The Reading / Listening - Buckingham Palace - Level 3

Britain's Prince Harry has been told he will not be allowed to stay at Buckingham Palace while he is in the U.K. this week. This is despite Harry being a member of the British royal family. BBC News reported that Harry missed a deadline to tell the palace of his plans. Harry was due to visit the U.K. with his wife Meghan and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. However, the prince decided not to bring his family because the British government would not pay for police protection for them. News reports say Harry decided not to stay at the palace if his family could not visit the U.K. He then changed his mind and said he would stay alone. The palace said his change of plan was too late.

Newspapers in the U.K. are now full of stories about the relationship between Harry and the royals. Relations have not been good since early 2020. That is when Harry stepped down as a working royal. He left the U.K. and moved to California. He said he wanted to protect his young family from the press. In December 2022, Harry and Meghan released their Netflix documentary "Harry & Meghan". This criticized the royal family and the media in the U.K. It led to more bad blood between Harry and his family. His memoir "Spare" was published in early 2023. This worsened relations with his brother Prince William. Britain's King Charles is said to be sad about not being able to see his grandchildren.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    Buckingham Palace - Level 0,  Buckingham Palace - Level 1   or  Buckingham Palace - Level 2

Sources
  • https://www.yahoo.com/news/world/article/prince-harrys-trip-to-the-uk-is-already-mired-in-controversy-its-all-over-a-withdrawn-invitation-to-buckingham-palace-170304494.html
  • https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/jul/06/buckingham-palace-denies-prince-harry-to-stay-royal-residence-uk-visit-row-duke-of-sussex
  • https://news.sky.com/story/prince-harry-to-stay-at-buckingham-palace-alone-during-visit-to-uk-13556447


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Warm-ups

1. BUCKINGHAM PALACE: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about Buckingham Palace. Change partners often and share your findings.
2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?
       prince / palace / royal family / deadline / plans / visit / princess / police / protection /
       newspapers / relations / the press / Netflix / documentary / bad blood / worried / sad
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. ROYAL FAMILIES: Students A strongly believe there should be no royal families; Students B strongly believe there should. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. MONARCHIES: What do you know about these monarchies? What do you want to know? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

 

What I Know

What I Want to Know

Britain

 

 

Japan

 

 

UAE

 

 

Thailand

 

 

Spain

 

 

Eswatini

 

 
MY e-BOOK
ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers
See a sample

5. PRINCE: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "prince". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. BEING A ROYAL: Rank these with your partner. Put the best things about being a royal at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Living in a palace
  • Having many servants
  • Meeting famous people
  • Wearing beautiful clothes
  • Travelling
  • Giving speeches
  • Riding horses
  • Having a big garden

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. allowed a. Even though something is true.
      2. despite b. Something is planned, expected, or scheduled to happen.
      3. deadline c. It is okay to do something.
      4. due to d. Chose something.
      5. protection e. Help that keeps someone or something safe.
      6. decided f. Without other people; by oneself.
      7. alone g. The last day or time to do or finish something.

    Paragraph 2

      8. royals h. The way people, families, or countries feel and act toward each other.
      9. stepped down i. A film or television program about real people or real events.
      10. the press j. Said that something or someone was not good.
      11. documentary k. People from a king's or queen's family.
      12. criticized l. Left an important job or position.
      13. bad blood m. Angry or unfriendly feelings between people.
      14. relations n. Newspapers, television, and other news reporters.

 

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. The article says Prince Harry can never stay at Buckingham Palace again. T / F
  2. Harry missed a deadline to tell Buckingham Palace his plans.     T / F
  3. Harry never planned to bring his children with him to the UK.     T / F
  4. Harry was unhappy that the UK would not pay to protect him.     T / F
  5. Harry has had bad relations with his family since 2020.     T / F
  6. Harry moved his family to California because of the press.     T / F
  7. A book Harry wrote about his life made the royal family unhappy.     T / F
  8. Harry is still good friends with his brother Prince William.     T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

  1. allowed
  2. royal family
  3. deadline
  4. protection
  5. alone
  6. relationship
  7. stepped down
  8. the press
  9. bad blood
  10. sad
  1. tension
  2. safe keeping
  3. quit
  4. time limit
  5. family ties
  6. the newspapers
  7. permitted
  8. unhappy
  9. monarchy
  10. by oneself

