catch the voice again, but people were now emerging from the Great Hall behind him, talking loudly, exiting through the front doors on their way to the Quidditch pitch.

“You’d better get moving,” said Ron. “It’s nearly eleven — the match —”

Harry raced up to Gryffindor Tower, collected his Nimbus Two Thousand, and joined the large crowd swarming across the grounds, but his mind was still in the castle along with the bodiless voice, and as he pulled on his scarlet robes in the locker room, his only comfort was that everyone was now outside to watch the game.

The teams walked onto the field to tumultuous applause. Oliver Wood took off for a warm-up flight around the goal posts; Madam Hooch released the balls. The Hufflepuffs, who played in canary yellow, were standing in a huddle, having a last-minute discussion of tactics.

Harry was just mounting his broom when Professor McGonagall came half marching, half running across the pitch, carrying an enormous purple megaphone.

Harry’s heart dropped like a stone.

“This match has been cancelled,” Professor McGonagall called through the megaphone, addressing the packed stadium. There were boos and shouts. Oliver Wood, looking devastated, landed and ran toward Professor McGonagall without getting off his broomstick.

“But, Professor!” he shouted. “We’ve got to play — the cup —Gryffindor —”

Professor McGonagall ignored him and continued to shout through her megaphone:

“All students are to make their way back to the House common rooms, where their Heads of Houses will give them further information. As quickly as you can, please!”

Then she lowered the megaphone and beckoned Harry over to her.

“Potter, I think you’d better come with me…”

Wondering how she could possibly suspect him this time, Harry saw Ron detach himself from the complaining crowd; he came running up to them as they set off toward the castle. To Harry’s surprise, Professor McGonagall didn’t object.

“Yes, perhaps you’d better come, too, Weasley…”

Some of the students swarming around them were grumbling about the match being canceled; others looked worried. Harry and Ron followed Professor McGonagall back into the school and up the marble staircase. But they weren’t taken to anybody’s office this time.

“This will be a bit of a shock,” said Professor McGonagall in a surprisingly gentle voice as they approached the infirmary. “There has been another attack… another double attack.”

Harry’s insides did a horrible somersault. Professor McGonagall pushed the door open and he and Ron entered… Madam Pomfrey was bending over a fifth-year girl with long, curly hair.

Harry recognized her as the Ravenclaw they’d accidentally asked for directions to the Slytherin common room. And on the bed next to her was —

“Hermione!” Ron groaned.

Hermione lay utterly still, her eyes open and glassy.

“They were found near the library,” said Professor McGonagall. “I don’t suppose either of you can explain this? It was on the floor next to them…”

She was holding up a small, circular mirror.

Harry and Ron shook their heads, both staring at Hermione.

“I will escort you back to Gryffindor Tower,” said Professor McGonagall heavily. “I need to address the students in any case.”

“All students will return to their House common rooms by six o’clock in the evening. No student is to leave the dormitories after that time. You will be escorted to each lesson by a teacher. No student is to use the bathroom unaccompanied by a teacher. All further Quidditch training and matches are to be postponed. There will be no more evening activities.”

The Gryffindors packed inside the common room listened to Professor McGonagall in silence. She rolled up the parchment from which she had been reading and said in a somewhat choked voice, “I need hardly add that I have rarely been so distressed. It is likely that the school will be closed unless the culprit behind these attacks is caught. I would urge anyone who thinks they might know anything about them to come forward.”

She climbed somewhat awkwardly out of the portrait hole, and the Gryffindors began talking immediately.

“That’s two Gryffindors down, not counting a Gryffindor ghost, one Ravenclaw, and one Hufflepuff, “ said the Weasley twins’ friend Lee Jordan, counting on his fingers. “Haven’t any of the teachers noticed that the Slytherins are all safe? Isn’t it obvious all this stuff’s coming from Slytherin? The Heir of Slytherin, the monster of Slytherin — why don’t they just chuck all the Slytherins out?” he roared, to nods and scattered applause.

Percy Weasley was sitting in a chair behind Lee, but for once he didn’t seem keen to make his views heard. He was looking pale and stunned.

“Percy’s in shock,” George told Harry quietly. “That Ravenclaw girl — Penelope Clearwater — she’s a prefect. I don’t think he thought the monster would dare attack a prefect.”

But Harry was only half-listening. He didn’t seem to be able to get rid of the picture of Hermione, lying on the hospital bed as though carved out of stone. And if the culprit wasn’t caught soon, he was looking at a lifetime back with the Dursleys. Tom Riddle had turned Hagrid

in because he was faced with the prospect of a Muggle orphanage if the school closed. Harry now knew exactly how he had felt.

“What’re we going to do?” said Ron quietly in Harry’s ear. “D’you think they suspect Hagrid?”

“We’ve got to go and talk to him,” said Harry, making up his mind. “I can’t believe it’s him this time, but if he set the monster loose last time he’ll know how to get inside the Chamber of Secrets, and that’s a start.”

“But McGonagall said we’ve got to stay in our tower unless we’re in class —”

“I think,” said Harry, more quietly still, “it’s time to get my dad’s old cloak out again.”

Harry had inherited just one thing from his father: a long and silvery Invisibility Cloak. It was their only chance of sneaking out of the school to visit Hagrid without anyone knowing about it. They went to bed at the usual time, waited until Neville, Dean, and Seamus had stopped discussing the Chamber of Secrets and finally fallen asleep, then got up, dressed again, and threw the cloak over themselves.

The journey through the dark and deserted castle corridors wasn’t enjoyable. Harry, who had wandered the castle at night several times before, had never seen it so crowded after sunset. Teachers, prefects, and ghosts were marching the corridors in pairs, staring around for any unusual activity. Their Invisibility Cloak didn’t stop them making any noise, and there was a particularly tense moment when Ron stubbed his toe only yards from the spot where Snape stood standing guard. Thankfully, Snape sneezed at almost exactly the moment Ron swore. It was with relief that they reached the oak front doors and eased them open.

It was a clear, starry night. They hurried toward the lit windows of Hagrid’s house and pulled off the cloak only when they were right outside his front door.

Seconds after they had knocked, Hagrid flung it open. They found themselves face-to-face with him aiming a crossbow at them. Fang the boarhound barked loudly behind him.

“Oh,” he said, lowering the weapon and staring at them. “What’re you two doin’ here?”

“What’s that for?” said Harry, pointing at the crossbow as they stepped inside.

“Nothin’ — nothin’ —” Hagrid muttered. “I’ve bin expectin’ — doesn’ matter — Sit down — I’ll make tea —”

He hardly seemed to know what he was doing. He nearly extinguished the fire, spilling water from the kettle on it, and then smashed the teapot with a nervous jerk of his massive hand.

“Are you okay, Hagrid?” said Harry. “Did you hear about Hermione?”

“Oh, I heard, all righ’,” said Hagrid, a slight break in his voice.

He kept glancing nervously at the windows. He poured them both large mugs of boiling water (he had forgotten to add tea bags) and was just putting a slab of fruitcake on a plate when there was a loud knock on the door.

Hagrid dropped the fruitcake. Harry and Ron exchanged panicstricken looks, then threw the Invisibility Cloak back over themselves and retreated into a corner. Hagrid checked that they were hidden, seized his crossbow, and flung open his door once more.

“Good evening, Hagrid.”

It was Dumbledore. He entered, looking deadly serious, and was followed by a second, very oddlooking man.

The stranger had rumpled gray hair and an anxious expression, and was wearing a strange mixture of clothes: a pinstriped suit, a scarlet tie, a long black cloak, and pointed purple boots. Under his arm he carried a lime-green bowler.

“That’s Dad’s boss!” Ron breathed. “Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic!”

Harry elbowed Ron hard to make him shut up.

Hagrid had gone pale and sweaty. He dropped into one of his chairs and looked from Dumbledore to Cornelius Fudge.

“Bad business, Hagrid,” said Fudge in rather clipped tones. “Very bad business. Had to come. Four attacks on Muggle-borns. Things’ve gone far enough. Ministry’s got to act.”

“I never,” said Hagrid, looking imploringly at Dumbledore. “You know I never, Professor Dumbledore, sir —”

“I want it understood, Cornelius, that Hagrid has my full confidence,” said Dumbledore, frowning at Fudge.

“Look, Albus,” said Fudge, uncomfortably. “Hagrid’s record’s against him. Ministry’s got to do something — the school governors have been in touch —”

“Yet again, Cornelius, I tell you that taking Hagrid away will not help in the slightest,” said Dumbledore. His blue eyes were full of a fire Harry had never seen before.

“Look at it from my point of view,” said Fudge, fidgeting with his bowler. “I’m under a lot of pressure. Got to be seen to be doing something. If it turns out it wasn’t Hagrid, he’ll be back and no more said. But I’ve got to take him. Got to. Wouldn’t be doing my duty —”

“Take me?” said Hagrid, who was trembling. “Take me where?”

“For a short stretch only,” said Fudge, not meeting Hagrid’s eyes. “Not a punishment, Hagrid,

more a precaution. If someone else is caught, you’ll be let out with a full apology —”

“Not Azkaban?” croaked Hagrid.

Before Fudge could answer, there was another loud rap on the door.

Dumbledore answered it. It was Harry’s turn for an elbow in the ribs; he’d let out an audible gasp.

Mr. Lucius Malfoy strode into Hagrid’s hut, swathed in a long black traveling cloak, smiling a cold and satisfied smile. Fang started to growl.

“Already here, Fudge,” he said approvingly. “Good, good…”

“What’re you doin’ here?” said Hagrid furiously. “Get outta my house!”

“My dear man, please believe me, I have no pleasure at all in being inside your — er — d’you call this a house?” said Lucius Malfoy, sneering as he looked around the small cabin. “I simply called at the school and was told that the headmaster was here.”

“And what exactly did you want with me, Lucius?” said Dumbledore. He spoke politely, but the fire was still blazing in his blue eyes.

“Dreadful thing, Dumbledore,” said Malfoy lazily, taking out a long roll of parchment, “but the governors feel it’s time for you to step aside. This is an Order of Suspension — you’ll find all twelve signatures on it. I’m afraid we feel you’re losing your touch. How many attacks have there been now? Two more this afternoon, wasn’t it? At this rate, there’ll be no Muggle-borns left at Hogwarts, and we all know what an awful loss that would be to the school.”

“Oh, now, see here, Lucius,” said Fudge, looking alarmed, “Dumbledore suspended — no, no — last thing we want just now.”

“The appointment — or suspension — of the headmaster is a matter for the governors, Fudge,” said Mr. Malfoy smoothly. “And as Dumbledore has failed to stop these attacks —”

“See here, Malfoy, if Dumbledore can’t stop them,” said Fudge, whose upper lip was sweating now, “I mean to say, who can?”

“That remains to be seen,” said Mr. Malfoy with a nasty smile. “But as all twelve of us have voted —”

Hagrid leapt to his feet, his shaggy black head grazing the ceiling.

‘An’ how many did yeh have ter threaten an’ blackmail before they agreed, Malfoy, eh?” he roared.

“Dear, dear, you know, that temper of yours will lead you into trouble one of these days, Hagrid,” said Mr. Malfoy. “I would advise you not to shout at the Azkaban guards like that. They won’t like it at all.”

“Yeh can’ take Dumbledore!” yelled Hagrid, making Fang the boarhound cower and whimper in his basket. “Take him away, an’ the Muggle-borns won’ stand a chance! There’ll be killin’ next!”

“Calm yourself, Hagrid,” said Dumbledore sharply. He looked at Lucius Malfoy.

“If the governors want my removal, Lucius, I shall of course step aside —”

“But —” stuttered Fudge.

“No!” growled Hagrid.

Dumbledore had not taken his bright blue eyes off Lucius Malfoy’s cold gray ones.

“However,” said Dumbledore, speaking very slowly and clearly so that none of them could miss a word, “you will find that I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me… Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it.”

For a second, Harry was almost sure Dumbledore’s eyes flickered toward the corner where he and Ron were hidden.

“Admirable sentiments,” said Malfoy, bowing. “We shall all miss your — er — highly individual way of running things, Albus, and only hope your successor will manage to prevent any — ah — killins.”

He strode to the cabin door, opened it, and bowed Dumbledore out. Fudge, fiddling with his bowler, waited for Hagrid to go ahead of him, but Hagrid stood his ground, took a deep breath, and said carefully, “If anyone wanted ter find out some stuff, all they’d have ter do would be ter follow the spiders. That’d lead ‘em right. That’s all I’m sayin’.”

Fudge stared at him in amazement.

“All right, I’m comin’, said Hagrid, pulling on his moleskin overcoat. But as he was about to follow Fudge through the door, he stopped again and said loudly, “An’ someone’ll need ter feed Fang while I’m away.”

The door banged shut and Ron pulled off the Invisibility Cloak.

“We’re in trouble now,” Ron said hoarsely. “No Dumbledore. They might as well close the school tonight. There’ll be an attack a day with him gone.”

Fang started howling, scratching at the closed door.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Aragog

Summer was creeping over the grounds around the castle; sky and lake alike turned periwinkle blue and flowers large as cabbages burst into bloom in the greenhouses. But with no Hagrid visible from the castle windows, striding the grounds with Fang at his heels, the scene didn’t look right to Harry; no better, in fact, than the inside of the castle, where things were so horribly wrong.

Harry and Ron had tried to visit Hermione, but visitors were now barred from the hospital wing.

“We’re taking no more chances,” Madam Pomfrey told them severely through a crack in the infirmary door. “No, I’m sorry, there’s every chance the attacker might come back to finish these people off…”

With Dumbledore gone, fear had spread as never before, so that the sun warming the castle walls outside seemed to stop at the mullioned windows. There was barely a face to be seen in the school that didn’t look worried and tense, and any laughter that rang through the corridors sounded shrill and unnatural and was quickly stifled.

Harry constantly repeated Dumbledore’s final words to himself “I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me… Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it.” But what good were these words? Who exactly were they supposed to ask for help, when everyone was just as confused and scared as they were?

