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leonchase@reddit

If there is a VERY strong accent, and/or when the delivery is extra fast or mumbled, then yes. "Peaky Blinders" comes to mind.

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tuataraenfield@reddit

Most British people more than 30 miles away from Birmingham would need subtitles as well, in truth.

The strange thing is, the Birmingham accent 'Brummie' has long been reviled in the UK as sounding stupid. As in studies consistently show that people with that accent are considered less intelligent.

So taking a gang seriously with that accent is something I've never been about to do. It's as if The Godfather was called Bubba.

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You are British, then? We actually do have "Bubba mafia" stuff here. The Dixie Mafia is sort of like that.The South is rife with corruption, shady dealings, and violence. A lot of it ties in with dirty cops.

Heck, one of our popular news stories just now was a sheriff killing his judge friend in the judge's chambers during an argument. The fact that he killed him is not in dispute. But it turns out the judge and the county prosecutor are former brothers-in-law and best friends (just imagine how something like that gets allowed to happen). The sheriff was also tight friends with the judge. From what little there is to go on (the sheriff and the judge had a friendly lunch earlier in the day, at some point the sheriff discovered the judge had his daughter in his phone, and called his daughter from his phone and room the judge's phone before the shooting) it looks super salacious.

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tuataraenfield@reddit

Guilty as charged 😂 You know, as soon as you mentioned that I remembered the basic whole premise of 'Justified'.

I probably could have picked a better term. My original thought was of the more stereotypical 'dumb hick' Boss Hogg type. That would probably be the closest comparison.

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JacobDCRoss@reddit

No worries. I like watching media set "oop North" or in Wales. Always love a small-time crimelord with roots reaching back generations.

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leonchase@reddit

Years ago, I actually dated a woman who was originally from Birmingham, so I had a slight advantage when trying to follow that show. It was also funny, watching Americans instinctively treat her as "posh" for having a British accent. When we ran into other people from England, it was a very different story...

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darksideofthemoon131@reddit

"Rock n Rolla " and "Trainspotting" were 2 that the subtitles needed to be on for me.

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OK_Ingenue@reddit

Trainspotting for sure! Didn’t understand a word of it.

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biblioteca4ants@reddit

I freaking love rock n rolla. I have that one and snatch and revolver and they all need subtitles on lol

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expatsconnie@reddit

I would not have understood a word that Alfie Solomons said without subtitles.

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aNervousSheep@reddit

I think that's more of a Tom Hardy thing, but you're absolutely right.

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ibugppl@reddit

I want to like the show so bad but I just can't follow what's happening a lot of the time because the heavy accents.

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podroznikdc@reddit

And those clouds of smoke or steam they are always walking through in slow motion. Hilarious!

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PinchMaNips@reddit

It’s so fucking good!

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darling_nikki85@reddit

I think it depends on how well you can understand different accents. I have a hard time understanding accents I haven't gotten used to. For example, I used to work at a motel and the maintenance guy was Honduran. I became used to his accent and broken English after awhile and could understand him. One day this guy with a strong southern accent came in and I couldn't understand him. The maintenance guy happened to be there and could understand the southern guy and had to repeat everything the southern guy said to me. I'm sure the southern dude thought I must be an idiot.

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stay_with_me_awhile@reddit

It depends. If it’s a more “stereotypical” British accent, I can usually understand it just fine. But if they’re speaking in a really thick accent, like Cockney or Birmingham, I use them.

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amethystmystiq@reddit

Yes, but for me, it depends.

The first time I watched a Monty Python movie, some 15 odd years ago, I had to have subtitles on. I could understand some characters but not others. I had never really seen any British media before then and wasn't used to the accent at all.

Years later, much more familiar with "England English" by then, I started watching modern Doctor Who. I needed subtitles for 9 but not 10 or 11, and needed them for 12.

Derry Girls? I couldn't understand a WORD them heffas were saying. Subtitles to the rescue once again.

