CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 1

Good afternoon everybody and welcome to Riverside Industrial Village. To start your visit I’m just going to give you a brief
account of the history of the museum before letting you roam about on your own. I won’t keep you long. OK?
Now, from where we’re standing you’ve got a good view of the river over there. And it was because of this fast-flowing water that this site
was a natural place for manufacturing works. The water and the availability of raw materials in the area, like minerals and iron ore, and
also the abundance of local fuels, like coal and firewood, all made this site suitable for industry from a very early time.
Water was the main source of power for the early industries and some of the water wheels were first established in the twelfth century,
would you believe? At that time, local craftsmen first built an iron forge just behind the village here, on the bend in the river. By the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the region’s rivers supported more than a hundred and sixty water mills—and many of these
continued to operate well into the nineteenth century. But then the steam engine was invented and then the railways came and the centres
of industry were able to move away from the rivers and the countryside and into the towns. So, industrial villages like this one became
very rare.
So that’s the history for you. If you’d like any more information, you can ask me some questions, or you can read further in our excellent
guide book.
——————————————————————————————————-
Now I’m going to give you a plan of the site and I’d just like to point out where everything is and then you can take a look at everything
for yourself.
I’ve already pointed out the river, which is on the left. And of course, running along the bottom is Woodside Road, got it? OK. Now we’re
standing at the entrance, see it at the bottom, and immediately to our right is the Ticket Office. You won’t need that because you’ve got
your group booking, but just past it are the toilets—always good to know where they are. In front of us is the car park, as you can see, and
to the left, by the entry gate is the Gift Shop. That’s where you can get copies of the guide, like this one here.
Now, beyond the car park all the buildings are arranged in a half circle with a yard in the middle. The big, stone building at the top is
the main Workshop. That’s where the furnace is and where all the metal was smelted and the tools were cast, as you’ll be able to see.
Now, in the top right-hand corner, that building with bigger windows is the Showroom, where samples of all the tools that were made
through the ages are on display. In the top left corner is the Grinding Shop, where the tools were sharpened and finished. And on one side
of that you can see the Engine Room and on the other is the Cafe, which isn’t an antique, you’ll be pleased to know, though they do serve
very nice old-fashioned teas.
The row of buildings you can see on the left are the cottages. These were built for the workers towards the end of the eighteenth century
and they’re still furnished from that period so you can get a good idea of ordinary people’s living conditions. Across the yard from them,
you can see the stables where the horses were kept for transporting the products. And the separate building in front of them is the Wor ks
Office and that still has some of the old accounts on display.
Right, if anyone wants a guided tour then I’m starting at the Engine Room. If you’d like to come along, this way please, ladies and
gentlemen.

CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 2

Thank you for calling the Tourist Line. There are many different ways of getting round the city and we’d like to suggest some you
may not have thought of. How about a city trip by boat? There are four main stopping points from west to east: stop A Green
Banks, stop B City Bridge, stop C Roman Landing and stop D Newtown.
You can find the main booking office at stop A.
The first boat leaves at 8 a.m. and the last one at 6.30 p.m. There are also many attractions you can visit along the river. At Stop A,
if you have time, you can visit the fine 16th century palace here built for the king with its beautiful formal gardens. It’s very near
the booking office. Now you can enjoy every corner of this superb residence.
Stop B Why don’t you visit Tower Restaurant with its wide range of refreshments? This is a place where you can sit and enjoy the
wonderful views over the old commercial and banking centre of the city.