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

  1. Harry has been told he will
  2. a member of the
  3. the British government would not pay
  4. He then changed
  5. The palace said his change
  6. Newspapers in the U.K. are now full
  7. Relations have not been good
  8. Harry stepped
  9. It led to more bad
  10. This worsened relations
  1. since early 2020
  2. his mind
  3. of plan was too late
  4. blood
  5. British royal family
  6. with his brother
  7. of stories
  8. not be allowed to stay
  9. down as a working royal
  10. for police protection

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
protection
missed
while
change
told
mind
due
member

Britain's Prince Harry has been (1) ______________________________________________ he will not be allowed to stay at Buckingham Palace (2) ______________________________________________ he is in the U.K. this week. This is despite Harry being a (3) ______________________________________________ of the British royal family. BBC News reported that Harry (4) ______________________________________________ a deadline to tell the palace of his plans. Harry was (5) ______________________________________________ to visit the U.K. with his wife Meghan and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. However, the prince decided not to bring his family because the British government would not pay for police (6) ______________________________________________ for them. News reports say Harry decided not to stay at the palace if his family could not visit the U.K. He then changed his (7) ______________________________________________ and said he would stay alone. The palace said his (8) ______________________________________________ of plan was too late.

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
published
full
protect
worsened
since
sad
blood
documentary

Newspapers in the U.K. are now (9) ______________________________________________ of stories about the relationship between Harry and the royals. Relations have not been good (10) ______________________________________________ early 2020. That is when Harry stepped down as a working royal. He left the U.K. and moved to California. He said he wanted to (11) ______________________________________________ his young family from the press. In December 2022, Harry and Meghan released their Netflix (12) ______________________________________________ "Harry & Meghan". This criticized the royal family and the media in the U.K. It led to more bad (13) ______________________________________________ between Harry and his family. His memoir "Spare" was (14) ______________________________________________ in early 2023. This (15) ______________________________________________ relations with his brother Prince William. Britain's King Charles is said to be (16) ______________________________________________ about not being able to see his grandchildren.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1) This is despite Harry being a member of the ______
     a.  British loyal family
     b.  British royally family
     c.  British royal family
     d.  British royals family
2)  BBC News reported that Harry missed a deadline to tell the palace ______
     a.  to his plans
     b.  of his plans
     c.  off his plans
     d.  offers plans
3)  However, the prince decided not to ______
     a.  bringing his family
     b.  brings his family
     c.  bring his family
     d.  bling his family
4)  because the British government would not pay ______
     a.  four police protection
     b.  for policed protection
     c.  for police protecting
     d.  for police protection
5)  He then changed his mind and said he ______
     a.  would stay a loner
     b.  would stay alone
     c.  would stay all lone
     d.  would stayer lone

6)  Newspapers in the U.K. are now ______
     a.  full off stories
     b.  full of stories
     c.  fully of stories
     d.  full of stores
7)  Relations have not been good ______
     a.  sins early 2020
     b.  for early 2020
     c.  since early 2020
     d.  as early 2020
8)  He said he wanted to protect his young family ______
     a.  from the presses
     b.  from the pressed
     c.  from the pressure
     d.  from the press
9)  This criticized the royal family ______
     a.  and a media
     b.  an the media
     c.  end the media
     d.  and the media
10)  Charles is said to be sad about not being able to ______
     a.  see his grandchildren
     b.  seen his grandchildren
     c.  seeing his grandchildren
     d.  sees his grandchildren

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Britain's Prince Harry has been told he will not be allowed to stay at Buckingham Palace (1) __________________________________________________ in the U.K. this week. This is despite Harry being (2) __________________________________________________ the British royal family. BBC News reported that Harry missed a deadline to tell the palace of his plans. Harry was (3) __________________________________________________ the U.K. with his wife Meghan and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. However, the prince (4) __________________________________________________ bring his family because the British government would not pay for police protection for them. News reports say Harry decided not to stay at the palace if his family could not visit the U.K. He then changed (5) __________________________________________________ said he would stay alone. The palace said his (6) __________________________________________________ was too late.

