What's your favourite accent?

[Patricia55]

This month has been great for bookings... if a little tough on my ears 😉  [NB not complaining!!]

Out of 6 guests, all but one had English as their mother-tongue, the other was French. The accents were: California, RP English, Dublin, Belfast, Welsh. To be honest, I'm not sure it's any harder for me to decipher a foreign accent than an “English” one! Ah, it's all good, keeps me on my toes, love a good accent, me. I rather pride myself on figuring out from someone's accent, as to where they're from 🙂

Does anyone else enjoy accents?  Any favourites? 🙂

[Paul154]

I enjoy the Manchester accent. Mostly intelligible with an occasional foray into the undecipherable.

I am challenged by cockney and  Deep Southern/Urban Black American accents. I do enjoy the color and cleverness in these accents very much. Yet, so often, I cannot understand one word.

[Paul154]

The british usage of "city centre" jars me. 

Why use the pompous French alternative to  Downtown? 

After all, Petula Clark was English!

"When you're alone, and life is making you lonely
You can always go ...
Downtown" 

To the American ear, "city center" recalls the nomenclature of some failed city/private urban development project that build some useless building with a food circus ...or a shopping mall.

Has Britain always use "city center"? or did you start to use it to show camaraderie with the EU?

[Gordon0]

The thing is, @Paul154, many town-dwellers (versus those who live in a city) will use down town ("I'm going down town tonight, coming?"). For me, it's 'up west' (as in the West End). 

[Patricia55]

@Paul154 

Haha, who isn't challenged by Cockney?!  Sure they go out of their way to be difficult 😉

I was heavily into "The Wire" at one stage - needed subtitles and also had to read the synopsis afterwards, but still.  Obv, being a mimic, I had to try for a Baltimorian accent.  Nah, couldn't get it, apart from "aaiight?" (which we still use) and also calling each other, affectionately, by the m/f word 🙂

Ah, you like a Manc accent?  Do you reckon it's the association (with someone/thing) that makes you like it, or just the sound?

[Ann72]

@Paul154 @Patricia55 How about Glasgow?  I went to a fringe play in London in the 80s (long before "Trainspotting" and the like) that was written and acted by Glaswegians, and I could only understand one word, "skint," which they said repeatedly.

Speaking of which, if those payouts from Airbnb don't come soon, I'll be completely skint.

[Patricia55]

@Ann72 

Cracking up here 😄

Umm, let's say, the Glasgow accent is pretty STRONG... if not a wee bit scary 😐