So from that I guess it's easier for me as an American to get RP and other more familiar dialects without subs, but for the more niche, regional accents, I need them.

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Icy-Student8443@reddit

yeah sometimes but i also just always have subtitles on sooooo

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shandelion@reddit

I have to use subtitles even when watching movies in my own personal accent lol

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caskey@reddit

Sometimes.

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EspressoOverdose@reddit

Nope

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DegenerateCrocodile@reddit

Depends on how thick the accent is or whether the sound mixing is atrocious.

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Wii_wii_baget@reddit

I just watch with subtitles regardless

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JustbyLlama@reddit

There’s nothing I watch without subtitles. I have an auditory processing disorder and it’s hard for me to understand most people.

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Medicivich@reddit

It is helpful when watching Monty Python.

It is useful to have a dictionary that explains British slang (like in high school while ready Chaucer).

I think a lot has to do with the accent. Scottish is really hard to understand in part to the cadence of the speech and that they aren't speaking English. I have no idea what is being said in the accents from places like Birmingham, Yorkshire, Manchester, or Liverpool.

Someone put Gary Neville and Jamie Carrigan on US TV without subtitles, what were they thinking? To contrast that, Rebecca Lowe is really easy to understand.

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primaltriad77@reddit

For me, it's not the accent usually. It's more the phrases and expressions used, especially if the show or movie was set in the past. Quite a lot of British expressions are not used in the US so I have to look them up. For example, I was watching Endeavour (set in the 60s and 70s) on PBS and heard the saying "effin' and jeffin'." We Americans do not say that and I had to Google it.

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TravelerMSY@reddit

No, but I mostly watch crime shows set in London.

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brilliantpants@reddit

Not a problem I’ve ever had, but when I used to work in video stores people would pretty regularly return Guy Ritchie movies and complain that they couldn’t understand anything they were saying.

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ChiSchatze@reddit

You can have subtitles just for Brad Pitt in the Snatch DVD. No one could understand his accent.

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sto_brohammed@reddit

I'm a retired artilleryman, I always have subtitles on.

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Luckytxn_1959@reddit

Yeah field artillery here and wish they had subtitles in real life but now just have to hope they weren't talking to me and needed an answer.

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Ornery_Invite_966@reddit

I use subtitles even when it's American English lol

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dystopiadattopia@reddit

Haha sometimes if they're not speaking slowly, or if they don't have an RP accent.

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GrandmasHere@reddit

Always. Also for Irish and Scottish films. Well, also for American ones too, come to think of it.

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Lugbor@reddit

I needed it once, for a particularly thick Irish accent. Most accents aren't that strong.

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HudsonYardsIsGood@reddit

I turn on subtitles for every movie. I like to hear every word and to know how every name is spelled.

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jyper@reddit

Crunchyroll has been using auto generated subtitles for the English dubs and it's not good. At a minimum every name is butchered.

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nonstopflux@reddit

Seems like you’re a fan of screenplays more than movies.

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pirawalla22@reddit

I remember seeing Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon in a very crowded theater and within two minutes a bunch of people got up and left, and one of them said really loudly "I didn't come hear to READ a movie"

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_Smedette_@reddit

I require subtitles for American series and movies.

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InterPunct@reddit

Prior to a decent flatscreen and subtitles, I tried more than once to watch The Wire (inner-city Baltimore accent) but bailed and I'm American.. Now I think it's one of the best shows ever on television.

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ubiquitous-joe@reddit

Shiiiit man, Snoop is hard, but it wasn’t that bad overall.

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InterPunct@reddit

I mean, I got the gist of it but the beauty and nuance of the writing was in the details.

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Different_Invite_406@reddit

I’m the same. I started when my kids were small and the house was noisy (30 years ago, it was called closed caption on our TV).

Now, I don’t watch anything without them. It’s one of the reasons I won’t go to a movie theater anymore, along with rewinding a bit when I miss meaning.

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jurassicbond@reddit

I'm the same. They're there for me to glance at if I miss something, but usually I just ignore them

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The-Curiosity-Rover@reddit

What?

