Cockney
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Cockney is a
dialect A dialect is a Variety (linguistics), variety of language spoken by a particular group of people. This may include dominant and standard language, standardized varieties as well as Vernacular language, vernacular, unwritten, or non-standardize ...
of the
English language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...
, mainly spoken in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
and its environs, particularly by Londoners with
working-class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...
and
lower middle class In developed nations around the world, the lower middle class is a subdivision of the greater middle class. Universally, the term refers to the group of middle class households or individuals who have not attained the status of the middle or u ...
roots. The term ''Cockney'' is also used as a
demonym A demonym (; ) or 'gentilic' () is a word that identifies a group of people ( inhabitants, residents, natives) in relation to a particular place. Demonyms are usually derived from the name of the place ( hamlet, village, town, city, region, ...
for a person from the East End, or, traditionally, born within earshot of Bow Bells.
Estuary English Estuary English is an English accent, continuum of accents, or continuum of accent features associated with the area along the River Thames and its estuary, including London, since the late 20th century. In 2000, the phonetician John C. We ...
is an intermediate accent between Cockney and
Received Pronunciation Received Pronunciation (RP) is the Accent (sociolinguistics), accent of British English regarded as the Standard language, standard one, carrying the highest Prestige (sociolinguistics), social prestige, since as late as the beginning of the 2 ...
, also widely spoken in and around London, as well as in wider South Eastern England. In
multicultural Multiculturalism is the coexistence of multiple cultures. The word is used in sociology, in political philosophy, and colloquially. In sociology and everyday usage, it is usually a synonym for ''ethnic'' or cultural pluralism in which various e ...
areas of London, the Cockney dialect is, to an extent, being replaced by
Multicultural London English Multicultural London English (abbreviated MLE) is a sociolect of English that emerged in the late 20th century. It is spoken mainly by young, working-class people in multicultural parts of London. Speakers of MLE come from a wide variety of et ...
—a new form of speech with significant Cockney influence.


Words and phrases


Etymology of ''Cockney''

The earliest recorded use of the term is 1362 in passus VI of
William Langland William Langland (; ; ) is the presumed author of a work of Middle English alliterative verse generally known as ''Piers Plowman'', an allegory with a complex variety of religious themes. The poem translated the language and concepts of the cl ...
's ''
Piers Plowman ''Piers Plowman'' (written 1370–86; possibly ) or ''Visio Willelmi de Petro Ploughman'' (''William's Vision of Piers Plowman'') is a Middle English allegorical narrative poem by William Langland. It is written in un-rhymed, alliterative ...
'', where it is used to mean "a small, misshapen
egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the ...
", from
Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman Conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English pe ...
''coken'' + ''ey'' ("a cock's egg"). Concurrently, the mythical land of luxury Cockaigne ( attested from 1305) appeared under a variety of spellings, including ''Cockayne'', ''Cocknay'', and ''Cockney'', and became humorously associated with the English capital
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. Cockney: a native of London. An ancient nickname implying effeminacy, used by the oldest English writers, and derived from the imaginary fool's paradise, or lubber-land, ''Cockaygne''. The meaning of ''Cockney'' comes from its use among rural Englishmen (attested in 1520) as a pejorative term for effeminate town-dwellers, from an earlier general sense (encountered in "
The Reeve's Tale "The Reeve's Tale" is the third story told in Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbury Tales''. The reeve, named Oswald in the text, is the manager of a large estate who reaped incredible profits for his master and himself. He is described in the ...
" of
Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer ( ; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...
's ''
The Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' () is a collection of 24 stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. The book presents the tales, which are mostly written in verse, as part of a fictional storytelling contest held ...
'' ) of a "cokenay" as "a child tenderly brought up" and, by extension, "an effeminate fellow" or "a ". This may have developed from those sources or separately, alongside such terms as "" and "" which both have the sense of "to make a  ... or the darling of", "to indulge or pamper". By 1600, this meaning of ''Cockney'' was being particularly associated with the Bow Bells area. In 1617, the travel writer Fynes Moryson stated in his ''Itinerary'' that "Londoners, and all within the sound of Bow Bells, are in reproach called Cockneys." The same year,
John Minsheu John Minsheu (or Minshew) (1560–1627) was an English Linguistics, linguist and lexicographer. Biography He was born and died in London. Little is known about his life. He published some of the earliest dictionaries and grammars of the Spanish ...
included the term in this newly restricted sense in his dictionary ''Ductor in Linguas''.


Other terms

* Cockney sparrow: Refers to the archetype of a cheerful, talkative Cockney. * Cockney diaspora: The term Cockney diaspora refers to the migration of Cockney speakers to places outside London, especially
new towns A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...
. It also refers to the descendants of those people, in areas where there was enough migration for identification with London to persist in subsequent generations. *
Mockney Mockney (a portmanteau of " mock" and "cockney") is an affected accent and form of speech in imitation of cockney or working-class London speech, or a person with such an accent. A stereotypical mockney speaker comes from an upper-middle-class b ...
: Refers to a fake Cockney accent, though the term is sometimes also used as a self-deprecatory moniker by second, third, and subsequent generations of the Cockney diaspora.


Region

Initially, when London consisted of little more than the walled
City A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
, the term applied to all Londoners, and this lingered into the 19th century. As the city grew, the definitions shifted to alternatives based on dialect or more specific areas; the East End and the area within earshot of Bow Bells. The East End of London and the vicinity of Bow Bells are often used interchangeably, representing the identity of the East End. The region within the audible range of the bells varies depending on the direction of the wind, but there is a correlation between the two geographic definitions under the typical prevailing wind conditions. The term can apply to East Londoners who do not speak the dialect and those who do.


London's East End

The traditional core districts of the East End include the
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
towns of
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...
,
Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...
,
Spitalfields Spitalfields () is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in East London and situated in the East End of London, East End. Spitalfields is formed around Commercial Street, London, Commercial Stre ...
,
Shoreditch Shoreditch is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney alongside neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets, which are also perceived as part of the area due to historic ecclesiastical links. Shoreditch lies just north ...
,
Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...
,
Wapping Wapping () is an area in the borough of Tower Hamlets in London, England. It is in East London and part of the East End. Wapping is on the north bank of the River Thames between Tower Bridge to the west, and Shadwell to the east. This posit ...
,
Limehouse Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains throu ...
, Poplar,
Haggerston Haggerston is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney. It is in East London and part of the East End of London, East End. There is an Haggerston (ward), electoral ward called Haggerston within the borough. H ...
,
Shoreditch Shoreditch is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney alongside neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets, which are also perceived as part of the area due to historic ecclesiastical links. Shoreditch lies just north ...
, Hackney,
Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...
, Bow and
Mile End Mile End is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in East London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is east of Charing Cross. Situated on the part of the London-to-Colchester road ...
. Nearly all of these areas had originally been part of the Manor and Parish of
Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...
. In the 1600s and 1700s a Cockney's Feast, also later known as the Stepney Feast was held in Stepney each May. The purpose of the event was to raise money so that Stepney boys could be apprenticed in the maritime trades. The informal definition of the East End has gradually expanded to areas including as Poplar, Stratford,
West Ham West Ham is a district in East London, England and is in the London Borough of Newham. It is an inner-city suburb located east of Charing Cross. The area was originally an ancient parish formed to serve parts of the older Manor of Ham, a ...
and
Canning Town Canning Town is a town in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, north of the Royal Victoria Dock. Its urbanisation was largely due to the creation of the dock. The area was part of the ancient parish and County Borough of West Ham, ...
, as these have formed part of London's growing
conurbation A conurbation is a region consisting of a number of metropolises, cities, large towns, and other urban areas which, through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban or industrially developed area. In most ...
.


