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Martin Luther King Day

Martin Luther King Day

Who was Martin Luther King Jr. in 500 words. Martin Luther King Jr, born 15th January 1929, was an American  Baptist  minister and activist who became the most well-known leader of the American civil rights movement in the 1950s and 60s. Born Michael King Jr, his...

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Cheer up, Today is Blue Monday

Cheer up, Today is Blue Monday

Cheer up, Today is Blue Monday Cheer up, today is Blue Monday, and according to experts, it could be most depressing ever because of celebrity deaths, Brexit, and fears about a Donald Trump presidency in the US, and the weather. In 2005 Dr Cliff Arnall, formerly of...

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David Bowie The Last Five Years

David Bowie The Last Five Years

David Bowie The Last Five Years Today would have been the 70th birthday of David Bowie. Most people do not need a lengthy introduction to the artist, actor and musician, famous for 5 decades of inspirational music that has influenced so many people in so many ways....

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The Tradition of Epiphany in France

The Tradition of Epiphany in France

The Tradition of Epiphany in France Epiphany, or the 12th day of Christmas, falls on January 6 and marks the official end to the festive season for many Christians. The ancient Christian feast day is significant as a celebration of the baptism of Jesus by John the...

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2016 The Good The Bad and The Ugly

2016 The Good The Bad and The Ugly

2016 The Good The Bad and The Ugly 2016 The Good The Bad and The Ugly - a montage of many of the biggest events that shaped the previous year. Loss, Success, Division and Achievement: it’s been a mixed year! Check out this video review of the year edited in the style...

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3 Christmas Traditions Explained

3 Christmas Traditions Explained

3 Christmas Traditions Explained 3 Christmas Traditions Explained - why do we put up Christmas trees and lights and where did the tradition come from? Where did the idea of giving presents and gifts at Christmas come from? Why do we use mistletoe in our decorations at...

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News Intro Compilation Europe 2016

News Intro Compilation Europe 2016

News Intro Compilation Europe 2016 This is how some of the different European countries see the start of their news programmes. If you are a teacher, why not get your class to make their own news intro and we will post it here on EFLPodBlog and on our Facebook page....

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How to Make pop-up Christmas Cards

How to Make pop-up Christmas Cards

How to Make pop-up Christmas Cards How to Make pop-up Christmas Cards that are easy to make and look good too. Make easy yet stunning Christmas greeting cards at home. After all, nothing can beat the charm of elegant homemade Christmas cards. You do not need to be...

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Buster The Boxer Christmas Ad

Buster The Boxer Christmas Ad

Buster The Boxer Christmas Ad Buster the Boxer Christmas Ad is the story of a little girl called Bridget who loves to bounce. When her mum and dad buy her a trampoline for Christmas, they soon discover that she isn’t the only one with a passion for jumping Love them...

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Top 10 Most Intelligent People of The World

Top 10 Most Intelligent People of The World

Top 10 Most Intelligent People of The World Top 10 Most Intelligent People of The World are not surprisingly closely linked to the fields of mathematics and physics. So who are the Top 10 Most Intelligent People of The World? There are a lot of intelligent people all...

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President Obama’s Final Turkey Pardon

President Obama’s Final Turkey Pardon

President Obama's Final Turkey Pardon Tomorrow is one of the best days of the year to be an American. It’s a day to count our blessings, spend time with the ones we love, and enjoy some good food and some great company. But it’s also one of the worst days of the year...

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Paralympic Sports Rio 2016

Paralympic Sports Rio 2016

  Paralympic Sports Rio 2016 Paralympic Sports Rio 2016 - The Rio Olympics are over ... or are they? Well, no, they are not - the Paralympics Sports start in Rio from 7 to 18 September 2016. Get ready for the intense excitement of 23 Paralympic sports. 528 events...

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Great Olympic Moments

Great Olympic Moments

Great Olympic Moments Few events have the ability to capture the public’s imagination like the Olympic Games. Each Games seems to produce flashbulb moments that live in our collective memory for years. From Jesse Owens’ triumph in Germany to Mo Farah's historic runs...

