A Guide to the Birmingham Accent | Brummie

Birmingham has one of the most distinctive accents in Britain. It's called Brummie and it's spoken by famous people such as footballer Jack Grealish, TV presenter Alison Hammond and on the Netflix hit show Peaky Blinders (Tommy Shelby). Here's a short accent analysis for you to enjoy!
▷ NEW BRITISH PRONUNCIATION COURSE WAITLIST 🤩 ▷ tinyurl.com/3y248crp
▷ LEARN WITH TEACHER TOM 👨🏼‍🏫
If you are searching for courses or books to help you learn British English, check out my store where I have loads of great resources ▷shop.eatsleepdreamenglish.com ◀
FREE RESOURCES
▷📚'101 Great British Words to Speak Like A Local' (e-book) ▷ tinyurl.com/nh759hj4
▷🎥 Pronunciation Masterclass (video) ▷ tinyurl.com/3e7sxav4
▷📚 '20 Brilliant Business Phrases (digital book) ▷ tinyurl.com/2b58ackh
COURSES
▷ 🇬🇧 'A Really British Guide to English' Course 🇬🇧 - tinyurl.com/yueyks9e
▷ 🇬🇧 'The Ultimate British English Pronunciation' Course 🇬🇧 - bit.ly/3ygTPPd
▷ 🇬🇧 '30 Days to Better English' Course 🇬🇧 - bit.ly/3HU1NTo
BOOKS
▷ 📚 A Really British Guide to English (PAPERBACK) 📚 - tinyurl.com/ys683z96
▷ 📚 A Really British Guide to English (DIGITAL) 📚 - tinyurl.com/hau88rdw
▷ 📚 A Really British Guide To BUSINESS English (PAPERBACK) 📚 - tinyurl.com/yzuvyjzw
▷ 📚 A Really British Guide To BUSINESS English (DIGITAL) 📚 - bit.ly/3VeG2Tn
PRIVATE LESSONS
▷ 👨🏼‍🏫 Pronunciation Consultation with Teacher Tom 👨🏼‍🏫 - bit.ly/3YSe8gj
▷👨🏼‍🏫 Private 1-1 Classes with Teacher Tom 👨🏼‍🏫 - tinyurl.com/2s6mu4ac
NEWSLETTER
▷ 📝 Sign up to my weekly newsletter 'Bite-sized Britain' 📝 - bit.ly/3RORinZ
WANT MORE ENGLISH VIDEOS? 🎥 CHECK THESE OUT:
22 Things Brits Love: • 22 Things British Peop...
30 British Accents in 1 Video: • 30 British & Northern ...
A Guide to Multicultural London English Accent: • A Guide To Multicultur...
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:48 /eɪ/ as /aɪ/
01:46 Free book offer
02:30 /aɪ/ as /ɔɪ/
03:43 /æ/ on -er / -a
04:55 glottal t
06:11 trap/bath split
07:36 foot/strut split
08:26 h dropping
08:41 th fronting
09:09 TEST YOURSELF
Music by Epidemic Sound (www.epidemicsound.com)

[@bobbiscrittercave2348]

I think Brummie is my favourite accent! I've got a friend from Birmingham, and I love to listen to him speak!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Love that!

[@kayleeng4505]

Does he sound like Grealish?

[@bobbiscrittercave2348]

@@kayleeng4505 pretty much, yeah.

[@KirstinLydon]

Tom, if you're not a Brummie, your pronunciations are spot on. I'm a Brummie, but I have a love-hate relationship with my accent because my dad (different accent to mine) has always mocked the way Brummies talk. I love hearing different accents and dialects.

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Thanks Kirstin! I LOVE the Brummie accent. You should be proud of it! It's got such character and charm. I have a few friends in Brum and they are huge defender of the accent maybe because it often gets criticised from outsiders. I'll be honest, I could listen to Jack Grealish speak all day long. Thanks for taking the time to watch the video : )

[@mikefilimon1584]

Be proud of who YOU are. 😊

[@sheilamariaeyles9358]

Loved it! Well done Tom, so important for learners to understand different features of British accents to become better listeners. 👍

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Agreed! Thanks Sheila : )

[@mikefilimon1584]

I really enjoy how you break down the various dialects of the UK. As a US native English speaker, many of us get a “blurred” impression and you easily and (I feel anyway) accurately break down and he regional differences. The effort and time in which you invest into these videos is very evident! Thanks Bud/Mate!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

That's such a lovely comment mate, thank you very much!

