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

Talking about words which can be pronounced several ways, words which are often pronounced incorrectly by native speakers and the debates, arguments and frustration that arises between native speakers as a result. Includes the "You Say Tomato..." song and the Grammar Nazi sketch, explained. Transcript & notes available. Vote for LEP in the British Podcast Awards! http://www.britishpodcastawards.com/vote Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8ge italki offer http://teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Talking to fellow English teacher Cara Leopold about advice for using TV shows and films to learn English, both with and without subtitles. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8fB italki offer www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Talking to my ex-colleague Raphael Miller about his new summer school for teenagers + rambling about British social and communication culture, growing up in Liverpool, studying at Oxford University, the famous Star Wars actor Raphael knows and remembering some of the old-fashioned ways we used to describe computers and the internet. Transcripts and links below. 👨‍🎓🌞🇬🇧 www.yourenglishsummer.co.uk Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8ft italki offer www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Usually when I talk to my brother on the podcast we talk about fairly obscure topics, like cult films, musical subcultures or skateboarding, but this time we chose a universal topic; pets. Listen to this conversation to hear James and me remembering the pets we had as children and discussing some issues related to keeping animals as pets.Transcript for the introduction and ending available on the website.Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8f4 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The second part of my chat with Andy Johnson. Listen out for 18 more idioms which will be explained later. Topics include: Twitter abuse, the other Andy Johnson, training for the London Marathon + more. Transcripts and vocabulary definitions available. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8dR italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation with Andy Johnson including loads of idiomatic expressions and their explanations. First you can listen to a rambling chat with Andy and then I'll explain 25 idioms that came up during the conversation. Part 2 coming soon... Transcriptions, Vocabulary list & Definitions available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8dL italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Answering grammar questions from listeners, with details about verb tenses (including present continuous vs present perfect continuous & future continuous vs going to) and the language of newspaper headlines. Includes references to The Queen, The Legend of Zelda and a lot of pizza. Transcriptions & grammar notes available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8cN italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I woke up this morning to the news that Stephen Hawking had died and I thought - I really must talk about this. He was a British scientist who must be considered one of the most significant people of recent years - a brilliant mind who contributed so much to our understanding of the nature of reality itself while also struggling against some extreme personal difficulties and for those reasons he’s a great inspiration to many people around the world. In this episode I’m just going to talk about him, his life, his achievements, his sense of humour and how he will continue to be an inspiration to people for many years to come. Let's learn some English along the way. Vocabulary list available Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8cy italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn English from an anecdote told by Sir Paul McCartney. Let's listen to Paul telling a sweet story about something funny that happened to him and George Harrison when they were teenagers, before they became world famous musicians in The Beatles. Let's listen to his story, do some intensive listening practice and then I'll help you understand everything. Also, let's have a laugh with some funny Paul McCartney impressions. Video and notes available below. Episode page https://teacherluke.co.uk/2018/03/10/516-paul-mccartneys-spider-story/ italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode I'm talking to friends of the podcast Amber Minogue and Sarah Donnelly about the subject of raising children in a foreign country - in this case, France. So this is an episode all about cross-cultural experiences, specifically relating to parenthood. It's also about a new podcast and stage show which Amber & Sarah have just started. Transcriptions, notes and links available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8aE italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode you can hear me chatting to Fred Eyangoh and Alex Quillian and discussing various topics including growing up in different countries, recognising different accents in English, religious backgrounds, movie re-boots, Arnold Shwartzenegger going "nyarrrgh" and more. Fred and Alex are both stand-up comedians living in Paris who perform in English. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8b4 italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A general ramble about things like: dishwasher sounds, online clickbait, updates to the LEP app, my recent appearances on some OPP (other people's podcasts), LEPster meetups and some responses to recent comments on the website. Notes, links & videos available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8bt italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Talking more about my experiences as a student of French, this time reading from notes I took during my French lessons (when I should have been focusing on the class!) and some considerations about learning a language in a classroom and learning on your own. Notes & transcript available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-8ab italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sharing my experiences of learning French (or not learning it). My French and Me - How I learned some French as a child and how I'm failing to learn it properly as an adult. Includes conclusions about language learning, immersion and the importance of motivation, habit and simply applying yourself. Notes & transcriptions available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-81p italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode you can listen to Amber, Paul and me as we take an online quiz and try to find out what school of philosophical thought we belong to. Are we empiricists, epicurianists, existentialists, hedonists, humanists, platonists, skeptics or stoicists? Listen on to find out more and to hear a full-on discussion of life, the universe and everything. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-88T italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk PHILOSOPHY QUIZ LINK - CLICK HERE Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode is all about philosophy and how this applies to language learning. Listen to me describing 8 different 'schools' of philosophical thought. Are hedonists good language learners? How do rationalists and empiricists disagree about how we learn languages? Is language learning an innate ability or just something that can only happen as a result of things we do after we're born? And, how does philosophy answer life's big questions such as, "What's life all about?" "What are we doing here?" and "What shall we have for dinner?" Transcript available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-88S italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn English by listening to Rick Thompson telling some true stories of petty crimes committed in an English town in 1851. