Fry's Kingdom

[samkydd]

This is the new series starring Stephen Fry as Norfolk solicitor Peter Kingdom (it was filmed in Swaffham I would imagine) with the obligatory classic car to drive around in.



I do wish they wouldn't locate such series in Norfolk if they can't get the accent correct. Celia Imrie sounded like a cross between Clarrie Grundy and Miss Jean Brodie, whilst other "locals" were definitely from the Robert Newton Long John Silver school of dialect training. We didn't quite have anyone doing the old "Ooooh aaarh shiver me timbers me hearties!" but give it time this was only the first episode!



Apart from this predictable lapse the series is reasonably different but in the style of one of those Doc Martin type "comedy" dramas. A "vehicle" probably put together with Fry in mind for the Sunday evening mogadon slot, so that it'll not tax the brain too much as you shuffle off to bed with only the Monday morning gridlock to look forward to.

[batman]

Oi doont loik it wen thay git the aksehnt wron ... ass vary upsehtin to us loocals ... wen oi woz a yung un at drahma skool they dint enkurridge us to keep ah aksehnts, they troid t'mayke us loose em ... thas a roit shayme cos now no bugger can do it proper ... i no a akctress from norridge who woz in a play set in nahfook n she did a mummerset one too !!!!



r u frum nahfook too mr kydd?

[samkydd]

name='batman']Oi doont loik it wen thay git the aksehnt wron ... ass vary upsehtin to us loocals ... wen oi woz a yung un at drahma skool they dint enkurridge us to keep ah aksehnts, they troid t'mayke us loose em ... thas a roit shayme cos now no bugger can do it proper ... i no a akctress from norridge who woz in a play set in nahfook n she did a mummerset one too !!!!



r u frum nahfook too mr kydd?

Thass roight I'm from Weybourne bor, before the foreigners from Lurndon took it over and turned it into "a rural idyll" livin' in gret ole barns would you believe! Next thing y'know they'll want a f***in' Waitrose, a John Lewis, an IKEA and a PC World just to ruin the place even more!



That hent roight what ther dun to the accent bor! My little ole gal she say to me she say "They all sound loike a bunch a pirates from Ambridge!". Same as that ole Rewth Rendl Adam Dalgleish load a ole squit yonks ago, s'posed t' be Suh-fuk, more loike Sidmouth bor! It's vereh disrespeckful to folk from the area if they use cowboy dialect coaches who think that Mummerset will do every toime.



Still, keep you a troshin'!

[batman]

as roit ol paartna .... them telervishun peeple allers getut wron .... praps we shud staart a skool te teech em ... we cood mayke a lot a munny



oi gotta goo noow, moi littul boy ha gotta go t skool

[batman]

faahmer goiles frum tayvrhum gits reddy fuh haahvest ...... gotta git them taters in ...

[samkydd]

name='batman']as roit ol paartna .... them telervishun peeple allers getut wron .... praps we shud staart a skool te teech em ... we cood mayke a lot a munny



oi gotta goo noow, moi littul boy ha gotta go t skool

Well he'll learn alroight as long as he remembers what my mum tole me. "To get an good educashun bor, shut your neck in class or you'll get a thack!"

[batman]

as gud advoice ... as not noice t git a ding on the lug ...

[samkydd]

name='batman']as gud advoice ... as not noice t git a ding on the lug ...

Worse than a total lack of credibility in Norfolk and Suffolk accents has to be the English actor/actress trying to do an American accent. They just sound like English actors/actresses trying to do American accents. Radio 4 plays and stories set in the US seem to be the worst culprits with everyone sounding like Ed Bishop. In films I think Barry Foster's Elliot McQueen in The Sweeney movie has to be one of the worst American accents ever. His manipulative spin doctor character was prophetic, but unfortunately the accent was just pathetic!

[batman]

I watch the BBCs 'The West' recently and all the leading characters in that (inc Toby Stephens as Custer) were played by Brits and the supporting roles by Yanks. I have to say that all the Brits did remarkably well with the accents and there was not one 'jarring' moment. I have to agree in general though, Brits usually do terrible US accents and Barry Foster (an actor I thought was very good) did do a dreadful one in 'Sweeney'.

[Jim]

name='batman']I watch the BBCs 'The West' recently and all the leading characters in that (inc Toby Stephens as Custer) were played by Brits and the supporting roles by Yanks. I have to say that all the Brits did remarkably well with the accents and there was not one 'jarring' moment. I have to agree in general though, Brits usually do terrible US accents and Barry Foster (an actor I thought was very good) did do a dreadful one in 'Sweeney'.

Well done you 2!



When I was working and earning, we had caravan on a small site in Burnham Market and it was a joy to nip over one of the 2 local pubs in sit in the bar and just 'earwig' the real locals! it was lovely. Then some 'Rodney' from the London area bought the pub -'modernised' it - ripped out the bar and so ripped the heart out of the pub - the locals moved to the other pub and so did we. Sadly, the same thing happened there as well in time. You can wander round Norfolk/Suffolk now and not hear the dialect at all; very sad.

[batman]

I know that pub! It's now a very nice restaurant and they do great food, but it has no 'local' atmosphere. Burnham Market also has lots of shops in the same vein, the place it reminds me of is Marlow Bottom in Bucks, very nice but not Norfolk.

[Marky B]

There has been a young lass in Emmerdale trying to put on an American accent and it was bad - I felt sorry for her. Surely there must be young American girls based in Britain they could have employed for this role (as Bob Hope's daughter,Roxy).

