Slow English Podcast | Your English Toolbox

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/184-sorry-i-didnt-catch-that-small-talk-4/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Julia once hid in a bathroom for eight minutes to escape a conversation about insurance. She is fluent — and she still hid, because she did not know how to leave. In this fourth Small Talk in English episode, Martin and Julia tackle the four things that happen in real conversations: you miss something, the room is too loud, a group already has its own rhythm, and eventually you need to leave. You will practise a repair scale from “Sorry?” to “Would you mind saying that again, a bit slower?”,…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/182-weekly-english-recap-time-risk-and-better-choices/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: practise 38 original sentences from this week's seven episodes. After each one, Peter gives you exactly four seconds to repeat it before offering an equivalent sentence with different words. Revisit the changing clocks, risk idioms, for and since, rage bait, the lesson in Tolstoy's story, taking responsibility and shrinkflation. Read the transcript in English with Spanish, German, Farsi and French translations. Practise with vocabulary,…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/183-short-stories-with-peter-the-banyan-deer/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: two herds of deer are trapped in a royal park. One mother fears for her young, and the golden Banyan Deer must choose how to respond. This original English-learning adaptation of an Indian Jataka tale, based on Ellen C. Babbitt's 1912 retelling, explores compassion, courage and responsibility. It includes a threat to animals without graphic detail. Peter narrates a gentle radio drama and then helps you use take someone's place, turn away from…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/181-viral-english-shrinkflation-same-price-less-chocolate/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Same price, less chocolate? Understand shrinkflation, explain downsizing and say that you get less for your money. Distinguish quantity, price and ingredient changes through original examples and a challenge. The invented two-pound bar is not a claim about a real brand. Context includes dated 2026 usage by Which? and the Office for National Statistics. Your language toolbox: shrinkflation downsize get less for your money Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox. The…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/179-short-stories-with-peter-how-much-land-does-a-man-need/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Pahom believes more land will finally make him secure, but every new boundary makes him want another. Peter narrates an original abridged learning adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's story, based on the Aylmer and Louise Maude translation. Includes character dialogue, restrained scene sound, and a separate vocabulary lesson. Contains a non-graphic death. This specially extended Thursday episode may run up to twelve minutes; the exception does not change the usual short format. Your…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/180-that-was-my-fault-3-natural-ways-to-own-a-mistake/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Martin has sent the wrong document. Practise three steps: take responsibility, explain the missed check, and offer a specific repair. Includes contrasts between I should check and I should have checked, plus a restaurant-booking challenge. The website adds exactly five extra expressions with examples and practice, separate from the audio lesson. Your language toolbox: That was my fault I should have checked Let me put it right Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox. The…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/178-viral-english-rage-bait-why-that-post-makes-you-angry/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. A deliberately provocative coffee post becomes a lesson in digital language. Distinguish rage bait, clickbait and a hot take, and learn why an angry reaction alone does not prove manipulative intent. Original teaching scenarios, an interpretation challenge and neutral paraphrases. Oxford's 2025 selection is historical context, not a claim that the term was invented then or is trending this week. Your language toolbox: rage bait clickbait a hot take Learn with this episode on Your…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/176-stick-your-neck-out-4-idioms-about-risk/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Martin has a toast-truck idea; Julia has questions. Learn four ways to describe risk through a natural conversation, meaningful contrasts and active recall. This continues the free Idiom Toolbox course with Lesson 13: Risk. Includes a brief recovery of take the plunge, without presenting it as a fifth new idiom. Your language toolbox: play with fire put all your eggs in one basket stick your neck out take a leap of faith Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox. The complete episode page…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/177-fix-it-in-five-for-or-since/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. The sentence in the title is the mistake we correct. Practise I've lived here since a starting point, I've lived here for a duration, and How long have you lived here? Our example runs from October 2023 to October 2026 and assumes Martin still lives there. A focused, friendly lesson, not a complete guide to every present perfect use. Your language toolbox: I've … since [starting point] I've … for [duration] How long have you …? Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox. The complete episode page…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/175-why-do-we-change-the-clocks-curious-english/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Why can your phone and your oven disagree after the clock change? Martin and Julia explain what summer time changes, what it does not change, and three reusable English expressions. The 25 October 2026 date applies here to Spain and the United Kingdom, not every country. Includes prediction, recall and personal practice. Your language toolbox: put the clocks back / forward an extra hour in bed your body clock Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox. The complete episode page…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/174-the-question-that-changes-everything-small-talk-3/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Martin and Julia explore the step from polite conversation to a closer connection. Practise a specific question, a follow-up that shows you remembered, and a small piece of honest self-disclosure. Juan and Priya’s story continues in Wolverhampton. Research is discussed as evidence about a structured experiment, not a guarantee of friendship. Sentence of the day: Somebody has to go first. It might as well be you. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox. Read the transcript in…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/172-weekly-english-recap-truth-feelings-and-everyday-clues/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Consolidate useful English from episodes 165–171 through 32 sentence pairs. Peter gives you four seconds after each original sentence, then an equivalent sentence with different vocabulary. Practise truth and honesty, feelings, tunes, travel, visits, the meanings of miss, and collecting deliveries. Some expressions return in a new context to strengthen recall. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox. Read the transcript in English with Spanish, German, Farsi and French…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/173-short-stories-with-peter-the-fire-on-the-hill/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. A farmer sees the sea retreating while his neighbours prepare a celebration. What happens next turns a harvest into a lesson in courage, compassion and responsibility. This radio drama is an original abridged learning adaptation of the Hamaguchi narrative in A Living God, from Gleanings in Buddha-Fields by Lafcadio Hearn (1897). It follows the literary telling, inspired by events in Japan, and is not a documentary reconstruction. Includes natural-disaster peril, without graphic detail.…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/171-where-s-the-parcel-a-delivery-message-mystery-english-detective/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: choose your listening speed, follow the transcript and practise the language in context. Listen to a short everyday message, choose your answer and check the clues with Martin and Julia. Then solve a new case using the same useful language. The solution and explanation are included in the audio. Your language toolbox: leave something with someone pick something up before a time Finish with active listening or recall…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/169-short-stories-with-peter-the-model-millionaire-by-oscar-wilde-abridged-b1-b2/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: choose your listening speed, follow the transcript and practise the language in context. An abridged adaptation of The Model Millionaire by Oscar Wilde (1887), adapted for B1–B2 English learners by Your English Toolbox. Original English work in the public domain in Spain. The story is followed by a short language lesson. No spoiler is needed to enjoy the surprise. Your language toolbox: drop in feel sorry for…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/170-miss-one-word-three-lives/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: choose your listening speed, follow the transcript and practise the language in context. Follow miss through three everyday contexts: a journey or event you do not catch or attend, a person or experience whose absence you feel, and a target you fail to hit. Includes the figurative expression miss the point and the pattern miss doing something. Your language toolbox: miss a bus or event miss someone or doing something miss a target or the point Finish with…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/168-which-platform-a-train-announcement-mystery-english-detective/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: choose your listening speed, follow the transcript and practise the language in context. Listen to a short everyday message, choose your answer and check the clues with Martin and Julia. Then solve a new case using the same useful language. The solution and explanation are included in the audio. Your language toolbox: instead of running late depart from Finish with active listening or recall practice. The episode page…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/166-come-clean-4-idioms-about-truth/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: choose your listening speed, follow the transcript and practise the language in context. Continue the free Idiom Toolbox course with lesson twelve: Truth. Learn how to admit a hidden mistake, check information, question a surface explanation and describe deliberate deception. Your language toolbox: come clean take something at face value get your facts straight pull the wool over someone's eyes Finish with active listening or recall practice. The episode…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/167-stop-saying-angry-annoyed-frustrated-or-furious/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: choose your listening speed, follow the transcript and practise the language in context. Small irritation, blocked progress or intense anger? Martin and Julia compare three precise words through a ticket-machine problem and realistic examples. These words are not interchangeable steps on a single scale. Your language toolbox: annoyed frustrated furious Finish with active listening or recall practice. The episode page includes seven…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/165-why-do-songs-get-stuck-in-your-head-curious-english/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: choose your listening speed, follow the transcript and practise the language in context. Why does a short tune return when the music has stopped? Martin and Julia explore earworms, separate established findings from simple guesses, and practise three expressions you can use immediately. Your language toolbox: stuck in your head catchy pop into your head Finish with active listening or recall practice. The episode page includes seven…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/164-what-to-say-after-hello/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: get the full transcript, vocabulary cards and the three