British forums members: does Hammond sound really Northern on tv?

[edkwon]

Not being from the UK, i've been trying hard to listen to and appreciate all the different regional accents and dialects across the different peoples from the British Isles, and things like a Welsh accent are glaringly obvious from an english accent.

But even among englanders, when i hear Clarkson do his mocking impressions of different regions of england i.e. cornwall, birmingham, etc, i'm like 'yeah that all sounds *english* to me' kind of like how to an outsider, a boston, new york, texan, minnesotan accents all sound simply *american* yet to ppl within the US, the accents are as different as night and day.

Now my idea of what a northerners accent sounds like is based off of Christopher Eccelstone, since he just speaks his normal voice in Doctor Who, where they make a running joke of the Doctor sounding like a person from the North. Ok i can accept that.

Hammond constantly makes self references of being the 'country bumpkin' and 'token notherner' among the TG presenters, but to me, esp when he does his films, he sounds pretty educated and like a londoner (as far as i can tell).

So to most of you brits who can actually tell, does he keep his northern accent pretty suppressed when he's presenting on tv, and only let it slip out from time to time when he gets worked up? Or does he sound like a typical northerner to you and ppl like me just cannot tell?


In case youre wondering why i ask, i have a strong interest in foreign languages/dialects and regional accents within a foreign language. I have similar interests and knowledge with a lot of east asian languages.

 

[Momo63]

Hammond doesn't have much of an accent at all really. Though he certainly does not sound London to me. There is a slight flattened quality to his vowel sounds - in words like castle , for instance, that betray notherrn influences. Northerner will say castle with the a sound like it is in cat whereas southerners say the a as ahh sound

He has said he had to tone down his accent when he moved house as a child because he had a broad Midlands accent (which is the accent that Jeremy does when mocking Rover and British Leyland workers - the i sound in words like right or night comes out as a oi sound for example)
Just to confuse matters when he is mocking where he lives and jokes about being a yokel that accent is more of a West country (southern) accent

Jeremy too is a northerner - and has the occasionally flat vowel - but went to a posh school so the accent isn't there.

Christopher Ecclestone is from Lancashire which is a very specific type of Northern accent and not to be confused with any other UK northern accent (not unless you want a fat lip!)

Oh and accents aren't about being "educated" by the way - but I don't think you mean that the way it sounded.

I hope that's all as clear as mud
(she said in her "I've lived all over the place but have a slightly Edinburgh twang" accent)

 

[upyourego]

Isn't Hammond a Midlander? He was born and grew up in Sollihul so would have had (growing up) a brummie accent - think Noddy Holder or Jasper Carrot.

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJCJfY7TIko&feature=related[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGU5JmKswEg[/YOUTUBE]

Richard would have been encouraged to surpress his accent and sound more like someone from the South East (Home Counties) by Editors, Producers and other presenters of the BBC Local Stations he was going for interviews with in his early career as it wasn't 'the done thing' to have a regional accent back then.

Although he probably didn't have a particularly strong accent in the first place - at least not as he got slightly older due to moving from the Midlands to Yorkshire - a move between regions always causes a slight accent change.

I was born and grew up in Hertfordshire (South East, Home Counties) and so have a pretty dull accent to be honest.

Oh and I love the Edinburgh accent

 

[teeb]

He doesn't have a particularly noticeable one.

It was stronger in earlier seasons - I noticed it a lot more when watching some of season 1 on youtube, for example.

 

[Rumer]

The only thing I've noticed about Hammond's accent is his tendency to over-stress the "g" in words that end in "ng" like "thinking" or if it's at the end of a syllable like "longer". And it's only noticeable because the other two don't have this tonal quality in their speech.

 

[Momo63]

I think the g emphasis is a throwback to the Midlands accent.

 

[edkwon]

Thanks for the input guys, i've noticed that May sounds like he has the least 'regional' inflections in his speech and sounds like the stereotypical 'BBC broadcast friendly' accent. of course that could be all well rehearsed too.

I find heavy scottish accented english the most difficult to understand amongs the different members of the british isles. For example listening to any sound byte from the decased Colin McRae, it has this very cool musical quality to his speech but i dont catch what half the words are sometimes.

 

[klankymen]

Thanks for the input guys, i've noticed that May sounds like he has the least 'regional' inflections in his speech and sounds like the stereotypical 'BBC broadcast friendly' accent. of course that could be all well rehearsed too.

I find heavy scottish accented english the most difficult to understand amongs the different members of the british isles. For example listening to any sound byte from the decased Colin McRae, it has this very cool musical quality to his speech but i dont catch what half the words are sometimes.

Yeah, I agree. I was watching some Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe, since there was talk about it in another thread here, and amongst others found this video:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cB70wuweyQI]Computers[/youtube]
I could hardly understand a word the dude in the hat was saying....

 

[Matt2000]

Yeah Hammond is from Birmingham, but doesn't sound like Carrot. :lol:

Clarkson has a northern accent, not a strong one though. As he has said before said, he's from Doncaster.

 

[otispunkmeyer]

im from the north.... no he doesnt

 

[Jimbo51]

Yeah, I agree. I was watching some Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe, since there was talk about it in another thread here, and amongst others found this video:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cB70wuweyQI]Computers[/youtube]
I could hardly understand a word the dude in the hat was saying....

"But best of all, are the graphics" :lol:

I love Screenwipe

 

[MWF]

I think the g emphasis is a throwback to the Midlands accent.

I'd agree with that one, being somewhat an amateur student of accents myself for many years, and also having been at Uni in Birmingham.

Interesting we don't hear the flat Yorkshire vowels from JDM that we do from JC even 'though he also grew up in Yorkshire although I believe was born in Bristol.

That said out of all of them the one with the strongest Yorkshire accent is the Stig.

