Microsoft Word 230420 6min english museums docx

---

BBC LEARNING ENGLISH
 
6 Minute English 
What’s the point of museums? 
This is not a word-for-word transcript 
6 Minute English
 
©British Broadcasting Corporation 2023 
bbclearningenglish.com
Page 1 of 4 
Neil 
Hello. This is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I’m Neil. 
Beth 
And I’m Beth. 
Neil 
London has many tourist attractions, from Big Ben to Buckingham Palace.  
Would it surprise you to hear that many tourists’ top destination is actually a 
museum? The British Museum contains thousands of important artefacts – 
objects of special historical interest, including ancient Egyptian mummies, an 
Aztec serpent, and the Rosetta Stone. In fact, London has museums on every 
subject, from trains to fashion. 
Beth 
But recently many museums have been criticised for stealing ancient treasures 
during imperial times – the age of the British empire. Many argue that these 
treasures, such as the famous Parthenon marbles and Benin bronzes, should be 
returned. In this programme, we’ll discuss the controversial role of museums in 
the 21
st
century, and as usual, we’ll be learning some useful new vocabulary as 
well. 
Neil 
But first, I have a question for you, Beth. Another of London’s most visited 
museums, The Natural History Museum, features a grand entrance hall which, for 
decades, contained an impressive life-size model of a dinosaur. But what was this 
iconic dinosaur’s name? Was it: 
a) Dippy the Diplodocus? 
b) Terry the Terradactyl? or, 
c) Tyrone the Tyrannosaurus? 

---

6 Minute English
 
©British Broadcasting Corporation 2023 
bbclearningenglish.com 
Page 2 of 4