conversation tools from the episode — completely free. Julia fires seven questions at Martin in forty seconds. Where are you from? How long have you lived here? Do you like it? By the end he says he feels as if he is at passport control — and Julia tells him that is exactly what he does to other people. Last time we covered the first ten seconds. This episode is about the second that comes after: you said…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/163-weekly-english-recap-fear-character-small-problems-20-shadowing-pairs/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow every pair on the transcript, review all twenty items and choose from seven listening speeds for a gentler or more challenging shadowing workout. Can you understand an expression, repeat it naturally and recognise the same idea in different words? In this weekly recap, Peter turns this week’s three short episodes into one focused vocabulary and shadowing workout. The two-sentence game is simple: Peter says a…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/162-the-fisherman-and-the-jinni/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. A poor fisherman pulls a sealed brass jar from the sea and releases an enormous jinni. Instead of thanking him, the furious spirit announces that the fisherman must die. With no strength and nowhere to run, the fisherman has only one weapon left: his mind. In this episode of Short Stories with Peter, enjoy a clear, slow B1–B2 adaptation of The Fisherman and the Jinni, a traditional tale from The Thousand and One Nights. Peter narrates the story, while the fisherman and the jinni have distinct dramatic…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/158-it-s-no-big-deal-4-natural-ways-to-handle-small-problems/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the transcript, review the four audio expressions and practise five additional expressions on the web. Martin spills coffee on the workshop handouts and announces “bad news”. Julia shows how natural English can reduce unnecessary tension, remove blame and move a small problem towards a solution. This is episode nine of Everyday Useful Expressions, our series of ready-made English for real situations. You will learn: It’s…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/160-short-stories-with-peter-after-twenty-years-by-o-henry/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the complete transcript, choose a translation in several languages, and explore the vocabulary guide with clear definitions, nuances and examples. Would you travel a thousand miles to keep a promise you made twenty years ago? On a cold, wet night in New York, Bob waits in the doorway of a closed shop. When he was eighteen, he and his best friend Jimmy Wells agreed to meet at this exact place, on this exact date, twenty years…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/157-a-tough-cookie-4-idioms-to-describe-character/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the transcript, review the four idioms and practise at seven listening speeds. Martin finds Julia’s mysterious notes for a community project: gold, cookie, book and horse. They are not a shopping list — they are four vivid English idioms for describing character. This short conversational Slow English episode continues Lesson 11 — Character — in the free Idiom Toolbox course. You will learn: have a heart of gold — be extremely kind…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/156-stop-saying-scared-nervous-anxious-or-terrified/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the transcript, compare the vocabulary in context and practise at seven listening speeds. Martin says he was “scared” before a presentation, while waiting for an important result and when a large dog ran towards him. Julia shows why those three situations call for more precise English. In this short Precision English episode, you will learn: nervous — worried or tense before a specific event or performance; anxious — worried or…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/161-the-first-10-seconds-how-to-start-any-conversation/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: read the transcript, review the vocabulary and practise the three conversation openings with free downloadable resources. Julia went up four floors in a lift with her neighbour in complete silence, both of them studying the ceiling. He said, “Going up?” She said, “Yes.” Then came eleven seconds of nothing. She is a native speaker, in her own language, in her own building — so if starting a conversation can feel difficult for her,…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/159-short-stories-with-peter-hoichi-the-earless/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the complete transcript, choose a translation in several languages, and explore the vocabulary guide with clear definitions, nuances and examples. What happens when the most beautiful audience you have ever heard is one you cannot see? Hoichi is a gifted young blind musician who lives in a Buddhist temple near the graves of a defeated Japanese clan. One summer night, an armed samurai arrives and commands him to perform before a…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/155-weekly-english-recap-16-shadowing-pairs/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow every pair on the transcript, review all sixteen items and choose from seven listening speeds for a gentler or more challenging shadowing workout. Can you understand an expression, repeat it naturally and recognise the same idea in different words? In this weekly recap, Peter turns this week’s three short episodes into one focused vocabulary and shadowing workout. The two-sentence game is simple: Peter says a short, natural sentence…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/154-short-stories-with-peter-the-bet-by-anton-chekhov/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the complete transcript, choose a translation in several languages, and explore the vocabulary guide with clear definitions, nuances and examples. What can fifteen years of silence do to the value of money, freedom and life itself? At a dinner party, a wealthy banker and a young lawyer begin an angry argument about whether death is worse than lifelong imprisonment. Their disagreement becomes a reckless bet: the lawyer will