For any actor, a good indicator of his or her skill is the ability to do different accents convincingly. Some, like Meryl Streep, are famous for this. In her movies, Streep has spoken in everything from Australian to German with a Polish accent and she's done it so well that she has received more Best Actress Oscar nominations than anybody else. Other actors haven't been so lucky and more than a few could have benefited from, for instance, some British accent lessons.
If you're studying for a role in a movie, a TV show or a play, making your character sound convincing is half the battle won. Speaking like a true Brit can make your career but getting it wrong can become a source of lifelong embarrassment. Just ask Kevin Costner, who managed to make English folk hero Robin Hood sound as if he was from across the pond.
When you learn to speak like someone from Britain, it's important to remember that there are hundreds of accents in the country. What most people think of as a British accent is actually called Received Pronunciation and it is regarded as the standard pronunciation. Some people, such as the royal family, speak like this naturally. Others, such as former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, took elocution lessons to sound more upper class.
However, just like someone from Massachusetts will sound very different from someone who is from Tennessee, Britain has a wealth of regional accents. In England alone there can be variation in how people speak in towns that are only an hour's drive apart. Someone from the south of England and someone from the north may even sound as if they're from different countries.
Many English people speak in accents that are specific to the cities where they're from. John Lennon, for instance, spoke the Scouse of Liverpool, while Ozzy Osbourne's Brummie pronunciation tells you that he's from Birmingham. However, even in the same city there may be variation. This is especially true of London, where some of the accents include Cockney, North London and South London.
Adding to the rich variety of English spoken in the UK are the accents of other parts of the country. To the untrained ear, the accents from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland often sound the same because of the way speakers roll the r. However, they're actually quite different and even within each of these regions you'll find variation. Someone from Edinburgh, for instance, speak a different kind of Scots than someone from Glasgow.
When you learn the particular accent that fits the character you'll be playing, it's also important to remember that regional variations of English are about more than pronunciation. Vocabulary often differs too. A good start is to know the differences between American and British English. In the UK, for instance, a sidewalk is called a 'pavement'. Sometimes the same word has a different meaning elsewhere, for instance the word 'pants' that in the UK means underwear.
To learn how to speak in certain accents, there are different approaches you can take. Most involve listening to people and trying to imitate the way they speak. However, hiring a dialect coach will be money well spent if you're a professional actor and want the best results.
If you're studying for a role in a movie, a TV show or a play, making your character sound convincing is half the battle won. Speaking like a true Brit can make your career but getting it wrong can become a source of lifelong embarrassment. Just ask Kevin Costner, who managed to make English folk hero Robin Hood sound as if he was from across the pond.
When you learn to speak like someone from Britain, it's important to remember that there are hundreds of accents in the country. What most people think of as a British accent is actually called Received Pronunciation and it is regarded as the standard pronunciation. Some people, such as the royal family, speak like this naturally. Others, such as former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, took elocution lessons to sound more upper class.
However, just like someone from Massachusetts will sound very different from someone who is from Tennessee, Britain has a wealth of regional accents. In England alone there can be variation in how people speak in towns that are only an hour's drive apart. Someone from the south of England and someone from the north may even sound as if they're from different countries.
Many English people speak in accents that are specific to the cities where they're from. John Lennon, for instance, spoke the Scouse of Liverpool, while Ozzy Osbourne's Brummie pronunciation tells you that he's from Birmingham. However, even in the same city there may be variation. This is especially true of London, where some of the accents include Cockney, North London and South London.
Adding to the rich variety of English spoken in the UK are the accents of other parts of the country. To the untrained ear, the accents from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland often sound the same because of the way speakers roll the r. However, they're actually quite different and even within each of these regions you'll find variation. Someone from Edinburgh, for instance, speak a different kind of Scots than someone from Glasgow.
When you learn the particular accent that fits the character you'll be playing, it's also important to remember that regional variations of English are about more than pronunciation. Vocabulary often differs too. A good start is to know the differences between American and British English. In the UK, for instance, a sidewalk is called a 'pavement'. Sometimes the same word has a different meaning elsewhere, for instance the word 'pants' that in the UK means underwear.
To learn how to speak in certain accents, there are different approaches you can take. Most involve listening to people and trying to imitate the way they speak. However, hiring a dialect coach will be money well spent if you're a professional actor and want the best results.
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