Received Pronunciation

Received Pronunciation (RP) is a dialect of British-English that is generally thought of as the stereotypical accent of the British aristocracy, and the standard English dialect for use on film, radio and television (BBC English is synonymous with Received Pronunciation). It is still in many cases the dialect which is taught to many learning British-English as a foreign language.

The use of RP on radio, television and in schools and universities is primarily due to the idea that Received Pronunciation is a universal accent which the vast majority of English speakers can understand. Indeed, it's connection with the educated and aristocratic comes from it being taught at grammar schools like Eton and Harrow, and at Oxbridge.

Use of RP has dropped off significantly in recent years, due to more relaxed attitudes towards broadcasting non-RP dialects on radio and television, a reduction in the teaching of RP at schools and less social insistence on it being proper. Indeed, some English speakers now see RP as outdated, posh, stuffy and slightly ridiculous. Politicians have often had to taper their RP accent when seeking office so as to appeal to the populace, while in former times others have had to take voice training to make their accent sound more like RP (Margaret Thatcher being a well-known example).