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-88W italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Recommendations and descriptions of British comedy TV shows with some comments about how to use comedy TV shows to learn English. Transcript available on the episode page. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-81r italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to readings of "If—" by Rudyard Kipling, a popular poem from England. Includes analysis of the vocabulary and the themes in the poem and also a chance to enjoy the unique voice of Sir Michael Caine - with some funny impressions too. Transcript, vocabulary and videos available on the episode page. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-81n italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcripts and Vocabulary Lists for Episode 505Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-87u italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Continuing to talk about the latest Star Wars film at length, going through the storyline and giving my thoughts on the characters, events and the audience backlash. Transcript available below.Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-87j  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Talking about the new Star Wars film including the audience reaction, English accents you can hear in Star Wars, and a run-through of the plot with my thoughts about the events and characters. Plot spoilers throughout the episode! Transcript available (below).Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-87f italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Talking about the birth of my baby daughter, including accounts of the main events and how it all felt. Listen carefully for descriptive vocabulary for describing emotions and feelings as well as the language of childbirth previously explained in episodes 491 and 492. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-86Q italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas, giving some news and responding to some messages from listeners about vocabulary lists, pronouncing "can't" without sounding rude and more... Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-86o italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Celebrating 500 episodes of LEP with a mega-ramble featuring lots of messages from listeners, expressions of gratitude, a cool announcement for all my listeners, some singing, some talk of becoming a dad, the future of the podcast, Star Wars, and loads of fun and good times. Thank you for listening! italki offer - http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Episode page - https://wp.me/p4IuUx-85J GET THE LEP APP! https://wp.me/P4IuUx-82H Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Celebrating 500 episodes of LEP with a mega-ramble featuring lots of messages from listeners, expressions of gratitude, a cool announcement for all my listeners, some singing, some talk of becoming a dad, the future of the podcast, Star Wars, and loads of fun and good times. Thank you for listening! Parts 1 & 2 are both available on this page. italki offer - http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Episode page - https://wp.me/p4IuUx-85J GET THE LEP APP! https://wp.me/P4IuUx-82H Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Talking to Amber about the UK's Royal Family, including our thoughts on the upcoming wedding between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, some royal gossip & rumours, and also a Royal Family Quiz with questions about the monarchy today and in history. So, expect to hear our thoughts and some facts about this very traitional British institution. Notes available. italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-856 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Talking to my Dad about the current situation with the UK's Brexit negotiations with the EU. Listen to hear explanations of what is going on with Brexit, how Northern Ireland is involved, what motivates Brexiters and some comments about other bits of international news - all delivered by my Dad with his clear and coherent English. Notes and transcriptions available. italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-85g Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Talking about a classic British film which not many learners of English know about. Listen for explanations of the film, its appeal, descriptions of the characters and events, the type of people who like the film and a few bits of dialogue too. Notes and videos available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-84m italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rambling about life, learning English, Star Wars, screwing up paper into a ball and more... Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-84F italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Discussing stereotypes and cliches about Australia with podcaster Oliver Gee who comes from a land down under. Learn about Australian English, Aussie accent, Aussie slang and exactly what you should say whenever you meet a true blue Aussie, mate! Vocabulary list available. Hooroo. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-84d Spoken offer http://www.getspoken.com/lep Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Testing my Dad on his knowledge of English, using words that are frequently confused by native English speakers. Will my dad be able to identify the words, spell them and explain the differences? Listen to learn 20 words and phrases which native English speakers often get wrong. You will also hear Dad and me discussing topics such as catching a squirrel, what he would say to Donald Trump and Paul McCartney if he met them, stories of police drug busts at university, how my dad would deal with a zombie apocalypse, and which one is worse - Brexit or Yoko Ono's 'singing'? Vocabulary list with definitions and examples available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-82g italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Amber and Paul are back on the podcast as we catch up with their recent news and the conversation goes off on many tangents covering subjects such as: pollution and fog in Paris, a possible new word - 'pog', other potential new words of the year, Harvey Weinstein, wanking in the office, 'human pollution in the swimming pool', Paul's recent showbiz news, seeing The Rolling Stones on stage and a slightly worrying email from a LEPster. Includes a cameo appearance by young Hugo, saying his first words on the podcast. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-83f Spoken offer http://www.getspoken.com/lep Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The second part of this conversation with Andy Johnson and Ben Butler, and we talk about the moment of childbirth and take a quiz about becoming a father. Vocabulary is explained in the second part of the episode. Vocabulary list available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-83a italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation and vocabulary lesson about childbirth and becoming a father, with Andy Johnson and Ben Butler from The London School of English. Listen to Andy and Ben talking about their experiences of becoming parents, how their babies were born and more. Vocabulary is explained in the second half of the episode. Vocabulary list available. Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-838 italki offer http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello! In this episode of the podcast I am talking to Martin Johnston and his mate Dan The Man from the Rock n Roll English Podcast and we're going to teach you some phrasal verbs and other expressions relating to friendship, while also putting their friendship to the test. Martin and Dan are lifelong friends. They know each other very well but they spend a lot of their time bickering and getting at each other. What's going on in this friendship? Do they really like each other or not? Let's find out in this episode and you can learn lots of vocabulary while we're doing it. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-820 italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Here's part 2 of this conversation with my Mum in which you can hear us wittering on about the bookshop where Mum works, some of the books she's read recently, and some of her podcast and film recommendations. Vocabulary is explained at the end, and there's a vocabulary list with definitions available. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-81N italki offer: http://teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation with my (lovely) mum in which we generally witter on about a number of different things including some British history, ways of describing rain, different expressions for talking (like rambling and wittering), my mum's accent, what she thinks of this podcast and some of her podcast recommendations. Vocabulary is explained after the conversation and there is a vocabulary list available. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-81a italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation about travelling and learning languages with Ethan from RealLife English. Ethan is very well-travelled, having lived in at least 6 different countries. He's also learned a few different languages to a good level as an adult. Let's talk about his advice for adapting to new cultures and learning languages in adulthood. Vocabulary notes and language test available below. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-800 Spoken offer: http://www.getspoken.com/lep Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With this one you can continue to listen to Paul Taylor and me discussing the tricky relationship between spelling and pronunciation. There are lots of jokes, impressions, funny accents and useful comments about this important area of the English language. Use this episode to avoid some very common mistakes in English pronunciation, and try not to laugh on the bus while you're listening! Check the episode page for word lists, transcriptions and my video of 40+ difficult words to pronounce in English. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7Z6 italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to Paul Taylor and me discussing the tricky relationship between spelling and pronunciation. There are lots of jokes, impressions, funny accents and useful comments about this important area of the English language. Use this episode to avoid some very common mistakes in English pronunciation, and try not to laugh on the bus while you're listening! Check the episode page for word lists, transcriptions and my video of 40+ difficult words to pronounce in English. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7Z6 italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation with Paul Taylor involving several cups of tea, recipes for French crepes, our terrible rap skills, a funny old comedy song about English workmen drinking tea, some improvised comedy role plays and a very angry Paul ranting about bad customer service in France! Your challenge is to listen to this episode in public without laughing out loud, especially in the second half of the episode. Good luck, may the force be with you. Vocabulary list, song lyrics, definitions and a quiz available (link below). Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7Zb Spoken offer: http://www.getspoken.com/lep Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The second part of my conversation with my friend Moz, this time covering subjects such as podcasting vs YouTube, bathing naked in a Japanese spa, sharing personal information online (like a story of bathing naked in a Japanese spa), the role of artificial intelligence & social media, murdering mosquitoes and meeting a crack addict on the streets of London. Vocabulary list and quiz available. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7Yo italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

My friend Moz, who runs a murder-themed tour company in London, is back on the podcast to talk about some more creepy stories of crimes from London's history and his new podcast. Vocabulary list available on the website. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7Yh italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The final part of the holiday diary series. This one is about visiting the Navajo Nation, meeting some Navajo people, seeing more natural wonders at Monument Valley and The Grand Canyon, a couple of film recommendations our experience of the solar eclipse and a few more anecdotes about the rest of our road trip. Transcript + more on the episode page. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7WS Spoken voice calls: http://www.getspoken.com/lep Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode I'm going to continue telling you stories of my recent holiday and there will be descriptions of impressive rocky landscapes, a sort of geology lesson and a brief history of planet earth. Expect plenty of solid descriptive chunks of vocabulary as this holiday diary continues. Spoken calls: http://www.getspoken.com/lep Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7Wc Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode includes anecdotes and descriptions of our short visit to Las Vegas, including stories of more rental car issues, Las Vegas craziness, winning and losing $$$ and 11 common English idioms that come from the world of gambling. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7W2 italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More thoughts and comments inspired by things that happened during my recent holiday. In this one I'm discussing stories about the Church of Scientology and the claims that it is a cult. Listen to find out what happened in this part of my trip. Check the episode page for the vocabulary list with definitions. Episode page: https://teacherluke.co.uk/2017/09/12/478-holiday-diary-part-5-an-encounter-with-the-church-of-scientology/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The holiday diary continues and in this chapter we visited Bel Air in L.A. and so here is an analysis of the lyrics to Will Smith's rap from "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air", a famous TV show (and a very serious piece of work, haha) from the 90s which was set in Bel Air itself. Topics covered: TV pop culture, racial politics, slang English. Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7V2 italki offer: http://www.teacherluke.co.uk/talk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode I talk about visiting the fantastic Griffith Observatory and then ramble about Astronomy vs Astrology and ludicrous flat earth conspiracy theories. Includes various bits of vocabulary throughout the episode. Spoken offer: http://www.getspoken.com/lep Episode page: https://wp.me/p4IuUx-7UR Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.