Quick British
© 2014 Kimberly Mohne Hill…Dialect Coach
“RP in a Minute”
The following sounds represent the essence of the British Dialect. Adjustments may be made to place your dialect in a more specific region of Britain (e.g. East End/Cockney, Yorkshire or others).
“RP in a Minute” Sentences for Practice
ear ® ih uh:
We’re fearful of nearly all weirdos.
air ® eh uh: (note the “linking r” in the sentence below-notated with )
Where there is care, share the fare. She prepared her hair with care, don’t stare!
oor ® oo uh: (note the “linking r” in the sentence below-notated with )
The poor pure boor is hard to endure.
ore ® oh uh (very rounded):
The Lord of Ford courted forty short girls.
are ® ah: (note the “linking r” in the sentence below-notated with )
Park your car and start your heart. The part of the art was hard to cart.
er ® eh/uh:
Thirty thirsty servants were rehearsing the world’s worst version of “Vertigo”.
oh ® uh oh:
Don’t go to the road show, it’s slow. Joe and Rose know the flow of the crow.
ah ® or (very rounded):
The auditors called all the tawny blondes to the hall. She fawned all over Paul.
ah ® o (rounded and popped):
The hot copper coffee pots popped their tops. Not in the pot, Colin!
Bright ă:
The cat carried the arrow to Harry. Anne is in Paris acting angry at the parish.
Liquid U:
Tuesday, the Duke and the tutor played new tunes on the tuba for the Tudors.
Ask List/ ă → ah:
The staff at the castle thought the master daft as he danced on the grass.
© 2014 Kimberly Mohne Hill…Dialect Coach
“RP in a Minute”
The following sounds represent the essence of the British Dialect. Adjustments may be made to place your dialect in a more specific region of Britain (e.g. East End/Cockney, Yorkshire or others).
- The Question of [R] – if you ever want to find the essence of any dialect in the world, ask yourself what the [r] sounds like in the dialect. When an [r] sound occurs at the end of the word (i.e. “here”) in the British dialect, or in front of a consonant (i.e. “word), the British keep their tongues down behind their bottom teeth in a relaxed position. Many people call this “dropping the [r]”
- The Round Sounds – there are many sounds that the British relish and enjoy, but none so much so than the “round” sounds. The two most round sounds are: [aw] as in “always”, and [o] as in “hot”. With the corners of your lips coming towards each other and your jaw opening two fingers wide, you will get a sense of the roundness of these sounds.
- The British [oh] – The sound [oh] as in “go” has a lovely little “glide” into the sound. If one is of the upper classes, that glide may sound like “eh oh”. A standard RP will have a simple “uh oh” glide, while the lower classes may use a more open and nasal “ah oh”. This is a key sound to achieving the British dialect.
- The Ask List – the most common error made by American actors attempting to perform a British dialect is the over correction of the [ah] sound. Because there exists in Great Britain a number of words which are pronounced with an [ah] sound (whereas in America it would be a short ‘a’ sound), many actors assume that all words with an ‘a’ in the spelling receive the [ah] pronunciation. This is not true and usually results in a ridiculous sound (i.e. “Cahn I hahv ahn ahpple?”). There exists a list of words called the “Ask List” that contains all the words which use the [ah] sound. If a word is not on that list, it is meant to be pronounced with the short ‘a’.
“RP in a Minute” Sentences for Practice
ear ® ih uh:
We’re fearful of nearly all weirdos.
air ® eh uh: (note the “linking r” in the sentence below-notated with )
Where there is care, share the fare. She prepared her hair with care, don’t stare!
oor ® oo uh: (note the “linking r” in the sentence below-notated with )
The poor pure boor is hard to endure.
ore ® oh uh (very rounded):
The Lord of Ford courted forty short girls.
are ® ah: (note the “linking r” in the sentence below-notated with )
Park your car and start your heart. The part of the art was hard to cart.
er ® eh/uh:
Thirty thirsty servants were rehearsing the world’s worst version of “Vertigo”.
oh ® uh oh:
Don’t go to the road show, it’s slow. Joe and Rose know the flow of the crow.
ah ® or (very rounded):
The auditors called all the tawny blondes to the hall. She fawned all over Paul.
ah ® o (rounded and popped):
The hot copper coffee pots popped their tops. Not in the pot, Colin!
Bright ă:
The cat carried the arrow to Harry. Anne is in Paris acting angry at the parish.
Liquid U:
Tuesday, the Duke and the tutor played new tunes on the tuba for the Tudors.
Ask List/ ă → ah:
The staff at the castle thought the master daft as he danced on the grass.