Murdered someone once!

Murdered someone once!

Felix Dennis publishes magazines. He is, in fact, a very successful publisher, and his magazines have made him very rich. He is one of the richest people in Britain. He has written a book about how to get rich. Unlike most books that tell you how to get rich, Felix Dennis’ book tells you that there are no simple ways to make a fortune, and that you have to work very hard and take big risks. Felix Dennis also writes poetry. Personally, I do not think his poetry is particularly good, but many people disagree with me, and his books of poetry sell very well. He is a great fan of the boxer Mohammed Ali, and he has written books about him. When he was young, Felix spent a short time in prison for publishing obscene material. Oh, and he also used to be addicted to crack cocaine, but he has now overcome his addiction.

Is there anything more to know about Felix Dennis? Well, last week the Times newspaper published an interview with him, and in the interview, Mr Dennis revealed that he had once murdered someone! The man he had murdered had been abusive to a woman whom Felix Dennis had known.

“ He hurt her, “ he explained, “ and I told him to stop, and he kept on.”

“ Wouldn’t let her alone. She told him to stop. I told him to stop. Many people told him to stop.”

“ Wouldn’t stop, kept on and on and on.”

So what did Felix Dennis do?

“ In the end, had a little meeting with him. Pushed him off the edge of a cliff. Weren’t hard.”

The interviewer asked where this had happened.

“ Don’t matter where it was.”

And when?

“ About25 years ago”.

I am sure you have noticed something strange about the way in which Felix Dennis speaks. He often leaves out the subject of his sentences. For instance, he says“ wouldn’t stop” instead of“ he wouldn’t stop”. And he uses some incorrect verb forms– he says“ weren’t hard” instead of“ it wasn’t hard”.

Can you turn Felix Dennis’s story into correct English? There is a pdf file on the website for you to look at if you have problems. ( )

So, have the police arrested Mr Dennis and charged him with murder? Will his career end with a second, much longer time in prison?

Well, no. Felix Dennis has said that when the Times interviewed him, he was drunk. In fact, he was very drunk. His story about murdering someone was“ hogwash” ( that is, it was nonsense or rubbish).

I do not know exactly what Felix Dennis said, but perhaps it was like this;

“ Ridiculous story”.

“ Had too much to drink. Two, three bottles of wine maybe.”

“ Never harmed anyone in my whole life.”

“ Stupid to talk to the Times.”

“ Can’t imagine why I said that.”

“ Hope no- one believes it.”

( ) You’ll find the text of the mentioned pdf in the lesson notes.