2. Can we call Champagne and Jane opposites? Prove it. Do you believe such opposites could “attract”?

3. Comment on the “supermarket flirting code”. What is it? Do you believe such a code exists?

4. Make a list of words that Champagne confuses and recall the episodes in which she uses them. Did it lead to embarrassing consequences?

III. Follow-up activities

1. You are a) a celebrity; b) a journalist; c) a biography writer. Give a portrait of a typical “party girl”.

2. Agree or disagree: Having to deal with celebrities can turn your life into a nightmare.

3. You are a journalist. Prove that you have to be ahead of the game if you want to work for a glossy magazine.

Can You Keep a Secret?

I. Vocabulary work

1. Study the following words and use them in contexts of your own.

Swoop, fib, scoff, plummet, flicker, spool, deluded, nip out, pang, tizz, deadpan, linchpin.

2. Match the words to make up word combinations.

a jolt to regain a flicker riveted to duck back linchpin to stiffen to recap

out of sight the situation of alarm in apprehension expression one’s composure of the organization of annoyance

3. Insert the words from Ex. 1. Choose their appropriate form.

1. She … at my poem.

2. A smile … across her face.

3. He … about his age.

4. She used three … of thread in one week.

5. Fraudulent ads … consumers into sending in money.

6. It is important to recognize jealousy and to … it in the bud before it gets out of hand.

7. I felt a … in my heart as I greeted him.

8. The children … down on the pile of presents.

9. Reduced spending is the … of their economic programme.

10. The rock … to the bottom of the cliff.

11. She told the joke … .

12. I got myself in a … this morning because the car wouldn’t start and I was late.

II. Discussing the text

1. Read the required extracts from the book “Can You Keep a Secret?” by s. Kinsella and consider the following questions.

1. What secrets did Emma have? How did she feel when her secrets became known to people?

2. Why did Jack Harper’s arrival cause so much confusion in the office? Did the staff behave “normally”?

3. What can you say about Emma’s responsibilities at work? How does it characterize her? What is Emma’s “behaving normally” in the office like?

4. Comment on Emma’s relations with her family. Do you think that Kerry tried to embarrass Emma out of spite?

5. Is organizing a Corporate Family Day a good idea? What accounts for the weird behavior of Emma’s family members on the Corporate Family Day? What consequence did it have for Emma?

6. Can Emma be called a daydreamer? Can we call her a liar? Find evidence in the text to support your point of view.

7. What makes Jack feel confident that the company will win the women’s market?

2. Agree or disagree: Being stressed out is an excuse for blabbering all your secrets to a complete stranger.

3. Lissy, Emmas friend, says that it’s a basic human right that flatmates should be able to borrow each others’ clothes. Work out rules of flatmates’ peaceful coexistence.

4. Agree or disagree: Kerry impersonates an ideal business lady.

5. What tips would you give to Emma concerning her behavior in the episode when all her secrets have been revealed on TV? Do you believe it is possible to find a solution to such a problem at all?

III. Follow-up activities

1. You are a psychologist. Prove that despite a bad start, one can always change the situation for the better.

2. Do you agree that respecting a person’s privacy is indispensable for any relations?

3. You write articles for a glossy magazine. Draw a portrait of a typical “girl on the street”.

Revenge Is Sweet

I. Vocabulary work

1. Study the words and use them in contexts of your own.

Scrawls, foreboding, contrive, brusque, crude, relish.

2. Use the following phrasal verbs and verbal expressions to fill in the blank spaces.

get (a) round to smth, go along with, bring someone/oneself to smth, conjure up

1. I’ll … you as far as the post-office.

2. He … facts.

3. I never … see her.

4. I cannot … myself to believe.

5. You can buy the house if the bank is willing to … .

6. When will you … my question.

7. She … vision of the past.

8. We’ll … your suggestion.

9. I wish I could … you to see the wisdom of my plan.

3. Fill in the blank spaces with the appropriate form of the word in brackets.

1. He has been able to clear himself of the … of dishonesty (accuse).

2. He may have made an … but it is far from being a sincere one (apologize).

3. He has eight children, each of whom, he claims, is more … than the other seven (trouble).

4. A lot of money is not always a … to the person who has it (bless).

5. Anyone working abroad has to pay a lot for the … of his goods to and from home (carry).

6. He blamed his … to pass the test on his nervousness (fail).

7. The three-week strike of the workmen has been a … to the completion of the bridge (hinder).

8. The … of the word ‘a’ changes the meaning completely (omit).

9. She takes a certain … in never asking her neighbours for help (proud).

10. He had no … of ideas but he could not express them clearly (scare).

11. The plan to build a new bridge has not yet been given the Government’s … (approve).

12. The violent storm caused the … of several houses (destroy).

13. That rule is not … in this case (apply).

14. The teacher punished the child for … (obey).

15. That’s a … statement, you can’t prove it (contest).

16. There is a slight … in his words (ambiguous).

17. George is in prison for tax … (evade).