Luke's ENGLISH Podcast - Learn British English with Luke Thompson

In this episode I talk to my parents about the topic of William Shakespeare. We discuss the enduring appeal and significance of William Shakespeare's work, biographical details of his life, the key themes in Shakespeare’s plays, and the impact of his language on modern English. We try to explain the qualities that make Shakespeare great, using examples from plays like Hamlet, Twelfth Night, and Macbeth. We also consider the challenges of understanding Shakespeare and suggest ways for newcomers to engage with his plays, such as watching film adaptations.Enjoy a conversation about this important figure in English language and culture, with two other important figures - my mum and dad!PDF available with transcript, vocabulary list and vocabulary quiz. Premium listeners - watch out for a language review of this episode coming soon, in P68 "Learn English with Shakespeare" parts 1 & 2.📄 Get the PDF here 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/932.-What-is-so-great-about-Shakespeare-with-Mum-Dad.pdf🔗 Episode page on my website 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/04/21/what-is-so-great-about-shakespeare-with-mum-dad/

This final part of the P67 series is a chance for you to practise your pronunciation by repeating some sentences after me, keeping in mind the features of natural, fluent and clear speech: word stress, sentence stress, connected speech, weak forms, vowel sounds, consonant clusters and intonation. PDF available with every sentence clearly written.📄 Get the PDF in normal text size 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/P67-Part-6-Pronunciation-Practice-_-Shadowing-_-Listen-Repeat.pdf📄 Get the PDF in large text size (for your phone) 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/P67-Part-6-Pronunciation-Practice-_-Shadowing-_-Listen-Repeat-Phone-Version.pdf🎬 Video version 👉 https://youtu.be/LJ3lOtYotis

This episode features a conversation with Zdenek about fears and anxieties experienced in everyday life. We explore common fears such as driving, flying, culture shock, language learning and public speaking, plus vocabulary we use to talk about the subject. Listen for stories of Luke's fear of Paris cafes, airport anxiety, Luke's dramatic scooter ride in Nha Trang, Zdenek's fears of Vietnamese roads and driving, Luke's recent cycling accident in Paris, Zdenek's encounter with a London police officer, nerves about teaching, and more.The accompanying PDF worksheet offers a vocabulary list from the conversation, with definitions, examples, and quizzes and a full transcript to help you boost your English with the episode.📄 Get the PDF here (lucky you - it's very expensive but you can have it completely free) 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/931.-Overcoming-Fears-with-Zdenek.pdf🔗 Episode page on my website 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/04/14/931-overcoming-fears-with-zdenek/⚽️ The Footglish Podcast (Learn English with Football) 👉 https://pod.link/1751816033💬 Zdenek's Discord server "The Achiever's Chamber" 👉 https://teacherzdenek.com/?page_id=2816

P67 continues in part 5 with more natural expressions and idioms with through. Learn how LEP has risen through the ranks over the years, how I feel about my younger days, a story about my sleepy housemate from university days, my dramatic battle with my washing machine (I won through in the end), a possibly worrying phase my son is going through, and how I once disappointed my girlfriend with a bowl of pasta - and learn more useful English in the process! The PDF contains notes, memory test, vocabulary quiz and discussion questions. 📄 Get the PDF in normal text size 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/P67-Part-5-Idioms-Expressions-with-THROUGH-10-19.pdf📄 Get the PDF in large text size (for your phone) 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/P67-Part-5-Idioms-Expressions-with-THROUGH-10-19-Phone-Version.pdf📼 Video version 👉 https://youtu.be/O_YteVTHQMc

This episode is about the bizarre and funny questions that people input into Google. I explore and answer some of these questions, explaining some vocabulary. The result is an engaging and intellectually light-hearted discussion involving the usual mix of rambling, and English teaching. The episode covers a range of topics, from personal health, sex and relationships to broader existential and practical issues, with some diverse and absurd moments. The language style is a mix of informal slang and neutral high-frequency vocabulary related to personal matters and common problems. I hope you enjoy it! PDF available with a full transcript and vocabulary list.📄 Get the episode PDF (transcript, vocabulary list) 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/930.-Can-I-eat-my-cat-other-weird-Google-questions-answered.pdf🔗 Episode page on my website 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/04/07/930-can-i-eat-my-cat-weird-google-questions-answered-topics-vocabulary/🏆 LEP PREMIUM 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/premium

Premium series 67 continues! Sorry about the delay! I was ill with a bad throat and I couldn't record episodes. But I am better now, so here is part 4 of this series. Continuing the theme of vocabulary linked to the word "through", this one covers idioms and expressions which all include this word. Learn about what happens when your plans fall through, why it's never a good idea just to go through the motions, the irritation of having to jump through hoops to get anything done, how some people fall through the cracks, lying through your teeth, being put through your paces in a job interview and when things just slip through your fingers. Includes the usual PDF worksheet with notes, quiz, memory exercise and discussion questions.⚡️📄 Get the PDF in normal text size https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/P67-Part-4-Idioms-Expressions-with-THROUGH.pdf⚡️📄 Get the PDF in large text size (for your phone) https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/P67-Part-4-Idioms-Expressions-with-THROUGH-Phone-Version.pdf📼 Video version https://youtu.be/8TRXd1p7ywY

Sarah Donnelly comes back onto LEP to catch up and to tell us about her stand-up special, now available to watch on YouTube, and to do a British English vs American English pronunciation quiz.Sarah’s show is called The Only American in Paris and we discuss some of the themes of the show - the real experience of being a US citizen living in Paris, the Netflix show Emily in Paris, cultural differences, learning French, plus a pronunciation quiz to help you compare UK and US English.📼 Watch Sarah's stand-up show here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2_N_CRoRz0&ab_channel=SarahDonnelly  @sarahdcomedy 📄 Get the episode PDF with quiz questions and full transcript 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/929.-Sarah-Donnelly_-The-Only-American-In-Paris-US-vs-UK-Accent-Quiz.pdf🔗 Episode page on my website 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/03/31/929-sarah-donnelly-the-only-american-in-paris/🏆 Sign up for LEP Premium 👉 https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premium

Learn English with another short story on Luke's English Podcast. This one is about a learner of English who has an extraordinary experience. Listen to me tell the story, and summarise it, then explain plenty of natural, commonly occurring, up-to-date English vocabulary.Episode page 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/03/24/928-the-abduction-learn-english-with-a-short-story/Get the PDF with transcript and vocabulary notes 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/928.-The-Abduction-Learn-English-with-a-Short-Story-1-1.pdf

Everything you always wanted to know about the word "through" but were afraid to ask (Part 3). Here is the third part in this continuing series focusing on this particular preposition. This time we look at some of the most common noun collocations with this word, revealing plenty of expressive phrases to describe moving through periods of time, difficult experiences, methods of communication, spaces and objects and to describe how things are achieved. The PDF includes memory exercises, self-tests and discussion questions for speaking practice.📄 Get the PDF in normal text size 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/P67-Part-3-Everything-you-always-wanted-to-know-about-the-word-through-but-were-afraid-to-ask.pdf📄 Get the PDF in large text size (for your phone) 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/P67-Part-3-Everything-you-always-wanted-to-know-about-the-word-through-but-were-afraid-to-ask-Phone-Version.pdf📼 Watch the video version 👉 https://youtu.be/GH7LUHSVrUA