Part 2 cue cardMedia and news

    Describe a magazine or newspaper you like to read

    Two bullets are one-sentence traps: "what it is" and "how often you read it". The time has to come from "what kind of content it has", so name sections and one article you remember, never just "interesting topics".

    • 1 minute to prepare
    • Up to 2 minutes
    • Samples at Band 6, 7 and 8
    • Updated 20 October 2026
    A magazine lying open on a coffee table beside reading glasses and a plant

    The cue card

    Describe a magazine or newspaper you like to read.

    You should say:

    • what it is
    • how often you read it
    • what kind of content it has
    • and explain why you enjoy it

    Rehearse the long turn

    1 minute to prepare · 2 minutes to speak

    Sit this card with the AI examinerThen the Part 3 discussion, and a full report

    A 60-second plan

    1. what it isSunday magazine in Dad's English daily
    2. how often you read itevery Sunday, roof, chai, early
    3. what kind of content it hascover story, interviews, agony aunt, crossword
    4. and explain why you enjoy itslow reading, better English, Dad rivalry

    Sample answers

    Band 7 sample answer

    250 words · about 1:55 spoken at a Band 7 pace

    The one publication I actually look forward to every week is the Sunday magazine that comes tucked inside an English-language daily here in Lahore. My dad's been taking the paper since as long as I can remember, but he only ever reads the politics and business pages, so over the years the magazine has more or less become mine.

    I read it every Sunday without fail. Breakfast in our house is quite late at weekends, so I usually take it up to the roof with a cup of chai and get through most of it before anyone else is awake.

    What I like is the mix. There's always a long cover feature, and some of them have really stayed with me, like one about the crumbling old havelis in the walled city and the families still living in them. Then there are interviews with local musicians and chefs, a short story sent in by a reader, an advice column, which is surprisingly entertaining, and right at the back a cryptic crossword that my father and I compete over every single week.

    I suppose I enjoy it because it forces me to slow down. On my phone I tend to skim headlines and move on, whereas with the magazine I actually read an article from start to finish. It's also done wonders for my English, since the writing is quite sophisticated, and it's taught me a lot about the history of my own city that I'd never have learnt at school.

    The slips

    • since as long as I can remember should be for as long as I can remember
    Why this is Band 7, not Band 8
    Fluency and coherence
    Speaks at length without effort, with flexible signposting ("What I like is the mix", "Then there are", "I suppose"). Not Band 8 because the content paragraph still runs as a list of sections, where a Band 8 speaker would develop one or two of them into something more vivid.
    Vocabulary
    Some less common, natural items: "tucked inside", "crumbling old havelis", "skim headlines", "done wonders for my English". Band 8 would sustain that precision; "really stayed with me" and "quite sophisticated" are rather safe.
    Grammar
    Frequent error-free complex sentences: a cleft ("What I like is the mix"), a contrast with "whereas", a third conditional ("I'd never have learnt"). One slip, "since as long as I can remember", where the fixed phrase takes a different preposition.

    Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

    Rounding-off questions

    Are printed newspapers disappearing?
    They're certainly shrinking. Fewer young people buy them, and many titles have cut their print runs. I don't think they'll vanish entirely, though, because older readers and weekend editions still have a loyal audience.
    Where do most people get their news now?
    Mostly from their phones, through social media and messaging groups rather than news sites. It's fast and free, but it means people often read a headline a friend shared without checking where it came from.

    Phrases worth reusing

    • without fail

      always, every single time

    • done wonders for my English

      improved my English a great deal

    • What keeps me coming back

      the reason I return to it again and again

    • work my way through it

      read or do something gradually, from start to finish

    • taking any of them in

      understanding and remembering any of them

    • has any right to be

      (more than it) should reasonably be expected to be

    • slightly to my embarrassment

      which makes me feel a little embarrassed

    If the obvious answer doesn't fit

    • A free local paper or a university newsletter you pick up regularly
    • A news website or app you read daily, treated like a newspaper
    • A specialist magazine for a hobby, such as cooking, cars or football

    Where this leads