Painting Description

This sketch refers to the long-running British television series of that name. I am drawn to things British and in particular to the strange cadences produced by the accent of Eastern London. While on a ship last year, I enjoyed talking to a Swedish professor who specialized in the English language. He spoke of the East End of London accent and how that and other working class accents along the Thames have produced a new approach to the British accent that he called Estuary English. He went further to claim that close study of recordings of even the Queen’s speeches demonstrates the influence of the amalgamation of riverside accents. Certainly the British media, radio and television, are no longer ruled by plummie tones.

This image is available for Licensing. Contact Cynthia [email protected] for inquiries.