Cue Card Sample

IELTS Cue Card Sample 514 - Describe a TV presenter you like

IELTS Speaking Part 2: IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.

Describe a TV presenter or host whom you like.

You should say:

  • who he/she is
  • what programme he/she presents or hosts
  • how he/she presents/hosts this programme

and explain why you like this TV presenter/host so much.

[You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you're going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.]


 

Model Answer 1:
Actually, there are a number of contemporary TV hosts, whom I happen to admire, because, to be honest, they all add value to their 'programmes and shows' in many significant ways. Today, I would like to talk about one of those TV hosts and tell you who he really is, what kinds of programmes he presents, and how he actually does his job.

The name of this TV host is Conan O’Brien. Born in April of 1963, Conan O’Brien is an American late-night talk-show personality and comedian who is more popularly known as the host of Late Night with Conan O’Brien (1993–2009), The Tonight Show(2009–10), and Conan (2010–present).  

Having graduated from the Harvard University, where he majored in American History and Literature, Conan has extensively written for the humour magazine, news-show parody, late-night comedy show and famous cartoon series before eventually entering the world of the late-night TV talk show in 1993.  Anyway, Conan O’Brien has a very distinctive style and approach, primarily because most of his jokes in his late-night talk show are very realistic and tried to uncover the truth without hurting anybody’s feeling. Besides, I really like his careful word choices, which may sound very funny and witty, but they always carry an implied message for his audience.  

Besides, as long as he runs his late show, there is no dull moment in it since he always seems to be so pumped up. I think that this sort of wits and the attention-holding ability of an audience is only possible for a guy who has an IQ level of 160 which is, by the way, the IQ of Stephen Hawkins.

Anyway, I like Conan O’Brien, mainly because he is a truly professional comedian who doesn’t only know about both the worlds of British comedy and American comedy, but also he knows exactly when to crack them.  Besides, he knows perfectly well how to control the emotion of his audience. Finally, I like him so much because he seems to be a very down to earth kind of guy for a popular talk show host.


 

Sample Answer 2:
A television presenter is a person who hosts a programme. A presenter often makes the programme worth watching. Worldwide known TV hosts like Ellen DeGeneres, Donald Trump, Fiona Bruce, Jerry Springer, Andrea McLean, Alex Jones, Oprah Winfrey, Chris Tarrant and many others have become very famous for their extraordinary performance and talent. They are known for their distinctive style and outstanding performance. For this cue card topic, I would like to talk about Fiona Bruce, who is a famous TV presenter, producer and news presenter.

Her full name is Fiona Elizabeth Bruce and she is a famous British TV presenter and journalist. I like her very much due to her authoritative presence, commitment to her work, distinctive presentation style and creative journalism. Initially, she joined the BBC in 1989 and later on, she has gone to present many famous programmes like Antique Roadshow, BBC News at Ten, BBC News at Six, Fake or Fortune and Real Story.  

Antiques Roadshow is a BBC programme, more specifically a television show in which "antique appraisers" travel to different places in the UK to appraise antiques bought by local people. Fiona Bruce in the presenter of this programme and her noteworthy presentation has made this a popular TV show in Britain. BBC News at Ten is deputised by Fiona and this is the final comprehensive news programme of the day on BBC One. Similarly, BBC News at Six is an evening news programme and Fiona Bruce is one of the news presenters of this programme. Be it a news show or any other type of TV programme, Fiona Bruce maintains a professional and creative appearance. This makes her a distinctive and notable presenter. This is the main reason I like her very much. In my opinion, she is one of the best TV presenters of our time.  


 

Sample Answer 3:
Larry King is one of the most successful TV and radio presenters in the USA. He is my favourite presenter and I have been watching his programs for long. He is mostly famous for the interviews with the renowned people across the world. I personally thank you, sir, for this opportunity to let me talk about a TV presenter I really like.
 
Initially, Larry King was known as Lawrence Harvey Zeiger but it was really a difficult name to remember for his audience. So, he changed his name to Larry King as per the directives from one of his program makers. His early life was filled with struggle and hardly had the chances to show his potentials to the audiences. Finally, he got the chance as a journalist and since then he is on the top of popularity for his analytical skills, ready wits and smartness. In fact, he is an idol for many of the aspiring journalists around the world.  

Larry King is most famous for his interview program – Larry King Live which was aired on CNN. He ran the program from 1985 to 2010. This was a live program on the television channel where he took interviews of different people including politicians, celebrities, artists and many others. for his outstanding performance as a host, he has received a large number of awards including 10 Cable ACE Awards, two Peabody etc. He began his career in the 50s and took next 10 years to emerge as a star in this arena. He also played the role of an all-night broadcaster in the national radio in 1978. At present, he hosts "Larry King Now" and "Politicking with Larry King".

The representation of the programs hosted by King is interesting to me. I am amazed at the semi-informal tones that he uses during the interviews. It appears that Larry King is bringing out the truth from the interviewees in a sophisticated manner. Sometimes, the truths are bitter and also raise controversies, I think this is the right manner to interview someone. He knows the methods to discover the inner self of a man. I like the way he asks the very personal questions and the interviewees do not feel shy to answer them to the public. Besides, he narrates some of the special information about the guests at the programs that even amazes the guests as well. Another important aspect that he is one of the most successful hosts who never had any misunderstanding with the guests in his episodes.

