Outcomes Advanced p 8. Berlin. Extra Listening

'50 ''40

Berlin

Listen to a BBC documentary about Berlin and fill in the gaps with a word or phrase.

1. Every June West Berlin is home to the Film Festival with its ____________

2. In 1961 the Berlin Wall was built to ___________________________ heading West.

3. Berlin had spent centuries behaving like a _________________ of two sides, now it had literally become one.

4. Both the East and West could access each other’s television and radio and waged a battle of words ________________Berlin

5. For the East Germans, the Western sector ____________________.

6. In response to what they saw as the ______________________ of the west, Communist government in East Berlin resurrected a feudal icon of Prussia’s past, Frederick the Great.

7. The Communist regime now saw Frederick the Great as a great example of tolerance, of compassion and of ____________________________.

8. Frederick the Great: “justice must be the main responsibility _____________.

9. Frederick had always wished for ________________ on the hill at Sanssouci, next to his beloved dogs.

10. Love him and ____________ him, even from his self-effacing grave.

KEY

1. glamorous stars.
2. Stem the haemorrhage of refugees.
3. schizophrenic city
4. in the ether above Berlin
5. had ceased to exist
6. relentless Americanisation
7. enlightened thought
8. of a sovereign
9. a simple burial
10. loathe

Stem: to stop sth that is flowing from spreading or increasing. E.g. “The cut was bandaged to stem the bleeding”

Haemorrhage: (of sb/sth) a serious loss of people, money, etc. from a country, a group or an organization: e.g. “Poor working conditions have led to a steady haemorrhage of qualified teachers from our schools”.

Schizophrenic: frequently changing your mind about sth or holding opinions about sth that seem to oppose each other

Wage sth (against / on sb/sth): to begin and continue a war, a battle, etc.

The ether: the air, when it is thought of as the place in which radio or electronic communication takes place

Relentless: not stopping or getting less strong (incesante)

Perch: a high seat or position:
“He watched the game from his precarious perch on top of the wall” (posición elevada).

Enlightened: having or showing an understanding of people’s needs, a situation, etc. that is not based on old-fashioned attitudes and prejudice:
“enlightened opinions / attitudes / ideas” (progresista)

Goose-step: a way of marching, used by soldiers in some countries, in which the legs are raised high and straight (paso de ganso)

Beleaguered: surrounded by an enemy (sitiado)

Self-effacing: not wanting to attract attention to yourself or your abilities (modest)