Hagrid’s hint about the spiders was far easier to understand. The trouble was, there didn’t seem to be a single spider left in the castle to follow. Harry looked everywhere he went, helped (rather reluctantly) by Ron. They were hampered, of course, by the fact that they weren’t allowed to wander off on their own but had to move around the castle in a pack with the other Gryffindors. Most of their fellow students seemed glad that they were being shepherded from class to class by teachers, but Harry found it very irksome.

One person, however, seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the atmosphere of terror and suspicion. Draco Malfoy was strutting around the school as though he had just been appointed Head Boy. Harry didn’t realize what he was so pleased about until the Potions lesson about two weeks after Dumbledore and Hagrid had left, when, sitting right behind Malfoy, Harry overheard him gloating to Crabbe and Goyle.

“I always thought Father might be the one who got rid of Dumbledore,” he said, not troubling to keep his voice down. “I told you he thinks Dumbledore’s the worst headmaster the school’s ever had. Maybe we’ll get a decent headmaster now. Someone who won’t want the Chamber of Secrets closed. McGonagall won’t last long, she’s only filling in…”

Snape swept past Harry, making no comment about Hermione’s empty seat and cauldron.

“Sir,” said Malfoy loudly. “Sir, why don’t you apply for the headmaster’s job?”

“Now, now, Malfoy,” said Snape, though he couldn’t suppress a thin-lipped smile. “Professor Dumbledore has only been suspended by the governors. I daresay he’ll be back with us soon enough.”

“Yeah, right,” said Malfoy, smirking. “I expect you’d have Father’s vote, sir, if you wanted to apply for the job— I’ll tell Father you’re the best teacher here, sir —”

Snape smirked as he swept off around the dungeon, fortunately not spotting Seamus Finnigan, who was pretending to vomit into his cauldron.

“I’m quite surprised the Mudbloods haven’t all packed their bags by now,” Malfoy went on. “Bet you five Galleons the next one dies. Pity it wasn’t Granger —”

The bell rang at that moment, which was lucky; at Malfoy’s last words, Ron had leapt off his stool, and in the scramble to collect bags and books, his attempts to reach Malfoy went unnoticed.

“Let me at him,” Ron growled as Harry and Dean hung onto his arms. “I don’t care, I don’t need my wand, I’m going to kill him with my bare hands —”

“Hurry up, I’ve got to take you all to Herbology,” barked Snape over the class’s heads, and off they marched, with Harry, Ron, and Dean bringing up the rear, Ron still trying to get loose. It was only safe to let go of him when Snape had seen them out of the castle and they were making their way across the vegetable patch toward the greenhouses.

The Herbology class was very subdued; there were now two missing from their number, Justin and Hermione.

Professor Sprout set them all to work pruning the Abyssinian Shrivelfigs. Harry went to tip an armful of withered stalks onto the compost heap and found himself face-to-face with Ernie Macmillan. Ernie took a deep breath and said, very formally, “I just want to say, Harry, that I’m sorry I ever suspected you. I know you’d never attack Hermione Granger, and I apologize for all the stuff I said. We’re all in the same boat now, and, well —”

He held out a pudgy hand, and Harry shook it.

Ernie and his friend Hannah came to work at the same Shrivelfig as Harry and Ron.

“That Draco Malfoy character,” said Ernie, breaking off dead twigs, “he seems very pleased about all this, doesn’t he? D’you know, I think he might be Slytherin’s heir.”

“That’s clever of you,” said Ron, who didn’t seem to have forgiven Ernie as readily as Harry.

“Do you think it’s Malfoy, Harry?” Ernie asked.

“No,” said Harry, so firmly that Ernie and Hannah stared.

A second later, Harry spotted something.

Several large spiders were scuttling over the ground on the other side of the glass, moving in an unnaturally straight line as though taking the shortest route to a prearranged meeting. Harry hit Ron over the hand with his pruning shears.

“Ouch! What’re you —”

Harry pointed out the spiders, following their progress with his eyes screwed up against the sun.

“Oh, yeah,” said Ron, trying, and failing, to look pleased. “But we can’t follow them now —”

Ernie and Hannah were listening curiously.

Harry’s eyes narrowed as he focused on the spiders. If they pursued their fixed course, there could be no doubt about where they would end up.

“Looks like they’re heading for the Forbidden Forest…”

And Ron looked even unhappier about that.

At the end of the lesson Professor Sprout escorted the class to their Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson. Harry and Ron lagged behind the others so they could talk out of earshot.

“We’ll have to use the Invisibility Cloak again,” Harry told Ron. “We can take Fang with us. He’s used to going into the forest with Hagrid, he might be some help.”

“Right,” said Ron, who was twirling his wand nervously in his fingers. “Er — aren’t there — aren’t there supposed to be werewolves in the forest?” he added as they took their usual places at the back of Lockhart’s classroom.

Preferring not to answer that question, Harry said, “There are good things in there, too. The centaurs are all right, and the unicorns…”

Ron had never been into the Forbidden Forest before. Harry had entered it only once and had hoped never to do so again.

Lockhart bounded into the room and the class stared at him. Every other teacher in the place was looking grimmer than usual, but Lockhart appeared nothing short of buoyant.

“Come now,” he cried, beaming around him. “Why all these long faces?”

People swapped exasperated looks, but nobody answered.

“Don’t you people realize,” said Lockhart, speaking slowly, as though they were all a bit dim, “the danger has passed! The culprit has been taken away —”

“Says who?” said Dean Thomas loudly.

“My dear young man, the Minister of Magic wouldn’t have taken Hagrid if he hadn’t been one hundred percent sure that he was guilty,” said Lockhart, in the tone of someone explaining that one and one made two.

“Oh, yes he would,” said Ron, even more loudly than Dean.

“I flatter myself I know a touch more about Hagrid’s arrest than you do, Mr. Weasley,” said Lockhart in a self-satisfied tone.

Ron started to say that he didn’t think so, somehow, but stopped in midsentence when Harry kicked him hard under the desk.

“We weren’t there, remember?” Harry muttered.

But Lockhart’s disgusting cheeriness, his hints that he had always thought Hagrid was no good, his confidence that the whole business was now at an end, irritated Harry so much that he yearned to throw Gadding with Ghouls right in Lockhart’s stupid face. Instead he contented himself with scrawling a note to Ron: Let’s do it tonight.

Ron read the message, swallowed hard, and looked sideways at the empty seat usually filled by Hermione. The sight seemed to stiffen his resolve, and he nodded.

The Gryffindor common room was always very crowded these days, because from six o’clock onward the Gryffindors had nowhere else to go. They also had plenty to talk about, with the result that the common room often didn’t empty until past midnight.

Harry went to get the Invisibility Cloak out of his trunk right after dinner, and spent the evening sitting on it, waiting for the room to clear. Fred and George challenged Harry and Ron to a few games of Exploding Snap, and Ginny sat watching them, very subdued in Hermione’s usual chair. Harry and Ron kept losing on purpose, trying to finish the games quickly, but even so, it was well past midnight when Fred, George, and Ginny finally went to bed.

Harry and Ron waited for the distant sounds of two dormitory doors closing before seizing the cloak, throwing it over themselves, and climbing through the portrait hole.

It was another difficult journey through the castle, dodging all the teachers. At last they reached the entrance hall, slid back the lock on the oak front doors, squeezed between them, trying to stop any creaking, and stepped out into the moonlit grounds.

“’Course,” said Ron abruptly as they strode across the black grass, “we might get to the forest and find there’s nothing to follow. Those spiders might not’ve been going there at all. I know it

looked like they were moving in that sort of general direction, but…”

His voice trailed away hopefully.

They reached Hagrid’s house, sad and sorry-looking with its blank windows. When Harry pushed the door open, Fang went mad with joy at the sight of them. Worried he might wake everyone at the castle with his deep, booming barks, they hastily fed him treacle fudge from a tin on the mantelpiece, which glued his teeth together.

Harry left the Invisibility Cloak on Hagrid’s table. There would be no need for it in the pitchdark forest.

“C’mon, Fang, we’re going for a walk,” said Harry, patting his leg, and Fang bounded happily out of the house behind them, dashed to the edge of the forest, and lifted his leg against a large sycamore tree.

Harry took out his wand, murmured, “Lumos!” and a tiny light appeared at the end of it, just enough to let them watch the path for signs of spiders.

“Good thinking,” said Ron. “I’d light mine, too, but you know — it’d probably blow up or something…”

Harry tapped Ron on the shoulder, pointing at the grass. Two solitary spiders were hurrying away from the wandlight into the shade of the trees.

“Okay,” Ron sighed as though resigned to the worst, “I’m ready. Let’s go.”

So, with Fang scampering around them, sniffing tree roots and leaves, they entered the forest. By the glow of Harry’s wand, they followed the steady trickle of spiders moving along the path. They walked behind them for about twenty minutes, not speaking, listening hard for noises other than breaking twigs and rustling leaves. Then, when the trees had become thicker than ever, so that the stars overhead were no longer visible, and Harry’s wand shone alone in the sea of dark, they saw their spider guides leaving the path.

Harry paused, trying to see where the spiders were going, but everything outside his little sphere of light was pitch-black. He had never been this deep into the forest before. He could vividly remember Hagrid advising him not to leave the forest path last time he’d been in here. But Hagrid was miles away now, probably sitting in a cell in Azkaban, and he had also said to follow the spiders.

Something wet touched Harry’s hand and he jumped backward, crushing Ron’s foot, but it was only Fang’s nose.

“What d’you reckon?” Harry said to Ron, whose eyes he could just make out, reflecting the light from his wand.

“We’ve come this far,” said Ron.

So they followed the darting shadows of the spiders into the trees. They couldn’t move very quickly now; there were tree roots and stumps in their way, barely visible in the near blackness. Harry could feel Fang’s hot breath on his hand. More than once, they had to stop, so that Harry could crouch down and find the spiders in the wandlight.

They walked for what seemed like at least half an hour, their robes snagging on low-slung branches and brambles. After a while, they noticed that the ground seemed to be sloping downward, though the trees were as thick as ever.

Then Fang suddenly let loose a great, echoing bark, making both Harry and Ron jump out of their skins.

“What?” said Ron loudly, looking around into the pitch-dark, and gripping Harry’s elbow very hard.

“There’s something moving over there,” Harry breathed. “Listen… sounds like something big…”

They listened. Some distance to their right, the something big was snapping branches as it carved a path through the trees.

“Oh, no,” said Ron. “Oh, no, oh, no, oh —”

“Shut up,” said Harry frantically. “It’ll hear you.”

“Hear me?” said Ron in an unnaturally high voice. “It’s already heard Fang!”

The darkness seemed to be pressing on their eyeballs as they stood, terrified, waiting. There was a strange rumbling noise and then silence.

“What d’you think it’s doing?” said Harry.

“Probably getting ready to pounce,” said Ron.

They waited, shivering, hardly daring to move.

“D’you think it’s gone?” Harry whispered.

“Dunno —”

Then, to their right, came a sudden blaze of light, so bright in the darkness that both of them flung up their hands to shield their eyes. Fang yelped and tried to run, but got lodged in a tangle of thorns and yelped even louder.

“Harry!” Ron shouted, his voice breaking with relief “Harry, it’s our car!”

“What?”

“Come on!”

Harry blundered after Ron toward the light, stumbling and tripping, and a moment later they had emerged into a clearing.

Mr. Weasley’s car was standing, empty, in the middle of a circle of thick trees under a roof of dense branches, its headlights ablaze. As Ron walked, open-mouthed, toward it, it moved slowly toward him, exactly like a large, turquoise dog greeting its owner.

“It’s been here all the time!” said Ron delightedly, walking around the car. “Look at it. The forest’s turned it wild…”

The sides of the car were scratched and smeared with mud. Apparently it had taken to trundling around the forest on its own. Fang didn’t seem at all keen on it; he kept close to Harry, who could feel him quivering. His breathing slowing down again, Harry stuffed his wand back into his robes.

“And we thought it was going to attack us!” said Ron, leaning against the car and patting it. “I wondered where it had gone!”

Harry squinted around on the floodlit ground for signs of more spiders, but they had all scuttled away from the glare of the headlights.

“We’ve lost the trail,” he said. “C’mon, let’s go and find them.”

Ron didn’t speak. He didn’t move. His eyes were fixed on a point some ten feet above the forest floor, right behind Harry. His face was livid with terror.

Harry didn’t even have time to turn around. There was a loud clicking noise and suddenly he felt something long and hairy seize him around the middle and lift him off the ground, so that he was hanging facedown. Struggling, terrified, he heard more clicking, and saw Ron’s legs leave the ground, too, heard Fang whimpering and howling — next moment, he was being swept away into the dark trees.

Head hanging, Harry saw that what had hold of him was marching on six immensely long, hairy legs, the front two clutching him tightly below a pair of shining black pincers. Behind him, he could hear another of the creatures, no doubt carrying Ron. They were moving into the very heart of the forest. Harry could hear Fang fighting to free himself from a third monster, whining loudly, but Harry couldn’t have yelled even if he had wanted to; he seemed to have left his voice back with the car in the clearing.

He never knew how long he was in the creature’s clutches; he only knew that the darkness

suddenly lifted enough for him to see that the leaf-strewn ground was now swarming with spiders. Craning his neck sideways, he realized that they had reached the ridge of a vast hollow, a hollow that had been cleared of trees, so that the stars shone brightly onto the worst scene he had ever laid eyes on.

Spiders. Not tiny spiders like those surging over the leaves below. Spiders the size of carthorses, eight-eyed, eight-legged, black, hairy, gigantic. The massive specimen that was carrying Harry made its way down the steep slope toward a misty, domed web in the very center of the hollow, while its fellows closed in all around it, clicking their pincers excitedly at the sight of its load.

Harry fell to the ground on all fours as the spider released him. Ron and Fang thudded down next to him. Fang wasn’t howling anymore, but cowering silently on the spot. Ron looked exactly like Harry felt. His mouth was stretched wide in a kind of silent scream and his eyes were popping.

Harry suddenly realized that the spider that had dropped him was saying something. It had been hard to tell, because he clicked his pincers with every word he spoke.

