Silly walks, polite English

I'm sorry to have kept you waiting… I'm afraid… May I…? The perfect English of a civil servant.

Part of the joke is the language: Mr Teabag talks about silly walks with the very polite, very formal English of a British civil servant. Learn his phrases: they are useful in real life too (and for the role play of Step 4)!

1Apologise

I'm sorry to have kept you waiting.

sorry to have + past participle

2Give bad news politely

I'm afraid my walk has become rather sillier recently. · I'm afraid that the Ministry of Silly Walks is no longer getting the kind of support it needs.

I'm afraid (that) + sentence

3Ask for something

I'd like to obtain a government grant to help me develop it.

I'd like + to + verb

4Ask for permission

May I see your silly walk?

May I + verb…?

5Ask someone to do something

Mrs Two-Lumps, would you bring us in two coffees, please?

Would you + verb…, please?

6Check, criticise politely

That's it, is it? · It's not particularly silly, is it?

question tags: it isn't…, is it?

7Compare

My walk has become rather sillier. · The government spent less on the Ministry of Silly Walks than on National Defence.

sillier (than), less… than

8Be precise

The right leg isn't silly at all, and the left leg merely does a forward aerial half turn every alternate step.

not… at all, merely (= only), every alternate step

Now practise →

All the activities of the Ministry of Silly Walks