Unit 9: British healthcare system

Most of the time we feel well. We can play sports, go to work and enjoy our lives. But sometimes we just don't feel well.
The NHS has sent everybody in Britain a Self-Help Guide. This will help you diagnose what is wrong and find the best treatment. It covers things like headaches, coughs and colds, having a temperature or a stomach ache. For many people it could be all they need.

For accidents or emergencies, you should go to a hospital which has got a specific Accident and Emergencies department.

Doctors and medical staff can cure lots of illnesses now using surgery and treatment with drugs.
But many people prefer alternative medicine. This can include many kinds of treatment using both very old and very modern techniques.One of the most common alternative treatments is the use of Chinese herbs - these are completely natural medicine.

Acupuncture - a Chinese technique using needles placed carefully in the body, is also popular.
Osteopathy - where the doctor manipulates bones and muscles, is another popular treatment.

Unit 8: Computers in our lives

Computers are a very important part of our lives. They tell us about delays to transport.
For many young people, playing computer games is their favourite way of spending spare time.
Computers are a very important part of most areas of life in Britain in "smart homes" or computer-controlled houses.

The smart home is now a real possibility. It will become very common. a central computer will adjust the temperature, act as a burglar alarm and switch on lights ready for you to come back home.

Many homes have got lots of televisions and several computers. The computer will also close the blinds when it gets dark or to stop too much sun from entering a room. And if you want to eat when you get home, the computer will turn the oven on for you!

Are computers talking over our lives? Twenty per cent said they were happier at their computer than spending time with family or friends. Another survey found that people in Britain spend so much time on the phone, texting and reading e-mails that they no longer have time for conversation. What do you think about that?

Unit 7: Transport

Exploring Mars is going to be very exciting, but for now, it's easier to explore our own planet! In particular, London.

We're going to follow Freddie as he explores all the different kinds of transport in London. The different kinds of transport link up pretty well but sometimes you have to walk from one point in the journey to the next.

People use lots of other forms of transport in London. Some people use boats on the River Thames to go to work.
There is one kind of transport that isn't very good in London - and that's the car. They move very slowly because there is too much traffic.
The buses and taxis travel more quickly because they have got special lanes on the road. Freddie's in a hurry now so he's taking a London taxi to a meeting.

So that was today.

Unit 6: Shipping in Britain

In England no town is more than 170 kilometres from the sea. So it's no surprise that Britain has a very important history of ships and the sea.

Ships like this one - the Cutty Sark at Greenwich in London- brought tea from India to Britain. It was a very profitable trade and made many people very rich. The ships used only sails and achieved very high speeds. Young men had to climb the rigging to put up the sails. It was very dangerous.

The most famous ship was probably the Titanic. It was the worst disaster in maritime history. You probably know about it from one of the most expensive films ever made -Titanic.

One of the most famous shipping companies is Cunard. It's got the world's biggest cruise chip, the Queen Mary 2, which crosses the Atlantic from Southampton to New York in five or six days.
The majority of people do travel around the world by plane but ships are still very important for moving goods.
So the sea still plays a very important part in life in Britain.

Unit 5: British horror stories

People like to be scared. They love reading horror stories and watching horror movies. Some of the most famous horror stories were written by British writers. The first was published by Mary Shelley in 1818 - Frankenstein.Many films have featured Frankenstein over the years.
One of them put two great horror characters toghether when Frankenstein met Count Dracula.
Bram Stoker got the idea for Dracula while he was sitting in Highgate Cemetery in North London. Sunlight fell on a crack in the lid of a tomb.
Dracula is so popular that visitors to London can go ona guided Dracula tour.

History:
The bedroom window was wide open and moonlight was shining into the room. Mina was on the balcony and a dark shape was leaning over her. It was Count Dracula!

Te vampire was not drinking Mina's blood. No, it was more terrible than that. Dracula was holding Mina's face to a long cut on his chest. He was making her drink his blood!

The vampire turned his head. His eyes burned with a terrible red light. Blood was dripping from his red lips and long white teeth. The vampire had already taken his meal of blood!

We do like to be frightened, don't we?

Unit 4: Law

The most famous police station in Britain is New Scotland Yard in London, but there are police stations all over the country. They've all got a blue light outside to show they are police stations.
For most people the police are the face of the law. They can arrest people in the street, but they also give information.
We visited a new police station in Lewisham, an area in south-east London. This is the custody room of the police station. A suspected criminal is being charged with a crime. He must hand over everything he's carrying or has got in his pockets.
Next they take fingerprints to check the person's identity. This machine scans fingerprints electronically and compares them with the national police database. They also take mouth swabs for analysis of DNA.
Suspects can be kept in the cells at the police station for several hours. This suspect spent a whole night in the cells.

Unit 3: Supermarkets

Supermarkets are an important part of daily life in Britain.
The five biggest supermarkets sell 80% of all groceries - that's food and drink. Tesco is the biggest.
In the larger supermarkets you can buy just about anythink. On the shelves you can find all the food and drink you need. You can buy sports equipment, bicycles, books, toys and games, CDs and DVDs.
Te very big supermarkets are usually on the edge of towns and most people drive to them.
This of course means that they can buy more and take it home in car.
But not everyone likes supermarkets. Small shops in towns and villages are closing because supermarkets can sell the same things cheaper. so people without cars have less choice.
Many supermarkets are open 24 hours a day and seven days a week. but not on Sundays when shops can only open for five hours. That's enough for most people! But you can still shop online.