| Pages in topic: [1 2 3] > | Off topic: What UK magazine would you recommend for a subscription? Thread poster: Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT
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Dear British colleagues,
In preparation for the IOL's DipTrans exam next January (I'm taking English into Spanish at the British Council in Madrid), I would like to be more up-to-date on British politics, economy, social trends, current issues and topics, maybe life in other Commonwealth countries, international news from the perspective of its impact on the UK...
I lived in the UK twenty years ago and I must admit that I am pretty rusty on Britain's every day life, as ... See more Dear British colleagues,
In preparation for the IOL's DipTrans exam next January (I'm taking English into Spanish at the British Council in Madrid), I would like to be more up-to-date on British politics, economy, social trends, current issues and topics, maybe life in other Commonwealth countries, international news from the perspective of its impact on the UK...
I lived in the UK twenty years ago and I must admit that I am pretty rusty on Britain's every day life, as most of my work comes from the US and countries other than the UK.
Now, if you had this same goal in mind, what magazine would you recommend for a subscription as general reading on Britain's every-day life? What I am looking for is a non-biased (I mean not politically biased in any direction), generalist, independent publication on all things Britain today. A weekly or bi-weekly magazine would be ideal.
(I reckon the kind of magazine I am looking at is something like Germany's Stern or Spiegel magazines, or Time magazine in the US.) ▲ Collapse
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My recommendation without a doubt is The Economist (should be italics). A weekly magazine that is well-written and fairly middle-of-the-road. The magazines writers have a tendency of using an unusual or obscure word now and then, so you will need a good dictionary.
[Edited at 2009-10-20 08:30 GMT]
[Edited at 2009-10-20 08:31 GMT]
| | | | LuciaC
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:23
English to Italian
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| Sunday newspapers | Oct 20, 2009 |
Personally I cannot stand the Economist. It is well written indeed and if you can stand the attitude then that's fine. I find it infuriating. It is very anti-European, it hates the EU, there is NOTHING positive going on in ANY European country etc..
I would suggest instead you read a Sunday newspaper: The Sunday Times, Sunday Telegraph, The Independent, The Observer. If you live in a city you should be able to find them. They are all more or less biased but you could alternate every Sunda... See more Personally I cannot stand the Economist. It is well written indeed and if you can stand the attitude then that's fine. I find it infuriating. It is very anti-European, it hates the EU, there is NOTHING positive going on in ANY European country etc..
I would suggest instead you read a Sunday newspaper: The Sunday Times, Sunday Telegraph, The Independent, The Observer. If you live in a city you should be able to find them. They are all more or less biased but you could alternate every Sunday. They all cover the main political debates, like schools, social issues, finance, and a lot more. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Thanks a lot! | Oct 20, 2009 |
George Hopkins wrote:
My recommendation without a doubt is The Economist (should be italics). A weekly magazine that is well-written and fairly middle-of-the-road. The magazines writers have a tendency of using an unusual or obscure word now and then, so you will need a good dictionary.
Yes, exactly the obscure language and tricky words is what I want. From the texts (from actual exams) I have seen so far in my DipTrans preparatory course, it will be the kind of language I should be get used to.
Thanks a lot for the suggestion!
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| Thanks a lot Lucía! | Oct 20, 2009 |
LuciaC wrote:
Personally I cannot stand the Economist. It is well written indeed and if you can stand the attitude then that's fine. I find it infuriating. It is very anti-European, it hates the EU, there is NOTHING positive going on in ANY European country etc..
I would suggest instead you read a Sunday newspaper: The Sunday Times, Sunday Telegraph, The Independent, The Observer. If you live in a city you should be able to find them. They are all more or less biased but you could alternate every Sunday. They all cover the main political debates, like schools, social issues, finance, and a lot more.
Thanks a million for your point of view. Unfortunately the nearest reseller of international newspapers is 40 km away from my home, in the Barajas airport, and I don't have the time to go there every weekend. I need something that is delivered to my office by mail.
As for The Economist's views on Europe, I'd say that distrust for "the Continent" (in modern times, "the EU") is also a traditional part of the British mentality, wouldn't you say so? I thank you for the information though. Knowing this might help me in my decision if more colleagues can come up with other suggestions for a weekly.
Is there any other UK weekly/bi-weekly in particular you'd choose in my case?
