Accents Ranked By Attractiveness In YouGov Poll

New research has rated the top 12 main accents in the British Isles by attractiveness – and the results may surprise you.

YouGov asked 2,018 adults to rate English dialects from a scale of very attractive, fairly attractive, fairly unattractive, very unattractive, neither or 'don't know.'

According to the results, the most beguiling accent is Southern Irish, with Received Pronunciation a close second.

The most attractive accents in the British Isles - mapped

Languishing at the bottom of the charts are Mancunian, Scouse and Brummie.

Will Dahlgreen of YouGov said: “First impressions of unearned features, such as accents, still have an impact on success in employment, social life and elsewhere.”

He adds: “There are some vast differences in perceived attractiveness of accents by age. The West Country accent is considered the most attractive to over-60s.

Dick Van Dyke was famously mocked for his 'cockney' accent in Mary Poppins

“63% of the oldest generation see it as attractive, compared to only 22% of 18-24 year-olds. The opposite perception has developed for Northern Irish, with most 18-24 year-olds (54%) seeing it as attractive compared to only 37% of over-60s. Geordie, the Newcastle accent, also has a greater appeal to older British people.

“Additionally, there is a tendency to like ones own. People in London score cockney net -16, while overall it is disliked by -30; Glaswegian is liked by net 7 in Scotland, but a greatly different -29 among Britain as a whole. The pattern continues for the other regions and their respective accents as well.”

The list in full:

1. Southern Irish
2. Received Pronunciation
3. Welsh
4. Yorkshire
5. West Country
6. Geordie (Newcastle)
7. Northern Irish
8. Glaswegian (Glasgow)
9. Cockney (London)
10. Mancunian (Manchester)
11. Scouse (Liverpool)
12. Brummie (Birmingham)

In a show of solidarity, The Liverpool Echo has responded to the poll by instructing readers to “tell us why it’s them who are talking rubbish” and resurrecting a previous feature entitled Top 26 Things Only Scousers Say.

Conversely, Wales Online has taken great pleasure in citing a separate study which claims people on Twitter are more likely to find the Welsh accent sexy rather than ugly.