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Comparing Jesse Owens and Usain Bolt

Comparing Jesse Owens and Usain Bolt

Comparing Jesse Owens and Usain Bolt Comparing Jesse Owens and Usain Bolt - In David Epstein's 2014 Ted Talk, he put Owens' race time into perspective. "Consider that Usain Bolt started by propelling himself out of blocks down a specially fabricated carpet designed to...

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July 1 The Battle of the Somme

July 1 The Battle of the Somme

July 1 The Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (French: Bataille de la Somme, German: Schlacht an der Somme), also known as the Somme Offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British and French empires against the German...

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Brexit – Independence Day or Divided Kingdom?

Brexit – Independence Day or Divided Kingdom?

Brexit - Independence Day or Divided Kingdom? Brexit - Independence Day or Divided Kingdom? The United Kingdom emerges from the polls with an overwhelming decision to leave the European Union with a majority of 51.9% to leave agains a 48.1% vote to remain in The EU....

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Today’s the day Britain goes to the polls

Today’s the day Britain goes to the polls

Today's the day Britain goes to the polls A divided nation with two days to go: As one poll shows Brexit two points ahead but another gives Remain the advantage, data reveals the deep splits between young and old, the north and the south Polls have revealed a mixed...

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Highlights of BBC’s EU Great Debate

Highlights of BBC’s EU Great Debate

Highlights of BBC's EU Great Debate The UK public are being asked to choose whether the UK should stay in the European Union or leave in the first vote on the UK's links with Europe for more than 40 years. It has been a campaign which BBC political editor Laura...

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An Economist’s Guide to the Brexit Debate

An Economist’s Guide to the Brexit Debate

An Economist's Guide to the Brexit Debate There's a lot of rhetoric surrounding Britain's EU membership referendum with each side trying to prove their point. Bloomberg Intelligence Economist Dan Hanson has been breaking down some of the most contentious issues....

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Brexit – 7 days to go

Brexit – 7 days to go

Brexit - 7 days to go The Brexit - 7 days to go - the possible exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union, often shortened to Brexit (a portmanteau combining the words "Britain" and "exit"), has been pursued by various individuals, advocacy groups,...

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20 unusual bucket list ideas

20 unusual bucket list ideas

20 unusual bucket list ideas Have you been thinking about making a bucket list for a really, a really long time? Are you procrastinating because it seems almost impossible to think up any unusual bucket list ideas? Creating a Bucket List, is a great way to give your...

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22 emojis everyone gets wrong

22 emojis everyone gets wrong

Have you ever got a text that didn't make sense? Maybe the embedded emojis were to blame. As more emojis appear on our phones, the emotions they convey becomes more specific and nuanced. Many of these emojis are being misused in texts because we misunderstand each's...

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Musicians Who Died Young The 27 Club

Musicians Who Died Young The 27 Club

Musicians Who Died Young The 27 Club There's something spooky about the number 27. Over the years, a large number of musicians have died at the young age of 27. This is how the idea of the so-called 27 Club was born, a concept as glamorous as it is tragic. These...

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Who will win the 6 Nations Rugby Tournament 2016?

Who will win the 6 Nations Rugby Tournament 2016?

Who will win the 6 Nations Rugby Tournament 2016? Just 4 short months after the Rugby World Cup, 6 nations will go at it, tooth and nail in The 6 Nations Rugby Tournament (Wales, England, Italy, Ireland, Scotland and France). Who can call it? England didn't even get...

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How confusing is buying a new computer?

How confusing is buying a new computer?

  How confusing is buying a new computer? When a man is offered a lettuce upgrade on his laptop, it's too good an offer to refuse - until he spots the latest carrot upgrade... Have you ever been to buy a new computer and been faced with a situation where the...

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John Winston Ono Lennon MBE 8 December 1980

John Winston Ono Lennon MBE 8 December 1980

  John Winston Ono Lennon MBE 8 December 1980 John Winston Ono Lennon MBE (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 1940 – 8 December 1980) was an English singer and songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as a co-founder of the band the Beatles, the most commercially...

