王室宝宝

 　　Rob¹: Ah, what a familiar sound - a baby crying! Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English, I'm Rob…

　　Neil: ….and I’m Neil, hello. So Rob, is that the sound of the new royal baby?

　　Rob: No - it’s not the Duke² and Duchess of Cambridge’s new-born baby - although I’m sure their little one is just as loud!

　　Neil: Yes - we know all about babies, don’t we Rob, because we are parents. We know all about childbirth - well, almost as much as our wives - and all the advice people give us about caring for our children.

　　Rob: We do - hold on, I’ll just calm this baby down (Baby stops crying) - that’s better. So, I might have excellent parenting skills but how different are they to the ones William and Kate will need? We’ll be discussing that soon and looking at some of the language of having a baby. But first, how about a question, Neil?

　　Neil: Good idea.

　　Rob: How well do you know the British royal family? Do you know when Prince William - the father of the new baby - was born? Was it on:

　　a) 21st May 1982

　　b) 21st June 1982

　　c) 21st October 1982

　　Neil: I don’t really remember but I’m going to go for b) 21st June 1982.

　　Rob: Ok - I’ll let you know the answer later on. But now let’s get back to 2013 and the arrival³ of the latest member of the royal family. Neil, when your baby was born, how did you announce it - or tell people?

　　Neil: With my first child I phoned and texted. With my second child only two years later it was all about Facebook.

　　Rob: Indeed. Well, when my daughter was born in the maternity⁴ unit at our local hospital, I sent out texts messages to my friends and family. I know people also send out cards or photos of the baby.

　　Neil: And then later some people have a baby shower - not a shower with water - but a party where people give presents for the baby.

　　Rob: I’m sure the royal baby will get a lot of presents but when royal births are announced, there is a lot of protocol⁵ - or special, traditional ways of doing things.

　　Neil: Yes, when Prince Charles was born in 1948, the announcement was very formal. Listen to the words that were used in this BBC⁶ broadcast….

　　BBC Newsreader:

　　It has just been announced from Buckingham Palace that her Royal Highness, Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh was safely delivered of a prince at 9.14pm and that her Royal Highness and her son are both doing well. Listeners⁷ will wish us to offer their royal congratulations⁸ to Princess Elizabeth and the Royal Family on this happy occasion⁹.

　　Rob: So, the newsreader very formally gave the good news that Princess Elizabeth - now Queen Elizabeth - was ‘safely delivered of a prince’.

　　Neil: Delivered - that sounds like delivering a letter - but here it means¹⁰ ‘gave birth to a baby’. The newsreader also said that people want to give their ‘royal congratulations’.

　　Rob: Yes, and he described it as ‘a happy occasion’ - so a happy moment and something to celebrate. But now, once it was officially announced, news about the latest royal birth spread quickly around the world via¹¹ social media¹².

　　Neil: It is the 21st Century Rob - and I think this new baby will have a very different upbringing - that’s the way parents look after the baby. Of course William and Kate will have the benefit¹³ of having a nanny - someone to help out with childcare and doing the housework around the palace.

　　Rob: Very nice. But it has been reported they want to become more involved in caring for their baby than royal parents did in the past. They don’t want the nanny to be a replacement¹⁴ mother.

　　Neil: Well that’s good to hear and by showing modern parenting skills it may set an example to other parents.

　　Rob: Of course the new baby is going to lead a very different life to our children. One thing is for sure, ours won’t become king. But babies from all backgrounds need feeding and changing. Not everything about having children is great eh Neil?

　　Neil: That’s true. I don’t think I’m going to miss those dirty nappies. So come on Rob, it’s time you gave me the answer to the question.

　　Rob: Earlier I asked you if you knew when Prince William - the baby’s father - was born?

　　Neil: And I said 21st June 1982.

　　Rob: You are right. He was born in June 1982 - so would you say he is quite young to be a father?

　　Neil: These days I suppose he is quite young, compared with me, yes - but those sleepless¹⁵ nights will make him feel older!

　　Rob: OK Neil, could you remind us of some of the vocabulary that we heard today.

　　Neil: little one

　　maternity unit

　　a baby shower

　　protocol

　　delivered

　　upbringing

　　nanny

　　nappies

　　Rob: Thanks Neil. OK that's it for this programme. Do join us again soon for more 6 Minute English.

　　Both: Bye.

1 rob   

v.抢劫；vi.抢劫，盗窃；vt.非法剥夺，使丧失，抢劫

参考例句：

• Two men formed a plot to rob the bank.两人制定了抢劫那家银行的秘密计划。
• They were scheming to rob the bank.他们在密谋抢劫银行。

2 duke   

n.公爵

参考例句：

• His grandfather was a royal duke.他的祖父是王室公爵。
• The duke was the king's most trusted adviser.公爵是国王最信赖的顾问。

3 arrival   

n.到达，达到，到达者

参考例句：

• She's impatient for her father's arrival.她急切地盼望着父亲的到来。
• The new arrival was none other than the President.刚到的不是别人，正是总统。

4 maternity   

n.母性，母道，妇产科病房；adj.孕妇的，母性的

参考例句：

• Women workers are entitled to maternity leave with full pay.女工产假期间工资照发。
• Trainee nurses have to work for some weeks in maternity.受训的护士必须在产科病房工作数周。

5 protocol   

n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节

参考例句：

• We must observe the correct protocol.我们必须遵守应有的礼仪。
• The statesmen signed a protocol.那些政治家签了议定书。

6 BBC   

abbr.（=British Broadcasting Corporation）英国广播公司

参考例句：

• She works for the BBC.她为英国广播公司工作。
• The BBC was founded in 1922.英国广播公司建于1922年。

7 listeners   

n.倾听者，收听者( listener的名词复数 )；听众

参考例句：

• the demographics of radio listeners 电台听众统计数据
• The singer's high notes jarred on the ears of her listeners. 那位歌手的高音让听众们觉得刺耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 congratulations   

n.祝贺；贺词；祝词

参考例句：

• I send you my warmest congratulations on your success. 我对你的成功致以最热烈的祝贺。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Please give her my congratulations when you see her. 见到她时请转达我的祝贺。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 occasion   

n.场合，时机，机会，诱因，理由；vt.惹起，引起

参考例句：

• Her dress was too showy for such a formal occasion.在如此正式的场合，她的服装过分华丽了。
• Her tears were fought back on such an occasion.在这种场合下她忍住了眼泪。

10 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

11 via   

prep.凭借；通过；经过

参考例句：

• The news reached me via my aunt.那消息是通过我婶婶转告我的。
• The ticket reads to Beijing via Shanghai.车票上写明经上海到北京。

12 media   

n.(medium的复数)媒体，新闻媒介，传播媒介

参考例句：

• The local media reported rioting across the country.当地媒体报道了全国范围的骚乱。
• His latest movie is being hyped up by the media.他新近的电影正被媒体大肆炒作。

13 benefit   

n.好处，益处，福利；vt.有益于，对…有益；vi.受益于

参考例句：

• The money is to be used for the benefit of the poor.这笔钱用来为穷人谋福利。
• He thought he would benefit from going to school.他认为上学对他有好处。

14 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

15 sleepless   

adj.不睡眠的，睡不著的，不休息的

参考例句：

• The situation gave her many sleepless nights.这种情况害她一连好多天睡不好觉。
• One evening I heard a tale that rendered me sleepless for nights.一天晚上，我听说了一个传闻，把我搞得一连几夜都不能入睡。