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-iamai-@reddit

Yeah it's a thing sometimes you miss out dialogue in the loud moments etc. Distracted for a second you can pretty much keep up with on screen text.

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TheVentiLebowski@reddit

It's because everyone mumbles nowadays. It's totally not because I'm old and my hearing is going.

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-iamai-@reddit

Huh? Why are you cold the heating's on!

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The-Curiosity-Rover@reddit

Yeah, I was just making a corny joke

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devnullopinions@reddit

With crap audio mixing for your average tv setup I have the subtitles on nearly 100% of the time regardless lol.

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mustachechap@reddit

Definitely, because I only speak American and don't know much British.

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Flying_Haggis@reddit

No but only because I lived in the UK for a bit. I will never forget we had this cleaning lady at my school in Glasgow and she would slow down and enunciate every word for me when we would chat. One day I finally told her I could understand her perfectly without doing that and she looked at me very confused. I guess it's uncommon for people to understand the Glaswegian accent?

I also had an interesting conversation once where I asked these two elderly ladies where the store was to buy groceries. One turned to the other and said "I cannae understand what she is saying." The other one responded "I dinnae, but she won't shut up about it." So I guess it can go both ways.

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Studious_Noodle@reddit

No.

Subtitles are annoying and I only use them when someone is speaking a different language.

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Racheakt@reddit

I require subtitles on American films and shows, sound mixing is garbage these days; either a muddy mess with the background or so soft only the dogs can hear it

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blueponies1@reddit

I always put the subtitles on but yeah definitely for a show where people have accents that are difficult for me to understand. There was an entire season of sons of anarchy where I couldn’t understand anybody

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ExtinctFauna@reddit

Dude, I usually use subtitles no matter what.

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PaintingNouns@reddit

Totally. Getting into British tv is how I learned I much prefer subtitles all the time!

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AntiqueWarStories@reddit

I mean...can any American actually understand this clip??

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Reduxalicious@reddit

That just put me in mind of This scene from Eurotrip

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NikkiRex@reddit

Translation: what are you kids doing here? Kick rocks!

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GaryJM@reddit

I'm British and I didn't understand all of that.

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Ananvil@reddit

Given the complete lack of audio balancing and sudden increase of mumble talking, I have them in for everything now

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TheBimpo@reddit

No, I don’t find the variety of UK accents particularly difficult to understand. I am horrified at the number of people reporting that they always use subtitles.

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pirawalla22@reddit

I think a LOT of it has to do with shitty sound systems and/or shitty sound transmission. It's amazing how often we watch a movie and the dialogue gradually fades into unintelligibility, so we turn the volume up to the max and then the very next scene is an surprise terrorist bombing or something that makes us turn the volume all the way back down again. I hate having subtitles on but I wouldn't blame people for using them in that circumstance.

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TheBimpo@reddit

It amazes me that people won't spend $100 on a basic soundbar to vastly improve their experience instead.

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pirawalla22@reddit

I have a very good sound system, but I can't remix the sound on the movie I'm watching

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shelwood46@reddit

I do have a good soundbar, but also a window AC in the summer, and CC really does spur me to remember to look at the screen sometimes. And as noted, I watch a ton of English-speaking but non-American shows where it really can come in handy when they are using phrasing that your brain cannot parse.

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dotdedo@reddit

“Auditory processing disorders” are actually pretty common but usually a minor symptom of larger disorders like ADHD. Basically means you hear perfectly well, but you don’t process it. It’s why people with adhd say “what did you say?” A lot. Often times they heard you, their brain is just buffering on processing it.

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TehLoneWanderer101@reddit

My father's deaf so I grew up with closed captioning. Plus, I might miss something, so I like having subtitles on either way.

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shelwood46@reddit

I do love when closed captioning adds bits that are clearly lifted from the script, like editorial comments on the music, or the music lyrics, or what someone is whispering or saying on the other end of the phone.

