The Great British Voice Over.

English Film and Television, particularly in documentary has been recognized for it’s iconic non-diegetic voice overs. In particular the upper-class voice of Sir David Attenborough who can be heard over the famous nature documentaries he wrote and presented including ‘Life on Earth’ (BBC 1979) and ‘Sharing Planet Earth’ (BBC 2007). An example of popular lower-class English voice overs could be the New Brit Gangster Films in which director Guy Ritchie uses a first person descriptive analysis from a actor speaking a cockney accent such as the protagonist ‘Turkish’ in ‘Snatch’ 2000. Geraldine Mcadam, in her dissertation ‘Carry On Culture’ agrees that “the British cultural images are supported by it’s language” (page 27)

To exercise the legendary theme of the ‘Carry on’ films whilst delivering the information needed in an advertisement, creative producers used very British representations and ideas throughout the commercial. For example the cockney voice over, or low-class describes the mise-on-scene before becoming even more casual and obvious stating. He starts by setting the scene and introducing the characters ‘Brenda and Audrey’, both are key to Bounty’s advertising campaigns to date.

The voice over uses the phrase ‘in a right two-and-eight‘, this is common cockney rhyming slang for ‘in a state‘, referring to being disorganized or chaotic. This is indirectly suggesting that life with Bounty Kitchen Roll is easier.  The rhyme also highlights the dialect for the one of the two internationally portrayed English sub-cultures: The cockney or the Posh. Also known as the low class or the high class, which ‘Carry on‘ films express famously.

Further Questions:

What are the signifiers of the common British Stereotypes?

How do the British think they are represented compared to international television?

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