The English Adventure

I think we live in a very interesting era, don’t you? Technology has made our lives easier, more connected and knowledge, accessible to all. Learning a second language is all the more fun with the internet and all the devices at our disposal. And now, artificial intelligence will be another game-changer. So, in the final episode of this Season, I will give you some tips on how to spice up your con...

If you love stories, like me, you’re probably fond of a juicy murder mystery too. And where else to start but with Agatha Christie, the undisputed Queen of Crime, right? Did you know that the woman who would become “the master of the whodunnit” used, in the early days, to faint at the sight of blood? And that there was a mystery in her life too? So, prick up your ears! In this episode of The Engli...

“English is a window to the world”. Isn’t that beautiful and so absolutely true? That’s a metaphor. In fact, a powerful one I’ve used several times in this podcast to invite you to open up yours too. Metaphors add colour and meaning to our lives and help us make sense of the world. In this episode, we’re going to look into these figures of speech – and their close relation, the simile – to show yo...

Have you ever wondered why some people seem to have all the luck in the world and it seems to come easy to them? Perhaps it’s more than just “luck”. It might be serendipity. According to the Oxford Dictionary, serendipity is the fact of something interesting or pleasant happening by chance. That’s more common than you might think. It happened to me one day, in the summer of 1993, in New York. Out...

If you think the word English doesn’t have a plural, think again! There are so many Englishes spoken around the world that it’s no exaggeration to say there is no such thing as a “proper”native speaker.   That is a myth, according to David Crystal, a British linguist considered a legend in the study of the English language. In this episode of The English Adventure, we explore this multitude of Eng...

Is Great Britain still the nation of “the stiff upper lip”? Well, yes and no! This notion of a land of a “reserved and unemotional people” still holds to some extent, but was challenged by the way the Brits reacted to Princess Diana’s death, in 1997. The whole country “dissolved into tears” in the days leading up to her funeral. The fact is that the Brits did like a good cry in the old days, as yo...

Are we alone in the vast universe? We, humans, will never cease to ask that question. In Episode 2 of Season 2 of The English Adventure, I tell you a story that says a lot about the human spirit: that of the Golden Record, a compilation of images and sounds of life on Earth, which Nasa placed aboard Voyager 1 and Voyager 2, in 1977. It’s a kind of love letter from us, humans, to aliens in space, s...

The day I went live on American television was one of the most memorable of my life. It was the day Brazil and Italy faced each other in the “1994 Fifa World Cup Final”, a nerve-wracking match until the very last minute! In the first episode of Season 2, I talk about how our memories change every time we revisit them in our minds. It’s fascinating! In all episodes of Season 2, I want to inspire yo...

Hi, English lover! I’m Bia Alessi and I'm thrilled to be back with Season 2 of The English Adventure, a podcast for you, non-native English speaker , willing to get inspired while improving your listening skills. In all the episodes of this season, I want to stir your imagination so you can train your ear and get more and more confident in your English. So hold your breath! Season 2 is coming up s...

In the final episode of this season – it’s been quite a journey, hasn’t it? – we talk about states of mind that feed our imagination: awe and wonder. Whereas “wonder” is more associated with curiosity in trying to understand the world, “awe” is more related to grasping it in a more existential way. And there’s no shortage of either in learning a foreign language, is there? They both make us feel m...

Imagine spreading your language so far and wide that it becomes universal. That’s what the English did – and that’s no small feat! However, one can argue that, still, they have an identity crisis, in a post-Empire and post-Brexit world. So, in this episode, we ask: who are the English, as a people? How do they see themselves in a country that calls itself various names? And how do they see themsel...

A centuries-old rivalry that goes back all the way to American Independence from Britain, in 1776. Which English is better (/ˈbet.ər/)? Or should I say ‘better’ ( /ˈbet̬.ɚ/)? British or American? To a certain extent, the British see themselves as “guardians” of the English language, King Charles III included. But American English has made an enormous contribution to a language that has become univ...

William Shakespeare is widely regarded as perhaps “the greatest writer ever in the English language”. Often referred to as “the Bard”, he refined the language like no other before him and made such a huge contribution to theatre and literature that we could well say there’s English before and after Shakespeare. In this episode, we will dive into the Shakespearean world and find out why the Bard’s...

Why do we still seem so obsessed with royalty in the 21st century? What is it about the monarchy that makes it so appealing to people the world over? We love the pomp and circumstance, the pageantry, the crown and sceptre, the gowns, not to mention all the royal gossip! In this episode, we will travel through time to trace the origins of the British monarchy and I will tell you about the day I was...

The story of the English language is an adventure in itself, full of invaders and their appetite for domination. Luckily, English not only survived but absorbed countless words from the conquerors throughout the centuries to become what we could call the language of the world. In this episode, I talk about the twists and turns of this fascinating adventure and share a bit of my own “debut” – yes,...

What would human history have been like if it weren’t for stories? According to Israeli author Yuval Harari, what has made us the dominant species on Earth is our ability to create and tell stories. They’ve been a remedy for boredom since ancient times, to say the least. I love a good, juicy story, don’t you? In this episode, we’ll talk about this human superpower and you will also hear a story yo...

When I first came into contact with the English language, at the age of 12, in a small town in Brazil, it was a bit like a revelation. All of a sudden, my world had expanded and become more magical. I could play with words, too, and my life would never be the same again. In this first episode, you will hear about my Italian English teacher and how his unconventional method made me challenge myself...

Are you on your English learning journey and eager to get more and more intimate with the language in which the world communicates? So, this podcast is for you. Allow me to inspire you so you can fall in love with English and dive into a world you’ve only just dreamed of. Let’s travel through time and space – from the birth of English and its quest for survival to a success story like no other: a...