Scottish bid to bring World Figure Skating Championships to Glasgow in 2017 | Page 3 | Golden Skate

Scottish bid to bring World Figure Skating Championships to Glasgow in 2017

YesWay

四年もかけて&#
Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 28, 2013
it took me about six weeks before I could somehow understand what the people were saying in Glasgow :laugh:
Just 6 weeks? That's impressive!

A heavy Glaswegian accent is extremely difficult - unintelligible even - to most native British people from other areas, for their whole lives. Even without slang and swearwords.

People from Glasgow who appear on the news are likely to be subtitled...!

Not that everyone from Glasgow has such a strong accent... and nor is a Glasgow accent is any worse than say, a very heavy Geordie (Newcastle) accent, very heavy Yorkshire accent, etc etc... o_O
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
Just 6 weeks? That's impressive!

A heavy Glaswegian accent is extremely difficult - unintelligible even - to most native British people from other areas, for their whole lives. Even without slang and swearwords.

People from Glasgow who appear on the news are likely to be subtitled...!

Not that a Glasgow accent is any worse than say, a heavy Geordie (Newcastle) accent, Yorkshire accent, etc etc... o_O

I love the variety of British accents. I hope they never get smoothed out into BBC Standard. Now that Scotland (the Brave!) will be an independent nation, I feel more assured that its accents will remain gloriously unaffected by homogenization.
 

uhh

Medalist
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
I love the variety of British accents. I hope they never get smoothed out into BBC Standard. Now that Scotland (the Brave!) will be an independent nation, I feel more assured that its accents will remain gloriously unaffected by homogenization.

There is no guarantee that Scotland will become independent. There will be a referendum and all the polls have so far indicated that the No vote is winning.
 

CaroLiza_fan

EZETTIE LATUASV IVAKMHA
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Oct 25, 2012
Country
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Glaswegians really do have their own language - I'd lived in Edinburgh for four years by that time and was pretty fluent in English, but it took me about six weeks before I could somehow understand what the people were saying in Glasgow :laugh:

A heavy Glaswegian accent is extremely difficult - unintelligible even - to most native British people from other areas, for their whole lives. Even without slang and swearwords.

Yes, I can vouch for both those statements! :laugh:

Like anywhere, there are variations in the accent in Glasgow, which means some are quite easy to understand, but others are impossible. Unfortunately, I can't think of anybody famous with a VERY strong accent off-hand.

But, to use some examples from snooker (well, the World Championships are on at the moment), I find John Higgins (from Wishaw) easier to understand than Graeme Dott (from Larkhall). But, even then, I can still understand them.

Then there are those Scots that you would think were English from their accent. I know they are not from Glasgow, but snooker legend Stephen Hendry (from Edinburgh), or F1 driver David Coulthard (from Twynholm, Kirkcudbrightshire) come to mind.

Not that everyone from Glasgow has such a strong accent... and nor is a Glasgow accent is any worse than say, a very heavy Geordie (Newcastle) accent, very heavy Yorkshire accent, etc etc... o_O

Personally, the accents I find hardest to understand are Geordie and Welsh.

For Geordies, I find Ant McPartland and Declan Donnelly are easy enough to understand. But most of the time I cannot understand Cheryl Cole at all. I was delighted when she was dropped from the X Factor a few years back, so you can imagine my distress now she is coming back!

For a milder female Geordie accent, you need look no further than some-time Eurosport figure skating commentator Joanne Conway! Here she is getting interviewed by Simon Reed after winning the 1990 British Championships.

As for the Welsh, Lloyd Jones probably isn't a good example because he has been among French people for so long. But you can still hear a strong-ish Welsh accent when he talks. Here is an interview from the 2012 Worlds.

People from Glasgow who appear on the news are likely to be subtitled...!

Up to about 10 years ago, yes. But nowadays, political correctness means that strong accents are not subtitled anymore. And so now, you haven't a clue what people with a strong accent are saying! :rolleye:

I love the variety of British accents. I hope they never get smoothed out into BBC Standard. Now that Scotland (the Brave!) will be an independent nation, I feel more assured that its accents will remain gloriously unaffected by homogenization.

No, there's nothing to worry about on that front. BBC Standard all but disappeared in the early 1990's. And the success of silly reality programmes like "The Only Way Is Essex" and "Geordie Shore" in more recent years has made regional accents very fashionable, and nowadays people are proud of them.

CaroLiza_fan
 

TMC

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 27, 2014
I love the Scottish accents. Actually, I love all British accents! Edinburgh Morningside is the cutest...I pick up acccents pretty well but for some reason the Scottish accent didn't stick. I lived in Manchester for a few years and that accent really did stick - apparently I sound so Manc now that people have said they thought I was from Manchester :laugh:
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
I love all British accents, too, and also the accents from other parts of the Commonwealth. One of my favorite things about the Lord of the Rings DVDs was hearing the features and commentary by the various actors. In the film, they mostly spoke Theatrical Standard (not the proper term for it, but you know what I mean), but in the commentary, so many of them had other accents from various parts of Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland, and so forth. From other films, one of my favorite actors, James McAvoy, who played Tumnus in the first Narnia movie with a perfect British accent, is from Glasgow, and when he speaks in his "born accent," it's delightful on the ear. McAvoy and the LOTR actors also demonstrate how well-trained British actors can be. So many of them do splendid Queen's English when needed and often also do (as McAvoy has done in one or two movies) impeccable American accents. Michael Caine is another one with a great ear and many voices.
 