[@ksiazepaweek1064]

Is this comment in english?

[@ericmartin3681]

I feel ready for a trip to Birmingham now! Thank you, Tom!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Hehehe pack your bags Eric : )

[@andyritter8627]

Tom, love ya! You are so much fun to watch with all your enthusiasm. And you are brilliantly explaining local sound shifts in pronunciation. Thanks so much! Hello from Berlin

[@Notreallyhere817r]

As an official brummie this is pretty spot on, some was more of a black country accent as thats a stronger accent and we call them yam yams. Im very proud of my accent and most of us are 👍

[@darrenwilson99]

Never be ashamed of where you are from.

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Cheers Jamie : ) I've got a few friends in Brum and I've noticed how proud locals are of their accent. I love that! All the best : )

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Well said Darren!

[@BrooklynNan1]

You truly are a wonderful Teacher, Tom! Your enthusiasm is infectious. Love everything ESD English! Thank you!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Aww what a lovely comment! Thank you so much : ) More accent videos on the way

[@ixbands9783]

As a Brummie I love this video..thanks for giving it a platform 😊

[@YinYeung11]

I subscribed ❤Thank you for this video, really learned as myself have been living UK over 20yrs as HongKonger 🎉

[@carlitoz82718]

I love your videos so much… Always so accurate and on point

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Aye! Thanks mate, really glad you liked it. I try to do as much research as possible and I'm happy to see quite a few Brummies leaving positive comments on this video. More to come ; )

[@carlitoz82718]

@@EatSleepDreamEnglish since moving to the states when i was 18 yrs old my accent remained the same from Bradford with influences from brummie as well except now i pick up all the California slang with a English accent 😆..

[@lucindawinehouse2002]

I Love your Brummie accent Tom You are so good at doing these types accents

[@lana_lewinsky]

Absolutely loved it!!! I’d love to watch Scouse accent, I think it’s gonna be interesting 😍

[@bentleyferguson2.1]

Tom! Appreciate the effort to create this video. ❤ It Tom

[@user-ep7wo2ws5z]

thank you so much for the video! You are great!!

[@buonleo]

Hai baibi! Sounds great 😄

[@davidalen2590]

Love it! Thank you.

[@patm8941]

Thank you Tom! 💙 Very interesting video! 👍😁 If you could.. Edinburgh accent please 🙏😄

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Yes....I guess I'll have to visit Edinburgh and do some on the ground research ; )

[@rapamayor]

Great! Now I understand where the sounds of "...I am Billy Kimber, I run the races..." come from. Thank you!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Ahhh so Billy Kimber speaks with a London/Cockney accent for some reason. For example he uses that schwa sound on the -er of Kimber whereas Brummie speakers might use an /æ/

[@monimure2249]

Thank you!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

You're welcome!

[@sox3443]

Brummie accent has now become fashionable due to Jack, Ozzy and Alison... and also, of course, the Peaky Blinders. It used to be frowned upon, but the change in attitude to the Midlands voice has been amazing.

[@Giovanniditessitore]

Exactly what happened to the Irish accent in the 90s

[@billyJaro2765]

Make an extensive video about the Cockeny accent covering all the features there. 🙏🏻🙏🏻please cause it's the best in my opinion

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Oh for sure mate! Cockney is on the to-do list.

[@bethmeredith]

Interesting accent.

[@user-sv3wq5kh4s]

It's brilliantly, smashing, cracking, so interesting ! I ❤ U.

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Glad you enjoyed it mate!

[@amurotooru293]

Hope you do a video feature the cockney accent

[@pattygalarce8019]

Thank you Tom 🌈

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

My pleasure Patty : )

[@annauralochka1999]

I love love love ALLLLL British accents❤

[@kayleeng4505]

Hi. For the next video , can you do a world english accent quiz and explain how to differentshade international accents from around the world? Thxx

[@vs9950]

I'd really love to hear the Welsh accent, as it is rarely addressed - or Mancunian 🥰

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Agreed! It's one I know very little about so I'll have to do lots of research before making it, but I will do!

