Reminds me of when I lived in England.
Not long after arriving, I found myself in need of directions to Victoria Station from another part of London. I was already having a bit of difficulty tuning my ears to the British accent, so when I spotted a black guy walking down the street, I thought, "Oh good, a fellow black man. Maybe he can help me."
I ask the guy for directions, and what do you know - he's got the thickest Cockney accent I've ever heard. Even after I asked him to slow waaaay down, I still only understood one out of every three words.
“Reminds me of when I lived in England.”
A friend had a similar experience. He met a black man there who had a thick Scottish accent — hard to understand!
Yep. And even without the accent they use so many idioms and so much slang that it is difficult to make sense of it.
From Band of Brothers:
Cockney Rhyming Slang has been evolving in the East End of London since the sixteenth century. It is thought to have originated from the seamen and soldiers who used the London docks, from the Gypsies who arrived in the 1500’s, from the Irish residents and the Jewish faction and from all the other ethnic minorities which have made up the population of the city.
Hoobler: Holy sh***!
Brit: Nah it’s alright mate, we’re tommies not boche.
Hoobler: Is all this real?
Brit: Yeah, yeah. Well some of it’s from the Germans something these toes knocked up. For you lads actually, so you can get your mince pies on some of this Jerry clobber, if you know what I mean?
Hoobler: Not really. Hey mate, you got a Luger? I’m dying to get my hands on a real Luger.
Brit: Yeah go on then, quick butchers yeah?
Hoobler: Boy she sure is a doozy.
Brit: Yeah it’s pukka innit?
Hoobler: What?
Brit: Hey?
Hoobler (walking away): Hey Petty!
Brit: Here, mate! You’re having a bath if you think you’re half-inching that.
Hoobler: Oh yeah, sorry. Well good luck.
Brit: You too mate.
Close your eyes and hear an English accent. Unlike in America, you cannot tell if the person speaking is white or black, unless they just got to England off the boat.