BBC Voices

Conversation in Fort William about accent, dialect and attitudes to language.

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  • Type

    sound

  • Duration

    00:57:34

  • Shelf mark

    C1190/43/21

  • Recording date

    2005-05-07

  • Is part of (Collection)

    BBC Voices Recordings

  • Recording locations

    Fort William, Highland

  • Interviewees

    MacLachlan, Catherine, 1959 Dec. 31- (speaker, female, interviewee), Abernethy, Ian, 1940 July 16- (speaker, male), McGavin, Donald, 1936 Oct. 21- (speaker, male), Smith, Nicola, 1965 Dec. 19- (speaker, female)

  • Interviewers

    Ferguson, Iain, 1956 July 12- (speaker, male)

  • Producers

    Radio Scotland

  • Abstract

    [00:00:00] Speakers introduce themselves. Discussion of words used to describe EMOTIONS. Comment that local people tend to shorten their words.[00:08:15] Discussion of words used to describe ACTIONS. Description of games played when young.[00:16:52] Discussion of words used to describe PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES. Comment that they dont use words which might be offensive.[00:28:43] Discussion of words used to describe WEATHER AND SURROUNDINGS. Comment that her mother was very particular about which words they used. Description of living in tenement buildings in past. Anecdote about being afraid to get changed for bed in front of television as child in case newsreader saw her.[00:38:51] Discussion of words used to describe PEOPLE AND THINGS. Comment that not many people in Fort William speak Gaelic. Mention words used to distinguish between maternal/paternal grandparents.[00:52:19] Discussion of words used to describe CLOTHING. Comment that girls werent allowed to wear trousers to school in past. Discussion about buying clothes in Fort William, amusing anecdote about man buying underwear in local shop.

  • Description

    Recording made for BBC Voices project of a conversation guided by a BBC interviewer. The conversation follows a loose structure based on eliciting opinions about accents, dialects, the words we use and people's attitude to language. The four interviewees are all close friends.

  • Texts

    Linguistic description of this item

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