[@2jcward]

They sound American to me

[@nanabee2129]

good teacher

[@blancaelizabethmorales1414]

Brummie it’s my fav accent in whole UK ❤

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Really? Love that!

[@blancaelizabethmorales1414]

Yeah! I love that accent 😀

[@vs351]

The North Wales' accent would be good to hear some day🙂 Freshly coming there I got next to nothing.

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Great shout!

[@nibsyfunro8112]

Impressive

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Glad you liked it my friend!

[@hiroshi5460]

Brumie?! just BOSTIN accent...! 😂❤👍

[@realmadzero]

I'm from Georgia in the us and to me, this sounds to me like a mix of what we consider a common "british accent" and what we consider a "Louisiana Cajun accent".

[@emilywhite9123]

Can you analyze Jamie Tart from Ted Lasso’s accent 😂😊

[@liamhowse1765]

During the pandemic i used to live in brum im originally from coventry and picked up the accent quickly whenever i visited my step dad he would always rip me for picking up the accent. 😂😂

[@roberto-qy2ys]

I'd like eat sleep dream english release a mackem/geordie accent video

[@03markimark]

Very good

[@derbylied9553]

Arthur Shelby has perhaps one of the broadest brummie/brummy accent I have ever heard does not sound too different to the actor real accent he just sounds broad general.

[@girijasworld6158]

Hi I would like to join the class for Birmingham accent it’s very hard to understand how to join your online classes please do reply

[@summersky5648]

My friend simps of Brad Simpson of the vamps who’s born in Birmingham, his slight accent is from Brad

[@euniceanthony2892]

Hello Teacher Tom. What city Speaks the Multi cultural London accents?

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Hey Eunice, the clue is in the name.....London! However, through social media and TV shows like Top Boy it is spreading across the country particularly in urban areas. I'll do MLE very soon!

[@aguantevoltaire2982]

Have you ever heard any memeber of UB 40's band speaking ? OMG!! That's very really brummie accent!!!😳 Sometimes I've got to hear them twice to understand it

[@mosku66]

I see Peaky Blinders.... I give a like.

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Hehehe nice!

[@chriscoughlan5221]

my accent is my achilles heal, so it seems, nobody outside brum understands me! which plays havoc with my chosen profession, english teacher in spain!

[@euniceanthony2892]

Please Feature the Multi cultural London accent In the next video!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Yes yes! I can't wait to do MLE!!!!

[@thegteam4349]

I watched the entire Peaky Blinders series with closed captions on. Absolutely loved listening to these guys talk but man, I can’t understand a word they’re saying. Fookin’ right, Arthur?!

[@couli1807]

Great video. We want scouse accent of course! Then cockney!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Sure thing! It seems like Scouse is the one everyone wants : )

[@juanap132]

I'm interested in the Liverpool accent and the Middlesbrough accent😃

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Ohh two great shouts! Thanks : )

[@calgoulden8223]

Please do Glaswegian!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Ahhh yes!!! Bloody love a Glaswegian accent : )

[@stanheidelberg9412]

Tom: "bastard", how great is that word 💀

[@user-cr7tk9qu9e]

Does Joe Sparkes from Fireman Sam speak with a Brummie accent?

[@user-un6yu5up8o]

I'm an American but this is amy parents' accent. Oddly enough, it's one of the hardest for me to identify. I think it just sounds like a regular English accent to me.

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Thanks for commenting. I guess my question to you would be what is a 'regular' English accent? I'm guessing you mean received pronunciation which is actually only spoken by about 3-4% of Brits. It is the one, however, that gets the most exposure in popular culture and teaching materials. Give Peaky Blinders a watch and after the first few episodes I'm sure you'll have tuned your ear to Brummie : ) All the best from across the pond. Teacher Tom

[@dramaturge231]

@@EatSleepDreamEnglishI guess it sounds like regular English to him because he’s used to his parents speaking it.

