BBC Learning English producer/presenter John Escolme in the grounds of Somerset House.

Jean: 在我们今天的节目中，John 现在是正在伦敦市中心的萨默塞特宫和我一起为大家报道今天的热门话题 Somerset House. John is at Somerset House at this very moment. John, what’s going on down there?

John: Well Jean, I’m sitting here in the sun enjoying the fountains here at Somerset House.

Jean: The fountains 喷泉 Sounds fun - but what exactly is Somerset House?

John: OK well I’ll keep the history brief. Well the building started out as a great Tudor Palace - that was in the 1500s. The house was built in 1547 for a great member of the aristocracy. By the 18th century the house became the home of some of Britain’s most influential and important societies, the Royal Academy of Arts, the Royal Society, and the Society of Antiquaries. It was also the home of the British Navy. Today it houses an amazing art gallery.

Jean: OK so the house started out as a great Tudor Palace, 当我们说什么东西 started out 意思就是某个东西的起源出处是什么 所以萨默塞特宫原来是一座巨大的都铎 duo 王朝的宫殿 不过那时早在15世纪 到了18世纪，这里就已经成为一些英国当时最重要的团体组织的总部，像英国皇家美术学院, The Royal Academy of Arts 英国皇家学会 The Royal Society 还有英国文物学会。这里还是英国海军的摇篮 the home to the British Navy. So what is Somerset House used for today John?

John: Well, today it's the home of a wonderful art gallery. It is called the Courtauld Institute.

Jean: OK John, at the beginning of the programme you mentioned the fountains that you can see at Somerset House, can you tell us a bit more about them?

John: Sure! Yes, the fountains have only been here a few years, and what’s special about them is that they simply come out of the ground in the middle of a large court yard! Now if you are standing in the court yard you could be caught unawares, and the fountain could spring up around or even underneath you if you are not careful! So I’m sitting here now and all of the fountains are very small at the moment, they are starting to rise higher, there are some children playing near them, and if they are not careful they’ll be blasted by one of the jets of water, because that’s what these fountains are really. Oh and there’s one of the children heading straight for one of the fountains right now!

Jean: So John, there’s nothing stopping anybody from jumping on any of the fountains.

John: Yes that’s right, and there’s lots of young people dashing in and out of the fountains when it's a hot day. It is quite a good way to cool off if you are hot!

Jean: Amazing. Well you’re listening to BBC Learning English time now to update you on what we’ve been talking about so far.

Jean: We’ve been hearing about fountains, 喷泉 a Tudor Palace, 一座都铎宫殿 我们刚才还听 John 说这里的喷泉是从地上直接冒出来的 they simply come out of the ground, 他还说你要是没注意就会被喷中了 caught unawares, 如果你是站在院子当中的话。 John 还说这整座喷泉就是一束束的水流 jets of water 他还看见一个站在喷泉边的孩子已经全身都湿透了!!! OK well let’s go back outside and see how John is getting on with the fountains at Somerset House. John have you been caught unawares yet?

John: Well Jean I haven’t actually, I’m one of the lucky ones, but yes it is easy to be caught unawares by those fountains. Now, what else can we say about Somerset House? Well around the fountains are lots of tables and chairs where local people working in the area sit at lunchtimes on their lunchtime breaks eating. It's a great public space in the summer time for people to come. Now why do I mention this, well in London there aren’t many squares like this for people to sit and enjoy being outside, and the parks aren’t always convenient for people to get to. So, the enclosed space that you see here at Somerset House is what you could call unique! Jean.

Jean: So there aren’t many squares in London like the one at Somerset House then, that’s surprising John 他说其实在整个伦敦像这样的公共广场其实并不多 所以可以说萨默塞宫是相当独特的 unique 午饭的时候 lunchtimes 很多就近的人都坐在这里吃午饭，坐在这里度过他们的午饭休息时间 their lunchtime breaks.

OK John 刚才还说到的另一个话题就是萨默塞宫的美术展 这里有很多幅的油画，刻画的都是好几百年前英国当时的生活景象，很多都是世界著名的美术作品 John do you fancy going to see a bit of art?

John: Yes, why not, I’m not an expert, but I know what I like!

Jean: 原来 John 他自己就挺喜欢美术的..在英语里如果你想说我对美术有点爱好，就是 I like a bit of art John 他说他虽然不是个专家不过他知道他喜欢什么 I know what I like 也是表示对某事虽然谈不上专家，不过略知一二。

John: And from me John at Somerset House, see you!