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caiaphas8@reddit

Really? There’s plenty of British accents that some British people would struggle with

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geri73@reddit

I sometimes need them for a Scottish accent.

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Konigwork@reddit

Scottish is fine, it’s welsh and Cornish that are incoherent to me

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geri73@reddit

I don't have a problem with those two, just the Scottish.

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Meattyloaf@reddit

Subtitles to me makes the watching experience better as if I want to be sure of what's being said it's conveniently spelled out on the screen. I also like to watch some things in their native language and subtitles are a must.

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TheyMakeMeWearPants@reddit

I think a lot of them are "I always have subtitles on", not "I always have subtitles on when there are UK accents". My kids are like that -- drives me nuts, but it seems like a generational thing.

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anneofgraygardens@reddit

My sister is like this, I hate it. I find the subtitles super distracting.

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sluttypidge@reddit

I have an auditory processing disorder. Subtitles make sure I don't miss anything. When it's not an emergency, I literally can not process what is being said. I've had people tell me things multiple times right to my face and not understand a single word.

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qu33nof5pad35@reddit

I always watch anything with subtitles.

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JacobDCRoss@reddit

Dude. Yes. I cannot watch Doctor Who without it.

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nowhereman136@reddit

Only for Guy Ritchie movies

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Regular_Zombie_278@reddit (OP)

This is exactly what inspired my question LOL

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only-a-marik@reddit

thefeckdoIwantacaravanwhatsgotnofeckinwheels?

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freedraw@reddit

It was quite a while ago now, but you're post reminded me of the time VH1's Behind the Music did their Oasis episode and had to subtitle both Liam and Noel for the American audience.

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only-a-marik@reddit

MTV and VH1 used to routinely subtitle Ozzy, too.

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Curmudgy@reddit

Here’s one article about why movies are harder to understand. There are others, as it's a well known issue.

We leave subtitles on for convenience, even when the dialog is easy to understand. We certainly needed it for Guilt. But it also helps for looking up place names and idioms. (Being able to pause a stream is wonderful.)

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BingBongDingDong222@reddit

LOL. I require subtitles when watching American shows and movies these days.

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SavannahInChicago@reddit

Not British, Derry Girl yes for their Northern Irish accents.

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Agile_Property9943@reddit

I always have subtitles on anyways.

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jastay3@reddit

I usually use subtitles anyway.

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PM_Me_UrRightNipple@reddit

Yes is there are strong regional accents like Peaky Blinders

For movies with a stereotypical British TV accent like James Bond no

I watch most movies with subtitles cause I can’t hear dialogue with modern sound mixing. I’ve heard everything is mixed to be used for surround sound since it’s the best quality/experience and if you’re just using TV speakers the quality suffers.

Or I’m just getting old and my ears are starting to go.

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concrete_isnt_cement@reddit

I probably should’ve done that for Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, but I kinda enjoyed the chaos of not knowing what anyone was saying most of the time.

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thephoton@reddit

Trainspotting was famous for being released in American theaters with subtitles.

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devilbunny@reddit

I didn't understand half the dialogue the first time I watched it (when it came out, and without subtitles). I read the book about 15 years later. The dialogue is almost word-for-word lifted from the book, and having time to parse the words let me understand what was being said.

This came in very handy when I went to Edinburgh. My wife couldn't understand half the things that were said, especially in noisy places, but I could get the gist at least. Also, I got to walk the steps from the opening sequence where they are running from the cops. This turned out to be a great bonding moment the next day with our tour driver, who was also a huge Tarantino fan. Hi, Ian!

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sewiv@reddit

I read the book after seeing the movie, and had to read it out loud to myself for a chapter or so to get my internal voice into the right accent to be able to understand it.

Iain M. Banks "Feersum Endjinn" was similar, but then again he was a Scot as well.

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that-Sarah-girl@reddit

OMG I saw Trainspotting the first time in a non English speaking country so everyone in the theater was reading subtitles I couldn't read. And making noise because they didn't need to hear the movie! I'm pretty good at international accents but that was a challenge. Great movie tho.

