HOME PAGE | Published Materials supplied from the UK | Published Materials supplied from the USA
--Tales of The Unexpected
on DVD supplied from the UK
The DVDs listed below are all Region 2 (i.e. for playing in UK, Europe, Japan, South Africa and Middle East) and supplied from www.Amazon.co.uk in the UK.
Please click here for details of Tales of The Unexpected (Region 1) for playing in the USA and Canada and supplied from www.Amazon.com in the USA.
These short, stand-alone dramas (running time: approx 25 minutes each) are very useful for developing listening comprehension and vocabulary. Rating these dramas would vary from person to person, and I have collated the comments of different reviewers in attributing star ratings ***** = (high or perfect) and * = (low or far from perfect).
Tales of The Unexpected was a popular series, which ran for nearly ten years on UK TV between March 1979 and May 1988, numbering 122 episodes. Many of these are adapted from Roald Dahl's short stories. By today's standards, the episodes contain relatively mild elements of romance, violence & / or criminality, but remain amusing to watch. The '25-minute' duration means that the TV versions of the stories confine themselves to a simple plot, though this is possibly an advantage when using the dramas for language learning.
Most of the episodes are strong on narrative and situation. Common everyday situations can still occur within crime dramas, which several of the episodes are. I used them fairly regularly in the 1980s and 90s in my general EFL teaching - I would recommend that they are used at 'good intermediate' to 'advanced' levels on General EFL Courses (age group 16+ to adults). To extract the maximum value, it is advisable to prepare a printed handout, which can include a list of the characters and their roles, a brief introduction to the narrative (you will find useful summaries on the DVD packages), a list of vocabulary items likely to cause comprehension difficulties, and a range of questions - for checking literal comprehension, for inviting interpretation and for eliciting discussion on the themes (moral questions?) introduced in each drama.
Watching or reviewing the episodes on UK television
The UK-based television channel ITV 3 is currently re-broadcasting a selection of The Tales from each series in the small hours of Monday, Tuesday and Saturday mornings. See ITV 3 on ITV.com's TV Guide. The TV broadcasts provide an opportunity to watch & / or review some of the episodes. Should you wish to obtain each episode in a particular series (e.g. the 9 episodes in the first series), they can be purchased very cheaply from www.Amazon.co.uk in the UK:
DVD Region 2 The Complete First Series
001 The Man From the South****
002 Mrs. Bixby and the Colonel's Coat****
003 William and Mary***
004 Lamb to the Slaughter***
005 The Landlady***
006 Neck**
007 Edward the Conqueror***
008 A Dip in the Pool***
009 The Way Up to Heaven**
DVD Region 2 The Complete Second Series
010 Royal Jelly**
011 Skin***
012 Galloping Foxley***
013 The Hitchhiker*****
014 Poison***
015 Fat Chance***
016 Taste***
017 My Lady Love, My Dove*
018 Georgy Porgy***
019 Depart in Peace***
0 20 The Umbrella Man*****
021 Genesis and Catastrophe*
022 Mr. Botibol's First Love*
023 Back for Christmas****
024 The Orderly World of Mr. Appleby***
025 The Man at the Top**
DVD Region 2 The Complete Third Series
026 The Flypaper****
027 A Picture of a Place****
028 Proof of Guilt***
029 Vengeance is Mine Inc.****
030 A Girl Can't Always Have Everything****
031 Parson's Pleasure****
032 The Stinker****
033 I'll be Seeing You****
034 The Party****
Tales of The Unexpected - Paperback Book
contains (covered by DVD): 001 The Man From the South, 002 Mrs Bixby and the Colonel's Coat, 003 William and Mary, 004 Lamb to the Slaughter, 005 The Landlady, 006 Neck, 007 Edward the Conqueror 008 A Dip in the Pool, 09 The Way Up To Heaven 010 Royal Jelly, 011 Skin, 012 Galloping Foxley, 017 My Lady Love, My Dove, 031 Parson's Pleasure, and (not covered by DVD): Nunc Dimittis