Bow Bells' audible range

The church of
St Mary-le-Bow The Church of St Mary-le-Bow () is a Church of England parish church in the City of London, England. Located on Cheapside, one of the city's oldest thoroughfares, the church was founded in 1080, by Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rebuilt s ...
is one of the oldest, largest, and historically most important churches in the City of London. The definition based on being born within earshot of the bells, cast at the
Whitechapel Bell Foundry The Whitechapel Bell Foundry was a business in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. At the time of the closure of its Whitechapel premises, it was the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain. The bell foundry primarily made church bells ...
, reflects the early definition of the term as relating to all of London. The audible range of the Bells is dependent on geography and wind conditions. The east is mostly low lying, a factor which combines with the strength and regularity of the prevailing wind, blowing from west-south-west for nearly three-quarters of the year, to carry the sound further to the east, and more often. A 2012 study showed that in the 19th century, and under typical conditions, the sound of the bells would carry as far as Clapton, Bow and Stratford in the east but only as far as
Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...
to the
south South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
and
Holborn Holborn ( or ), an area in central London, covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part (St Andrew Holborn (parish), St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Wards of the City of London, Ward of Farringdon Without i ...
in the
west West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...
. An earlier study suggested the sound would have carried even further. The 2012 study showed that in the modern era, noise pollution means that the bells can only be heard as far as
Shoreditch Shoreditch is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney alongside neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets, which are also perceived as part of the area due to historic ecclesiastical links. Shoreditch lies just north ...
. According to legend,
Dick Whittington Richard Whittington ( March 1423) of the parish of St Michael Paternoster Royal,Will of Richard Whittington: " I leave to my executors named below the entire tenement in which I live in the parish of St. Michael Paternoster Royal, Londo/ ...
heard the bells 4.5 miles away at
Highgate Highgate is a suburban area of N postcode area, north London in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden, London Borough of Islington, Islington and London Borough of Haringey, Haringey. The area is at the north-eastern corner ...
Hill, in what is now
north London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...
. The studies mean that it is credible that Whittington might have heard them on one of the infrequent days that the wind blows from the south. The church of St Mary-le-Bow was destroyed in 1666 by the
Great Fire of London The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through central London from Sunday 2 September to Wednesday 5 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old London Wall, Roman city wall, while also extendi ...
and rebuilt by
Sir Christopher Wren Sir Christopher Wren FRS (; – ) was an English architect, astronomer, mathematician and physicist who was one of the most highly acclaimed architects in the history of England. Known for his work in the English Baroque style, he was acc ...
. Although the bells were destroyed again in 1941 in
the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...
, they had fallen silent on 13 June 1940 as part of the
British anti-invasion preparations of World War II British anti-invasion preparations of the Second World War entailed a large-scale division of military and civilian mobilisation in response to the threat of invasion (Operation Sea Lion) by German armed forces in 1940 and 1941. The British Ar ...
. Before they were replaced in 1961, there was a period when, by the "within earshot" definition, no "Bow Bell" Cockneys could be born. The use of such a literal definition produces other problems since the area around the church is no longer residential, and the noise pollution in that area combined with the absence of maternity wards there means that few are born within earshot.


Blurred definitions

Regional definitions are sometimes blurred. Ahead of the 2024–25 season,
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...
released an away shirt which it called the "Cockney Kit". The promotional material celebrated a Cockney identity for
East London East London is the part of London, England, east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames as it begins to widen. East London developed as London Docklands, London's docklands and the primary industrial centre. The expansion of ...
based on a territory rather than dialect. The kit featured the Bow Bells on the reverse as a symbol of the area, and the promotional video included the church of
St Mary-le-Bow The Church of St Mary-le-Bow () is a Church of England parish church in the City of London, England. Located on Cheapside, one of the city's oldest thoroughfares, the church was founded in 1080, by Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rebuilt s ...
and parts of East London within earshot of the bells – such as
Brick Lane Brick Lane () is a street in the East End of London, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, borough of Tower Hamlets. It runs from Swanfield Street in Bethnal Green in the north, crosses the Bethnal Green Road before reaching the busiest, mo ...
, Upper Clapton and Stratford – as well as a scene in
Romford Romford is a large List of places in London, town in east London, east London, England, located northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major Metropolitan centres of London, metropolitan centr ...
, in suburban East London.


Dialect

Cockney speakers have distinctive accents and dialects and occasionally use
rhyming slang Rhyming slang is a form of slang word construction in the English language. It is especially prevalent among Cockneys in England, and was first used in the early 19th century in the East End of London; hence its alternative name, Cockney rhymin ...
. The
Survey of English Dialects The Survey of English Dialects was undertaken between 1950 and 1961 under the direction of Harold Orton of the English department of the University of Leeds. It aimed to collect the full range of speech in England and Wales before local differe ...
took a recording from a long-time resident of Hackney in the 1950s, and the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
made another recording in 1999 which showed how the accent had changed. One of the characteristic pronunciations of Cockney is ''th''-fronting. The early development of Cockney vocabulary is obscure, but appears to have been heavily influenced by
Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
and related eastern dialects, while borrowings from
Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...
, including ''kosher'' (originally Hebrew, via Yiddish, meaning ''legitimate'') and ''shtum'' ( originally German, via Yiddish, meaning ''mute''), as well as Romani, for example ''wonga'' (meaning ''money'', from the Romani "wanga" meaning coal), and ''cushty'' (Kushty) (from the Romani ''kushtipen'', meaning good) reflect the influence of those groups on the development of the speech. John Camden Hotten, in his ''Slang Dictionary'' of 1859, refers to "their use of a peculiar slang language" when describing the
costermonger A costermonger, coster, or costard is a street seller of fruit and vegetables in British towns. The term is derived from the words ''Costard (apple), costard'' (a medieval variety of apple) and ''monger'' (seller), and later came to be used to des ...
s of London's East End.


