How 100 days of coronavirus lockdown have changed Britain - maybe forever

Mirror

Sport

When the Premier League restarted on June 17 there were cheers from football fans across the country. And no more so than when Liverpool won their first Premier League title in 30 years.

Premier League：（由英格兰和威尔士顶级足球队组成的）超级联赛

premier /ˈpremiə(r)/  ( sport 体 ) ( BrE ) [ only before noun ] most important, famous or successful 首要的；最著名的；最成功的；第一的

作名词1. ‘prime minister’ （尤用于报章等）首相，总理；2.（加拿大的）省总理，地区总理

league  n. /liːɡ/  

1.a group of sports teams who all play each other to earn points and find which team is best （体育运动队的）联合会，联赛 •major-league baseball 棒球大联赛

2.( informal ) a level of quality, ability, etc. （质量、能力等的）等级，级别，水平

•As a painter, he is in a league of his own (= much better than others) . 作为画家，他独领风骚。

3.a group of people or nations who have combined for a particular purpose 联盟；同盟  •the League of Nations 国际联盟

4.( old use ) a unit for measuring distance, equal to about 3 miles or 4 000 metres 里格（长度单位，约等于3英里或4 000米）

IDIOMS 习语1. IN ˈLEAGUE (WITH SB)  making secret plans with sb （与…）秘密串通，勾结

But things were far from normal as matches took place behind closed doors and fans could pay to have a cardboard cut-out of themselves in the stadium seats of their favourite team.

And imagine telling a football fan back in January that they’d be able to use the red button to turn fake crowd noises on and off during a match?

Meanwhile, while some big events such Royal Ascot and the darts PDC tour were given the green light to go ahead, others, such as Wimbledon and the Olympics were forced to reschedule.

Royal Ascot 英国皇家爱斯科赛马会 (Royal Ascot，也译作“英国皇家赛马会”)，从1807年起创立以来，至今已经有210年的历史，每年六月的第三周都会在Ascot小镇举行。这项赛事一直是世界上最豪华、最奢侈的赛马会，更是英国上流社交圈的大事，从皇室贵族到一般平民都会在这天大肆庆祝。每天的比赛开始于下午2:30，最后一场比赛是5:35。比赛结束以后赢得比赛的观众们会被邀请上台一起唱传统的歌曲以表示祝贺！

darts PDC tour：PDC飞镖锦标赛  darts/dɑːts/镖，射镖游戏

Wimbledon/'wimbldən/  温布尔顿（位于伦敦附近， 是著名的国际网球比赛地）

were given the green light to go ahead：开绿灯提前

Relationships

More than 40% of people say that lockdown has had a positive effect on their lives. And, of these respondents, more than half said they were able to spend more quality time with the loved ones they lived with.

Meanwhile, absence has made the heart grow fonder and helped us appreciate family members more than ever. And 63% of new couples say the pandemic has made their relationship stronger.

But there’s been some hurdles to overcome. Parents have been homeschooling their kids for 100 days.

hurdle /ˈhɜːdl/  

1.（供人或马在赛跑中跨越的）栏架，跨栏 •to clear a hurdle (= jump over it successfully) 跨过栏架

2.跨栏赛 •the 300 m hurdles 300米跨栏赛

3.a problem or difficulty that must be solved or dealt with before you can achieve sth 难关；障碍

4.~ (over) sth to jump over sth while you are running （奔跑中）跳越（某物）

Yet only 37% of working class parents feel confident in doing so. And sadly, there’s been a 42% increase in divorce inquiries.

The Environment

Studies found daily global carbon dioxide emissions fell by 17% compared with 2019 levels

The Environment

This was our lockdown silver lining. Studies found daily global carbon dioxide emissions fell by 17% compared with 2019 levels thanks to the shut down of industry and traffic at the start.

silver lining（不幸或失望中的）一线希望；乌云周围的白光   carbon dioxide ：二氧化碳

As life stilled, wildlife began reclaiming the empty spaces. Goats took to the streets of Llandudno, buzzards returned to Hampstead Heath and after the National Trust closed their properties, rangers reported rare animal sightings.

Llandudno：城市名 llan-dud-no    Hampstead Heath汉普斯特荒野

buzzard n. /ˈbʌzəd/n. 秃鹰类；贪婪卑鄙的小人

While CO2 levels still rose, reaching 417.2 parts per million in May - 2.4ppm higher than the peak of 414.8ppm in 2019 - scientists say that without Covid-19, the rise might have reached 2.8ppm.

NHS and key workers

The nation’s clap – or pan rattle – for carers, thanking our NHS, social care and key workers, became strict Thursday night routine.

The nation’s clap（全英鼓掌） pan rattle（敲锅活动）：英国为医护人员感谢、激励医护人员在疫情中的奉献，全国性的鼓掌等行为

Rainbows in our windows thanked them. As many of us worked from home, we appreciated others were taking a risk to support us and save lives.

After the Prime Minister himself thanked the NHS for saving his own, our health service can surely never be undervalued again.

But too many workers paid with their lives. Most – some analysis suggests 75% - from BAME groups.

