Added: 4 years ago
From: lehe
Views: 79,498
Sort by time | Sort by thread (beta)

Link to this comment:

Share to:

All Comments (172)

Sign In or Sign Up now to post a comment!
  • Both are speaking with "BBC" TV accents as they would have in the sixties. The man is speaking with a refined neutral english accent and the woman with a refined welsh one. (Wales is not England) You wont hear these accents for real.

  • They are both speaking "BBC" english as done in the sixties on telly.

  • The man is RP, the woman Welsh.

    Both are not speaking/reading as you'd expect. This sound like software's been used, they'll have recorded words/phonetics then the software pieces them together.

    Same as if you write a text to landline and listen to it via vocal message.

    Listen to how he says 'fatuous' at 1:58, that's pieced together, no-one speaks like that!

  • @WarpedFlange Nah, the woman's Northern, not Welsh...

  • Do British people like American accents as much as American people like British accents?

  • @azpandaman yes! id rather an american boy anyday

  • @azpandaman Some do yes.

  • First accent is the general English accent but very well pronounced and well-spoken but sounds like a foreigner doing the accent because you can tell in some bits that the accent is not the man's true accent. The second one is the same accent but again, very well-spoken when the rest of England tends to drop some letters every so often. Sounds like the woman doing the accent is Welsh or even foreign though because there is a hint of that at the end of certain words...

  • The woman is clearly from brooklyn or Ireland, either one

  • @c243mx7tr Neither, she sounds like she's got a clipped Northern English accent to me

  • The man has a "received pronounciation" (sp?) voice, it's not a regional accent, just well spoken English.

    The woman's accent is a bit strange, it's like she's trying to put on a slight northern English accent but it sounds a bit false.

  • @moschops42 Most Americans like British accents, and where I'm from I've never heard of anyone who has a problem with British people. You don't know what certain Americans can be like, don't group us all into one category please! (:

  • The man is definately English, sounds like he is from East Anglia somewhere probably near London. The woman sounds like she is trying to supress a Welsh accent or comes from Wales but has lived in England for a long time (3:25 dreary commitment for example) but i might be wrong here.

  • bradford my ass

  • He sounds luke generic London until later he starts to sound like he's actually from australia or bew zealand. She is not from wales or merseyside you gimps, she's from somewhere in Yorkshire but it's hard to tell because she's trying to pronounce her Ts like in 'committment'. Probably south Yorkshire.

  • @jesusisamagicman - I thought Yorkshire at first, but pretty sure she is Welsh.

  • The second sounds like a forced Bradford accent to me.

  • She has a subtle Welsh accent, wheras his is more RP/London.

  • Yeah, I agree with the last few posters- she's from somewhere around North Wales/Mersey way. Little bits like "fyercher" (future) at 2:53 put her in that sort of region- RP would sound much more like "fyootyur". The rising inflection on the second syllable of "commitment" at 3:25 also stands out as an indicator.

  • The second voice sounds like a very weak Welsh accent

  • He's from London, she's Welsh.

  • The woman sounds slightly welsh (north wales)

  • Second sounds slightly Mersyside/Cheshire to me.

  • I think the second accent is either, a Brum or a Manchester accent.

  • I love Bolton Accents -swoon-

  • I'm from Bolton :D

  • -high five- Awesome :D

  • Wow, half-American 'British' people talking about weird cosmic-youth. LOL!

  • i think british accents are bad ass. i've always wanted an accent like dick van dyke had on mary poppins. especially cause i'm black, it'll throw people. not that there's no black people with british accents, it's just not what you would expect.

  • Dick Van Dyke has possibly the worst cockney accent I've ever heard!

  • Go to London and you will see a LOT of black people.

  • i've heard that actually. my pastor is black, and from london, it's just that the stereotype for a 'londoner' is not a black man, and it would be cool to throw people off with a cool cockney accent. did you ever see oceans eleven? it completely threw me off when don cheadle had that accent.

  • I know a black girl with a Liverpool accent. And my dad's girlfriend is Chinese and has a thick Yorkshire accent - so funny because she's so petite, and nice looking, and then speaks with a rough farmer accent :-p. Got to love it :-p

    Dan

  • If Americans like our accents,why was it that I got laughed at when I was in Florida.

  • Because you can't just generalize Americans like that. It makes you look ignorant.

    I can't imagine everybody in the state of Florida laughing at you.

  • Floridians are probably big wankers.

  • I don,t give a rats ass what the Americans think of our accent,stuff em.

  • @Moschops42 which one?

