When I was stationed in East Anglia I remember some local friends would sometimes imitate the northern accent.  I didn't know if it was because they liked it or were doing it to make fun of northern folks.  I actually like how people in northern England talk.

It's just the opposite here in the U.S.  People from the north, not too long ago, used to make fun of people from the south as if they were all country bumpkins and word not allowed.  It's ironic now as millions of these same northerners have moved down here over the past 30 years so you hear northern accents all over the place now.

Dave  

1 hour ago, dave2013 said:

I actually like how people in northern England talk.

 

Me too, I like the Newcastle accent. I don't mind any accent, except some of the extreme examples. 

 

 

Edited October 5, 2025Oct 5 by martin-w

“Mommy, what is she saying?” 🤣

Most of my relatives are "from the North" ... hehe ... enjoy Catherine, especially in Dr. Who. 

6 hours ago, dave2013 said:

It's just the opposite here in the U.S.  People from the north, not too long ago, used to make fun of people from the south

Dave, no comparison in the U.S. ... it's not really North to South in the US (at least from Washington to CA all the same), perhaps more East to West and whatever exists in the center 😉  Y'all.  UK has many more significantly different accent variants than the US. (I have lived in both and my folks/relatives are British).

 

Scottish and/or Geordie is probably my favorite.  Love the complex sound of Welch but can't understand it at all, close 2nd is West Country.

 

But gotta love the Romani Traveller accent:

I like daags

 

https://preply.com/en/blog/different-english-accents/

 

3 hours ago, SayAgain said:

Dave, no comparison in the U.S. ... it's not really North to South in the US (at least from Washington to CA all the same)

I'm speaking of the eastern U.S., where there is a clear difference between northern and southern accents.  The western U.S. really doesn't have much of an accent in that it's not readily identifiable and more of a neutral accent.  Someone from California could easily be mistaken for someone from Washington, for example.  This is not the case in the eastern U.S.  One can easily tell if someone is from the north or south here, and it's also not hard to distinguish between the midwest and eastern northern accents.  There are also variations of the southern accent, for example, there are Texas, eastern TN and Alabama/Georgia, and coastal South Carolina accents.

I was stationed in the UK for 2 years, traveled all over the country, and had several local friends there.  I know well that there are many accents and dialects in the UK, and some are not even understandable.  I was in Scotland once and spoke to some older folks who I could barely understand.  A girl I met actually had to translate for me.  Everyone had no trouble understanding me and thought my accent was interesting. 

Dave

 

R.I.P. Patricia Routledge:

 

10 hours ago, SayAgain said:

UK has many more significantly different accent variants than the US. (I have lived in both and my folks/relatives are British).

 

And over a small geographical area too. You only have to travel a few miles and the accent changes, which I dont pretend to figure.

6 hours ago, dave2013 said:

A girl I met actually had to translate for me. 

 

Have had both an Irish plumber and a Scotish workmen visit, recently. Had to concentrate to understand both with the occasional "pardon?"