Migration and evolution

A dialectological study of
Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...
in 1964 found that the area's dialect was very similar to that recorded in Bethnal Green by Eva Sivertsen, but there were still some features that distinguished Leytonstone speech from Cockney. Linguistic research conducted in the early 2010s suggests that today, some aspects of the Cockney accent are declining in usage within multicultural areas, where some traditional features of Cockney have been displaced by
Multicultural London English Multicultural London English (abbreviated MLE) is a sociolect of English that emerged in the late 20th century. It is spoken mainly by young, working-class people in multicultural parts of London. Speakers of MLE come from a wide variety of et ...
, a
multiethnolect A multiethnolect is a language variety, typically formed in youth communities in working class, immigrant neighborhoods of urban areas, that contains influences from a variety of different languages. Unlike an ethnolect, which associates one langua ...
particularly common amongst young people from diverse backgrounds. Nevertheless, the
glottal stop The glottal stop or glottal plosive is a type of consonantal sound used in many Speech communication, spoken languages, produced by obstructing airflow in the vocal tract or, more precisely, the glottis. The symbol in the International Phonetic ...
, double negatives, and the vocalisation of the dark L (and other features of Cockney speech) are among the Cockney influences on Multicultural London English, and some
rhyming slang Rhyming slang is a form of slang word construction in the English language. It is especially prevalent among Cockneys in England, and was first used in the early 19th century in the East End of London; hence its alternative name, Cockney rhymin ...
terms are still in common usage. An influential July 2010 report by
Paul Kerswill Paul Kerswill, FBA, is a sociolinguist. Since 2012, he has been professor in the department of language and linguistic science at the University of York. After completing his undergraduate degree and doctorate at Gonville and Caius College, Cam ...
, professor of sociolinguistics at
Lancaster University Lancaster University (officially The University of Lancaster) is a collegiate public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several new univer ...
, ''Multicultural London English: the emergence, acquisition, and diffusion of a new variety'', predicted that the Cockney accent would disappear from London's streets within 30 years. The study, funded by the
Economic and Social Research Council The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), formerly the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). UKRI is a non-departmental public body (NDPB) funded by the UK government. ESRC provides fundi ...
, said that the accent, which has been around for more than 500 years, is being replaced in London by a new hybrid language. "Cockney in the East End is now transforming itself into Multicultural London English, a new, melting-pot mixture of all those people living here who learned
English as a second language English as a second or foreign language refers to the use of English by individuals whose native language is different, commonly among students learning to speak and write English. Variably known as English as a foreign language (EFL), Engli ...
", Kerswill said. A series of new and expanded towns have often had a strong influence on local speech. Many areas beyond the capital have become Cockney-speaking to a greater or lesser degree, including the new towns of
Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England. It is located north-west of London; nearby towns and cities include Watford, St Albans and Berkhamsted. The population at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 cens ...
,
Basildon Basildon ( ) is a town in Borough of Basildon, the borough of the same name, in the county of Essex, England. It had a recorded population of 115,955 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. In 1931, the town had a population of 1,159. ...
, and
Harlow Harlow is a town and local government district located in the west of Essex, England. Founded as a Planned community, new town in 1947, it is situated on the border with Hertfordshire, and occupies a large area of land on the south bank of the ...
, and expanded towns such as Grays,
Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. It is located north-east of London ...
and
Southend Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in south-eastern Essex, England. It lies on the nor ...
. However, this is, except where least mixed, difficult to discern because of common features: linguistic historian and researcher of early dialects
Alexander John Ellis Alexander John Ellis (14 June 1814 – 28 October 1890) was an English mathematician, philologist and early phonetician who also influenced the field of musicology. He changed his name from his father's name, Sharpe, to his mother's maiden nam ...
in 1890 stated that Cockney developed owing to the influence of Essex dialect on London speech. Writing in 1981, the dialectologist Peter Wright identified the building of the
Becontree Becontree ( or Both pronunciations are given as Received Pronunciation in the Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, but the form is prioritised (). The dialectologist Peter Wright wrote in 1981 that is the traditional pronunciation in the cockney ...
estate in
Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...
as influential in the spread of the Cockney dialect. This vast estate was built by the
Corporation of London The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the local authority of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United Kingdom's fi ...
to house poor East Enders in a previously rural area of Essex. The residents typically kept their Cockney dialect rather than adopt an Essex dialect. Wright also reports that the Cockney dialect spread along the main railway routes to towns in the surrounding counties as early as 1923, spreading further after World War II when many refugees left London owing to the bombing, and continuing to speak Cockney in their new homes. A more distant example where the accent stands out is
Thetford Thetford is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Breckland District of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road (England), A11 road between Norwich and London, just east of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, coverin ...
in Norfolk, which tripled in size from 1957 in a deliberate attempt to attract Londoners by providing social housing funded by the London County Council.


Typical features

As with many accents of the United Kingdom, Cockney is
non-rhotic The distinction between rhoticity and non-rhoticity is one of the most prominent ways in which varieties of the English language are classified. In rhotic accents, the sound of the historical English rhotic consonant, , is preserved in all p ...
. A final ''-er'' is pronounced or lowered in broad Cockney. As with all or nearly all non-rhotic accents, the paired lexical sets COMMA and LETTER, PALM/BATH and START, THOUGHT and NORTH/FORCE, are merged. Thus, the last syllable of words such as ''cheetah'' can be pronounced as well in broad Cockney. A broad is used in words such as ''bath'', ''grass'' and ''demand''. This originated in London in the 16th–17th centuries and is also part of
Received Pronunciation Received Pronunciation (RP) is the Accent (sociolinguistics), accent of British English regarded as the Standard language, standard one, carrying the highest Prestige (sociolinguistics), social prestige, since as late as the beginning of the 2 ...
(RP). The accent features T-glottalisation, with use of the glottal stop as an
allophone In phonology, an allophone (; from the Greek , , 'other' and , , 'voice, sound') is one of multiple possible spoken soundsor '' phones''used to pronounce a single phoneme in a particular language. For example, in English, the voiceless plos ...
of in various positions, including after a stressed syllable. Glottal stops also occur, albeit less frequently, for and , and occasionally for mid-word consonants. For example, Richard Whiteing spelled "Hyde Park" as ''Hy' Par. ''Like'' and ''light'' can be homophones. "Clapham" can be said as ''Cla'am'' (i.e., ). This feature results in Cockney being often mentioned in textbooks about
Semitic language The Semitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They include Arabic, Amharic, Tigrinya, Aramaic, Hebrew, Maltese, Modern South Arabian languages and numerous other ancient and modern languages. They are spoken by mo ...
s while explaining how to pronounce the
glottal stop The glottal stop or glottal plosive is a type of consonantal sound used in many Speech communication, spoken languages, produced by obstructing airflow in the vocal tract or, more precisely, the glottis. The symbol in the International Phonetic ...
. may also be flapped intervocalically, e.g. ''utter'' . London are often aspirated in intervocalic and final environments, e.g., ''upper'' , ''utter'' , ''rocker'' , ''up'' , ''out'' , ''rock'' , where RP is traditionally described as having the unaspirated variants. Also, in broad Cockney at least, the degree of aspiration is typically greater than in RP, and may often also involve some degree of affrication . Affricatives may be encountered in initial, intervocalic, and final position. Cockney also demonstrates: * ''Th''-fronting: ** can become in any environment. "thin", "maths". ** can become in any environment except word-initially when it can be . "they", "bother". *''Yod''-coalescence, in words such as ''tune'' or ''reduce'' (compare traditional RP ). *The
alveolar stop In phonetics and phonology, an alveolar stop is a type of consonantal sound, made with the tongue in contact with the alveolar ridge located just behind the teeth (hence alveolar), held tightly enough to block the passage of air (hence a stop cons ...
s , are often omitted in informal Cockney, in non-prevocalic environments, including some that cannot be omitted in Received Pronunciation. Examples include ''Dad's gonna'' and ''turn left''. * ''H''-dropping. Sivertsen considers that is to some extent a stylistic marker of emphasis in Cockney.