[@user-un6yu5up8o]

@@EatSleepDreamEnglish no, it's just the accent I think of when I think of an English accent. Which makes sense but also makes it hard for me to distinguish. To me it's like a flat Midwest accent here in the States.

[@cwegers3]

It must have had some influence on the Australian accent.

[@marwamarwa4217]

Jude Bellingham ❤

[@brandon6175]

As A Canadian Lad learning a Birmingham accent and I can speak it accurately

[@boxfullofhoney]

Most beautiful Brummie accent of all times with that genuine nasal sound was Nick Rhodes accent when he was young, added to that deep and sexy voice. I love when he says " I mean uummm 😅 Now he sounds more like a Londoner, still sounds very enjoyable for me ❤

[@GeminiMoon1994]

Just a note, Grealish didn’t use a rolling ‘r’ when saying favourites. The rolling r doesn’t feature as much with younger Brummies and Black Country folk.

[@Katiethatgirl1993]

Do the Phelps twins aka the Weasley twins from Harry Potter have Birmingham accent? 🙂

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

I think they speak with more of an estuary English accent if my memory serves me well. It's from the home counties outside London.

[@chindie88]

They do. They are from Sutton Coldfield, a part of Birmingham. The films make the Weasley side characters Brummie - Molly and Arthur are both also played by Brummies, and Domhnall Gleeson plays Bill with a Brummie accent.

[@xyzpdq1122]

Would Brummie use “thing” or “fing”?

[@JC-yz1sf]

Hmm, could this have changed over the last 30 years? I’ve been listening to John Taylor, Roger Taylor and Nick Rhodes from Duran Duran speaking for the last 40 years. this sounds really different from how they speak. Some specifics… if they say “years” it’s Yeaaahs or “something” it’s more like “somethink”. Weird. Of course I still luv how they all say “Juran Juran”❤

[@23max232323232323]

You're great teacher and admire your work. For some reason, I don't find the way you speak very pleasant. That is just my personal taste though. This goes to show that accents don't really matter, it's also personal. Probably 99% of your followers like the way you speak. Any accent is fine as long as it's clear. I find the Brummie accent pleasant.

[@bonarlumbanraja5400]

Do you sound Birmingham accent a bit closer to a black (African) English accent? I might be wrong

[@marek.lukasz]

Baby = babby in Brummie. I love this word.

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Love this too!

[@Giovanniditessitore]

Just to confirm did Jack grow up in Brum? And also Brum is huge so the diversity of Brum accents will match this. To me saying someone has a brummie accent suggests they are all the same and they are not. Think of London the megacity how many versions of their accent do they have ?

[@hasib1371]

What about the R

[@trampc9826]

Northampton accent sounds like Bummie too. Can I say that?

[@alangudgin7145]

All the Brummies I've known pronounce laugh as ''larf''.

[@bslday]

maybe Cumbrian one ain't bad idea either;)

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

It's a great idea!

[@manoel7067]

What about Welsh accent?

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Great shout mate!

[@NygmaNL]

Is this the same accent they use for people in the North in GOT?

[@jonnydepp8596]

No mate, that’s northern English, Brummie is West Midlands accents

[@ginnabaker2725]

Jamie Tart, is that you? 😛

[@fernandorodriguezm.5766]

Hahaha

[@Lee2wavvy]

Scouse accent next

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

I think that's a great shout!

[@vothanhthien4687]

I'm asian, my english teacher told me why I don't try to practice British Accent. But I certainly did it. I mean...Brummie accent 😅

[@breachofthepeace1829]

You’re not Douglas Murray’s son are you?

