TV Programme Transcripts

Module 12 Unit 2 Programme B

DOCUMENTARY

VOICEOVER
Most people on Earth share similar experiences, whether we live in a big city, a small
country town or the most remote village. However, one small group of people have
experienced something extraordinary that most of us can only dream about: they
have travelled into Space. Dr Helen Sharman is one of these unique individuals. She
was Britain's first astronaut and spent time on the international Mir Space Station.
She tells us what it was like to train for her space flight.

HELEN SHARMAN
I had 18 months of training before my space flight, which is quite short really,
because we were already mission assigned, and I just had to learn about the crew
operations, the spacecraft systems, what to do in an emergency and, of course, my
experiments that I was going to do in space. But we had a whole range of things.
First I had to learn Russian, 3 months of just language learning, before then we
could actually start things like, really learning how to use the stars as a map in case
there was an emergency in space and we actually had to steer the spacecraft like
that.
And the best bit is the weightless training, that's when you fly in an aircraft and it
does a series of parabolic loops, reaches the top of the parabola, and then the pilot
just lets it fall to the ground, and because you're falling, inside the falling aeroplane,
everybody inside just feels weightless.

VOICEOVER
On the 18th May 1991, Helen flew into space in a Soyuz spacecraft with two Soviet
cosmonauts. She tells us about the launch.

HELEN SHARMAN
There's not really a countdown, not the kind of 10... 9... 8..., the voice that you hear
so often. There is a clock, on the dashboard if you like, on the control panel, and that
does countdown I suppose, but really we just go through all of the procedures and it
takes about two and a half hours.

VOICEOVER
The initial take-off felt surprisingly slow.

HELEN SHARMAN
Suddenly there was a sudden release into weightlessness and then we just forgot
what it felt like to sit down and to have weight until I returned to Earth.

VOICEOVER
Two days later, Helen and her fellow cosmonauts arrived at the Mir Space Station.

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HELEN SHARMAN
As we approached the space station, we realised that we had a problem with our
automatic docking system and we couldn't rely on that. Now if we missed the space
station by a mile, we had enough fuel to go all the way round the earth and have a
second attempt at this docking but if we missed by a small amount and crashed into
the space station, then we could damage the station, damage our spacecraft, so we
may not come back to Earth at all. So we had to go onto manual control of the
spacecraft. So I had a telescopic television camera to operate, my commander Tolia
was in the middle and he had his rocket engines and literally, just like with these little
controls he was going, up a bit, down a bit, left a bit and we slowly manoeuvred our
way towards the space station.

VOICEOVER
It takes about 48 hours for the astronauts' bodies to adjust to zero gravity.

HELEN SHARMAN
After two days, people are really feeling fantastic and they can get on with their work
and really start to enjoy that feeling of floating.

VOICEOVER
Helen is a scientist and her job was to carry out experiments in space.

HELEN
I was lucky enough to do a whole range of different experiments. So I was able to
grow some plants, for instance I took up some potato roots, some wheat seedlings
and some seeds looking at how seeds germinate.

VOICEOVER
What experiences helped the crew form strong bonds of friendship?

HELEN SHARMAN
At the end of the working day we would get around the biggest window we could,
and we would all gather round with our heads crammed together on the periphery of
this circular window and just look out at the Earth and talk about what we could see,
about our families and friends that we'd left behind, and then of course if you look the
other way, you can see the stars.

VOICEOVER
There's no doubt that travelling in space is an extraordinary experience. Helen tells
us how this affected her.

HELEN SHARMAN
When you look back on the Earth, it makes you realise how insignificant we are on
this planet. We're living on that very bit of the surface. Who am I? Absolutely nobody
really, all my problems, totally insignificant, in this vast universe that we've got.

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SAME LANGUAGE, DIFFERENT LIVES

Jamaica
I think that in Jamaica you will find that qualifications are actually valued more than
experience because as an island that was owned by somebody else, status
becomes quite important and proving that status becomes quite important. So,
having a degree and having a second degree, actually is become quite key to getting
on.

South Africa
This is a 50/50 question. If you're looking for a key person in an industrial area, skill
is often required. If you're looking for a financial manager, they will generally look at
qualifications.

Australia
I think in Australia, experience is still very highly valued. Australia is proud of what
they call the self-made man. That's someone who has worked very hard and
discovered, and done well from their experiences.