Phonemic correspondence

* correspond to the RP sounds (though and are most commonly written with and , respectively). can be considered to be an allophone of (with both corresponding to RP ). also can be considered to be an allophone, a positional variant of (with both corresponding to RP ) – see below. * corresponds to RP . * corresponds to RP . * correspond to the centering diphthongs in traditional RP. is often missing from Cockney, being replaced with or a disyllabic . * corresponds to RP . * and correspond to relatively less diphthongal and in traditional RP. * correspond to in RP.


Phonetic realisation

The diphthong offsets are only fully close in and : . In all other cases, they are more similar to or . According to Beaken, and typically glide towards : , towards : , and the wide allophone of towards : , whereas and both towards : . According to Mott, do not occur at all as glides: (he does not show on his charts). Furthermore, Wells remarks on the laxness of the unrounded offset of , which is a kind of a centralised : . In the rest of the article, this is treated as a simple allophonic rule and only and are used for the diphthong offsets. In narrow phonetic transcription, their rounded and unrounded counterparts are written with and (phonetically and in fully narrow transcription). Only the central offglides and are transcribed as non-syllabic vowels due to the lack of appropriate glide symbols. Diphthong alterations in Cockney are: * is realised as : "beet" * is realised as : "bait" * is realised as or even in "vigorous, dialectal" Cockney. The second element may be reduced or absent (with compensatory lengthening of the first element), so that there are variants such as . This means that pairs such as ''laugh''-''life'', ''Barton''-''biting'' may become homophones: , . But this neutralisation is an optional, recoverable one: "bite" * is realised as : "choice" * is realised as or a monophthongal , perhaps with little lip rounding, or : "boot" * typically starts in the area of , . The endpoint glides towards , but more commonly, it is completely unrounded, i.e. . Thus, the most common variants are and , with and also being possible. The broadest Cockney variant approaches . There is also a variant that is used only by women, namely . In addition, there are two monophthongal pronunciations, as in 'no, nah' and , which is used in non-prominent variants. "coat" * may all feature centering glides . Alternatively, may be realised as a closing diphthong . Wells states that "no rigid rules can be given for the distribution of monophthongal and diphthongal variants, though the tendency seems to be for the monophthongal variants to be commonest within the utterance, but the diphthongal realisations in utterance-final position, or where the syllable in question is otherwise prominent." Furthermore, the main difference between and is length, with the quality being secondary. The contrast appears only in the word-internal position, exactly where the monophthongal variants of are the most common. Thus, word pairs such as ''his'' – ''here's'' , ''merry'' – ''Mary'' , ''at'' – ''out'' and ''Polly'' – ''poorly'' contrast mainly by length, though may be slightly higher than . * Disyllabic realisations of are also possible, and at least are regarded as very strongly Cockney. Among these, the triphthongal realisation of occurs most commonly. There is not a complete agreement about the distribution of these; according to , they "occur in sentence-final position", whereas according to , these are "most common in final position". * When diphthongal, and have higher starting points than in RP: . However, Beaken considers the former to be unshifted in comparison with traditional RP: . Other vowel differences include * may be or , with the latter occurring before voiced consonants, particularly before : "back", "bad" * may be , , or before certain voiced consonants, particularly before : "bed" * According to Wells, may be somewhat less open than RP , that is . Beaken, on the other hand, considers variants no more open than to be the norm: "cot" * has a fully back variant, qualitatively equivalent to cardinal 5, which Beaken (1971) claims characterizes "vigorous, informal" Cockney. * is on occasion somewhat fronted and lightly rounded, giving Cockney variants such as , . * is realised as or a quality like that of cardinal 4, : "jumped up" * is realised as or a closing diphthong of the type when in non-final position, with the latter variants being more common in broad Cockney: "sauce"-"source", "laud"-"lord", "water." * is realised as or a centering diphthong/triphthong of the type when in final position, with the latter variants being more common in broad Cockney; thus "saw"-"sore"-"soar", "law"-"lore", "war"-"wore". The diphthong is retained before inflectional endings, so that ''board'' and ''pause'' contrast with ''bored'' and ''paws'' . has a somewhat tenser onset than the cardinal , that is . * becomes something around or even in broad Cockney before
dark l The voiced dental, alveolar, and postalveolar lateral approximants are a type of consonantal sound used in many spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents dental, alveolar, and postalveolar lateral ...
. These variants are retained when the addition of a suffix turns the dark l clear. Thus a phonemic split has occurred in London English, exemplified by the minimal pair ''wholly'' vs. ''holy'' . The development of ''L''-vocalisation (see next section) leads to further pairs such as ''sole''-''soul'' vs. ''so''-''sew'' , ''bowl'' vs. ''Bow'' , ''shoulder'' vs. ''odour'' , while associated vowel neutralisations may make ''doll'' a homophone of ''dole'', compare ''dough'' . All this reinforces the phonemic nature of the opposition and increases its functional load. It is now well-established in all kinds of London-flavoured accents, from broad Cockney to near-RP. * in some words (particularly ''good'') is central . In other cases, it is near-close near-back , as in traditional RP. The dialect uses the vocalisation of dark L, hence for
Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...
. The actual realisation of a vocalised is influenced by surrounding vowels, and it may be realised as , , or . It is also transcribed as a
semivowel In phonetics and phonology, a semivowel, glide or semiconsonant is a sound that is phonetically similar to a vowel sound but functions as the syllable boundary, rather than as the nucleus of a syllable. Examples of semivowels in English are ''y ...
by some linguists, e.g., Coggle and Rosewarne. However, according to , the vocalised dark l is sometimes an unoccluded lateral approximant, which differs from the RP only by the lack of the alveolar contact. Relatedly, there are many possible vowel neutralisations and absorptions in the context of a following dark L () or its vocalised version; these include: *In broad Cockney, and to some extent in general popular London speech, a vocalised is entirely absorbed by a preceding : e.g., ''salt'' and ''sort'' become homophones (although the contemporary pronunciation of ''salt'' would prevent this from happening), and likewise ''fault''-''fought''-''fort'', ''pause''-''Paul's'', ''Morden''-''Malden'', ''water''-''Walter''. Sometimes such pairs are kept apart, in a more deliberate speech at least, by a kind of length difference: ''Morden'' vs. ''Malden''. *A preceding is also fully absorbed into vocalised . The reflexes of earlier and earlier are thus phonetically similar or identical; speakers are usually ready to treat them as the same phoneme. Thus ''awful'' can best be regarded as containing two occurrences of the same vowel, . The difference between ''musical'' and ''music-hall'', in an ''H''-dropping broad Cockney, is thus nothing more than a matter of stress and perhaps syllable boundaries. *With the remaining vowels, a vocalised is not absorbed but remains phonetically present as a back vocoid in such a way that and are kept distinct. *The clearest and best-established neutralisations are those of and . Thus ''rill'', ''reel'' and ''real'' fall together in Cockney as ; while ''full'' and ''fool'' are and may rhyme with ''cruel'' . Before clear (i.e., prevocalic) the neutralisations do not usually apply, thus ''silly'' but ''ceiling''-''sealing'', ''fully'' but ''fooling''. *In some broader types of Cockney, the neutralisation of before non-prevocalic may also involve , so that ''fall'' becomes homophonous with ''full'' and ''fool'' . *The other pre- neutralisation which all investigators agree on is that of . Thus, ''Sal'' and ''sale'' can be merged as , ''fail'' and ''fowl'' as , and ''Val'', ''vale''-''veil'' and ''vowel'' as . The typical pronunciation of ''railway'' is . *According to Siversten, and can also join in this neutralisation. They may, on the one hand, neutralize concerning one another so that ''snarl'' and ''smile'' rhyme, both ending , and ''Child's Hill'' is in danger of being mistaken for ''Charles Hill''; or they may go further into a fivefold neutralisation with the one just mentioned, so that ''pal'', ''pale'', ''foul'', ''snarl'' and ''pile'' all end in . But these developments are restricted to broad Cockney, not being found in London speech in general. *A neutralisation discussed by Beaken (1971) and Bowyer (1973), but ignored by Siversten (1960), is that of . It leads to the possibility of ''doll'', ''dole'' and ''dull'' becoming homophonous as or . Wells' impression is that the ''doll''-''dole'' neutralisation is rather widespread in London, but that involving ''dull'' less so. *One further possible neutralisation in the environment of a following non-prevocalic is that of and , so that ''well'' and ''whirl'' become homophonous as . Cockney has been occasionally described as replacing with , for example, ' (or ''fwee'') instead of ''three'', ' instead of ''frosty''. Peter Wright, a
Survey of English Dialects The Survey of English Dialects was undertaken between 1950 and 1961 under the direction of Harold Orton of the English department of the University of Leeds. It aimed to collect the full range of speech in England and Wales before local differe ...
fieldworker, concluded that this was not a universal feature of Cockneys but that it was more common to hear this in the London area than elsewhere in Britain. This description may also be a result of mishearing the labiodental R as , when it is still a distinct phoneme in Cockney. An unstressed final ''-ow'' may be pronounced . In broad Cockney, this can be lowered to . This is common to most traditional, Southern English dialects except for those in the
West Country The West Country is a loosely defined area within southwest England, usually taken to include the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Bristol, with some considering it to extend to all or parts of Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and ...
. Regarding grammar, Cockney uses ''me'' instead of ''my'', for example, At's me book you got 'ere" . (where ere' means 'there'). It cannot be used when "my" is emphasised; e.g., At's ''my'' book you got 'ere" . It also uses the term ''
ain't ''Ain't'' is a negative inflection for ''am'', ''is'', ''are'', ''has'', and ''have'' in informal English. In some dialects, it is also used for ''do'', ''does'', ''did'', and ''will''. The development of ''ain't'' for the various forms of ''be'' ...
'', as well as double negatives, for example, "I didn't see nuffink". By the 1980s and 1990s, most of the features mentioned above had partly spread into more general south-eastern speech, giving the accent called
Estuary English Estuary English is an English accent, continuum of accents, or continuum of accent features associated with the area along the River Thames and its estuary, including London, since the late 20th century. In 2000, the phonetician John C. We ...
; an Estuary speaker will use some but not all of the Cockney sounds.