BAME groups：少数族裔群体，up个人认为应该是black-asian-minority-ethnic的缩写

Schools/universities

Parents tried their best to homeschool, but four in ten pupils across England have not been in regular contact with their teachers since schools shut.

Another report estimates around one in five UK pupils have done no schoolwork or managed less than an hour a day.

While seven out of 10 state school pupils have had just one online lesson or less per day, almost a third of private schools have been providing four or more, exposing a widening gap between the rich and poor.

Meanwhile, older students, forced to take virtual exams and accept predicted marks, fear downgrades. Many are planning to defer university, too, as online learning and student ‘bubbles’ are considered. Cambridge University has already announced all learning will be online until summer 2021.

Politics

The daily press briefing has meant we have seen more of the government than ever. Record numbers of 27million of us were glued initially – although that later shrunk to 2million.

glue /ɡluː/ gluing---glued---glues

1. 胶; 胶水•  ...a tube of glue.  …一管胶水。

2.用胶粘•  Glue the fabric around the window. 用胶把这布粘在窗户四周。

3.V-T PASSIVE If you say that someone is glued to something, you mean that they are giving it all their attention. 使全神贯注

Meanwhile, confidence in Boris Johnson and the Tories has shrunk, too.

the Tories：英国托利党，保守党

At the start of lockdown, three in four Brits agreed with government handling of the pandemic. A recent YouGov poll shows the British government has the lowest domestic approval rating in the world (alongside Mexico) for its handling of Covid-19.

 YouGov poll：YouGov（英国）舆情调查网 poll投票，民意测验

The PM’s approval ratings sit at just 39%, not helped by the revelation his top aide Dominic Cummings flouted lockdown rules.

revelation n. /ˌrevəˈleɪʃn/  

1.[ C ] ~ (about/concerning sth)~ (that...) a fact that people are made aware of, especially one that has been secret and is surprising 被暴露的真相；被曝光的秘闻

2.[ U ] ~ (of sth) the act of making people aware of sth that has been secret 披露；揭露

3.[ CU ] something that is considered to be a sign or message from God （上帝的）启示

top aide：首席助理

Dominic Cummings ：英国政治战略家 有部英剧《Brexit： The Uncivil War》（《脱欧：无理之战》，卷福饰演Dominic Cummings讲述他如何引导英国民众一步一步走向“脱欧”。

An Opinium poll showed 37% of voters think Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer would be better at leading the country, compared to 35% for Boris.

Opinium：英国观察家报 Opinium poll观察家报的民意调查

Hobbies at home

As we’re unable to go out, we’ve had to find new ways to amuse ourselves. Flour production had to increase 10 fold to keep up with the surge in home baking. And, by April, there were over 2.7million photos tagged “sourdough” on Instagram.

sourdough n. /ˈsaʊədəʊ/  [ U ] (= a mixture of flour, fat and water) that is left to dough so that it has a sour taste, used for making bread; bread made with this ferment, dough 酸面团；发面面包

Lockdown has also given us the time to start those tedious household jobs and the three-hour long queue outside Ikea and B&Q showed just how much DIY we had to do. We’ve also been making the most of home comforts, with slipper sales doubling in some stores, such as John Lewis and a 51% increase in TV viewing.

Tedious：/ˈtiːdiəs/  lasting or taking too long and not interesting 冗长的；啰唆的；单调乏味的；令人厌烦的

Meanwhile, for those who wanted a bit of fun there have been countless Zoom quizzes, and the sale of alcohol at supermarkets soared. For animal lovers, working from home has also provided the perfect opportunity to get a pet – with online searches for getting a puppy surging 120%.

Exercise

Gyms closing saw the return of the home workout. Many elite gyms, such as Barry’s Bootcamp and 1Rebel started streaming their classes on social media for free.

Before lockdown, few people had heard of Joe Wicks, who has given millions of children the taste of a daily exercise routine, while celebrities such as Tyson Fury, Naomi Campbell and Gregg Wallace, also started sharing their workout regimes with fans.

Perhaps the most unlikely motivator was Boris Johnson, who announced lockdown urging people to exercise once a day. A Bupa study found that 28% of Brits have upped their usual exercise and bike sales have increased by 192%.

Bupa：abbr. 英国有远见者联合会（British United Provident Association）

On the down side, 7.2million eager exercisers have injured themselves during lockdown, with men twice as likely as women to get hurt.

Royals

Despite not being able to attend public engagements, the Royals have made sure to maintain their duties by switching to video calls during lockdown.

William, Kate, Charles, Camilla and other members of the royal family kept busy with their charity work online - even turning into bingo callers for a care home in Cardiff.

 bingo callers ：应该是英国比较传统的线上bingo游戏

And members of the royal family have also been volunteering, particularly the Countess of Wessex, who has been organising PPE shipments and working in a charity shop.

Countess of Wessex：威塞克斯女伯爵 PPE：个人防护装备

Meanwhile the Queen lifted spirits telling those in isolation: “We will meet again.”

Prince Charles, who contracted the illness in March but recovered, backed a virtual book of remembrance for coronavirus victims and called on people to take part in a national effort to help farmers harvest fruit and vegetables.

原文链接：https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/