IELTS Listening Map Questions | Example 8

Section 1

A woman called Mrs. Reynolds is being interviewed by a police officer about an incident. She saw the previous evening.

Officer: Well, if you can just tell me everything you remember, it doesn’t matter how trivial it seems or may seem unimportant to you may not be unimportant to us.

Mrs. Reynolds: Okay, I’ll do what I can, officer. Well, as I said, I just came out of the cinema on the High Street. So it was about eight o’clock, just before 8:00. In fact, I’d been to see a film with a friend and he had just gone home. So, I was just standing there wondering what to do, whether to go and have a cup of coffee somewhere or not. I was just standing there minding my own business when suddenly I heard someone shouting directly opposite me outside the library not screaming just shouting. It sounded like the voice of an elderly woman. “They’ve got my bag, they’ve got my bag,” she was shouting. These two men raced past me going like the wind straight down the street and around the corner into West Street. It all happened so quickly. I think they must have had a car waiting for them there because I heard one drive off at top speed. Well, I didn’t know what on Earth to do whether to try and chase them, whether to ring the police or whether to go and see if she was all right. Another woman was running up behind me. So, I shouted back at her to go and call the police. Anyway, when I got to the woman she seemed to be alright. Thank goodness, a bit shaken. But okay, I think I was much more upset than she was, all in all, she was pretty calm. I don’t think I would have been but apparently it had happened to her once before so maybe that’s why, you know, I’ve got a friend who refuses to go out alone anywhere after six o’clock. Now, what’s this town coming to?

Mrs. Reynolds: Anyway, she just kept saying I didn’t see a thing. I didn’t see a thing. One of them had pushed her from behind and as she put out a hand to steady herself. The other one had just taken the bag from under her arm and then he raised off across the road. I asked her what she’d had in it, and she said she’d had her purse with about 15 pounds in it. But no cheque books or cards, or things like that and luckily she had a front door key in her pocket and she had a bus pass taken too.

Officer: Let’s get back to the two men if we can just tell me everything you can remember about them.

Mrs. Reynolds: Well, there was a younger one and an older one.

Officer: Well, let’s start with the younger one. Shall we?

Mrs. Reynolds: Well, first thing he only looked about 17 not more. He was neither very tall nor small, sort of slim build not anybody would notice anything particularly special about him and then ordinary-looking sort of bloke. He had curly black hair which was quite long but apart from that as I say not someone you’d notice in a crowd nothing really distinct about him at all. But the older one was different, yes different, I feel as if I’d know him anywhere. Again, I got more of a look at him because he ran across the road more slowly than the younger man. I remember being surprised because he was quite a bit older than the other one. I’d say about 35. Funny because you don’t think of people of that age snatching handbags in broad daylight like that. Do you? He was quite a bit smaller than the other man and medium build.

Officer: What did he look like, you didn’t give the officer much information last night.

Mrs.Reynolds: Well, I did get quite a good look at his face. No beard or mustache, clean-shaven and quite smart looking really. He had light brown hair cut very short sort of an army haircut, and there was another thing. Thinking about it all last night over and over again. I’m almost sure he had a small scar on his chin. Now,I didn’t tell the other policeman that last night but in my mind each time, I see his face. I can see one.

Officer: A scar on his chin. Thank you. Mrs. Reynolds. You’ve been really helpful. If you really think you’ll recognize him again, then what we’d like you to do. Later this morning. If you can , come down to the police station and look at a few photographs for us to see if any of those ring a bell.