British accents in the US appear to be at the top of today’s agenda. Denise Van Outen has reportedly been sent for elocution lessons as the audience of Grease: You’re the One That I Want are having trouble understanding the Essex lass’s accent. This report comes on the day when Stephen Fry steps into the shoes of Alison Graham as guest TV columnist in the Radio Times to scribble some thoughts on English actors in the US (in a much more benign way than the sainted Graham a few weeks back).
On the subject of Van Outen (who Scott notes will also be judging the BBC’s Any Dream Will Do), none of the news reports quote anybody directly on the subject of the former Big Breakfast presenter taking any elocution lessons. What they do quote is a seemingly anonymous source from the States:
“She is a very attractive girl and has years and years of television experience. That, along with her English accent, meant that she should have been a hit in the States … but they aren’t keen on her voice.”
Which is a far cry from confirming that Van Outen has been sent to talk about the rain in spain. This is followed by the bewildering afterthought:
“They are not keen on her demeanour either.”
There is, as they say, no smoke without fire, but I’m finding this very hard to swallow. Let’s face it, Denise Van Outen, while far from being a spit spot Mary Poppins, she’s hardly Eliza Doolittle either. Lord knows what the US audience will make of Ant and Dec – the Geordie funsters must be quaking in their boots at their impending trip across the Atlantic. At least Heather Mills only has to dance and not say much.
And what about Stephen Fry? He writes in the Radio Times, on the eve of his debut in the Fox drama series Bones:
“I sometimes wonder if Americans aren’t fooled by our accent into detecting a brilliance that may not really be there.”
He goes on to praise American actors’ ability to relax in front of a camera and contrasts James Stewart and George Clooney with Olivier and Branagh. I think rather than having a go at Brits in America and the American audience, he’s coming down on the side of self-deprecation. Indeed, the sight of him playing opposite David Boreanz’s Seely Booth as an FBI psychologist is a patently bizarre sight, and Fry is quite rightly drawing us to the ridiculousness of the situation (whilst clearly being immensely proud of his three episode stint in Bones).
And as for poor Denise Van Outen, I’d rather have a lass with a bit of character than the neutral dullness of Cat Deeley twitterings on American Idol (with apologies to Cat Deeley and her fans, in advance).
You forgot one show on HBO called 'THE RICHES.' It's a good show apart from Eddie Izzards appalling American accent. Billy Bob Thornton would have been much better in the role. Personally I am not against Brits being on the box in the States being a UK citizen and a US resident myself however I cringe at the sight of Heather Mills tripping the lights fantastic and Stephen Fry doing the same old usual predicable performance. However its finally great to see an Actor of Daniel Craigs talent taking the States by storm and not clinging to the same old predictable British stereo typical crap.
The Riches also stars Minnie Driver, who does a much better Southern accent. But it's on FX, not HBO.