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sewiv@reddit

Yes

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eac555@reddit

Yes. To different degrees. Really needed it for Still Game. Great series.

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TheJokersChild@reddit

I guess British is enough of its own language at times to need translating. And that's what subtitles do. If they're not translating and just transcribing the audio in its original language, they're captions. I guess YouTube has blurred the lines when it auto-translates, but there's still a distinct difference between the two.

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mklinger23@reddit

I require subtitles to watch American shows/movies. APD gang

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MattieShoes@reddit

I generally watch everything with subtitles.

Brad Pitt in Snatch, it's a requirement, probably for Brits too.

The Full Monty, it took me a few minutes to fully understand, but was fine once I adjusted.

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Routine_Phone_2550@reddit

No. Why would I? I speak English. Americans really don’t watch much British media, but over Covid they got into bake-off. Americans don’t really care about other countries, they’re good being American. You have to understand, the whole country was founded on freedom from the Brits so you just CANNOT be British in America!

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SadoraNortica@reddit

I require subtitles for American show. Actors today mumble a lot and my hearing is bad.

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azuth89@reddit

I don't get lost on the accents much, it's the vocabulary differences or cultural references where I can get lost.

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Acrobatic_End6355@reddit

Yep. Like “beer mat”. I had never heard of a coaster being called this.

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qiba@reddit

Just in case you weren't aware, a beer mat is a very specific type of disposable coaster that is provided in pubs. Otherwise we use the word coaster :)

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TheyMakeMeWearPants@reddit

I've definitely had "That can't be right" moments, followed by go back, turn on subtitles, read that the same words I thought I heard originally, and now sit and wonder what the hell that means.

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rawbface@reddit

I watch everything with subtitles. Half the time I can't hear the damn dialogue when it's in American English.

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Gswizzlee@reddit

No

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HPIndifferenceCraft@reddit

Depends on the class and region of the characters.

Blue collar characters from up north? I definitely need subtitles for that.

Sometimes need them for cockneys too.

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Professor_squirrelz@reddit

No, but I prefer subtitles in general

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Deolater@reddit

I usually need subtitles to be confident I'm catching everything if non 'standard' accents are involved. I didn't need them for Morse, I remember relying on them a bit for Shetland

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SpecialQue_@reddit

Not usually, but my ESL husband can hardly understand UK accents at all. He refuses the subtitles though, and prefers to just rewind 100 times trying to hear.

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ManateeFlamingo@reddit

Yes. It helps me understand the dialogue a lot more. But I also use subtitles for all the shows I watch.

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BaltimoreNewbie@reddit

Only if Johnny Vegas in talking

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sweatyalpaca26@reddit

Yes, there are certain YouTube channels I watch that absolutely need subtitles. This can be British or strong Irish accents that I sometimes have trouble understanding.

All my movies have subtitles so that really doesn't matter haha.

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OttoD0719@reddit

Yes

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OttoD0719@reddit

Yeah lol

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Secret-Ad-2145@reddit

There was only one time ever I needed it, and it was for a Scottish movie. Couldn't recall the name, we watched it in school

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Gallahadion@reddit

I've taken to using subtitles when watching All Creatures Great and Small. I can understand most of the cast, but there are a few people whose speech I struggle with sometimes, so I turn on the captions to make sure I don't miss anything.

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JamesKBoyd@reddit

In Snatch, I couldn't understand a single word they were saying.

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GaryJM@reddit

A bookie's got blagged last night.

Blagged? Speak English to me, Tony. I thought this country spawned the fucking language and so far nobody seems to speak it.