“Aragog!” it called. “Aragog!”

And from the middle of the misty, domed web, a spider the size of a small elephant emerged, very slowly. There was gray in the black of his body and legs, and each of the eyes on his ugly, pincered head was milky white. He was blind.

“What is it?” he said, clicking his pincers rapidly.

“Men,” clicked the spider who had caught Harry.

“Is it Hagrid?” said Aragog, moving closer, his eight milky eyes wandering vaguely.

“Strangers,” clicked the spider who had brought Ron.

“Kill them,” clicked Aragog fretfully. “I was sleeping…”

“We’re friends of Hagrid’s,” Harry shouted. His heart seemed to have left his chest to pound in his throat.

Click, click, click went the pincers of the spiders all around the hollow.

Aragog paused.

“Hagrid has never sent men into our hollow before,” he said slowly.

“Hagrid’s in trouble,” said Harry, breathing very fast. “That’s why we’ve come.”

“In trouble?” said the aged spider, and Harry thought he heard concern beneath the clicking pincers. “But why has he sent you?”

Harry thought of getting to his feet but decided against it; he didn’t think his legs would support him. So he spoke from the ground, as calmly as he could.

“They think, up at the school, that Hagrid’s been setting a — a — something on students. They’ve taken him to Azkaban.”

Aragog clicked his pincers furiously, and all around the hollow the sound was echoed by the crowd of spiders; it was like applause, except applause didn’t usually make Harry feel sick with fear.

“But that was years ago,” said Aragog fretfully. “Years and years ago. I remember it well. That’s why they made him leave the school. They believed that I was the monster that dwells in what they call the Chamber of Secrets. They thought that Hagrid had opened the Chamber and set me free.”

“And you… you didn’t come from the Chamber of Secrets?” said Harry, who could feel cold sweat on his forehead.

“I!” said Aragog, clicking angrily. “I was not born in the castle. I come from a distant land. A traveler gave me to Hagrid when I was an egg. Hagrid was only a boy, but he cared for me, hidden in a cupboard in the castle, feeding me on scraps from the table. Hagrid is my good friend, and a good man. When I was discovered, and blamed for the death of a girl, he protected me. I have lived here in the forest ever since, where Hagrid still visits me. He even found me a wife, Mosag, and you see how our family has grown, all through Hagrid’s goodness…”

Harry summoned what remained of his courage.

“So you never — never attacked anyone?”

“Never,” croaked the old spider. “It would have been my instinct, but out of respect for Hagrid, I never harmed a human. The body of the girl who was killed was discovered in a bathroom. I never saw any part of the castle but the cupboard in which I grew up. Our kind like the dark and the quiet…”

“But then… Do you know what did kill that girl?” said Harry. “Because whatever it is, it’s back and attacking people again —”

His words were drowned by a loud outbreak of clicking and the rustling of many long legs shifting angrily; large black shapes shifted all around him.

“The thing that lives in the castle,” said Aragog, “is an ancient creature we spiders fear above all others. Well do I remember how I pleaded with Hagrid to let me go, when I sensed the beast moving about the school.”

“What is it?” said Harry urgently.

More loud clicking, more rustling; the spiders seemed to be closing in.

“We do not speak of it!” said Aragog fiercely. “We do not name it! I never even told Hagrid the name of that dread creature, though he asked me, many times.”

Harry didn’t want to press the subject, not with the spiders pressing closer on all sides. Aragog seemed to be tired of talking. He was backing slowly into his domed web, but his fellow spiders continued to inch slowly toward Harry and Ron.

“We’ll just go, then,” Harry called desperately to Aragog, hearing leaves rustling behind him.

“Go?” said Aragog slowly. “I think not…”

“But — but —”

“My sons and daughters do not harm Hagrid, on my command. But I cannot deny them fresh meat, when it wanders so willingly into our midst. Good-bye, friend of Hagrid.”

Harry spun around. Feet away, towering above him, was a solid wall of spiders, clicking, their many eyes gleaming in their ugly black heads.

Even as he reached for his wand, Harry knew it was no good, there were too many of them, but as he tried to stand, ready to die fighting, a loud, long note sounded, and a blaze of light flamed through the hollow.

Mr. Weasley’s car was thundering down the slope, headlights glaring, its horn screeching, knocking spiders aside; several were thrown onto their backs, their endless legs waving in the air. The car screeched to a halt in front of Harry and Ron and the doors flew open.

“Get Fang!” Harry yelled, diving into the front seat; Ron seized the boarhound around the middle and threw him, yelping, into the back of the car — the doors slammed shut — Ron didn’t touch the accelerator but the car didn’t need him; the engine roared and they were off, hitting more spiders. They sped up the slope, out of the hollow, and they were soon crashing through the forest, branches whipping the windows as the car wound its way cleverly through the widest gaps, following a path it obviously knew.

Harry looked sideways at Ron. His mouth was still open in the silent scream, but his eyes weren’t popping anymore.

“Are you okay?”

Ron stared straight ahead, unable to speak.

They smashed their way through the undergrowth, Fang howling loudly in the back seat, and Harry saw the side mirror snap off as they squeezed past a large oak. After ten noisy, rocky minutes, the trees thinned, and Harry could again see patches of sky.

The car stopped so suddenly that they were nearly thrown into the windshield. They had reached the edge of the forest. Fang flung himself at the window in his anxiety to get out, and when Harry opened the door, he shot off through the trees to Hagrid’s house, tail between his legs. Harry got out too, and after a minute or so, Ron seemed to regain the feeling in his limbs and followed, still stiff-necked and staring. Harry gave the car a grateful pat as it reversed back into the forest and disappeared from view.

Harry went back into Hagrid’s cabin to get the Invisibility Cloak. Fang was trembling under a blanket in his basket. When Harry got outside again, he found Ron being violent sick in the pumpkin patch.

“Follow the spiders,” said Ron weakly, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. “I’ll never forgive Hagrid. We’re lucky to be alive.”

“I bet he thought Aragog wouldn’t hurt friends of his,” said Harry.

“That’s exactly Hagrid’s problem!” said Ron, thumping the wall of the cabin. “He always thinks monsters aren’t as bad as they’re made out, and look where it’s got him! A cell in Azkaban!” He was shivering uncontrollably now. “What was the point of sending us in there? What have we found out, I’d like to know?”

“That Hagrid never opened the Chamber of Secrets,” said Harry, throwing the cloak over Ron and prodding him in the arm to make him walk. “He was innocent.”

Ron gave a loud snort. Evidently, hatching Aragog in a cupboard wasn’t his idea of being innocent.

As the castle loomed nearer Harry twitched the cloak to make sure their feet were hidden, then pushed the creaking front doors ajar. They walked carefully back across the entrance hall and up the marble staircase, holding their breath as they passed corridors where watchful sentries were walking. At last they reached the safety of the Gryffindor common room, where the fire had burned itself into glowing ash. They took off the cloak and climbed the winding stair to their dormitory.

Ron fell onto his bed without bothering to get undressed. Harry, however, didn’t feel very sleepy. He sat on the edge of his fourposter, thinking hard about everything Aragog had said.

The creature that was lurking somewhere in the castle, he thought, sounded like a sort of monster Voldemort — even other monsters didn’t want to name it. But he and Ron were no closer to finding out what it was, or how it petrified its victims. Even Hagrid had never known what was in the Chamber of Secrets.

Harry swung his legs up onto his bed and leaned back against his pillows, watching the moon glinting at him through the tower window.

He couldn’t see what else they could do. They had hit dead ends everywhere. Riddle had caught

the wrong person, the Heir of Slytherin had got off, and no one could tell whether it was the same person, or a different one, who had opened the Chamber this time. There was nobody else to ask. Harry lay down, still thinking about what Aragog had said.

He was becoming drowsy when what seemed like their very last hope occurred to him, and he suddenly sat bolt upright.

“Ron,” he hissed through the dark, “Ron —”

Ron woke with a yelp like Fang’s, stared wildly around, and saw Harry.

“Ron — that girl who died. Aragog said she was found in a bathroom,” said Harry, ignoring Neville’s snuffling snores from the corner. “What if she never left the bathroom? What if she’s still there?”

Ron rubbed his eyes, frowning through the moonlight. And then he understood, too.

“You don’t think — not Moaning Myrtle?”

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

The Chamber of Secrets

“All those times we were in that bathroom, and she was just three toilets away,” said Ron bitterly at breakfast next day, “and we could’ve asked her, and now…”

It had been hard enough trying to look for spiders. Escaping their teachers long enough to sneak into a girls’ bathroom, the girls’ bathroom, moreover, right next to the scene of the first attack, was going to be almost impossible.

But something happened in their first lesson, Transfiguration, that drove the Chamber of Secrets out of their minds for the first time in weeks. Ten minutes into the class, Professor McGonagall told them that their exams would start on the first of June, one week from today.

“Exams?” howled Seamus Finnigan. “We’re still getting exams?”

There was a loud bang behind Harry as Neville Longbottom’s wand slipped, vanishing one of the legs on his desk. Professor McGonagall restored it with a wave of her own wand, and turned, frowning, to Seamus.

“The whole point of keeping the school open at this time is for you to receive your education,” she said sternly. “The exams will therefore take place as usual, and I trust you are all studying hard.”

Studying hard! It had never occurred to Harry that there would be exams with the castle in this state. There was a great deal of mutinous muttering around the room, which made Professor McGonagall scowl even more darkly.

“Professor Dumbledore’s instructions were to keep the school running as normally as possible, she said. “And that, I need hardly point out, means finding out how much you have learned this year.”

Harry looked down at the pair of white rabbits he was supposed to be turning into slippers. What had he learned so far this year? He couldn’t seem to think of anything that would be useful in an exam.

Ron looked as though he’d just been told he had to go and live in the Forbidden Forest.

“Can you imagine me taking exams with this?” he asked Harry, holding up his wand, which had just started whistling loudly.

Three days before their first exam, Professor McGonagall made another announcement at breakfast.

“I have good news,” she said, and the Great Hall, instead of falling silent, erupted.

“Dumbledore’s coming back!” several people yelled joyfully.

“You’ve caught the Heir of Slytherin!” squealed a girl at the Ravenclaw table.

“Quidditch matches are back on!” roared Wood excitedly.

When the hubbub had subsided, Professor McGonagall said, “Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes are ready for cutting at last. Tonight, we will be able to revive those people who have been Petrified. I need hardly remind you all that one of them may well be able to tell us who, or what, attacked them. I am hopeful that this dreadful year will end with our catching the culprit.”

There was an explosion of cheering. Harry looked over at the Slytherin table and wasn’t at all surprised to see that Draco Malfoy hadn’t joined in. Ron, however, was looking happier than he’d looked in days.

“It won’t matter that we never asked Myrtle, then!” he said to Harry. “Hermione’ll probably have all the answers when they wake her up! Mind you, she’ll go crazy when she finds out we’ve got exams in three days’ time. She hasn’t studied. It might be kinder to leave her where she is till they’re over.”

Just then, Ginny Weasley came over and sat down next to Ron. She looked tense and nervous, and Harry noticed that her hands were twisting in her lap.

“What’s up?” said Ron, helping himself to more porridge.

Ginny didn’t say anything, but glanced up and down the Gryffindor table with a scared look on her face that reminded Harry of someone, though he couldn’t think who.

“Spit it out,” said Ron, watching her.

Harry suddenly realized who Ginny looked like. She was rocking backward and forward slightly in her chair, exactly like Dobby did when he was teetering on the edge of revealing forbidden information.

“I’ve got to tell you something,” Ginny mumbled, carefully not looking at Harry.

“What is it?” said Harry.

Ginny looked as though she couldn’t find the right words.

“What?” said Ron.

Ginny opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Harry leaned forward and spoke quietly, so

that only Ginny and Ron could hear him.

“Is it something about the Chamber of Secrets? Have you seen something? Someone acting oddly?”

Ginny drew a deep breath and, at that precise moment, Percy Weasley appeared, looking tired and wan.

“If you’ve finished eating, I’ll take that seat, Ginny. I’m starving, I’ve only just come off patrol duty.”

Ginny jumped up as though her chair had just been electrified, gave Percy a fleeting, frightened look, and scampered away. Percy sat down and grabbed a mug from the center of the table.

“Percy!” said Ron angrily. “She was just about to tell us something important!”

Halfway through a gulp of tea, Percy choked.

“What sort of thing?” he said, coughing.

“I just asked her if she’d seen anything odd, and she started to say…”

“Oh — that — that’s nothing to do with the Chamber of Secrets,” said Percy at once.

“How do you know?” said Ron, his eyebrows raised.

“Well, er, if you must know, Ginny, er, walked in on me the other day when I was — well, never mind — the point is, she spotted me doing something and I, um, I asked her not to mention it to anybody. I must say, I did think she’d keep her word. It’s nothing, really, I’d just rather —”

Harry had never seen Percy look so uncomfortable.

“What were you doing, Percy?” said Ron, grinning. “Go on, tell us, we won’t laugh.”

Percy didn’t smile back.

“Pass me those rolls, Harry, I’m starving.”

Harry knew the whole mystery might be solved tomorrow without their help, but he wasn’t about to pass up a chance to speak to Myrtle if it turned up — and to his delight it did, midmorning, when they were being led to History of Magic by Gilderoy Lockhart.

Lockhart, who had so often assured them that all danger had passed, only to be proved wrong right away, was now wholeheartedly convinced that it was hardly worth the trouble to see them safely down the corridors. His hair wasn’t as sleek as usual; it seemed he had been up most of the night, patrolling the fourth floor.

“Mark my words,” he said, ushering them around a corner. “The first words out of those poor Petrified people’s mouths will be ‘It was Hagrid.’ Frankly, I’m astounded Professor McGonagall thinks all these security measures are necessary.”

“I agree, sir,” said Harry, making Ron drop his books in surprise.

“Thank you, Harry,” said Lockhart graciously while they waited for a long line of Hufflepuffs to pass. “I mean, we teachers have quite enough to be getting on with, without walking students to classes and standing guard all night…”

“That’s right,” said Ron, catching on. “Why don’t you leave us here, sir, we’ve only got one more corridor to go —”

“You know, Weasley, I think I will,” said Lockhart. “I really should go and prepare my next class —”

And he hurried off.

