大象传媒

We are not adding any new comments to this page but you can still read some of the comments previously submitted by readers.

Jon & Chris
We are from Bristol, and we think that the Bristolian accent is legendary as there is no other one like it! We're proud of our accent, and we dont no why people look down on us. City For promotion, come on you reds!!!

Jen
it would be sad to lose our bristol accent. if posh members of the opposite sex don't like the way we speak, we can stick together!

liz
I'm a Bristolian born and bred and am proud of my accent. I'm now living in deepest, darkest Essex and am often asked where I am from as I have such a 'nice' accent. There b'aint be nothing wrong with talking gert proper Bristol!!

Nick Cooke
I was born and lived in Bristol until I moved away when I was twenty four. Not once was I told my accent sounded great. Our accents were made fun of everywere we went outside of Bristol. But when I moved to the USA, from the moment I landed EVERY women I have spoken to say's "You have a great accent" I chuckle inside. So if you don't like people in England making fun of your Farmer Giles accent move to the US, Cus here 'man' they can't tell the diference between a Chinese and a Wurzel accent one bit. OOOWRR.

Eric Jackson
I lived and worked in Bristol for a while (now back home in Manchester) but it is always a delight to come "home" to Bristol, as I do frequently, and part of that delight is to hear the delicious accent. I have noticed some of the variations that Geoff Davis describes, most of the lasses in my office used the "statement that sounds like a question" delivery which took some getting used to. I can also recall with pleasure hearing one young smart suited lad asking "Why youm want a gurt big 'ouse loik thart?" I thought that this had been done for my benefit but it was entirely genuine. After leaving Bristol (sob!) I worked in Birmingham and I have to say that I don't have the same affection for the Brum accent as I do for Bristaw. Just for the record, I must add that 90 odd per cent of Mancunians don't try to sound like Liam and Noel Gallagher, this is simply an affectation to give themselves some strange "Manc Street Cred" and doesn't it sound AWFUL? Give me Bristol any day!

Dave
Full marks to Geoff Davis for exposing some of the myths. Where did this 'Brissle' thing come from? Could it be from 'Dirk Robson' himself, with his 'Krek Bristle' in the 70s? Geoff is also bang on about the wide variety of Bristol accents. Many of them have been influenced by other accents, especially recently, and they're just as kosher as the more traditional ones. On the other hand, 'plastic' Bristolians don't seem to be able to recognise anything but the most hackneyed stereotypes (accurate or not) as being Bristolian - even if they strike the native ear as sounding more like they're from Devon or East Anglia. The levels of ignorance about this are amazing. I've even had an Irishman tell me that I can't be a proper Bristolian because I don't say 'proper job'. Wurr's fink I'm from, Cormwall?

Simon Hancock
I was brought up in Bristol, with parents and a sibling who have evident Bristolian accents, and I also had a slight accent. Because I wanted to study journalism, and have a career in broadcasting, I decided to have elocution lessons while at University, and within weeks, my Bristolian accent began to disappear. It reappears when I am tired, and I will never be able to rid it completely - some words I mutter still have a slight Bristol twang, but on the whole, most people are surprised when I tell them I was born and raised in Bristol. I think peoples' views and opinions are perceived through our accents and dialect, for that matter. If you are happy to speak with the accent, all well and good. For those who either do not like it, or would rather get rid of it for career reasons, then I think that is acceptable. It is more important "not" to be ashamed of where you came from.

Max
Charlotte is missing the point: its not about whether people should have a certain impression of her accent - its merely proving that they do.

Tony
It would be a very dull un-interesting country if our regional accents start to disappear.Your accent is part of what makes you individual and I'm always suspicious of people with one of those completely bland un-identifiable voices.I dislike the gradual introduction of more and more Americanisms ( You know what I'm saying..? ) into daily conversation.Bristolian is what we are and Bristolian is what we should speak.Gurt Lush me Babbers.

richard
if people dont like our accent to hell with them. we have a lot to be proud of in bristol the way we speak is part of who we are.

Geoff Davis
I watched the programme with interest, and also the PointsWest preview. James' Bristol accent is spot on, but there seem to be quite a lot of embarrassing inaccuracies floating about. For starters, no Bristolian says Bristle or Brizzle. It's Bristaw! The T is pronounced! However, the second syllable is an "aw" sound, as in Russiaw, Americaw, Chinaw. It sounds as though we put an "l" on the end, but in actual fact the l is barely audible after the "aw" sound. As for the expression "proper job", the only person living in Bristol who I've ever heard using that term came from South Devon! And as for Derek Robinson having lost his accent! Nonsense. He speaks what I and my friends used to call "Poshstolian"; in other words, he takes great care over his diction but can't rid himself of the Bristol burr. Former Lord Mayor, Graham Robertson was another exponent of this way of speaking. As for James' blind date experiment, I think an overall winner would have been an intermediate accent. It's isn't just "posh" or "broad Bristol", both of which can be off putting for a lot of people. Ex Spurs and Bristol Rovers footballer, Gary Mabbutt is an example of what I would call someone with an intermediate accent, i.e. noticeably Bristol, but certainly not very broad. And there are a great many Bristolians who do speak like him. Finally, I think the variations within the Bristol accent are fascinating. Besides the ones already mentioned, there's the Bristolian with a weak "R", the Bristolian hippy, Estuary Bristolian, the Bristolian who always makes statements in a questioning tone of voice and so on and so forth. I have great fun taking them off. I can hear you saying "that ain't never right!", but it is!

charlotte
I am from bristol, i dont see why people think so little of the bristolian accent. I am very proud of my accent and wouln't change it for the world. I have to say i was quite offended about what some of those women said about our accent!