Perception

The Cockney accent has long been regarded as an indicator of low status. For example, in 1909 the Conference on the Teaching of English in London Elementary Schools issued by the
London County Council The London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today ...
, stating that "the Cockney mode of speech, with its unpleasant twang, is a modern corruption without legitimate credentials, and is unworthy of being the speech of any person in the capital city of the
Empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
". Others defended the language variety: "The London dialect is really, especially on the South side of the Thames, a perfectly legitimate and responsible child of the old Kentish tongue ..the dialect of London North of the Thames has been shown to be one of the many varieties of the Midland or Mercian dialect, flavoured by the East Anglian variety of the same speech". Since then, the Cockney accent has been more accepted as an alternative form of the English language rather than a lesser one, though the low status mark remains. In the 1950s, the only accent to be heard on the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
(except in entertainment programs such as ''
The Sooty Show ''The Sooty Show'' is a British children's television series, created by Harry Corbett, and produced for the BBC from 1955 to 1967, and then for ITV from 1968 until 1992. The show, part of the ''Sooty'' franchise, focuses on the mischievous ad ...
'') was the RP of Standard English, whereas nowadays many different accents, including Cockney or accents heavily influenced by it, can be heard on the BBC. The Cockney accent often featured in films produced by
Ealing Studios Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in west London, England. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on th ...
and was frequently portrayed as the typical British accent of the lower classes in movies by
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...
, though this was only so in London.


Spread

Studies have indicated that the heavy use of
South East England South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, regions of England that are in the ITL 1 statistical regions of England, top level category for Statistics, statistical purposes. It consists of the nine counties of england, ...
accents on television and radio may have caused the spread of Cockney English since the 1960s."Contributory factors in accent change in adolescents"
.
Cockney is becoming increasingly influential, and some claim that in the future, many features of the accent may become standard.


Scotland

Studies have indicated that working-class adolescents in areas such as
Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
have begun to use certain aspects of Cockney and other Anglicisms in their speech. infiltrating the traditional
Glasgow patter The Glasgow dialect, also called Glaswegian, varies from Scottish English at one end of a bipolar linguistic continuum to the local dialect of West Central Scots at the other. Therefore, the speech of many Glaswegians can draw on a "continuum b ...
. For example, ''TH''-fronting is commonly found, and typical
Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
features such as the postvocalic are reduced. Research suggests the use of English speech characteristics is likely to be a result of the influence of London and
South East England South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, regions of England that are in the ITL 1 statistical regions of England, top level category for Statistics, statistical purposes. It consists of the nine counties of england, ...
accents featuring heavily on television, such as the popular BBC One soap opera ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
''. However, such claims have been criticised.


England

Certain features of Cockney – ''Th''-fronting, ''L''-vocalisation, ''T''-glottalisation, and the fronting of the GOAT and GOOSE vowels – have spread across the south-east of England and, to a lesser extent, to other areas of Britain. However,
Clive Upton Clive Upton (born 30 September 1946) is an English linguist specializing in dialectology and sociolinguistics. He is also an authority on the pronunciation of English. He has been Emeritus Professor of Modern English Language at the University ...
has noted that these features have occurred independently in some other dialects, such as TH-fronting in Yorkshire and L-vocalisation in parts of Scotland. The term
Estuary English Estuary English is an English accent, continuum of accents, or continuum of accent features associated with the area along the River Thames and its estuary, including London, since the late 20th century. In 2000, the phonetician John C. We ...
has been used to describe London pronunciations slightly closer to RP than Cockney. The variety first came to public prominence in an article by David Rosewarne in the ''
Times Educational Supplement ''TES'', formerly known as the ''Times Educational Supplement'', is a British weekly trade magazine aimed at education professionals. It was first published in 1910 as a pull-out supplement in ''The Times'' newspaper. Such was its popularity th ...
'' in October 1984. Rosewarne argued that it may eventually replace
Received Pronunciation Received Pronunciation (RP) is the Accent (sociolinguistics), accent of British English regarded as the Standard language, standard one, carrying the highest Prestige (sociolinguistics), social prestige, since as late as the beginning of the 2 ...
in the south-east. The phonetician
John C. Wells John Christopher Wells (born 11 March 1939) is a British phonetician and Esperantist. Wells is a professor emeritus at University College London, where until his retirement in 2006 he held the departmental chair in phonetics. He is known for ...
collected media references to Estuary English o
a website
Writing in April 2013, Wells argued that research by Joanna Przedlacka "demolished the claim that EE was a single entity sweeping the southeast. Rather, we have various sound changes emanating from working-class London speech, each spreading independently".


