In April I did a Zoom workshop about how to learn vocabulary. This is the audio version of the workshop, which I recorded more recently. Learn how to notice, understand, record, remember and use new words. Don’t just stare at word lists with translations. Instead, try to find some more effective ways to expand your vocabulary.

👉 Episode page with presentation slides https://teacherluke.co.uk/2024/09/02/898-how-to-learn-vocabulary-and-not-just-stare-at-word-lists-workshop/

"Dysfluent" is a piece of interactive fiction, all about communication. The story shows what it is like to live with dysfluency - a condition which makes it difficult to make smooth, fluent speech. How does a speech impediment create challenges in someone's life? Listen to the story, follow my choices and learn new vocabulary along the way.

👉 Episode page with game link https://teacherluke.co.uk/2024/26/02/897-dysfluent-learn-english-with-an-interactive-story/

My dad returns to talk about the current political situation in the UK. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has called a general election to take place on 4 July. Why did Sunak call an election at this moment? What do people think of the Consvervative Party, who have been in power for 14 years? Will we have a new government and a new Prime Minister in the UK in a couple of weeks? Also, what about England's performances in the Euro 2024 football championship?

Episode page 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2024/06/24/888-uk-general-election-euro-2024-the-rick-thompson-report-june-2024

Luke's stand-up comedy show, details 👉 https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/comedy

LEP Premium info 👉 https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo

A quick ramble about why this is the final part of episode 800, why there was a delay between part 2 and part 3, some comments about having flu, and about World Cup 2022.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-sH4

Celebrating episode 800 by answering a massive list of questions from listeners. This episode covers things like how to improve your speaking when you live in a non-English speaking country, the headphones and microphone I use, my current favourite episode, the afterlife and spirit world, my favourite brands of tea, my favourite video games, being a father and the recent Star Wars series Andor and plenty plenty more. Video version available.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-sA7

Celebrating episode 800 and responding to lots of questions sent in on social media. Expect questions about my ill-fated music career, grammar, favourite authors, my daughter, life as an English teaching podcaster and plenty more. Video version available.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-siR

Luke reads an extraordinary email from a listener in an sos situation in a hospital. Contains some disturbing descriptions of fear, anxiety and horror, but there's a happy ending!

👉 Free ELSA app download link (download ELSA free & get 7 days pro membership free): https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/elsa

👉 ELSA Discounts page - ELSA PRO (85% off lifetime & 40% off one year ELSA memberships): https://elsaspeak.com/inf/LukesEnglishPodcast/

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-shK

A bonus mini-ramble about my plans for episode 800 (send me your questions) and why I haven't done any World Cup episodes yet, but you can listen to me talking about it with Zdenek on his podcast (link available).

Website page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-stM

Check out my conversation with Zdenek about World Cup 2022 https://youtu.be/PZOOa-PVXcw

In conversation with Mysterious Al, a contemporary artist / street artist from London now living in Melbourne, Australia. The conversation covers Al's background, how he makes his art, the difference between street art & graffiti, attitudes towards graffiti, how Al needs to use social media (but doesn't like it!) his recent ghost train exhibition, and more. Al's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/mysteriousal/ Al's website https://www.mysterious.al Video version also available.

Episode page with video, and audio download https://wp.me/p4IuUx-sij

Stephen from SEND7 podcast becomes the host to interview me about how I started LEP, the ins and outs of doing this, plus some advantages and challenges for podcasting to learners of English. Video version available.

Episode page with audio download, video and links https://wp.me/p4IuUx-smy

Special Guest Mark Steel joins me to discuss cultural and linguistic differences between the UK and France, plus accents in the UK and a little tour of some places in the UK that you don't know about. Also includes a discussion of swearing and rude language in Britain. What is the R word which you should never say in a specific part of the UK? Listen on to find out.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-s8I

Learn English with a short story. In fact, this episode contains two stories. Listen until the end for the 2nd one.

Repeat after me to practise your pronunciation. Learn some vocabulary & grammar in the second half of the episode, with an explanation of modal verbs of deduction in the past and present.

Episode page to read/download the transcript https://wp.me/p4IuUx-scI

Reading out loud can have lots of benefits on our memory and our mental health. How can it help with your English? In this episode I read an article, help you understand it and give comments on the importance of reading, both quietly in your head, and out loud.

