Could James Bond be played by an American actor? Are there any red-haired Brits?

Pecularities of the American and British variety of English are not as hard and fast as one generally assumes. In this episode we start reflecting on how American and British English are influencing one another – in the media and otherwise.

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A very short podcast on Christmas Eve to wish all our listeners a Merry Christmas and send you a little puzzling present.

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No, we are not talking about flying flags today. After a question in class, Peter asks Roger why many people still consider British English the only proper standard, despite the fact that there are a lot more American speakers of English.

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We are back with more puzzle fun! This time we are going to have a look into the typical British ‘cryptic’ crossword puzzle. Roger will explain what to look for when trying to solve them. And of course we provide some links and material for you to test your puzzling skills!

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Crossword puzzles are fascinating. In Britain even more so than in the rest of the world. Listen to this episode to unrevel the mysteries of British cryptic crosswords.

They are really hard, but once you know what to look for, you can solve them, too!

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Our topic today is sports that were once Olympic. and in general how the public interest in certain disciplines varies over time and continents.

We are referring back to the Olympics in this episode, and we apologise for being late; time-out of a different sort.

Nevertheless when it comes to sports we are highly topical with this episode. Check it out!

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Just in time for the Olympic Games in London we are glad to present our special edition. Peter really enjoys watching the Olympic coverage on TV, but he needs support unravelling some tricky sport jargon terms. Roger can help with that …

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Are you following the European Championship in football these days? Well, if you like football or if you don’t, we’ve got a little riddle for you, which is based on a pun:

What is the difference between the English national football team and a tea bag?

To read the solution click here, hold the mouse button and drag your mouse …

The tea bag stays in the cup longer!

... down here.

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Do you like puns? Then you are in good outdoor retail company with non-prophet organisations! Justin Time we are Shaking Speares at elephants to get down of a duck‽

Totally confused now? Check out this episode for more delightenment!

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You have no clue what a ratchet is, what it is used for, and what “ratcheting up” means? Just listen to this Toolbox full words like French key, hammer, saw, axe and lots of others that are useful for home improvement and metaphorical expression.

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Most of you will know what a screwdriver is. – But have you got any idea what rawlplugs are, or about a Phillips, or a POZIdrive screw?

If you ever wondered what the proper names for tools and hardware are, we’ll help you out with this nuts and bolts episode on tools. If you are a handy person this podcast will come in handy, too!

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Seasons greetings to you all out there in podcast land. We have a new Christmas special for you. Last year we talked about Christmas songs in the seventies. This time Paul Kingsbury is back at the studio to talk about Christmas pop songs in the eighties.

Join us for some modern Christmas classics …

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Remember how we talked about getting rid of stuff you no longer need in our last episode? This time we are going to delve a bit deeper: There are numerous words for things that you don’t need anymore and their usage varies: People put out their rubbish, garbage or trash. But then people sometimes talk rubbish, but never trash. If you are confused now, you have to listen to this episode. And there will be a little question for you at the end. If you know the answer, feel free to leave a comment and maybe win a little prize.

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RoPeCast is finally back from the summer break! And we are bringing along some insights on how differently people from the UK or the US get rid of the stuff they’ve stored in their attic, cellar or garage.

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Sarah Jerram is back in the studio. This time she and Peter are musing about possible reasons for the German reluctance to reproduce at a proper rate. Britain however does a much better job at that.

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Listen to Sarah Jerram, teacher of English at Saarland university, describing her experiences as a working mother in Germany – from the British perspective. What are the most striking differences when it comes to being a parent in Germany or Britain in comparison?

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Puerto Rico isn’t the only region that people argue should be counted towards the United States. Episode 51 tells you about the 51st state and several more. We place the Liberty State, Euphoria and Calisota on your map of the US.

Never heard of them? You need to change that … now!

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The popular American author Dan Brown is always good at combining mysterious numbers with even more mysterious symbols into puzzling plots.

