READING COMPREHENSION
Text 1. Read the text below. For questions 1-5 choose the correct answer (a,b,c or d)
The Isle of Wight Festival was one of the UK’s first ever music festival. It was originally
held in 1968 and was organized so quickly that everybody was really surprised when over
10,000 people turned up.
Over the next couple of years more and more people went to the festival. In 1970 around
600,000 people were there to see legendary rock star Jim Hendrix’s last performance before
he died. Unfortunately, the same year hundred of people tried to enter the festival without
buying a ticket first, which resulted in one of the most popular festivals ever, being shut down
for over thirty years.
The festival made a comeback in 2002 and since then has grown into one of the biggest
events on the summer festivals circuit. It is held every June for three days and, once again,
thousands of people flock to see some of the world’s best bands.
This year the festival site included DJ tents, bars, food stalls and even a funfair.
So, if you are in the South of England during the summer, make sure you book your tickets
for the Isle of Wight festival. It really is a must-see!
1 What is the main purpose of the article?
a) To describe the Isle of Wight
b) To describe a festival which takes place on the Isle of Wight
c) To talk about music festival
d) To describe music in the UK
2 What does the writer say about the festival in 1968?
a) Very few people attended
b) It was not organised
c) It wasn’t popular at all
d) It was more popular than imagined.
3 What would you learn about Jimi Hendrix from the article?
a) He made his last ever appearance at the festival
b) He appeared at the festival recently
c) He never played at the festival
d) He died before playing at the festival
4 The festival was shut down because
a) Not many people attended in 1970
b) People tried to go without paying
c) The tickets were too expensive
d) It wasn’t popular enough
5 What best describes the festival these days?
a) It mainly attracts people from the South of England
b) It is the most popular event on the Isle of Wight
c) It is one of the UK’s biggest summer events
d) It has one of the best food stalls in the UK.
Text 2. Read the texts below. Match choices (A-H) to (1-6)
1. In 1718 the Duke of Ormonde’s property was forfeited after his support of the
unsuccessful Jacobean Rebellion. George, Prince of Wales, and his wife Princess
Caroline, having been by George I from St James’s Palace after a quarrel, moved into
Ormonde House and gave it back its former name of Richmond Lodge.
2. The English Landscape style of gardening developed in England in the 1730s and spread
across Europe into the wider world. In essence the style rejected geometry and
regularity. Stephen Switzer (1682-1745) is the first practitioner of this style.
3. The development of the English Landscape Garden involved many other designers,
such as Charles Bridgeman (died 1738), who worked at Richmond, and William Kent
(1684-1748) who worked at about Richmond and Kew Gardens.
4. Queen Caroline is a patron of English Landscape Gardening, and, in her own words, her
concern was to set about “ helping Nature, not losing it in art ”. The move to Richmond
Lodge offered her a landscape prime for development in her favoured style.
5. Queen Caroline held a meeting of critics and designers at Richmond Gardens in 1719 to
discuss her gardens. The results of their collaboration at Richmond have been
described as a “geometrical ferme ornee”
6. Caroline opened the gardens to the public when the royal family was not in residence.
Caroline died in 1737 and the estate passed to George II who continued to visit the
property during the summer months until his death in 1760.
WHO____________?
A) gave Ormonde House the name it used to be called
B) Was clever enough to consult specialists
C) Wanted to show the beauty of the gardens to the public
D) Wanted landscape to be close to nature
E) Was the first to refuse from regular and geometric forms in gardening style
F) Worked in the English Landscape Gardens
G) Strolled along Richmond and Kew Gardens
H) Performed exhibitions in the English Landscape Gardens
Text 3. Read the text. Choose from (A-H) the one which best fits each space (1-6). There
are two choices you don’t need to use.
Card playing has brought pleasure to millions of people for some six centuries and is
popular the world over, so it is not surprising to discover that thousand of games have been
invented. There is a widespread belief that all card games have official rules but the
situation is complex and this idea is best ignored. Widely played games 1_____ in much the
same way. National and regional games may have official rules published by an organization
devoted to the game, but those 2___ in local and family play. Of course, it is essential to
establish a set of rules for club or tournament play, but these 3___ as the rules of the club,
not the rules of the game. In homes people play cards for enjoyment and 4___ and drop
rules to suit their tastes. It is because tastes 5___ and generation to generation that card
game evolve. No book can do more than 6___, or are said by other books to be played.
A) Played in its country of origin. E) tend to be played everywhere
B) Should be regarded. F) never did lay down official rules
C) Will naturally introduce G) vary from place to place
D) Are happily ignored H) describe how games are played