Hackney man beat 100 others to become ‘the voice’ for new Cockney dialect app

An app teaching how to speak Cockney launched today, to stir-up debate about the East End dialect.

Traditionally the term Cockney referred to those born within earshot of the bells of St Mary-le-Bow in Cheapside, but generally refers to the accent spoken by working-class Londoners where ‘t’s and ‘h’s’ are dropped.

There are 4,000 words and phrases to learn on uTalk’s app, like dog an’ bone meaning phone, and Rosy Lee referring to tea.

Actor Patrick Mackervaie, 50, from Albion Drive in London Fields, beat nearly 100 other applicants to be the voice of the app.

He said: “Cockney’s a fun language and I love playing around with it.

“Some of my favourite phrases are, “going down the apples and pears, along the frog ‘n toad into the rub-a-dub for a bevvy sherbet. That is, “Going down the stairs, along the road, into the pub for a drink or two”.

“The East End is such a diverse place and there are people of all nationalities, but this is about giving something back to them to learn something about our own culture and having fun learning it.”