Dan: Hello, I'm Dan.
Rob: And I'm Rob.
Dan: And this is 6 Minute English from the BBC. Last week Alice and I were
talking about shopping malls or shopping centres – the large buildings which
contain lots of shops and restaurants. And this week Rob and I are talking
about shopping centres! So Rob, do you like shopping?
Rob: I like quick shopping. I like going in, finding what I want and coming out
again.
Dan: You don't like hanging around and seeing the shopping centre?
Rob: No, I don't. Get out quick.
Dan: Well, we spoke to people in shopping centres in London about what they liked
about shopping centres. But before we hear from them Rob, I have this week's
question for you. The Bullring in Birmingham is the UK's busiest shopping
centre, but how many people, on average, visit the Bullring each year? Is it:
a) 27 million
b) 37 million
c) 47 million
Rob: I know shopping is very popular so I'll go for 47 million.
Dan: OK, we'll see if you're right at the end of the programme. Now there are a lot
of shopping centres in the UK, and we went to the Canary Wharf Shopping
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Complex in East London to talk to some of the shoppers about what they like
or dislike about shopping centres. One man compares the experiences of
shopping centres with shopping at boutiques on a local high street.
Rob: The high street is the main shopping street in a town or area; in America they
call it 'main street'. And a boutique is a small shop, which usually specialises
in fashionable items.
Dan: So let's listen to the speaker as he compares shopping in a local high street and
a shopping centre; what does he say is the advantage of going to a big
shopping centre?
I love the choice in a big shopping centre; I don't think it replaces localised shopping so a
nice boutique in a local high street I think always has a place. But that said if you want a
good deal, a good discount, a good sale I think you need to go to a big shopping centre
really.
Dan: So the shopper there said he liked the choice of a big shopping centre. It's the
place to go if you want a good deal, a good discount or a good sale.
Rob: A discount is a reduced price – it's when something costs less than normal. A
good deal means the same – it's when you buy something for a good price.
Dan: We have a clip here from another shopper describing shopping centres in the
UK. She says they're quite vast and open and have a massive variety of shops.
Rob: Both vast and massive mean very large. So there's a massive variety of shops
in the shopping centres.
Dan: So let's listen to the clip. What types of restaurant can you find in British
shopping centres?
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Shopping centres are usually quite vast and open and full of a massive variety of shops but
they're quite standard. So each shopping centre tends to have exactly the same basic shops
that you come to expect. You sort of tend to get the same standard restaurants and food
outlets as well in shopping centres, so either fast food or slightly more upmarket
restaurants.
Dan: She says you get the same standard restaurants in a British shopping centre:
either fast food or more upmarket restaurants.
Rob: Fast food is what we call anything that can be served and eaten quickly, often
from restaurant chains, such as McDonalds, Burger King or Subway.
Dan: And what about the upmarket restaurants?
Rob: Upmarket means something of high quality that generally appeals to people
from higher social classes. The opposite is downmarket.
Dan: Of course, not everyone likes shopping centres. Some people say they find
them too crowded.
Rob: Mm, crowded, when there are too many people. I agree, particularly at
weekends or during the holidays when there are lots of people, a lot of these
shopping centres are far too crowded to shop, or walk, or even move!
Dan: Rob, we're almost at the end of the programme, so let's go back to today's
question. The Bullring in Birmingham is the UK's busiest shopping centre, but
how many people visit the Bullring, on average, every year? Is it:
a) 27 million
b) 37 million
c) 47 million
Rob: And I said 47 million, am I right?
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Dan: No! You are not, I am afraid. In fact the Bullring gets around 37 million
visitors every year. Europe's largest shopping centre, the Westfield Shopping
centre in West London, attracts around 25 million shoppers every year, and in
just a few months, a new Westfield shopping complex is opening in East
London, next to the Olympic site, which may attract even more visitors. So the
Brits clearly love to shop, even in these tough economic times.
Anyway, Rob, before we go, I was wondering if you could just remind us of
some of the vocabulary we've heard in today's programme.
Rob: OK, we had:
Boutique
High street or main street
Discount
A good deal
Vast
Fast food
Upmarket
Downmarket
Crowded
Dan: Thanks, Rob. Why don't you get in touch with us and tell us your favourite
place to shop. Do you prefer the big shopping centres or the boutiques on the
high street? Do you prefer upmarket venues or downmarket ones?
Are shopping centres near you too crowded? And where can you go to find the
best discounts or deals?
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Rob: We would love to know. So, let us know at learningenglish@bbc.co.uk or
leave a message on the BBC Learning English Facebook page.
Dan: See you next time!
Both: Bye!
