The Kintyre Forum

People over here keep thinking Im Irish, its doing my head in. I dont think theres any similarity at all, but someone said today that I had a Northern Irish twang. I said it might be because where we are is so close but I only said that to make her feel better. Has anyone else had this? Ill tell you something else, for all their supposed drinking abilities, Ive been very unimpressed with them. They havent stolen my trophy yet.

Interesting comments on the accent ...

I had a weird experience once, listening to someone on the radio who came from Rathlin … and it sounded for all the world like someone from Southend! Us southerners speak differently, you may have noticed. We say 'where' and 'there' differently to folk from the town, with - a flatter 'e' sound, to rhyme with 'mer' as in mermaid. And that is what I heard in the Rathlin speech, as well as many other similarities. So I think the Northern Ireland comparison is probably fair!

Was over in the states a couple of years ago and several people thought i was Irish due to my accent. Although born and raised in Glasgow

Bobh wrote:Was over in the states a couple of years ago and several people thought i was Irish due to my accent. Although born and raised in Glasgow

Well this is exactly what i mean. I think thats more to do with a general ignorance towards the scottish accent. Could be wrong though, but the assumption really annoys me.

A Horse called Juan Face wrote:People over here keep thinking Im Irish,

where abouts are you?

t1

Sweltered - next time tell them - "It's OK, you Canadians always seem to get it wrong"

or if they confuse you with the English - "It's OK, you Mexicans always seem to get it wrong"

I always found that got the point home

I was in Dublin and they thought from my accent I was Canadian

Malky

Malky wrote:I was in Dublin and they thought from my accent I was Canadian

Malky

Thats the posh Tayinloan bit in you Malky.

Jock Strap wrote:Thats the posh Tayinloan bit in you Malky.

Malky

Mary G wrote:Interesting comments on the accent ...

I had a weird experience once, listening to someone on the radio who came from Rathlin … and it sounded for all the world like someone from Southend! Us southerners speak differently, you may have noticed. We say 'where' and 'there' differently to folk from the town, with - a flatter 'e' sound, to rhyme with 'mer' as in mermaid. And that is what I heard in the Rathlin speech, as well as many other similarities. So I think the Northern Ireland comparison is probably fair!

Mary is right about the Rathlin accent but I am not sure Horse Called Juan Face's Australian acquaintances would be able to pick up on that!

One time we were in the Southend pub after football, on a Sunday afternoon, when 4 kinda wet, bedraggled chaps came walking in.......turned out they had shot across in a speedboat from Rathlin, they said it took them 20 mins! but, anyway, their voices and accent were just the same as all the locals in the pub, they were astounded......I think maybe one of our pub regulars went back with them but, on second thoughts, that was another time when an Irish boat anchored off Keil Hotel, they came in, bought a TV, loaded it up and away with it and a local bar fly!
Was like a modern day Press Gang!

The only Irish like Scottish accent that I know of is the accent of the people up here in Caithness!! Sweltered will be able to confirm this also. The amount of times that I had to say, "Hoot" when I first came up here was unreal!

On a similar note though, they always ask me if im from Glasgow, "No I am f*@king not !!!

A few years ago local emergency services were dispatched to an incident at Putchecan. A tinker was lying at the side of the road. "Aw naw, naw poor Scoot again?"

When they arrived a milk tanker was lying on it's side. The driver had alerted a CB user in Ireland who then called the Police in Campbeltown.

By the time Chinese whispers had done their work it had come down to "There's a tinker lying on the side of the road at Putchecan".

S

t1

Tom B wrote:

A Horse called Juan Face wrote:People over here keep thinking Im Irish,

where abouts are you?

Im in Australia. The other thing I meant to put last night but didnt get the chance because this pc is useless, is that other Scottish people can pick my accent out in a crowded pub. So if I do sound Irish, wouldnt they think I sounded it too? I might use that one though Sweltered and Sheik, I dont know which part of New Zealand are you from, they wont like that. I wonder if they think we all should sound like Mel Gibson.