Culture

'I can’t put your accent on the radio': Edith Bowman reveals snobbery she faced starting out

As a young hopeful, TV and radio presenter Edith Bowman was told she wouldn't make it in the industry with her own accent.

Edith Bowman

Image: PR supplied

TV and radio host Edith Bowman – who has had a long career that’s taken in MTV UK, Radio 1, and her popular movie podcast Soundtracking – has seen her career thrive and evolve over her two decades in the business, despite once being told her accent meant she couldn’t even work on Scottish radio.

In an interview with The Big Issue for the Letter To My Younger Self feature, Bowman shared her experiences breaking into the industry and overcoming snobbery about her background and accent.

Growing up in Anstruther, Fife, Bowman was always surrounded by music and arts. “There was this constant musical soundtrack in my life,” she said. Despite feeling that a career in radio and television seemed unattainable, she couldn’t shake her desire to be part of that world.

“There was definitely a dream of getting involved in that world in some way, but it felt completely unattainable. But I kept trying to break into radio, even if I thought it was an unlikely thing. I pestered Radio Forth [in Edinburgh] constantly and I wouldn’t take no for an answer,” said Bowman.

Her persistence eventually led to a meeting with the programme controller, but his response was less than encouraging: “I can’t put someone with an accent like yours on the radio.” Bowman said she was shattered: “I sat there feeling the tears welling up. But in my head, I was thinking, ‘I want this and I want this really bad’.” She didn’t let his comment deter her, and she was eventually given a two-week work experience opportunity.

During her placement, Bowman worked tirelessly to make herself indispensable. “I worked my arse off,” she said. This determination paid off when she was offered a spot on weekends and holidays at the radio station, marking her first significant step into the industry.

It was a work ethic she learned from her hotelier parents. “I wasn’t scared of hard work,” she says. “One of the many things I’ve got to thank my mum and dad and the hotel for is that I learned a work ethic really young.”

Edith Bowman is far from alone in being judged for her regional accent. According to the Sutton Trust’s Speaking Up report, 30 per cent of university students, 29 per cent of university applicants, and 25 per cent of professionals reported being mocked, criticised, or singled out in educational or work settings due to their accents.

Among senior managers from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, 21 per cent were concerned that their accent could affect their ability to succeed, and 29 per cent of senior managers from working-class families reported being mocked in the workplace for their accent, as opposed to 22 per cent from a more affluent background, who were more likely to have a neutral English accent.

This is especially true of the entertainment industry. An Accent Bias Britain study in 2019 found that the British public were more likely to consider “received pronunciation” (RP) – basically, posh – accents more “prestigious”, almost certainly a result of TV and radio gatekeepers that have ensured decades of RP voices have always landed the most trusted roles.

For Bowman the lesson was that other people’s opinions of her work were ultimately less important than how she saw herself. “It’s none of your business what other people think of you, so long as you’ve got a good relationship with yourself,” she said. “So many times you go for jobs you don’t get and it’s fuck all to do with your ability. You know you’re the best person for the job, but it’s someone else’s decision. So you’ve just got to learn to be at peace with that. And that’s a hard thing to do.”

You can watch Coast to Coast Food Festival weekdays at 6:30pm on BBC Two & iPlayer

Support the Big Issue

For over 30 years, the Big Issue has been committed to ending poverty in the UK. In 2024, our work is needed more than ever. Find out how you can support the Big Issue today.
Vendor martin Hawes

Recommended for you

View all
Cynthia Erivo on identity, migrant crisis and what she's learned playing Elphaba in Wicked
Film

Cynthia Erivo on identity, migrant crisis and what she's learned playing Elphaba in Wicked

The Beautiful Game: Meet the real-life footballers who inspired Netflix's Homeless World Cup film
Homeless World Cup

The Beautiful Game: Meet the real-life footballers who inspired Netflix's Homeless World Cup film

Bill Nighy: 'Footballers are physical geniuses creating passages of great beauty. It's fascinating'
Homeless World Cup

Bill Nighy: 'Footballers are physical geniuses creating passages of great beauty. It's fascinating'

Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel review – a depth of feeling like a punch to the guts
Books

Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel review – a depth of feeling like a punch to the guts

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Here's when UK households to start receiving last cost of living payments
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Here's when UK households to start receiving last cost of living payments

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know
4.

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know