London is the shopping capital of the world. Every year millions of overseas visitors shop here. But what makes shopping here so great? There’s only one way to find out. I’m off to do some shopping – follow me!
At Harrods
Knightsbridge is famous for upmarket shopping. This is where the rich and famous come to buy… their socks. And this is the one and only Harrods… the ultimate in luxury. Even royalty shop here. If I’m lucky, I might see someone famous.
If only they had it in my size. Lovely! Thank you!
Done quite well there – what’s next? Taxi! Harvey Nichols, please.
At Harvey Nichols
Harvey Nichols – or ‘Harvey Nicks’ for short – is a great place for designer fashion.
Well, I had to buy couple of things… What?
At Hamleys
The biggest toy shop in the world – now you’re talking!
So cute… err… it’s not for me.
Oxford Street
London’s Oxford Street is retail heaven. It’s got over 2 kilometres of shops to choose from… and, of course, Selfridges for shopping with style. Taxi!
Could you drop all this off home for me, please? I’m off to explore a different sort of shopping in Britain.
If you like shopping all under one roof, then there are big shopping centres all over Britain. The Olympic-sized shopping centre at Westfield, Stratford, is huge. With over 300 shops, it’s one of the largest shopping centres in Europe.
At Lock's
Great shopping isn’t just about big shops. Smaller shops can offer something special too. Tucked away in the heart of Piccadilly is a great shopping gem. Lock’s sell that must-have in gentlemen’s fashion: the hat! Lock’s opened in London in 1679. Their hats can be seen across the world. They pride themselves on their personal service.
Richard: Sue Simpson is a hat specialist. Hi Sue.
Sue: Oh, hi Richard.
Richard: Wow, a bowler hat, you don’t see many of those these days, do you?
Sue: Well, we don’t call it a ‘bowler’ here at Lock’s, we call it a ‘coke hat’ because it was invented in 1850 for Thomas Coke…
Richard: …by this very shop.
Sue: …by this very shop and we still call it a ‘coke’ to this day.
Richard: Ah, the classic top hat. When would I wear that?
Sue: That’s a beautiful silk top hat. You would wear that for a society wedding, or the time you see most of them is at Ascot, which is the famous race meeting in June.
Richard: So what’s your best-seller here at Lock’s?
Sue: Our best-seller would be a classic tweed cap or this trilby here, which is called a ‘Voyager’, and the novelty of this one…
Richard: …is it folds up so you can pop it into your luggage.
Sue: …pop it into your luggage.
Richard: Excellent. Is that a deerstalker?
Sue: Similar to a deerstalker, but this is a country cap with a fastening that goes over the top. And this was invented originally for wearing in open-top cars, but now it’s more commonly worn on the hills out shooting and this keeps the ears warm and stops it blowing away.
Richard: I like it; I’ll take this one.
Comments
Hello sushma,
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The LearnEnglish Team
I live in Damascus, the capital of Syria. Shopping used to be one of my favorite hobbies. In Syria we don`t have that many of luxurious stores and the ones available are very expensive. There are about two or three malls in Damascus but I don`t prefer them to do my shopping. I prefer walking in open street and I think the choices are more than the ones in the malls
I'm living in Saudia Arabia . it's very similar , we have upmarket and less of them . but to me, I prefer shopping online. thanks
It's the first time I meet this interesting program. I enjoy watching the video and finishing the tasks. I think I'll keep doing this.
Dear Peter,
I don't understand the sentence 'by this very shop' can you explain it for me ? Thank you.
Hello Nhung123456,
'by' indicates who invented the hat and 'very' means 'exact' - see the second entry in the Cambridge dictionary entry ('exact') for 'very'. It means that the hat was invented in this shop in 1850.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello again Nhung123456,
Using 'by Thomas Coke' would mean that Thomas Coke invented the hat, which is not the meaning here. The meaning here is that someone in the shop invented the hat for Thomas Coke to wear. It's unclear whether Coke requested the hat or if the hatmaker came up with the idea, but what is clear is that Coke was the first person to have such a hat.
I hope that cleared it up for you, but if you have any other questions please let us know.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Nhung123456,
I'm happy to try to help, but I don't understand what you're asking. Could you please rephrase your question?
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Nhung123456,
Thanks for clarifying that! Yes, that's correct, except be careful with the tense: 'the Coke hat was invented here in 1850'.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
i am living in india,its quiet similar way of doing shopping in india.But i heard that london is very expensive in terms of shopping but india is not so much expensive in terms of shopping .london is very beautiful and during shopping you can explore the beauty of london .the shops and roads are very clean and you can easily get taxi for commuting from one place to another .i love london.
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