 

[Matt2000]

That said out of all of them the one with the strongest Yorkshire accent is the Stig.

Is that why he's called Stig-ee?

So what's my prize for the worst pun competition?

 

[MWF]

Is that why he's called Stig-ee?

So what's my prize for the worst pun competition?

None. It's Stig-ee not Stig-ee-bar-gum! Not to be confused with the ancient Lancastrian martial art Ecky-thump as once showcased by the Goodies (featuring of course JC's favourite twitcher Bill Oddie!).

[YOUTUBE]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=sWrg1g84Xyk[/YOUTUBE]

You can find parts 2 and 3 yourselves if you're bothered...

 

[Heathrow]

Hammond's accent

Hammond's accent

Hi there,
This is an unusual thread for FG!
Firstly, the previous posts by upyourego, Momo63 and Rumer pretty much cover your main question, I believe.
Secondly, paraphrasing your other question asking if all American accents sound the same to outsiders?
Well the answer is most probably they do sound similar to most people outside the US.

However, as I have visited the US, I can often tell the difference between the city accents of Boston, New York City and San Franciscan. (Bah-stun, Nu Yoike & San Fransiscohhh).
But, I couldn?t easily discern a difference between the accents in IL, IN, OH & MI when I was in the upper middley-bit of the US. (Is that the mid-west?:?)

Finally, as you?re a fan of accents, I hope you caught the midland?s accent joke in 11x06 on the naming of the Mazda Furai.

JC?s quip was that it ?was named by someone from Birmingham?. (i.e. a Brummie)
And he implied that the real name should have been the Mazda Fury, a cool name for a car! JC imagined that the Brummie spoke to the sign painter and pronounced it Furai. Hence, the miss-spelt name on the car in the studio.
(Most people here in the UK probably thought that was very funny, except the Brummies who either ;
a) didn?t get it,

or even better,

b) were sat at home watching ?Tip Gier? saying, ? ? will thit wisint viry funnai ?.? . LMAO ).

 

[Labcoatguy]

Hi there,
This is an unusual thread for FG!
Firstly, the previous posts by upyourego, Momo63 and Rumer pretty much cover your main question, I believe.
Secondly, paraphrasing your other question asking if all American accents sound the same to outsiders?
Well the answer is most probably they do sound similar to most people outside the US.

However, as I have visited the US, I can often tell the difference between the city accents of Boston, New York City and San Franciscan. (Bah-stun, Nu Yoike & San Fransiscohhh).
But, I couldn?t easily discern a difference between the accents in IL, IN, OH & MI when I was in the upper middley-bit of the US. (Is that the mid-west?:?)

edkwon makes these kinds of "ask the Brits" threads on a regular basis, so stick around for a while and you'll see it isn't that unusual But yes, the Midwestern states have reasonably similar accents throughout, though some people have a bit of southern twang mixed in, like my friend from Indiana. Interestingly, the Midwestern accent at some point became, for broadcasting purposes, equivalent to BBC received pronunciation, where TV newscasters and announcers all spoke in that lack-of-accent. More info at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_American .

 

[Heathrow]

... yes, the Midwestern states have reasonably similar accents throughout, though some people have a bit of southern twang mixed in, like my friend from Indiana. Interestingly, the Midwestern accent at some point became, for broadcasting purposes, equivalent to BBC received pronunciation, where TV newscasters and announcers all spoke in that lack-of-accent. More info at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_American .

OK, thanks man.

Am kinda expecting a hail of **** from upset Brummies.

PS How's Katwalk's Beetle or sorry Bug, are you friends again yet? ...

 

[teeb]

Yeah, I agree. I was watching some Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe, since there was talk about it in another thread here, and amongst others found this video:

*snip*

I could hardly understand a word the dude in the hat was saying....

Don't be silly; they don't have an accent*!
*to my ears

Am kinda expecting a hail of **** from upset Brummies.

Don't...I don't think they have internet there yet!

 

[Hiro11]

Secondly, paraphrasing your other question asking if all American accents sound the same to outsiders?
Well the answer is most probably they do sound similar to most people outside the US.

Probably true. Most Americans can tell in about three seconds where someone grew up. I'm sure it's the same in the UK.

However, as I have visited the US, I can often tell the difference between the city accents of Boston, New York City and San Franciscan. (Bah-stun, Nu Yoike & San Fransiscohhh).

Boston and New York are highly distinctive (actually, New York has several different accents), but San Francisco-ites don't have a discernable regional accent. Most Californians have a standard, non-regional American accent.

But, I couldn?t easily discern a difference between the accents in IL, IN, OH & MI when I was in the upper middley-bit of the US. (Is that the mid-west?:?)

The Chicago accent (watch old "Super Fans" skits from SNL for an exaggerated version) is very distinct. I'd say Minnesota is distinct as well (watch "Fargo"). I can pick a Wisconsinite out sometimes, but it's not as distinct. Ohio/Indiana have a fairly standard Midwest accent to my East Coast born (but living in Chicago) ears. A lot of it comes down to diction.

It's funny to me that Clarkson seems to be convinced that all of us Septics talk like stereotypical Texans...

 

[Cole P]

edkwon makes these kinds of "ask the Brits" threads on a regular basis, so stick around for a while and you'll see it isn't that unusual But yes, the Midwestern states have reasonably similar accents throughout, though some people have a bit of southern twang mixed in, like my friend from Indiana. Interestingly, the Midwestern accent at some point became, for broadcasting purposes, equivalent to BBC received pronunciation, where TV newscasters and announcers all spoke in that lack-of-accent. More info at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_American .

I'm from the Midwest but I go to School at Rose-Hulman in Indiana and I have noticed this as well. I feel like I'm in the south but I'm only two hours from Chicago wtf.