We try something similar for a special occasion. But instead of leaving you puzzled you will have the opportunity to take part in a little challenge. All you have to work out is a simple number! At the same time you’ll get to know some important symbols of English speaking areas all around the globe.

Are you up for our heavily symbolic celebration? Will you find the Lost Number? If you do make sure to leave us a comment including your e-mail address.

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School systems differ greatly throughout the world. Even between the UK and the US there are some striking differences. In one country, for example, students swear in the morning while in the other they pray. But UK colleges and US high schools also have some things in common.

Listen to our comparison of two school days …

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If the description of school life in your English text book has always puzzled you, now’s the time to come to terms with the British education system. This episode explains how education is structured in the UK, particularly England.

And if you are curious about the US system just wait for our next episode …

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Have you been waiting for our annual Christmas Special? Here it is – from operatic to existentialist. Lean back and get some inspiration for a musical Christmas Eve!

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“In Hartford, Hereford, and Hampshire, hurricanes hardly ever happen.” – Why did poor Eliza Doolittle struggle so much with this simple sentence? This episode deals with just one letter: An “H” can be quite a hassle, as you will learn.

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This episode really hurts and will prepare you for the emergency case. You will learn what differences bruised, cracked, strained and sprained body parts make. And why you may not want to ask a passer-by for help with either a contusion or concussion.

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Peter tells us about his accident on the stairs and we learn how differently hospitals will handle accidents and emergencies in the English speaking world.

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RoPeCast is losing a valuable member behind the scenes. Philipp who was responsible for the recording and post production of all our episodes is leaving our team on to pastures new.

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In our last episode you learned how to read an English housing ad and what houses look like in an English-speaking country.
But the inside of your new home can hold some surprises too, especially if you’re moving to a foreign country.
In this RoPeCast you’ll learn what to expect when moving in, and why Roger was shocked when he first arrived in Germany.

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Have you ever moved to a new home? Then you’ll know that this can be quite a challenge.
Even more so if you move to an English speaking country.
But don’t worry, we’ll tell you what kind of houses the British live in and how to read an English housing ad.

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Caution: This RoPeCast will twist your tongue. Listen at your own risk.
Here’s a preview the type of mind-bending rhymes that await you after the download:

She sells sea shells by the seashore.
The shells she sells are surely seashells.
So if she sells shells on the seashore,
I’m sure she sells seashore shells.

So, have a go at our tongue twisters and send in your own.
But remember: You have been warned.

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In this final 3rd episode of our mini-series about so called “child directed speech” or “baby talk” we’ll tackle the more delicate issues in talking to small children.
You’ll learn what English-speaking Moms say when the diaper is full and what their toddlers cry out when they hurt themselves.
Once again you won’t find any of this in your English textbook, so take a listen.

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Not interested in poetry? Well, you used to be!
As a baby, you couldn’t get enough of those rhymes. That’s no surprise, some of those lullabies, fingerplays and kneebouncers are all artforms in their own right.
Bet you still know a few in your mother tongue but what about English ones?
This ropecast features some really famous British and American baby poetry and as a bonus we will teach you how to do the “Itsy-Bitsy-Spider”.

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RoPeCast has been all about speaking ever since it saw the light of day about 2 two years ago.
Two-year-old children are different, of course, which is why mothers use baby talk to communicate with their toddlers instead of complicated Standard English.
Now that our podcast has reached the toddler age, we thought it’s time to invite an expert to learn about so called child directed speech.
In this first part of a small series, our guest Bobbye Pernice will tell you the difference between Poppas and Poppies and explain why sissys may drink from sippy cups.

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Did you know that you can learn a lot about history from food?
You can actually learn about aspects of British culture by tracing back when food names came into the English language.
How?
Find out in this episode of RoPeCast – as long as it’s hot.

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Happy Easter!
Try out our new word quiz by clicking this link:

Start the quiz!