Pearly tradition

The Pearly Kings and Queens are famous as an East End institution, but that perception is not wholly correct as they are found in other places across London, including
Peckham Peckham ( ) is a district in south-east London, within the London Borough of Southwark. It is south-east of Charing Cross. At the 2001 Census the Peckham ward had a population of 14,720. History "Peckham" is a Saxon place name meaning the vi ...
and
Penge Penge () is a suburb of South East Greater London, London, England, now in the London Borough of Bromley, west of Bromley, north east of Croydon and south east of Charing Cross. Etymology The name ''Penge'' is first attested in charter of ...
in south London.


Notable Cockneys

*
Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (; born 5 May 1988) is an English singer-songwriter. Regarded as a British cultural icon, icon, she is known for her mezzo-soprano vocals and sentimental songwriting. List of awards and nominations received by Adele, ...
, musician, from
Tottenham Tottenham (, , , ) is a district in north London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, ...
*
Danny Baker Danny Baker (born 22 June 1957) is an English comedy writer, journalist, radio DJ and screenwriter. Throughout his career he has largely presented for London's regional radio and television. Baker was born in Deptford to a working-class fa ...
, broadcaster, born in
Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...
*
Michael Barrymore Michael Ciaran Parker (born 4 May 1952), known by his stage name Michael Barrymore, is an English comedian, influencer and television presenter of game shows and light entertainment programmes on British television in the 1980s, 1990s and 200 ...
, actor, comedian, and television presenter, born in
Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...
*
Alfie Bass Alfie Bass (born Abraham Basalinsky, 10 April 1916 – 16 July 1987) was an English actor. He was born in Bethnal Green, London, the youngest in a Jewish family with ten children; his parents had left Russia many years before he was born. He a ...
, actor, from
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...
*
David Beckham Sir David Robert Joseph Beckham ( ; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Primarily a right winger and known for his range of passing, cross ...
, footballer, born in
Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...
, raised in
Chingford Chingford is a suburban town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. The centre of Chingford is north-east of Charing Cross, with Waltham Abbey to the north, Woodford Green and Buckhurst Hill to the east, Walt ...
*
Rob Beckett Robert Anthony Beckett (born 2 January 1986) is an English comedian, actor, and presenter. He was a co-host on the ITV2 spin-off show '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW!'' from 2012 to 2014. Since 2016, Beckett has been a team captain ...
, comedian, from
Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in ...
* Roger Bisby, DIY expert, television presenter, and journalist, born in the
City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...
*
Russell Brand Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian, actor, podcaster and media personality. He established himself as a stand-up comedian and radio host before becoming a film actor. After beginning his career as a comedian and la ...
, comedian, actor, television presenter, YouTuber, author, activist, from Grays * Jay Blades, furniture restorer and television presenter, from Hackney * Jamie Borthwick, actor, born in Barking *
Billy Bragg Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, author and political activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic th ...
, musician, from Barking *
Eric Bristow Eric John Bristow (25 April 1957 – 5 April 2018), nicknamed "the Crafty Cockney", was an English professional darts player and one of the most recognisable and successful players of the 1980s. He was ranked World No. 1 by the World Darts Fed ...
, darts champion, born in Hackney, nicknamed the "Crafty Cockney" * James Buckley, actor and comedian known for playing Jay in
The Inbetweeners ''The Inbetweeners'' is a British coming-of-age television sitcom, which originally aired on E4 from 2008 to 2010 and was created and written by Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. The series follows the misadventures of suburban teenager Willi ...
, born in
Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...
, raised in
Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...
* Jimmy Bullard, footballer and television personality, born in
East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county of Essex, East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a ...
*
Kathy Burke Katherine Lucy Bridget Burke (born 13 June 1964) is an English actress and comedian. She appeared in sketch shows such as '' French and Saunders'' (1988–1999), played a recurring role as Magda on the BBC sitcom '' Absolutely Fabulous'' (1992� ...
, actress and comedian, from
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
*
Garry Bushell Garry Bushell (born 13 May 1955) is an English newspaper columnist, rock music journalist, television presenter, author, musician and political activist. Bushell also sings in the Cockney Oi! bands GBX and the Gonads. He managed the New York C ...
, journalist and rock musician, from
Woolwich Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...
*
Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...
, actor, born in
Rotherhithe Rotherhithe ( ) is a district of South London, England, and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping, Shadwell and Limehouse on the north bank, with the Isle of Dogs to the ea ...
, raised in
Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...
and
Elephant and Castle Elephant and Castle is an area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground station of the same name. The n ...
* Harry Champion, music hall singer and comedian, born in
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...
*
Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is considered o ...
, comic actor, filmmaker, and composer, 16 April 1889, born in
Walworth Walworth ( ) is a district of South London, England, within the London Borough of Southwark. It adjoins Camberwell to the south and Elephant and Castle to the north, and is south-east of Charing Cross. Major streets in Walworth include the ...
, raised in
Kennington Kennington is a district in south London, England. It is mainly within the London Borough of Lambeth, running along the boundary with the London Borough of Southwark, a boundary which can be discerned from the early medieval period between th ...
* Lorraine Chase, actress and model, from
Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...
*
Albert Chevalier Albert Chevalier (often listed as Albert Onésime Britannicus Gwathveoyd Louis Chevalier; 21 March 186110 July 1923) was an English music hall comedian, singer and musical theatre actor. He specialised in cockney related humour based on life as ...
, Victorian music hall singer, born in Royal Crescent *
Rylan Clark Ross Richard Clark (born 25 October 1988), commonly known as Rylan Clark, is an English broadcaster and television personality. He came to prominence as a contestant on the The X Factor (British series 9), ninth series of the television talent s ...
, television personality, presenter, and singer, born in
Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...
* Cockney Rejects, credited with creating a sub-genre of punk rock called
Oi! Oi! is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The music and its associated subculture had the goal of bringing together punks, skinheads, and other disaffected working-class youth. The movement wa ...
, which gained its name from the use of Cockney dialect *Joe Cole, footballer, born in Paddington, raised in Somers Town, London, Somers Town *Gemma Collins, media personality and businesswoman, born in
Romford Romford is a large List of places in London, town in east London, east London, England, located northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major Metropolitan centres of London, metropolitan centr ...
*Roisin Conaty, comedian and actress, from Camden Town, Camden *Brian Conley, comedian, television presenter, and actor, born in Paddington *Henry Cooper, boxer, born in Lambeth *Tony Cottee, footballer and commentator, born in Forest Gate, raised in
East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county of Essex, East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a ...
*Dave Courtney, author and former gangster, born in
Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...
*Phil Daniels, actor from
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
*Dapper Laughs, comedian from Kingston upon Thames *Jack Dash, political activist, born in
Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...
*Jim Davidson, comedian and television presenter, from Kidbrooke *Steve Davis, former snooker world champion, from Plumstead *Peter Dean (actor), Peter Dean, actor, born in
Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...
*Devlin (rapper), Devlin, rapper, born in
Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...
, raised in
Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...
*Chris Difford, musician from Greenwich *Louis Dunford, musician from
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
*Ian Dury, musician, born in Harrow, London, Harrow, raised in Cranham *Dani Dyer, actress and television personality, from Newham *Danny Dyer, actor and TV presenter, from Custom House, Newham, Custom House *Joey Essex, television personality, born in
Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...
*Craig Fairbrass, actor, born in
Mile End Mile End is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in East London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is east of Charing Cross. Situated on the part of the London-to-Colchester road ...
*Perry Fenwick, actor, from
Canning Town Canning Town is a town in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, north of the Royal Victoria Dock. Its urbanisation was largely due to the creation of the dock. The area was part of the ancient parish and County Borough of West Ham, ...
*Johnny Fisher, boxer from
Romford Romford is a large List of places in London, town in east London, east London, England, located northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major Metropolitan centres of London, metropolitan centr ...
known as the Romford Bull *Micky Flanagan, comedian, born in
Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...
, raised in
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...
*Alan Ford (actor), Alan Ford, actor, born in
Walworth Walworth ( ) is a district of South London, England, within the London Borough of Southwark. It adjoins Camberwell to the south and Elephant and Castle to the north, and is south-east of Charing Cross. Major streets in Walworth include the ...
*Jamie Foreman, actor, born in
Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...
*Frankie Fraser, "Mad" Frankie Fraser, gangster, born in Waterloo, London, Waterloo and raised in
Elephant and Castle Elephant and Castle is an area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground station of the same name. The n ...
