To wonder why some men do this?

[TurkeyTeethLookAwful]

And yes, I know not all men do this but in my experience it is always men that do it!

I work in a professional job, and speak many times a day to people in senior positions in businesses throughout the UK. I have an accent from a city in the UK that's probably quite a distinctive accent.

At least once every single work day, I will get at least one male customer on the phone who, when I call them, mimicks my accent in their initial reply to me when I say hello and introduce myself. These are different men all the time; I don't have regular customers as such.

It even happened to me at passport control at a UK airport recently. The man scanning our passports asked where we'd been and why we'd been there. I replied and he then mimicked my reply in my accent.

AIBU to think it's fucking rude and disrespectful?

It's rude and I'd want to call it out. If in person, then yes, cold stare and if over the phone, I'd go for over the top surprise: "excuse me?! I'm sorry, what?!". But maybe not if it impacts your work....

But yes,it's of non-funny men think they're hilarious 🙄

Is it to be funny or does it just come out and is it always men? We have a girl with the loveliest accent at work (English, we’re in Ireland) and at a work dinner one night she was telling us every single one of us has apologised for speaking to her in her own accent at some stage!

I do. and then, afterwards, worry about whether they thought I was taking the piss! I've lived in a lot of different places since early childhood and probably don't have an accent of my very own - just a mishmash. I'm good at languages; I suspect my natural parrot tendency is part of that, but most people read it as shallow or fake. Or insulting, though I hope not!

Yes. Only men do this and the ones that do, I immediately think 'what a fucking prick'.

I used to work in the town next door to my own and every single colleague - all female - would 'make fun' of my accent all day long.
It does get grating every single time.

They were pretty awful in every other way too.

Donkey's years ago and I wouldn't put up with it now.

Honestly, shit but not surprising. I reckon they’d happily do it to men as well.

In my experience men in senior positions are more likely to do this as their behaviour/banter is less likely to be challenged as inappropriate so they can get into habits that other people wouldn’t ‘get away with’ even at this low level, out of blissful ignorance rather than malice per se. Still disrespectful and poor social awareness though.

If would probably just say something like ‘oh good, 5th time today’ when they do it to send the hint if you don’t work with them regularly. If it was regular I’d say something.

Maybe it is but I wouldn't be caught dead doing it. Not my style of humour.

Did you not get the memo OP? These men are really, really funny and you should laugh to make them feel good about themselves. Thats our job as women. 🤨

They say "oh, you are from OOOOOOppp North! Oooop North!!! Hahahahhaahah OOOOOppp North gettit"
I just give them side eye and walk off which makes me "touchy' with "no snese of humour"

What the fuck does Ooooopp North fucking mean? No one in the Noth says Oooop instead of UP, ever.

I was once at a conference and the person sat next to me spent all night mimicking my northern accent. He though he was hilarious.

We ended working on a project together and we all had each others phone numbers. He used to leave me voice notes mimicking me.

My accent isn't even that strong.

Funnily enough, I've never had a woman mimic my accent but plenty of men do it.

I was brought up in a multilingual family (4 different languages spoken) and unfortunately it does mean that I subconsciously pick up on people's accents in conversation. In my case it is not intentional and I do try to make a conscious effort to stop. I have extended appointments with people over the phone and often find myself slipping into their regional accent more and more as the conversation goes on. Sorry about that, it's not really something that I do to offend.

Flirting?

It's definitely not flirting and it doesn't seem that they are doing it subconsciously. It's often done in a mocking tone and sometimes they say stereotypical words/phrases associated with my accent

You’re either a scouser or a weegie OP, am I right?

Oh yes I had this. Lived and worked in England as a professional. I’m from NI. Holy god, it was soooooooo tiring. Sooooo boring. A really shit mimicking of my accent ALL THE TIME.

Almost always men (now that I think about it). It also happens every time I go back. It’s so rude.

I actually ended a (fairly brief) relationship I was in as he would constantly ‘do’ my accent and I just couldn’t cope any longer.

Men echoing historical comedy tv show sketch content (all right, steady on... in a Scouse accent for example) when sketches feature archetypal characters with regional accents and thinking they are as funny and clever as tv with a hint of either trying to engage with you or be superior? At least the Caribbean, African or Indian characters seem to have mostly been dropped from the repertoire for some reason...

I have a slight brummie twang, and I get this. It used to frustrate me, but now I shrug it off and see it as banter.

Speaking as a woman, from the north west and with an accent, I can honestly say I have never had anyone mimic my accent and I moved away from the NW to London when I was 25.

You have come across it apparently, have you noticed many men mimicking other men’s’ accents?

but now I shrug it off and see it as banter.

Ah banter....otherwise known as 'I'm going to take the piss out of you and if you don't like it, it's becuase you don't have sense of humour'

Well that's a rather silly attitude to an issue I'd say is probably a very small percentage of the male population.
Hate away, but that's a vanishingly silly reason to do so!

So, I'm Weegie and my accent is mimicked or commented on all the time when I'm in England. It's never bothered me but I would say it's mostly by men and mostly in pubs/night out settings. I swear to god, the amount of times I've been asked to say "burglar alarm". My DP is from Devon and the second time I visited, I had a couple of their friends repeat half the things I said because they thought it sounded hilarious. I mean, I get it to some extent, a Weegie can make asking to pass the salt sound like a battle cry but after the first couple of sentences, it wears thin.

I think men are generally more easily amused which is fine but it means their output to others can suffer the same low standard. I feel like we're getting better but a lot of male communication with other men is still based on "what can I find to take the piss out of?" when there isn't any other obvious common ground.

Maybe that's a London thing @Aprilx? It's more of a melting pot there so maybe accents aren't seen as particularly worthy of comment?

To the OP, I've not come across this myself - although I do have a female colleague who did similar in a meeting last month (I had the joy of discipline for that one!)
I therefore can't really agree it's an all-men thing, although granted she's quite a 'tomboy'.

The imitation wasn't received well by the client, and cost the business quite a lot of money.

I’m from Dudley. Jeez if I had a pound for everyone who repeats that back to me in what they think is a Dudley accent, I’d be a millionaire.

the first 30,000 times a smile politely. Now I just stare icily at them.

the best of it is, I live in Essex. Nobody here believes they have an accent. They do.

and yes, now I come to think of it, it’s always men.

I don't think it is necessarily done with the intention to offend, but I agree that it's irritating.

Where I used to work, we had a female colleague with a strong Irish accent who worked in a different area, but would visit our office every month or so.

Whenever she arrived in our office, one of our male colleagues would call out, "Top of the morning to you!" in a "comedy" Irish accent. He was a loud and gregarious, but friendly and popular person. I am certain he thought he was being friendly and welcoming and meant no offence.

Our Irish colleague was a nice person and tried successfully to conceal her annoyance from our male colleague (he was completely oblivious, unfortunately), but I could see she was uncomfortable.

After this had happened a few times, I told him that I thought he sounded as if he was mocking her accent. At first he tried to brush it off and argued that she enjoyed their "banter". When it dawned on him how she might see it differently. He was absolutely mortified.

I don't know if he broached it with her, or apologised, but he always greeted her more appropriately from that day onwards.

This is so rude. I can believe it's always mostly men. Can you just say, really deadpan "oh are you from Birmingham** too?" and then let them stutter to explain themselves.

**or wherever.