“Prepare his class,” Ron sneered after him. “Gone to curl his hair, more like.”

They let the rest of the Gryffindors draw ahead of them, then darted down a side passage and hurried off toward Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. But just as they were congratulating each other on their brilliant scheme.

“Potter! Weasley! What are you doing?”

It was Professor McGonagall, and her mouth was the thinnest of thin lines.

“We were — we were —” Ron stammered. “We were going to — to go and see —”

“Hermione,” said Harry. Ron and Professor McGonagall both looked at him.

“We haven’t seen her for ages, Professor,” Harry went on hurriedly, treading on Ron’s foot, “and we thought we’d sneak into the hospital wing, you know, and tell her the Mandrakes are nearly ready and, er, not to worry —”

Professor McGonagall was still staring at him, and for a moment, Harry thought she was going to explode, but when she spoke, it was in a strangely croaky voice.

“Of course,” she said, and Harry, amazed, saw a tear glistening in her beady eye. “Of course, I realize this has all been hardest on the friends of those who have been… I quite understand. Yes, Potter, of course you may visit Miss Granger. I will inform Professor Binns where you’ve gone. Tell Madam Pomfrey I have given my permission.”

Harry and Ron walked away, hardly daring to believe that they’d avoided detention. As they turned the corner, they distinctly heard Professor McGonagall blow her nose.

“That,” said Ron fervently, “was the best story you’ve ever come up with.”

They had no choice now but to go to the hospital wing and tell Madam Pomfrey that they had Professor McGonagall’s permission to visit Hermione.

Madam Pomfrey let them in, but reluctantly.

“There’s just no point talking to a Petrified. person,” she said, and they had to admit she had a point when they’d taken their seats next to Hermione. It was plain that Hermione didn’t have the faintest inkling that she had visitors, and that they might just as well tell her bedside cabinet not to worry for all the good it would do.

“Wonder if she did see the attacker, though?” said Ron, looking sadly at Hermione’s rigid face. “Because if he sneaked up on them all, no one’ll ever know…”

But Harry wasn’t looking at Hermione’s face. He was more interested in her right hand. It lay clenched on top of her blankets, and bending closer, he saw that a piece of paper was scrunched inside her fist.

Making sure that Madam Pomfrey was nowhere near, he pointed this out to Ron.

“Go on and get it out,” Ron whispered, shifting his chair so that he blocked Harry from Madam Pomfrey’s view.

It was no easy task. Hermione’s hand was clamped so tightly around the paper that Harry was sure he was going to tear it. While Ron kept watch he tugged and twisted, and at last, after several tense minutes, the paper came free.

It was a page torn from a very old library book. Harry smoothed it out eagerly and Ron leaned close to read it, too.

“Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken’s egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it.”

And beneath this, a single word had been written, in a hand Harry recognized as Hermione’s.

Pipes

It was as though somebody had just flicked a light on in his brain.

“Ron,” he breathed. “This is it. This is the answer. The monster in the Chamber’s a basilisk — a giant serpent! That’s why I’ve been hearing that voice all over the place, and nobody else has

heard it. It’s because I understand Parseltongue…”

Harry looked up at the beds around him.

“The basilisk kills people by looking at them. But no one’s died — because no one looked it straight in the eye. Colin saw it through his camera. The basilisk burned up all the film inside it, but Colin just got Petrified. Justin… Justin must’ve seen the basilisk through Nearly Headless Nick! Nick got the full blast of it, but he couldn’t die again… and Hermione and that Ravenclaw prefect were found with a mirror next to them. Hermione had just realized the monster was a basilisk. I bet you anything she warned the first person she met to look around corners with a mirror first! And that girl pulled out her mirror — and —”

Rods jaw had dropped.

“And Mrs. Norris?” he whispered eagerly.

Harry thought hard, picturing the scene on the night of Halloween.

“The water…” he said slowly. “The flood from Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. I bet you Mrs. Norris only saw the reflection…”

He scanned the page in his hand eagerly. The more he looked at it, the more it made sense.

“… The crowing of the rooster… is fatal to it”! he read aloud. “Hagrid’s roosters were killed! The Heir of Slytherin didn’t want one anywhere near the castle once the Chamber was opened! Spiders flee before it.! It all fits!”

“But how’s the basilisk been getting around the place?” said Ron. “A giant snake… Someone would’ve seen…”

Harry, however, pointed at the word Hermione had scribbled at the foot of the page.

“Pipes,” he said. “Pipes… Ron, it’s been using the plumbing. I’ve been hearing that voice inside the walls…”

Ron suddenly grabbed Harry’s arm.

“The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets!” he said hoarsely. “What if it’s a bathroom? What if it’s in —”

“Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom,” said Harry.

They sat there, excitement coursing through them, hardly able to believe it.

“This means,” said Harry, “I can’t be the only Parselmouth in the school. The Heir of Slytherin’s one, too. That’s how he’s been controlling the basilisk.”

“What’re we going to do?” said Ron, whose eyes were flashing. “Should we go straight to McGonagall?”

“Let’s go to the staff room,” said Harry, jumping up. “She’ll be there in ten minutes. It’s nearly break.”

They ran downstairs. Not wanting to be discovered hanging around in another corridor, they went straight into the deserted staff room. It was a large, paneled room full of dark, wooden chairs. Harry and Ron paced around it, too excited to sit down.

But the bell to signal break never came.

Instead, echoing through the corridors came Professor McGonagall’s voice, magically magnified.

“All students to return to their House dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately, please.”

Harry wheeled around to stare at Ron. “Not another attack? Not now?”

“What’ll we do?” said Ron, aghast. “Go back to the dormitory?”

“No,” said Harry, glancing around. There was an ugly sort of wardrobe to his left, full of the teachers’ cloaks. “In here. Let’s hear what it’s all about. Then we can tell them what we’ve found out.”

They hid themselves inside it, listening to the rumbling of hundreds of people moving overhead, and the staff room door banging open. From between the musty folds of the cloaks, they watched the teachers filtering into the room. Some of them were looking puzzled, others downright scared. Then Professor McGonagall arrived.

“It has happened,” she told the silent staff room. “A student has been taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself.”

Professor Flitwick let out a squeal. Professor Sprout clapped her hands over her mouth. Snape gripped the back of a chair very hard and said, “How can you be sure?”

“The Heir of Slytherin,” said Professor McGonagall, who was very white, “left another message. Right underneath the first one. ‘Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever.’ ”

Professor Flitwick burst into tears.

“Who is it?” said Madam Hooch, who had sunk, weak-kneed, into a chair. “Which student?”

“Ginny Weasley,” said Professor McGonagall.

Harry felt Ron slide silently down onto the wardrobe floor beside him.

“We shall have to send all the students home tomorrow,” said Professor McGonagall. “This is the end of Hogwarts. Dumbledore always said…”

The staffroom door banged open again. For one wild moment, Harry was sure it would be Dumbledore. But it was Lockhart, and he was beaming.

“So sorry — dozed off — what have I missed?”

He didn’t seem to notice that the other teachers were looking at him with something remarkably like hatred. Snape stepped forward.

“Just the man,” he said. “The very man. A girl has been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Taken into the Chamber of Secrets itself. Your moment has come at last.”

Lockhart blanched.

“That’s right, Gilderoy,” chipped in Professor Sprout. “Weren’t you saying just last night that you’ve known all along where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is?”

“I — well, I —”sputtered Lockhart.

“Yes, didn’t you tell me you were sure you knew what was inside it?” piped up Professor Flitwick.

“D-did I? I don’t recall —”

“I certainly remember you saying you were sorry you hadn’t had a crack at the monster before Hagrid was arrested,” said Snape. “Didn’t you say that the whole affair had been bungled, and that you should have been given a free rein from the first?”

Lockhart stared around at his stony-faced colleagues.

“I — I really never — you may have misunderstood —”

“We’ll leave it to you, then, Gilderoy,” said Professor McGonagall. “Tonight will be an excellent time to do it. We’ll make sure everyone’s out of your way. You’ll be able to tackle the monster all by yourself. A free rein at last.”

Lockhart gazed desperately around him, but nobody came to the rescue. He didn’t look remotely handsome anymore. His lip was trembling, and in the absence of his usually toothy grin, he looked weak-chinned and feeble.

“V-very well,” he said. “I’ll — I’ll be in my office, getting — getting ready.”

And he left the room.

“Right,” said Professor McGonagall, whose nostrils were flared, “that’s got him out from under our feet. The Heads of Houses should go and inform their students what has happened. Tell them the Hogwarts Express will take them home first thing tomorrow. Will the rest of you please make sure no students have been left outside their dormitories.”

The teachers rose and left, one by one.

It was probably the worst day of Harry’s entire life. He, Ron, Fred, and George sat together in a corner of the Gryffindor common room, unable to say anything to each other. Percy wasn’t there. He had gone to send an owl to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, then shut himself up in his dormitory.

No afternoon ever lasted as long as that one, nor had Gryffindor Tower ever been so crowded, yet so quiet. Near sunset, Fred and George went up to bed, unable to sit there any longer.

“She knew something, Harry,” said Ron, speaking for the first time since they had entered the wardrobe in the staff room. “That’s why she was taken. It wasn’t some stupid thing about Percy at all. She’d found out something about the Chamber of Secrets. That must be why she was —” Ron rubbed his eyes frantically. “I mean, she was a pure-blood. There can’t be any other reason.”

Harry could see the sun sinking, blood-red, below the skyline. This was the worst he had ever felt. If only there was something they could do. Anything.

“Harry” said Ron. “D’you think there’s any chance at all she’s not — you know —”

Harry didn’t know what to say. He couldn’t see how Ginny could still be alive.

“D’you know what?” said Ron. “I think we should go and see Lockhart. Tell him what we know. He’s going to try and get into the Chamber. We can tell him where we think it is, and tell him it’s a basilisk in there.”

Because Harry couldn’t think of anything else to do, and because he wanted to be doing something, he agreed. The Gryffindors around them were so miserable, and felt so sorry for the Weasleys, that nobody tried to stop them as they got up, crossed the room, and left through the portrait hole.

Darkness was falling as they walked down to Lockhart’s office. There seemed to be a lot of activity going on inside it. They could hear scraping, thumps, and hurried footsteps.

Harry knocked and there was a sudden silence from inside. Then the door opened the tiniest crack and they saw one of Lockhart’s eyes peering through it.

“Oh — Mr. Potter — Mr. Weasley —” he said, opening the door a bit wider. “I’m rather busy at the moment —if you would be quick —”

“Professor, we’ve got some information for you,” said Harry. “We think it’ll help you.”

“Er — well — it’s not terribly —” The side of Lockhart’s face that they could see looked very uncomfortable. “I mean — well — all right —”

He opened the door and they entered.

His office had been almost completely stripped. Two large trunks stood open on the floor. Robes, jade-green, lilac, midnight blue, had been hastily folded into one of them; books were jumbled untidily into the other. The photographs that had covered the walls were now crammed into boxes on the desk.

“Are you going somewhere?” said Harry.

“Er, well, yes,” said Lockhart, ripping a life-size poster of himself from the back of the door as he spoke and starting to roll it up. “Urgent call — unavoidable — got to go —”

“What about my sister?” said Ron jerkily.

“Well, as to that — most unfortunate —” said Lockhart, avoiding their eyes as he wrenched open a drawer and started emptying the contents into a bag. “No one regrets more than I —”

“You’re the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher!” said Harry. “You can’t go now! Not with all the Dark stuff going on here!”

“Well — I must say — when I took the job —” Lockhart muttered, now piling socks on top of his robes. “nothing in the job description — didn’t expect —”

“You mean you’re running away?” said Harry disbelievingly. “After all that stuff you did in your books —”

“Books can be misleading,” said Lockhart delicately.

“You wrote them!” Harry shouted.

“My dear boy,” said Lockhart, straightening up and frowning at Harry. “Do use your common sense. My books wouldn’t have sold half as well if people didn’t think I’d done all those things. No one wants to read about some ugly old Armenian warlock, even if he did save a village from werewolves. He’d look dreadful on the front cover. No dress sense at all. And the witch who banished the Bandon Banshee had a harelip. I mean, come on —”

“So you’ve just been taking credit for what a load of other people have done?” said Harry incredulously.

“Harry, Harry,” said Lockhart, shaking his head impatiently, “it’s not nearly as simple as that. There was work involved. I had to track these people down. Ask them exactly how they managed

to do what they did. Then I had to put a Memory Charm on them so they wouldn’t remember doing it. If there’s one thing I pride myself on, it’s my Memory Charms. No, it’s been a lot of work, Harry. It’s not all book signings and publicity photos, you know. You want fame, you have to be prepared for a long hard slog.”

He banged the lids of his trunks shut and locked them.

“Let’s see,” he said. “I think that’s everything. Yes. Only one thing left.”

He pulled out his wand and turned to them.

“Awfully sorry, boys, but I’ll have to put a Memory Charm on you now. Can’t have you blabbing my secrets all over the place. I’d never sell another book —”

Harry reached his wand just in time. Lockhart had barely raised his, when Harry bellowed, “Expelliarmus!”

Lockhart was blasted backward, falling over his trunk; his wand flew high into the air; Ron caught it, and flung it out of the open window.

“Shouldn’t have let Professor Snape teach us that one,” said Harry furiously, kicking Lockhart’s trunk aside. Lockhart was looking up at him, feeble once more. Harry was still pointing his wand at him.

“What d’you want me to do?” said Lockhart weakly. “I don’t know where the Chamber of Secrets is. There’s nothing I can do.”

“You’re in luck,” said Harry, forcing Lockhart to his feet at wandpoint. “We think we know where it is. And what’s inside it. Let’s go.”

They marched Lockhart out of his office and down the nearest stairs, along the dark corridor where the messages shone on the wall, to the door of Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom.

They sent Lockhart in first. Harry was pleased to see that he was shaking.

Moaning Myrtle was sitting on the tank of the end toilet.

