Yo down 'alf sound stupid!

Aug 21 2006 By Alison Dayani

THE BRUMMIE accent is the most comical in Britain, according to research revealed today. But a team of experts found it is also identified as the most stupid.

Researchers spent two months studying how regional accents influence how funny a person is deemed to be.

And they found that one in every five people quizzed said the Birmingham accent, associated with comedians like Frank Skinner, Jasper Carrott, Julie Walters and Lenny Henry, was the most hilarious.

Researchers asked 4,000 people to listen to the same joke in 11 UK regional accents to discover which they found most amusing.

The Brummie lilt tickled most listeners, followed by the Liverpudlian Scouse accent and the Newcastle Geordie accent not far behind. But received pronunciation picked up the lowest score, amusing just one per cent of those quizzed.

The research, led by comedy expert Dr Lesley Harbidge from the University of Aberdeen, also found that the funniest accents – Brummie, Scouse and Geordie – were also deemed the least intelligent.

Dr Harbridge said accents perceived as warm were deemed funnier than apparently cold ones. The study was commissioned by the Paramount Comedy Channel.

* HOW THE UK VOTED
1 Birmingham (20.8 per cent)
2 Liverpudlian (15.8)
3 Geordie (14.3)
4 Welsh (10.5)
5 Yorkshire (9.2)
6 Cockney (8.2)
7 Belfast (8)
8 South West England (6.6)
9 Glaswegian (3.4)
10 Mancunian (2.1)
11 Received Pronunciation (1.1)