Wish I had a regional accent?

[turnyourmattress]

I don't know why, but I don't have a strong regional accent. There are occasional hints of it, and it comes out when I'm really angry. Most people think I am southern, or sound a bit RP (not really imo).

I am from Liverpool. Went to an inner city state comp, lived around people with strong scouse accents. My parents don't have strong ones, but do have accents. My grandparents were near unintelligible to outsiders 🐲

I think my accent softened a bit at uni. Or in other words, any accent I did have, disappeared. I never ever made a conscious effort to change it.

People are always surprised when I tell them I'm from Liverpool. They don't believe me, or ask if I went to boarding school/grew up down here. Ask when I changed it. I've had other people from Liverpool claim that I am pretending to be someone I am not. Some people think I am a huge snob, others think I am trying to hide where I am from.

AIBU to wish I had a regional accent, just so that I could conform to what people expect from people from Liverpool?

I bet it's stronger than you think. Im irish and i noticed a lot of english people think they have no accent.

@PearlclutchersInc "A polite or educated accent is nice"

This always annoys me. Why is a SE RP accent considered 'educated', when very highly qualified professional people with a (different) regional accent are by implication considered to be uneducated?

I think this varies a lot.
We lived in Scotland for a few years and our daughter didn't pick the accent up at all although all her English peers did.
At the time it was explained that she modelled her speech on us - she was having speech therapy so it was a discussion point.

I love the Birmingham accent and do not know why it gets such stick as think it is lovely. People lose their accent so much and some do it on purpose and would never try to lose mine as am Irish but after living in London for over 13 years it has softened but still sound Irish. Maybe you just never had a strong accent at all.

The irony of referring to RP/generic SE accents as "educated" is that a well-educated person would likely never say such a thing 🤣

Be glad. The Liverpool accent is a shocker.

I could have written this post too! I try to meet people’s prejudices with humour but find I’m a great disappointment to both those who love the accent associated with ‘warm friendly northerners’ and those who are scathingly rude about the accent of my hometown, since they usually hate the accent due to some sort of negative association with my people!
I’m pleased not to fit into any particular box over all.

I am Mancunian but don’t really sound it any more, I haven’t lived there for twenty five years and I pick up accents easily so mine has just faded away. People would know I am northern and the odd person will detect Manchester. My husband is from the midlands, he has no accent at all, you wouldn’t have a clue where he is from, it is quite strange because his father and siblings all have strong accents from the area, for whatever reason sound a bit like your scenario OP.

I am also scouse. I think there's a big difference between the north and south Liverpool accent. I have got an accent but it's nothing like the thicker variations that you would hear in North Liverpool. When I'm talking to people from other places they notice straight away and they're like "I love your accent, I could listen to you talk all day". So it must be noticeable to some.

And if you think about it, the Beatles accent compared to John Bishop is completely different.

Isn't John Bishop from Runcorn? A plazzie scouser AKA a wooly back

I've quite a few friends from liverpool and although you can hear they're not southerners they're definitely don't have scouse accents at all. Their accents are lovely, and I bet you sound similar.

It annoys the hell out of me when people assume that Northern = working class and Southern = “posh”. There’s nothing wrong with being any combination of those things, but they all definitely exist and they’re all equally valid.

I understand OP. I'm from the West Country and don't have much of an accent any more. Interestingly, my sisters have also lost their accents while my brothers haven't. I do think some people's accents change easily depending on where they are and who they speak to and I wonder if that's more common in women.

I've lived in Wales for 20+ years now and sometimes people tell me I sound Welsh which I think is utterly ludicrous, but maybe I do sound Welsh when I'm around Welsh people (although I've lived in several places in Wales each with different accents so I'm not always sure what 'sounding welsh' means).

I'm a good mimic and I wonder if that has anything to do with it.

If it's any comfort I think I'm reverting to a bit of a West country burr as I get older, and I definitely go full Somerset on the phone to my brothers.

My mum was Scouse, and her mum (a terrific snob) sent her to elocution lessons to ensure she wouldn't get the accent. So my every day 'neutral' voice is pretty much RP, which has possibly eased my path in ways I don't even notice.

I'm not sure, but he plays up to being a scouser with the exaggerated accent and I don't really ever hear that.

I'm happy with my RP accent. No desire to sound Liverpudlian or any other accent.

A polite or educated accent is nice

What on earth is a polite accent?! Your accent doesn't have anything to do with whether you're polite or not . Neither does a regional accent mean you're not educated.

It annoys the hell out of me when people assume that Northern = working class and Southern = “posh”.

Oh I know, it's ridiculous. I'm a southerner teacher living in the NW. So many of the kids I teach think that south automatically = posh. I'd love to introduce them to some of the kids I taught in imner city London comprehensives.

I love the Birmingham accent and do not know why it gets such stick as think it is lovely.

It's not too bad generally, if you're around people with similar accents, but when you hear brummies on the tv or radio we sound like bloody idiots

i have had to neutralise my accent hugely due to snarky comments about where I am from. Even the politer ones (there are many comments like this on this thread) where people ‘love’ your accent because you are so ‘friendly’ and ‘warm’ is horribly patronising and weird.

I had a very hard time at university. It’s a strange thing to wish for.

People shouldn’t be so judgement of course- but as long as they are , a neutral accent is a privilege.

The Liverpool accent is not the best, let's be honest. When it's really strong, it sounds as if people are putting it on as a joke.

Thr other one that sounds really fuddy duddy is the one that goes "oop road t' shop."

My least favourite accents are Scouse and Essex.

Unfortunately I have one of these. 😄

i have had to neutralise my accent hugely due to snarky comments about where I am from. Even the politer ones (there are many comments like this on this thread) where people ‘love’ your accent because you are so ‘friendly’ and ‘warm’ is horribly patronising and weird.

Oh jeez sorry. Next time I wont bother telling someone when I love their accent... especially in a discussion thread about accents. 🙄 how weird of me, instead I'll pretend like accents dont exist and I dont like/dislike any.

Exact opposite here op. You are lucky to have an rp accent. I have a midlands regional accent and if I had the money I would sign up for elocution lessons in an instant . My accent is nasal, unpleasant and has no redeeming features.

I love all the UK accents and Irish. My daughter is from the SE, lives in the NW & gets called 'posh as 'owt'. When she lived in Liverpool her sentences would often start in RP and end in Scouse. She never got flack for her accent in Liv, they were more peed off with 'Wools'!