  • @Moschops42 Its arse!, not ass!

    Dont lower yourself to their dumb fuck colonial level!.

  • @ChainsawGutsFuck Your right, people from Florida are assholes. But seriously dude? Floridians? If your going to insult a country, at least have the common knowledge to do it right.

  • @Amnesia512 Florida isn't a country babe, he's a hiphop artist XDDDDd

  • @ChainsawGutsFuck lol your right!

  • @ChainsawGutsFuck I'm American, and I concur.

  • Was it in Miami? Maybe the didn't speak English.

  • This accent is unlike any I ever heard. I was born and raised in East Yorkshire and traveled widely in Enland before coming to the U.S. They are certainly not like the accents we were taught as telephone operators in the British army.

  • The second one is very self conscious. She comes from yorkshire but is reading the passage and forcing a certain level of articulation which is surpressing it.

  • aw its so cute that americans are so clueless about accents

    yer the first is southern like a posh londoner but the second is more up north

  • I bet you've got your American accents down. *thumbs up* I bet you wouldn't know the difference between the different accents in California even. Would you be able to tell if someone is from Sacramento, Eureka, San Jose, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego? Probably not. :) The difference is, Americans wan't to learn the differences of Brittish accents, all the while you've got your fingers in your bum thinking of stereotypes.

  • We don't give a fuck about America, that's why. And most Americans don't give a fuck about us. And why should we give a fuck?

    To us you all basically sound the same anywhere, with slight variations. Linguistics studies show that there are around 3,000 distinct British accents, and only 600 US ones.

    If you're so brilliant with accents, then listen to a couple of my videos, and post back here where you think I'm from.

    Dan

  • lol, wooot soouth ftw! :D

  • I can't be certain, but the woman's voice sounds almost Geordie...just a few words here and there. Definately northern, and from around Newcastle, for my money.

  • Some of her words made me think more of the Welsh accent. Particularly when she pronounces the 'ee' sound. Also when she says longer words like 'Commitment', the syllable emphasis was quite welsh.

  • I like both of their accents. :D

    its cool how you can be in one part of the UK and then go to another.. and their accents are different. :)

  • I'm agreeing that the woman actually sounded like she was from lancashire/yorkshire way originally.

    I have welsh family, and she doesn't sound welsh in the slightest; there's not even a faint "twang", as people are putting it.

    The man is likely British; It is the standard accent that many BBC news readers are required to use during broadcasts. They were and are often trained to suppress natural accents so that they were neutral.

    That is how our newsreaders generally speak.

  • I didnt expect you to say thank you. I was winding you up, you silly sausage.

    I don't think my initial comment was THAT harsh and rude. All I said was nonsense, for goodness sake.

    You were wrong, after all

  • Yes, clearly a forte of yours is putting across your opinion in a reasonable manner.

    Again you are also showing your inability to grasp the concept of allowing a variety of opinions. If a sixteen year old girl can recognise this, you obviously have some issues Greg.

  • I have many issues.

    Worrying about how I am perceived on YouTube is not one of them.

  • Well good for you.

    My point is that you corrected me in a rude manner and I didn't appreciate the way in which I was adressed.

  • Yer man is right about the soft Welsh accent on the woman, though. Very soft, though.

  • Hey, I'm from southern england. You have no idea how funny most british people find it when americans try to impersonate our accent :) ! The first bloke kind of sounds middle class southern but he has aforeign twang- maybe amercian. The woman is most definitly welsh but she doesn't have a very strong accent x

  • Nonsense. There's no twang about it. It's just somebody reading a script in a slightly old-fashioned (probably about 20-25 years ago) accent.

    Trust me, I'm a linguistics graduate, and a 33-year-old bloke who's born and bred British.

  • Oh well I do apologise, I didn't realise that they were asking for your opinion which is most definitly correct unlike anyone else's.

    Clearly anyone else's opionion should be disregarded as it is 'nonsense'- you should know, your a liguistic expert!

  • There's no need to apologise. A simple 'thank you' would have sufficed.

  • There's no need for me to say thankyou, I wasn't the person who posted the video OR asked what the accents were. Any viewer is allowed to speculate and create their own opinion therefore your brash and harshly worded reply to my first comment was both unnecessary and rude. You may be a 33 year old 'bloke' who's a linguistic graduate, however you are not the only viewer who, in your words, is British born and bred.

  • Comment removed

  • go to my channel i have a new vid asking if anyone knows my accent (i was drunk) its British xx

  • To me the man doesn't sounds British-American he sounds neutral, i can't tell,

    But the woman is English or Welsh i think.

