I picked up the upper-class connotation straight away of course.
But here's something arising from my current peripatetic peregrination around the US: I've found that if I take the piss out of the American accent and drawl with the worst of 'em, then it has two effects: (a) the Americans can understand me without circular conversations revolving around accent, and (b) they stop asking me where I'm from.
I object to the second part, because if you're taking the piss, you should at least get some satisfaction from your target's reaction. So I guess I'm not a successful piss-taker when it comes to accents gawddam it, y'all!
