PART 4: A suitable job for me.

PERSON A
It doesn’t really matter to me if I don’t have a big salary. As long as there is
enough to pay the bills of course. I don’t really have a preference for working
inside or outside. I guess a bit of both would be good. A priority for me is that I
do something important. What I mean by that is I’m helping someone in some
way. That means that I will feel good about what I do at the end of the day. I’ll be
able to hold my head up high.

PERSON B
I can’t cope with being stuck indoors. I’m a very physical person too, and I pride
myself on keeping fit. So, I need a job where I am out and about, doing something
that keeps me active. I guess I’d like to do something like being a fireman. Even
though I wouldn’t want to be in an office or a factory, I really wouldn’t like being
a farmer, as I’m scared of animals. Apart from dogs, I love dogs!

PERSON C
I have often thought that I would make a good doctor as I’d like a job that is
involved with medicine and treating illness and injury. On the other hand, I’ve
considered being a farmer because I also have a passion for animals. I recently
had a very long conversation with my parents about this dilemma and my father
pointed out that I’m not really patient when it comes to dealing with people,
especially children, so helping sick animals might be the perfect job for me.

PERSON D
I’m really interested in people and current affairs. I also love reading and
anything to do with literature and poetry. I’ve been writing a blog for the last
year about street and public art because I’m fascinated by that topic. I think I
would like a job that reflects my love of culture but that would also give me the
chance to meet lots of people. Maybe writing articles for a cultural magazine of
some kind. I think I’m rubbish at art, so I couldn’t be a professional artist.
 PART 5
There are 8 paragraphs in Reading Part 5. Choose a suitable heading for the
paragraphs 1 to 7. There are more headings than paragraphs, so you will not use
all the headings.

The London Eye

0. Introduction
Dominating the skyline of London's South Bank, the London Eye towers over the
River Thames. Despite being what is to all intents and purposes, an oversized
Ferris wheel, the London Eye is a huge tourist magnet, attracting over 3.75
million visitors annually. In fact, its popularity is such, that its construction has
been credited with a worldwide revival in Ferris wheel construction.

1. Certainly, it's an impressive landmark. Standing at a height of 135 metres tall,

with a diameter of 120 metres, it puts ordinary Ferris wheels in the shade. When
it first opened in 2000, it was billed as 'the world's tallest
Ferris wheel'. However, this accolade later went to the 160m 'Star of Nanchang'
in China in 2006, before being passed on to the 'Singapore Flyer' standing at 165
metres, in 2008, and the 'High Roller' (167.6m) in Las Vegas, in 2014. The Eye,
however, is still the world's tallest cantilevered observation wheel.

2. The London Eye has become such an integral part of the city's skyline that it is
inconceivable to imagine London without it. It is just as difficult to believe that
the Eye was not the first supersized Ferris wheel in the capital. In fact, the 'Great
Wheel', built for the Empire of India Exhibition, at Earl's Court, predated it by
over a century. Modelled on the 'Chicago Ferris Wheel', and standing 94m tall
with a diameter of 82.3 metres, the wheel was in operation until being
demolished in 1907 for the Imperial Austrian Exhibition.

3. With the approach of the Millennium, back in 2000, the Sunday Times together
with Great Britain's Architecture Foundation, sponsored a competition for a new
city landmark. The outcome of this was somewhat of a non-event, since no
winner was declared. Unperturbed by this, joint entrants in the competition,
David Marks and Julia Barfield, decided to go ahead with the project
nevertheless, and make their design a reality.

4. Funding from British Airways enabled the project to get off the ground. Six
European countries provided the major components for the wheel, which was
built in sections. On completion, these sections were floated up the Thames on
barges and assembled in situ, on platforms resting on the water surface. Once
assembled, the wheel was raised at 2 degrees per hour until it was tilting at an
angle of 65 degrees. A second phase, in which the wheel was lifted to a
completely upright position, took place one week later.
5. Initial teething problems meant that the opening of the Eye was delayed. It
was ceremonially opened by then Prime Minister, Tony Blair, on 31st December
1999, but only took its first paying passenger in March 2000. Originally given
only a temporary lease, the Eye was set to be dismantled in 2005. However, the
Eye proved unexpectedly popular, with the result that the owners applied for a
permanent lease to Lambeth Council, which was duly granted.

6. Initially, the Eye belonged to three owners; Marks Barfield (the architects),
The Tussauds Group and British Airways. The Tussauds Group later bought out
Barfield, and then British Airways, becoming the sole owner in 2006. Not long
after, Merlin Entertainments, part of the Blackstone Group, took over from
Tussauds, renaming the Eye, 'The Merlin Entertainments London Eye'. However,
as far as the public were concerned, the attraction continued to be known as
'The London Eye', which it still is, to this day.

7. So why has the Eye beaten the odds, overcoming financial difficulties, to
achieve iconic status? According to Sir Richard Rogers, winner of the 2007
Pritzker Architecture Prize, it is due to the fact that the Eye is both public and
accessible. Anyone, rich or poor, can enjoy breathtakingly scenic views from the
Eye's capsules; there are no restrictions on access. In addition, the wheel is open
throughout the year, day and night, for anyone wishing to see London from a
spectacular aerial viewpoint.