  • I'd say they both speak proper. however, there seems to be a faint aussi accent on the male part. as for the female, I'm quite certain that she's from the north.

  • Both voices are deliberately non-regional, like the description says the tape is used in various countries so a heavy accent is counter-productive

    Having said that the female voice has a very faint accent which can be heard when she says "so" as "sur" - this is common to lots of accents in the north of England

  • So, you can't hear the woman's Welsh accent? It's pretty clear to me.

  • Wow, you must be the only black man on the planet with the name Aaron.

    People called Aaron really shouldn't use the word 'blud'. It just makes them look like idiots when they're pretending to be 'street'.

  • I'm British/Welsh. The lady certainly does sound Welsh. The first man has a British Commonwealth accent -- not necessarily RP.

  • this is not British because when you say *all the young* you sounds ain't English Sorry

  • Erm, YOU sounds ain't English Sorry.

    (You fucking idiot.)

  • Sorry blud! do i know you? and what the hell are you talking about obviously you are just a fucking nuttcase ( fucking cunt ) come and blow my massive willy you fanny twat

  • I'm not your blud, Aaron.

    If you're going to start claiming "this is not British" you shouldn't write as if English is your second language.

    I mean just look at what you wrote four weeks ago. Go on, try and read it back.

    I had to read it about three times just to work out what you were trying (but failing) to write.

    I'm really embarrassed for you. You're bottom of the class, right?

    (You do know an impressive amount of naughty words, though. You're about 11 years old, right?)

  • Comment removed

  • Wow, you must be the only black man on the planet with the name Aaron.

    People called Aaron really shouldn't use the word 'blud'. It just makes them look like idiots when they're pretending to be 'street'.

  • yeah the guy sounds australian not english

  • im australiana dn thats australain, its just an educated australian accent i think

  • the first guys pronunciation of 'answer' at the start, aswell as others which is pointless listing, shows he has an austrailian or new zealand accent (albeit a very 'proper' one). the woman sounds a little bit welsh maybe, albeit very 'proper' again :)

    so yeh, these arent accents, rather people who have had accents but are here, at least, speaking very properly

    i do realise people have already posted that, but theyre correct so im just confirming it(?)

  • It's definitely Australian and not New Zealand. It's a bit 'sharper', clearer, and more nasal.

  • And..... what is the right answer?

  • I think both are speaking southern accents(London included), or standard British.

  • The bloke's Northern, the lady's Welsh (pronounced final 't' dead giveaway)

  • guy sounds slightly kiwi or aussie not english - girl is welsh

  • she sounds welsh

  • theres no such thing as accentless

  • I'd say the female accent sounds to me like a Manchester accent, trained in RP. Think of the Life on Mars TV show.

  • first one is complex ; a non-english person doing one of those fruity, pompous 1970 disc jockey accents. second is "refined" with lapses into quite strong welsh

  • the first one is a standard english accent but the woman sounds like a welsh/bristolian trying really hard and failing to cover it up

  • The first male is a southern accent, to pin point it I would say a educated Surry accent. The second female is Northern, it's hard to pin point because she is covering her accent with a fake surry accent. However, I would say Lancaster accent, or there abouts. I hope that helps.

  • what the hell.?.

  • The first voice is a modern, accentless form of RP, which can be heard regularly on the BBC. This differs markedly from the older form of RP which was used by BBC announcers until the 1960s.

    The second voice shows signs of voice training, but there are definite traits of a regional accent there, certainly northern England, possibly West Yorkshire.

  • Accentless? Wow. You know what you're talking about. Ha!

  • Accentless to Brits, idiot.

  • May I remind you that the clip is about BRITISH accents. You show your ignorance through your rudeness.

  • Comment removed

  • the accent is bob,s your uncle

  • The second one is a Lancashire accent - listen to Jane Horrocks and imagine her gradually losing her very strong northern accent and you have the 2nd speaker on your video.

  • And RP is the english learnt in schools. It is the "standart british english", it's much easier to understand. The second accent sounds more natural, it's the accent most of the people speak in south England.

  • The first accent is called "RP (Received Pronunciation)". This is not a regional accent, this is a social accent. Only 5% of people in England speak this accent, this is consider the accent of the upper classes, the queen and the royal family speaks RP. In the past people in England used to attend elocution classes in order to speak like this and this was needed to have a succesfull career, but times have been changing and people felt like it was needed to conserve their local accents.

  • She sounds like she's from Yorkshire

  • The man is speaking in a standard English accent.

