Learn How to Do A Proper British Accent In Less Than 3 Minutes with Professor David Ley

‘Ello, whats all this then?
We can all fake a British accent. Or so most of us would think. Professor David Ley, a voice and speech specialist from the University of Alberta shows us how to speak in a standard upper middle class English dialect in a youtube video.

Professor Ley discusses the nuances of the dialect and the technique. There is a difference between how the upper class and the working class speak.

The first thing we need to do to find that dialect is to sit up and forward in our chairs. The sound is going to come to the front of our mouth. Our tongue is going to move forward. It is going to be much easier for us to speak clearly and crisply as is required of this dialect. If we sit back in the chair we can hear what happens to the tongue… goes back in the mouth and that is a great place to go if we want to do a working class dialect.

It’s widely held that outside of the stage, there isn’t any valid reason for assuming the affectation of an accent without looking pretentious. But it is fun and will lend you more credibility the next time you put on tails and role play “Downton Abbey“ and ask your dinner guests what weekends are.

The accent is also useful if you have to seduce spy mistresses as an M16 agent.

No, Mr. Bond! Sit up straight and lean forward. That is how you get your tongue in the proper place.

Downton Abbey Image Copyright ©Carnival Films and ©Masterpiece.
Goldfinger Image Copyright ©MGM Studios.