Accents, Do you have a fav?

Newatthis

I think all English/Irish/Scottish and Welsh accents are wonderful and they are what make our country unique. Where can you go in the world where the accent will change just a few miles down the road. So many people judge others by their accent and it's such a pity and let's face it - if everyone spoke with RP then most many people would 'tune out' to many conversations.

Accents generally change every 20 miles or so, according to David Crystal who is an authority on the subject. Although he generally talks about English I am sure other countries have the same experience, although we may not be so attuned to accent when we are speaking another language.

I don’t know about Michael Gove, but Malcolm Rifkind (remember him?) had the strangest blend of Scottish and English I have ever heard.

I’d love to know whereabouts in Wiltshire sheepandcattle’s farm is.

BlueSapphire I’ve just remembered that you mentioned Cherhill and the White Horse a few days ago. I’m not from Wiltshire but have been living in Calne for the last six years. To be honest, I’ve found it very hard to settle here but the countryside is beautiful. My DD2 who was a student when we moved, then completed a masters, met a lovely man and has a DGD with another due shortly and they have just moved into a lovely house. So my experience of moving here is juxtapositioned with hers so it’s hard to regret our move on that basis.

There's not one Irish,Scottish or Welsh accent any more than one English one, all are very regional. I'm Northern Irish and have what my husband used to jokingly call ( when we lived in England) a 'standard Ulster ' accent- a bit Gloria Hunniford I suppose. Very different from Belfast or strong Co.Antrim. Glasgow accent very different from other regions in Scotland. English folk will refer to West Country, Brummie or Geordie accents but then say that they like or dislike Scottish, Welsh etc. Also of course accents vary according to social class or education. My accent is very different from the local aristocratic or my elderly neighbour who has never lived outside the county.

Geordie... like my DH.

Scottish my all time favourite.

As the largest city in Scotland, Glasgow has many varied accents. I have a soft Glasgow accent, others are broad Glaswegians or Glaswegians who speak a mixture of Scots/English so there is no one particular Glasgow accent. This is present in every city. ie; London, Edinburgh, etc. I love a particular Parisian accent but not all

I do like Southern Irish, Scottish Highland, French and Dutch accents. Whilst living in France, my neighbour told me she found the British accent sexy!

I wouldn’t say Michael Gove has a Scottish accent, he now has a prominently English one, affected to help his English associates understand him. ?

Geordie every time for me - and my affection for the accent is only matched by my affection for the people. The thought of a conversation with someone in the Pensions Department in Newcastle would always make my day! They've always been unfailingly NICE !

Good to read that so many people like the French accent.

Definitely Welsh - love it, and the Welsh language!

I’m from Derbyshire and proud of my accent! However, I love the Geordie accent, my favourite.

I love a Scottish accent and French (Fred from First Dates...)

I’m entranced by those from Bristol, southern Ireland and the north east.
Whenever Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is interviewed, I listen really carefully to him as he seems, to me, to employ a variety of accents. I wait to be corrected. ?

American is my absolute favourite accent, especially from the deep south. I also like a cut glass English accent like the actors used to speak in the old black and white films. Also quite partial to Geordie.

Love southern Irish accent. Remember having lots of phone calls to an Irish housing officer when I was a community nurse. I was just enraptured by his voice and fantasized about him. Reality hit when I met him at a meeting . Bald,red faced with open sandals wearing socks. So disappointed !!

Irish accent, southern not northern!! Hate the annoying northern accent

Yorkshire although there are regional variations. Geordie and French.

Can’t understand a word spoken with a Glasgow accent.

That varies too, though. Once I told someone I was sorry, but I didn't speak her language- it turned out she was from Glasgow . However, I have a couple of friends from Glasgow and they speak very precisely and clearly.

Peewitt52

Sean Bean’s Sheffield accent.?

Me too!

I like the sound of Geordie too - but can't understand it!

Scottish then Geordie. I count Geordies as honoury Scots though.

Middlesborough area - almost a mellow Geordie.

Geordie and Yorkshire. Can’t understand a word spoken with a Glasgow accent. I had a friend from Lancashire, that was nice too.

Grandma70s

I like RP myself. Does that count?

I quite like very mild Scottish, like Andrew Marr or Michael Gove. (Not that I like Michael Gove in general.)

I did wonder if RP would even be considered as an accent, in this thread.
I'm astonished to learn that Michael Gove has any kind of Scottish accent.
I don't hear it at all.

I like far too many accents to name, including many of the more guttural, urban ones.

I think the accents I love are the ones that were spoken by older people I loved. My Nanna and Grampy had a lovely Oxfordshire accent (think Pam Ayres) and my mother-in-law a strong Bristolian one because they lived all their lives in those areas.
My parents moved around for most of their lives and we children picked up different accents from each place.
When we moved from Corby in Northamptonshire I couldn't understand why my new schoolmates said I had a Scottish accent! Later I learned that a lot of the people that lived in Corby had come down from Scotland with the local steel works.

French first, followed by Scottish, Southern Irish and then Geordie.