英语听力精选进阶版 7869

Andrea: Hey Feifei, here's a joke for you.

Feifei: Oh no Andrea. I hope it's better than the last time you told me a joke.

Andrea: Well... what's brown and sticky¹?

Feifei: Erm. 我实在是不想去想一个棕色的，粘糊糊的东西。但是什么东西是棕色的、粘糊糊的呢？

Andrea: A stick.

Feifei: A stick 一根拐杖。Hmmm. 我明白你的这个笑话了，不过我不觉得怎么好笑。

Andrea: Hello, I'm Andrea and this is On the Town.

Feifei: 大家好，我是冯菲菲。英国有很多名胜古迹，玩的东西也不少。但是一个长久不衰、备受欢迎的传统就是 stand-up comedy 单人滑稽喜剧表演。

Andrea: Yes, across Britain there are hundreds of comedy clubs. These are places where people love to go to have a few drinks and a few laughs.

Feifei: To have a few laughs 笑一笑，轻松一下。

Andrea: Noel Faulkner is a stand-up comic and has been running the Comedy Café in London for the last 21 years. But what exactly is stand-up comedy? Let's listen to Noel.

Stand-up is basically² where one person, man or woman, stands on stage and tells funny stories about what's going on in their life, or funny people or funny things that happened to them: getting on the bus to work or how smelly people are on the bus. They talk about their wives, their marriages, relationships.

Feifei: 喜剧演员 Noel Faulkner 说单人戏剧滑稽表演就是一个男人或女人自己站在台上，给大家重述真实好玩儿的故事。

Andrea: Another word for stories is 'anecdotes³'. Stand-up comedians⁵ love to tell funny stories or anecdotes about anything - from getting on the bus, to stories about their wives or husbands.

Feifei: 当然大家之所以能捧腹大笑，是因为这些好玩的故事都是真实发生过的事情。不过总能让观众笑声不断确实不是件容易的事儿！

Andrea: I know! Here's what Noel has to say about that.

Anybody can be funny when it just happens because then everybody's on your side. But to walk up to a group of people and to say 'I'm going to be funny, say sit down, shut up' – it takes an awful lot.

Feifei: Noel 说任何一个人跟朋友在一起的时候都可以很随性的、即兴的讲个笑话。Anyone can be funny.

Andrea: That's because everyone's on your side.

Feifei: They're on your side 大家都在支持你。

Andrea: But it's really hard to make a group of strangers sit down and listen. Noel says that it takes an awful lot. He means it's really very difficult. It takes an awful lot.

Feifei: It's definitely⁶ not something that I would want to do! How about you, Andrea?

Andrea: No way! But on the other hand, it can be fantastic being a stand-up comic.

When you do a show to 100 or 200 people, when you come off stage you're on such a high because they love you. They've laughed at everything you said. You are the greatest person in the world to them. Every time you click your fingers, move your head they're laughing. So it's an incredibly powerful position.

Feifei: Noel said you're on such a high 这是一个非正式表达，意思是你非常亢奋，也很高兴。

Andrea: Yes, stand up comedians are on a high when they come off stage. And they feel very powerful because you just click your fingers or move your head and people laugh.

Feifei: 短语 'to click your fingers' 可以用来形容一个有权力或能力的人。一个人只需要两个手指一碰，所有人都按这个人说的做。

Andrea: But comedians don't always come off the stage on a high...

When it all goes horribly wrong, the room just goes quiet and people stare at you, and one drunk⁷ person is shouting at you, swearing at you and it all just goes off the rails. And you just have to get off stage. That is the rule. And it feels like the whole world's had a meeting and they've all agreed that you're a loser. It's a horrible, horrible feeling.

Andrea: Noel talks about 'it all going off the rails'.

Feifei: 短语 to go off the rails 的意思是一辆火车脱轨。Noel 用这个短语想表达一件事情没有像预期一样顺利进行，出了差错 to go off the rails.

Andrea: When it all just goes off the rails the only thing a stand-up comedian⁴ can do is get off the stage quickly. They feel like a loser.

Feifei: Not nice at all. 不过英国有很多著名的单人滑稽喜剧表演家。

Andrea: Billy Connelly.

Feifei: The two Ronnies.

Andrea: And more recently people like Michael MacIntyre and Jimmy Carr. It seems that however hard it may be, stand-up comedy and its clubs will continue to remain a tradition in Britain.

Feifei: 如果你也想成为一名单人滑稽喜剧表演家，那就请注意听下面 Noel 给大家的重要贴士！

You need to try some jokes out on your friends. Sit down and write them out. And then you need an audience. An audience can be any meeting of a group of people, where you can persuade the people that are putting the meeting on that this man wants to stand up and do five minutes worth of jokes.

Andrea: So you need to try out some jokes on friends. Practise, practise, practise.

Feifei: 把你要讲的故事先写下来。

Andrea: You need an audience. This could be any group of people.

Feifei: An audience 观众是非常重要的。

Andrea: So do you think I could have a future as a stand-up comic, Feifei?

Feifei: Er... I'm not sure, Andrea… 不过要坚持练习！感谢收听，我们下次再会。Bye!

Andrea: Bye!

1 sticky   

adj.粘的，闷热的，困难的，令人不满意的

参考例句：

• This paste is not sticky enough.这糨糊不黏。
• Here is a sticky business!这事真难办！

2 basically   

adv.基本上，从根本上说

参考例句：

• His heart is basically sound.他的心脏基本上健康。
• Basically I agree with your plan.我基本上同意你的计划。

3 anecdotes   

n.掌故，趣闻，轶事( anecdote的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• amusing anecdotes about his brief career as an actor 关于他短暂演员生涯的趣闻逸事
• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman. 他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 comedian   

n.喜剧演员；滑稽演员

参考例句：

• The comedian tickled the crowd with his jokes.喜剧演员的笑话把人们逗乐了。
• The comedian enjoyed great popularity during the 30's.那位喜剧演员在三十年代非常走红。

5 comedians   

n.喜剧演员，丑角( comedian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The voice was rich, lordly, Harvardish, like all the boring radio comedians'imitations. 声音浑厚、威严，俨然是哈佛出身的气派，就跟无线电里所有的滑稽演员叫人已经听腻的模仿完全一样。 来自辞典例句
• He distracted them by joking and imitating movie and radio comedians. 他用开玩笑的方法或者模仿电影及广播中的滑稽演员来对付他们。 来自辞典例句

6 definitely   

adv.一定地，肯定地；明确地，确切地

参考例句：

• The team will definitely lose if he doesn't play.如果他不参加比赛，这个队肯定会输。
• I shall definitely be home before six o'clock.6点以前，我一定回家。

7 drunk   

adj.醉酒的；(喻)陶醉的；n.酗酒者，醉汉

参考例句：

• People who drives when they are drunk should be heavily penalised.醉酒驾车的人应受重罚。
• She found him drunk when she came home at night.她晚上回家时，经常发现他醉醺醺的。