📖 Read the article on the BBC Future website https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200917-the-surprising-power-of-reading-aloud

📄 Read the transcript and download the PDF transcript from my website (free) https://wp.me/p4IuUx-s8w

✅ Sign up to LEP Premium on Acast+ to access the 3-part series about this episode, and more https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premium

Join me as I take a walk along the embankment of the river Seine from Louvre to Pont Marie in the centre of Paris. This time the topic is health and diet. Watch out for the phrasal verbs I use during my ramble!

Episode page 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2024/06/17/887-walk-talk-health-diet-phrasal-verbs/

Come and see me performing stand-up comedy in Paris on 19 July - details here 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/comedy

The next series of LEP Premium will deal with the phrasal verbs (+ other vocabulary) from this episode. Sign up below👇

Last week a very special guest visited one of our comedy shows in Paris. I was given a ticket to the show, so I decided to record a podcast while riding through the streets on the way to the show, wondering if I might be able to interview this guest on LEP. Listen to find out what happened, and to hear some rambling and atmospheric sounds of Paris streets at night.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-s2m

My dad returns to talk more about UK politics, this time describing the disastrous economic policy of Liz Truss and her Chancellor (finance minister) Kwasi Kwarteng. Advanced level English listening practice - this is complicated stuff, but keep listening to develop your English skills and learn about what's going on in UK politics and current affairs.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-s7G

Video version https://youtu.be/csrAYt0eNbc

Amber and Paul join me in my pod room again for a rambling discussion about everything! Includes a language point about adjective + preposition collocations. Notice the phrases and try to find examples of them in context. Video version available.

Episode page with some vocabulary notes, links, video version https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rY3

My mum returns to the podcast to answer some questions from listeners about books, cooking, her relationship with Luke and her granddaughter, the war in Ukraine, the song Imagine by John Lennon, family games, the time she fell off a horse & more...

Episode page with notes, links and scripts https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rTm

[Part 2 of 2] James and Luke discuss some more "facts" about the UK, but can you guess if they are true or false? Learn some interesting trivia about life in Britain, and improve your vocabulary in the process.

Episode page with video version, all facts written + intro & ending transcripts https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rTT

[Part 1 of 2] Can you guess if these "facts" about the UK are true or false?

James and Luke read out the facts and then discuss them one by one.

Learn some odd things about the UK, pick up some vocabulary about laws and customs, and try not to laugh on the bus.

Episode page with all facts written https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qI9

Talking to my parents about events in the UK following the death of The Queen on 9 September, including the media coverage, the proclamation of King Charles III, comments about Charles as King and a discussion of the role of the monarch in the UK’s constitution. Also includes some comments about the new Prime Minister Liz Truss and the future of the UK government over the next 18 months.

Episode page (download the audio and check the full episode archive) https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rOu

Queen Elizabeth II died today. Here are my thoughts and feelings about the significance and symbolism of her life and death, recorded just an hour after I first saw the news.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rLA

Fred Eyangoh returns to the podcast to bring some entertaining and useful word puzzles, quizzes and insights into English etymology & history.

👉 Episode page with vocabulary notes and introduction transcript https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rJr

📼 YouTube video version (doesn't include intro or vocabulary summary) https://youtu.be/GmZlDQB8QWc

Join us on a trip to a virtual pub for a couple of pints, a packet of crisps and some advice about how to go to the pub in English, with plenty of funny tangents, with Charlie Baxter.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rmQ

Video version on YouTube https://youtu.be/Vg5n11RfrvY

In this episode I am joined by Rob from The Business English Podcast, and we are talking about networking in English. 🗣️ Networking is when you speak to other people, probably in a professional context, in order to build relationships, expand your social circle and make work contacts that can lead to business opportunities in the future.

Networking is all about socialising, speaking spontaneously, active listening and being aware of cultural factors which can affect everything. Listen to the episode to hear plenty of comments, anecdotes, advice and language tips relating to networking in English in a professional context.

👉 Episode page https://teacherluke.co.uk/2024/06/10/886-networking-in-english-with-rob-from-the-business-english-podcast/

👉 Listen to Part 2 on Rob's podcast https://pod.link/1643413701/episode/fbd1f3cc76ebb5e41b7d2fa2948f175b

👉 Listen to Part 2 on Rob's YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLx_vg0fxk0&ab_channel=TheBusinessEnglishPodcast

👉 Rob's website https://www.thebusinessenglishpodcast.com

👉 Stand-up comedy shows https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/comedy

👉 My other YouTube channel where I play bass, guitar & ukulele https://www.youtube.com/@lukulele30

Comparing British and American English vocabulary with a fun online quiz. My guest today is American comedian Sarah Donnelly. Video version (of the conversation) available.