“Oh, it’s you,” she said when she saw Harry. “What do you want this time?”

“To ask you how you died,” said Harry.

Myrtle’s whole aspect changed at once. She looked as though she had never been asked such a flattering question.

“Ooooh, it was dreadful,” she said with relish. “It happened right in here. I died in this very stall. I remember it so well. I’d hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. The

door was locked, and I was crying, and then I heard somebody come in. They said something funny. A different language, I think it must have been. Anyway, what really got me was that it was a boy speaking. So I unlocked the door, to tell him to go and use his own toilet, and then —” Myrtle swelled importantly, her face shining. “I died.”

“How?” said Harry.

“No idea,” said Myrtle in hushed tones. “I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes. My whole body sort of seized up, and then I was floating away…” She looked dreamily at Harry. “And then I came back again. I was determined to haunt Olive Hornby, you see. Oh, she was sorry she’d ever laughed at my glasses.”

“Where exactly did you see the eyes?” said Harry.

“Somewhere there,” said Myrtle, pointing vaguely toward the sink in front of her toilet.

Harry and Ron hurried over to it. Lockhart was standing well back, a look of utter terror on his face.

It looked like an ordinary sink. They examined every inch of it, inside and out, including the pipes below. And then Harry saw it: Scratched on the side of one of the copper taps was a tiny snake.

“That tap’s never worked,” said Myrtle brightly as he tried to turn it.

“Harry,” said Ron. “Say something. Something in Parseltongue.”

“But —” Harry thought hard. The only times he’d ever managed to speak Parseltongue were when he’d been faced with a real snake. He stared hard at the tiny engraving, trying to imagine it was real.

“Open up,” he said.

He looked at Ron, who shook his head.

“English,” he said.

Harry looked back at the snake, willing himself to believe it was alive. If he moved his head, the candlelight made it look as though it were moving.

“Open up,” he said.

Except that the words weren’t what he heard; a strange hissing had escaped him, and at once the tap glowed with a brilliant white light and began to spin. Next second, the sink began to move; the sink, in fact, sank, right out of sight, leaving a large pipe exposed, a pipe wide enough for a man to slide into.

Harry heard Ron gasp and looked up again. He had made up his mind what he was going to do.

“I’m going down there,” he said.

He couldn’t not go, not now they had found the entrance to the Chamber, not if there was even the faintest, slimmest, wildest chance that Ginny might be alive.

“Me too,” said Ron.

There was a pause.

“Well, you hardly seem to need me,” said Lockhart, with a shadow of his old smile. “I’ll just —”

He put his hand on the door knob, but Ron and Harry both pointed their wands at him.

“You can go first,” Ron snarled.

White-faced and wandless, Lockhart approached the opening.

“Boys,” he said, his voice feeble. “Boys, what good will it do?”

Harry jabbed him in the back with his wand. Lockhart slid his legs into the pipe.

“I really don’t think —” he started to say, but Ron gave him a push, and he slid out of sight. Harry followed quickly. He lowered himself slowly into the pipe, then let go.

It was like rushing down an endless, slimy, dark slide. He could see more pipes branching off in all directions, but none as large as theirs, which twisted and turned, sloping steeply downward, and he knew that he was falling deeper below the school than even the dungeons. Behind him he could hear Ron, thudding slightly at the curves.

And then, just as he had begun to worry about what would happen when he hit the ground, the pipe leveled out, and he shot out of the end with a wet thud, landing on the damp floor of a dark stone tunnel large enough to stand in. Lockhart was getting to his feet a little ways away, covered in slime and white as a ghost. Harry stood aside as Ron came whizzing out of the pipe, too.

“We must be miles under the school,” said Harry, his voice echoing in the black tunnel.

“Under the lake, probably,” said Ron, squinting around at the dark, slimy walls.

All three of them turned to stare into the darkness ahead.

“Lumos!” Harry muttered to his wand and it lit again. “C’mon,” he said to Ron and Lockhart, and off they went, their footsteps slapping loudly on the wet floor.

The tunnel was so dark that they could only see a little distance ahead. Their shadows on the wet

walls looked monstrous in the wandlight.

“Remember,” Harry said quietly as they walked cautiously forward, “any sign of movement, close your eyes right away…”

But the tunnel was quiet as the grave, and the first unexpected sound they heard was a loud crunch as Ron stepped on what turned out to be a rat’s skull. Harry lowered his wand to look at the floor and saw that it was littered with small animal bones. Trying very hard not to imagine what Ginny might look like if they found her, Harry led the way forward, around a dark bend in the tunnel.

“Harry — there’s something up there —” said Ron hoarsely, grabbing Harry’s shoulder.

They froze, watching. Harry could just see the outline of something huge and curved, lying right across the tunnel. It wasn’t moving.

“Maybe it’s asleep,” he breathed, glancing back at the other two. Lockhart’s hands were pressed over his eyes. Harry turned back to look at the thing, his heart beating so fast it hurt.

Very slowly, his eyes as narrow as he could make them and still see, Harry edged forward, his wand held high.

The light slid over a gigantic snake skin, of a vivid, poisonous green, lying curled and empty across the tunnel floor. The creature that had shed it must have been twenty feet long at least.

“Blimey,” said Ron weakly.

There was a sudden movement behind them. Gilderoy Lockhart’s knees had given way.

“Get up,” said Ron sharply, pointing his wand at Lockhart.

Lockhart got to his feet — then he dived at Ron, knocking him to the ground.

Harry jumped forward, but too late — Lockhart was straightening up, panting, Ron’s wand in his hand and a gleaming smile back on his face.

“The adventure ends here, boys!” he said. “I shall take a bit of this skin back up to the school, tell them I was too late to save the girl, and that you two tragically lost your minds at the sight of her mangled body — say good-bye to your memories!”

He raised Ron’s Spellotaped wand high over his head and yelled, “Obliviate!”

The wand exploded with the force of a small bomb. Harry flung his arms over his head and ran, slipping over the coils of snake skin, out of the way of great chunks of tunnel ceiling that were thundering to the floor. Next moment, he was standing alone, gazing at a solid wall of broken rock.

“Ron!” he shouted. “Are you okay? Ron!”

“I’m here!” came Ron’s muffled voice from behind the rockfall. “I’m okay — this git’s not, though — he got blasted by the wand —”

There was a dull thud and a loud “ow!” It sounded as though Ron had just kicked Lockhart in the shins.

“What now?” Ron’s voice said, sounding desperate. “We can’t get through — it’ll take ages…”

Harry looked up at the tunnel ceiling. Huge cracks had appeared in it. He had never tried to break apart anything as large as these rocks by magic, and now didn’t seem a good moment to try — what if the whole tunnel caved in?

There was another thud and another “ow!” from behind the rocks. They were wasting time. Ginny had already been in the Chamber of Secrets for hours… Harry knew there was only one thing to do.

“Wait there,” he called to Ron. “Wait with Lockhart. I’ll go on… If I’m not back in an hour…”

There was a very pregnant pause, “I’ll try and shift some of this rock,” said Ron, who seemed to be trying to keep his voice steady. “So you can — can get back through. And, Harry —”

“See you in a bit,” said Harry, trying to inject some confidence into his shaking voice.

And he set off alone past the giant snake skin.

Soon the distant noise of Ron straining to shift the rocks was gone. The tunnel turned and turned again. Every nerve in Harry’s body was tingling unpleasantly. He wanted the tunnel to end, yet dreaded what he’d find when it did. And then, at last, as he crept around yet another bend, he saw a solid wall ahead on which two entwined serpents were carved, their eyes set with great, glinting emeralds.

Harry approached, his throat very dry. There was no need to pretend these stone snakes were real; their eyes looked strangely alive.

He could guess what he had to do. He cleared his throat, and the emerald eyes seemed to flicker.

“Open,” said Harry, in a low, faint hiss.

The serpents parted as the wall cracked open, the halves slid smoothly out of sight, and Harry, shaking from head to foot, walked inside.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

The Heir of Slytherin

He was standing at the end of a very long, dimly lit chamber. Towering stone pillars entwined with more carved serpents rose to support a ceiling lost in darkness, casting long, black shadows through the odd, greenish gloom that filled the place. His heart beating very fast, Harry stood listening to the chill silence. Could the basilisk be lurking in a shadowy corner, behind a pillar? And where was Ginny?

He pulled out his wand and moved forward between the serpentine columns. Every careful footstep echoed loudly off the shadowy walls. He kept his eyes narrowed, ready to clamp them shut at the smallest sign of movement. The hollow eye sockets of the stone snakes seemed to be following him. More than once, with a jolt of the stomach, he thought he saw one stir.

Then, as he drew level with the last pair of pillars, a statue high as the Chamber itself loomed into view, standing against the back wall.

Harry had to crane his neck to look up into the giant face above: It was ancient and monkeyish, with a long, thin beard that fell almost to the bottom of the wizard’s sweeping stone robes, where two enormous gray feet stood on the smooth Chamber floor. And between the feet, facedown, lay a small, black-robed figure with flaming-red hair.

“Ginny!” Harry muttered, sprinting to her and dropping to his knees. “Ginny — don’t be dead — please don’t be dead —” He flung his wand aside, grabbed Ginny’s shoulders, and turned her over. Her face was white as marble, and as cold, yet her eyes were closed, so she wasn’t Petrified. But then she must be…

“Ginny, please wake up,” Harry muttered desperately, shaking her. Ginny’s head lolled hopelessly from side to side.

“She won’t wake,” said a soft voice.

Harry jumped and spun around on his knees.

A tall, black-haired boy was leaning against the nearest pillar, watching. He was strangely blurred around the edges, as though Harry were looking at him through a misted window. But there was no mistaking him.

“Tom — Tom Riddle?”

Riddle nodded, not taking his eyes off Harry’s face.

“What d’you mean, she won’t wake?” Harry said desperately. “She’s not — she’s not —?”

“She’s still alive,” said Riddle. “But only just.”

Harry stared at him. Tom Riddle had been at Hogwarts fifty years ago, yet here he stood, a weird, misty light shining about him, not a day older than sixteen.

“Are you a ghost?” Harry said uncertainly.

“A memory,” said Riddle quietly. “Preserved in a diary for fifty years.”

He pointed toward the floor near the statue’s giant toes. Lying open there was the little black diary Harry had found in Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. For a second, Harry wondered how it had got there — but there were more pressing matters to deal with.

“You’ve got to help me, Tom,” Harry said, raising Ginny’s head again. “We’ve got to get her out of here. There’s a basilisk… I don’t know where it is, but it could be along any moment… Please, help me.”

Riddle didn’t move. Harry, sweating, managed to hoist Ginny half off the floor, and bent to pick up his wand again.

But his wand had gone.

“Did you see —?”

He looked up. Riddle was still watching him — twirling Harry’s wand between his long fingers.

“Thanks,” said Harry, stretching out his hand for it.

A smile curled the corners of Riddle’s mouth. He continued to stare at Harry, twirling the wand idly.

“Listen,” said Harry urgently, his knees sagging with Ginny’s dead weight. “We’ve got to go! If the basilisk comes —”

“It won’t come until it is called,” said Riddle calmly.

Harry lowered Ginny back onto the floor, unable to hold her up any longer.

“What d’you mean?” he said. “Look, give me my wand, I might need it —”

Riddle’s smile broadened.

“You won’t be needing it,” he said.

Harry stared at him.

“What d’you mean, I won’t be —?”

“I’ve waited a long time for this, Harry Potter,” said Riddle. “For the chance to see you. To speak to you.”

“Look,” said Harry, losing patience, “I don’t think you get it. We’re in the Chamber of Secrets. We can talk later —”

“We’re going to talk now,” said Riddle, still smiling broadly, and he pocketed Harry’s wand.

Harry stared at him. There was something very funny going on here…

“How did Ginny get like this?” he asked slowly.

“Well, that’s an interesting question,” said Riddle pleasantly. “And quite a long story. I suppose the real reason Ginny Weasley’s like this is because she opened her heart and spilled all her secrets to an invisible stranger.”

“What are you talking about?” said Harry.

“The diary,” said Riddle. “My diary. Little Ginny’s been writing in it for months and months, telling me all her pitiful worries and woes — how her brothers tease her, how she had to come to school with secondhand robes and books, how —” Riddle’s eyes glinted “— how she didn’t think famous, good, great Harry Potter would ever like her…”

All the time he spoke, Riddle’s eyes never left Harry’s face. There was an almost hungry look in them.

“It’s very boring, having to listen to the silly little troubles of an eleven-year-old girl,” he went on. “But I was patient. I wrote back. I was sympathetic, I was kind. Ginny simply loved me. No one’s ever understood me like you, Tom… I’m so glad I’ve got this diary to confide in… It’s like having a friend I can carry around in my pocket…”

Riddle laughed, a high, cold laugh that didn’t suit him. It made the hairs stand up on the back of Harry’s neck.

“If I say it myself, Harry, I’ve always been able to charm the people I needed. So Ginny poured out her soul to me, and her soul happened to be exactly what I wanted… I grew stronger and stronger on a diet of her deepest fears, her darkest secrets. I grew powerful, far more powerful than little Miss Weasley. Powerful enough to start feeding Miss Weasley a few of my secrets, to start pouring a little of my soul back into her…”

“What d’you mean?” said Harry, whose mouth had gone very dry.

“Haven’t you guessed yet, Harry Potter?” said Riddle softly. “Ginny Weasley opened the Chamber of Secrets. She strangled the school roosters and daubed threatening messages on the

walls. She set the Serpent of Slytherin on four Mudbloods, and the Squib’s cat.”

“No,” Harry whispered.

“Yes,” said Riddle, calmly. “Of course, she didn’t know what she was doing at first. It was very amusing. I wish you could have seen her new diary entries… far more interesting, they became… Dear Tom,” he recited, watching Harry’s horrified face, “‘I think I’m losing my memory. There are rooster feathers all over my robes and I don’t know how they got there. Dear Tom, I can’t remember what I did on the night of Halloween, but a cat was attacked and I’ve got paint all down my front. Dear Tom, Percy keeps telling me I’m pale and I’m not myself. I think he suspects me… There was another attack today and I don’t know where I was. Tom, what am I going to do? I think I’m going mad… I think I’m the one attacking everyone, Tom!’”

