BBC One Show features Essex accent research

Research by vocal expert Dr Tara McAllister-Viel about the impact of accent prejudice on teenage girls in Essex was featured on the BBC’s flagship evening programme, The One Show.

The item, presented by Essex-born One Show regular Jeff Brazier, featured interviews with students from Westcliff High School for Girls in Southend, who had participated in Dr McAllister-Viel’s research.

The teenagers, who had written poetry reflecting on their experiences of growing up as a girl in Essex, were seen performing their poems on stage at a school assembly and were interviewed about how their accents made them feel.

Talking to Brazier, the girls explained how they felt people didn’t respect their opinions because of the way they spoke.

Dr McAllister-Viel, who is Head of Voice and Speech at East 15 Acting School was also interviewed about how young people need to be taught strategies for coping with all kinds of prejudice, including accent prejudice.

Speaking afterwards, Dr McAllister-Viel said: “The One Show has the potential to reach up to five million viewers per episode. This far exceeds the academic reach of my research through typical academic channels like conference presentations and publications. Having my research project showcased on The One Show has allowed my research and its findings to generate conversations and interest in this work in ways I didn’t expect.”

Watch the clip (approximately 14:30 minutes in).