Episode page with vocabulary notes & intro transcript 👉 https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rmL

Watch the conversation on YouTube 👉 https://youtu.be/JZ8A8lDopkw

Paul McCartney turned 80 this year, so let's talk about this legend of British music! In this one, I am joined by Sam Whiles, the host of the Paul or Nothing podcast. Listen to hear an overview of Paul's career, and some Paul McCartney stories.

Episode page with introduction transcript https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rmH

Watch the conversation on YouTube https://youtu.be/fUZCqVm8d6g

Talking to Antony Rotunno about a classic British comedy film which makes fun of the legend of King Arthur (and everything else!) Originally published by Antony on his Film Gold podcast earlier this year.

Episode page with links, video clips and more https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rmE

An unedited ramble in which I talk without a specific plan, includes a recording of my daughter speaking English, and a few songs on the guitar.

Video version available.

Episode page with song lyrics 👉 https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rn5

Video version on YouTube 👉 https://youtu.be/r3dhUOnci7w

Luke reads verses from a modernised version of this medieval poem, considered one of the masterpieces of Middle English literature.

Listen to hear the rhyme and rhythm of the poetry, the descriptive vocabulary and details of the story, with vocabulary explanations and comments from Luke.

This is part 2 of a double episode about this story. Video version available with on-screen text.

Episode page with intro transcript & video version https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rj8

A conversation with my dad about a great medieval adventure story originally written in middle English and updated and translated into modern English by Simon Armitage. Dad talks about the origin of this story, its connection to the history of the English language, and the poetic devices used in the writing. In the second half I read a summarised version of the story and some verses from Armitage's modernised version.

👉 Episode page with intro & ending scripts, story summary & more information https://wp.me/p4IuUx-rhs

My dad talks about the latest news about Boris Johnson, who on Friday said the UK should now begin the process of finding a new Prime Minister. Why is Johnson going to step down? What scandals has he been involved in during his life? What might happen next? Listen to hear my dad's comments in plain English.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-r95

A free sample of LEP Premium, from Luke's English Podcast. This is a full English lesson with self-study techniques, an entertaining story about a bear, language exercises and pronunciation practice. Full PDF transcript & worksheet available 👇

LEP Premium is a series of bonus episodes from Luke's English Podcast in which I teach you vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation. LEP Premium is now available on Acast+. Episodes are usually in audio format, and you can listen to them in any normal podcast app.

👉 Sign up to LEP Premium on Acast+ https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premium

👉 Click here for more information about LEP Premium on Acast+ https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo

👉 Already subscribed to LEP Premium on Libsyn/LEP App? Click here for important information https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premium/moving

👉 Get the full PDF transcript/worksheet for this episode

📄🎁 PDF in normal size https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/P35-1_1-StoryTime_-Learn-English-with-Stories-free-LEP-Premium-Sample-THE-BEAR-STORY-COMPUTER-VERSION.pdf

📄🎁 PDF with large text for your phone https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/P35-1_1-StoryTime_-Learn-English-with-Stories-free-LEP-Premium-Sample-THE-BEAR-STORY-PHONE-VERSION.pdf

📄🎁 PDF Bear Story Transcript https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/P35-The-Bear-Story-Transcript-COMPUTER-VERSION.pdf

📄🎁 PDF Bear Story Transcript for your phone https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/P35-The-Bear-Story-Transcript-PHONE-VERSION.pdf

