bristolman Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Now I would be the first to admit that if someone had asked me to describe Birmingham a year ago I would have said dirty, run down sad city BUT that really couldn't be further from the truth. We went to the German Christmas Market right in the centre of Birmingham and although I am no fan of cities I was amazed by what they have done to revitalise the city. It is clean, fresh looking and modern while still keeping the lovely old architecture. What I did learn was that we should never assume anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Now I would be the first to admit that if someone had asked me to describe Birmingham a year ago I would have said dirty, run down sad city BUT that really couldn't be further from the truth. We went to the German Christmas Market right in the centre of Birmingham and although I am no fan of cities I was amazed by what they have done to revitalise the city. It is clean, fresh looking and modern while still keeping the lovely old architecture. What I did learn was that we should never assume anything. You are right Bristol ,the city centre is very acceptable these days ....if you haven't been there since the 80s ,you may be surprised. Its just the inner city ,which runs for a 5 -10 mile radius from the city centre that is dodgy. Get past the 10 miles and we have some decent standards of living and countryside. Glad you were impressed bristol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted December 5, 2015 Author Share Posted December 5, 2015 You are right Bristol ,the city centre is very acceptable these days ....if you haven't been there since the 80s ,you may be surprised.Its just the inner city ,which runs for a 5 -10 mile radius from the city centre that is dodgy. Get past the 10 miles and we have some decent standards of living and countryside. Glad you were impressed bristol I was very impressed to be honest, we walked along the canal and that was lovely as well. I haven't been since probably the early 90s I would say, the difference is remarkable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicF Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 I haven't been to Birmingham City centre in nearly 15 years but it wasn't that bad even then. The whole regeneration thing had already started and you could see they were working on improving the city. Is the jewellery quarter still there? This was a great spot years ago with some fantastic shops selling quite different jewellery. I can highly recommend a trip to anyone after something special. My OH bought my engagement ring from one of the shops there and I haven't seen anything quite like it since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 6, 2015 Share Posted December 6, 2015 I haven't been to Birmingham City centre in nearly 15 years but it wasn't that bad even then. The whole regeneration thing had already started and you could see they were working on improving the city. Is the jewellery quarter still there? This was a great spot years ago with some fantastic shops selling quite different jewellery. I can highly recommend a trip to anyone after something special. My OH bought my engagement ring from one of the shops there and I haven't seen anything quite like it since. The jewellery quarter is very much alive ,and much improved ( I think my eldest was out clubbing there last night ). The old digbeth bus station ,is now brand new ( needed to be ) ,and the new st station project has just been finished. As well as a brand new station ,it is ringed by bars ,shops ,restaurants etc . Great efforts have been made Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 The jewellery quarter is very much alive ,and much improved ( I think my eldest was out clubbing there last night ).The old digbeth bus station ,is now brand new ( needed to be ) ,and the new st station project has just been finished. As well as a brand new station ,it is ringed by bars ,shops ,restaurants etc . Great efforts have been made Also,some of the big corporations are moving parts of their operations out of London,to the likes of Birmingham and Manchester ,so the city centre is benefitting from that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LKC Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 I grew up in Birmingham, and I think that it has improved through the years. I remember New Street Station as it was, and the Bullring and it did used to be a bit run down. We visited there last year, and had a look around the jewellery quarter. OH bought me something sparkly for our wedding anniversary :wink:. We didn't have time to visit the main part of the city, but my mum lives towards the south of the city. There seemed to be lots of new housing and shops etc around the old site of the British Leyland factory, which is near where I grew up. Seems to be thriving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 I grew up in Birmingham, and I think that it has improved through the years. I remember New Street Station as it was, and the Bullring and it did used to be a bit run down. We visited there last year, and had a look around the jewellery quarter. OH bought me something sparkly for our wedding anniversary :wink:. We didn't have time to visit the main part of the city, but my mum lives towards the south of the city. There seemed to be lots of new housing and shops etc around the old site of the British Leyland factory, which is near where I grew up. Seems to be thriving. Yep Northfield rubery and longbridge ......just off to play golf at north Worcester golf club on hanging lane Its a bit grey and damp ...but the sun is due to make and appearance ....hopefully ...mild as well for the time of year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starlight7 Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 Good that it is on the improve- it was dire last time I went there in the Dark Ages(70s) Now they must work on the accent, its 'orrible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicF Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 Good that it is on the improve- it was dire last time I went there in the Dark Ages(70s) Now they must work on the accent, its 'orrible. My dad's from Birmingham but has lost his accent (deliberately, probably, knowing my dad). My relatives down that way all have Brummie accents. I don't think it's that bad but it's certainly not the nicest UK accent to listen to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 Good that it is on the improve- it was dire last time I went there in the Dark Ages(70s) Now they must work on the accent, its 'orrible. Te old full Aussie accent takes some beating for being bloody awful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacaranda Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 Te old full Aussie accent takes some beating for being bloody awful :laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandgroper Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 Good that it is on the improve- it was dire last time I went there in the Dark Ages(70s) Now they must work on the accent, its 'orrible. Have to agree about the accent......I'm Birmingham born and bred, lived in Handsworth from birth until I escaped and joined the army at 16, luckily my accent diluted over time............I cringe when talking to family on the phone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quokka2005 Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 I actually quite like the accent from the ones I've heard! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 I actually quite like the accent from the ones I've heard! Mine is top drawer ...not as pronounced as some of my pals ,but goo enough . And the black country lads I know ...great accent ,proper people Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starlight7 Posted December 12, 2015 Share Posted December 12, 2015 I like the Northumberland accent but never hear it these days Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JockinTas Posted December 12, 2015 Share Posted December 12, 2015 I like the Northumberland accent but never hear it these days My favourite UK accent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 12, 2015 Share Posted December 12, 2015 My favourite UK accent. My favourite ...all of them ....always a talking point . These accents have been 100s of years in the making ...love them all Scouser...geordie..brummie ...devon ...bristol ....cork..dublin ...glasgow ...cardiff .....vive la difference Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rallyman Posted December 12, 2015 Share Posted December 12, 2015 My favourite ...all of them ....always a talking point .These accents have been 100s of years in the making ...love them all Scouser...geordie..brummie ...devon ...bristol ....cork..dublin ...glasgow ...cardiff .....vive la difference You don't have to travel far in the uk to get a different accent wonder why that is compared to oz where there is only a slight tone change Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JockinTas Posted December 13, 2015 Share Posted December 13, 2015 My favourite ...all of them ....always a talking point .These accents have been 100s of years in the making ...love them all Scouser...geordie..brummie ...devon ...bristol ....cork..dublin ...glasgow ...cardiff .....vive la difference You don't have to travel far in the uk to get a different accent wonder why that is compared to oz where there is only a slight tone change Give it a few hundred years and there will be different accents all over Australia. Britain's accents have been evolving for a helluva lot longer than that. I have a friend from Carlisle UK. I lived in south west Scotland - about 80 miles from Carlisle - and just in that short distance our accents are poles apart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmjg Posted December 13, 2015 Share Posted December 13, 2015 My favourite ...all of them ....always a talking point .These accents have been 100s of years in the making ...love them all Scouser...geordie..brummie ...devon ...bristol ....cork..dublin ...glasgow ...cardiff .....vive la difference You don't have to travel far in the uk to get a different accent wonder why that is compared to oz where there is only a slight tone change One guess is that the poms didnt really travel much in times past, so didnt notice their accents were different from someone down the road. As we have travelled more, some people lose this accent, others dont. Children will still copy their parents and peers accents to some extent, so second generation in a different area will start to lose the full 'strength', for want of a better word. Another guess of why aussies have pretty much the same accent is that most free settlers and convicts came from about the same place in the uk, and they didnt see anyone else other than themselves for years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 13, 2015 Share Posted December 13, 2015 Give it a few hundred years and there will be different accents all over Australia. Britain's accents have been evolving for a helluva lot longer than that. I have a friend from Carlisle UK. I lived in south west Scotland - about 80 miles from Carlisle - and just in that short distance our accents are poles apart. Try 3 miles from south brum ,over the hill into Halesowen ....distinctive change Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tea4too Posted December 13, 2015 Share Posted December 13, 2015 My favourite ...all of them ....always a talking point .These accents have been 100s of years in the making ...love them all Scouser...geordie..brummie ...devon ...bristol ....cork..dublin ...glasgow ...cardiff .....vive la difference Regional accents are brilliant – love them. It amazes me how people can move away yet over the years never lose their accent. And mixed in with the musical lilts and inflections are the words and phrases that locals assume are normal everyday language, yet they can mystify people from elsewhere. Is a bread roll a ‘batch, a cob, or a barm cake’, are children ‘kids, weans/ wains or bairns’? Words like 'mizzle, skelped, blether' and phrases like “it’s dark over Bill’s mother’s” or, if you remember the days when girls wore petticoats “Charlie’s dead.” Regional accents and dialects bring a richness to the language, and for that reason alone there isn’t one I dislike, including Brum - was there in the summer, for the first time in decades, and was really impressed with the changes. We will definitely be back. T x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunbury61 Posted December 14, 2015 Share Posted December 14, 2015 Regional accents are brilliant – love them. It amazes me how people can move away yet over the years never lose their accent. And mixed in with the musical lilts and inflections are the words and phrases that locals assume are normal everyday language, yet they can mystify people from elsewhere. Is a bread roll a ‘batch, a cob, or a barm cake’, are children ‘kids, weans/ wains or bairns’? Words like 'mizzle, skelped, blether' and phrases like “it’s dark over Bill’s mother’s” or, if you remember the days when girls wore petticoats “Charlie’s dead.” Regional accents and dialects bring a richness to the language, and for that reason alone there isn’t one I dislike, including Brum - was there in the summer, for the first time in decades, and was really impressed with the changes. We will definitely be back. T x Oh good,someone else that was pleasantly surprised Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slean Wolfhead Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Try 3 miles from south brum ,over the hill into Halesowen ....distinctive change And between Halesowen, Cradley, Quarry Bank....totally different intonations, you can tell which town people are from even though they're virtually joined together. I met a woman over here, Wolves fan with a mug on her desk. Got talking to her and said but you have a Dudley accent, not Wolverhampton....she was dumbstruck. She was from Wednesbury, about 4km outside Dudley and about 7km from Wolves...but has been living in Canberra since 1996 :-) The Aussies love it, a new Pom starts and they ask me to tell them where they're from just by listening to them talk...it's as easy as the difference between Bristol and Leeds. They can't do that, totally bemuses them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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