King’s English AKA Kings English Reel 1 (1931)

Reel 1. A British Instructional Films Production made with the co-operation of the British Broadcasting Corporation. A film about the standardisation of the English Language. C/U of a man making an irate gesture with a fist - he has a French accent and says: “The English Language is imbecile...“ C/U of another man with a very clipped accent: “Why do you say that?“ The two men discuss the fact that many different accents exist in England. The very upper class authority on language says that it is largely a matter of vowel sounds. He impersonates a Glasgow and a Cockney accent. There is then a discussion about the different pronunciation of consonants. The bow-tied Englishman says the word “bird“ in three accents: American, Scottish and Cockney. The Frenchman announces: “That proves what I said, it is a mad language.“ The Frenchman picks up a newspaper and asks why a written sentence should be read differently in different regions. The Englishman speaks of how standardisation of the written word has