Project 1  Magazine biographies

1 Read the magazine biography of a well-known singer.

Then imagine that you are the singer and answer
the interview questions.

Born in North London, on 5 May 1988, Adele Laurie

Blue Adkins, known to most of us simply as Adele, is an
English singer-songwriter and musician. She didn’t have
an easy start in life as her father walked out when she
was just two years old. Her mother, Penny Adkins, had to
raise Adele by herself.

When she was a child, Adele loved singing and one of her
first influences was the Spice Girls. She also remembers
seeing Pink perform when she was aged thirteen or
fourteen. This performance made a huge impression
on her, as did jazz singers such as Etta James and Ella
Fitzgerald. She attended The BRIT School for Performing
Arts and Technology and was in the same class as
Jessie J and Leona Lewis. The BRIT School was the
perfect place for Adele to learn more. After graduating
in 2006, she recorded a demo album. When it was
posted on Myspace, it attracted the attention of XL
Since then, Adele has been voted one of the most
Recordings and she won her first record deal. Her debut
influential people in the world by Time magazine and one
album was called ‘19’ because she was nineteen when
of the 100 most powerful women in the UK by listeners
she wrote most of the songs.
of BBC Radio 4. The latest accolades have come to her
The album was a huge success and Adele went on a from writing and singing Skyfall, the theme to the new
year-long world tour from 2008–2009, but she cancelled James Bond film. In fact, it won her an Oscar for Best
a number of the concerts in USA in order to be with Original Song.
her boyfriend. Looking back she says she can’t believe
Adele is married to charity entrepreneur Simon Konecki.
she did it. Despite this, her career took off and she won
They’ve got one son and live together in their large
many awards including Best New Artist and Best Female
house in West Sussex.
Pop Vocal Performance at the 2009 Grammy Awards.
Just three years later she won six Grammy awards for During her career, Adele has performed at a number
her second album ‘21’, which has sold over 26 million of charity concerts and raised money for children’s
copies worldwide. charities.

1 What’s your full name?

2 Where are you from?

3 Do you still live there now?

4 Tell me a little bit about your family, please.

5 What do you do?

6 How did your career start?

7 What kinds of successes have you had in your life?

8 Have you ever done anything you aren’t proud of?

9 Do you do anything for charity? Do you support any causes?

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 Project 1  Magazine biographies

2 You are going to research one of the people in the box below. Prepare answers to the questions in exercise 1
as if you were the person. You can use the internet and other sources of information to help you. If you
prefer, you can choose someone else to research.

Bill Gates Angelina Jolie Usain Bolt Barack Obama Suzanne Collins Danny Boyle Oprah Winfrey

3 Work with a partner. Ask the questions and make notes of his / her answers.

4 Choose one of the well-known people in the box above and write a biography of that person.
Use the biography of Adele to help you.

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 Project 1 Teacher’s notes  Magazine biographies
Aims: To give students the opportunity to work on a KEY
project to create a biography for a magazine. To enable 1 Adele (Adele Laurie Blue Adkins)
students to use sources of information in English with 2 I was born in North London, in England.
the help of ICT 3 I still live in the UK, but I now live in West Sussex.
Time: 15–20 minutes + extra time for students to 4 I’m married with one son. My mum was a single
interview each other and write their biographies mother because my dad walked out when I was
Materials: One handout for each pair of students, only two years old.
folded along the line 5 I’m a singer-songwriter and a musician.
6 I got a record deal with XL Recordings after my
Procedure:
demo was put on Myspace.
• Divide the class into pairs. 7 I have won Grammy Awards for Best New Artist and
• If possible, show one or more photos of the singer Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, and my album
Adele and elicit what students know about her. ‘21’ has sold over 26 million copies worldwide. I’ve
• Give one handout to each pair of students, folded also been voted one of the most influential people
along the line. in the world by Time magazine and one of the 100
• Tell them to read the biography and answer the most powerful women in the UK by BBC Radio 4.
interview questions. Make it clear that they should And I’ve just won an Oscar for Best Original Song for
answer as if they are Adele. Do an example with the Skyfall, the James Bond theme.
class to demonstrate if necessary. 8 I once cancelled some concerts in USA to be with a
• Give them a time limit and then check the answers as boyfriend!
a class. 9 I’ve performed at some charity concerts and I
support children’s charities.
• Ask the students to unfold their handouts. Tell them
to choose one of the celebrities in the box. Explain
that they need to use the internet or other sources of
information to find out more information about him
/ her. Make sure that they understand that they will
need to be able to answer the interview questions in
exercise 1.
• Give them a time limit for their research and
encourage them to work independently.
• When they are ready, put the students in pairs. They
then take it in turns to interview each other using the
questions in exercise 1. Remind them to answer as if
they are the well-known person that they chose.
• Ask the students to choose one of the well-known
people and to write a biography of that person
together using the biography of Adele as an example.
• Option 1: Students who interviewed the same
well-known person could work together on their
biographies.
• Option 2: Students who interviewed the same well-
known person could compare their biographies after
writing and check for similarities and differences.

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