W. H. Davies

Cockneys make good beggars. They are held in high esteem by the fraternity in America. Their resource, originality and invention, and a never-faltering tongue enable them to often attain their ends where others fail, and they succeed where the natives starve.

Welsh Poet

June Brown

I didn't know much about the East End and I didn't go trudging round to research it - couldn't be bothered with all that - but my grandmother was a cockney so I used her voice for Dot. I don't think it sounded very real at the beginning.

English Actress

Christopher Moore

From Dickens's cockneys to Salinger's phonies, from Kerouac's beatniks to Cheech and Chong's freaks, and on to hip hop's homies, dialect has always been used as a way for generations to distinguish themselves.

American Writer

Keeley Hawes

There are lots of actors who are posh and stick with that, and there are lots of actors who are cockney, and that's what they do. That's fine, but I don't think that could be said about me.

China Mieville

My parents went through the dictionary looking for a beautiful name, nearly called me Banyan, flicked on a few pages and came to China, which is cockney rhyming slang for mate.

English Writer

Daniel Radcliffe

I don't want to say I'll never play someone with a cockney accent, but I think I would be irritated by me doing it.

British Actor

Paloma Faith

Adele's like a beacon of honesty. Doesn't compromise, goes to America and she's still the same sweary cockney.

Luke Treadaway

It was great to play an ex-marine cockney thug. All my roles are as different as the colours of the rainbow.

English Actor

Gemma Arterton

I actually had a cockney accent before I went to drama school. It's softened up a bit.

Cockney is more than an accent; it symbolizes a proud cultural identity from a specific part of London.

Cultural Identity

'Cockney' implies a person's origin and often their working-class background.

Not Just Location

Some people jokingly check if a Cockney can hear the Bow Bells to authenticate their claim.

Bow Bells Myth

The Cockney dialect can feel informal and friendly, sometimes used for comic effect.

Informality

The Cockney accent is sometimes unfairly seen as less 'refined' than other British accents.

Perceived Roughness

Cockney slang involves rhyming phrases; it's fun but can be puzzling for learners.

Rhyming Slang

Cockney includes unique words and phrases beyond just an accent or dialect.

Unique Vocabulary

There is variation within the Cockney accent; not all speakers sound exactly the same.

Accent Variation

 I do hope that comes back soon. Anyway, this predated the sampling era. There were no samples in this record, although I did look up on the Internet last night, I mean several months ago, that "La Di Da Di" means, it's an old Cockney expression from the late 1800s in England,

How sampling transformed...

 playing a cockney chimney sweep that that's been rated number one is the worst accent in Hollywood well the other thing is the French accent I took French in junior high and I found I could not speak French unless I would move my head

Learning other languages...

 in a cockney accent so cockney accent I'll just need to lead up to it a little bit I don't think we're gonna say cold early to die oh I know where he is I think he's sitting in his room Paulie that will be in a cockney accent the