Part 4

Queetions 21-25
Read the text and questions below.
For each question, mark the correct letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet.

One to watch!
Essay by Jessica Bourne, aged 14
I'm a big fan of films featuring the spy James Bond. I'ye got most Of them on DVD.
We've recently bought Ouantuin of Solace, in which Daniel Craig plays the part of Bond. I don't
know why the film's got that name — but it's a great movie, anyway.
All the actors who've played James Bond have been great, but Daniel Craig, who's
made lots of other films, plays the part better than any of them. Even though he
doesn't talk very much, I trick he's the most perfect actor f0r the role. He even does
a few of the more dangerous things in the film himself, instead of getting someone
else to do them. I did wonder sometimes whether he'd be cleVer enough to defeat
the bad people — but I'm not going to tell you the ending! The actress who stars with
Craig gives a fantastic pertormance too — I loved all the glamorous clothes she
wore!
The director probably had a hard !ob making this Bond film as full of action as earlier
ones. But the excitement starts right at the beginning here, with a car chase along a
mountairi road, and plenty of other thrilling scenes, too — Bond leaping oft tall
buildings and so on. Unfortunately I found the story difficult to follow in places, and it
also seemed to be over very quickly — it lasted under two hours. I also felt there
weren't as many jokes as in the old Bond films. And where was all the ridiculous
Bond equipment — the underwater car or exploding watch that everyone laughed at?
This is a more serious, darker Bond film, but I still really enjoyed it.

21 What is Jessica trying to do in her essay?

A explain what first attracted her to Bond films
B tell readers about the Bond DVDs she owns
C give a balanced view of a Bond film she has seen
D describe how Daniel Craig got the part of James Bond
18
 Test 1

22 What can a reader find out from Jessica's essay?

A whether Quantum of Solace is her favourite Bond film
B what other films Daniel Craig has made
C which other actors have played James Bond
D whether she thinks Daniel Craig is the best James Bond

23 What does Jessica tell us about Craig in the new Bond film?
He performs some of the action scenes.
B He wears some stylish clothes.
C He is given a lot of lines to say.
D He looks strong and fit enough to fight the criminals.

24 What is one problem with the film, according to Jessica?

A It seems a bit too long.
It's sometimes hard to understand what's happening.
It has too much silly technology in it.
It has jokes that aren't very funny.

25 Which of these might appear in a magazine review of the new Bond film?
A It's full of excitement, with B
Bond jumping across The director wanted to
rooftops, so don't be move away from the last
disappointed by the slow Bond film and include a bit
start. less action.

I'm not sure the title tells D Daniel Craig performed well
you much ... but be prepared as James Bond, but the main
to watch a rather different female star was
kind of Bond movie. disappointing.

19
 Reading

READING

READING PASSAGE 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1–13, which are based on Reading
Passage 1 below.

The development of the London underground railway

In the first half of the 1800s, London’s population grew at an astonishing rate, and the central
area became increasingly congested. In addition, the expansion of the overground railway
network resulted in more and more passengers arriving in the capital. However, in 1846, a Royal
Commission decided that the railways should not be allowed to enter the City, the capital’s
historic and business centre. The result was that the overground railway stations formed a ring
around the City. The area within consisted of poorly built, overcrowded slums and the streets
were full of horse-drawn traffic. Crossing the City became a nightmare. It could take an hour and
a half to travel 8 km by horse-drawn carriage or bus. Numerous schemes were proposed to
resolve these problems, but few succeeded.

Amongst the most vocal advocates for a solution to London’s traffic problems was Charles
Pearson, who worked as a solicitor for the City of London. He saw both social and economic
advantages in building an underground railway that would link the overground railway stations
together and clear London slums at the same time. His idea was to relocate the poor workers
who lived in the inner-city slums to newly constructed suburbs, and to provide cheap rail travel
for them to get to work. Pearson’s ideas gained support amongst some businessmen and in 1851
he submitted a plan to Parliament. It was rejected, but coincided with a proposal from another
group for an underground connecting line, which Parliament passed.