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WinterKnigget@reddit

Yes, but the need for captions isn't a British vs American thing. It's more of a "I have adhd and the captions help me to hear and pay attention" kind of thing. I use them in everything, American shows, Japanese anime (because Japanese is not one of the languages I know, but I use it for both sub and dub), video games, literally everything. Doctor Who was one I needed them for. Sometimes, people speak too fast, and in general, the audio mixing makes it hard to hear the talking when the music overpowers it

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Key-Candle8141@reddit

Not usually but I mostly watch the panel shows like Cats Countdown Big Fat Quiz and Would I Lie to You

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NormanQuacks345@reddit

English British accents, no. But I once had to stop watching a movie set in 1970’s Belfast because the subtitles weren’t working and I couldn’t understand half the dialogue.

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dancingcroc@reddit

I was in Belfast a few months ago and the accents were ok except for the taxi driver who drove me to the airport at the end of the trip. Even as a Scot I only picked up about a quarter of what he said, I had to use the “smile politely and hope I chuckle at the right moments” approach.

He was an older guy and talked so fast I had no time to try and decipher what he had just said before he moved onto something else.

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SuLiaodai@reddit

One of the reasons dialogue in British shows can be unclear is that they're more likely to mic from below. Because the sound of speech tends to go out and kind of up, a mic at mid-chest level or even lower doesn't catch sound as well as a boom mic.

Source: Working on some student films in the UK (this was circa mid-90's, so maybe it's changed).

One reason it might be necessary to mic from below is if you're shooting in a historic building with a low ceiling and a boom mic would get in the shot.

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IBelieveIAmBi@reddit

The British (aka original aka superior) version of Death at a Funeral.

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Mission-Coyote4457@reddit

the original All Creatures had people in it where I needed the subtitles (was watching it on dvd from the library)

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robbbbb@reddit

Usually no. However, I saw a movie that took place in Yorkshire, I think, and I definitely needed subtitles.

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yellowdaisycoffee@reddit

No. I understand them as well as anyone else. 🤷‍♀️

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urmyheartBeatStopR@reddit

"Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels" Guy Richie movie, before he hooked up with Madonna and all his movies went down hill.

There were some accents in that movie that was thicc and hard to understand.

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TrillyMike@reddit

Top Boy got tough at points

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Stein1071@reddit

I thought I was weird and alone and my wife absolutely hates it but I have the subtitles on on every single TV. The way effects are so damn loud and dialog is so quiet I don't want to miss stuff. Been doing it for a long time. I also hunt for screwups in the captions like a treasure hunt

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platetone@reddit

we sound similar - you should come join my 'chuckles' subtitle subreddit! r/chuckles
...i'm still the only one who's ever posted.

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schuptz@reddit

yes, but i need them for all shows as I am an old fart.

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PinchMaNips@reddit

I watch everything with subtitles just cause I live in an apartment and don’t want to bother my neighbors, that being said there are some British accents that sound like gibberish, but overall most of them are easy enough to understand.

Understanding the slang? That’s a bit harder.

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lavasca@reddit

Sometimes.

Just like if I’m watching news stations out of Oklahoma or Georgia.

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Red_Beard_Rising@reddit

Not really, but I also have a knack for deciphering even the worst handwriting. Maybe they are connected?

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puddyspud@reddit

No, my mind/ears usually can eventually tune in

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chill_winston_@reddit

I don’t but I lived over there for a little bit, and have always loved accents. I was proud of myself for not needing subtitles for people with the scouse accent recently in a show.

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theflamingskull@reddit

Every single Australian or New Zealand movie. Especially Ozploitation films.

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sharipep@reddit

Yes, for Love Island

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sharipep@reddit

Yes, for Love Island

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DangerousVoice4273@reddit

I have captions on every show regardless.

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bloodectomy@reddit

Nah, not usually.

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Hatweed@reddit

Only if they’re from the West Country.

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Current_Poster@reddit

Only with extremely thick accents. The kind the BBC will subtitle, even in the UK.

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divorcedbp@reddit

“Ya like dags?”

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pizzabagelblastoff@reddit

Frequently. But I also use subtitles even for American movies so I think I just have auditory processing.