[Edited at 2009-10-20 09:53 GMT]
[Edited at 2009-10-20 09:53 GMT]
| | | | | newspapers online | Oct 20, 2009 |
Hi
I'm taking the IOL exam too - preparing it with City and sitting it in London. I've been looking around too for a good read that will improve my vocab. I've decided against doing the business paper - I'm going for technical and social science, which,if you look at the list given by the IOl covers a huge variety of subjects.Where to start? What I have been doing is reading online as much as I can. Most of the English daily newspapers now offer online sunscriptions delivered to your door.... See more Hi
I'm taking the IOL exam too - preparing it with City and sitting it in London. I've been looking around too for a good read that will improve my vocab. I've decided against doing the business paper - I'm going for technical and social science, which,if you look at the list given by the IOl covers a huge variety of subjects.Where to start? What I have been doing is reading online as much as I can. Most of the English daily newspapers now offer online sunscriptions delivered to your door. Unfortunately, it's an expense I can't afford at the moment, but it's a good option.I normally read the Guardian online as I like the arts section.
good luck
Lisa ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Too much computer already... | Oct 20, 2009 |
Richardson Lisa wrote:
I'm taking the IOL exam too - preparing it with City and sitting it in London. I've been looking around too for a good read that will improve my vocab. I've decided against doing the business paper - I'm going for technical and social science, which,if you look at the list given by the IOl covers a huge variety of subjects.Where to start? What I have been doing is reading online as much as I can. Most of the English daily newspapers now offer online sunscriptions delivered to your door. Unfortunately, it's an expense I can't afford at the moment, but it's a good option.I normally read the Guardian online as I like the arts section.
good luck
Lisa
Thanks a lot Lisa. Indeed it is very tricky to decide, so I was hoping to let my colleagues take the burden of the decision.
Indeed online sources are good and interesting. My problem is that I already spend too much time in front of a computer and I was looking at something I can put in the pocket and read in the garden, in a park while my kids play, or after a family lunch.
Thanks for your point of view and GOOD LUCK!!! I really hope you (well, we) make it!
| | | | Damian Harrison (X)
Germany
Local time: 10:23
German to English
Perhaps a combination of The Guardian Weekly and the Saturday edition of The Telegraph would be ideal. The Guardian would provide an adequate "Euro-friendly" overview of British / international current affairs and the Telegraph has a wonderful general knowledge crossword for your Sunday morning lie-in.
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| Daily Telegraph or Times online | Oct 20, 2009 |
I always read the free of any charge version of the Daily Telegraph and the Times on a daily basis, although I have quite often the same problem as with the Economist: The constant bashing on Europe is quite awful and infuriating.
On the other hand, the English is quite good and you really get an overview over daily life in Britain.
But the law section is really exceptional in both papers and free of any charge!
Then simply check the websites of Sky, ITV and the BBC.
| | | | | No websites please! :-) | Oct 20, 2009 |
I thank you all for your suggestions about online publications. What I am more interested in is in suggestions about a weekly/bi-weekly magazine I can receive in printed form, cut things from for further analysis, read outdoors, take with me to bed...
I thank you in advance for any recommendations in that sense.
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I'm not at all convinced about the Economist as a suggestion - unless it's changed since I used to buy it, it wasn't really about British politics at all, but about world politics.
For a more UK-centric POV, the only magazine I can think of is Private Eye, a satirical take on events (comes out fortnightly and you can subscribe online a... See more I'm not at all convinced about the Economist as a suggestion - unless it's changed since I used to buy it, it wasn't really about British politics at all, but about world politics.
For a more UK-centric POV, the only magazine I can think of is Private Eye, a satirical take on events (comes out fortnightly and you can subscribe online at https://secure2.subscribeonline.co.uk/PEYE/subscription.cfm). You'll need to have a good knowledge of current affairs to understand all the digs and references, mind you: for that I'd recommend the Guardian and other free online nespaper websites.
Anyway, you can have a look at Private Eye online to see if it might suit you. http://www.private-eye.co.uk/ ▲ Collapse
| | | | | The Spectator | Oct 20, 2009 |
I'd suggest subscribing to The Spectator - a UK weekly review of politics, current events, diverse opinions and the arts. Serious articles and very amusing ones too, a fiendish crossword puzzle, a weekly literary competition, bridge, chess, book, film and TV reviews, wine, food, gardening - just about everything. It has a somewhat Conservative bias but makes a point of publishing varied points of view. I love it dearly.
Best wishes,
Jenny
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Elin Davies 
United Kingdom
Member (2008)
English to Welsh
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| Guardian Weekly | Oct 20, 2009 |
You can get the Guardian Weekly sent in the mail every week, though it's more international than UK only, so not sure how much in-depth knowledge on life in the UK you'd get from it.
The subscription page is here: http://subs.guardianweekly.co.uk/home
| | | | Giles Watson
Italy
Local time: 10:23
Italian to English
In memoriam
Both the Telegraph (about £110 for an annual subscription) and the Guardian (about £140) do weekly airmail editions. The Telegraph Weekly incorporates articles from the Sunday Telegraph and the Guardian/Observer includes sections from the Washington Post and Le Monde's English-language edition.
Private Eye is a fortnightly and therefore less expensive (about £35). It makes no attempt to be a complete source of information but apart from the humour, which you can see online, there is plenty of often excellent investigative journalism (not published on the website, BTW).
All three have good crosswords
Giles
| | | | | I know you don't want websites but... | Oct 20, 2009 |
You don't have to actually sit at the computer to listen to the BBC online. It offers lots of specialist programs, but particularly to do with business and current affairs.
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