Changing the accent


My Uncle used to drop his aitches and add them on to words that didn't have one, for instance, he'd say things like "I'm a bit hanxious 'cause I have to go to orspital". It was hard to keep a straight face sometimes :lol:
I find the different ways of pronouncing the word 'don't' in Sunderland, newcastle and South Shields is a good way of making 'foreigners' from down south see a difference in local accents.

Dinnit
Divvent
Daint
 
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Most people out of the area have no idea of the difference between Northumbrian, Geordie, Mackem, East Durham, Teeside. It's all just North East England.
Similar thing to the London accent. Sarf London is completely different to East, but whenever I travel north, people just assume it's cockney, despite a slightly different accent and pronunciation, and a different dialect.

I spose you only really know the differences when you're from the area.

To my untrained ears, there's no discernible difference between the Wearside accent and the stereotypical "Geordie" accent. (although I 100% agree with the poster saying about the tits on Tele that really put it on. Irritates the fuck outta me).
 
Moved to Devon over 40 years ago when I joined the Navy. Been away from Hetton longer than I actually lived there.
To me, my accent has, over the years, softened to such an extent that it is almost gone now. I just have a generic southern accent. Not done on purpose, it has just evolved.
Most people are surprised when they find out where I am actually from.
It comes back miraculously when I see Durham Cathedral on my left as I pass it when driving back up there though. 🤣
 
There's a post on the PF section where I brought this up. Hearing folk from the North East on TV or in media 'sweetening' shall we say, their accent. It sounds really off to me and massively noticable. I brought up a few examples there such as Mickey Gray when he's doing pundit work. It's hard to describe what it is but I guess the over pronouncing of certain words. I've always thought the Mackem accent is more clear than Geordie, whenever I've been abroad my accent is understandable anyway. Is this just me that notices this and grinds on me when I hear it?

I've lost my Sunderland accent due to spending the better part of the past decade living in other places, and unfortunately due to being in environments filled with posh people.

It's got to the point people from Sunderland do not recognize me as local on first meeting me, and often ask where I'm from. This is painful to experience, yet I'm capable of speaking the accent if I choose.
 
It happens when trying to speak professionally, and not like your speaking to your mates in the pub.

add to that, many of these TV personalities have lived away from the area for a decent while. people naturally pick up traits from others.
Jordan Henderson’s accent is unmistakably Mackem but he talks clearly and well as does Lauren Lavern.
You can keep your accent and as long as you don’t sound pissed all the time you can be understood
 
The chronicle were highly offended by Donna Air moving to the Isle of Wight and abandoning her local accent.
To be honest most north easterners on the telly develop a watered down version for audiences around the country…..”the ant and dec diatect”, professional geordie, token north easterner for quirky reasons. Worse still are the obvious fake and overt north east accents in media and advertising. I laugh at them, “hee-ahh, hoooowaaay, diiiiiivvaaannnt”

😂
 
Mackem is the hardest to understand outside of Eshington, as we seem to talk much faster and pronounce less than our Geordie cousins imho, especially the rough arsed town end version.
 
Most of it isn’t deliberate I reckon. It’s basic that people want to be understood and as such, through constantly repeating themselves or having to explain slang terms, they’ll just change gradually.
 
My brothers Mackem accent should come with subtitles.

I can’t understand a word he says.

I’ve never had a strong accent, it’s a very mild NE accent. Think that comes from surrounding yourself with people who don’t come from the area
 
I've lived in various areas in the south since I was 18 and have developed a kind of hybrid accent. Clearly it has northern roots but it has become softened over the years as I've picked up more southern pronunciations (longer vowels) and language (I now have lunch and dinner rather dinner and tea). If I was to revert back to proper South Durham then I doubt many people would be able to understand me.
 
Mackem is the hardest to understand outside of Eshington, as we seem to talk much faster and pronounce less than our Geordie cousins imho, especially the rough arsed town end version.
There’s some parts of Plymouth where the populous sound very strange compared to the rest of the town and It’s like the people of some of the areas of Sunderland when the air show comes to town. Without trying to sound like a snob , there’s people who rarely leave their small locality and why would they need to sound different if everyone sounds the same ?
I’ve lived in south East Cornwall longer than I lived in SR6. Where Do I sound like I’m from ?
 
I reluctantly have to do it when presenting to clients, saves me to repeating myself.
I think it’s canny ignorant to not temper your accent when talking in a professional capacity. I know of one school headmaster who talks broad Mackem and it sounds awful. Being told “a cannit dee owt wirrim” does not fill one with confidence
There’s some parts of Plymouth where the populous sound very strange compared to the rest of the town and It’s like the people of some of the areas of Sunderland when the air show comes to town. Without trying to sound like a snob , there’s people who rarely leave their small locality and why would they need to sound different if everyone sounds the same ?
I’ve lived in south East Cornwall longer than I lived in SR6. Where Do I sound like I’m from ?
Town end Mackem is world away from the suburban version.
 
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I understand when people drop the slang, but some of the ways that people like Mickey Gray pronounces certain words just sound really jarring.
 
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There’s some parts of Plymouth where the populous sound very strange compared to the rest of the town and It’s like the people of some of the areas of Sunderland when the air show comes to town. Without trying to sound like a snob , there’s people who rarely leave their small locality and why would they need to sound different if everyone sounds the same ?
I’ve lived in south East Cornwall longer than I lived in SR6. Where Do I sound like I’m from ?
Snozzle?
🤣
 

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