Ta Ta

Marky B

[samkydd]

name='batman']I know that pub! It's now a very nice restaurant and they do great food, but it has no 'local' atmosphere. Burnham Market also has lots of shops in the same vein, the place it reminds me of is Marlow Bottom in Bucks, very nice but not Norfolk.

Unfortunately people "discover" these towns and villages and they didn't need discovering in the first place. They've always been there, but the next thing you know the outsiders want to live there and then realise that it has very little in the way of man-made amenities so they decide that things need improving because it's not like Crouch End or Putney, or wherever they hail from, and next thing you know they want proper A roads, plastic Barratt executive homes, an Audi dealership and every shop either sells second hand books or antiques! The village pub becomes a wine bar and bijou bistro, the darts team have disbanded, the village shop starts selling 97 varieties of coffee bean and herbal tea and there's not a pork pie or sliced white loaf in sight! The sea front cafe is taken over by a couple of gastronomic gays from Greenwich, and now calls itself Le Petit Dejeuner and to accompany your bowl of overpriced rustic lentil soup you can't order a roll and butter any more, no, it has to be a croissant au beurre! The village idiot now has to call himself Local Man With Learning Difficulties!

[batman]

name='samkydd']Unfortunately people "discover" these towns and villages and they didn't need discovering in the first place. They've always been there, but the next thing you know the outsiders want to live there and then realise that it has very little in the way of man-made amenities so they decide that things need improving because it's not like Crouch End or Putney, or wherever they hail from, and next thing you know they want proper A roads, plastic Barratt executive homes, an Audi dealership and every shop either sells second hand books or antiques! The village pub becomes a wine bar and bijou bistro, the darts team have disbanded, the village shop starts selling 97 varieties of coffee bean and herbal tea and there's not a pork pie or sliced white loaf in sight! The sea front cafe is taken over by a couple of gastronomic gays from Greenwich, and now calls itself Le Petit Dejeuner and to accompany your bowl of overpriced rustic lentil soup you can't order a roll and butter any more, no, it has to be a croissant au beurre! The village idiot now has to call himself Local Man With Learning Difficulties!

I couldn't agree more. Fortunately there's still the Clifftop Cafe at Overstrand to go and visit for 'traditional' grub, plastic table cloths and formica topped tables ... and there's a good pub there too!

[Lord Brett]

name='samkydd']This is the new series starring Stephen Fry as Norfolk solicitor Peter Kingdom (it was filmed in Swaffham I would imagine) with the obligatory classic car to drive around in.

I was wondering what sort of car it was. An Avis perhaps?

[Lord Brett]

Actually, I meant an Alvis, not an Avis, which is a car rental firm.



I think it was one of these, or something like...







...which is apparently a 1966 TF 21 Mulliner Park Ward DHC

[smudge]

name='batman']I couldn't agree more. Fortunately there's still the Clifftop Cafe at Overstrand to go and visit for 'traditional' grub, plastic table cloths and formica topped tables ... and there's a good pub there too!

Hoorah for formica and plastic ! In this modern, standardised and homogenised nation you have to look harder and harder to find such things. When you do, it can be sheer delight.



I happened across a riverside cafe a few weeks back, in just this style. Tea and coffee in mugs (and not a matching pair in the place) old dark woods and well worn furniture. Plastic tablecloths and an open view of the kitchen where our hostess could be clearly seen, doing the fry ups on a battered old 'New World' gas cooker.



The place was populated by local chaps, long retired, down for their breakfasts and studying the racing form. Everybody knew everybody, yet were welcoming to me and my oppo as we enjoyed our doorstep (white bread) fry up butties before crossing the river to go to work.



Service with true style ; free from any hint of corporate (meaningless) bonhomie.



Cracking ! :



Smudge

[batman]

name='smudge']I happened across a riverside cafe a few weeks back, in just this style. Tea and coffee in mugs (and not a matching pair in the place) old dark woods and well worn furniture. Plastic tablecloths and an open view of the kitchen where our hostess could be clearly seen, doing the fry ups on a battered old 'New World' gas cooker. Service with true style ; free from any hint of corporate (meaningless) bonhomie.

Sounds fantastic Smudge, where is this place?



Bats

[samkydd]

name='batman']I couldn't agree more. Fortunately there's still the Clifftop Cafe at Overstrand to go and visit for 'traditional' grub, plastic table cloths and formica topped tables ... and there's a good pub there too!

You mean Overstrand is still there? Blass me I thought it would have fallen into the sea by now! A chap I knew bought a house there years ago, number 35 it was to start with but there was so much subsidence it eventually ended up as number 14! Back in the 70s we used to laugh at foreigners buying houses in Overstrand, could've had a business fixing wheels to them! You could by one half a mile inland and within a short toime you'd have a sea view, then you'd be in it!

[smudge]

name='batman']Sounds fantastic Smudge, where is this place?



Bats

You'll have to get the Batboat out for this one as it's up here in Worcestershire - Bewdley in fact. Thankfully not everywhere is built for the tourists and this little piece of independence seems to be surviving.



When we went it was at the tail end of a flood warning week, so we could have ended up with slightly soggy sarnies



It was just one of those 'flip a coin' jobs ; 'caffs' on both sides of the bridge - which one do you pick ? I was lucky enough to make a decent call. It felt just like one of Marker's 'merge with the crowd' haunts from an old episode of PUBLIC EYE



Smudge