1.

A: Good afternoon. How can I help you?

B: I have a reservation for five nights.

A: What’s your name?

B: Wayne Roberts.

A: How do you spell your first name?

B: W-A-Y-N-E. A Just a moment.

2.

C: So, the sofa is £899.99 in total. What’s the address for delivery? Is it a London address?

D: Yes, it’s in south London.

C: What’s the postcode?

D: It’s SE21 8GP.

C: And the address is …?

D: 14 Dangerford Road, flat 2. That’s in Forest Hill, London.

3.

E: Welcome to our mobile phone helpline. Please say the number of the mobile phone you have a problem with.

F: 07700 987782.

4.

G: Now, every Friday I’m going to give you some writing to do for homework at the weekend. You can either give it to me in class on the Monday, or you can send it to me by email. I’m going to give you my email, address and I’d like you to write it down. OK? It’s jvine64@kings.co.uk.

H: Can you repeat that, please?

G: Yes jvine64@kings.co.uk. OK, now I’m going to write it on the board for you. Did you get 1t right? … Well done. Remember, this symbol is called ‘at’ in English, and this one is ‘dot’.

5.

I: Good evening.

J: Hi. We have a table booked for 7.30.

I: Yes, madam. What name please?

J: Ann Rathbone. R-A-T-H-B-O-N-E.

I: Ah, yes, here we are. Can you come this way please?

6.

K: OK Susannah, that’s great. Here’s your student card. Your classes start on Monday at 9 a.m. Now, the classes are not here in the main school, but in a different building.

L: Oh?

K: But it’s very near, just five minutes’ walk from here, in Russell Street.

L: Sorry, what’s the address?

K: It’s 16 Russell Street. That’s R – U – double S – E – double L. Let me show you on the map.

L: Thank you.

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My name’s Elspeth. I’m 25, I’m a journalist, I live in Dublin, and I’m single. It’s not easy to meet people here. So, who can help me? My mother… and a dating app. My favourite dating app, called Tinder, shows you photos of possible partners with a bit of information about them. You look at the photos and swipe, swipe, swipe. Swipe right if you like them, and swipe left… well… swipe left if you don’t. If a guy likes you and you like him, you have a match. Then you can start messaging the person and from this, romance follows… or so they say. I’ve tried it, but with no success. So I decide to give my mother my phone. She can swipe all the men she likes, and then look at my matches and choose the people that she likes the best. I’ve promised to go on a date with the men she chooses.

Date 1

My first date is with a nice guy called John. I sit at a table in a bar and wait for him to arrive. An old man walks towards the table, and for two awful seconds I think it’s all a terrible mistake, but he walks past and then my date arrives. He’s very tall, 1.90. Well done, Mum! I’m tall myself, so I always look for tall men, as my mum knows well. We start chatting, and it’s all very easy. Mum has good taste. He’s a teacher. We get on well and it’s a fun date, but sadly there isn’t a spark. So I try again.

Date 2

I arrive a bit early again, and I sit there waiting for Sebastian to arrive. Suddenly I realize that I can’t remember anything at all about him, not even where he’s from. Then he comes through the door: tall, dark, and handsome. ‘Mum, you’re amazing’, I say to myself. He’s from Germany, but he lives in Dublin. He’s a real gentleman. At the end of the evening, he asks for a second date. Mum is very pleased. I agree to the date, but I don’t really think it’s going to work.

Date 3

Date number three is George. He suggests a bar on South William Street. I arrive early I’m definitely the most punctual person in the world. I stand outside, very confused: the bar is closed. For a moment I think Mum has finally got it wrong. But a few minutes later he arrives -he just didn’t know the bar was closed. We go somewhere else and start chatting. He tells me he works in IT and is from just outside Dublin. This guy is great fun. He’s very relaxed and interesting -he’s travelled a lot. He tells a lot of funny stories. It’s all going well, and tm getting very enthusiastic, when my phone pings.