Newspapers in the U.K. are now (7) __________________________________________________ about the relationship between Harry and the royals. Relations have not been good since early 2020. That is when Harry (8) __________________________________________________ a working royal. He left the U.K. and moved to California. He said he wanted to protect his young family (9) __________________________________________________. In December 2022, Harry and Meghan released their Netflix documentary "Harry & Meghan". This criticized the royal family and (10) __________________________________________________ the U.K. It led to more bad blood between Harry and his family. His memoir "Spare" was (11) __________________________________________________ 2023. This worsened relations with his brother Prince William. Britain's King Charles is said to be sad about not being (12) __________________________________________________ his grandchildren.

Comprehension questions

  1. When is Prince Harry staying in the UK?
  2. What did Harry miss?
  3. Who was he going to go to England with?
  4. What did Harry say would the UK not pay for?
  5. What did Buckingham Palace say was too late?
  6. What is full of stories about Harry?
  7. When did Harry move to California?
  8. What is the name of Harry's memoir?
  9. Who did Harry have worsened relations with because of the memoir?
  10. Who does King Charles want to see?

Multiple choice quiz

1)  When is Prince Harry staying in the UK?
a) next week
b) this week
c) next year
d) next month
2)  What did Harry miss?
a) his family
b) a train
c) a deadline
d) an appointment
3)  Who was he going to go to England with?
a) an ambassador
b) his best friends
c) his brother
d) his wife and children
4)  What did Harry say would the UK not pay for?
a) his clothes
b) police protection
c) hotels
d) Harry's food
5)  What did Buckingham Palace say was too late?
a) Harry's change of plan
b) a train
c) the time of the month
d) dinner

6)  What is full of stories about Harry?
a) newspapers in the U.K.
b) the Internet
c)  a book
d) the royal family
7)  When did Harry move to California?
a) mid-2021
b) late 2023
c) December 2022
d) early 2020
8)  What is the name of Harry's memoir?
a) Spire
b) Spore
c) Spare
d) Spray
9)  Who did Harry have worsened relations with because of the memoir?
a) newspapers
b) his wife
c) the writer of the book
d) his brother
10)  Who does King Charles want to see?
a) Prince Harry
b) his grandchildren
c) Harry's wife
d) his wife

Role play

Role  A – Living in a Palace
You think living in a palace is the best thing about being a royal. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their things. Also, tell the others which is the least desirable of these (and why): meeting famous people, travelling or wearing beautiful clothes.

Role  B – Meeting Famous People
You think meeting famous people is the best thing about being a royal. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their things. Also, tell the others which is the least desirable of these (and why): living in a palace, travelling or wearing beautiful clothes.

Role  C – Travelling
You think travelling is the best thing about being a royal. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their things. Also, tell the others which is the least desirable of these (and why): meeting famous people, living in a palace or wearing beautiful clothes.

Role  D – Wearing Beautiful Clothes
You think wearing beautiful clothes is the best thing about being a royal. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their things. Also, tell the others which is the least desirable of these (and why): meeting famous people, travelling or living in a palace.

After reading / listening

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words...

'prince'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • and 'palace'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • • Share your findings with your partners.

    • Make questions using the words you found.

    • Ask your partner / group your questions.

    2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

    •Share your questions with other classmates / groups. •Ask your partner / group your questions.

    3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

    4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

    5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

    • despite
    • deadline
    • due
    • pay
    • decided
    • mind
    • full
    • since
    • moved
    • documentary
    • blood
    • sad

    Student survey

    Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

    (Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

    Discussion - Buckingham Palace

    STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What images are in your mind when you hear the word 'prince'?
    3. What do you know about Prince Harry?
    4. Would you like to stay at Buckingham Palace?
    5. What do you think of royal families?
    6. Do you always meet deadlines?
    7. Should the U.K. pay for Harry's protection?
    8. What do you think living in a palace would be like?
    9. What would you do if you were a prince/princess?
    10. What advice do you have for Prince Harry?

    STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What do you think of when you hear the word 'palace'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. What do you know about Buckingham Palace?
    5. How interested are you in gossip about royal families?
    6. How are your family relations?
    7. Should Harry not talk about his family in documentaries?
    8. Has there ever been bad blood between you and someone else?
    9. Should all royal palaces become museums?
    10. What questions would you like to ask Prince Harry?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

    STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

    STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    Britain's Prince Harry has been told he will not be allowed (1) ____ stay at Buckingham Palace while he is in the U.K. this week. This is (2) ____ Harry being a member of the British royal family. BBC News reported that Harry missed a deadline to tell the palace of his plans. Harry was (3) ____ to visit the U.K. with his wife Meghan and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. However, the prince decided (4) ____ to bring his family because the British government would not pay (5) ____ police protection for them. News reports say Harry decided not to stay at the palace if his family could not visit the U.K. He then (6) ____ his mind and said he would stay alone. The palace said his change of plan was too late.

    Newspapers in the U.K. are now (7) ____ of stories about the relationship between Harry and the royals. Relations have not been good since early 2020. That is when Harry (8) ____ down as a working royal. He left the U.K. and moved to California. He said he wanted to protect his young family from the (9) ____. In December 2022, Harry and Meghan released their Netflix documentary "Harry & Meghan". This criticized the royal family and the media in the U.K. It led to more (10) ____ blood between Harry and his family. His memoir "Spare" was published in (11) ____ 2023. This worsened relations with his brother Prince William. Britain's King Charles is said to be sad about not (12) ____ able to see his grandchildren.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     for     (b)     to     (c)     at     (d)     by    
    2. (a)     spite     (b)     despite     (c)     spiteful     (d)     in spite    
    3. (a)     cue     (b)     clue     (c)     dew     (d)     due    
    4. (a)     against     (b)     not     (c)     no     (d)     nor    
    5. (a)     against     (b)     for     (c)     by     (d)     to    
    6. (a)     charged     (b)     swapped     (c)     changed     (d)     switched    
    7. (a)     fuller     (b)     fully     (c)     full     (d)     fulfilling    
    8. (a)     tiptoed     (b)     paced     (c)     stepped     (d)     walked    
    9. (a)     article     (b)     squeeze     (c)     push     (d)     press    
    10. (a)     young     (b)     blue     (c)     red     (d)     bad    
    11. (a)     early     (b)     advance     (c)     before     (d)     soon    
    12. (a)     been     (b)     be     (c)     being     (d)     begin

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. eteipds Harry being a member
    2. the British alyor family
    3. Harry missed a eedalndi
    4. the British ovnretgnem
    5. pay for police riceoptnto
    6. He then changed his dinm

    Paragraph 2

    1. full of stories about the tnroasiplehi
    2. Harry teppesd down as a working royal
    3. released their Netflix madnyucorte
    4. It led to more bad bdloo
    5. His memoir "Spare" was shpdueilb in early 2023
    6. This sdnoweer relations with his brother

    Put the text back together

    (    )   a deadline to tell the palace of his plans. Harry was due to visit the U.K. with his wife Meghan
    (    )   and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. However, the prince decided not to bring his family
    (    )   because the British government would not pay for police protection for them. News
    (    )   blood between Harry and his family. His memoir "Spare" was published in early 2023. This worsened
    (  1  )   Britain's Prince Harry has been told he will not be allowed to stay at Buckingham Palace while he is in the U.K. this
    (    )   documentary "Harry & Meghan". This criticized the royal family and the media in the U.K. It led to more bad
    (    )   family from the press. In December 2022, Harry and Meghan released their Netflix
    (    )   mind and said he would stay alone. The palace said his change of plan was too late.
    (    )   Newspapers in the U.K. are now full of stories about the relationship between Harry and the
    (    )   relations with his brother Prince William. Britain's King Charles is said to be sad about not being able to see his grandchildren.
    (    )   reports say Harry decided not to stay at the palace if his family could not visit the U.K. He then changed his
    (    )   royal. He left the U.K. and moved to California. He said he wanted to protect his young
    (    )   royals. Relations have not been good since early 2020. That is when Harry stepped down as a working
    (    )   week. This is despite Harry being a member of the British royal family. BBC News reported that Harry missed

