2 older threads that may help you with this.

http://forums.darklordpotter.net/showthread.php?t=5606

http://forums.darklordpotter.net/showthread.php?t=3638

 

Yeah, half of the slang in Harry Potter is, as Taure said, used in the upper classes or by the 'posh people' who still speak in BBC English.

As previously said, nearly every town/city has it's own slang. I go to a local University (n.b. Uni, not College, lol) and it's amazing how many people who originate from a town/city 50-100miles away don't understand half of the slang.

My advice? Stick to to standard English, and don't use Americanisms or American slang.

 

Holy Shit! Another guy from the North East!

Also, you might want to take into account how some accents make people pretty much unintelligible to those not from the area. Cities like Glasgow are infamous for being about as easy to understand as Indian call centre workers, whereas Geordies (Newcastle/Sunderland area) have the friendliest accent in the UK, apparently, and also sound vaguely Scottish, according to Xiph0.

 

I find the various accents of a language very interesting.

It reminds me of a story we had to read for one of my high school English classes about this educated English professor guy who specialized in accents who teaches this lower class girl how to talk and act like a lady, or something like that.

I think it's pretty famous, but for the life of me I can't remember what the name of it is.

I just remember it going into great detail about the various accents of English, and I thought that was very interesting.

 

Pygmalion(Play)
My Fair Lady (Movie musical)

 

Pygmalion. That's it!

I've been searching for it for the past 15 minutes because it was bugging me that I couldn't remember the name of it. I knew it was something by either Oscar Wilde or George Bernard Shaw, but I couldn't remember which.

Then I checked back here and you so kindly provided me with the answer.

Thanks. I'm going to have to read that again soon.

 

well when i talk of being arested i say nicked instead could be from my central london upbringing oh and chips instead of fries crisps instead of chips.if like me you find yourself in wolverhampton know that all the kids think they are jamacian and they will mouth you off in Patwa

 

Fucking lol.

+rep for Oz.

 

Depends on where you are. Depends on where you went to school. Depends on what you read, what you've picked up from friends.

The key thing that will characterise different parts of the uk, slang aside, is accents. Although how useful/easy to show those are in a story, unless you are portraying really distinctive ones like Ireland or Glasgow (appologies to people hailing from those parts of the world, but those are ones which i've seen written rather than just described as scottish etc) i don't know!

Mainly i would have to agree with those other members who have said to stick to basic 'default' (if i may use the term) english, and just try avoid americanisms.

"Bathroom" for Toilet or "Fall" for Autumn. Things like that.

If in doubt, and if you're a yank send it to someone english to beta and they'll probably spot any grievous errors!

 

jpdt19, bathroom as an american-ism? i'd have said their pretty interchangable, and i'd never expect anyone to react funnily to bathroom, at least in the midlands or up north

 

Indeed, I don't often say 'Bathroom' myself like, but that is mainly because I (and most people I know) say they are going to use a specific part of the bathroom. i.e Toilet, Shower or just 'Washing their hands' and what not. That being said I wouldn't say that 'Bathroom' is an Americanism.

Scousers, Geordies, Brummies and the folk up from Yorkshire probably have the most destinctive accents 'native' to England, never mind Scotland, Ireland and Wales.

So yeah as said before with so many different dialects about you're probably best just sticking to your basic English. though do try to avoid what JKR thinks is slang, I don't know about anyone else but it makes me cringe when I read it.

 

We Geordies have the friendliest accent in Britain too .

 

Bathroom.... is a tricky one.

I can't speak for people in the north (not being a northerner despite a spell at Durham Uni)

But do people in the north say 'i'm going to the bathroom' when they're talking about going to the loo.

Or.... do they say, "i'm in the bathroom" when they are talking about having a shower/wash/doing their teeth etc.

I think there's a distinction.

But might be splitting hairs.

Plus, there is the additional complication, as pointed out before by someone, of how some of the elder generation were brought up never to say the word 'toilet' because it's rather vulgar!

I imagine one could argue this matter a lot, for no reason....

Bathroom is a bad example. Fall on the other hand!