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Social change and celebrity culture have shifted perceptions of accents in advertising, according to research from the Government’s Central Office of Information (COI) and the Radio Advertising Bureau.

Strong regional accents such as Geordie and Mancunian are more favourably viewed in ads due to the impact of celebrities such as Cheryl Cole and Ant and Dec, with people in Manchester and Tyneside responding the most favourably to their own accents.Those in the West Midlands and Bristol responded more negatively.


It is the first research of its kind to look specifically at accents in relation to behaviour change advertising. The research found that perceptions of accents have changed in the last 50 years, so there is no longer one regional British accent that is widely preferred across the country.

In the mid 20th century the 'cut-glass' received pronunciation (RP) accent of the officer class, as typified by many voices in early government public information films, was generally accepted as the accent of authority.

However, social change has meant a softer modern day RP has evolved. This is now most widely accepted across British regions, but there are times when local or regional accents can work well for certain campaigns.

Local accents are more associated with real, ordinary people, seen as "one of us" and "people like me". Whereas, RP is more associated with official institutions.

Other factors included the campaign message and the age of the audience. Local accents seem to be more effective at conveying credible real-life experiences, so may be more appropriate for behaviour change campaigns.

Adverts which seek compliance, such as filing a tax return, which need to impart trust and authority are thought to be more effective in received pronunciation.


Older people tend to be more willing to accept received pronunciation accents, younger people tend to be more engaged by local accents.

People who are positively engaged with authority seem more likely to accept RP than people who are not, and prefer local accents.