World News for Students of English

16-02-2016 07:00

Jimi Hendrix, the ultimate guitar hero, was born into poverty in Seattle in 1947 and he died in London aged just 27 after a hedonistic lifestyle. Now, fans have the chance to see what his bedroom in his London home looked like.

The property in Mayfair has been restored over a two-year period to look as close as possible as it did when he lived there in 1968 and 1969. 23 Brook Street in Mayfair has been fully kitted out with feathers, tapestry rugs and a ton of vinyl records in a 2.5-million-pound refit.

For many years, it’s been seen as a place of interest. In 1997, an English Heritage blue plaque, the first ever given to a pop star, was posted on the wall outside the apartment.

The property is right next door to Handel House where composer Handel lived for 36 years during the mid-1700s.

The entire third floor will be open to the public as well as an exhibition that shows the musician’s movements between 1968 and 1969. The building forms part of Handel and Hendrix, a museum devoted to two musicians who were neighbours but two centuries apart.

Note: the audio recording is incorrect. Jimi Hendrix was born in 1942.

Difficult words: ultimate (great), poverty (a situation of not having money), hedonistic (pleasure-loving), kit out (to provide), tapestry rug (a decorative carpet that goes on a wall), refit (a restoration – making things like new), heritage (something which is historically and culturally important), blue plaque (a sign in a pubic place that tells that somebody famous lived/worked there), entire (whole), devoted (loyal to, “all about something”).

Source: www.ondemandnews.com