Och Aye The Noo - Hoots Mon - See You Jummy

[Lachlan09]

In all your TV-watching and film-viewing history, which non-Scottish actor or actress do you think had a) the most convincing Scottish accent (extra points for a convincing regional Scottish accent) and b) which one had the most cringe-worthy and ridiculous Scottish accent (to at least rank in infamy with Dick Van Dyke’s stunningly ridiculous London Cockney accent in Mary Poppins) ?

What's your top 3 and bottom 3 ?

[sathor]

http://www.cracked.com/funny-79-sean-connery/ not quite related 100%, but it does have some good bits about his accent.

[Lachlan09]

My choices are (I’m so excited as I open the golden envelopes !):-

Cream of the Barley

Third Best – Mike Myers – for “So I Married An Axe Murderer” (as Charlie MacKenzie’s father) and “Shrek”.
Second Best - Robin Williams – for “Mrs Doubtfire” (even though the character says she’s English ! Tuts-tuts !!)
Best - Jason Statham – for “Mean Machine” (as psychopathic Scottish convict “The Monk” - this "Cream of the Barley" award is given for only saying “Aye” in a menacing, husky Scottish voice throughout the entire film).

Bottom of the Midden

Third Worst – Joanne Whalley – for “The Big Man” as Beth Scoular. (Posh RADA actress bird doing a working-class Scottish accent. Her casting is a complete mystery).
Second Worst - Dame Peggy Ashcroft – for “The 39 Steps” as Margaret, the crofter’s wife. (Another posh RADA actress doing Scottish in an era when it didn’t really matter if they hurt Scottish feelings. Her scripted lines were complete rubbish too !)
Worst - Norah Gorson – for “Geordie” as Jean – (even Wikipedia says “..described as one of the worst attempts at a Scottish accent ever to appear on screen, although there are a number of serious contenders for that title”).

Spot the common link in the worst category – a) they’re all women and b) they’re all English. So film directors – never cast English actresses as Scotswomen with accents.

At least American actress Jessica Lange did a passable accent in “Rob Roy”!

[highlander_Daz]

honourable mention to Johnny depp in "finding neverland" and simons Peggs borders accent in "star trek"

[Arlen]

Bottom of the Midden

Third Worst – Joanne Whalley – for “The Big Man” as Beth Scoular. (Posh RADA actress bird doing a working-class Scottish accent. Her casting is a complete mystery).
Second Worst - Dame Peggy Ashcroft – for “The 39 Steps” as Margaret, the crofter’s wife. (Another posh RADA actress doing Scottish in an era when it didn’t really matter if they hurt Scottish feelings. Her scripted lines were complete rubbish too !)
Worst - Norah Gorson – for “Geordie” as Jean – (even Wikipedia says “..described as one of the worst attempts at a Scottish accent ever to appear on screen, although there are a number of serious contenders for that title”).

Spot the common link in the worst category – a) they’re all women and b) they’re all English. So film directors – never cast English actresses as Scotswomen with accents.

At least American actress Jessica Lange did a passable accent in “Rob Roy”!

What about Maggie Smith? She does a wonderful Scottish accent (Both Working class and otherwise in spite of her Posh Englishness?

[highlander_Daz]

Peter Sellers could do almost any accent , thers a youtube snippet of him doing a large number of english and Scots accents utterly convincingly, simply a genius

[Lachlan09]

What about Maggie Smith? She does a wonderful Scottish accent (Both Working class and otherwise in spite of her Posh Englishness?

Very true - she did the veritable Miss Jean Brodie for a start. Her mum came from Glasgow

[saxandpipes]

What about Maggie Smith? She does a wonderful Scottish accent (Both Working class and otherwise in spite of her Posh Englishness?

Wow, just looked her up now, I assumed she was Scottish!


She's brilliant!

[saxandpipes]

Speaking of non-Scots accents...

Sir Anthony Hopkins as Burt Munro in the World's Fastest Indian. I don't know how much experience people have with a Kiwi accent (since moving to Holland I've come to realise how quite peculiar it is!) but Sir Anthony's Kiwi accent was nothing short of spectacular.

As I was listening in the beginning, I was thinking how great it was, only that he had a bit of Southland "r" (the rest of us don't do it), of course watching further, I realised the film was based in Invercargill (Southland), brilliant! He had a better Southlander accent than most of the rest of the (Kiwi) actors. Not only that, but he somehow managed to capture the old Kiwi accent, the one our grandparents used (before we had so much American TV).

I wonder how many hours he spent listening to old recordings of old New Zealanders prattle on...

[Jack Daw]

I'm curious as to whether Robert Duvall's Scottish accent was acceptable or convincing in A Shot at Glory (2000).