Linguistics lecturer Lauren Hall-Lew explains how accents can reveal political views

Most of us have a little trick up our sleeve that we can whip out in social situations to hide the fact that we can’t make conversation – also known as a party trick.

Lauren Hall-Lew reveals her party trick on BBC World Service radio. She can tell a person’s political leanings based on the way that they pronounce certain words.

Listen to the clip to find out more:

BBC World Service – The politics of pronunciation

About Lauren Hall-Lew

Lauren Hall-Lew is a Reader in Linguistics and English Language at the University of Edinburgh. She specialises in sociolinguistics and also how languages change over time and across different regions.