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HighFiveKoala@reddit

Depends on the accent(s). Watching Top Gear with Clarkson, Hammond, and May I can understand them just fine. The most recent version of Top Gear with Chris Harris, Freddy Flintoff, and Paddy McGuinness I

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Vexonte@reddit

Im to used to subtitles to not have them regardless of how clear they are speaking, but peaky blinders was the first time I started doing it with English shows.

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flootytootybri@reddit

I personally don’t but it’s cause I’ve watched way too much British and Irish TV. I’m obsessed

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arcaneApathy413@reddit

I would require subtitles even if it was shot in my home town

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GusGreen82@reddit

I don’t think so but I’m from the south. I have to translate southerners for my Colorado-born wife.

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Charliegirl121@reddit

No, I've heard enough British people talking, so I don't need subtitles.

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Different-Produce870@reddit

There was a single episode of black mirror, the one with the robot bees. It was probably because I was stoned but one of the main women had an accent that I got tired of rewinding to catch what she said.

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BulimicMosquitos@reddit

Absolutely started doing this with Black Mirror.

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sabatoa@reddit

Yep, every time.

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MoonieNine@reddit

English, no. Irish and Scottish, yes. "Derry Girls" is awesome, but I need subtitles.

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SirTheRealist@reddit

I have subtitles on for every movie/series whether it's British, American or anywhere else.

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Miss_Westeros@reddit

Yes, for Derry Girls especially.

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Adept_Thanks_6993@reddit

I need subtitles for any series/movie

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CrownStarr@reddit

British accents are fine, but I made it about 5 minutes into Derry Girls (set in Ireland) before I had to admit defeat and put subtitles on.

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Regular_Zombie_278@reddit (OP)

Interesting, I find the Irish accent much more understandable than the Brih-ish one

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GOTaSMALL1@reddit

Without subtitles "Topboy" is just...

"Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah innit."

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jayhawk03@reddit

Pinky Blinders is the only show that stuck out for needed subtitles.

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doubtinggull@reddit

Not usually, but I was just watching the first season of The Terror and turned subtitles on about halfway through. Partially just because the voices are very quiet, lots of soft conversations in a variety of accents.

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Longjumping_Bar_7457@reddit

No, but I sometimes use subtitles when I can't hear what an actor is saying

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shelwood46@reddit

I have them on as a matter of course, but they are especially helpful for UK/Irish/NZ/Aus series (I can mostly understand Canadians). I struggled the most with stuff set in Northern UK/Scotland, like Vera and Shetland, though I have watched enough of it now that I've gotten pretty good. I do love that SIster Boniface Mysteries has a character that even people in-show can't understand (though the CC does sometimes tell us what he's saying, seemingly at random).

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03zx3@reddit

Only when Gerald is on screen on Clarkson's Farm.

Though, sometimes I can understand him.

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KaBar42@reddit

The only English pronunciation of a word that really stumped me and took me forever to realize what the hell they were saying was: "Omega".

Which the British somehow turn into: "Oh-Me-Gir".

Other than that, no, I can generally understand British English.

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AVDLatex@reddit

Yes, Manchester accents can be difficult to understand.

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Writes4Living@reddit

Yes. Sometimes. Depends on the show. If the show features upper class characters then probably not.

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Jilltro@reddit

No but when I started watching Wentworth I had to put the subtitles on because I had so much trouble understanding the Australian accents. Eventually I didn’t need them but at first it was hard for me to keep up, particularly with the slang.

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Apocalyptic0n3@reddit

I never needed it until recently. For whatever reason, I can't understand half the people on this year's Great British Bake Off. Even with subtitles on, half the time I'm confused as to how what they said = what the subtitles say.

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Tommy_Wisseau_burner@reddit

I always have subtitles. Not British specific

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WulfTheSaxon@reddit

The only time I can think of has been Clarkson’s Farm, but that’s because Gerald is incomprehensible even to the other people on the show. :P

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gunrad95@reddit

I find it annoying to watch anything without subtitles tbh... It could be a video of me myself talking and I want subtitles on that mf

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TillPsychological351@reddit

Only once. It was a fairly low budget film called Riff-Raff. All of the characters had very strong working class accents, and it was one of those movies where more than one character often talks at the same time. So, very difficult to follow.

