Shadowing Luke Thompson: Roald Dahl’s “Parson’s Pleasure” (Pronunciation Guide)

Shadowing Luke Thompson has honestly been a game changer for my own pronunciation. Ever since I came across Luke’s English Podcast, copying his storytelling has helped me notice the little details of natural southern standard British English. So in this live session I shadow Luke reading the opening of Roald Dahl’s “Parson’s Pleasure” (LEP episode 817), pointing out the features worth paying attention to.

The story follows Mr Boggis, a dealer in antique furniture who goes hunting for treasures in the English countryside, disguised as a clergyman. It’s classic Dahl: funny, sly and beautifully written.

What is shadowing?

Shadowing means repeating a speaker’s words almost at the same time as them, copying their intonation, pace and delivery. It builds muscle memory, improves your listening and gives you confidence. Just a few minutes a day makes a real difference.

Pronunciation highlights

Glottal stop: “got out”

Mr Boggis stopped the car… got out and looked around. Luke doesn’t say a clear “got-tout”. He uses a glottal stop, a little catch in the throat, instead of the /t/: go’ out. It’s extremely common in modern British speech.

-ed endings: stopped, looked, spotted

• Stopped and looked end in /t/, because p and k are voiceless: /stɒpt/, /lʊkt/.
• Spotted ends in /ɪd/, because the verb already ends in a /t/ sound.

Spanish speakers, careful: don’t add a vowel before the /s/. It’s stopped, not “estopped”.

No R at the end: car, for

In southern British English, the r at the end of a word like car or for is not pronounced unless a vowel follows: he could see fo(r) miles.

Linking R: “over on the right”

And here’s the exception. In over on the right, over is followed by a vowel, so a gentle linking R appears: ove-ron the right. It’s a very small sound, but it makes the phrase flow. Luke does it again in two likely farms over on the left.

Vowel families

This story is a great chance to group words by vowel sound:

• /iː/ (as in see): medium, queen, antique
• /ɑː/ (as in car): farmhouse, larger, apart
• /aʊ/ (as in house): around, out, house
• /ɜː/ (as in bird): perfect, clergyman, furniture

Might be: assimilation

In a house that might be a Queen Anne, the /t/ of might can either become a glottal stop or assimilate to the /b/, so it sounds like “mib be”. Two natural options, both better than a heavy /t/.

The car vs the other side

• The car → /ðə/ (schwa), because car starts with a consonant.
• The other side → /ði/, because other starts with a vowel sound.

Apart from the fact

…apart from the fact that he was at this moment disguised as a clergyman. Listen to how much happens in this short phrase:

• Apart rhymes with cart (/ɑː/) and ends in a glottal stop: apar’ from.
• From and the are both weak, with schwas.
• Fact has the short, open /æ/ of cat.

Say it slowly a few times, then speed up: apar’-frəm-thə-fact. When you can say it smoothly, you’ve got the rhythm of British English in one phrase.

On the prosperous

In no point in calling on the prosperous, Luke’s tongue is already preparing the th while he’s still saying on. Natives anticipate the next sound all the time. That’s what makes speech sound smooth instead of word-by-word.

Vocabulary from the story

• Just short of the summit: almost at the top of the hill, but not quite.
• He could see for miles: he had a very wide, clear view.
• He ruled out the latter: he decided not to consider the second option. The latter = the second of two things mentioned; the former = the first.
• Prosperous: rich, successful. (Two schwas: /ˈprɒspərəs/.)
• Disguised as a clergyman: dressed as a priest so people wouldn’t recognise him.
• By trade, a dealer in antique furniture: his job was buying and selling old furniture. By trade introduces someone’s profession.
• Achieved a considerable reputation: became quite famous.
• With astonishing regularity: surprisingly often.

Two very British houses

Mr Boggis spots five farms and one big Georgian house, and another that might be a Queen Anne. These are architectural styles named after British monarchs. A Georgian house dates from the period of the Kings George (roughly the 18th and early 19th centuries), and a Queen Anne house from the early 1700s. For an antique dealer, these houses mean one thing: old furniture worth a lot of money.

Practice

1. Sort the words by vowel sound: queen, apart, bird, house, larger, out, medium, church
2. -ed ending /t/, /d/ or /ɪd/? stopped, spotted, looked, achieved
3. Is there a linking R? (a) over on (b) car park (c) for a while
4. Use the latter in a sentence about two options.

Watch the full session

In the video you’ll shadow the whole opening with Luke and me, hear each feature in slow motion, and find out more about the mysterious Mr Boggis.

Let me know in the YouTube comments if you’d like more shadowing videos like this one. I’m turning it into a full series, so subscribe so you don’t miss the next one.