Tales of The Unexpected and More Tales of The Unexpected - Paperback Book
contains (covered by DVD): 001 The Man From the South, 002 Mrs Bixby and the Colonel's Coat, 003 William and Mary, 004 Lamb to the Slaughter, 005 The Landlady, 006 Neck, 007 Edward the Conqueror 008 A Dip in the Pool, 09 The Way Up To Heaven 010 Royal Jelly, 011 Skin, 012 Galloping Foxley, 013 The Hitchhiker 014 Poison, 017 My Lady Love, My Dove, 018 Georgy Porgy, 020 The Umbrella Man, 021 Genesis and Catastrophe, 022 Mr Botibol's First Love, 029 Vengeance is Mine Inc., 031 Parson's Pleasure, 041 The Sound Machine and (not covered by DVD): Nunc Dimittis, The Butler
DVD Region 2 The Complete Fourth Series
035 Would you Believe it?***
036 Vicious Circle***
037 The Boy Who Talked with Animals**
038 The Best of Everything*****
039 A Woman's Help***
040 Shatterproof ****
041 The Sound Machine***
042 Never Speak Ill of the Dead****
043 The Best Policy***
044 The Last Bottle in the World***
045 Kindly Dig Your Grave***
046 Completely Foolproof***
047 There's One Born Every Minute****
048 Bosom Friends****
049 A Glowing Future***
050 The Way to Do it****
051 Hijack****
DVD Region 2 Series Five - Complete
052 Blue Marigold***
053 The Eavesdropper*****
054 Operation Safecrack***
055 Run, Rabbit, Run***
056 Stranger in Town*****
057 The Moles*****
058 Decoy*****
059 Pattern of Guilt*****
060 A Harmless Vanity*****
061 Death Can Add*****
062 Light Fingers*****
063 Death in the Morning*****
064 What Have you Been up to Lately?***
065 The Absence of Emily
066 In the Bag
067 A Man with a Fortune
068 Who's Got the Lady?
069 The Skeleton Key
DVD Region 2 Series Six - Complete
070 A Passing Opportunity
071 The Memory Man***
072 A Sad Loss
073 Clerical Error***
074 Heir Presumptious
075 Where's Your Sense of Humour?
076 Down Among the Sheltering Palms
077 The Vorpal Blade****
078 The Wrong ‘Un***
079 The Luncheon***
080 The Tribute***
081 Hit and Run****
082 Youth from Vienna
083 Turn of the Tide
DVD Region 2 Series 7 - Complete
084 The Dirty Detail*****
085 The Best Chess Player in the World****
086 Proxy
087 Have a Nice Death**
088 Number Eight*****
089 The Last of the Midnight Gardeners****
090 The Gift of Beauty
091 Wet Saturday
092 Sauce for the Goose
093 Bird of Prey
094 I Like it Here in Wilmington
095 Accidential Death****
096 The Reconciliation***
097 The Mugger
098 The Open Window
The remaining episodes are expected to be re-released on DVD shortly. ITV3 has also been broadcasting them (after midnight!) on Mondays, Tuesdays and Saturdays.
For the most complete book of the tales contributed by Roald Dahl, try The Collected Short Stories of Roald Dahl: Omnibus Volume (Paperback Book)
SERIES EIGHT
099 People Don't Do Such Things****
100 In the Cards*****
101 Nothin' Short of Highway Robbery***
102 Scrimshaw****
SERIES NINE
103 Skeleton in the Cupboard****
104 The Colonel's Lady****
105 The Surgeon****
106 The Verger*****
107 The Facts of Life
108 Wink Three Times****
109 The Dead Don't Steal
110 The Finger of Suspicion***
111 A Time to Die**
112 Mr. Know-All****
If your DVD player can play Region 1 DVDs, you can buy all the episodes in series 9 (together with some from series 6 and 7 included in the same set) from the USA.
The above DVDs are all Region 2 (i.e. for playing in UK, Europe, Japan, South Africa and Middle East) and supplied from www.Amazon.co.uk in the UK.
Please click here for details of Tales of The Unexpected (Region 1) for playing in the USA and Canada and supplied from www.Amazon.com in the USA.
--rss webfeed--Ted Power's recommendations: Published resources for English language learning and teaching:
This feed is intended for learners/teachers/Directors of Studies wishing to review or select books/CDs/CD-ROMs on English language learning and teaching including areas such as teacher training, pronunciation, listening to spoken English, oral fluency, grammar, vocabulary, reading and writing (including handwriting & basic literacy).
HOME PAGE | Published Materials supplied from the UK | Published Materials supplied from the USA