Listen to the audio here:

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Sometimes life is good to you and sometimes things just keep going downhill.
This does not only happen to people, words too can go from rags to riches – or fall from grace.
This RoPeCast traces back the career paths of some not so succesful words but also introduce you to one that really made it.

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Do you know where the word “pyjamas” comes from?
This RoPeCast will take you on a linguistic trip around the globe to find out!
Fasten your seatbelts, lean back and we’re ready for take off.

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... that is the question (with apologies to Shakespeare).
When to shake hands, to kiss on the cheek, to speak to a stranger – this podcast suggests some dos and don’ts for visitors to Britain.

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Does the way you pronounce English get you what you want?
If you ask for crabmeat, does the waiter bring crabmeat? Or does her bring you rubbish?
Ve haff vays of improving your English!

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Obama has not completely lost it, but losing just one senate seat may make all the difference for the new health-care bill.
Because now, Republicans can stop the law by just discussing it endlessly.
This RoPecast only needs 5 minutes to explain why the length of a speech can be a poltical weapon.

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Dictionaries are nice – but sometimes you just can’t find what you’re looking for in any of them. This is especially true for quite a lot of everyday items for which you may not even know a word in your own mother tongue. Don’t despair! Let us invite you to a shopping spree in which you will acquire a lot of new expressions that never make it into regular reference books.

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Let’s go back to Harvard College, USA, to hear how an amusing anecdote can be used to explain a relatively difficult concept.
In the process, we learn how a computer program “accidentally” passed the Turing Test.
You don’t know what the Turing Test is? Just listen to our RoPeCast.

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Our podcast takes the usual lighthearted look at a serious topic – and finds that Harvard College lectures can be funny as well as informative.

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Are you familiar with the terms Congress, Senate and House? Who can veto legislation? Can a veto be overturned? And what is meant by “checks and balances”? This RoPeCast gives you some answers.

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The problem with getting a seat in Westminster is, well, getting a seat.
In more than one way, it can become pretty hard to become a respected Member of the British Parliament. Even if you are elected, people may just not notice you…

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If you think that German voting laws are complicated, take a look at the American System.
American voters have to register before voting, are invited to lengthy primaries and in the end don’t even get to vote directly for their President.
After this Podcast, the German “overhang seats” (Überhangmandate) will seem a rather trivial issue.

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Are you already thinking about Christmas gifts? And you have already bought the new video iPod? Well, maybe you want Santa to bring you a new dictionary. We have a new one that you could put on your list. And if you don’t like the one we present in this podcast, listen again to our podcast “More than words” for more suggestions.

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A popular saying goes “things are not what they seem”.
This also holds true for a number of quotations.
Some really famous ones were probably never said, others are attributed to the wrong person. This podcast will show you that even legendary quotations can be fakes.

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You certainly know president Obama’s famous slogan “Yes, we can.”, but how did he come up with it?
And who first said “He who can, does. He who cannot, teaches.” ?
Find out the answers in this episode, in which Peter is challenged by Roger in a pretty tough quotation quiz.

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Genial persons have the most friends.
But they have to watch out for false friends, if they don’t want to be misunderstood.
We provide help in this RoPeCast episode.

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Good news: you can forget the news.
You don’t have to watch CNN all the time in order to learn English in front your TV set.
This episode will tell you how the TV can be your Friend(s) when it comes to improving your spoken English.

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Remeber our Ropecasts on rhyming slang?
One of our listeners had a cool idea for one that is based on Barack Obama.

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Fixed expressions are used by all and sundry 24/7.
And what’s more, the most common ones are easy to understand.
But there’s bad news too: it’s hard to find out which fixed expressions are worth remembering.
We’ll tell you where to look for help, and how to come to grips with them.

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Who told you proverbs are important? Forget school, only teachers use old fashioned sayings like “Early bird gets the worm.” Idioms are the real deal. And as an added bonus we’ll tell you the only two Englisch proverbs that are actually worth learning.