live…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/153-could-you-give-me-a-hand-4-natural-ways-to-ask-for-help/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the transcript, review the four audio expressions and practise five additional expressions on the web. Martin is carrying four boxes and needs help, but his first attempt sounds more like a command than a polite request. Julia gives him four natural ways to ask for help without sounding abrupt. This is episode eight of Everyday Useful Expressions, our series of ready-made English for real situations. You will learn: Could…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/151-get-straight-to-the-point-4-communication-idioms/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the transcript, review the four idioms and practise at seven listening speeds. Martin has received a very long email from the workshop organisers, but the important information is surprisingly difficult to find. Julia helps him get straight to the point, notice when someone is beating around the bush, read between the lines and ask to be kept posted. This short conversational Slow English episode continues Lesson 10 —…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/152-how-bad-is-the-problem-minor-serious-or-urgent/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the transcript, compare the vocabulary in context and practise at seven listening speeds. A spelling mistake, a funding gap and water leaking beside electricity are all problems — but they are not the same kind of problem. In this short Precision English episode, Martin and Julia compare three useful words that learners often treat as simple levels of the same scale: minor, serious and urgent. You will learn: minor — small, with…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/150-10-habits-of-people-who-live-to-100-part-2-your-mind/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: listen and read without registering, or use a free student account to access the downloadable transcripts, vocabulary PDFs, flashcards and progress tools. Martin followed all five body habits from the previous episode: stairs, shopping bags, lentils and the same bedtime every night. It was a perfect week. Then, standing in the kitchen and feeling extremely healthy, a voice in his head asked: and all of this is for what, exactly? That…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/148-short-stories-with-peter-the-necklace-by-guy-de-maupassant/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow the complete transcript, choose a translation in several languages, and explore the vocabulary guide with clear definitions, nuances and examples. How much can one evening of elegance really cost? Mathilde Loisel dreams of beautiful rooms, fine clothes and a life filled with admiration. When her husband obtains an invitation to an important party, Mathilde borrows a magnificent diamond necklace from her wealthy friend…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/149-weekly-english-recap-21-shadowing-pairs/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Learn with this episode on Your English Toolbox: follow every pair on the transcript, review all twenty-one items and choose from seven listening speeds for a gentler or more challenging shadowing workout. Can you understand an expression, repeat it naturally and recognise the same idea in different words? In this weekly recap, Peter turns this week’s three short episodes into one focused vocabulary and shadowing workout. The two-sentence game is simple: Peter says a short, natural sentence…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/147-id-better-get-going-4-natural-ways-to-end-a-conversation/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Have you ever said “well…” several times because you wanted to leave but did not know how to end the conversation politely? In episode seven of Everyday Useful Expressions, Martin and Julia practise four natural closing expressions you can use immediately in phone calls and face-to-face conversations. You will learn: I should let you go — show consideration for the other person’s time; I’d better get going — introduce your own need to leave or stop talking; Let’s catch up soon…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/144-short-stories-with-peter-the-monkeys-paw-by-w-w-jacobs/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. What would you wish for if one small object promised to change your life? On a cold and stormy night, the White family receives a strange object from an old friend: a dried monkey’s paw said to grant three wishes. Sergeant-Major Morris warns them not to use it. Mr White makes one simple wish anyway. The wish comes true, but the price is far greater than the family imagined. In this abridged adaptation of W. W. Jacobs’s classic 1902 story, Peter guides you through a carefully…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/146-stop-saying-interesting-fascinating-thought-provoking-or-engaging/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Martin describes an entire science festival with one word: interesting. Julia challenges him to say exactly what held his attention and why. In this short conversational Slow English episode, Martin and Julia compare three precise B1–B2 adjectives for curiosity, deeper reflection and sustained attention. You will learn: fascinating — extremely interesting because something strongly attracts your curiosity; thought-provoking — making you think seriously or consider an…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/145-on-the-fence-4-decision-idioms-to-help-you-choose/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Continue with Lesson 9 — Decisions — in our free Idiom Toolbox course: https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/idioms/lesson-09-decisions/ Martin has opened the same workshop registration page six times. Should he wait, trust his instinct or finally press the button? In this short conversational Slow English episode, Martin and Julia explore four useful idioms from Lesson 9 of the free Idiom Toolbox course. You will learn: on the fence — be unable to decide between two options; sleep on it —…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/143-10-habits-of-people-who-live-to-100-part-1-your-body/ This podcast is the result of a genuine human creative process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative