The Birmingham Accent From Shakespeare to Peaky Blinders Explained by Accent Coach

Birmingham is Britain's second city and there are many speakers from the region including John Oliver, Ozzy Osbourne and Peaky Blinders. William Shakespeare was from the region. Did he have a Brummie accent? Some rhymes in Shakespeare only work in a Birmingham accent. Find out more in the video.
Many thanks to Luke Nicholson @ImproveYourAccent for his taking part in the video and providing his expertise.
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00:00 Famous people from Birmingham
01:59 A bit of history
03:59 Jess Phillips and the phonology of the Birmingham accent
06:47 Birmingham and the Black Country accents
9:45 Was Shakespeare a Brummie

[@ChrisRamsbottom]

As a native... I'm glad you showed Timothy Spall in Auf Wiedersehen Pet. Of all the people who tried to sound as if they came from the area, he is the only one that succeeded. I could even pin it down to the rough area at one point (just north of Wolverhampton perhaps). Re Shakespeare, because I had quite a pronounced accent at school, I was given Falstaff to read when we studied Henry IV part 1. But then the teacher gave me Mistress Quickly to read because she said it had actual Black Country words in it - and she was right! Oh and "bus" - is pronounced "buz" across the Birmingham and Black Country region, and also over to Coventry where I now live. Cilian Murphy's accent in Peaky Blinders, however, is a hybrid and I think reflects the fact that his character either wasn't born in Brum, or his parents weren't.

[@thedanielstraight]

Another Brummie I could listen to all day is Tony Iommi, the guitarist for Black Sabbath.

[@Idonious]

Hi guys! Great video and thank you as well for covering the Black Country alongside, as I think both regions compliment each other in terms of accent, dialect and culture. I'm originally from Halesowen, which I see as being towards the Birmingham end of the Black Country, as the city centre is very accessible from there. As some have already written, in the Black Country you tend to hear more "yow am" rather than "you are", hence why Brummies call us yam yams. Though some dialectal words do indeed cross over, I've heard the word "donnies" (hands or fingers) being a word used in both Birmingham and the Black Country. One way of speaking that I'm sure is very much Black Country however is the tendency to use "her" rather than "she" with the h dropped. So rather than "she's done that" you'll hear "'er's done that"

[@gmansid3576]

You’d need to be from the West Midlands to know and hear the difference between a Brummie and Black Country accent. Basically the latter is much stronger with some dialect that probably goes back to Old English with a bit of Welsh thrown in. The Brummie accent could be called ‘’Black Country Lite’ A similar but milder accent modified by waves of immigration over the last 200 years.

[@LetThemTalkTV]

Thanks for your insight.

[@Romalvx]

It’s always great to listen to your clever and so well explained topics!

[@indmych]

I found the comment about about musical scales very interesting. It didnt immediately unlock understanding (it is a very tin ear that I'm trying to educate), but I was intrigued and will keep it in mind.

[@OceanChild75]

I have never thought of Shakespeare being a proto-Brummie but your theory kind of makes make sense! 🤔 It has always surprised me that France, Italy Spain have had loads of regional languages that made it to the 19th and 20th century whilst England doesn’t appear to have any (unless we include Cornish) yet has such a large variety of accents. People from Toulouse love saying "l'accent toulousain c'est la musique d'une langue dont on aurait oublié les paroles", I’ve always found it very poetic and somehow revealing

[@LetThemTalkTV]

You're right. I've read that only 20% of the French population had French as a first language at the time of the French revolution. Though it all depends what you consider a dialect and what you consider a language. There are some strong dialects in Britain but are they separate languages? Often the answer is political rather than linguistic.

[@OceanChild75]

@@LetThemTalkTV you are raising an excellent point! Yes there is still that debate on whether or not Scot is a language. I suppose it would be the equivalent of viewing langue d’oïl as a language and what we now know as "French" a dialect of it, I’ve never thought about it this way!

[@richardhanks8600]

When I last went to Stratford it was in Warwickshire, not Staffordshire!!

[@williammoore9794]

One of the main differences between the Birmingham accent and Black Country is the latter conjugate the verb 'to be' differently. These means instead of 'you are' they say 'you am'. This is why Brummies call people from the Black Country 'Yam Yams'. You will also find that people from the West Midlands pronounce (and spell) the word 'Mum' as 'Mom'.

[@LetThemTalkTV]

It's good to get feedback from a local. thanks

[@ChrisRamsbottom]

The Black Country conjugation of the verb "to be" is very similar to the German one: ar bin, yow bist, he/she is, we am, yow am, they am.

[@isabellesimon7101]

Always so amazingly interesting!

[@LetThemTalkTV]

Thanks Isabelle and Happy New Year

[@FionaEm]

I've always thought our Aussie a's, i's and o's are quite similar to the Brummie ones, only less exaggerated. If they said words like cut and run the way we do, the two accents would be even closer.