    Put the words in the right order

    1. allowed   be   He   not   stay   there   to   will   .
    2. bring   decided   family   his   not   prince   The   to   .
    3. for   government   not   pay   police   protection   The   would   .
    4. at   decided   He   not   palace   stay   the   to   .
    5. change   His   late   of   plan   too   was   .
    6. are   full   in   Newspapers   of   stories   the   U.K.
    7. 2020   been   early   good   have   not   Relations   since   .
    8. criticized   in   media   the   the   This   U.K.
    9. bad   between   blood   It   led   more   them   to   to   .
    10. about   be   Charles   is   sad   said   this   to   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    Britain's Prince Harry has been told / telling he will not be allowed to stay at Buckingham Palace while he is in / at the U.K. this week. This is spiteful / despite Harry being a member of the British royal family. BBC News reported that Harry missed a deadline to tell the palace of / on his plans. Harry was due / duet to visit the U.K. with his wife Meghan and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. However, the prince decided not for / to bring his family because the British government would not paid / pay for police protection for them. News reports say Harry decided not to / for stay at the palace if his family could not visit the U.K. He then charged / changed his mind and said he would stay alone. The palace said his change of plan was too late / lately.

    Newspapers in the U.K. are now full of story / stories about the relationship between Harry and the royals. Relations have not been good since / for early 2020. That is when Harry stepped / step down as a working royal. He left the U.K. and moved / moving to California. He said he wanted to protect his young family from the press / push. In December 2022, Harry and Meghan released their Netflix documentary "Harry & Meghan". This criticized the royal family and the / a media in the U.K. It led to more bad blood / bloods between Harry and his family. His memorize / memoir "Spare" was published in early 2023. This worsened relations at / with his brother Prince William. Britain's King Charles is said to be sad about not been / being able to see his grandchildren.

    Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct. Look up the definition of new words.

    Insert the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)

    Br_t__n's  Pr_nc_  H_rry  h_s  b__n  t_ld  h_  w_ll  n_t  b_  _ll_w_d  t_  st_y  _t  B_ck_ngh_m  P_l_c_  wh_l_  h_  _s  _n  th_  _.K.  th_s  w__k.  Th_s  _s  d_sp_t_  H_rry  b__ng  _  m_mb_r  _f  th_  Br_t_sh  r_y_l  f_m_ly.  BBC  N_ws  r_p_rt_d  th_t  H_rry  m_ss_d  _  d__dl_n_  t_  t_ll  th_  p_l_c_  _f  h_s  pl_ns.  H_rry  w_s  d__  t_  v_s_t  th_  _.K.  w_th  h_s  w_f_  M_gh_n  _nd  th__r  tw_  ch_ldr_n,  Pr_nc_  _rch__  _nd  Pr_nc_ss  L_l_b_t.  H_w_v_r,  th_  pr_nc_  d_c_d_d  n_t  t_  br_ng  h_s  f_m_ly  b_c__s_  th_  Br_t_sh  g_v_rnm_nt  w__ld  n_t  p_y  f_r  p_l_c_  pr_t_ct__n  f_r  th_m.  N_ws  r_p_rts  s_y  H_rry  d_c_d_d  n_t  t_  st_y  _t  th_  p_l_c_  _f  h_s  f_m_ly  c__ld  n_t  v_s_t  th_  _.K.  H_  th_n  ch_ng_d  h_s  m_nd  _nd  s__d  h_  w__ld  st_y  _l_n_.  Th_  p_l_c_  s__d  h_s  ch_ng_  _f  pl_n  w_s  t__  l_t_.

    N_wsp_p_rs  _n  th_  _.K.  _r_  n_w  f_ll  _f  st_r__s  _b__t  th_  r_l_t__nsh_p  b_tw__n  H_rry  _nd  th_  r_y_ls.  R_l_t__ns  h_v_  n_t  b__n  g__d  s_nc_  __rly  2020.  Th_t  _s  wh_n  H_rry  st_pp_d  d_wn  _s  _  w_rk_ng  r_y_l.  H_  l_ft  th_  _.K.  _nd  m_v_d  t_  C_l_f_rn__.  H_  s__d  h_  w_nt_d  t_  pr_t_ct  h_s  y__ng  f_m_ly  fr_m  th_  pr_ss.  _n  D_c_mb_r  2022,  H_rry  _nd  M_gh_n  r_l__s_d  th__r  N_tfl_x  d_c_m_nt_ry  "H_rry  &  M_gh_n".  Th_s  cr_t_c_z_d  th_  r_y_l  f_m_ly  _nd  th_  m_d__  _n  th_  _K.  _t  l_d  t_  m_r_  b_d  bl__d  b_tw__n  H_rry  _nd  h_s  f_m_ly.  H_s  m_m__r  "Sp_r_"  w_s  p_bl_sh_d  _n  __rly  2023.  Th_s  w_rs_n_d  r_l_t__ns  w_th  h_s  br_th_r  Pr_nc_  W_ll__m.  Br_t__n's  K_ng  Ch_rl_s  _s  s__d  t_  b_  s_d  _b__t  n_t  b__ng  _bl_  t_  s__  h_s  gr_ndch_ldr_n.

