In the US, the first syllable of "privacy" rhymes with "eye." In the UK, it rhymes with "give." So why, when listening to an audiobook, did I hear a British reader (with a standard British dialect) pronounce it the American way? Was the reader just being weird, or is the pronunciation of "privacy" becoming Americanized? Are there any other common Brit-pronunciations that are migrating across the pond? [more inside]
posted by grumblebee on May 8, 2005 - 22 answers

I'm a huge fan of the epic British TV-dramas from the 70s & 80s -- the type shown here in America on "Masterpiece Theatre." Though some of the most famous ones ("Upstairs, Downstairs", "I, Claudius") have been out on DVD for a long time, I've noticed that recently some of the more obscure ones are coming out ("The Charmer," "To Serve Them All My Days"). I usually get my DVD news from dvdjournal.com, but that site doesn't list British series. Does anyone know of a site that tracks them? I am specifically interested in versions for the US, since I don't have a region-free DVD player yet.
posted by grumblebee on May 8, 2004 - 8 answers