structure, and pedagogical direction is designed, written, and carefully curated by real people who are deeply committed to making English learning a human, meaningful experience. Artificial intelligence plays a supporting role in two specific areas: it assists in the refinement and editing of scripts, and it powers the voice synthesis technology from ElevenLabs that brings our hosts to life with exceptional phonetic clarity and natural pacing. The result is a podcast where human intelligence leads, and AI serves. Every lesson was designed for you. Julia has found the secret to living to a hundred. It is goat's milk, from a specific island, at a specific time of day. There was a whole article. Martin is about to ruin it completely. For four episodes, How to Live a Good Life argued that…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/141-weekly-english-recap-20-shadowing-pairs/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Can you understand an expression, repeat it naturally and recognise the same idea in different words? In this weekly recap, Peter turns the three short episodes from this week into one focused vocabulary and shadowing workout. The two-sentence game is simple: Peter says a short, natural sentence containing one target expression. You get three seconds of silence to shadow it aloud and copy the rhythm and stress. Peter gives you a second sentence with the same meaning but different vocabulary, so…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/142-short-stories-with-peter-the-open-window-by-saki/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. What can happen when a nervous visitor trusts the wrong storyteller? Framton Nuttel has come to the countryside for a quiet rest. Instead, he meets Vera: a poised fifteen-year-old with bright eyes, an open window behind her, and a remarkable story about three men who never returned from the marshes. The window is open because Vera’s aunt is waiting for them to come home. Or so Vera says. In this abridged adaptation of Saki’s classic 1911 story, Peter guides you through a compact…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/140-no-way-4-natural-ways-to-react-to-news/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. How should you respond when someone shares surprising, exciting, reassuring or difficult news? “All right” may be grammatically possible, but it rarely shows the interest or support the moment needs. In episode six of Everyday Useful Expressions, Martin and Julia practise four natural reactions you can use immediately in real conversations. You will learn: No way! — express strong informal surprise or disbelief; That’s great news! — respond warmly to positive news; What a relief! — show that…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/139-will-it-happen-likely-unlikely-or-inevitable/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Will tomorrow’s outdoor concert continue? Rain may be likely, cancellation may be unlikely and getting wet may be inevitable — but these three words are not interchangeable. In this short conversational Slow English episode, Martin and Julia compare three precise B1–B2 adjectives for probability, expectation and certainty. You will learn: likely — expected or probable, but not completely certain; unlikely — not expected, although still possible; inevitable — certain to happen or impossible…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/138-come-out-on-top-4-success-idioms-that-pay-off/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Continue with Lesson 8 — Success — in our free Idiom Toolbox course: https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/idioms/lesson-08-success/ Why is Martin carrying a tiny plastic trophy, and how can one small success teach four expressions you can reuse in work, study and everyday life? In this short conversational Slow English episode, Martin and Julia explore four useful idioms from Lesson 8 of the free Idiom Toolbox course. You will learn: come out on top — succeed after competition or difficulty;…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/137-is-it-too-late-to-start-again/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Downloadable study PDFs and progress tools are available with a free student account. The audio and Listen & Read experience remain freely accessible without registration. At the end of the previous episode, Martin sent a message to Tomás, a friend he had not spoken to in eleven years. This episode opens with the answer — and it is not the one Martin expected. “I thought you had forgotten about me.” In the fourth and final conversation of How to Live a Good Life, Martin and Julia examine the phrase we…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/136-why-we-drift-apart-and-how-to-stay-close/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Downloadable study PDFs are available with a free student account. The audio and Listen & Read experience remain freely accessible without registration. Martin was looking for a photo of his passport when he found a photograph from 2014 instead: a wedding in Valencia, and a friend who once knew everything about his life. They never argued. Nothing happened. They simply stopped calling. When did they last speak? He would have to check — and that, Julia tells him, is the answer. In Part 3 of How…

https://yourenglishtoolbox.com/episodes/135-do-you-mean-4-natural-ways-to-ask-for-clarification/ This podcast is created through a human-led editorial process. Every episode concept, educational strategy, narrative direction and final editorial decision is developed and reviewed by people committed to making English learning meaningful. Artificial intelligence supports script development and editing, while ElevenLabs provides the synthetic voices of our hosts. Human judgement leads the process; technology supports its production. Someone asks you to make a webpage “lighter”. Do they mean a brighter colour or a simpler design? One small word can create a completely different task — unless you know how to check what the other person means. In episode five of Everyday Useful Expressions, Martin and Julia practise four natural clarification formulas for meetings, instructions and everyday conversations. You will learn: Do you mean...? — offer a possible interpretation; So, what you’re saying is... — summarise…