Harry’s fists were clenched, the nails digging deep into his palms.

“It took a very long time for stupid little Ginny to stop trusting her diary,” said Riddle. “But she finally became suspicious and tried to dispose of it. And that’s where you came in, Harry. You found it, and I couldn’t have been more delighted. Of all the people who could have picked it up, it was you, the very person I was most anxious to meet…”

“And why did you want to meet me?” said Harry. Anger was coursing through him, and it was an effort to keep his voice steady.

“Well, you see, Ginny told me all about you, Harry,” said Riddle. “Your whole fascinating history.” His eyes roved over the lightning scar on Harry’s forehead, and their expression grew hungrier. “I knew I must find out more about you, talk to you, meet you if I could. So I decided to show you my famous capture of that great oaf, Hagrid, to gain your trust —”

“Hagrid’s my friend,” said Harry, his voice now shaking. “And you framed him, didn’t you? I thought you made a mistake, but —”

Riddle laughed his high laugh again.

“It was my word against Hagrid’s, Harry. Well, you can imagine how it looked to old Armando Dippet. On the one hand, Tom Riddle, poor but brilliant, parentless but so brave, school prefect, model student… on the other hand, big, blundering Hagrid, in trouble every other week, trying to raise werewolf cubs under his bed, sneaking off to the Forbidden Forest to wrestle trolls… but I admit, even I was surprised how well the plan worked. I thought someone must realize that Hagrid couldn’t possibly be the Heir of Slytherin. It had taken me five whole years to find out everything I could about the Chamber of Secrets and discover the secret entrance… as though Hagrid had the brains, or the power!

“Only the Transfiguration teacher, Dumbledore, seemed to think Hagrid was innocent. He persuaded Dippet to keep Hagrid and train him as gamekeeper. Yes, I think Dumbledore might have guessed… Dumbledore never seemed to like me as much as the other teachers did…”

“I bet Dumbledore saw right through you,” said Harry, his teeth gritted.

“Well, he certainly kept an annoyingly close watch on me after Hagrid was expelled,” said Riddle carelessly. “I knew it wouldn’t be safe to open the Chamber again while I was still at school. But I wasn’t going to waste those long years I’d spent searching for it. I decided to leave behind a diary, preserving my sixteen-year-old self in its pages, so that one day, with luck, I would be able to lead another in my footsteps, and finish Salazar Slytherin’s noble work.”

“Well, you haven’t finished it,” said Harry triumphantly. “No one’s died this time, not even the cat. In a few hours the Mandrake Draught will be ready and everyone who was Petrified will be all right again —”

“Haven’t I already told you,” said Riddle quietly, “that killing Mudbloods doesn’t matter to me anymore? For many months now, my new target has been — you.”

Harry stared at him.

“Imagine how angry I was when the next time my diary was opened, it was Ginny who was writing to me, not you. She saw you with the diary, you see, and panicked. What if you found out how to work it, and I repeated all her secrets to you? What if, even worse, I told you who’d been strangling roosters? So the foolish little brat waited until your dormitory was deserted and stole it back. But I knew what I must do. It was clear to me that you were on the trail of Slytherin’s heir. From everything Ginny had told me about you, I knew you would go to any lengths to solve the mystery — particularly if one of your best friends was attacked. And Ginny had told me the whole school was buzzing because you could speak Parseltongue…

“So I made Ginny write her own farewell on the wall and come down here to wait. She struggled and cried and became very boring. But there isn’t much life left in her… She put too much into the diary, into me. Enough to let me leave its pages at last… I have been waiting for you to appear since we arrived here. I knew you’d come. I have many questions for you, Harry Potter.”

“Like what?” Harry spat, fists still clenched.

“Well,” said Riddle, smiling pleasantly, “how is it that you — a skinny boy with no extraordinary magical talent — managed to defeat the greatest wizard of all time? How did you escape with nothing but a scar, while Lord Voldemort’s powers were destroyed?”

There was an odd red gleam in his hungry eyes now.

“Why do you care how I escaped?” said Harry slowly. “Voldemort was after your time…”

“Voldemort,” said Riddle softly, “is my past, present, and future, Harry Potter…”

He pulled Harry’s wand from his pocket and began to trace it through the air, writing three shimmering words:

TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE

Then he waved the wand once, and the letters of his name rearranged themselves:

I AM LORD VOLDEMORT

“You see?” he whispered. “It was a name I was already using at Hogwarts, to my most intimate friends only, of course. You think I was going to use my filthy Muggle father’s name forever? I, in whose veins runs the blood of Salazar Slytherin himself, through my mother’s side? I, keep the name of a foul, common Muggle, who abandoned me even before I was born, just because he found out his wife was a witch? No, Harry — I fashioned myself a new name, a name I knew wizards everywhere would one day fear to speak, when I had become the greatest sorcerer in the world!”

Harry’s brain seemed to have jammed. He stared numbly at Riddle, at the orphaned boy who had grown up to murder Harry’s own parents, and so many others… At last he forced himself to speak.

“You’re not,” he said, his quiet voice full of hatred.

“Not what?” snapped Riddle.

“Not the greatest sorcerer in the world,” said Harry, breathing fast. “Sorry to disappoint you and all that, but the greatest wizard in the world is Albus Dumbledore. Everyone says so. Even when you were strong, you didn’t dare try and take over at Hogwarts. Dumbledore saw through you when you were at school and he still frightens you now, wherever you’re hiding these days —”

The smile had gone from Riddle’s face, to be replaced by a very ugly look.

“Dumbledore’s been driven out of this castle by the mere memory of me!” he hissed.

“He’s not as gone as you might think!” Harry retorted. He was speaking at random, wanting to scare Riddle, wishing rather than believing it to be true.

Riddle opened his mouth, but froze.

Music was coming from somewhere. Riddle whirled around to stare down the empty Chamber. The music was growing louder. It was eerie, spine-tingling, unearthly; it lifted the hair on Harry’s scalp and made his heart feel as though it was swelling to twice its normal size. Then, as the music reached such a pitch that Harry felt it vibrating inside his own ribs, flames erupted at the top of the nearest pillar.

A crimson bird the size of a swan had appeared, piping its weird music to the vaulted ceiling. It had a glittering golden tail as long as a peacock’s and gleaming golden talons, which were gripping a ragged bundle.

A second later, the bird was flying straight at Harry. It dropped the ragged thing it was carrying at his feet, then landed heavily on his shoulder. As it folded its great wings, Harry looked up and saw it had a long, sharp golden beak and a beady black eye.

The bird stopped singing. It sat still and warm next to Harry’s cheek, gazing steadily at Riddle.

“That’s a phoenix.” said Riddle, staring shrewdly back at it.

“Fawkes?” Harry breathed, and he felt the bird’s golden claws squeeze his shoulder gently.

“And that —” said Riddle, now eyeing the ragged thing that Fawkes had dropped, “that’s the old school Sorting Hat —”

So it was. Patched, frayed, and dirty, the hat lay motionless at Harry’s feet.

Riddle began to laugh again. He laughed so hard that the dark chamber rang with it, as though ten Riddles were laughing at once.

“This is what Dumbledore sends his defender! A songbird and an old hat! Do you feel brave, Harry Potter? Do you feel safe now?”

Harry didn’t answer. He might not see what use Fawkes or the Sorting Hat were, but he was no longer alone, and he waited for Riddle to stop laughing with his courage mounting.

“To business, Harry,” said Riddle, still smiling broadly. “Twice — in your past, in my future — we have met. And twice I failed to kill you. How did you survive? Tell me everything. The longer you talk,” he added softly, “the longer you stay alive.”

Harry was thinking fast, weighing his chances. Riddle had the wand. He, Harry, had Fawkes and the Sorting Hat, neither of which would be much good in a duel. It looked bad, all right… but the longer Riddle stood there, the more life was dwindling out of Ginny… and in the meantime, Harry noticed suddenly, Riddle’s outline was becoming clearer, more solid… If it had to be a fight between him and Riddle, better sooner than later.

“No one knows why you lost your powers when you attacked me,” said Harry abruptly. “I don’t know myself. But I know why you couldn’t kill me. Because my mother died to save me. My common Muggle-born mother,” he added, shaking with suppressed rage. “She stopped you killing me. And I’ve seen the real you, I saw you last year. You’re a wreck. You’re barely alive. That’s where all your power got you. You’re in hiding. You’re ugly, you’re foul —”

Riddle’s face contorted. Then he forced it into an awful smile. “So. Your mother died to save you. Yes, that’s a powerful countercharm. I can see now… there is nothing special about you, after all. I wondered, you see. There are strange likenesses between us, after all. Even you must have noticed. Both half-bloods, orphans, raised by Muggles. Probably the only two Parselmouths to come to Hogwarts since the great Slytherin himself. We even look something alike… but after all, it was merely a lucky chance that saved you from me. That’s all I wanted to know.”

Harry stood, tense, waiting for Riddle to raise his wand. But Riddle’s twisted smile was widening again.

“Now, Harry, I’m going to teach you a little lesson. Let’s match the powers of Lord Voldemort, Heir of Salazar Slytherin, against famous Harry Potter, and the best weapons Dumbledore can give him…”

He cast an amused eye over Fawkes and the Sorting Hat, then walked away. Harry, fear spreading up his numb legs, watched Riddle stop between the high pillars and look up into the stone face of Slytherin, high above him in the half-darkness. Riddle opened his mouth wide and hissed — but Harry understood what he was saying…

“Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four.”

Harry wheeled around to look up at the statue, Fawkes swaying on his shoulder.

Slytherin’s gigantic stone face was moving. Horrorstruck, Harry saw his mouth opening, wider and wider, to make a huge black hole.

And something was stirring inside the statue’s mouth. Something was slithering up from its depths.

Harry backed away until he hit the dark Chamber wall, and as he shut his eyes tight he felt Fawkes’ wing sweep his cheek as he took flight. Harry wanted to shout, “Don’t leave me!” but what chance did a phoenix have against the king of serpents?

Something huge hit the stone floor of the Chamber. Harry felt it shudder — he knew what was happening, he could sense it, could almost see the giant serpent uncoiling itself from Slytherin’s mouth. Then he heard Riddle’s hissing voice:

“Kill him.”

The basilisk was moving toward Harry; he could hear its heavy body slithering heavily across the dusty floor. Eyes still tightly shut, Harry began to run blindly sideways, his hands outstretched, feeling his way — Voldemort was laughing.

Harry tripped. He fell hard onto the stone and tasted blood the serpent was barely feet from him, he could hear it coming.

There was a loud, explosive spitting sound right above him, and then something heavy hit Harry so hard that he was smashed into the wall. Waiting for fangs to sink through his body he heard more mad hissing, something thrashing wildly off the pillars.

He couldn’t help it — he opened his eyes wide enough to squint at what was going on.

The enormous serpent, bright, poisonous green, thick as an oak trunk, had raised itself high in the

air and its great blunt head was weaving drunkenly between the pillars. As Harry trembled, ready to close his eyes if it turned, he saw what had distracted the snake.

Fawkes was soaring around its head, and the basilisk was snapping furiously at him with fangs long and thin as sabers Fawkes dived. His long golden beak sank out of sight and a sudden shower of dark blood spattered the floor. The snake’s tail thrashed, narrowly missing Harry, and before Harry could shut his eyes, it turned — Harry looked straight into its face and saw that its eyes, both its great, bulbous yellow eyes, had been punctured by the phoenix; blood was streaming to the floor, and the snake was spitting in agony.

“NO!” Harry heard Riddle screaming. “LEAVE THE BIRD! LEAVE THE BIRD! THE BOY IS BEHIND YOU. YOU CAN STILL SMELL HIM. KILL HIM!”

The blinded serpent swayed, confused, still deadly. Fawkes was circling its head, piping his eerie song, jabbing here and there at its scaly nose as the blood poured from its ruined eyes.

“Help me, help me,” Harry muttered wildly, “someone — anyone…”

The snake’s tail whipped across the floor again. Harry ducked. Something soft hit his face.

The basilisk had swept the Sorting Hat into Harry’s arms. Harry seized it. It was all he had left, his only chance — he rammed it onto his head and threw himself flat onto the floor as the basilisk’s tail swung over him again.

Help me — help me — Harry thought, his eyes screwed tight under the hat. Please help me.

There was no answering voice. Instead, the hat contracted, as though an invisible hand was squeezing it very tightly.

Something very hard and heavy thudded onto the top of Harry’s head, almost knocking him out. Stars winking in front of his eyes, he grabbed the top of the hat to pull it off and felt something long and hard beneath it.

A gleaming silver sword had appeared inside the hat, its handle glittering with rubies the size of eggs.

“KILL THE BOY! LEAVE THE BIRD! THE BOY IS BEHIND YOU. SNIFF — SMELL HIM.”

Harry was on his feet, ready. The basilisk’s head was falling, its body coiling around, hitting pillars as it twisted to face him. He could see the vast, bloody eye sockets, see the mouth stretching wide, wide enough to swallow him whole, lined with fangs long as his sword, thin, glittering, venomous —

It lunged blindly — Harry dodged and it hit the Chamber wall. It lunged again, and its forked tongue lashed Harry’s side. He raised the sword in both his hands —

The basilisk lunged again, and this time its aim was true — Harry threw his whole weight behind the sword and drove it to the hilt into the roof of the serpent’s mouth —

But as warm blood drenched Harry’s arms, he felt a searing pain just above his elbow. One long, poisonous fang was sinking deeper and deeper into his arm and it splintered as the basilisk keeled over sideways and fell, twitching, to the floor.

Harry slid down the wall. He gripped the fang that was spreading poison through his body and wrenched it out of his arm. But he knew it was too late. White-hot pain was spreading slowly and steadily from the wound. Even as he dropped the fang and watched his own blood soaking his robes, his vision went foggy. The Chamber was dissolving in a whirl of dull color.

