Television has become an essential part of our daily life. It gives us much useful and interesting information. It makes a great opportunity for education and entertaining. Television keeps us informed about the current events in the world. Nowadays it offers a wide variety of channels and all kinds of programmes and films which are able to satisfy any taste and any age. Besides, thanks to satellite TV, we can watch channels from different countries.
According to the statistics data, the most regular TV viewers are housewives, pensioners and children. My grandmother, for instance, is very fond of Russian long-running sagas and Brazilian soap-operas which always have a happy end. She finds them quite relaxing. As for me, the story lines in those soap-operas seem unreal and too dramatic. My grandfather loves all news programmes and documentaries devoted to our history. When my mum stays at home she prefers watching different women’s talk-shows, concerts, quiz-shows or reality-shows.
Actually I was also a real fan of a reality show “Last Hero”. I saw all 7 seasons of it but, alas, it finished in 2009. As far as I know this show was the Russian version of an American “Survivor”. The contestants of the show were sent to a desert island and then split up into tribes. I liked the idea of putting them in extraordinary and sometimes even dangerous circumstances. I always tried to figure out what I would have done if I had been sent to that island and had lived in a tribe too. The participants of this dynamic reality show had to fight hard because the winner’s prize was rather substantial.
And now I really enjoy a fantastic vocal talent show “Voice” presented by Dmitriy Nagiev. It started in 2012 and is broadcast every weekend. The format of “Voice” differs from other traditional music contests because the participants are already professional singers with fabulous vocal capabilities. The judges (Alexander Gradskiy, Dima Bilan, Pelageya and Leonid Agutin) evaluate the contestant’s voices and make decisions without looking at the singers, through a blind audition process. As soon as the judges have formed their teams they start competing with each other. Eventually only one singer will be honoured the grand prize and become “The vest voice”.
Luckily I am not a TV addict and I don’t spend all my leisure time in front of the so called “one-eyed living-room monster”. However I do my best not to miss my favourite programmes.
Peter I was born on 30 May 1672. When Peter was a child several teachers were delegated to teach him. Among Peter’s tutors were Patrick Gordon, Nikita Zotov and Paul Menesius. This process was commissioned by Tsar Alexis I.
In 1676 Tsar Alexis I died. As a result the power was left to Feodor III who was Peter’s elder half-brother. He died in 1682 and there were not his descendants. Consequently there was a conflict for power between the Miloslavsky and Naryshkin families. Other half-brother of Peter, Ivan V, was heir to the throne but his health declined. As a result at the age of ten Peter became Tsar chosen by the Boyar Duma.
Peter was interested in shipping and shipbuilding. He was a tall man and his height was about 200 cm. He did not have square shoulders and his feet and hands were small. Moreover Peter’s head was small for his figure. In accordance with his mother’s desire Peter married. The marriage was in 1689 and Eudoxia Lopukhina became his wife. 10 years later the marriage broke down and Peter’s wife became a nun.
In 1689 the power was in the hands of Peter’s half-sister Sophia. Because of two ineffective Crimean campaigns her authority was undermined and Peter planned to take power. Peter could become an independent ruler only in 1694 when his mother died. Officially there were two rulers: Peter and Ivan V. In 1696 Peter became the absolute ruler when Ivan V died.
On 19 August 1700 Peter declared war on Sweden. The main aim of the war was to acquire control of the Baltic Sea. At that time it was under Swedish Empire control. Denmark-Norway, Saxony and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth supported Peter. In 1721 the Treaty of Nystad ended and the Russian Empire acquired control of the Baltic Sea. This war went down in history as Great Northern War.
In October 1721 Peter was proclaimed Emperor of All Russia. Augustus II of Poland, Frederick William I of Prussia, and Frederick I of Sweden recognized this title. Other monarchs did not agree with it. Some rulers were afraid that Peter would claim authority over them.
Peter imposed new taxes in the Russian Empire. The household tax and the land tax were abrogated. These two taxes were superseded with a poll tax. He also reformed the Russian Orthodox Church.
In 1724 Peter married for a second time to Catherine who was crowned as Empress. However he remained actual ruler of Russia. Peter had 2 wives and 14 children by them. Only 3 of his children survived to adulthood.
In 1723 Peter’s health declined. He had problems with bladder and urinary tract but he was cured. As legend has it in November 1724 while at Lakhta Peter was forced to rescue the soldiers drowning not far from shore.