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nomuggle@reddit

I use subtitles for everything, always.

Don’t you know that you can’t hear the tv unless you are reading it? /s

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Meattyloaf@reddit

No but I prefer subtitles for everything. Really helps when shows have instances of weird volume levels.

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Bluemonogi@reddit

Sometimes

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PhilTheThrill1808@reddit

The only English accent I ever occasionally have troubles with is the Scouse accent.

I have subtitles on all the time bc if I'm watching something well written, I don't want to miss any dialogue.

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Peregrine415@reddit

Yes, especially when they start using words like CHIS, MIT, SOCO, etc.

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Bookworm8989@reddit

Yes but to be fair, I like them in all the time much to the chagrin of my husband

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AtheneSchmidt@reddit

Absolutely. I also have to back up shows with the same accent I have, and have to read those subtitles, sometimes.

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Traditional_Entry183@reddit

It takes an awful lot for me to not be able to pick out an accent of a native English speaker, but there are a few I've heard where its a challenge. I doubt I'd ever actually put subtitles on for it though.

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DankItchins@reddit

Only if the actors have very strong Scottish accents. English and Welsh accents I can usually understand without issue. I have trouble with strong Irish accents as well.

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Partytime79@reddit

Usually not. I’ve watched plenty of British shows without issue. One exception was the original The Office. For whatever reason I couldn’t understand half the words and virtually none of the slang used.

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hatetochoose@reddit

Yes.

Why is the dialogue so quiet and the background noise so loud?

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Aggressive_Onion_655@reddit

I definitely did for Peaky Blinders but that was the exception.

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WildlifePolicyChick@reddit

Yes. I loved Broadchurch but Jesus Lord the accents.

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7yearlurkernowposter@reddit

Sometimes yes but I prefer subtitles even with more local content.
For a lot of older British comedy series (only ones I really watch not living on the island) it's a requirement as sometimes the audio either was junk to begin with or someone thought they could fix it and just made it worse.

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travelinmatt76@reddit

I just have subtitles on all the time.

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sluttypidge@reddit

I have a problem with understanding what is being said to me often. I have subtitles for everything.

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JuliusTweezer@reddit

Subtitles are always on. Except for sports.

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Crayshack@reddit

I sometimes require subtitles for American movies.

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Judgy-Introvert@reddit

No, but I watch a lot of them so maybe that’s why? I do have a hard time with Scottish actors though.

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ederzs97@reddit

So you do have a hard time then

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Judgy-Introvert@reddit

Only with that one particular accent, but I never use subtitles with it.

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cohrt@reddit

only if they speak like that farmer from Hot Fuzz.

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CupBeEmpty@reddit

Nah, I’ve never had an issue with British accents, not even Scottish accents either.

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JohnMarstonSucks@reddit

There was one guy in Peaky Blinders season 6 that had me baffled. I turned to my girlfriend next to me and she just asked "did you catch any of that?".

Subtitles on, and run it back a few minutes.

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JBoy9028@reddit

No, but I have gotten rather good at hearing through accents, but also rarely will you hear really thick accents on TV or in movies.

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tsukiii@reddit

Usually no, but I’ve always been pretty good at understanding through accents. If the accents were especially strong, I’d give subtitles a try.

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Salty_Dog2917@reddit

Yes. I use subtitles on everything now though.

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Nuttonbutton@reddit

My subtitles! I can't hear without my subtitles!

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SnarkyBookworm34@reddit

i'm a talker, so i like to have subtitles on all the time so i feel like less of a jackass

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revengeappendage@reddit

Me, an American who speaks very fluent English. It’s my first language.

Me watching Great British Bake Off…is this fuckin English? What the fuck are they saying?

Me watching Jamie Carrager say internassionalay 😂😂😂

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