听播客学英语 87 我想跳舞

 　　I am sorry that there was no podcast last week. It was half-term week, the week in the middle of the school term when the children have a holiday. We went to Dorset, on the south coast of England, to visit my mother-in -law, so there was no time to make a podcast.

　　Today, I want to tell you about a TV programme which is very popular in England at present, and to introduce you to the word “celebrity¹”. I shall also reveal to you a secret ambition that I have!

　　The TV programme is called Strictly² Come Dancing. It is, as you can guess, about dancing. But not any old sort of dancing. Strictly Come Dancing is about ballroom³ dancing. That means dances like the waltz, the quickstep and the tango – the old-fashioned sort of dancing, in other words, where men and women dance as couples, and the women wear long dresses and the men wear dinner jackets. If you still don’t understand what I mean, have a look at the Strictly Come Dancing website, where you will find lots of photos and videos.

　　Strictly Come Dancing is a competition. Every Saturday evening, the couples perform their dances, and a group of judges give them points out of 10. Then the viewers are able to vote by telephone for the couple they think is best. The judges’ points, and the viewers’ votes are then combined, and on Sunday evening we hear the result. The two couples with the lowest score have to dance again, and the judges decide which of them can stay and which of them has to leave the programme. It is all very exciting. My teenage daughter, and her grandmother, watch every week, along with about half the rest of the population of England.

　　All the people whom the BBC invites as contestants⁴ in Strictly Come Dancing are “celebrities⁵”. “Celebrities” means people like pop singers, actors, sportsmen or women, and TV presenters⁶. They are people you may have seen on television, in a soap opera perhaps or on a sports programme. A lot of popular culture nowdays is about “celebrities”. There are, for instance, magazines which contain nothing except news about celebrities – who is dating whom, who is getting married, who is getting divorced, what clothes they wear and which night-clubs they go to. Perhaps it is the same in your country. Clearly, celebrities leave magic lives – they are not ordinary people like you or me.

　　In the present series of Strictly Come Dancing, for example, there are three sports stars, two pop singers, several stars from soap operas, a TV chef and couple of models. There is also my favourite, the incomparably lovely actress Cherie Lunghi (vote for Cherie, everyone!), and a well-known television journalist called John Sergeant⁷. John Sergeant dances like a baby elephant. The judges give him low scores, but the viewers love him, so he has stayed on the programme.

　　Why is Strictly Come Dancing so popular? There are several reasons, I think. It is glamorous⁸ – people love lavish⁹ costumes and beautiful music. It is about people whom we think we know. We have seen them on TV. Their faces are familiar. They have never seen us or spoken to us, of course, but we think we know them, and know what they are like. Also, Strictly Come Dancing is a competition – there are winners and losers, and we as viewers are able to vote. And finally, we all secretly think that we could dance like that too – all it needs is a bit of training and a bit of practice.

　　My secret ambition is to be on Strictly Come Dancing. I think I would be very good. I would dance elegantly¹⁰ with a beautiful lady partner and the judges would all say how wonderful I am. The viewers would think so too, and they would all vote for me. The trouble is, you need to be a celebrity to get on to Strictly Come Dancing and I am not a celebrity. How can I become a celebrity? I have looked at the job advertisements in the newspaper. There are lots of jobs for plumbers¹¹ and HGV drivers, but none for celebrities, not even for “junior celebrities” or “trainee celebrities”. Maybe, just maybe, the BBC would let me on the programme as a celebrity podcaster. Perhaps if you all sent e-mails to the BBC ... Oh, never mind. It is just a dream!

1 celebrity   

n.名人，名流；著名，名声，名望

参考例句：

• Tom found himself something of a celebrity. 汤姆意识到自己已小有名气了。
• He haunted famous men, hoping to get celebrity for himself. 他常和名人在一起, 希望借此使自己获得名气。

2 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

3 ballroom   

n.舞厅

参考例句：

• The boss of the ballroom excused them the fee.舞厅老板给他们免费。
• I go ballroom dancing twice a week.我一个星期跳两次交际舞。

4 contestants   

n.竞争者，参赛者( contestant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The competition attracted over 500 contestants representing 8 different countries. 这次比赛吸引了代表8个不同国家的500多名参赛者。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency. 两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 celebrities   

n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉

参考例句：

• He only invited A-list celebrities to his parties. 他只邀请头等名流参加他的聚会。
• a TV chat show full of B-list celebrities 由众多二流人物参加的电视访谈节目

6 presenters   

n.节目主持人，演播员( presenter的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Each week presenters would put the case for their favourite candidate. 每个星期主持人推出他们最喜欢的候选人。 来自互联网
• Karaoke was set up to allowed presenters to sing on the stage. 宴会设有歌唱舞台，可让出席者大演唱功。 来自互联网

7 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

8 glamorous   

adj.富有魅力的；美丽动人的；令人向往的

参考例句：

• The south coast is less glamorous but full of clean and attractive hotels.南海岸魅力稍逊，但却有很多干净漂亮的宾馆。
• It is hard work and not a glamorous job as portrayed by the media.这是份苦差，并非像媒体描绘的那般令人向往。

9 lavish   

adj.无节制的；浪费的；vt.慷慨地给予，挥霍

参考例句：

• He despised people who were lavish with their praises.他看不起那些阿谀奉承的人。
• The sets and costumes are lavish.布景和服装极尽奢华。

10 elegantly   

adv.优美地，雅致地，高雅地

参考例句：

• She turned on her elegantly shod heel. 她突然转身，迈开穿着雅致的皮鞋的双脚离去了。
• Susan always dresses very elegantly. 苏珊总是穿得很雅致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 plumbers   

n.管子工，水暖工( plumber的名词复数 )；[美][口]（防止泄密的）堵漏人员

参考例句：

• Plumbers charge by the hour for their work. 水管工人的工作是以小时收费的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Plumbers, carpenters, and other workmen finished the new house quickly. 管道工、木工及其他工匠很快完成了这幢新房子。 来自辞典例句