Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies

Introduction
Download the LearnEnglish Themes podcast. You’ll find more information on this page:
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish-podcasts-themes.htm

This support pack contains the following materials:

• the article that you can listen to in the podcast
• a comprehension activity based on the article
• a grammar activity based on the article
• links to other activities on the LearnEnglish website on this theme (conspiracies).

Read the article

Conspiracies
by Richard Sidaway

Are you convinced that your government is in were taken seriously enough at the time - the
contact with UFOs? Do you think that President conspirators confessed after being tortured and
Kennedy was the victim of more than one they were then executed.
assassin? Do you get the feeling that we are
being watched? Then you are probably a believer Secret societies are a matter of historical record
in conspiracy theories. too, with their initiation rites, hierarchy, secret
signs and elaborate rituals. Some, like the
The success of the ‘Da Vinci Code’ Brotherhood of the Rosicrucians, were mystical
alleging that the Catholic Church has suppressed or religious in nature. Others are more social or
the truth about the death of Jesus shows how political in character like the Freemasons, whose
such theories can take hold of the popular members have included writers, generals,
imagination. politicians and even kings. They formed the
opposition to the Catholic Church in Southern
Everyone loves a conspiracy Europe, for example, and supported the pursuit of
They say that there are two basic explanations rational thought, scientific endeavour and liberal
for dramatic or world-changing events. The democracy.
conspiracy theory assumes that tragedies such
as the death of Princess Diana in Paris were not
just accidents but were carefully planned and
carried out by a group of powerful people
operating behind the scenes for various sinister
motives. The cock-up theory of history says that
such events are probably caused by a
combination of human incompetence and bad
timing.

The conspiracy theory is, naturally, much more

attractive because humans can be seen as
powerful shapers of their own destiny, rather than
the weak and fallible creatures they are. And
because they are usually impossible to prove
either one way or the other, conspiracy theories Verging on the paranoid
are limited only by the human imagination. But just because you say you have discovered a
plot and brought some people to trial doesn’t
The real thing mean that a conspiracy really existed. In the
Of course, there have been some real dying days of Stalin’s regime, a group of Jewish
conspiracies through the ages. The Gunpowder medical professionals were accused of conspiring
Plot in England in 1605 to get rid of the King of to poison Soviet leaders and overthrow the state.
England, or the July 20th plot to kill Hitler in 1944, Hundreds were arrested and executed. The
Doctors’ Plot of 1953 was just one in a long line
Page 1 of 3
The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity.
 Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies

of purges necessary to maintain the climate of has been kept from consumers deliberately? Or
fear by which the Communist Party ruled. It was the automobile company that tried to get control
more a symptom of Stalin’s anti-semitism and of trams in cities so that people would buy more
paranoia than a real conspiracy. cars instead of using public transport?

Tragic consequences Some people even believe barcodes are a

The longest-running conspiracy theory is population-control device used by a secret
probably the one about the Jews wanting to take unnamed organisation intent on world domination
over the world. Such ideas have served as the and that the numbers hide the mark of the devil…
justification for acts of random, irrational violence
against Jewish communities over the centuries, And the death of Diana? Well, apparently the
and led to the systematic persecution of the driver wasn’t really drunk and there was a lot of
Inquisition. A book was published in the 1920s carbon monoxide in his blood. A letter had been
supposedly giving documentary proof of such a written by the Princess just before the accident
world conspiracy, but it was later exposed as a happened claiming that someone wanted to get
fraud. This didn’t prevent the horrific attempt by rid of her, and the French authorities never
the Nazis to exterminate the entire Jewish carried out a post-mortem to find out the cause of
population of Europe during the Second World her death. These isolated facts supposedly add
War. up to a secret plot by intelligence agencies to
prevent the destruction of the British monarchy.
The downright silly
Some conspiracy theories can be quite An awful warning
entertaining. Take the case of the humble light Whatever you do, though, don’t let your life be
bulb. Who would believe that companies had dominated by conspiracy theories or you could
known for years how to make one that lasts for end up like the former footballer and TV sports
much longer than normal, but formed a cartel to commentator who currently believes that the
suppress it from the market because it would world is going to be taken over by a secret
mean their profits would be drastically affected. brotherhood of reptiles, and has published
various books giving details. His writings sell very
And what about the carburettor that can make a well in some parts of the world, but there must be
car run 300 miles on a single gallon of petrol but easier ways of being popular in Canada …

After reading
Exercise 1
What do the words in bold in the text refer to?

1. such events b. people

a. conspiracy theories c. Soviet leaders
b. powerful people operating behind the scenes
c. tragedies such as the death of Princess Diana 5. It
a. the Communist Party
2. they b. The Doctors’ Plot
a. conspiracy theories c. a long line
b. humans
c. weak and fallible creatures 6. This
a. the fact that the book was exposed as a fraud
3. Some b. documentary proof of such a world conspiracy
a. initiation rites c. a book
b. elaborate rituals
c. secret societies 7. one
a. a cartel
4. Hundreds b. a conspiracy theory
a. Jewish medical professionals c. a light bulb
Page 2 of 3
The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity.
 Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies

Exercise 2
The phrases in the first table below all use the passive because the people involved are not known or
because what happened is more important than who did it.
Match each of the phrases with a form of the passive in the second table below.

We are being watched A book was published A letter had been written
humans can be seen as …has been kept from don’t let your life be dominated
medical professionals were their profits would be drastically the world is going to be taken
accused of affected over

Form Phrase
Future
Imperative (negative)
Present Continuous
Modal present
Present Perfect
Past simple (x2)

Past perfect
Conditional

More activities on this topic

You’ll find links to all the following activities connected to the theme of conspiracies at:
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish-central-themes-conspiracies.htm
• Word game: Conspiracy idioms puzzle. This jigsaw puzzle practises idioms and expressions
related to conspiracies.
• Story: The Trial. This surreal novel by Franz Kafka is about a character named Joseph K., who
awakens one morning and, for reasons that one never discovers, is arrested and subjected to the
rigours of the judicial process for an unspecified crime.
• Trivia: Everything you (n)ever wanted to know about conspiracies.
• There is also a conspiracies-related cartoon, a poll, and some carefully selected external links.
Answers
Exercise 1: 1. c; 2. a; 3. c; 4. b; 5. b; 6. a; 7. c
Exercise 2:
Form Phrase
Future the world is going to be taken over
Imperative (negative) don’t let your life be dominated
Present Continuous we are being watched
Modal present humans can be seen as
Present Perfect …has been kept from
Past simple (x2) medical professionals were accused of
A book was published
Past perfect A letter had been written
Conditional their profits would be drastically affected

Page 3 of 3
The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity.