Attlee:

I hope that this concert hall will long endure to give the opportunity for the

finest music, the greatest singers and players to be heard, and to give pleasure

and refreshment of the soul to generations of Londoners yet unborn.

William: Hello, I’m William Kremer and that was Clement Attlee, who was the British

Prime Minister after the Second World War. The clip you just heard was

recorded on 12th October, 1949. Mr Attlee was making a speech at the start of

work on building a great concert hall – the Royal Festival Hall, which now

stands on the South bank of the River Thames. Today’s programme is all about

the Royal Festival Hall.

Mr Attlee’s speech was in quite formal English… he said that he hoped the hall

would long endure – that is, that it would exist for a long time – to give the

opportunity for the finest music, singers and players to be heard. He also used a

lovely phrase – ‘to give pleasure and refreshment of the soul’. Listen again.

Clement

Attlee:

I hope that this concert hall will long endure to give the opportunity for the

finest music, the greatest singers and players to be heard, and to give pleasure

and refreshment of the soul to generations of Londoners yet unborn.

William: Did you notice, listening to that clip, how differently British people spoke just

fifty years ago? It’s a way of speaking that one associates with the BBC! – but,

it sounds quite old-fashioned now.

STING

Entertainment © BBC Learning English

Page 2 of 3

bbclearningenglish.com

The Royal Festival Hall took two years to build, finally opening in May 1951

as part of the Festival of Britain. The building brought a striking Modernist

style to the Thames. It was in service for over fifty years – and it became home

to four orchestras! Famous singers of many different styles sang there,

including Maria Callas, Louis Armstrong and Lou Reed.

But, in 2005, the hall closed once again for two years. Why? It was being

refurbished. ‘To refurbish’ – it means to improve a building or object and make

it like new. There’s a noun form too – ‘refurbishment’. The refurbishment of

the Royal Festival Hall took two years and cost ninety-one million pounds. It

finally opened its doors last week.

We’re going to hear now from Peter Mandelson. Mr Mandelson is currently the

European Union Commissioner for Trade. But his grandfather, Herbert

Morrison, had the original idea for the Festival of Britain and the Hall back in

the 1940’s. What does Peter Mandelson make of the refurbishment? In this clip,

Mr. Mandelson mentions a key development. Used as an adjective, ‘key’

means ‘most important’. This is quite a common word in modern, formal

English. What does Peter Mandelson see as the ‘key development’ in the

refurbishment of the Royal Festival Hall?

Peter

Mandleson:

 

It’s been refurbished, repolished, buffed up, made more comfortable, the

carpeting brought back to life… but I think the key development is the

liberation of… liberation of space. There are parts of the original Festival Hall

which the public never went to – I don’t quite know what they were used for –

offices or workshops or whatever – but the whole effect is to bring more, more

light and spaciousness into the hall, with wonderful views of Westminster and

Thameside. 

Entertainment © BBC Learning English

Page 3 of 3

bbclearningenglish.com

William: He said the key development is the liberation, or freeing of… of what?

Peter

Mandleson:

 

It’s been refurbished, repolished, buffed up, made more comfortable, the

carpeting brought back to life… but I think the key development is the

liberation of… liberation of space. There are parts of the original Festival Hall

which the public never went to – I don’t quite know what they were used for –

offices or workshops or whatever – but the whole effect is to bring more, more

light and spaciousness into the hall, with wonderful views of Westminster and

Thameside.

William: He said the key development was the ‘liberation of space’. Parts of the original

hall which the public never went to have been opened and the whole effect is to

bring more light and spaciousness into the hall.

Well, I’ve not been across the Thames to the newly-refurbished Festival Hall,

but I have to say that I can’t wait to see it for myself. It sounds like it’s been

refurbished in such a way that it will continue to give pleasure and refreshment

of the soul… and my soul could certainly use a little refreshment! Goodbye.