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So "black country accent", where is that? I've heard of "West Country", but not familiar with this one.



the two links are correct, but i remember a far less glossy place than that.
it was the industrial centre of england before the start of last century, but is now somewhat jaded [unless you visit the tourism jaunts or buy yourself a canal barge bucket.] see photos on flickr

i am from west bromwich originally. it's a tiny geographical area, bounded by wolverhampton at the north and birmingham at the south, iron bridge at the west and walsall on the east, it's about 20 or 30 odd square miles of england packed with canals and railways and soot and smoke.

the black country has a somewhat unique nature in that it has a fairly distinct dialect or patois that is still fairly widely used, and worshipped in some circles. of course most of this was beaten out of me as a kid, and my cosmopolitan lifestyle has watered it down still more. i'd love to say it's a link back to middle ages english, but i fear it's nothing like that. shakespeare was almost a local lad though, and some say he would have talked like my neighbours, i of course was far too posh according to my mum.