English News Weekly

This week’s ENW podcast is the first of 2019 and everyone at ENW hoped that you had a lovely winter holidays and enjoyable New Year. We kick off 2019, our 8th year of the podcast, with a quirky news event from Munich in southern Germany. One rail commuter, who got fed up with her daily commute being delayed stumbled upon a novel idea – a train delay scarf. Every time her train was late, she knitted a section. At the end of year, she put it up for auction. How long was the scarf? How much money was it sold for? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3

This week's ENW podcast is the last podcast of 2018! In previous Christmas podcasts we have looked at Christmas music, movies, foods, events, sports and many other connections to the Yuletide season. This year we thought we concentrate on one of the most famous Christmas Carols in the world. Not only does this week mark the 200th anniversary of its first performance but the post-script also has a rather creepy and macabre twist! But don't worry they won't be too scary...we hope! So, Happy Christmas, Happy Holidays or just be Happy! (PDF) Download MP3

This week's ENW podcast reports on an epic race held in Iceland than pushes athletes to the very limit of physical endurance. In one race, a competitor will have to complete 160 km through forests, rivers and muddy fields. This route also includes 7,000 metres of climbing and 3,000 obstacles to clamber over in Iceland in December! One more thing – there are no breaks! So why do ultra-athletes and even amateur runners take part? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3

This week’s ENW podcast reports on a controversial subject – should artefacts in famous museums be returned to the places they were originally taken from? A delegation from Easter Island has appealed for the return of several statues that they claimed were illegally removed and are now on display in museums across the world. The islanders’ claim is part of a wider debate over whether museums should return artefacts to their country of origin. What will happen with the Easter Island statues? Will they be returned? Should they be returned? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Image credit: James Miles via Wikipedia. CC BY-SA 4.0. Download MP3

In this special edition podcast, and our first recorded from a small island in the Pacific Ocean, ENW visits four locations in one of the most mysterious places on Earth - Easter Island! (PDF) Download MP3

In this special edition podcast, and our first in the South America, ENW visits four outstanding locations in one of the most vibrant cities on the continent - Santiago! (PDF) Download MP3

In this special edition podcast, and our first in the Southern Hemisphere, ENW visits four vibrant locations in one of the most picturesque cities in the world - Sydney! (PDF) Image credit: Wikipedia Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on the unveiling of the world's tallest statue in northern India. The 182m giant commemorates one of India's independence leaders and is an incredible 50 metres taller than the next highest statue. The Statue of Unity is the newest in a seemingly competitive building race involving China and India over who can build the world's tallest statue. What is the response to the statue? Are all Indians pleased to have the world's tallest statue? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Image Credit: Wikipedia GODL-India Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on the country in the world that issues a $7 banknote. At first this might seem a bit different, but when Zimbabwe once had a $100 trillion banknote then perhaps it isn't that strange! So which country has issued this unusual banknote? The Pacific Island nation of Fiji. The reason that Fiji has issued this unique denomination is not because they are trying to be different – but to celebrate something that Fiji is the best in the world at! English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on an insightful new study released by a university in the north of England that has concluded that the average person can recoginse up to 5,000 faces! The University of York’s Psychology Faculty study tested volunteers in three separate areas to find out how the brain works when it comes to facial recognition. Why did the university undertake this study? What other conclusions did they find? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on a bizarre end to a much- anticipated auction for a picture by one of the world's most secretive artists. The UK-based graffiti artist Banksey is well-known for his artwork popping up on buildings around the UK. His anti-establishment views are often reflected in his artwork. Yet this week he did something unexpected - he rigged one of his most famous paintings to shred minutes after it was sold at auction. Why did he do this? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3

This week’s English News Weekly podcast reports on street names. OK at first this might not seem to be the most exciting of topics, but actually the city of Brussels has decided to shake up how the Belgian capital names new roads and streets. Instead of honouring illustrious names from the country’s past Brussels has decided to take a more whimsical route to street naming. The city has also decided to name more streets celebrating women. Why have these ideas decided? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3

In this special edition podcast ENW visits four atmospheric locations from the capital of Austria - Vienna! (PDF) Download MP3

In this special edition podcast ENW visits four captivating locations from the Nordic city of Helsinki! (PDF) Download MP3

In this special edition podcast ENW visits four fascinating locations from the mediaeval city of Nuremberg! (PDF) Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on an extraordinary story from China with reports detailing that a new movie centred around the character of Winnie the Pooh will be banned. The new film, which reintroduces Pooh to his grown up owner Christopher Robin, has just been released around the world, but it seems that it will not be available in China. Yet this is not the first time the bear has been banned. Why has China banned Winnie-the-Pooh? What happens next? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on a daring jewelry heist of some of Sweden’s royal jewels from a cathedral in the country’s capital of Stockholm. Two thieves organised a lightening raid on a cathedral that held some of the funeral regalia of Sweden’s King Charles IX. In front of amazed witnesses the thieves broke a glass cabinet inside the cathedral before escaping my motorboat. What jewels were stolen? How did the thieves pull off the theft? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Image credit: Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 2.5. Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on a remarkable story from India. Bihar State, located in the north-east of the country and the third largest by population in India has decided to implement a policy to help protect vulnerable girls and women in the state. How will they do this? Well, Bihar State has decided to hire eunuchs as security guards in women's homes operated by the state. Why have they decided to do this? What are the ramifications? English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Image credit: Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 2.5. Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on scary news from Brazil where a huge increase in the number of people being stung by scorpions in towns and cities have been reported. Brazil is home to four of the deadliest scorpion species in the world and one type in particular has been found living and breeding in urban areas around the country. What kind of scorpions are they? What kind of danger do they pose to humans? How is Brazil trying to stop the scorpions?... English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3

This week's English News Weekly podcast reports on something a little bit different from our usual news stories from somewhere around the world. This week our podcast centres on a date, the date this podcast will be released on – Friday 13th. We will explore why Friday 13th is considered to be unlucky and what mysterious events have occurred on this date through history. So, if you are a little bit superstitious – don’t’ worry because in this podcast... English News Weekly will try to explain all... (PDF) Download MP3