[@yenloong151]

Glaswegian accent

[@GenX-Rising]

Season 1 episode 1 "Are you Lee boys making fun of my brutha?" Middle man: Oi! This is Thomas Shelby!! His grandfather was a king!! A Roma!! Idiot: But his mother was a poxy whore" Middle Man: 'shrugs, I tried to save your eyes, but I'm not getting in the middle of this.. Tommy and Arthur: 'blinds them with their caps without saying any words.. awesome way to establish their brotherhood. Reminds me of Cesare Borgia, the commander general of the Papal Army, his own army of mercenaries he paid for, and he was cunning and became best bros with the king of France and the the king gave him another army and a wife that brought him a dowry large enough to hire Leonardo da Vinci and give him complete control over his defenses and Cesare paid with what he wanted access to for years, an infinite supply of corpses, living if need be, because da Vinci was an anatomist and a surgeon and physician and was able to use those bodies for his sketches that ended up getting rid of useless procedures and correcting over 250 incorrection in the accepted medical manual, but Cesare also had a dude in the shadows named Michelleto, he stayed to the shadows and assassinated several high profile targets like bishops and generals that betrayed or planned to betray Cesare but he was always a step ahead cause of his right hand that never came out of the shadows. Just one glance to each other and they knew what the other wanted to do to their captured enemy.. I'm digressed so hard. But I guess this is more like Arthur is Tommy's loyal and highly trained pitbull that will F anyone up when given the right look and he does it without question. Micheleto was a psychopath but knew Cesare was the best master for a killer of his kind and they became total bros

[@MjolnirMarks]

Mate, you’re bordering on South African on a lot of your sentences 😂

[@1973stefanp]

This is good, but as someone from Birmingham I do get annoyed at these as well. The examples you use - Hammond, Osbourne & Grealish - are all from the same side of Birmingham; Hammond is from Northeast Brum & Ozzy & Jack from Southeast Brum. If you look at west Birmingham accents, they are very different. Northwest Birmingham goes into the Blackcountry, which we all know is something completely different, and in southwest Brum, where I am from, we sound almost more like Worcester accents. In the southwest most of us pronounce laughter as in 'larrrfter' and not 'laffter'. The bath-trip split is not as black and white as you say it is at all. You go into Harborne, or Edgbaston - both middleclass suburbs in southwest Birmingham - and NO ONE speaks like the examples you use, and many use the 'southern' bath-trap pronunciation. Whenever any 'expert' not from Birmingham, who does not have the local knowledge, tries to explain a Birmingham accent, they always do the same as you do, which is highlight one side of Birmingham!

[@badlydrawnsmiffy]

Often described!? It IS, the 2nd city, knob!

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

🤣 wow! You touchy about the subject?

[@badlydrawnsmiffy]

@@EatSleepDreamEnglish I'm touchy about poor word usage, people just spit out sentences without actually thinking about the meanings of words, it's lazy and it annoys me.

[@badlydrawnsmiffy]

I'm mildly miffed at you not using "Are" or "are".

[@secondcity11]

I'm a Brummie and never say matter like that. It's more of a younger person speak.

[@riccardo-964]

"would you rather have chlamydia or a brummie accent?" - first option won in the poll 85-15

[@stephenridley1153]

I hope your treatment has cured you

[@marapuchanel1950]

Gila

[@prasetyoadinugroho2625]

Brummie is easier for Indonesians

[@toji-ok4hq]

Toooomoiey

[@snowf6307]

I'm here because of Roderika from Elden Ring lmao

[@user-jf6ho7ld7q]

Ahh, it's bostin!

[@daisyh8481]

More Black Country then brum

[@curiositycloset2359]

1 million? More like 4 mate

[@davidwilliams9504]

It’s Bahbi or bab not baby

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Yeah fair point. I just wanted to exemplify the change in the vowel sound but you are right lexically Brummies would probably choose 'bab'

[@hussainjalbaniedits]

Most difficult accent 😂

[@cashcraft36]

Who’re you having to call a bastard Tom?😂

[@Lord_of_The_World]

Explains why my neighbor pronounces shit as shiat

[@stephenridley1153]

Obviously they're not from Harborne 😂

[@djulbey]

Twenty ai een

[@darrenwilson99]

I'm more disappointed in Jack's superfluous use of like rather than the pronunciation. From a Brummie...who is also a bluenose.

[@EatSleepDreamEnglish]

Hey Darren, could you explain 'bluenose' to me please?

[@alangudgin7145]

@@EatSleepDreamEnglish A Bluenose is a supporter of Birmingham City (The Blues).

[@user-gt2ud2gw9e]

I think you're wasting your time - we want to HEAR the accent, not just to be lectured on phonetics in an RP accent which we can hear anywhere. Total waste of time.