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  • (upbeat music)

  • Hello everyone and welcome back to English with Lucy.

  • As requested and as promised here is, finally,

  • my lesson on the top TV shows that you can use to

  • learn British English.

  • I have got lots of recommendations

  • that are suitable for everyone.

  • And I'm going to work through them,

  • starting with programmes that are suitable for beginners,

  • moving to pre-intermediate, intermediate and then advanced.

  • Now I know that a lot of you

  • are hoping to use TV shows

  • in order to improve your fluency, your vocabulary,

  • your pronunciation, your listening skills.

  • Honestly watching TV shows in a second language

  • can work magic on your language skills.

  • However, it can be really, really stressful,

  • trying to find the right one for you.

  • Because you've got to get that mix

  • of something that you're interested in,

  • something that is at your level,

  • and something that is going to provide educational value.

  • Now another really frustrating point is,

  • when you finally find a TV show

  • that you would like to watch,

  • that you think will help you

  • and it's blocked in your country.

  • It's so annoying.

  • I really enjoy watching programmes in Spanish

  • and I find it really frustrating trying to

  • gain access to websites that are blocked in my country.

  • Well, a lot of you aren't based in the UK,

  • so how are you going to gain access

  • to these British TV shows?

  • Well, I highly recommend NordVPN.

  • Which is the sponsor of today's video.

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  • allowing you to improve security

  • but also allowing you to overcome geographical restrictions.

  • So, by using NordVPN you can unlock access

  • to these entertainment providers.

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  • There's no data logging,

  • it's available even in China

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  • And they've given me a special offer

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  • That is nothing when you consider all of the benefits

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  • And you can also get an additional month free,

  • at NordVPN.com/lucy or just use my code: Lucy.

  • The link and the code are in the description box.

  • Right, let's get started with the list

  • of TV shows that you can use in order to learn

  • and improve your British English.

  • Right, let's start with the beginners.

  • So, for people who are just starting to learn English,

  • or maybe people who've been learning English for a while

  • but are really struggling with their listening,

  • because listening is incredibly difficult.

  • It's a skill that some people are naturally good at,

  • but most people find very, very challenging.

  • Now, I've been teaching for many years

  • and when I come across beginners

  • or people who are really struggling

  • with their listening skills,

  • I recommend children's TV shows.

  • But you have to be really, really careful

  • because so many children's TV shows

  • are dumbed down, in order to entertain children.

  • And there aren't so many high quality

  • children's TV shows, where the characters speak well,

  • with good pronunciation

  • and they don't put on a stupid baby voice.

  • One programme that I think is excellent

  • for improving your English,

  • if you are a beginner, is Peppa Pig.

  • Now, if you have children,

  • you will probably know about Peppa Pig,

  • but it is a British TV show.

  • It's been translated into so many languages

  • across the globe.

  • It's about a little piglet who goes around

  • solving problems and causing problems.

  • And she speaks with a British accent.

  • She speaks quite clearly, but the best part is,

  • they cover the basics of English.

  • It's written in simple English, simple tenses,

  • and they cover the basic vocabulary

  • because they are hoping to teach a child its' first words.

  • Well, it's sometimes the same situation for us

  • when we're learning our second language.

  • - No George, I'm playing with Suzy.

  • You have to play somewhere else.

  • - Another cartoon I can recommend is, Sarah and Duck.

  • This is another children's cartoon

  • that actually now has quite a strong adult following

  • cause it is very entertaining actually.

  • I look forward to having a child so that I can

  • watch these programmes with them.

  • It's about a little girl, a little British girl,

  • who is best friends with a duck.

  • And it is quite funny and it focuses on problem solving.

  • - [Voice over] It's a bit early for bed isn't it?

  • - No, It's so tomorrow gets here quicker.

  • - [Voice over] Oh.

  • - All of the information for these programmes

  • will be in the description box,

  • I'll show you where you can watch them.

  • The next one is another one produced by the BBC,

  • it's Katie Morag.

  • And this one I've mentioned

  • because it's the Scottish accent.

  • It's about a little girl who lives

  • on a fictional Scottish island,

  • but it's not a cartoon, it is a real girl.

  • Now the Scottish accent, in my opinion,

  • is absolutely gorgeous, I love it.

  • And I know that it's a very desirable place,

  • so on the off chance that you are hoping to visit Scotland

  • or you just particularly like that accent,

  • this is a fantastic TV show.

  • And as I've said many times before,

  • it's really important to understand

  • and to listen to, a variety of accents.

  • The Scottish accent is considered to be fairly difficult,

  • so it's best to start

  • with a children's TV version of that accent.

  • - [Katie] And everyone looks out for me

  • when I'm out and about, having my adventures.

  • - Right, let's move on to pre-intermediate.

  • So we've covered the basics with children's TV programmes,

  • where they cover basic vocabulary

  • and they use simple grammar.

  • Now let's go a step higher to pre-intermediate.

  • What I recommend for my pre-intermediate students,

  • is nature programmes.

  • And there is one man in particular who I recommend.

  • I absolutely love him.

  • The nation adores him, he is David Attenborough.

  • This man is a national treasure.

  • He's a broadcaster, a natural historian,

  • he used to work for the BBC,

  • quite high up in the BBC.

  • And he is amazing and speaks with such

  • a beautiful RP accent.

  • He speaks quite slowly and he uses a variety

  • of adjectives as well,

  • which is perfect for pre-intermediate students.

  • And he has done so many BBC series' on nature.

  • Recent one's have been Blue Planet,

  • all about the sea.

  • Planet Earth, which is about the globe as a whole.

  • Frozen Planet, which is about the colder

  • parts of our world.

  • And a really good documentary called,

  • A Plastic Ocean, where he talks about the pollution

  • of plastic in the seas.

  • Now, I recommend his programmes

  • if you want to learn new vocabulary,

  • if you're interested in the environment

  • and in animals,

  • and if you also want to watch something quite relaxing.

  • It can be quite stressful

  • to try and listen to English,

  • but if you just relax, watch nature,

  • and listen to this man's beautiful voice and accent,

  • it shouldn't be an arduous task.

  • - The tropics, as a naturalist,

  • I yearn to see it and I had already

  • manned programmes with people from London Zoo.

  • - Right, let's move on to intermediate.

  • And what I recommend to my intermediate students,

  • is cooking programmes.

  • And I recommend that they follow