37
Stop C is the area where, in the first century AD, invading soldiers crossed the river; this was much shallower than it is now. That’s
why this area is called Roman Landing. There’s an interactive Museum to visit here with a large shop which has a good range of
local history books.
At the furthest point of the trip, stop D, the most exciting place to visit is the new Entertainment Complex with seven-screen
cinema, bowling alley and video games arcade.
Besides the boat tours, there are city buses. Two companies offer special services:
The Top Bus Company runs all its tours with a live commentary in English. Tours leave from 8.30 a.m. every 20 minutes. There are
departures from Central Station, Castle Hill and Long Walk. This is a hop-on hop-off service and tickets are valid for 24 hours. For
further details call Top Bus on 0208 9447810.
The Number One Sightseeing Tour is available with a commentary in eight languages. Buses depart from Central Station every five
to six minutes from about 9 a.m. with the last bus at around 7 p.m. There are also Number One services with an English-speaking…

CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 3

Welcome to all of you.., can everybody see and hear me?… Good… I’m Sally, your guide for this tour of the Bicentennial Park… I
hope that you’re all wearing your most comfortable shoes and that you can keep up the pace. So let’s get under way on our tour
around this wonderful park.
I’ll start today with some general background information. There used to be a lot of factories in this area until the 1960s. Creating
the park required the demolition of lots of derelict buildings on the site, so most of the exciting park space all around you was
originally warehouses and storehouses.
The idea of building a public park here was first discussed when a property developer proposed a high-rise housing development,
but the local community wasn’t happy. If the land was to be cleaned up, they wanted to use the site for recreation. Residents
wanted open space for outdoor activities, rather than housing or even an indoor sports complex.
Now to the Bicentennial Park itself. It has two areas, a nature reserve and a formal park with man-made features and gardens. The
tall blue-and-white building in front of us is called The Tower and is the centre point for the formal gardens. It stands twelve
metres high, so follow me up the stairs to where we can take advantage of the fantastic views.
Well, here we are at the top of The Tower, and we’re going to look at the view from each direction. Out to the east, the large
buildings about a kilometre away are on the Olympic site. There’s an indoor arena for gymnastics, a stadium for track and field and
a swimming pool for races and synchronised swimming and also diving. If you look carefully down there, you can see the train
lines. The Olympic site has its own station to encourage the use of public transport. There is also a car park, but it only holds a
limited number of cars.
The formal park has some specially-created water features. If you look out here to the south, you can see a circular ornamental
pond.
And around to the west, you can relax and sit on a bench to smell the flowers in the rose garden, and finally up to the north, if you
look in front of you now, there’s a lake with a small island in the centre, you can hire rowing boats at the boat shed, which you
can’t see from here, but if you look through the trees, you can see the café, which has lovely views across the water. OK, let’s climb
down now. We will go now and have a look at the nature reserve section, of the park, which has opened up natural wetland to the
public.
The Mangroves have been made more accessible to visitors by the boardwalk built during the park’s upgrade. You’d think that
people would come here to look at the unusual plant life of the area, but in fact it’s more often used for cycling and is very popular
with the local clubs. This is the far end of the park and over there you can see the Frog Pond, a natural feature here long before the
park was designed. Just next to it we have our outdoor classroom, a favourite spot for school parties. The area is now most often
used by primary schools for biology lessons.
And finally let’s pass by the Waterbird Refuge. This area is in a sheltered part of the estuary, that’s why the park’s viewing
shelter is a favourite spot for bird watchers who can use it to spy through binoculars. You can watch a variety of water birds, but
most visitors expect to see black swans when they come to the shelter. You might spot one yourself right now! Well, here we are
back at our starting point, the Visitor Centre.

CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 4
38
Hello and welcome to today’s ‘Buyer Beware’ programme, where we give you some tips on how to spend your money wisely.
Now, in today’s show we’re looking at beds for children and babies. Let’s start by looking at baby cots, that’s for children of up
to three years old. We tested three different cots all in the budget price range and, as usual, we will feature the good points, the
problems and our verdict.
The first cot we looked at was by Baby Safe and it had several good points to recommend it. Our testers liked the fact that it had
four wheels, so it was easy to move around. The only slight problems with this cot were that it had no brakes, but they didn’t
think that mattered too much. At first they were a bit concerned about the side bar, because they felt babies could trap their
fingers in it, but our testers felt that this was unlikely to happen so they have given this one a verdict of ‘satisfactory’.
The next cot was by Choice Cots and this time our testers were pleased to find a cot which is simple to put together—unlike
others we looked at. On the minus side, our testers did not like the fact that the side of the cot did not drop down, making it
difficult to pick up newborn babies. However, the real problem with this cot was the space between the bars; our testers found
they were too wide and a baby could easily trap his head. We felt this was a real safety hazard and so we have labelled this
one dangerous, I’m afraid.
——————————————————————————————————-
And finally better news for the Mother’s Choice cot. This cot was slightly different in that, although the side bar did not drop
down, the base could be raised or lowered into two different positions making it safe as well as convenient. The negatives for
this one were quite minor； the only niggle everyone had was the fact that it has no wheels and the only other problem anyone
could find, was that there were pictures which were simply stuck on and so could easily become detached. The makers have now
promised to discontinue this practice. As this cot will then be safe in every way, we have made the Mother’s Choice cot our best
buy. Congratulations Mother’s Choice!
So, what features should you look for in a baby’s cot? Well obviously safety is a very important factor as well as comfort and
convenience. We recommend that, if you are buying a cot, do make sure that any metal present is not rusted or bent in any way.
You should ensure your cot has only rounded or smooth edging without any sharp edges, this is especially important for wooden
cots.
And now on to beds for toddlers…

CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 5

Good evening everyone and thank you for coming to the Soccer Club meeting. It’s good to see so many parents and children
here tonight, and I know you are looking forward to a great football season. Now I’d like to take a few minutes to tell you about
some changes to the Soccer Club for the coming season.
Now, this season we’ll be playing all our matches for both the junior and senior competitions at King’s Park, instead of Royal
Park, which was used last season.
Now for meetings, we’re going to use the clubhouse in King’s Park, and the next meeting will be held in the clubhouse on the
2nd of July.
As usual, we hope to begin the season with a picnic next Saturday at the clubhouse. Please try and come to the picnic as it’s
always good fun. The last week of the season we usually have a dinner and presentation of prizes to the players, and more
information about this will be given to you later in the season.
This season we have more teams than ever. We hope to have ten teams, instead of five, in the junior competition and they will
play on Saturday mornings, beginning at 8.30 a.m. Training sessions will be held in King’s Park on Wednesday afternoons for
the juniors and they will be wearing red shirts again this year.

In the senior competition, there’ll be four teams, the same as last year, and their games will be played on Saturday afternoons
starting at 2.30, no sorry, it will be a 2 o’clock start, and the training session for seniors is planned for Sunday afternoons.
——————————————————————————————————-

39
Now I’d like to introduce you to the new committee for the Soccer Club for this season. Firstly, let me welcome Robert Young,
the new President, who will manage the meetings for the next two years. Robert’s son has been playing football with the club for
over five years now, and many thanks to Robert for taking on the job of President.
Next we have Gina Costello, she’s the treasurer, and she will collect the fees from you for the season. Please try and give Gina
your fees as early as possible in the season, as the club needs the money to buy some new equipment.
Then there’s David West who has volunteered to be the club secretary, and one of the many jobs he will have is to send out
newsletters to you regularly. If you have any information that may be useful, please let David know so that it can be included in
these newsletters.
Also I’d like to introduce you to Jason Dokic who is the Head Coach. For all the new members here tonight, this is the third year
that Jason has been with us as Head Coach, and we are very lucky to have such an experienced coach and former player at our
club. He will continue to supervise the teams, at training sessions and on match days.
Now before we finish and have some refreshments, does anyone have any questions they’d like to ask the new committee?

CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 6

CUSTOMER: Hello. Um my family and I are staying here in Trebirch for a week or two and we wanted to know about the train services.
We’re hoping to do a few local trips.
RAILPERSON: OK. Well, I can give you lots of details about all the trains going from Trebirch in the South West. This leaflet will be
very helpful but I can tell you some of the main things. We’ve got two main train stations in the town. King Street is for local commuter
lines and regional services.
CUSTOMER: What about trains to London? I’ll need to go there on business for one day.
RAILPERSON: Then you need to go to Central Station—that’s for all the national services. There are regular trains to London. They
leave Trebirch every half hour on weekdays and every hour at weekends. It takes about two hours, a bit longer on Sundays. You’ve got a
choice of first and second class and there’s a buffet car – though refreshments are included in the cost of a first class ticket.
CUSTOMER: Ah right. Urn, and have you got any information on different ticket types?
RAILPERSON: Yes. There’s a range of ticket prices depending on when you travel and when you buy your ticket. There’s a standard
open ticket which doesn’t have any restrictions. This can be bought in advance or on the day. You can also get various discounted tickets.
A popular one is called the Supersave and, er, this is OK for travel after 8.45. Then there is the Special ticket, which is valid for travel
after 10.15. The Special tickets are also valid for travel at weekends. The cheapest tickets are called Advance and you have to buy them at
least six days ahead. Only a certain number are available and you have to make seat reservations for these.
CUSTOMER: Thanks. And are there lots of places to go to around here?
RAILPERSON: Oh yes. You can enjoy many days out. Um there’s the Merthyr Mining Museum, which is only half an hour from
Trebirch by train. Your children will find it just as fascinating as any theme park and they can ride in the original miners’ lifts and on the
coal trains. There are special excursion tickets which include entrance fees. Mainline trains also offer direct services to Bristol, where you
can visit the docks or spend a great day out with the children in the zoo, which is set in the parkland that used to surround the old castle.
Er, special family awayday fares are available for this service now during the school holidays. Er, alternatively, you can be in Birmingham
in only an hour and a half, where there’s lots to see and do including the new and internationally-acclaimed climbing wall built on the site
of the old aquarium. We will also be running a special service to Newport when the new science museum opens next year, as we anticipate
a lot of visitors in the opening weeks. I’d advise you to call early to book your tickets. Is that OK?
CUSTOMER: Yes, thankS
CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019
TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 7

MAN: And here on Radio Rivenden we have Lynne Rawley, the Public Relations Officer of our own Rivenden City Theatre.
Hello, Lynne.
LYNNE: Hello.
MAN: Now, the theatre is reopening soon after its three-year redevelopment programme, isn’t it?

40
LYNNE: That’s right, and there are a lot of improvements. The first thing people will see when they go in is that the foyer has
been repainted in the original green and gold. Then the box office has been reoriented. with its own access from the side of the
building instead of through the foyer, which means it can be open longer hours, and has more space, too. The shop that used to
be in the foyer, which sold books and CDs, is the one part of the redevelopment which isn’t yet complete. The plan is to find
new premises for it near the theatre, and we’ve had difficulty finding somewhere suitable. We hope to reopen the shop in the
next few months.
MAN: Will audiences find any difference in the auditorium?
LYNNE: Yes, we’ve increased the leg-room between the rows. This means that there are now fewer seats but we’re sure
audiences will be much happier. And we’ve installed air conditioning, so it won’t get so hot and stuffy. We already had a few
seats which were suitable for wheelchair users, and now there are twice as many, which we hope will meet demand. Something
else that will benefit audiences is the new lifts. The two we used to have were very small and slow. They’ve now gone and
we’ve got much more efficient ones.
MAN: Anything for the performers?
LYNNE: Yes, we’ve made a number of improvements backstage. The small dark dressing rooms we used to have have been
converted into two large airy rooms, so they’re much more comfortable now. And the state- of-the-art electronic sound and
lighting systems have been installed.
MAN: OK, so what’s the first play that audiences can see when the theatre reopens?
LYNNE: We’ve got a very exciting production of Peter Shaffer’s Royal Hunt of the Sun, which is currently touring the country.
That starts on October the 13th and runs till the 19th. We’re experimenting a bit with the time the curtain goes up. We used to
start all our performances at 7.30, but that made it difficult for people to go home by public transport, so instead we’re beginning
at 7, because at 9.45, when it finishes, there are still buses running. Tickets are already selling fast. The Friday and Saturday
performances sold out almost immediately and, in fact, now there are only tickets for Monday and Thursday.
MAN: How much are they?
LYNNE: We’ve introduced a simpler price structure. Ticket prices used to range from ￡ 6 to ￡ 30 but now they’re all ￡ 18.
They’re available from the box office, in person, by phone, fax or post, or online.
MAN: OK, Lynne, now if you’d like to give the contact details for the theatre…

CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 8

Good morning and welcome, everybody. I’m Jenny Stewart and I’m the Staff Manager here at the exhibition centre.
We’re expecting this year’s International Travel Exhibition to attract over 10,000 visitors a day, ladies and gentlemen, and you
are among the two hundred extra staff recruited to help look after them. Now, to help things run smoothly, we have divided you
into four teams—the blue team, the green team, the red team, and the yellow team. So first I’ll explain how the teams are
divided up, and then we’ll be giving you colour-coded T-shirts so we can identify you more easily. First of all, those who will be
looking after the phones and handling all calls regarding the exhibition, you will be on the red team. Now, we’ve also put the
entrance staff on the red team and you’ll be stamping the entrance tickets and giving out publicity leaflets, OK?

Those of you involved in distributing entrance tickets will be on the yellow team and we’ve also put those of you who’ll be
staffing the information booths around the conference centre on the yellow team, so you’ll be getting a yellow T-shirt. Now,
most of the hospitality staff have been put in the blue team, so the chefs among you and the kitchen hands will all need a blue T-
shirt, but, because of the sheer numbers, all waiting staff will be on the yellow team, and this includes the bar staff among you.
Those who will be monitoring and directing the traffic in the car parks are on the green team, so you’ll need to get a green T-
shirt. This year we’ve also employed a considerable number of attendants to direct the human traffic around the conference
centre. Now, you’ll be working in the exhibition hall at all times, giving directions and generally helping people whenever you
can, and you will be in the red team, so please collect a red T-shirt.

41
Right, now that everyone knows what team they’re in, we’ll get on with the orientation and training programme and first I’ll run
through the rest of today’s programme, which you should have in front of you, so that you can get a general idea of what else is
in store today. This introduction finishes at 9.30 and then you’ll be hearing from Anne Smith. Anne works in the accounts
department on level two and she looks after all temporary staff, and so she is the person to see if you have any problems
regarding pay. Anne will be explaining when and how you get this. She will also be handing out your tax forms. And I will just
stress that all tax forms must be completed and returned to Anne before your pay can be processed. Following Anne’s talk you’ll
hear from Peter Chen, our Conference Manager, and he will be going over a plan of the conference centre with you, which will
help you to orient yourselves. He will also go through the security arrangements with you and show you the fire exits. Then at
10.30, there will be a coffee break in the staff canteen, which is located down on the ground floor. Now, after the break we’ll be
moving to a different location for a video presentation, so instead of coming back here, we’d like you all to go to Lecture Room
three-one-one. You’ll find it on this same level, just down the hall, and there you will be shown a video about important safety
issues in the workplace, called Safety at Work. We’ll finish off the morning with lunch, which should give everyone a chance to
meet and get to know each other, and we’ll be serving you a buffet lunch in the Main Hall, which is on the first floor, from 12.00
o’clock. After lunch you’ll be divided up into your teams to meet your team leaders and we’re hoping to be all finished by 3.00
so I won’t delay you any longer, and I’ll hand over to…

CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 9

So the counselling services we offer deal with any problems arising from your studies, or in your life outside the university.
Let’s take academic counselling. If you’re confused about subjects or how to combine them in your degree, then we can advise
you and discuss the career you are aiming for, so that you can see it all in context. We can also chase up your tutor if you’re not
getting proper feedback on how you are getting on in our subject.
Besides help with academic problems, you may also need personal counselling: if you think you’re already under stress, well,
just wait till classes begin next week. You’ll have to start adjusting to teaching and learning methods that may be unfamiliar to
you, as well as the mounting pressure as the deadline for that first assignment creeps up on you. And of course, you have to cope
with all this without your usual social network—you know, the social contacts, family and friends you could normally rely on
for help. All of this causes anxiety. Studying overseas can trigger a personal crisis—you may have left a lot of what you might
call ‘unfinished business’ back in your own country, or you may have interrupted personal relationships or even sometimes have
broken them off to come overseas, and so the student often feels lonely, unhappy, unmotivated and unable to concentrate on
studying. Or there may be other things bothering you. Our resident chaplain can offer you spiritual guidance if that’s what you
want, or we can put you in touch with community groups that can provide you with social contacts and friendship.
——————————————————————————————————-
What about exam stress? It affects nearly everyone to some extent, but especially overseas students like yourselves. There may
be a huge amount of family pressure on you to succeed, and if you fail a subject or drop out of a course because it’s too difficult
then your self- esteem can suffer. But it’s not the end of the world if you don’t pass an exam—I had to resit First Year
Anthropology, so I can certainly offer you a sympathetic ear! Anyway, exam failure can lead to worrying changes in the way
you normally behave. You may also be off your food, or you may have dietary problems because the local food is not to your
liking and upsets you, and this can affect your health and studies. Glenda Roberts is our dietician in the Health Service and we
can put you on to her.
And we all have money problems, don’t we? But remember, full-time students can get a low-interest loan of up to six hundred
dollars to buy books and for similar study-related expenses. That’s right, and you can get double that amount if you can’t afford
an item of equipment you need for your course—a musical instrument, for example. And it doesn’t stop there. When you move
into a flat, starting-up expenses, including furniture for it, can be covered by a loan through the Welfare Service—see Jill
Freeman for details.
Can we help you? Well, last academic year, in spite of staff cuts, we counselled two hundred and forty international students for
a total of twenty-six hundred hours counselling, and, finally we won all but just one of the twelve appeals that we launched on
behalf of students. Not too bad for an understaffed service, don’t you think? That’s all from me. Thank you.

42
 CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019
TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 10
SPEAKER 1: Thank you for calling the free Travelite Travel Agency Information Line. You will not be charged for this call.
In order to deal with all calls effectively, we offer you a number of options. Please listen carefully and press your required number
at the appropriate time, or dial a new number.
If you want to hear about special offers, please press one. If you want to hear our latest price lists, please press two. If you want to
make a complaint, please press three. If you want information about our new walking holidays, please press four now.
SPEAKER 2: Thank you for calling our Travelite Walking Holidays Line. We have been offering a wide variety of walking holidays
to suit all tastes for just three years, but already we have won two awards for excellence in this field. We offer guided walking
tours to suit the discerning traveller in twelve different centres throughout the whole of Western Europe. We are planning to open
our first centre outside this area in the coming year, so watch out for developments.
But the pride of Travelite is the level of guidance and support we offer on our walks. All are planned in detail by our highly trained
guides, who all work in a variety of different Travelite locations, so we can guarantee standards. Each day we offer three separate
walks catering for all skills and fitness levels.
We also pride ourselves on our friendly service, particularly important for the increasing numbers of people who choose to
holiday alone. Unlike almost all travel operators who happily charge large supplements for single rooms, we guarantee that no
single client will pay more, even when only double rooms are available for them. And the day doesn’t end with the return to base…
after our dinner at communal tables designed to make all our guests feel part of a family atmosphere… entertainment is laid
on nearly every night with tour leaders on hand to organise lectures, games, quizzes and respond to any special requests from
guests.
——————————————————————————————————-
The following is a summary of costs and special inclusive offers on holidays for the coming summer. We have three lengths of
holiday: three-day, seven-day and fourteen-day. The three-day holiday costs one hundred and eighty dollars for all
accommodation, food and walking, and for the first time this year we are including in that price… the cost of picking you up from
the nearest station. The seven-day holiday costs three hundred and fifty dollars per person and, as well as including the offers of
the three-day holiday, also includes a magnificent book giving the local history. On top of that, we are able to include free maps…
for you to better enjoy the walking and even plan in advance, if you wish.
For the fourteen-day holiday, our special price is six hundred and ninety dollars per person and that includes all the offers for the
three- and seven-day holidays plus… membership of a local walking club… so you can better enjoy the full flavour of the local life.
For further information, please contact your local travel agent. Thank for you calling the Travelite Travel Agency Information
Line…