Larry King is one of the most influential people in the country. I like him most for some of his personal qualities. He is a radio and television program host and at the same time, he is a writer. He has already written a couple of books after his heart disorder. Moreover, he is a man of charity and has donated to some charitable works. King is a man of benevolence and knows how to respect people and even his opponents. He began his career when he had nothing with him and now he owns a lot of fame and definitely he is rich enough. But he is still the same as he was 40 years ago when he was to begin his career in Florida.


 

More Ideas to talk about this Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card topic:

Topic: Describe a TV presenter you like.

1. Bear Grylls is a popular TV presenter across the world. This British presented is mostly famous for the reality show – Man vs. Wild. He presents the programme in an outstanding way. He directly takes part in the dangerous and adventurous activities that amaze the audience. I like this TV presenter because he has overcome all of his physical hindrances towards adventure.

2. In the entertainment world, I adore Oprah Winfrey more than anyone else in the USA. She hosts a talk show and the show has become famous around the world. She hosts the show in a lively manner. She wants to know about various things through the show and digs out some interesting facts about the people she interviews. I like Oprah Winfrey for her outstanding talent. In her early life, she underwent a good number of misfortunes and have overcome them. She is the most powerful living woman in the world at present.

3. The media industry in China is filled with different types of people and among them, Elena Kong is my favourite one. She is a multitalented personality and famous as a TV presenter. As I said before, she is a multitalented personality and hosts different types of shows and events on television. Her presentation is exceptional and knows how to satisfy the audience. I like Elena because she performs her role as a presenter exceptionally and her lucid voice attracts everyone’s attention.

4. Among the other television presenters, Carol Nakamura appears different to me. She was a regular presenter of a popular Brazilian television show named Domingão do Faustão. It was a great show. She has a distinctive way of presenting and she also can handle critical situations swiftly. She is my favourite presenter because of her special styles and expressions. She knows how to bring out the potentials from the participants.

5. Karan Johar is a popular TV presenter in India. He hosts a show named ‘Koffee with Karan’. He wants to know about the unknown life events of the local celebrities. In fact, he also tries to get the real facts about controversial matters. I like him because of his outspoken nature. He invites the high-profile Bollywood superstars in his show. He also can speak politely and manages the situations smartly. So, he has been running the show for a long time.

Famous TV presenters around the Globe.

Australia:

  • Mark Beretta
  • Waleed Aly
  • Rebecca Maddern
  • Larry Emdur
  • Natalie Barr
  • Natarsha Belling
  • Andrew O'Keefe
  • Sonia Kruger
  • James Brayshaw
  • Jessica Rowe
  • David Campbell
  • Livinia Nixon
  • Scott Cam
  • Shaun Micallef
  • James Tobin


India:

  • Amitabh Bachchan
  • Mandira Bedi
  • Arnab Goswami
  • Annu Kapoor
  • Karan Johar
  • Salman Khan
  • Aman Verma


USA:

  • Larry King
  • Katie Couric
  • Ellen DeGeneres
  • Oprah Winfrey
  • Ryan Seacrest
  • Jimmy Fallon
  • Suze Orman
  • Frank Gifford
  • Donald Trump
  • Bob Barker
  • Dagmar
  • Tom Bergeron
  • Vanna White
  • John Barrowman

 
UK:

  • Fiona Bruce
  • Adrian Chiles
  • Eamonn Holmes
  • Steve Backshall
  • Alan Carr
  • Vernon Kay
  • Natasha Kaplinsky
  • Tess Daly
  • Huw Edwards
  • James May
  • Hazel Irvine
  • Bear Grylls
  • Phillip Schofield
  • Kirsty Gallacher
  • Jonathan Ross
  • Gabby Logan


Canada:

  • Alex Trebek
  • George Stroumboulopoulos
  • Ben Mulroney
  • David Suzuki
  • Tanya Kim
  • Pascale Nadeau
  • Mario Dumont
  • Diana Swain
  • Pamela Wallin
  • Wendy Mesley
  • Tracy Moore
  • Dawna Friesen


China:

  • Yang Lan
  • Hacken Lee
  • Shannon Lee
  • Jerry Lamb
  • Ni Ping
  • Sa Beining
  • Kris Wu
  • Wentao Dou


Japan:

  • Kazunari Ninomiya
  • Mino Monta
  • Kai Atō
  • Masami Nagasawa
  • Aisa Senda
  • Ichiro Furutachi
  • Tamori
  • Akiko Yagi


Italy:

  • Elisabetta Canalis
  • Gerry Scotti
  • Danilo Bertazzi
  • Simona Ventura
  • Pippo Baudo
  • Paolo Bonolis
  • Maria De Filippi
  • Rita Dalla Chiesa
  • Fabio Fazio


Russia:

  • Maria Kozhevnikova
  • Andrey Makarevich
  • Vladislav Listyev
  • Oxana Fedorova
  • Igor Kirillov
  • Yekaterina Strizhenova
  • Aleksandr Gordon
  • Lev Nikolaev
  • Alexey Popov
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