545. The Hitchhiker by Roald Dahl (Short Story)

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 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

6 Apr 1h 36min

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 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

31 Mar 1h 21min

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 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

24 Mar 1h 52min

Finally, it's here - the medieval museum episode with Amber & Paul. Join us as we visit the museum of the middle ages in Paris. Learn about the history of the middle ages, find out about some of the art and artefacts from that period, including some fantastic symbolic tapestries, sculptures and weapons, and have fun with a few jokes along the way.Episode page 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/03/17/927-walk-talk-medieval-museum-with-amber-paul-kyle/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

17 Mar 1h 35min

The other day I was thinking about how podcasts must be good for your mental health, and how this could be connected to the tradition of collective oral communication which was the first form of mass media in most human civilisations, and how this has been central to human psychological and cultural development over the years. So, I made this podcast episode about it. Expect discussion of culture, history, psychology and communication, with plenty of vocabulary explained. Detailed PDF available.Get the PDF 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/926.-Oral-Storytelling-Traditions-and-the-Mental-Health-Benefits-of-Listening-to-Podcasts.pdfEpisode page 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/03/11/926-oral-storytelling-traditions-and-the-mental-health-benefits-of-listening-to-podcasts/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

11 Mar 2h 3min

When Walaa was first on this podcast in episode 703 she talked about living in Syria as a student during the civil war (or people’s revolution) but at that time she felt she could not talk in detail about the situation. Now that the Assad regime is no longer in control of Syria, Walaa feels she can talk more candidly about what it was like to live near Damascus during those days. Walaa’s descriptions are both shocking and moving. This is the topic of this episode, which is part 2 of a two-part series.👉 Episode page on my website https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/03/06/925-walaas-experience-in-syria-walaa-mouma-returns-part-2/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

6 Mar 53min

Walaa Mouma returns to the podcast after 4 years to give us an update about her academic studies and personal story, including getting married and moving to Wales, details of her PhD doctorate, as well as her other studies and volunteer work helping to teach English to refugees and asylum seekers. Walaa's passion for this work is inspired by her own personal story of learning English, seeking asylum in the UK and studying in the UK's academic system, which she first talked about in episode 703 of this podcast. Part 1 of a 2-part episode.Episode page with more information and links to Walaa's social media 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/03/03/924-walaa-mouma-returns-part-1-phd-studies-in-wales-teaching-english-for-refugees/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

3 Mar 1h 18min

A rambling episode full of spontaneous speaking from me to you. Topics include; an exercise for you to practise your spoken fluency 🗣️, the benefits of extensive listening to spontaneous speech 🎧, overcoming mental blocks 🌳, the English of my daughter and raising our kids to be bilingual 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦, some reactions to recent episodes 🙉, some thoughts about upcoming content 🔮, some bird-related idioms 🐦, the phrasal verb "to follow through" including its rude meaning 💩 ...and more! PDF transcript available.Episode page 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2025/02/23/923-a-rambling-exercise-for-fluency-late-winter-2025/Get the PDF transcript 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/923.-A-Rambling-Exercise-for-Fluency-_-Late-Winter-2025-Transcript.pdfLEP Premium info ℹ️ https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

23 Feb 1h 19min