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In this episode we go even deeper into the topic of rhyming slang, including some that almost got us an “explicit” tag on the iTunes Store. If you listen closely to this episode, you will even unravel the rhyming slang riddle of this episode’s title.

Oh, and be sure to leave us a comment with your own rhyming slang based on the new American president’s name Barack Obama.

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What’s the connection between Britney Spears, Nelson Mandela, and a popular drink?

No idea? Then listen to our podcast about rhyming slang, which supplies the missing link.

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The American TOEFL may be the best known English test but there is a British alternative.
The “International English Language Testing System” IELTS offers you two ways to demonstrate how good your English is.
So whether you’re planning to work or study abroad,
or even to emigrate, you should check this out.

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You want to have proof of your English skills and you look around for a test that you can take to get a certificate.
You find a confusing range of options and perhaps end up paying good money for a piece of paper that is not accepted by potential employers, colleges and universities.
We’ll tell you which certifcates really are worth the money and the effort.

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Everyone can see that dictionaries are helpful books, but is it worth spending more to buy a dictionary with a CD-ROM?

There are indeed many advantages to using an electronic format: help with English pronunciation, easy access to synonyms and information about frequent collocations, to name just a few.

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After our Christmas and New Year’s special episodes we tried hard to deliver something similar for Easter. Listen to this short episode to learn what we came up with …

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Did we fool you?

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Unfortunately we did not receive too many comments from our listeners over the last two months and so we decided to address a different, potentially larger group of learners from now on. As of today, RoPeCast will become РоПеКаст and target learners of Russian …

День смеха — неофициальный праздник, отмечающийся, чаще всего, 1 апреля. Ð’ Испании День дурака празднуется 28 декабря.

По традиции, в этот день принято подшучивать над друзьями, членами семьи, коллегами и Ñ‚. д. Эти шутки обычно срабатывают, если человек забыл, какой сегодня день. Традиционное выражение в этот день — это «Ð£ вас спина белая».

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Those who are familiar with American English probably find it hard to believe that in the UK, surgery is not only performed in hospitals but something quite common in Parliament and even in office buildings, but it’s true. Other troublesome words…

Do you have any questions about the English language? Or about English speaking cultures? Or about learning English? Or other questions about English you desperately want an answer to and have been afraid to ask up to now? If that is so, post a comment…

If one compares US and British usage, one finds apparently contrasting expressions which mean the same thing, for instance: to fill in a form versus to fill out a form. We offer an explanation and other interesting examples of how two nations are…

Do you know when to say I live here (simple form) and when to say I am living here (progressive or continuous form)? Are there verbs that are used only in the simple form? What about McDonald’s and their slogan, “I’m loving it”?…

Do you really know how many tenses you use when speaking your first language? Our analysis might surprise you – and help you with your English.…

Learners who take risks when speaking English may make better progress than those who play it safe. But ignoring grammar can sometimes lead to misunderstandings. Let’s take the example of speaking about the future. Nothing can possibly go wrong…

Sporting metaphors permeate the English language. In this podcast you can learn about level playing fields, curveballs and sticky wickets. And do you know what a rain check is? Check it out.…

—- New Year’s Special —- Hear how people in Canada, Ireland, the USA and UK see in the New Year. There’s talk of socials, resolutions, firecrackers… and about a famous British dinner party that only Germans really care…

—- Christmas Special —- After we received feedback asking for longer RoPeCast episodes, we thought the forthcoming holidays were the right occasion for spending a little bit more time listening to our show. This time we present…

When people in many parts of the world speak of the “World Cup”, they are probably referring to the game of soccer, but rugby also has its World Cup, Six Nations’ Trophy, and other competitions. So what exactly is this game that…

Do you know how many types of football there are in the world? There may be no definitive answer, but we’ll deal with 3 major sports: American football, soccer and rugby football, taking in hockey and cricket along the way.…

Have you been wondering which English dictionary to buy? There are so many on the market that it is very difficult to know which one to choose.
This podcast suggests which criteria are important and offers a short-list of four titles.

Y…