[@katrinstoetzel1873]

Very interesting! Could you please do a video about the dialects east of Birmingham, like Coventry?

[@isabelatence7035]

Great job! Only on this channel is there a detailed study of accents, I really enjoy it, subjects I never thought I would have in the English language, I'm waiting for the next video, stay well teachers!✨🤓

[@LetThemTalkTV]

Many thanks, there are still a few more to come. I'll be releasing them in the coming months.

[@isabelatence7035]

@@LetThemTalkTV Nice to know Gideon

[@AnnaAnna-uc2ff]

Thank you.

[@raffaellabarbierato8854]

What an engaging topic! I love diving into the history of the English language, and even if Shakespeare's identity is disputed (which doesn't matter in this context), the influence of a particular accent on poetic rhymes is truly fascinating.

[@LetThemTalkTV]

Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare but those looking to dispel the ludicrous theories that his plays were written by somebody else can point to the fact that there is evidence that he wrote rhymes that reflected his own accent.

[@lorenasmartevents5354]

Very educational video! Ty so much for sharing. Now I see that not all British accents are the same . It helped me to understand certain inflections.(different bkindsof accents for the same word ...wirhin the same country! Like the word Day.. depending upon the city, it may be pronounced day normal pronunciation, or daaay.😮🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@ialsodani]

Thanks for this informative video, two of my buddies are from Birmingham and I feel sometimes disoriented when I talk to them unless they notice my perplex and change a bit their accents.

[@LetThemTalkTV]

I hope you're feeling a little less disoriented now.

[@ialsodani]

@@LetThemTalkTV it Chrystal clear now but interaction and listening has made even easier thanks for sharing your video

[@SOUTHALLAlanTMobilityScooter]

Thanks!

[@LetThemTalkTV]

@southallalantmobilityscooter Many thanks for your tip. Much appreciated. Glad you liked the video.

[@rickebuschcatherine2729]

Ah the peaky blinders, I saw a documetary about then on Histoire, a french chanel

[@amiryazdani2318]

❤❤

[@phazesix]

As an American & Duranie since 1982, most of my Brummie accent exposure comes from interviews with them over the years. Obviously as an American I wouldn't be good at picking up the subtle differences in English accents. The main thing with the 3 from Birmingham that I noticed (from the 80s..now they've all lost it a bit)...is the K at the end of 'ing'. Like snowingK, drivingK, etc. I only notice the U sounding more northerrn when Roger Taylor speaks, not the other 2. I used to hear it on Kat Deeley too when she said 'jUdges'. Nick Rhodes obviously had the slowest, dragged out way of speaking in the 80s, now he speaks much faster. I didn't know John Oliver was from Birmingham...no wonder I like him! Easiest for me to tell the difference is north vs south because of the U's.

[@user-cc2ux9ew1r]

With those headphones, you Look like a pilot to day Gideon

[@ceilconstante640]

You forgot about Ozzy Osbourne!

[@sawciveng3801]

Is it true that the brummie intonation is boring ( sentences end with a low fall)? , I'm not a native English speaker, but I find it pretty warm

[@ImproveYourAccent]

Each accent has its own intonation system and its patterns might signify different attitudes/grammar (e.g. questions/statements) compared to your or my native accent. For this reason, it's not helpful to interpret someone's intonation pattern through our intonation system (unless we have the same accent). Personally, I don't interpret Brummie intonation as "boring" - I find it quite pleasantly musical.

[@gmansid3576]

It’s not boring, it’s actually quite musical and friendly. Unfortunately the ‘Brummie’ accent you’re most likely to hear will be of the highly exaggerated type learned in southern drama schools for the BBC etc. For example most of the ‘Peaky Blinder’ actors spoke with quite an hilarious accent which put many real Brummies off from watching the show.

[@Escapee5931]

I use the word "year" as the marker for whether someone is from Birmingham or from the Black Country. A Brummie will say it to rhyme with "her", Wheras a Black Countryman will say it to rhyme with "ear".

[@bmwofboganville456]

I think Brummies call people from the Black Country "Yam Yams".

[@amkondratenkov]

It's curious that the greatest english ( Shakespear) and russian(Pushkin) poet should be read in middle dialects. Middle english and middle russian accordingly

[@manjirabanerjee7169]

I reckon Daniel Radcliff as Harry Potter delivered a Brummie accent . Correct me pls if am wrong.Thanks Sir G.

[@gruu]

The Black sabbath accent!

[@luxpursuits]

Cillian does not sound Brummy at all in Peaky Blinders.

[@chiscoughlan5221]

And UB40

[@rasklaat2]

I agree with this guy at 8:47. I felt the same when watching GoT. There is a lot of British accents in it and Brummie is very conspicuous by its absence.