desertskates

Medalist
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
I thought the Scottish accent was charming. But as an American, I did struggle to understand and often had to ask people to repeat themselves. They would always laugh it off and just speak more slowly.
I find myself really, really rooting for them to get this event. I would so love to make the trip to Glasgow to see this, but should I find myself with the good fortune to be able to go to Pyeongchang, every dime will be socked away for that.
Do not want to see Sochi get it, and doubt Stockholm will because of Europeans '15. Finland would also be a good choice :)
 

CaroLiza_fan

EZETTIE LATUASV IVAKMHA
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Joined
Oct 25, 2012
Country
Northern-Ireland
I love all British accents, too, and also the accents from other parts of the Commonwealth. One of my favorite things about the Lord of the Rings DVDs was hearing the features and commentary by the various actors. In the film, they mostly spoke Theatrical Standard (not the proper term for it, but you know what I mean), but in the commentary, so many of them had other accents from various parts of Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland, and so forth. From other films, one of my favorite actors, James McAvoy, who played Tumnus in the first Narnia movie with a perfect British accent, is from Glasgow, and when he speaks in his "born accent," it's delightful on the ear. McAvoy and the LOTR actors also demonstrate how well-trained British actors can be. So many of them do splendid Queen's English when needed and often also do (as McAvoy has done in one or two movies) impeccable American accents. Michael Caine is another one with a great ear and many voices.

This is WAAAAYYYY off topic, but since you were talking about actors, I was wondering if you realised that British Eurosport's figure skating commentator Simon Reed is the younger brother of the late actor Oliver Reed.

I know we don't get to see Simon on screen, but if you saw him, you would know instantly that he was Oliver's brother:

Simon
Oliver

Just thought you would find this interesting.

CaroLiza_fan
 

Rhodium

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 9, 2014
I hope they will choose Helsinki. It is easier to reach it than even Sochi for me and many Russians. Residents of Saint-Petersburg usually go there on holiday. I'm sure that rude Russian audience with vuvuzelas will be in considerable majority there.
 

anyanka

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 8, 2011
I hope they will choose Helsinki. It is easier to reach it than even Sochi for me and many Russians. Residents of Saint-Petersburg usually go there on holiday. I'm sure that rude Russian audience with vuvuzelas will be in considerable majority there.

Is it easier because of more availability of flights from Russia?
 

Rhodium

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 9, 2014
Is it easier because of more availability of flights from Russia?

Yes, Helsinki is not far from main cities. There are also high-speed trains, buses and ferryboat "Princess Maria" going from Saint-Petersburg to Helsinki (and from Moscow some). And I am with hope that other Maria, Maria Sotskova, will participate in the event.
 

channah

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 12, 2014
I love all British accents, too, and also the accents from other parts of the Commonwealth. One of my favorite things about the Lord of the Rings DVDs was hearing the features and commentary by the various actors. In the film, they mostly spoke Theatrical Standard (not the proper term for it, but you know what I mean), but in the commentary, so many of them had other accents from various parts of Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland, and so forth. From other films, one of my favorite actors, James McAvoy, who played Tumnus in the first Narnia movie with a perfect British accent, is from Glasgow, and when he speaks in his "born accent," it's delightful on the ear. McAvoy and the LOTR actors also demonstrate how well-trained British actors can be. So many of them do splendid Queen's English when needed and often also do (as McAvoy has done in one or two movies) impeccable American accents. Michael Caine is another one with a great ear and many voices.

Glasgow is my hometown so I REALLY want the event to be held there!!! (I live in Japan though - so it is anything but convenient for travelling)
Here is a link to help you with the Glasgow accent in preparation for the event.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfCk_yNuTGk
Enjoy
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
This is WAAAAYYYY off topic, but since you were talking about actors, I was wondering if you realised that British Eurosport's figure skating commentator Simon Reed is the younger brother of the late actor Oliver Reed.

I know we don't get to see Simon on screen, but if you saw him, you would know instantly that he was Oliver's brother:

Simon
Oliver

Just thought you would find this interesting.

CaroLiza_fan

Very interesting! I did not know that. Thanks! I do like the British Eurosport guys, whom I often get to hear on YouTube videos, but I didn't know anything about them. *checks image of Simon* Yes, indeed, he does look so much like Oliver.
 

BusyMom

Medalist
Joined
Jan 10, 2014
I hope Glasgow will win this bid just for the sake of variable scenarios. Major competitions should be allocated to more diverse geographic locations. Sochi got the chance with OG already and they blew it. Most of the international audiences were not happy. A lot of athletes had bad memories with the Russian crowds. Give some other countries a chance to enjoy the experiences.

Also, I spent almost a decade in England right until the Millennium but never been too far up north than Birmingham (it was a shame). Might be a good chance for me to rectify that mistake. :yay:
 

TheGrandSophy

Record Breaker
Joined
Apr 14, 2014
Ooh, back from internet isolation (laptop broke lol) to find a cool piece of info. Fingers crossed...
 

neraiselle

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 8, 2006
Please! Glasgow is still far away from the South but it's still easier (esp. psychologically) to travel within the country, and a better excuse to my better half.....!
 
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