A patch of scarlet swam past, and Harry heard a soft clatter of claws beside him.

“Fawkes,” said Harry thickly. “You were fantastic, Fawkes…”

He felt the bird lay its beautiful head on the spot where the serpent’s fang had pierced him.

He could hear echoing footsteps and then a dark shadow moved in front of him.

“You’re dead, Harry Potter,” said Riddle’s voice above him. “Dead. Even Dumbledore’s bird knows it. Do you see what he’s doing, Potter? He’s crying.”

Harry blinked. Fawke’s head slid in and out of focus. Thick, pearly tears were trickling down the glossy feathers.

“I’m going to sit here and watch you die, Harry Potter. Take your time. I’m in no hurry.”

Harry felt drowsy. Everything around him seemed to be spinning.

“So ends the famous Harry Potter,” said Riddle’s distant voice. “Alone in the Chamber of Secrets, forsaken by his friends, defeated at last by the Dark Lord he so unwisely challenged. You’ll be back with your dear Mudblood mother soon, Harry… She bought you twelve years of borrowed time… but Lord Voldemort got you in the end, as you knew he must…”

If this is dying, thought Harry, it’s not so bad.

Even the pain was leaving him…

But was this dying? Instead of going black, the Chamber seemed to be coming back into focus. Harry gave his head a little shake and there was Fawkes, still resting his head on Harry’s arm. A pearly patch of tears was shining all around the wound — except that there was no wound.

“Get away, bird,” said Riddle’s voice suddenly. “Get away from him — I said, get away —”

Harry raised his head. Riddle was pointing Harry’s wand at Fawkes; there was a bang like a gun,

and Fawkes took flight again in a whirl of gold and scarlet.

“Phoenix tears…” said Riddle quietly, staring at Harry’s arm. “Of course… healing powers… I forgot…”

He looked into Harry’s face. “But it makes no difference. In fact, I prefer it this way. Just you and me, Harry Potter… you and me…”

He raised the wand…

Then, in a rush of wings, Fawkes had soared back overhead and something fell into Harry’s lap — the diary.

For a split second, both Harry and Riddle, wand still raised, stared at it. Then, without thinking, without considering, as though he had meant to do it all along, Harry seized the basilisk fang on the floor next to him and plunged it straight into the heart of the book.

There was a long, dreadful, piercing scream. Ink spurted out of the diary in torrents, streaming over Harry’s hands, flooding the floor. Riddle was writhing and twisting, screaming and flailing and then —

He had gone. Harry’s wand fell to the floor with a clatter and there was silence. Silence except for the steady drip drip of ink still oozing from the diary. The basilisk venom had burned a sizzling hole right through it.

Shaking all over, Harry pulled himself up. His head was spinning as though he’d just traveled miles by Floo powder. Slowly, he gathered together his wand and the Sorting Hat, and, with a huge tug, retrieved the glittering sword from the roof of the basilisk’s mouth.

Then came a faint moan from the end of the Chamber. Ginny was stirring. As Harry hurried toward her, she sat up. Her bemused eyes traveled from the huge form of the dead basilisk, over Harry, in his blood-soaked robes, then to the diary in his hand. She drew a great, shuddering gasp and tears began to pour down her face.

“Harry — oh, Harry — I tried to tell you at b-breakfast, but I c-couldn’t say it in front of Percy — it was me, Harry — but I — I s-swear I d-didn’t mean to — R-Riddle made me, he t-took me over — and — how did you kill that — that thing? W-where’s Riddle? The last thing I rremember is him coming out of the diary —”

“ It’s all right,” said Harry, holding up the diary, and showing Ginny the fang hole, “Riddle’s finished. Look! Him and the basilisk. C’mon, Ginny, let’s get out of here —”

“I’m going to be expelled!” Ginny wept as Harry helped her awkwardly to her feet. “I’ve looked forward to coming to Hogwarts ever since B-Bill came and n-now I’ll have to leave and — wwhat’ll Mum and Dad say?”

Fawkes was waiting for them, hovering in the Chamber entrance. Harry urged Ginny forward; they stepped over the motionless coils of the dead basilisk, through the echoing gloom, and back into the tunnel. Harry heard the stone doors close behind them with a soft hiss.

After a few minutes’ progress up the dark tunnel, a distant sound of slowly shifting rock reached Harry’s ears.

“Ron!” Harry yelled, speeding up. “Ginny’s okay! I’ve got her!”

He heard Ron give a strangled cheer, and they turned the next bend to see his eager face staring through the sizable gap he had managed to make in the rock fall.

“Ginny!” Ron thrust an arm through the gap in the rock to pull her through first. “You’re alive! I don’t believe it! What happened? How — what — where did that bird come from?”

Fawkes had swooped through the gap after Ginny.

“He’s Dumbledore’s,” said Harry, squeezing through himself.

“How come you’ve got a sword?” said Ron, gaping at the glittering weapon in Harry’s hand.

“I’ll explain when we get out of here,” said Harry with a sideways glance at Ginny, who was crying harder than ever.

“But —”

“Later,” Harry said shortly. He didn’t think it was a good idea to tell Ron yet who’d been opening the Chamber, not in front of Ginny, anyway. “Where’s Lockhart?”

“Back there,” said Ron, still looking puzzled but jerking his head up the tunnel toward the pipe. “He’s in a bad way. Come and see.”

Led by Fawkes, whose wide scarlet wings emitted a soft golden glow in the darkness, they walked all the way back to the mouth of the pipe. Gilderoy Lockhart was sitting there, humming placidly to himself.

“His memory’s gone,” said Ron. “The Memory Charm backfired. Hit him instead of us. Hasn’t got a clue who he is, or where he is, or who we are. I told him to come and wait here. He’s a danger to himself.”

Lockhart peered good-naturedly up at them all.

“Hello,” he said. “Odd sort of place, this, isn’t it? Do you live here?”

“No,” said Ron, raising his eyebrows at Harry.

Harry bent down and looked up the long, dark pipe.

“Have you thought how we’re going to get back up this?” he said to Ron.

Ron shook his head, but Fawkes the phoenix had swooped past Harry and was now fluttering in front of him, his beady eyes bright in the dark. He was waving his long golden tail feathers. Harry looked uncertainly at him.

“He looks like he wants you to grab hold…” said Ron, looking perplexed. “But you’re much too heavy for a bird to pull up there —”

“Fawkes,” said Harry, “isn’t an ordinary bird.” He turned quickly to the others. “We’ve got to hold on to each other. Ginny, grab Ron’s hand. Professor Lockhart —”

“He means you,” said Ron sharply to Lockhart.

“You hold Ginny’s other hand —”

Harry tucked the sword and the Sorting Hat into his belt, Ron took hold of the back of Harry’s robes, and Harry reached out and took hold of Fawkes’s strangely hot tail feathers.

An extraordinary lightness seemed to spread through his whole body and the next second, in a rush of wings, they were flying upward through the pipe. Harry could hear Lockhart dangling below him, saying, “Amazing! Amazing! This is just like magic!” The chill air was whipping through Harry’s hair, and before he’d stopped enjoying the ride, it was over — all four of them were hitting the wet floor of Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom, and as Lockhart straightened his hat, the sink that hid the pipe was sliding back into place.

Myrtle goggled at them.

“You’re alive,” she said blankly to Harry.

“There’s no need to sound so disappointed,” he said grimly, wiping flecks of blood and slime off his glasses.

“Oh, well… I’d just been thinking… if you had died, you’d have been welcome to share my toilet,” said Myrtle, blushing silver.

“Urgh!” said Ron as they left the bathroom for the dark, deserted corridor outside. “Harry! I think Myrtle’s grown fond of you! You’ve got competition, Ginny!”

But tears were still flooding silently down Ginny’s face.

“Where now?” said Ron, with an anxious look at Ginny. Harry pointed.

Fawkes was leading the way, glowing gold along the corridor. They strode after him, and

moments later, found themselves outside Professor McGonagall’s office.

Harry knocked and pushed the door open.

Dobby’s Reward

For a moment there was silence as Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Lockhart stood in the doorway, covered in muck and slime and (in Harry’s case) blood. Then there was a scream.

“Ginny!”

It was Mrs. Weasley, who had been sitting crying in front of the fire. She leapt to her feet, closely followed by Mr. Weasley, and both of them flung themselves on their daughter.

Harry, however, was looking past them. Professor Dumbledore was standing by the mantelpiece, beaming, next to Professor McGonagall, who was taking great, steadying gasps, clutching her chest. Fawkes went whooshing past Harry’s ear and settled on Dumbledore’s shoulder, just as Harry found himself and Ron being swept into Mrs. Weasley’s tight embrace.

“You saved her! You saved her! How did you do it?”

“I think we’d all like to know that,” said Professor McGonagall weakly.

Mrs. Weasley let go of Harry, who hesitated for a moment, then walked over to the desk and laid upon it the Sorting Hat, the ruby-encrusted sword, and what remained of Riddle’s diary.

Then he started telling them everything. For nearly a quarter of an hour he spoke into the rapt silence: He told them about hearing the disembodied voice, how Hermione had finally realized that he was hearing a basilisk in the pipes; how he and Ron had followed the spiders into the forest, that Aragog had told them where the last victim of the basilisk had died; how he had guessed that Moaning Myrtle had been the victim, and that the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets might be in her bathroom…

“Very well,” Professor McGonagall prompted him as he paused, “so you found out where the entrance was — breaking a hundred school rules into pieces along the way, I might add — but how on earth did you all get out of there alive, Potter?”

So Harry, his voice now growing hoarse from all this talking, told them about Fawkes’s timely arrival and about the Sorting Hat giving him the sword. But then he faltered. He had so far avoided mentioning Riddle’s diary — or Ginny. She was standing with her head against Mrs. Weasley’s shoulder, and tears were still coursing silently down her cheeks. What if they expelled her? Harry thought in panic. Riddle’s diary didn’t work anymore… How could they prove it had been he who’d made her do it all?

Instinctively, Harry looked at Dumbledore, who smiled faintly, the firelight glancing off his halfmoon spectacles.

“What interests me most,” said Dumbledore gently, “is how Lord Voldemort managed to enchant Ginny, when my sources tell me he is currently in hiding in the forests of Albania.”

Relief — warm, sweeping, glorious relief – swept over Harry. “W-what’s that?” said Mr. Weasley in a stunned voice. “You-Know-Who? En-enchant Ginny? But Ginny’s not… Ginny hasn’t been… has she?”

“It was this diary,” said Harry quickly, picking it up and showing it to Dumbledore. “Riddle wrote it when he was sixteen…”

Dumbledore took the diary from Harry and peered keenly down his long, crooked nose at its burnt and soggy pages.

“Brilliant,” he said softly. “Of course, he was probably the most brilliant student Hogwarts has ever seen.” He turned around to the Weasleys, who were looking utterly bewildered.

“Very few people know that Lord Voldemort was once called Tom Riddle. I taught him myself, fifty years ago, at Hogwarts. He disappeared after leaving the school… traveled far and wide… sank so deeply into the Dark Arts, consorted with the very worst of our kind, underwent so many dangerous, magical transformations, that when he resurfaced as Lord Voldemort, he was barely recognizable. Hardly anyone connected Lord Voldemort with the clever, handsome boy who was once Head Boy here.”

“But, Ginny,” said Mrs. Weasley. “What’s our Ginny got to do with — with — him?”

“His d-diary” Ginny sobbed. “I’ve b-been writing in it, and he’s been w-writing back all year —”

“Ginny!” said Mr. Weasley, flabbergasted. “Haven’t I taught you anything. What have I always told you? Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can’t see where it keeps its brain? Why didn’t you show the diary to me, or your mother? A suspicious object like that, it was clearly full of Dark Magic!’

“I d-didn’t know,” sobbed Ginny. “I found it inside one of the books Mum got me. I th-thought someone had just left it in there and forgotten about it —”

“Miss Weasley should go up to the hospital wing right away,” Dumbledore interrupted in a firm voice. “This has been a terrible ordeal for her. There will be no punishment. Older and wiser wizards than she have been hoodwinked by Lord Voldemort.” He strode over to the door and opened it. “Bed rest and perhaps a large, steaming mug of hot chocolate. I always find that cheers me up,” he added, twinkling kindly down at her. “You will find that Madam Pomfrey is still awake. She’s just giving out Mandrake juice — I daresay the basilisk’s victims will be waking up any moment.”

“So Hermione’s okay!” said Ron brightly.

“There has been no lasting harm done, Ginny,” said Dumbledore.

Mrs. Weasley led Ginny out, and Mr. Weasley followed, still looking deeply shaken.

“You know, Minerva,” Professor Dumbledore said thoughtfully to Professor McGonagall, “I think all this merits a good feast. Might I ask you to go and alert the kitchens?”

“Right,” said Professor McGonagall crisply, also moving to the door. “I’ll leave you to deal with Potter and Weasley, shall I?”

“Certainly,” said Dumbledore.

She left, and Harry and Ron gazed uncertainly at Dumbledore. What exactly had Professor McGonagall meant, deal with them? Surely — surely — they weren’t about to be punished?

“I seem to remember telling you both that I would have to expel you if you broke any more school rules,” said Dumbledore.

Ron opened his mouth in horror.

“Which goes to show that the best of us must sometimes eat our words,” Dumbledore went on, smiling. “You will both receive Special Awards for Services to the School and — let me see — yes, I think two hundred points apiece for Gryffindor.”

Ron went as brightly pink as Lockhart’s valentine flowers and closed his mouth again.

“But one of us seems to be keeping mightily quiet about his part in this dangerous adventure,” Dumbledore added. “Why so modest, Gilderoy?”

Harry gave a start. He had completely forgotten about Lockhart. He turned and saw that Lockhart was standing in a corner of the room, still wearing his vague smile. When Dumbledore addressed him, Lockhart looked over his shoulder to see who he was talking to.

“Professor Dumbledore,” Ron said quickly, “there was an accident down in the Chamber of Secrets. Professor Lockhart —”

“Am I a professor?” said Lockhart in mild surprise. “Goodness. I expect I was hopeless, was I?”