Consequently his health became worse and these problems caused his death. Peter died on 8 February 1725.
Television has become an essential part of our daily life. It gives us much useful and interesting information. It makes a great opportunity for education and entertaining. Television keeps us informed about the current events in the world. Nowadays it offers a wide variety of channels and all kinds of programmes and films which are able to satisfy any taste and any age. Besides, thanks to satellite TV, we can watch channels from different countries.
According to the statistics data, the most regular TV viewers are housewives, pensioners and children. My grandmother, for instance, is very fond of Russian long-running sagas and Brazilian soap-operas which always have a happy end. She finds them quite relaxing. As for me, the story lines in those soap-operas seem unreal and too dramatic. My grandfather loves all news programmes and documentaries devoted to our history. When my mum stays at home she prefers watching different women’s talk-shows, concerts, quiz-shows or reality-shows.
Actually I was also a real fan of a reality show “Last Hero”. I saw all 7 seasons of it but, alas, it finished in 2009. As far as I know this show was the Russian version of an American “Survivor”. The contestants of the show were sent to a desert island and then split up into tribes. I liked the idea of putting them in extraordinary and sometimes even dangerous circumstances. I always tried to figure out what I would have done if I had been sent to that island and had lived in a tribe too. The participants of this dynamic reality show had to fight hard because the winner’s prize was rather substantial.
And now I really enjoy a fantastic vocal talent show “Voice” presented by Dmitriy Nagiev. It started in 2012 and is broadcast every weekend. The format of “Voice” differs from other traditional music contests because the participants are already professional singers with fabulous vocal capabilities. The judges (Alexander Gradskiy, Dima Bilan, Pelageya and Leonid Agutin) evaluate the contestant’s voices and make decisions without looking at the singers, through a blind audition process. As soon as the judges have formed their teams they start competing with each other. Eventually only one singer will be honoured the grand prize and become “The vest voice”.
Luckily I am not a TV addict and I don’t spend all my leisure time in front of the so called “one-eyed living-room monster”. However I do my best not to miss my favourite programmes.
In 1676 Tsar Alexis I died. As a result the power was left to Feodor III who was Peter’s elder half-brother. He died in 1682 and there were not his descendants. Consequently there was a conflict for power between the Miloslavsky and Naryshkin families. Other half-brother of Peter, Ivan V, was heir to the throne but his health declined. As a result at the age of ten Peter became Tsar chosen by the Boyar Duma.
Peter was interested in shipping and shipbuilding. He was a tall man and his height was about 200 cm. He did not have square shoulders and his feet and hands were small. Moreover Peter’s head was small for his figure. In accordance with his mother’s desire Peter married. The marriage was in 1689 and Eudoxia Lopukhina became his wife. 10 years later the marriage broke down and Peter’s wife became a nun.
In 1689 the power was in the hands of Peter’s half-sister Sophia. Because of two ineffective Crimean campaigns her authority was undermined and Peter planned to take power. Peter could become an independent ruler only in 1694 when his mother died. Officially there were two rulers: Peter and Ivan V. In 1696 Peter became the absolute ruler when Ivan V died.
On 19 August 1700 Peter declared war on Sweden. The main aim of the war was to acquire control of the Baltic Sea. At that time it was under Swedish Empire control. Denmark-Norway, Saxony and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth supported Peter. In 1721 the Treaty of Nystad ended and the Russian Empire acquired control of the Baltic Sea. This war went down in history as Great Northern War.
In October 1721 Peter was proclaimed Emperor of All Russia. Augustus II of Poland, Frederick William I of Prussia, and Frederick I of Sweden recognized this title. Other monarchs did not agree with it. Some rulers were afraid that Peter would claim authority over them.
Peter imposed new taxes in the Russian Empire. The household tax and the land tax were abrogated. These two taxes were superseded with a poll tax. He also reformed the Russian Orthodox Church.
In 1724 Peter married for a second time to Catherine who was crowned as Empress. However he remained actual ruler of Russia. Peter had 2 wives and 14 children by them. Only 3 of his children survived to adulthood.
In 1723 Peter’s health declined. He had problems with bladder and urinary tract but he was cured. As legend has it in November 1724 while at Lakhta Peter was forced to rescue the soldiers drowning not far from shore.
Consequently his health became worse and these problems caused his death. Peter died on 8 February 1725.