Liverpool Accent: How To Do A Scouse Accent

The Liverpudlian accent is one of my favourites and is probably my strongest from growing up listening to Grandad ‘Grumps’ who hailed from Waterloo, Liverpool. Whenever I find myself slipping into a bit of sing- song- Scouse, the accent always brings a smile to my face. Everything sounds so much better and jovial in a Scouse accent! Also if i’ve over learned a monologue that’s become stale with repetition, repeating it in the Scouse accent is my favourite tool for getting the colours back into it.

The most important aspect of the Scouse accent to get right is making sure that you speak in a higher pitch than your natural placement. When Liverpudlians are speaking, it’s this high pitch of the accent combined with rising intonations (end of sentences going up) that results in the accent sounding so friendly and open up. These rising intonations have the power of keeping someone listening too, as it gives the feeling the person holds the conversational ground when ending on a high note (i’m trying to keep my language geeking out to a minimum here so apologies if i’ve gone to far!)

A great trick to perfect your Scouse accent is to position the accent in the front of your mouth. Bring the sounds of words right up to your lips and teeth, which will create a ‘wet’ sound in the mouth.

Here’s the super Jade Joddle and myself talking about the lovely accent of Liverpool.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=hycOWmNWkHA

To practise your Scouse I recommend reading ‘Our Sammy’ from Blood Brothers, the musical by Willy Russell who handily writes dialectically:

I wish I was our Sammy

Our Sammy’s nearly ten.

He’s got two worms and a catapult

An’ he’s built a underground den.

But I’m not allowed to go in there,

I have to stay near the gate

‘Cos me Mam says I’m only seven,

But I’m not, I’m nearly eight!

 

I sometimes hate our Sammy,

He robbed me toy car y’ know,

Now the wheels are missing’ an’ the top’s broke off,

An’ the bleedin’ thing won’t go.

An’ he said when he took it, it was just like that,

But it wasn’t, it went dead straight,

But y’ can’t sat nott’n when they think y’ seven

An’ y’ not, y’ nearly eight.

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