[@davidgriffiths9156]

There is a world of difference between the Black Country dialect and the Brummy accent.Although I am from just outside the Black Country (Walsall), I always say I am from the Black Country rather than be called a Brummy.

[@chiscoughlan5221]

I envy jeff lyne, cuz all my working life i have nothing but insults! Taking the pee!! In my new life teaching english, i struggle to be understood by students and teacher colleagues!!??

[@iainmc9859]

Shakespeare was not a Brummie, no more than somebody from St Albans is a Cockney. Shakespeare was a Warwickshire lad and the last time I looked Staffordshire was north of Birmingham. I was born a Brummie, right in Peaky Blinder territory, although I was brought up about as close to Yamyamland (the Black Country, so called because the buildings were stained black by the smoke of 19th century industries) as you could get and still be in Warwickshire. West Midlands is really just a recent political conglomeration. The accent is an amalgamation of Saxon, Anglian and Welsh, which probably long preceded 19th and 20th century immigrations; essentially Old English Mercian with an open vowel sound, aeiou just become variations of a rounded extended u. Although I moved away half a lifetime ago it is still the friendliest most laid back accent in the UK. The worst Brummie trait, presuming everyone else has a great self-deprecating sense of humour, unfortunately not true of other parts of the world.

[@LetThemTalkTV]

Yes, Sorry I got my geography mixed up. Perhaps he wasn't a Brummie but it's an interesting theory nevertheless and, remember, this was prior to the industrial revolution so the accents around Birmingham and Warwickshire may had been similar at that time.

[@iainmc9859]

I'm going to beg to differ there. Pre -industrial revolution accents were even more localised simply because most people travelled less. The Thames Valley accent has spread so widely in the south east, along the south coast and also into East Anglia simply because of ease of transport and mass communication. There was a report out last week that the rhotic R is disappearing in East Lancashire, being replaced by a more generalised northern (English) accent. I'd totally agree though that Shakespearean text is much easier to make flow with a mid north/south accent (Mercian) which is perhaps why so many great Shakespearian actors come from English speaking Wales.@@LetThemTalkTV

[@trinalane6576]

I enjoy your work. I always learn something and find you entertaining. However.......you lose me when you write a handout. No shade, I think you're charming.

[@giampaolo5356]

Please, consider the possibility that the real author of Shakespeare's plays wasn't the businessman Shaksper from Stratford upon Avon, but a group of writers leaded by the great anglo-italian humanist John Florio!

[@LetThemTalkTV]

Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare. 300 years after Shakespeare's death Victorian snobs came up with the ludicrous theories that his work must have been written by someone upper class. They persist to this day.

[@giampaolo5356]

@@LetThemTalkTV It's not a question about upper class but a question about knowledge! Christopher Marlowe and Ben Johnson had a social origin even more humble than Shaksper's, but their culture is well known! And John Florio, great friend and collaborator of Johnson (who defined him "my father" and "the aide of my Muse"), was the only one who possessed the necessary knowledge to write most of Shakespeare's plays. Infact, according to Saul Frampton (a brave scholar of Westmister University) Florio was fairly sure the author of the editing of First Folio.

[@LetThemTalkTV]

It still sounds like Victorian snobbishness to me. They refused to believe that a humble middle class lad could acquire such knowledge. Of course he could. Shakespeare was famous in his own lifetime. These theories appeared much later on.

[@iainmc9859]

Are you trying to say that a lower middle-class fairly well educated Warwickshire son, that was well appraised of current political events (close ties to the Gunpowder plotters) in the post-Reformation world could not have the culture or individual talent to write good poetry, farcical comedies and tragedies that have the same doom laden foreshadowing of classical Greece. There were many great writers during this flowering of English literature. That Warwickshire lad was one of them !

[@giampaolo5356]

Despite your considerable culture, you evidently ignore that there are no references to Shaksper as a playwriter (just legal and commercial records as businessman or actor for him), but only references to the literary identity "Shakespeare", wich is just a literary identity as "Homer"! I obviously don't possede the truth, but why would we have passively to accept a false tradition just born at the beginning of the XVIII century?

[@tmp3477]

I’ll never understand the fascination of the English with accents. It is almost as morbid as the Hindu caste system in that it stems from an insular vision of a confined, static and class-based world where people are pigeonholed as soon as they open their mouth.

[@evgenyk.4681]

Just for extention of knowledge is OK.. Nevertheless, for education, it is a wasting of time.. Because for non-native speaker pronunciation lessons are most useless lessons at all.. We cannot pick the difference hiGH and high... mIgration vs migration...

[@BE-tw9de]

Check the IPA to develop an appreciation for what they're talking about. I'm a foreign language English speaker by the way.