The Worst Christmas Jobs 圣诞特辑 8

Well, that's limelight. What exactly was it?
Well it was the burning of calcium¹ oxide² in a very intense flame.
And when did the job of a limelighter begin?
Oh, famously, the first recorded instance in many ways was a production of pantomime by the famous actor- manager, William Macready, in the Theater Royal in Drury Lane in 1827.
How’s the process of lighting³ by lime discovered?
Well it was a chap called Goldsworthy Gurney who's an inventor. And he invented a blowtorch which became the Gurney torch, which used hydrogen and oxygen for flame. And I suppose he was messing around with this thing, wondering what‘s to do with it. And he found that when he played the flame on a lump of lime, it gave him intense white light.
You are gonna show us what that light is like?
Yes indeed.
Can we get this costume on?
Sorry. Yes.
So did the whole process of lime lighting develop?
It did indeed yes. It started with …er…just flooding the stage with this new light source which was 40 times brighter than the gas equivalent. And then they decided⁴ or they found a way of controlling it by putting a lens in front of it and it became a much more precise instrument, a bit like today's follow spots.
Where did the limelighter stand?
Limelighter is operating from the wings up to the side of the theater.
Right. Ready?

This is gas light and this is limelight. Just a week or two ago, we called on uncle Bill.
Neil, you’ve never seen limelight before, have you?
I haven't. That’s quite amazing.
I don’t think you are going to be disappointed now.
Right.
Why was limelighting such a bad job?
Well because you are using hydrogen which is really very flammable and oxygen. In fact to get the hottest flame, you needed two volumes of hydrogen and one volume of oxygen.
So where is the lime?
The lime is here, this, this little, little thing here. And the lime man’s job was to keep the lime in the hottest part of the flame.
Just by adjusting that lever.
Just by adjusting the levers and the lime man has to keep the ratio of the two gases in that two-to- one ratio all the time. Now we have the separate gases in the cylinder⁵s. They, of course, had them in gas bags. Bert, can you imagine mixing the hydrogen and the oxygen. That was really asking the trouble. That was really an explosive bag of gas. And of course you would see / an hour or so before curtain up in the West End coming down the Strand⁷, men with bags of hydrogen and oxygen on their shoulders and if you would bump into them with your cigar or your pipe you would set them off by it I think.
Did this stuff ever get out of control?
It did I mean the Theatre Royal, in Edinburgh burnt down in 1875 and although we don't think the lime started it. It certainly helped it on its way because it had gas chambers⁸ underneath⁹ the building.

Nevertheless these limelighters were putting their lives at risk for show Biz. So now ladies and gentlemen, for your delectation and delight we three will demonstrate for you the trials and tribulations¹⁰ of the humble¹¹ limelighter. Gentlemen please!

Impressive! Hydrogen burns, for the reaction creates less energy. But add oxygen in the ratio of two–to-one and observe.

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blowtorch n. 吹管

flammable adj. 易燃的,可燃性的

cylinder n.圆筒；柱(面)；汽缸

1 calcium   

n.钙(化学符号Ca)

参考例句：

• We need calcium to make bones.我们需要钙来壮骨。
• Calcium is found most abundantly in milk.奶含钙最丰富。

2 oxide   

n.氧化物

参考例句：

• Oxide is usually seen in our daily life.在我们的日常生活中氧化物很常见。
• How can you get rid of this oxide coating?你们该怎样除去这些氧化皮？

3 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 cylinder   

n.圆筒，柱(面)，汽缸

参考例句：

• What's the volume of this cylinder?这个圆筒的体积有多少？
• The cylinder is getting too much gas and not enough air.汽缸里汽油太多而空气不足。

6 cylinders   

n.圆筒( cylinder的名词复数 )；圆柱；汽缸；（尤指用作容器的）圆筒状物

参考例句：

• They are working on all cylinders to get the job finished. 他们正在竭尽全力争取把这工作干完。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• That jeep has four cylinders. 那辆吉普车有4个汽缸。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 strand   

vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地）

参考例句：

• She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears.她把一缕散发夹到了耳后。
• The climbers had been stranded by a storm.登山者被暴风雨困住了。

8 chambers   

n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅

参考例句：

• The body will be removed into one of the cold storage chambers. 尸体将被移到一个冷冻间里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Mr Chambers's readable book concentrates on the middle passage: the time Ransome spent in Russia. Chambers先生的这本值得一看的书重点在中间：Ransome在俄国的那几年。 来自互联网

9 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

10 tribulations   

n.苦难( tribulation的名词复数 )；艰难；苦难的缘由；痛苦

参考例句：

• the tribulations of modern life 现代生活的苦恼
• The film is about the trials and tribulations of adolescence. 这部电影讲述了青春期的麻烦和苦恼。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。