CARE’S INTENSIVE IELTS COURSE BOOK 2019

TAPESCRIPT LISTENING
SECTION 2 – TEST 11

Welcome, everybody, to the lovely house and gardens of Rosewood, once the home of the famous writer, Sebastian George. He bought
the house in 1902 although he had first seen it two years earlier. At that time the owners let it out to a tenant because George was too slow
making up his mind to buy it. When it came back on the market, there was no hesitation and he bought it immediately, for ￡9,300, even
though the house had no bathroom, no running water upstairs, and no electricity.

When he came here, he’d been married for ten years. During that time, he’d become one of the most famous writers in the English-
speaking world. His professional success was enormous, but his personal life wasn’t as successful. He was no longer on speaking terms
with his brother and had been devastated by the death at the age of seven of his elder daughter, Josephine.

43
Moving to Rosewood allowed the family to start a new life. George regarded Rosewood as a pure example of a traditional country house
of this part of England and did some of his most successful writing here. The house and its grounds became the family haven and their
escape to privacy and quiet. The walls, and the mullioned windows were built of the local sandstone, the tiles on the roofs and the bricks
of the chimney stack were baked from local clay, and the wooden structures inside came from oak trees which grow around here.

Now, please look at the map I’ve given you of the house and gardens. We’re here at the Information Centre. Follow the path marked with
the arrow and the first area you come to is the orchard on your left.

As you go further down the path, there’s the kitchen garden on the right and as you go round the first sharp corner you will find, to your
left, an area where different types of pear tree have been planted as well as some lovely flowers, and this is known as Pear Alley—
designed by George himself.

Next to this is the greenhouse where some exotic plants and fruits are grown. Follow the path round the second corner and on your right
you will see the entrance to the Mulberry Garden with its 500-year-old tree. Past the Mulberry Garden, follow the path until you reach the
front of the house. I suggest you spend a good hour wandering around this lovely building. A guide takes visitor groups round every two
hours.

If you would like to purchase any of George’s books or other souvenirs, then leave the house by the side entrance where you will find our
shop, which is situated between the house and the garage which contains the magnificent old Rolls-Royce car which used to belong to
George. I expect by this time you may also be in need of a rest and some refreshment. Most visitors are, so why don’t you visit the tea
room on the far side of the garage?

If you have time, there is a lovely walk down towards the River Dudwell. For me, this is the best part of the estate. This isn’t on the map
but it is all clearly signposted. You cross the field which spreads along the banks of the river. In spring, this area is well worth a visit.
Spend a minute or two watching the water pass by underneath as you cross the footbridge, and then continue along the River Walk
through the woodland. On a hot summer’s day the trees along this path provide welcome shade. Eventually you come to the water mill
which used to provide the electricity for the house—only about four hours every evening—in George’s time. And, finally, for those of you
who would like to see stunning views of the surrounding countryside and who are a little bit more energetic, when you return from the mill
take the first turning on your left and climb up to the viewpoint. You won’t regret it.

Enjoy your visit!

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