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    britains prince harry has been told he will not be allowed to stay at buckingham palace while he is in the uk this week this is despite harry being a member of the british royal family bbc news reported that harry missed a deadline to tell the palace of his plans harry was due to visit the uk with his wife meghan and their two children prince archie and princess lilibet however the prince decided not to bring his family because the british government would not pay for police protection for them news reports say harry decided not to stay at the palace if his family could not visit the uk he then changed his mind and said he would stay alone the palace said his change of plan was too late

    newspapers in the uk are now full of stories about the relationship between harry and the royals relations have not been good since early 2020 that is when harry stepped down as a working royal he left the uk and moved to california he said he wanted to protect his young family from the press in december 2022 harry and meghan released their netflix documentary harry meghan this criticized the royal family and the media in the uk it led to more bad blood between harry and his family his memoir spare was published in early 2023 this worsened relations with his brother prince william britains king charles is said to be sad about not being able to see his grandchildren

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    Britain'sPrinceHarryhasbeentoldhewillnotbeallowedtostayatBuckin
    ghamPalacewhileheisintheU.K.thisweek.ThisisdespiteHarrybeinga
    memberoftheBritishroyalfamily.BBCNewsreportedthatHarrymissed
    adeadlinetotellthepalaceofhisplans.HarrywasduetovisittheU.K.with
    hiswifeMeghanandtheirtwochildren,PrinceArchieandPrincessLilibet.
    However,theprincedecidednottobringhisfamilybecausetheBritishgo
    vernmentwouldnotpayforpoliceprotectionforthem.Newsreportssay
    HarrydecidednottostayatthepalaceifhisfamilycouldnotvisittheU.K.H
    ethenchangedhismindandsaidhewouldstayalone.Thepalacesaidhisc
    hangeofplanwastoolate.NewspapersintheU.K.arenowfullofstoriesa
    bouttherelationshipbetweenHarryandtheroyals.Relationshavenotb
    eengoodsinceearly2020.ThatiswhenHarrysteppeddownasaworking
    royal.HelefttheU.K.andmovedtoCalifornia.Hesaidhewantedtoprotec
    thisyoungfamilyfromthepress.InDecember2022,HarryandMeghanr
    eleasedtheirNetflixdocumentary"Harry&Meghan".Thiscriticizedther
    oyalfamilyandthemediaintheU.K.ItledtomorebadbloodbetweenHarr
    yandhisfamily.Hismemoir"Spare"waspublishedinearly2023.Thiswo
    rsenedrelationswithhisbrotherPrinceWilliam.Britain'sKingCharlesiss
    aidtobesadaboutnotbeingabletoseehisgrandchildren.

    Free writing

    Write about Buckingham Palace for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    Royal palaces should become museums or public facilities. Discuss.

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    Homework

    1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.
    2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
    3. BUCKINGHAM PALACE: Make a poster about Buckingham Palace. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. ROYAL FAMILIES: Write a magazine article about ending the use of taxpayers' money to fund royal families. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against this.
    Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).
    5. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.
    6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on Buckingham Palace. Ask him/her three questions about Buckingham Palace. Give him/her three of your ideas. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

    A Few Additional Activities for Students

    Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.

    Get students to role play different characters from this news story.

    Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.

    Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.

    Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.

    Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.

    Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.

    Also...

    Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:

    • News
    • Warm ups
    • Pre-reading / Post-reading
    • Using headlines
    • Working with words
    • While-reading / While-listening
    • Moving from text to speech
    • Post-reading / Post-listening
    • Discussions
    • Using opinions
    • Plans
    • Language
    • Using lists
    • Using quotes
    • Task-based activities
    • Role plays
    • Using the central characters in the article
    • Using themes from the news
    • Homework

    Buy my book

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    Answers

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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