📼 Video version on YouTube https://youtu.be/7Pk2wN8APes

🔗 Episode page on my website https://wp.me/p4IuUx-r1P

• I have moved to a new podcast host - one which is based in Europe and which just suits me much better
• Cool things are: You’ll be able to get LEP Premium much more easily - in your podcast app of choice (details on the website - coming soon)
• You can support the podcast a lot more easily, if you’d like to be a stakeholder in LEP. 
• This is all part of my attempt (over 13 years!) to become a self-sufficient podcaster who can devote more time and energy to this project, and make episodes better and more useful and entertaining for you
• You will notice some ads in episodes, depending on where you are. Not every time.
• Also you might hear me mentioning podcast sponsors at the start of episodes sometimes.
• Previously I used to have sponsors, but the pandemic stopped that, basically. I used to talk about italki, spoken, audible, but those things stopped fully during the coronavirus pandemic.
• But I have to find ways to keep the podcast going and so the new host I’m working with (Acast) gives the option to put some ads in my episodes and they might also let me read some sponsorship promos too.
• This is the way podcasts are going, as the technology develops and the medium becomes more established, little automatic adverts and sponsorships are part and parcel of that. This is how an industry develops around this sort of thing.
• Back when I started this in 2009 it just wasn’t possible because the technology wasn’t there but these days it’s normal to either have some advertising in the content or you have the option to pay for a subscription with more content and no ads. 
• Just like YouTube, you get some ads on that platform and it’s just normal. Some people get YouTube premium to go ad-free and get all the music and stuff.
• Or Spotify - if you use the free version to listen to your music there are ads on that too, unless you pay for a subscription.
• So that’s what’s happening with LEP.
• It’s not going to make a huge difference to you, I have to say, but I thought I would at least mention it, just so I can be transparent. 
• So here’s how it’s going to work.
• You’ll get all the free episodes as normal, and the whole episode archive will continue to be freely available as normal.
• You’ll probably hear a few ads sometimes. They’ll be short - certainly shorter than if I did them myself!
• If you want to remove those ads so you never hear them while listening to LEP you’ll also be able to sign up for ad-free episodes. That’ll cost about $2 per month. You’ll be supporting me too if you do that.
• You’ll be able to access LEP Premium episodes more easily than before, and it should be a system that you all should have access to (unlike with my original system which seems or seemed to block certain credit cards from different countries - the Acast system should accept all of you) and you’ll be able to get your premium content in your normal podcast app - not just through the LEP App. And if you become a premium subscriber, that will also remove all the ads. And you’ll be supporting me too.

This way I can keep the archive free, but also reward people who support me by giving them my premium content which I always work hard to produce.

For LEP Premium subscribers - keep an eye on your LEP subscription because I will be uploading an announcement about that too, and also some new premium content is in the pipeline.

775. A Rambling Chat with James (June 2022)

My brother James comes back onto the podcast for a conversation about the hot weather, tricky Wordpress updates, the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, Rock Music concert movies, Alan Partridge's live show, Irish/British relations and plenty more.

📖 Episode page with introduction transcript and other notes + videos https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qRz

🍺 🎶 Buy James and pint and listen to his music www.jimthompson.bandcamp.com

Hang out with me while the rain pours down outside 🌧️ and in this episode I'll talk about the problem of "faffing around" 😵‍💫 , podcast news & updates 📲, some stand-up comedy dates 🎤, comments on recent episodes 💬, some common questions from listeners 🙋, a lot of rambling about how I learned to play music 🎵, a tour of all the guitars in my podcast room 🎸 and a song at the end 🎶, with lyrics explained 👨‍🏫. 

📄 Get the PDF 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/885.-Still-Raining-Still-Rambling-News-Comments-Questions-Guitars-Music-1.pdf

🔗 Episode page 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2024/06/03/885-still-raining-still-rambling-news-comments-questions-guitars-amp-music/

Listen to Luke reading a text adventure story set in a summer camp. You can read the story at the same time as you listen, or just relax and have fun following this action packed horror story, and read do text adventure later. Includes some vocabulary explanations, differences between British & American English and some very dodgy jokes. Video version available.

Episode page (download the audio, find my other episodes) https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qAQ

Open the story in your browser http://play2.textadventures.co.uk/Play.aspx?id=lu8kzyzfp0wxpnqsdcpexq 

LEP T-shirts, mugs, etc https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch 

773. What do British people think about The Queen and The Royal Family? (with James)

Luke and James discuss their feelings about the Royal Family, with some survey results about the popularity of royal family members among British people in general.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qMp

772. Rambling in the Podcastle (June 2022) News / Thoughts / Reflections

This is an unedited monologue in which I talk about some things which are on my mind at the moment, including how my hair is stopping me from learning French (and vice versa), virtuous and vicious circles, how English is like a shark (or a river - or maybe a shark in a river), some comments about recent episodes and a visit from a friendly bat at my podcastle.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qJQ 

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo

LEP Merch https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch

Image by FunkyFocus from Pixabay 

771. Sick In Japan (Recorded Live at the BC)

My story about how I ended up in a Japanese hospital bed, scared out of my brain. Recorded live in front of an audience at the British Council in Paris.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qC0 

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo 

LEP T-Shirts, Mugs & Merch https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch 

770. Boats & Murder (but mostly murder) with Moz

An episode with my friend Moz from the Murder Mile True Crime Podcast. Moz returns to tell us some true stories of crimes in the London area. Expect some smalltalk about living on a boat, some murder stories and an interactive detective game in which we have to solve a murder.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qm6

