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BBC Learning English 

Words in the News  

21 March 2012 

Singing grannies 

Transcript: 

Ah, a Russian village - a haven of tranquillity! 

Or is it?! This is their unexpected entry for the Eurovision Song Contest.   

There are no spring chickens in this band: most of the singers in the Buranovo 

Grannies are in their 70s, but they still have plenty of stamina. 

They've been rehearsing their song, Party for Everybody, in the village hall but 

their household chores don't leave much time for it. 

Vocabulary: 

haven 

a safe place 

unexpected  

surprising 

no spring chicken  

a polite and informal phrase meaning old 

stamina  

physical and mental strength  

household chores  

domestic tasks 

Watch the video online: Singing grannies        

Exercise: 

Use one of the words or phrases below to complete each of these sentences from 

BBC news reports.  

Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence 

correctly. 

haven / unexpected / no spring chicken / stamina / household chores 

1. Prof Pasquino says that as the leader of his own party, Silvio Berlusconi still 

has some influence, but is simply too old to run for office in 2013, when at 76, 

"he is unlikely to have the _________ to ride a long electoral campaign". 

2. Robots are about to invade our lives. From performing __________, to 

entertaining and educating our children, to looking after the elderly, roboticists 

say we will soon be welcoming their creations into our homes and workplaces.   

3. During a recent visit to London, its director and cast members offered their 

own theories on the film's ________ success. "It shows that everyone wants a 

story," says Tate Taylor, an actor turned director who, prior to The Help, had 

only one feature film to his credit. 

4. He said: "We will not give up on this mission because Afghanistan must never 

again be a safe _________ for al-Qaeda to launch attacks against us." 

5. In the main event Hopkins, himself ____________ at 46, lost his title after 

injuring his shoulder in the second round. 

Answers: 

1. Prof Pasquino says that as the leader of his own party, Silvio Berlusconi still 

has some influence, but is simply too old to run for office in 2013, when at 76, 

"he is unlikely to have the stamina to ride a long electoral campaign".  

Source:  Italy wrestles with Berlusconi legacy 

2. Robots are about to invade our lives. From performing household chores, to 

entertaining and educating our children, to looking after the elderly, roboticists 

say we will soon be welcoming their creations into our homes and workplaces.  

Source:  Ready for the robot revolution?  

3. During a recent visit to London, its director and cast members offered their 

own theories on the film's unexpected success. "It shows that everyone wants a 

story," says Tate Taylor, an actor turned director who, prior to The Help, had 

only one feature film to his credit. 

Source:  Why did The Help clean up at the US box office?                      

4. He said: "We will not give up on this mission because Afghanistan must never 

again be a safe haven for al-Qaeda to launch attacks against us." 

Source:  Afghan mission into final phases, says David Cameron 

5. In the main event Hopkins, himself no spring chicken at 46, lost his title 

after injuring his shoulder in the second round. 

Source:  Man wrongly convicted of murder makes boxing debut