reported speech bbc

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• B1-B2 grammar

Reported speech

Daisy has just had an interview for a summer job. 

Instructions

As you watch the video, look at the examples of reported speech. They are in  red  in the subtitles. Then read the conversation below to learn more. Finally, do the grammar exercises to check you understand, and can use, reported speech correctly.

Sophie:  Mmm, it’s so nice to be chilling out at home after all that running around.

Ollie: Oh, yeah, travelling to glamorous places for a living must be such a drag!

Ollie: Mum, you can be so childish sometimes. Hey, I wonder how Daisy’s getting on in her job interview.

Sophie: Oh, yes, she said she was having it at four o’clock, so it’ll have finished by now. That’ll be her ... yes. Hi, love. How did it go?

Daisy: Well, good I think, but I don’t really know. They said they’d phone later and let me know.

Sophie: What kind of thing did they ask you?

Daisy: They asked if I had any experience with people, so I told them about helping at the school fair and visiting old people at the home, that sort of stuff. But I think they meant work experience.

Sophie: I’m sure what you said was impressive. They can’t expect you to have had much work experience at your age.

Daisy:  And then they asked me what acting I had done, so I told them that I’d had a main part in the school play, and I showed them a bit of the video, so that was cool.

Sophie:  Great!

Daisy: Oh, and they also asked if I spoke any foreign languages.

Sophie: Languages?

Daisy: Yeah, because I might have to talk to tourists, you know.

Sophie: Oh, right, of course.

Daisy: So that was it really. They showed me the costume I’ll be wearing if I get the job. Sending it over ...

Ollie: Hey, sis, I heard that Brad Pitt started out as a giant chicken too! This could be your big break!

Daisy: Ha, ha, very funny.

Sophie: Take no notice, darling. I’m sure you’ll be a marvellous chicken.

We use reported speech when we want to tell someone what someone said. We usually use a reporting verb (e.g. say, tell, ask, etc.) and then change the tense of what was actually said in direct speech.

So, direct speech is what someone actually says? Like 'I want to know about reported speech'?

Yes, and you report it with a reporting verb.

He said he wanted to know about reported speech.

I said, I want and you changed it to he wanted .

Exactly. Verbs in the present simple change to the past simple; the present continuous changes to the past continuous; the present perfect changes to the past perfect; can changes to could ; will changes to would ; etc.

She said she was having the interview at four o’clock. (Direct speech: ' I’m having the interview at four o’clock.') They said they’d phone later and let me know. (Direct speech: ' We’ll phone later and let you know.')

OK, in that last example, you changed you to me too.

Yes, apart from changing the tense of the verb, you also have to think about changing other things, like pronouns and adverbs of time and place.

'We went yesterday.'  > She said they had been the day before. 'I’ll come tomorrow.' >  He said he’d come the next day.

I see, but what if you’re reporting something on the same day, like 'We went yesterday'?

Well, then you would leave the time reference as 'yesterday'. You have to use your common sense. For example, if someone is saying something which is true now or always, you wouldn’t change the tense.

'Dogs can’t eat chocolate.' > She said that dogs can’t eat chocolate. 'My hair grows really slowly.' >  He told me that his hair grows really slowly.

What about reporting questions?

We often use ask + if/whether , then change the tenses as with statements. In reported questions we don’t use question forms after the reporting verb.

'Do you have any experience working with people?' They asked if I had any experience working with people. 'What acting have you done?' They asked me what acting I had done .

Is there anything else I need to know about reported speech?

One thing that sometimes causes problems is imperative sentences.

You mean like 'Sit down, please' or 'Don’t go!'?

Exactly. Sentences that start with a verb in direct speech need a to + infinitive in reported speech.

She told him to be good. (Direct speech: 'Be good!') He told them not to forget. (Direct speech: 'Please don’t forget.')

OK. Can I also say 'He asked me to sit down'?

Yes. You could say 'He told me to …' or 'He asked me to …' depending on how it was said.

OK, I see. Are there any more reporting verbs?

Yes, there are lots of other reporting verbs like promise , remind , warn , advise , recommend , encourage which you can choose, depending on the situation. But say , tell and ask are the most common.

Great. I understand! My teacher said reported speech was difficult.

And I told you not to worry!

Check your grammar: matching

Check your grammar: error correction, check your grammar: gap fill, worksheets and downloads.

What was the most memorable conversation you had yesterday? Who were you talking to and what did they say to you?

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U.K. Police Charge 3 Men With Aiding Hong Kong Intelligence Service

The three appeared in court on Monday after being arrested under Britain’s National Security Act. Eight other people detained in the case have been released.

By Stephen Castle

Reporting from London

Three men have been charged with assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service, the London Metropolitan Police said on Monday, following an investigation in which arrests and searches were carried out across England.

The three people charged under Britain’s National Security Act were identified as Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, of Staines-upon-Thames; Matthew Trickett, 37, of Maidenhead, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, of Hackney, East London.

“The foreign intelligence service to which the above charges relate is that of Hong Kong,” the police said in a statement .

The three men appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday. As court proceedings are now active, English reporting restrictions apply, limiting what can be reported about the case.

Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police’s counterterrorism command, said the investigation was continuing. “While these offenses are concerning, I want to reassure the public that we do not believe there to be any wider threat to them,” he said.

Eleven people in total were detained during the investigation. Eight men and a woman were arrested on May 1 in Yorkshire, in northern England, by counterterrorism police officers. The following day, a man was arrested in London and another in Yorkshire. Among the allegations is that entry was forced into a residential address in Britain on May 1.