Scotland
I think in more academic professions they prefer qualifications, but in a more manual
job employers would prefer experience.

Canada
I would say that experience and qualifications matter about equally to employers
when they're hiring.

England
Although a lot more people are going to university, employers still value skills, and
hands on experience a lot more.

USA
I think qualifications are quite important, there's a big emphasis on going to college
and receiving a good degree and going to a good college. Um, it's..., there's quite a
lot of pressure on high school students to get into that perfect school and to be well-
rounded in, in sport and community activities and academically.

THAT'S THE USA

Alex
Hello and welcome back to New York City. Today we're going to be looking at one of
the city's most influential and culturally rich neighbourhoods – Harlem!
Harlem is a large neighbourhood in northern Manhattan. Since the Jazz Age of the
1920s, Harlem has become the cultural centre of the African-American community in
New York.
I'm with Carolyn, the President of 'Welcome to Harlem'. Carolyn, can you tell me a
little bit about the African-American experience here in Harlem?

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Carolyn
I believe for the last 20 years, the African-American experience has been really
enhanced due to the fact that we're going through a second Harlem Renaissance,
attributed to real estate. And they're starting to really enjoy the community once
again because of that.

Alex
Can you explain what you mean by second Harlem Renaissance?

Carolyn
The first Harlem Renaissance was in the 1920s and the 1930s. It was attributed to
music, dance, writing and arts and stuff like that. And then Harlem had a small
downturn and now we're growing back. So these brownstones that people invested
in many years ago, in the mid-1980s, for twenty and thirty thousand, have gone for
millions of dollars today.

Alex
What makes this community so special?

Carolyn
I think it's the diversity of living in Harlem. We have many ethnic groups that live
here. We enjoy each other's culture, each other's food and stuff like that. And we're
just one big happy family, and it's just a lively neighbourhood to live in.

Alex
Where should I go today?

Carolyn
Hm..., stop number 1: Apollo Theatre. There's no way you can make a trip here
without going to the Apollo. Stop number 2: I would say Striver's Row historical
district. And then Stop number 3: Moe's barbershop, 'cause that's where you get all
the juicy information.

Alex
I'm in the St. Nicholas Historic District. Successful African-Americans moved here
in the 1920s and 1930s, making the area more popular and giving it the nickname
Striver's Row.
This area is notable for its late 19th-century urban design, and a fine example of
New York City architecture. Hearing gospel music performed live in Harlem is one of
the best musical experiences you can have in New York City. You can hear it in
many African-American churches in the area. This is the First Corinthian Baptist
Church. Members of the public are welcome to attend services here.
Some of the best barbershops in New York City are found in Harlem. Over the years,
barbershops have been a source of community and economic opportunity in black
neighbourhoods. I'm here at Denny Moe's Superstar Barbershop for a cut!
I'm here with the legend himself, Denny Moe, here for a superstar haircut. Denny
Moe...

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Denny Moe
Yes, sir.

Alex
How long have you been here?

Denny Moe
Man, I been here about ten years, ten years and counting.

Alex
Ten years.

Denny Moe
Ten years.

Alex
So, have you seen any changes in the neighbourhood since you've been here?

Denny Moe
Ah, I've seen major changes, man. When I first came here, it was like it was falling
apart, you know what I mean. But it's been put together pretty good now. You have
people coming from all over the world to be right here in Harlem. I mean, Harlem is
the place, the Mecca. When I first came back to Harlem, it was a love affair.

Alex
Besides cutting hair, what other purpose does your barbershop serve in the
community?

Denny Moe
Ah man, we are definitely embedded in the community. When you say community,
you say Denny Moe. When you say Denny Moe, you say community. That's how it
is. It's synonymous, man. But we, you know, we do back-to-school drives for the
kids. You know, we give them books and book bags and, you know, send them to
school with fresh haircuts. You know what I mean? And we also do scholarships to
kids transitioning from high school to college and eh... we just do a lot.

Alex
And eh, this is a family business, right? You got your...

Denny Moe
This is a family business, that's right. You got me, you know, the God. You know
what I mean? You got my son, over here. His name is Denny Moe Junior. We're
here, we're doing it, man.

Alex
Well, you know, we're going to finish up here. But we'll see you next time in Boston.