    The women is attempting the same, but the odd vowel-sound here and there (eg. "yoong" for "young") indicates that she has a slight Northern accent.

  • Yes. The first one is received pronounciation, common in upper class British society. Sophie Ellis Bextor being one who may talk in this way.

    The second voice is of a woman, maybe around late 30's from Wales. There is a certain Welsh accent there, and her voice is slightly deaper than most.

    It doesn't seem as if the person who put this on here cares anyway. She/he has not replied to any comments for quite a while.

  • Hugh Grant also uses the RP.

  • not really..

  • The first is stilted, consciously de-regionalised but generally southern. It is fake but probably done by a native Englishman.

    The second is far more natural and, as many people have said has a slight underlying Welsh accent.

  • To me, the first speaker sounds like an American affecting a British accent. You can hear this at 0:31 when he says 'fundamentals', at 0:48 when he says 'behind him' and at 1:01 when he says 'school'. In each case, the pronunciation is decidedly American, in a way that would never occur in British English.

  • I say school like that and im English.

  • one is english one is welsh

  • There seem to be various opinions regarding the accent of the female reader. She definitely has Welsh tints to her voice. If you listen, it is a bit like that of Aled Jones or Katherine Jenkins.

    At any rate, I find Welsh accents pleasant to listen to. By contrast, the first reader sounds very monotonous.

  • Both have a southern-england / London accent. They do not sound quite natural though on certain words, so I think it may be 'put on' a bit!

    Neither has received pronunciation. Listen to some of the Christmas Queens Speeches for a proper example of received pronunciation.

  • The second is slightly Welsh.

    What is this for? I just stumbled across it.

  • second one sounds like scottish

  • the first one is Austrlian... the second one seems more British

  • wrong!

  • i thought that's some Hong Kong accent

  • 1st one Received Pronounciation defo...

    2nd one also received pronounciation, probs wid a northern hint...

  • The guy at the start to me sounds very Australian (I'm Australian) with a slight English accent.

  • Shows all this posh Southern thing is old pony. you can hear the RP in a lot of Northern Speakers, and a South Eastern accent, even if it RP, doesn't sound like an Oxford RP accent.

  • the second one sounds very much northern.

  • 2nd one north walian defo... i live der n it sounds local

  • As a french man I have to admit that the RP accent is the only accent I can easily understand. The RP is the only accent taught at french schools and universities. Professors want their students to speak the Queen's english because they consider it's the original english accent. I don't know if things have changed but during the early 90's we were not allowed to use an american accent.

  • Yes, I know -- living in France. So sad too! (b/c I'm american and I love my accent!)

  • 2nd one Welsh? Manchester? Generally northern?

  • thats scottish/east anglia

  • According to books on English phonetics, Received Pronunciation (RP) is a native accent of English. It is one of British English accents and considered the spoken form of Standard English. Within the RP itself, there are at least three styles: refined RP, general RP and regional RP. The man and the woman speak English in an RP accent, but with different styles.

  • According to books on English phonetics, Received Pronunciation (RP) is a native accent of English. It is one of British English accents and considered the spoken form of Standard English. Within the RP itself, there are at least three styles: refined RP, general RP and regional RP. The man and the woman speak English in an RP accent, but with different styles.

  • wow, how can you tell the differences? I can see the difference between RP and other accents, but not recognising the one from Sussex with Hampshire, or Yorkshire with Northumbrian? wish I could tell

  • Generic southern.

    I can't imagine needing to know more than that except to thank god I don't speak like that.

  • Wow, you learn English from these kind of tapes? Must be very advanced, its like listening to Radio 4!

  • Wow, you learn English from these kind of tapes? Must be very advanced, its like listening to Radio 4!

  • I am damned proud to have a Northern Nottingham/Yorkshire accent! In my time, I've told some bloody arrogant Southerners that I don't care what class or status they have, or what they think to my accent, because how I do speak gives me an identity, and a personal connection to my roots. RP is good and clear, but when travelling Britain, you want to hear variation and different accents from all over the land.

    Who thinks the Nottingham accent is bad anyway? Answer if you've been there though.

  • I think the North American (standard) and the Irish (Dublin) accents are the most pleasing accents in the English speaking world. But, having said that, it's cool to encounter different accents. Still, those learning English as a foreign language have to choose one to focus on. RP or mid-atlantic is good to start until they learn enough to make an informed decision.

  • Really? I find the Southwestern (England) and Australian more attractive, but yes, the RP or mid Atlantic is good to start

  • Amen to that! How boring would the place be if we all spoke the generic south east accent.

