Thursday 24 September 2009

Bad case of life...

Anyone not listened to the Don Paterson interview at the Guardian site yet? It's worth a listen...even if the interviewer has got that wobble to her voice which says 'oo, I really like him so I'm going to witter on and talk a bit of nonsense' (and that's not an insult to her...I have been an interviewer remember...).

p.s. Hope - you'll like it for the Scottish accent if nothing else.

x

6 comments:

The Weaver of Grass said...

Rachel - dare I say that I just cannot understand the Scots accent - I expect with living there you have become acclimatised to it but I am three quarters of the way through any interview before I begin to interpret what he is saying.

Rachel Fox said...

It depends on the particular accent really. There are some Scottish people I can't follow but then there are people from Yorkshire I can't understand too well when they get going in full dialect!

I've been in Scotland 7 years now so I suppose I'm used to more and more of the different Scottish accents and dialects and languages (though I don't know any gaelic as yet). Paterson's accent on this interview is very soft and gentle - quite 'melt in the ear'. Have a try and see how you get on.

x

Anonymous said...

Rachel - I'm from new york - the Don Paterson interview was great. Thank you for posting it. I think I understood every word. Although I have to admit I have been to Scotland a number of times and have had to get used to the accent each time. I find place names the hardest to get right - I don't think I have ever pronounced the name of a single Scottish town correctly enough for a local. I am always being corrected. . . inverreaness. . . they say and I say in-ver-ness and they say no innvearranesse and I say in-ver-ness. So it goes.

I read Paterson's poem 'the white lie' thought it was great - especially after clicking through to here from 'the truth about lies.'

thanks again!

Rachel Fox said...

Hi David and welcome.
Glad you enjoyed the interview.

Yes, place names are a constant challenge in Scotland but I think that's true of almost everywhere isn't it? Place names are often such a weird mix of influences and languages. There is one local to here that looks like Friockheim but is said Freakum.

x

Totalfeckineejit said...

For some reason(drink) I was expecting(sir) Les Patterson.OOps!

Rachel Fox said...

Now you've started my Friday with a laugh, TFE! I'd quite like to hear Don P interviewed by Les P (or Dame Edna).
x