You will hear a radio interview with Jack Williams, who is talking about a town called Swanton.
For each question, put a tick in the correct box. You now have forty-five seconds to look at the questions for Part 2.
Now we are ready to start. Listen carefully. You will hear the recording twice.
Interviewer: Oh, what a wonderful view! I’m here with Jack Williams, who’s telling me about his home town of Swanton.
Jack: Yes, the top of this hill is the best place to see the area. Swanton is on the coast - you can see the harbour from here - but in fact the town is built along the river Dean. This river comes from a lake in the mountains, over there in the distance, then flows down to the flat land below us where the town is built.
Interviewer: What do you most like about living here?
Jack: About Swanton? Oh, it’s an important industrial town and a port, so there’s lots of activity. And there’s a forest behind the town with interesting wildlife. But the most exciting thing for me is the mountains. I go climbing whenever I get the chance.
Interviewer: What about entertainment?
Jack: There’s plenty of entertainment. A big centre was built last year to encourage the arts - very modern. It’s got a cinema, a theatre and an art gallery. And there’s football. The local team hasn’t done so well lately. A few years ago we nearly won the Cup. And our area is famous for music - not in Swanton itself, but there’s a well-known music festival in the next town.
Interviewer: But there are problems with the environment.
Jack: We’re working on that. The river was a great place for fish, but the water got so polluted by the factories that most of the fish disappeared. Well, we’ve cleaned the river up now, and the fish are starting to come back. But I’m unhappy about Swanton woods. The trees are quite healthy, but if you look, there are no birds there, and that’s because pollution has reduced the number of insects.
Interviewer: Swanton’s growing fast. Are you pleased about the way it’s changed?
Jack: You’ve got to move with the times. It was completely different when I was a boy. In those days everybody worked in the factories, and the families all knew each other. Maybe it was a little boring. Today there are hundreds of different companies, and so many new houses that some people don’t even know their neighbours. There are disadvantages, but it’s impossible to be bored with all the things going on.
Interviewer: And what about Swanton’s future?
Jack: Education is important to us. We have a fine university, which specialises in advanced technology. And a huge shopping centre, just built, which is bringing in double the number of visitors - good news for us. And last year we improved our airport, so more planes can come in.