“He tried to do a Memory Charm and the wand backfired,” Ron explained quietly to Dumbledore.

“Dear me,” said Dumbledore, shaking his head, his long silver mustache quivering. “Impaled upon your own sword, Gilderoy!”

“Sword?” said Lockhart dimly. “Haven’t got a sword. That boy has, though.” He pointed at Harry. “He’ll lend you one.”

“Would you mind taking Professor Lockhart up to the infirmary, too?” Dumbledore said to Ron.

“I’d like a few more words with Harry…”

Lockhart ambled out. Ron cast a curious look back at Dumbledore and Harry as he closed the door.

Dumbledore crossed to one of the chairs by the fire.

“Sit down, Harry,” he said, and Harry sat, feeling unaccountably nervous.

“First of all, Harry, I want to thank you,” said Dumbledore, eyes twinkling again. “You must have shown me real loyalty down in the Chamber. Nothing but that could have called Fawkes to you.”

He stroked the phoenix, which had fluttered down onto his knee. Harry grinned awkwardly as Dumbledore watched him.

“And so you met Tom Riddle,” said Dumbledore thoughtfully. “I imagine he was most interested in you…”

Suddenly, something that was nagging at Harry came tumbling out of his mouth.

“Professor Dumbledore… Riddle said I’m like him. Strange likenesses, he said…”

“Did he, now?” said Dumbledore, looking thoughtfully at Harry from under his thick silver eyebrows. “And what do you think, Harry?”

“I don’t think I’m like him!” said Harry, more loudly than he’d intended. “I mean, I’m — I’m in Gryffindor, I’m…”

But he fell silent, a lurking doubt resurfacing in his mind.

“Professor,” he started again after a moment. “The Sorting Hat told me I’d — I’d have done well in Slytherin. Everyone thought I was Slytherin’s heir for a while… because I can speak Parseltongue…”

“You can speak Parseltongue, Harry,” said Dumbledore calmly, “because Lord Voldemort — who is the last remaining ancestor of Salazar Slytherin — can speak Parseltongue. Unless I’m much mistaken, he transferred some of his own powers to you the night he gave you that scar. Not something he intended to do, I’m sure…”

“Voldemort put a bit of himself in me?” Harry said, thunderstruck.

“It certainly seems so.”

“So I should be in Slytherin,” Harry said, looking desperately into Dumbledore’s face. “The Sorting Hat could see Slytherin’s power in me, and it —”

“Put you in Gryffindor,” said Dumbledore calmly. “Listen to me, Harry. You happen to have many qualities Salazar Slytherin prized in his hand-picked students. His own very rare gift, Parseltongue — resourcefulness — determination — a certain disregard for rules,” he added, his mustache quivering again. “Yet the Sorting Hat placed you in Gryffindor. You know why that was. Think.”

“It only put me in Gryffindor,” said Harry in a defeated voice, “because I asked not to go in Slytherin…”

“Exactly, “said Dumbledore, beaming once more. “Which makes you very different from Tom Riddle. It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” Harry sat motionless in his chair, stunned. “If you want proof, Harry, that you belong in Gryffindor, I suggest you look more closely at this.”

Dumbledore reached across to Professor McGonagall’s desk, picked up the blood-stained silver sword, and handed it to Harry. Dully, Harry turned it over, the rubies blazing in the firelight. And then he saw the name engraved just below the hilt.

Godric Gryffindor

“Only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that out of the hat, Harry,” said Dumbledore simply.

For a minute, neither of them spoke. Then Dumbledore pulled open one of the drawers in Professor McGonagall’s desk and took out a quill and a bottle of ink.

“What you need, Harry, is some food and sleep. I suggest you go down to the feast, while I write to Azkaban —we need our gamekeeper back. And I must draft an advertisement for the Daily Prophet, too,” he added Thoughtfully. “We’ll be needing a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher… Dear me, we do seem to run through them, don’t we?”

Harry got up and crossed to the door. He had just reached for the handle, however, when the door burst open so violently that it bounced back off the wall.

Lucius Malfoy stood there, fury in his face. And cowering behind his legs, heavily wrapped in bandages, was Dobby.

“Good evening, Lucius,” said Dumbledore pleasantly.

Mr. Malfoy almost knocked Harry over as he swept into the room. Dobby went scurrying in after him, crouching at the hem of his cloak, a look of abject terror on his face.

The elf was carrying a stained rag with which he was attempting to finish cleaning Mr. Malfoys shoes. Apparently Mr. Malfoy had set out in a great hurry, for not only were his shoes halfpolished, but his usually sleek hair was disheveled. Ignoring the elf bobbing apologetically around his ankles, he fixed his cold eyes upon Dumbledore.

“So!” he said “You’ve come back. The governors suspended you, but you still saw fit to return to Hogwarts.”

“Well, you see, Lucius,” said Dumbledore, smiling serenely, “the other eleven governors contacted me today. It was something like being caught in a hailstorm of owls, to tell the truth. They’d heard that Arthur Weasleys daughter had been killed and wanted me back here at once. They seemed to think I was the best man for the job after all. Very strange tales they told me, too… Several of them seemed to think that you had threatened to curse their families if they didn’t agree to suspend me in the first place.”

Mr. Malfoy went even paler than usual, but his eyes were still slits of fury.

“So — have you stopped the attacks yet?” he sneered. “Have you caught the culprit?”

“We have,” said Dumbledore, with a smile.

“Well?” said Mr. Malfoy sharply. “Who is it?”

“The same person as last time, Lucius,” said Dumbledore. “But this time, Lord Voldemort was acting through somebody else. By means of this diary.”

He held up the small black book with the large hole through the center, watching Mr. Malfoy closely. Harry, however, was watching Dobby.

The elf was doing something very odd. His great eyes fixed meaningfully on Harry, he kept pointing at the diary, then at Mr. Malfoy, and then hitting himself hard on the head with his fist.

“I see…” said Mr. Malfoy slowly to Dumbledore.

“A clever plan,” said Dumbledore in a level voice, still staring Mr. Malfoy straight in the eye. “Because if Harry here —” Mr. Malfoy shot Harry a swift, sharp look “and his friend Ron hadn’t discovered this book, why — Ginny Weasley might have taken all the blame. No one would ever have been able to prove she hadn’t acted of her own free will…”

Mr. Malfoy said nothing. His face was suddenly masklike.

“And imagine,” Dumbledore went on, “what might have happened then… The Weasleys are one of our most prominent pure-blood families. Imagine the effect on Arthur Weasley and his Muggle Protection Act, if his own daughter was discovered attacking and — killing Muggleborns… Very fortunate the diary was discovered, and Riddle’s memories wiped from it. Who knows what the consequences might have been otherwise…”

Mr. Malfoy forced himself to speak.

“Very fortunate,” he said stiffly.

And still, behind his back, Dobby was pointing, first to the diary, then to Lucius Malfoy, then punching himself in the head.

And Harry suddenly understood. He nodded at Dobby, and Dobby backed into a corner, now twisting his ears in punishment.

“Don’t you want to know how Ginny got hold of that diary, Mr. Malfoy?” said Harry.

Lucius Malfoy rounded on him.

“How should I know how the stupid little girl got hold of it?” he said.

“Because you gave it to her,” said Harry. “In Flourish and Blotts. You picked up her old Transfiguration book and slipped the diary inside it, didn’t you?”

He saw Mr. Malfoy’s white hands clench and unclench.

“Prove it,” he hissed.

“Oh, no one will be able to do that,” said Dumbledore, smiling at Harry. “Not now that Riddle has vanished from the book. On the other hand, I would advise you, Lucius, not to go giving out any more of Lord Voldemort’s old school things. If any more of them find their way into innocent hands, I think Arthur Weasley, for one, will make sure they are traced back to you…”

Lucius Malfoy stood for a moment, and Harry distinctly saw his right hand twitch as though he was longing to reach for his wand. Instead, he turned to his house-elf. “We’re going, Dobby!”

He wrenched open the door and as the elf came hurrying up to him, he kicked him right through it. They could hear Dobby squealing with pain all the way along the corridor. Harry stood for a moment, thinking hard. Then it came to him —

“Professor Dumbledore,” he said hurriedly. “Can I give that diary back to Mr. Malfoy, please?”

“Certainly, Harry,” said Dumbledore calmly. “But hurry. The feast, remember…” Harry grabbed the diary and dashed out of the office. He could hear Dobby’s squeals of pain receding around the corner. Quickly, wondering if this plan could possibly work, Harry took off one of his shoes, pulled off his slimy, filthy sock, and stuffed the diary into it. Then he ran down the dark corridor.

He caught up with them at the top of the stairs.

“Mr. Malfoy,” he gasped, skidding to a halt, “I’ve got something for you —”

And he forced the smelly sock into Lucius Malfoy’s hand.

“What the —?”

Mr. Malfoy ripped the sock off the diary, threw it aside, then looked furiously from the ruined book to Harry. “You’ll meet the same sticky end as your parents one of these days, Harry Potter,” he said softly. “They were meddlesome fools, too.”

He turned to go.

“Come, Dobby. I said, come.”

But Dobby didn’t move. He was holding up Harry’s disgusting, slimy sock, and looking at it as though it were a priceless treasure.

“Master has given a sock,” said the elf in wonderment. “Master gave it to Dobby.”

“What’s that?” spat Mr. Malfoy. “What did you say?”

“Got a sock,” said Dobby in disbelief. “Master threw it, and Dobby caught it, and Dobby — Dobby is free.”

Lucius Malfoy stood frozen, staring at the elf then he lunged at Harry.

“You’ve lost me my servant, boy!”

But Dobby shouted, “You shall not harm Harry Potter!”

There was a loud bang, and Mr. Malfoy was thrown backward. He crashed down the stairs, three at a time, landing in a crumpled heap on the landing below. He got up, his face livid, and pulled out his wand, but Dobby raised a long, threatening finger.

“You shall go now,” he said fiercely, pointing down at Mr. Malfoy. “You shall not touch Harry Potter. You shall go now.”

Lucius Malfoy had no choice. With a last, incensed stare at the pair of them, he swung his cloak around him and hurried out of sight.

“Harry Potter freed Dobby!” said the elf shrilly, gazing up at Harry, moonlight from the nearest window reflected in his orb-like eyes. “Harry Potter set Dobby free!”

“Least I could do, Dobby,” said Harry, grinning. “Just promise never to try and save my life again.”

The elf’s ugly brown face split suddenly into a wide, toothy smile.

“I’ve just got one question, Dobby,” said Harry as Dobby pulled on Harry’s sock with shaking hands. “You told me all this had nothing to do with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, remember? Well —”

“It was a clue, sir,” said Dobby, his eyes widening, as though this was obvious. “Was giving you a clue. The Dark Lord, before he changed his name, could be freely named, you see?”

“Right,” said Harry weakly. “Well, I’d better go. There’s a feast, and my friend Hermione should be awake by now…”

Dobby threw his arms around Harry’s middle and hugged him.

“Harry Potter is greater by far than Dobby knew!” he sobbed. “Farewell, Harry Potter!”

And with a final loud crack, Dobby disappeared.

Harry had been to several Hogwarts feasts, but never one quite like this. Everybody was in their pajamas, and the celebration lasted all night. Harry didn’t know whether the best bit was Hermione running toward him, screaming “You solved it! You solved it!” or Justin hurrying over from the Hufflepuff table to wring. his hand and apologize endlessly for suspecting him, or Hagrid turning up at half past three, cuffing Harry and Ron so hard on the shoulders that they were knocked into their plates of trifle, or his and Ron’s four hundred points for Gryffindor securing the House Cup for the second year running, or Professor McGonagall standing up to tell them all that the exams had been canceled as a school treat (“Oh, no!” said Hermione), or Dumbledore announcing that, unfortunately, Professor Lockhart would be unable to return next year, owing to the fact that he needed to go away and get his memory back. Quite a few of the teachers joined in the cheering that greeted this news.

“Shame,” said Ron, helping himself to a jam doughnut. “He has starting to grow on me.”

The rest of the final term passed in a haze of blazing sunshine. Hogwarts was back to normal with only a few, small differences — Defense Against the Dark Arts classes were canceled (“but we’ve had plenty of practice at that anyway,” Ron told a disgruntled Hermione) and Lucius Malfoy had been sacked as a school governor. Draco was no longer strutting around the school as though he owned the place. On the contrary, he looked resentful and sulky. On the other hand, Ginny Weasley was perfectly happy again.

Too soon, it was time for the journey home on the Hogwarts Express. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, and Ginny got a compartment to themselves. They made the most of the last few hours in which they were allowed to do magic before the holidays. They played Exploding Snap, set off the very last of Fred and George’s Filibuster fireworks, and practiced disarming each other by magic. Harry was getting very good at it.

They were almost at King’s Cross when Harry remembered something.

“Ginny – what did you see Percy doing, that he didn’t want you to tell anyone?”

“Oh, that,” said Ginny, giggling. “Well — Percy’s got a girlfriend.” Fred dropped a stack of books on George’s head.

“What?”

“It’s that Ravenclaw prefect, Penelope Clearwater,” said Ginny. “That’s who he was writing to all last summer. He’s been meeting her all over the school in secret. I walked in on them kissing in an empty classroom one day. He was so upset when she was — you know — attacked. You won’t tease him, will you?” she added anxiously.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” said Fred, who was looking like his birthday had come early.

“Definitely not,” said George, sniggering.

The Hogwarts Express slowed and finally stopped.

Harry pulled out his quill and a bit of parchment and turned to Ron and Hermione.

“This is called a telephone number,” he told Ron, scribbling it twice, tearing the parchment in two, and handing it to them. “I told your dad how to use a telephone last summer — he’ll know. Call me at the Dursleys’, okay? I can’t stand another two months with only Dudley to talk to…”

“Your aunt and uncle will be proud, though, won’t they?” said Hermione as they got off the train and joined the crowd thronging toward the enchanted barrier. “When they hear what you did this year?”

“Proud?” said Harry. “Are you crazy? All those times I could’ve died, and I didn’t manage it? They’ll be furious…”

And together they walked back through the gateway to the Muggle world.