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Show someone they’re loved this Christmas

Show someone they’re loved this Christmas

Show someone they're loved this Christmas The two-minute clip shows a six-year-old called Lily trying to reach an old man who lives alone in a hut on the moon. She spies him through the family telescope. Lily watches on as our man goes about his chores, all alone up...

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Ordering food in the wrong place

Ordering food in the wrong place

Ordering food in the wrong place When ordering food and drink, make sure you are in the right place. This spoof advert shows a woman ordering food in the wrong place - although she does realise the conventions that should be used when in another place.  

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The time now is

The time now is

The time now is The time readout on a digital clock can be palindromic, such as 12:12 (the same when read forwards or backwards). What is the minimum interval between 2 times that are palindromic ? [spoiler title="Solution"]The shortest time is 2 minutes - between...

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Winter words

Winter words

Winter words Ok, we are not quite into winter yet, it's still autumn until 21 December. There is a winter word hidden in the following sentences - can you find them? For example: It's now I need to go, not tomorrow. Answer, The word Snow. Now you try. We went to the...

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Le Beaujolais Nouveau has arrived

  Le Beaujolais Nouveau has arrived Today, 19 November is Beaujolais Nouveau day - Le Beaujolais Nouveau has arrived, as it does every third Thursday of November. Beaujolais Nouveau is a red wine made from Gamay grapes produced in the Beaujolais region of France....

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Guy Fawkes Night

Guy Fawkes Night

Guy Fawkes Night 5 November is Guy Fawkes night, also known as Bonfire Night and Firework Night, is an annual commemoration observed on 5 November, primarily in Great Britain. 2015 is the 410th anniversary of the gunpowder plot. People meet around a bonfire usually...

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Management decisions

Management decisions

Management decisions A sketch from The Big Train comedy show, in which a boss is confronted by his staff on some sticky issues. The boss tries to avoid the issues at all costs.

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Brain tricks to fool your friends

Brain tricks to fool your friends

  Brain tricks to fool your friends So, just for fun, here are a few tricks to play on your friends, colleagues or others ... Did you read the image correctly? Nah, most don't, but that is just the brain trying to help us out, I imagine ... Have fun, that's what...

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Eddie Izzard – Learning French

Eddie Izzard – Learning French

Eddie Izzard - Learning French Eddie Izzard in his own inimitable way recounts how he used French in France - a couple of naughty words have crept in, but that's Eddie for you. Eddie says: I describe my language ability in percentages of fluency. I'm about 65% fluent...

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The History of Halloween

The History of Halloween

The History of Halloween Halloween, or Hallowe'en a contraction of All Hallows’ Evening), is a celebration observed in a number of countries on 31 October, the eve of All Hallows' Day. It begins the three-day observance of Allhallowtide, the time in the liturgical...

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The 30 day Challenge

The 30 day Challenge

The 30 day Challenge A 30 day challenge doesn't have to be a life-changing experience, although it may become one and may make a significant difference to your life. Any long-term change that transpires, however, will be dependent on the way that you view the world...

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When 3 meters is just too far

When 3 meters is just too far

When 3 meters is just too far Have you ever been in a room, with a group of colleagues, clients or business partners, sat around the table computer in front of you - preferably open (this provides a nice barrier that helps protect us ... I imagine)? So you chat away...

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Functions in a language

Functions in a language

Functions in a language Most of us will agree that a language is used to perform a variety of different things - these things are called functions. It is used to make statements, ask questions, express emotions, direct people, etc. It is clear that language is used to...

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Communication is hearing what isn’t heard

Communication is hearing what isn’t heard

Peter Drucker once said that, “The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said.”

Furthermore, one of the pre-suppositions of NLP states that ‘you cannot, not communicate – everything you say and most of what you do will communicate something, so the idea of radio silence, can have the effect of turning the sound right up.