The two groups merged and established the Metropolitan Railway Company in August 1854.
The company’s plan was to construct an underground railway line from the Great Western
Railway’s (GWR) station at Paddington to the edge of the City at Farringdon Street – a distance
of almost 5 km. The organisation had difficulty in raising the funding for such a radical and
expensive scheme, not least because of the critical articles printed by the press. Objectors
argued that the tunnels would collapse under the weight of traffic overhead, buildings would be
shaken and
passengers would be poisoned by the emissions from the train engines. However, Pearson and his
partners persisted.

The GWR, aware that the new line would finally enable them to run trains into the heart
of the City, invested almost £250,000 in the scheme. Eventually, over a five-year period,
£1m was raised. The chosen route ran beneath existing main roads to minimise the
expense of
Test 1

16
Izone.edu.vn
 Reading

demolishing buildings. Originally scheduled to be completed in 21 months, the construction of

the underground line took three years. It was built just below street level using a technique
known as ‘cut and cover’. A trench about ten metres wide and six metres deep was dug, and the
sides temporarily held up with timber beams. Brick walls were then constructed, and finally a
brick arch was added to create a tunnel. A two-metre-deep layer of soil was laid on top of the
tunnel and the road above rebuilt.

The Metropolitan line, which opened on 10 January 1863, was the world’s first underground
railway. On its first day, almost 40,000 passengers were carried between Paddington and
Farringdon, the journey taking about 18 minutes. By the end of the Metropolitan’s first year of
operation, 9.5 million journeys had been made.

Even as the Metropolitan began operation, the first extensions to the line were being authorised;
these were built over the next five years, reaching Moorgate in the east of London and
Hammersmith in the west. The original plan was to pull the trains with steam locomotives, using
firebricks in the boilers to provide steam, but these engines were never introduced. Instead, the
line used specially designed locomotives that were fitted with water tanks in which steam could
be condensed. However, smoke and fumes remained a problem, even though ventilation shafts
were added to the tunnels.

Despite the extension of the underground railway, by the 1880s, congestion on London’s streets
had become worse. The problem was partly that the existing underground lines formed a circuit
around the centre of London and extended to the suburbs, but did not cross the capital’s centre.
The ‘cut and cover’ method of construction was not an option in this part of the capital. The only
alternative was to tunnel deep underground.

Although the technology to create these tunnels existed, steam locomotives could not be used in
such a confined space. It wasn’t until the development of a reliable electric motor, and a means
of transferring power from the generator to a moving train, that the world’s first deep-level
electric railway, the City & South London, became possible. The line opened in 1890, and ran
from the City to Stockwell, south of the River Thames. The trains were made up of three
carriages and driven by electric engines. The carriages were narrow and had tiny windows just
below the roof because it was thought that passengers would not want to look out at the tunnel
walls. The line was not without its problems, mainly caused by an unreliable power supply.
Although the City & South London Railway was a great technical achievement, it did not make a
profit. Then, in 1900, the Central London Railway, known as the ‘Tuppenny Tube’, began
operation using new electric locomotives. It was very popular and soon afterwards new railways
and extensions were added to the growing tube network. By 1907, the heart of today’s
Underground system was in place.

17
Izone.edu.vn
Test 1

Questions 1–6

Complete the notes below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 1–6 on your answer sheet.

The London underground railway

The problem
• The 1 of London increased rapidly between 1800 and 1850
• The streets were full of horse-drawn vehicles

The proposed solution

• Charles Pearson, a solicitor, suggested building an underground railway
• Building the railway would make it possible to move people to better housing in
the 2
• A number of 3 agreed with Pearson’s idea
• The company initially had problems getting the 4 needed for
the project
• Negative articles about the project appeared in the 5

The construction
• The chosen route did not require many buildings to be pulled down
• The ‘cut and cover’ method was used to construct the tunnels
• With the completion of the brick arch, the tunnel was covered with
6

18
Izone.edu.vn
 Reading

Questions 7–13

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?

In boxes 7–13 on your answer sheet, write

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

7 Other countries had built underground railways before the Metropolitan line
opened.
8 More people than predicted travelled on the Metropolitan line on the first
day.
9 The use of ventilation shafts failed to prevent pollution in the tunnels.
10 A different approach from the ‘cut and cover’ technique was required in
London’s central area.
11 The windows on City & South London trains were at eye level.
12 The City & South London Railway was a financial success.
13 Trains on the ‘Tuppenny Tube’ nearly always ran on time.

p. 120 19
Izone.edu.vn