LIFE AND DEATH OF THE MOBILE TELEPHONE

Through the life cycle of one mobile phone, this documentary investigates the million and
one ways in which the mobile has made itself indispensable to modern life.

One in every two human beings has a mobile, and this inanimate lump of plastic and
minerals is made privy to people's innermost secrets - conversations with friends, lovers and
family. It holds family photos, plays favourite music and yet, as an instrument of
communication, it has its paradoxes. People are dumped by text, some pretend to be deep in
a telephone conversation to avoid speaking to real people and others are affronted when
their bellowed conversations on public transport are overheard.
H
G
E
F

Then, at the end of a strangely intimate relationship, it becomes one of the one billion
phones discarded every year - reconditioned for re-use or smelted down for the precious
metals it contains.

A B C D

WHO…

1. … “categorizes” mobile phone users?

2.… believes the mobile phone is a controlling device?
3. … is so addicted to texting, he/she believes she’ll have thumb arthritis when he/she’s older?
4. … hates mobile phones?
5. … texts his/her friends instead oh phoning so as not to disturb them?
6. ...believes mobile phone users “ignore” the outside world?
7. … heard a conversation about a woman’s breasts?
8. … got so annoyed on a train who had to order a strong drink to be able to put up with another
passenger talking on the phone?
9. … was sworn at and even threatened for using his/her phone in public?
10. … texts things she wouldn’t be brave enough to say in a phone call?
11. … looked through somebody’s phone only once?
12. … sent several messages to his/her partner’s lover?
13. … felt guilty for invading somebody’s privacy?
14. … threatened to harm his/her partner’s lover?
15. … thinks it’s nice to be out of the reach of other people?

1. Brits clocked up ___________________ minutes of chat last year.

2. Mobiles share all your secrets __________________.

3. What do people do with their mobiles at the end of their “life”? d_ _ _ / d_ _ _ _ them

4. ….I was your c_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ , your r_ _ _ _-h_ _ _ man.

5. I was s_ _ _ _ , silver, smooth to the touch. You c_ _ _ _ _ _ me to your cheek.

6. According to the mobile phone collector, what happened to your car when you were
charging the very first car phones?

7. What were the flip and the aerial for in the mobiles of the late 80’s?

8. Most people never switch off their mobile phones, not even when _________________

9. Mobile phones give you u_ _ _ _ _ _ _ and constant a_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _.

10. The shredded phones at the Umicore recycling plant contain ____________________
_________________________ from ____________________________________

11. Britain is the country where most texts are sent in the world. Why? It’s a ________

12. What is “the inevitable postscript” in a text message?

13. The mobile phone is a g_-b_ _ _ _ _ , a g _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ when a man and a woman

are in love.(be with 2 people who love each other and would prefer to be alone together)

14. According to the phone trend consultant, how are using the phone and being drunk the
same?

15. Why does “the expert” think we get annoyed with people talking on the phone in public
spaces?

16. The polite Brits merely t_ _ t_ _ but they finally b_ _ _ o_ _ _ when somebody
speaks very loudly on the phone in a public place.

17. How can a mobile phone and a hair be the same?

18. How many discarded mobiles do they receive in a month? A) between 70,000 and
80,000. B) between 72,000 and 82,00. C) between 17,000 and 18,000.

19. What annoying thing happens to the workers there?

20. How much is worth all the gold shown in the programme?

OVER TO YOU

Do you identify with any of the mobile phone users who appear in the documentary? In
which ways?

Are you addicted to your mobile phone? Do you know anybody who is?

Could you live without a mobile phone? In which ways has it made your life easier /
more difficult / different?

you normally get annoyed when people use their phones in public places next to
you?