*Dean Gaffney, actor, born in Hammersmith *Bill Gardner (football hooligan), Bill Gardner, former football hooligan, born in Hornchurch *Bobby George, darts player and television presenter, born in Manor Park, London, Manor Park *Len Goodman, ballroom dancer and television personality, from
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...
*Leslie Grantham, actor, born in Camberwell *Jimmy Greaves, footballer, born in Manor Park, London, Manor Park, raised in Hainault, London, Hainault *Tony Hadley, lead singer of Spandau Ballet, from
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
*Steve Harley, musician, frontman of the band Cockney Rebel, born in
Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...
*Simon Harris (musician), Simon Harris, DJ and record producer, born in City of Westminster, Westminster *Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris, musician, founder of Iron Maiden, from
Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...
*Brian Harvey, musician and original lead singer of East 17, from Walthamstow *Barry Hearn, sporting events promoter, born in
Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...
*Eddie Hearn, sporting events promoter, born in
Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...
*The Wealdstone Raider, Gordon Hill, also known as the Wealdstone Raider, internet meme, from Wealdstone *Alfred Hitchcock, film director, born in
Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...
and raised there,
Limehouse Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains throu ...
and
Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...
. *Glenn Hoddle, former football player and England national football team, England manager, born in Hayes, Hillingdon, Hayes *Chas Hodges, musician, member of the "Rockney" duo Chas & Dave, from Edmonton, London, Edmonton *Roy Hodgson, football manager and former player, born in
Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...
*Bob Hoskins, actor, raised in Finsbury Park (area), Finsbury Park *Derek Jameson, journalist and broadcaster from Hackney *Steve Jones (musician), Steve Jones, rock guitarist with the Sex Pistols, singer, actor and radio DJ, from Shepherd's Bush *Vinnie Jones, actor and former footballer, from Watford *Harry Kane, footballer, born in Walthamstow, raised in
Chingford Chingford is a suburban town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. The centre of Chingford is north-east of Charing Cross, with Waltham Abbey to the north, Woodford Green and Buckhurst Hill to the east, Walt ...
*Gary Kemp, musician and actor, born in Smithfield, London, Smithfield *Martin Kemp, musician and actor, born in
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
*Ronnie Knight, former nightclub owner and gangster, born in
Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...
*Kray twins, Ronnie and Reggie Kray, identical twin brothers, gangsters, and business owners, born in
Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...
and lived in
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...
*Frank Lampard, football manager and former player, born in
Romford Romford is a large List of places in London, town in east London, east London, England, located northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major Metropolitan centres of London, metropolitan centr ...
*Frank Lampard Sr, former footballer, born in
East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county of Essex, East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a ...
*Ken Livingstone, former Mayor of London and leader of the Greater London Council, born in Streatham *John Lydon, also known as Johnny Rotten, punk rock singer with the Sex Pistols, born in Holloway, London, Holloway *Kellie Maloney, boxing promoter, born in
Peckham Peckham ( ) is a district in south-east London, within the London Borough of Southwark. It is south-east of Charing Cross. At the 2001 Census the Peckham ward had a population of 14,720. History "Peckham" is a Saxon place name meaning the vi ...
*Glen Matlock, rock and punk rock musician, from Paddington *Derek Martin, actor, born in Bow *Hoxton Tom McCourt, punk rock/Oi! musician, from
Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...
/
Shoreditch Shoreditch is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney alongside neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets, which are also perceived as part of the area due to historic ecclesiastical links. Shoreditch lies just north ...
*Steve McFadden, actor, known for playing Phil Mitchell on
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
, from Maida Vale *Lenny McLean, bare-knuckle/unlicensed boxer, actor, born in
Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...
*Paul Merson, footballer, manager and Sky Sports pundit, from Harlesden *Warren Mitchell, actor, known for playing Alf Garnett in ''Till Death Us Do Part'', from Stoke Newington' *Charlie Mullins, businessman, founder of Pimlico Plumbers, born in St Pancras, London, St Pancras, raised in
Elephant and Castle Elephant and Castle is an area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground station of the same name. The n ...
*Billy Murray (actor), Billy Murray, actor, born in Forest Gate, raised in Upton Park, London, Upton Park *Terry Naylor, former footballer, born in
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
*Mark Noble, former footballer, born in
Canning Town Canning Town is a town in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, north of the Royal Victoria Dock. Its urbanisation was largely due to the creation of the dock. The area was part of the ancient parish and County Borough of West Ham, ...
, raised in Beckton *Chubby Oates, club comedian and actor, from
Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...
*Des O'Connor, television personality and singer, born in
Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...
*Ronnie O'Sullivan, snooker player from Chigwell *Cliff Parisi, actor and former stand-up comedian, born in Poplar *Joe Pasquale, comedian, actor, and television presenter, born in Grays *Dave Peacock (musician), Dave Peacock, musician, member of the "Rockney" duo Chas & Dave, from Enfield, London, Enfield *Jack Petchey, businessman and philanthropist, born in Plaistow, Newham, Plaistow *Martin Peters, former footballer and manager, born in Plaistow, Newham, Plaistow, raised in
Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...
*Claude Rains, the actor born in Camberwell in 1889, became famous after abandoning his heavy Cockney accent and developing a unique Good American Speech, Mid-Atlantic accent described as "half American, half English and a little Cockney thrown in" *Harry Redknapp, former footballer and manager, born in Poplar *Mike Reid (actor), Mike Reid, actor and comedian, from Hackney *Shane Richie, actor and television presenter, born in Kensington *Linda Robson, actress and TV presenter from
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
*Jonathan Ross, television and radio presenter, born in St Pancras, London, St Pancras, raised in
Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...
*Paul Ross, television and radio presenter, born in
Romford Romford is a large List of places in London, town in east London, east London, England, located northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major Metropolitan centres of London, metropolitan centr ...
, raised in
Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...
*Roy Shaw, author, businessman, and former criminal, born in
Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...
, lived in
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...
and Waltham Abbey *Teddy Sheringham, footballer and manager, from Highams Park *Marina Sirtis, actress, born in Hackney *Thomas Skinner (businessman), Thomas Skinner, businessman and television personality, from
Romford Romford is a large List of places in London, town in east London, east London, England, located northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major Metropolitan centres of London, metropolitan centr ...
*Arthur Smith (comedian), Arthur Smith, comedian, from
Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...
*Stacey Solomon, singer and television personality, born in
Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...
*Terence Stamp, actor, born in
Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...
*Nicola Stapleton, actress, born in
Elephant and Castle Elephant and Castle is an area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground station of the same name. The n ...
, raised in
Walworth Walworth ( ) is a district of South London, England, within the London Borough of Southwark. It adjoins Camberwell to the south and Elephant and Castle to the north, and is south-east of Charing Cross. Major streets in Walworth include the ...
*Tommy Steele, 1950s pop and film artist, born in
Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...
*Mark Strong, actor, born in Clerkenwell *Alan Sugar, business magnate and television personality, from Hackney *Suggs, lead singer of Madness (band), Madness known for singing in his Cockney accent, from Camden Town, Camden *Joe Swash, actor and television presenter, from
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
*Reg Varney, actor and comedian, born in
Canning Town Canning Town is a town in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, north of the Royal Victoria Dock. Its urbanisation was largely due to the creation of the dock. The area was part of the ancient parish and County Borough of West Ham, ...
*Terry Venables, former footballer and manager, from
Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...
*Sid Vicious, punk rock musician, born in
Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in ...
*Gregg Wallace, television presenter and former greengrocer, born in
Peckham Peckham ( ) is a district in south-east London, within the London Borough of Southwark. It is south-east of Charing Cross. At the 2001 Census the Peckham ward had a population of 14,720. History "Peckham" is a Saxon place name meaning the vi ...
*Jessie Wallace, actress, born in Enfield, London, Enfield *Shani Wallis, actress, known for her role as Nancy in the 1968 Musical Film "Oliver!", born in
Tottenham Tottenham (, , , ) is a district in north London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, ...
*Danniella Westbrook, actress, born in Walthamstow *Barbara Windsor, actress, born in
Shoreditch Shoreditch is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney alongside neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets, which are also perceived as part of the area due to historic ecclesiastical links. Shoreditch lies just north ...
*Amy Winehouse, musician, born in Enfield, London, Enfield, raised in Southgate, London, Southgate *Anna Wing, actress, from Hackney *Ray Winstone, actor, born in Homerton, raised in Plaistow, Newham, Plaistow and Enfield, London, Enfield *Jake Wood, actor and GEICO gecko voiceover artist, born in City of Westminster, Westminster *Adam Woodyatt, actor from Walthamstow *Jess Wright, television personality, model, and singer, born in Tower Hamlets *Mark Wright (TV personality), Mark Wright, television personality and footballer, born in Buckhurst Hill


