Ritchie: when I used to go to the chippie, I would also ask for scrumps.

When I first started teaching english out here, I didn't have the refined and cultured accent wot I have now. One evening after one particular lesson a student came up to me and said "Teacher, why are so many people dying when you speak?" "Dying?" Replies yours truly, "No body died tonight." "Yes they did, there was Mondie, tuesdie and also yesterdie." I knew I had problems also with my squashed vowel sounds in words like "Town"..which came out "tewn" and "Brown"which came out "Brewn" so I had a lot of fixing on my accent before I felt confident again.