CAE (Advanced Exam) Listening Test 5
1 C  2 B  3 A  4 B  5 A  6 B

Extract One
You hear two friends discussing a book.
Now look at questions 1 and 2.

F: How are you getting on with that book I lent you?
M: Oh, OK. When you said it was a thriller, I wasn’t prepared for something written in the form of
two first-person blogs. But I soon worked out that they already knew each other really and
that they were up to something together. I can see why you thought it was an attempt to
subvert the conventional linear thriller. I reckon the writer’s had a pretty good stab at it.
F: Oh, I think there’s more to it than that. I’m online just like anybody else and what interested
me was the way the writer showed how much deception you can get away with; that there’s
not much comeback on what you say or do. People tell each other things they’d never say to
a real person in the same room. That was really quite a wake-up call for me, because I think I
may have been guilty of doing that. You know, you can develop quite intimate relationships
with people without meeting them or knowing if that intimacy is real or false. It may be quite a
long time before you find out something about them you’d have known instantly if you’d met.
Scary.

Extract Two
You hear part of a discussion about a jewellery designer.
Now look at questions 3 and 4.

M: Lily Standon’s jewellery’s been inspired by years spent travelling around the world. Did you
see evidence of that in her latest collection?
F: Well, it’s certainly got a modern ethnic edge and is very diverse in terms of styling, which I
guess is what people are picking up on. But I’d say the thing that sets it apart is its multifunctionality
– I mean, who wouldn’t be attracted to a piece that can be worn day or evening.
Some people rave about the futuristic feel of some of the stuff; particularly in her use of
beading, which has become her sort of trademark. But I felt that doesn’t come through quite
as strongly in this collection.
M: Apparently, a more delicate collection is on the cards next ...
F: ... crafted from precious metals. I mean, like everybody, I’m looking forward to seeing it, and
who knows, perhaps she’ll surprise us all yet again, but I always have my doubts when the
more cutting-edge designers start to step into more traditional territory. It’d be a shame if she
lost that edge. You know, if the commercial imperative began to dictate the flow of creativity.
We’ve seen that so many times before with designers.

Extract Three
You hear part of an interview with the owner of a shopping website.
Now look at questions 5 and 6.

F: Tell us about the life of a CEO.
M: I’m a CEO because I started this company and I’ve always had that entrepreneurial spirit in
me. But that doesn’t necessarily prepare you for management, personnel and all those other
aspects of running a company. A lot of my job involves filling in the gaps of what doesn’t get
done. Like, I come in and check up on orders and see that the bills get paid. Perhaps a CEO
shouldn’t be interfering in that stuff, but this company’s my baby, so I guess it’s inevitable. But
I also have to leave time to focus on where the company’s going – not get so bogged down in
detail that I lose sight of the big picture.
F: So, could anyone become an entrepreneur?
M: My life’s a culmination of all the stuff I used to do: booking punk rock bands, selling real
estate, working in retail. All that stuff helped me to create and develop the site. Once you’ve
got your vision, though, the real challenge is trusting yourself to pick the moment to go for it.
Then it takes a huge amount of humbleness not to step on the valuable support that’s around
you. Because without them, you’re nowhere.