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo 

Luke's stand up comedy at the English Comedy Night in Paris https://www.panameartcafe.com/shop/stand_up/paname-english-comedy-night/ 

Murder Mile Podcast https://www.murdermiletours.com/podcast.html 

769. Film Club: This Is Spinal Tap (with James)

A return to Luke's Film Club with the classic comedy This Is Spinal Tap, a "mockumentary" about a fictitious rock band from the 1980s. This time I am joined by my brother James and we discuss what was once voted "Funniest comedy film of all time". Learn some famous quotes from the film, listen to some scenes and understand the comedy with help from James and me.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qwC

768. English Teaching Methodologies (with Gabriel Clark)

Gabriel Clark from clarkandmiller.com joins me to discuss a short history of teaching methodology in the world of TEFL. The direct method, the grammar translation method, The Audio Lingual Method, the Structural Approach, Suggestopedia, Total Physical Response, Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), The Silent Way, Community Language Learning, Task Based Language Learning, The Lexical Approach and dogme style - all these get described and discussed. Learn how English teachers teach you English!

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-quK

My talk at the British Council https://www.britishcouncil.fr/evenements/talks-english-comedie 

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo 

LEP Merch etc https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch 

767. Amber & Paul in the Podcastle

Two hours of PodPal action for your enjoyment. This one has a bit of everything. Some audience questions, an idioms game, some dodgy jokes, accents, impressions and more.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qre

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo

LEP T-shirts, mugs etc https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch 

766. Learning English with The News (with Stephen from SEND7 Podcast)

Talking to Stephen from the Simple English News Daily podcast about learning English with the news and whether BBC reporters actually speak like normal humans.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qm3 

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo 

LEP T-shirts, mugs, etc https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch 

765. Travelling Stories / Reverse Culture Shock (with Martin Johnston from Rock n' Roll English)

Martin joins Luke to talk about moving back to the UK, his fundraiser for Ukrainian refugees and some funny stories about travelling experiences.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qkq

Martin's fundraiser www.rocknrollenglish.com/stories 

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo 

A conversation with my brother about one of the most successful British bands of all time - Madness. We talk about the story of the band, our early memories of their music, the songs, the members, their lyrics, their popularity and why we've always been big fans!

Episode page with links, music videos and more 👉 https://teacherluke.co.uk/2024/05/27/884-british-music-madness-with-james/

764. 22 Funny Jokes, Explained

Learn English with 22 funny jokes with explanations of vocabulary, homophones, double meanings and pronunciation. Video version available. 

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-qhy 

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo 

British Council English Score Tutors https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/english 

LEP T-Shirts, Mugs, etc https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch 

This is a chance for me to just let loose and have a ramble while inviting you to this kind of housewarming party (or perhaps just the first part of the party) in my new pod-room. In this one I am going to welcome you into the new room and do a ramble challenge in which I am restricted to only talking about things inside the room, plus reading from some random books on my shelves. Grammar rules, adverbial collocations and a game show story.

Private Lessons with British Council English Score Tutors https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/english

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-q9b 

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo  LEP T-Shirts & Merch https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch

Rules of the Ramble

Welcome everyone to the pod-room. Give a tour. I’m restricted to only talking about things inside the room. Maybe describe some of the items on the walls and pictures. Include some descriptive language. Pick up a book and do a random exercise from it. Keep talking without pausing or saying “errr”.

762. Meditation & Learning English (with Antony Rotunno)

Discussing meditation, meditation techniques, how it can help in our lives and improve us as language learners. Antony Rotunno is my guest and listen out for stories, advice, tangents and maybe one or two revelations.

Episode page https://wp.me/p4IuUx-q99

Private Lessons https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/english

LEP Premium https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/premiuminfo

LEP T-Shirts, Mugs & Merch https://www.teacherluke.co.uk/merch

Luke & Antony discuss Monty Python & The Holy Grail https://youtu.be/YMtOOBpRBaA

Antony's Meditation episodes from Life & Life Only

https://lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com/e/episode-4-the-joys-and-wonders-of-meditation-part-1-of-2/

https://lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com/e/episode-5-the-joys-and-wonders-of-meditation-part-2-of-2/

Antony's Podcasts 

• Life & Life Only https://plinkhq.com/i/1549021296?to=page
• Glass Onion: On John Lennon https://plinkhq.com/i/1473867166?to=page 
• Film Gold https://plinkhq.com/i/1544641271?to=page