How do I learn to speak with a British accent?

July 5, 2010 - 9:43 pm 9 Comments

I want to learn to speak with a British accent to help broaden the types of acting roles I can get. How can I learn to speak like that well? Nothing exaggerated or "cockneyed"… just everyday speech?

Watch refined British actors in interviews and movies. Watch documentaries of the Queen of England and her speeches. Watch Tony Blair and the speakers in Parliament. You can also buy audio tapes that go through vocal exercises. Although if you haven’t had phonetics book that comes with the tapes might be a little confusing for you.

9 Responses to “How do I learn to speak with a British accent?”

  1. Theatre Doc Says:

    take a dialects class with a good teacher.
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  2. Libby Says:

    watch harry potter
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  3. FLOYD050507 Says:

    take a clas
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  4. .Bliss In Ignorance. Says:

    lol at the girl who said harry potter ;D

    but that’s a good idea, my friend’s mom’s relatives came to the US for a while and i was at her house, and eventually being surrounded by all these british accents made me THINK in a british accent!
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  5. Crazy_Asian_Answers_Alex Says:

    accentuate every few syallables. from a high to low or low to high pitch (not extremely, but subtle)
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  6. jenni Says:

    supprisingly the harry potter thing actually works… also try sticking a cork in your mouth and it makes your vowels longer which helps it sound more british.. also say tall round sound and keep your mouth in the awwh position! good luck!
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  7. Cookie777 Says:

    If you have any British TV shows on TV, watch them. I like "Rosemary and Thyme" for one. Watch "Camelot."
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  8. mamabee Says:

    Watch refined British actors in interviews and movies. Watch documentaries of the Queen of England and her speeches. Watch Tony Blair and the speakers in Parliament. You can also buy audio tapes that go through vocal exercises. Although if you haven’t had phonetics book that comes with the tapes might be a little confusing for you.
    References :

  9. EE360 Says:

    If you do not have the time to find a class there are also some great books with CD’s out there. A few of them are

    Accents: A Manual for Actors- Revised and Expanded Edition by Robert Blumenfeld

    Stage Dialects by Jerry Blunt

    They can also help you in the future for other types of dialects/acccents. They lay everything out very clearly.
    Check out any bookstore or Amazon
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