    Regards from a speaker of the Queen's Scouse.

  • I do not mind at all too, English is not my native language, but know what you mean. My family lived in England and some cousins are from London, so we have been taught the British English; still, I still have problems recognising all the accents, how is the Yorkshire accent?

  • The man is arguably a native of Sussex who adapts RP and the woman is definitely from Wales (listen to Charlotte Church for comparison)

  • Yes, that's why I told them to listen for similarity. Duh ?

  • heute um mitternacht wird deine wahre liebe merken, dass sie dich liebt, es wird etwas gutes morgen zwischen 13.00 uhr und 14.00 uhr passieren, egal wo! bereite dich auf diesen schock vor! wenn du diese kette unterbrichst, wirst du 10jahre beziehungsprobleme haben! schicke diese kette an 15 leuten in 15 minuten!!! die zeit lauft nachdem du das gelesen hast

  • ja ja, sehr gut, aber niemand versteht du.;DDD

    lol

  • Aber ich verstehe dich....und ich bin englisch!!ganz komisch oder?

  • Ja, sehr komisch. Ich bin von Litauen. ; )))

  • After years in the EFL classroom I do appreciate the man's RP - after all, he speaks understandable decent English, a bit slowly though

    If accents are still about class and education, no wonder lots of UK people sneer at RP but secretly wish they could do it...

    We foreigners love to meet someone who does not pain our ears

  • carol vorderman is the woman, shes part welsh

    and the man is southern sussex/surrey

  • the man sounds like he's from the Surrey area but has a twang of Irish in his voice. The girl has a sort of Irishy Welshy sort of accent.

  • Both are using contemporary RP, with some regional inflection.

  • Basically, both have non-regional accents. And since both are reading formal prose and not speaking naturally, the strong features of their accents disappear.

    To me the woman has hints of a north-west accent, some vowels suggest Lancashire/Cheshire (e.g. her pronunc. of 'create it' and 'after all'). There are very few signs that she has an accent at all though. As for the man, there's no trace of a regional accent (generic RP/south-eastern), although the way he says 'fatuous' is very strange!

  • im welsh to and that lady is not welsh!

  • I'm welsh and that women don't sound a quart welsh. She's a geordie. The man is non regional english, more south east than anything.

  • The man who is talking sounds like he comes from a middle class family so it's a middle class sounding accent. The woman sounds Welsh.

  • A lot of people don't sound their r's correctly. It's just a lazy way of speaking. Some people do have a problem with it but most people have a hint of it.

    I reckon this chap is from the home counties. I grew up in East London with a strong common accent. When I moved to the Home Counties I developed an accent where you couldn't really tell where I was from like this dude.

    A lot of kids these days try and 'tawk yoof' because they're wannabe Londoners. Eastenders doesn't help.

  • the guy speaks with a slight lisp ... listen how the "r" sounds more like a "w" ... but this is not uncommon in this kind of british (bwitish)pronunciation

  • The man is definitely from the Home Counties, he doesn't have a so-called specific accent (say, Cockney). His accent is quite general that it's almost RP. I'm not sure about the woman, though, but I would edge towards somewhere near Wales.

  • dude there is deffo a lil bit of glasweigen in there! only a smidgen tho i admit, but i can hear it.

  • Both accents are received pronunciation accents. The man is an English probably from the north. The woman is Welsh.

  • the woman is slightly welsh, then she moved to england, to the south east/ maybe just the south.

    the guy sounds west london, altho maybe have a tint of glasweigan, but only slightly.. but deffo west london.

  • Thanks to two of you!

  • The man is speaking in Received Pronunciation, but with a faint (25%)Northern Irish accent. The woman has a faint (30%) Welsh accent. She is speaking very deliberately without any contractions and liaisons ("People are always" instead of "Peepularrallways" and "that is" instead of "that's") and is attempting RP, but sounding awkward and contrived. Neither are speaking perfect RP and both have attempted to lose any trace of their regional accent, but not entirely succeeding.

  • You have good ears, man.

  • wellll...you dont know me but i am from britain...right ok these two people both are british speaking and they dont have different accents.they are both accents from london. not the slangy one or whatever the king of poshy accent you somethimes hear.

    if that makes any sense.if you want anymore info then just private message me or something..

    :)

  • hinata... if you were really from Britain, I think you you would have written "any more", rather than the American "anymore". And most of us here in the old UK of GB & I have also long since mastered the use of the shift key ;)

  • i think the last thing a website like youtube needs is a grammar police. please dont be closed-minded and sarcastic for world peace's sake.