Use in films and media

*Many of Ken Loach's early films were set in London. Loach has a reputation for using genuine dialect speakers in films: ** ''3 Clear Sundays'' ** ''Up the Junction (The Wednesday Play), Up the Junction'' ** ''Cathy Come Home'' ** ''Poor Cow'' (the title being a Cockney expression for "poor woman") *''Alfie (1966 film), Alfie'' *''The Mighty Boosh (TV series), The Mighty Boosh''. The Hitcher, played by Noel Fielding, is notoriously Cockney. *''Oliver! (film), Oliver!''. Fagin and his working orphans, particularly The Artful Dodger and Nancy, speak in Cockney * ''Sparrows Can't Sing''. The film had to be subtitled when released in the United States due to audience comprehension difficulties. * ''Bronco Bullfrog''. The film's tagline was "Cockney Youth – With English Subtitles". * ''The Long Good Friday''. The DVD of this film has an extra feature that explains the
rhyming slang Rhyming slang is a form of slang word construction in the English language. It is especially prevalent among Cockneys in England, and was first used in the early 19th century in the East End of London; hence its alternative name, Cockney rhymin ...
used. *''Pygmalion (play), Pygmalion'', a play by George Bernard Shaw. * ''My Fair Lady'', a musical based on Bernard Shaw's play. *''Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be'', a West End musical comedy (with Cockney speech in the title) about Cockney low-life characters. * In ''A Clockwork Orange (film), A Clockwork Orange'', the fictional language used of Nadsat had some influence from Cockney. * ''Mary Poppins (film), Mary Poppins'' (and featuring Dick Van Dyke's infamous approximation of a Cockney accent) * ''Mary Poppins Returns'' (with Lin-Manuel Miranda, who plays Jack, stating "If they [the audience] didn't like Dick Van Dyke, Dick's accent, they'll be furious with mine") * Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007 film), ''Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'' — Mrs. Lovett, Mrs. Nellie Lovett and Tobias Ragg have Cockney accents. * ''Passport to Pimlico''. A newspaper headline in the film refers to the Pimlico residents as "crushed Cockneys". * ''Cockneys vs Zombies'' * The Lord of the Rings (film series), ''The Lord of the Rings'' film series. The orcs speak in Cockney accents. * ''My Little Pony: Equestria Girls – Spring Breakdown''. Ragamuffin, portrayed by Jason Michas, has a Cockney accent. * Pinocchio (1940 film), ''Pinocchio'', The Coachman, voiced by Charles Judels, has a Cockney accent. * ''The Gentlemen (2020 film), The Gentlemen'' * ''The Football Factory (film), Football Factory'' * ''Green Street Elite'' * ''Legend (2015 film), Legend''. The two main characters, Ronnie and Reggie Kray plus a certain number of other characters have a cockney accent. * ''Peaky Blinders (TV series), Peaky Blinders''. The characters Alfie Solomons and Billie Kimber speak with a cockney accent. * ''The Getaway (video game), The Getaway'' and ''Blood & Truth'' are video games released by Sony that center around cockney gangster culture. * ''Downton Abbey: A New Era''. Myrna Dalgleish (played by Laura Haddock) is a silent film actress whose Cockney accent becomes a problem when transition to talking films.


See also

* Cockney Wanker * ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
'' *
Estuary English Estuary English is an English accent, continuum of accents, or continuum of accent features associated with the area along the River Thames and its estuary, including London, since the late 20th century. In 2000, the phonetician John C. We ...
* Languages of the United Kingdom * List of British regional nicknames * Madras Bashai and Bambaiya Hindi, similar working class dialects of Tamil language, Tamil and Hindi respectively used in the cities of Chennai and Mumbai, India * London slang *
Mockney Mockney (a portmanteau of " mock" and "cockney") is an affected accent and form of speech in imitation of cockney or working-class London speech, or a person with such an accent. A stereotypical mockney speaker comes from an upper-middle-class b ...
* Possessive me * Cockney rhyming slang


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * *


External links

* * * * — Listen to examples of London and other regional accents and dialects of the UK on the British Library's "Sounds Familiar" website * * {{Authority control English language in England English language in London British regional nicknames City colloquials Culture in London Working-class culture in England English words