Great British Sewing Bee judge Patrick Grant has opened up about why his Scottish accent gradually faded, revealing it happened after he moved away from Edinburgh as a teenager. The TV favourite said the change came surprisingly quickly after starting school in England, where he admitted he was teased for the way he spoke. Despite losing much of his accent, Grant said it still resurfaces whenever he returns north of the border.
Accent Change After Moving to England
Speaking on the 20 Questions With podcast, Grant was asked why he no longer sounds particularly Scottish despite being born and raised in Edinburgh. He explained: "I mean, it creeps back a bit when I go home." Grant recalled growing up in the Scottish capital before leaving at the age of 14 to attend Barnard Castle School in County Durham.
He said: "Yeah, I grew up in Edinburgh. I was at school in Edinburgh until I was 14. Then I went to school in County Durham. So I went to a school called Barnard Castle, which is not very far from where I now live in North Yorkshire. And yeah, you know, I went to a school, I went to school in England and got teased for sounding Scottish. So the Scottish accent fairly quickly disappeared."
Accent Resurfaces in Scotland
Grant admitted he has often been surprised by how strongly some fellow Scots retain their accents after decades away from home, adding that his own changed almost immediately. He said: "I haven't lived in Scotland, I think it's amazing to me, some Scots who haven't lived in Scotland for 50 years, still sound incredibly Scottish. I moved away for about six weeks and my accent had disappeared. But it does creep back."
The fashion entrepreneur said he notices the difference whenever he returns to Scotland, pointing to a recent television appearance. He added: "There's a little bit of footage of me, I was on a debate night recently, which is a brilliant Scottish version of Question Time. I just sound more Scottish when I'm in Scotland."
Career and Return to Sewing Bee
Elsewhere in the interview, Grant reflected on his varied career spanning business, manufacturing and television, as well as discussing everything from British industry and artificial intelligence to ageing, sport and his passion for championing UK manufacturing. Grant is set to return to screens as The Great British Sewing Bee comes back for a new series, alongside fellow judge Esme Young and new host Sophie Willan.
New Series Challenges
The opening episode sees the 12 home sewers tackle three British summer-themed challenges. Contestants must first make a pair of summer shorts with a patch pocket before transforming barbecue aprons into bags in the Transformation Challenge. The final task marks a first for the programme, with the sewers creating made-to-measure outfits for themselves before modelling their own designs on the catwalk. The Great British Sewing Bee returns on Tuesday, July 14, at 8pm on BBC One.