The eight people who were not charged have been released from custody. The three who face charges did not enter pleas but were granted bail ahead of their next scheduled court appearance on May 24.

In Britain, China, which includes Hong Kong, has been blamed for several recent cases of spying. “All those accusations are groundless and slanderous,” the Chinese Embassy in London said in a statement .

As for the latest allegations, the statement, referring to the Hong Kong Special Administration Region by its initials, said, “The Chinese side firmly rejects and strongly condemns the U.K.’s fabrication of the so-called case and its unwarranted accusation against the HKSAR government and has made serious representations to the U.K. side on the matter.”

The men’s court appearance coincided with a warning from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak that the country was facing some of the most dangerous years it has ever known.

In a speech in London on Monday morning, Mr. Sunak described China, Russia, North Korea and Iran as a newly assertive “axis of authoritarian states.”

“More will change in the next five years than in the last 30. I’m convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet most transformational our country has ever known,” Mr. Sunak said, adding: “Our country stands at a crossroads.”

With a general election expected in the second half of the year, Mr. Sunak’s speech was highly political in tone, seeking to draw dividing lines between his Conservative Party and the opposition Labour Party, which is well ahead in opinion polls. Britain, Mr. Sunak said, would be less safe if Labour’s leader, Keir Starmer, became prime minister.

“Over the next few years, from our democracy to our economy to our society — to the hardest questions of war and peace — almost every aspect of our lives is going to change,” he said.

In a statement, Pat McFadden, Labour’s campaign coordinator, responded that “the only way to stop the chaos, turn the page and start to renew is with a change of government.”

Stephen Castle is a London correspondent of The Times, writing widely about Britain, its politics and the country’s relationship with Europe. More about Stephen Castle

Large crocodile removed from North Queensland marina after lunging at man on houseboat

Wildlife authorities have captured and removed a 4-metre crocodile that lunged at a man on a houseboat in North Queensland.

Dean Grieve reported the terrifying encounter at the Cardwell marina to the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation last month.

He said the crocodile launched itself out of the water and onto his boat, coming "only inches away" from where he had been standing.

It was suspected the same animal also took his pet dog weeks before.

Wildlife officer Ella Meeve said the large crocodile was caught in a floating trap secured to a pontoon and removed from the area on Monday.

"He put up a fair fight," Ms Meeve said.

"We had received reports indicating he had been there for quite a while and would come and go with the tides.

"It is very concerning to us when we receive reports from members of the public where they've had encounters like that with crocodiles, and that's why the department responded as quickly as what we did."

Second crocodile caught

A smaller 3-metre crocodile was also caught and removed from the marina.

"When trapping crocodiles, we do run the risk of unfortunately removing non-target animals," Ms Meeve said.

"It's something that we do try our best to avoid.

"We were aware of that smaller animal that was residing in the marina as well and unfortunately it was just bycatch."

She said both reptiles would now be sent to a crocodile farm or wildlife park.

"We will probably reach out to the traditional owners, being such a large iconic animal, and let them know and see if they wish to keep the animal on country or if they wish to name it," Ms Meeve said.

"Even though we've removed two from the marina, there's nothing to stop another crocodile from moving in."

A warning to fishers

Ms Meeve said crocodiles were especially attracted to the marina because of crab pots and fish carcasses left behind by fishers.

"Crocodiles will learn that they can get a free feed from the marina and that seems to be the case here," she said.

Ms Meeve warned people in crocodile-infested areas to take safety precautions.

"Try and avoid repetition, creating that pattern where they can learn that you're going to be down there at the pontoon fishing at the same time every day.

"Dispose of any of your fish frames and leftovers responsibly so that they're not left out as croc food."

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BBC’s Former Creative Diversity Head Joanna Abeyie Speaks Out: ‘A Psychologically Safe Working Environment is Crucial’

By K.J. Yossman

K.J. Yossman

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The BBC ‘s former head of creative diversity Joanna Abeyie has spoken out about her stint in the role, saying “a psychologically safe working environment is crucial” particularly in the field of DEI.

Writing in the BFI Sight and Sound Black Film Bulletin, Abeyie, who stepped down from the role last July, said: “I loved my role at the BBC. It felt like I could and indeed was making headway. I left with confidence that several key stakeholders and commissioners were committed to making programmes with and for diverse talent and audiences.”

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“These roles can become untenable when autonomy, influence and decision making is minimal to absent,” Abeyie added in her piece. “When there is no sign of improvement and the role is created because optically it’s the right thing to do.”

“Essentially, if the role doesn’t provide the EDI executive with the true ability to change anything, they are alone in their pursuit of making sustainable changes which is almost certainly a shortcut to burn out.”

Abeyie was brought in to replace Miranda Weyland, who left the BBC for Amazon in 2022, and reported to director of diversity and inclusion, Chinny Okolidoh.

Last week it was reported that Okolidoh had stepped down after 20 months in post . Broadcast revealed Okolidoh would not be replaced as her role has effectively been shut down. Instead, the BBC is recruiting for a new role, titled chief talent and inclusion officer.

Okolidoh’s predecessor, June Sarpong, stepped down in Oct. 2022 after two and a half years in the role.

“To ensure D&I remains front and centre of our plans we’ve now commissioned the Sir Lenny Henry Centre for Media Diversity (LHC) to review our Creative Diversity Commitment. We’re also bringing together our Workforce Diversity & Inclusion, Creative Diversity, Recruitment, Careers, and Academy agendas all under a new more senior role of Chief Talent and Inclusion Officer to supercharge what we are doing in this space.”

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