People often, mistakingly, imagine, that by doing nothing, they can avoid personal responsibility in communication, but, I am sorry to say, this just isn’t true, non-action is not an option, as it will be interpreted in some way by the listener(s).

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5 ways to listen better

5 ways to listen better

5 ways to listen better In our louder and louder world, says sound expert Julian Treasure, "We are losing our listening." In this short, fascinating talk, Julian Treasure shares five ways to re-tune your ears for conscious listening -- to other people and the world...

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What really happens if there is no Brexit deal?

What really happens if there is no Brexit deal?

What really happens if there is no Brexit deal? Taking your car abroad In a sentence You’ll have to request a green card from your insurer if driving to Europe after 29 March. Currently, a driver of a UK-registered car is allowed to drive anywhere in the EU, the EEA...

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Brexit Update 9 April 2019

Brexit Update 9 April 2019

Dear Everyone, The British Government continues to seek a way in which the UK can leave the EU in an orderly manner and without undue delay. In the meantime, the French Government is publishing more information about what a no-deal would mean for British nationals in...

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My 50 Greatest French Films

My 50 Greatest French Films

    France can, with some justification, claim to have invented the whole concept of cinema. Film historians call The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station, the 50-second film by the Lumière brothers first screened in 1895, the birth of the medium. French...

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What will humans look like in 1000 Years?

What will humans look like in 1000 Years?

What will humans look like in 1000 Years? What will humans look like in 1000 Years? What will humanity look like in 1000 years? About 10,000 years ago, humans evolved a tolerance to cow's milk; over the past 150 years, we've added 10 centimetres to our average height;...

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To learn is to be free

To learn is to be free

To learn is to be free An inspiring talk about learning by Shahmeem Akhtar To learn is to be free - Shameem Akhtar posed as a boy during her early childhood in Pakistan so she could enjoy the privileges Pakistani girls are rarely afforded: to play outside and attend...

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6 Nations Rugby Six amazing anthems

6 Nations Rugby Six amazing anthems

6 Nations Rugby Six amazing anthems The Six Nations Rugby tournament 2018 started on Saturday 3 February with the first match with Wales v Scotland from The Pricipality Stadium, followed by France v Ireland from Le Stade de France. This year's tournament promises to...

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The origins of Boxing Day

The origins of Boxing Day

The origins of Boxing Day Boxing Day is widely celebrated in countries that are part of the British Commonwealth. It's origins are obscure, but they date back centuries. In the UK it is a day where families get together and also a huge day for sporting activities such...

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Halloween; cult film Rocky Horror Show

Halloween; cult film Rocky Horror Show

The 31st October means just one thing.... Halloween! If you've had enough of all those clips explaining the origins of Halloween, go straight for the fun with this clip of the classic Rocky Horror Show song Let's do the time Warp again. The Rocky Horror Picture Show...

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False news and Logical Fallacies

False news and Logical Fallacies

A logical fallacy is a flaw in reasoning. Logical fallacies are like tricks or illusions of thought, and they're often very sneakily used by politicians and the media to fool people. A fallacy is an incorrect argument in logic and rhetoric which undermines an...

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7 Secret Places Hidden in Plain Sight

7 Secret Places Hidden in Plain Sight

7 Secret Places Hidden in Plain Sight When you wait for hours in line to get a new Facebook profile picture with some famous painting or monument, you can't help but wondering if it's worth the effort. After all, these are the most photographed places on Earth. Even...

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On this day in History

On this day in History

On this day in History If you thought that the Pony Express - the original Wild West postal service, lasted for a long time, then you may be surprised to hear that it's existence was pretty short. What did they do on April 3 1860? How far did the Pony Express riders...

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Spaghetti-Harvest in Ticino

Spaghetti-Harvest in Ticino

Spaghetti-Harvest in Ticino This is an old film of the world famous spaghetti harvest in action in Ticina, Switzerland. The spaghetti tree film is a famous 3-minute report broadcast on 1 April 1957 by the BBC current affairs programme Panorama. It told a tale of a...

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