Happy Valley had a phenomenal night at the National Television Awards last night, scooping three awards – but it’s Sarah Lancashire’s accent that’s had the internet talking overnight.
The star, who is originally from Oldham, is perhaps best-known for her portrayal of Catherine Cawood in Happy Valley, as well as for her time as barmaid Raquel Wolstenhulme at the Rover’s Return on Coronation Street.
In Happy Valley, she sports a strong – and very authentic – Yorkshire accent, fitting with the setting around the Calder Valley.
So when Sarah Lancashire went to collect her various awards at the NTAs last night (Returning Drama, Drama Performance, and the Special Recognition Award), audiences were shocked to hear that her accent isn’t very northern at all.
In fact, fans have gone so far as to say she is ‘posh’, and that her real accent sounds ‘jarring’ compared to the Yorkshire tones we’ve all got used to in recent years.
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The 58-year-old took to the stage last night, wiping away tears, to tell the crowd (who were chanting her name): “You have no idea what it’s like to have so many lovely things said about you by so many people that you love and admire.”
Sarah added: “I have been so very fortunate to spend my working life doing a job that I love, made possible by brilliantly talented people – producers, directors, writers, actors – and I am exceptionally lucky to have enjoyed every moment of it.”
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Sarah Lancashire in Happy Valley as fans are stunned by her ‘real accent’ at the NTAs. Credit: ITV
Many have been sad to hear that her years of theatre training seem to have dulled down her native Oldham accent, with most surprised that she doesn’t ‘sound Northern’.
Which makes her performance in Happy Valley, where she chats away about brews and stews and swear like a true Yorkshireman, all the more impressive.
One person said: “Sarah Lancashire is that good an actress that it’s a shock when she doesn’t speak in a Yorkshire accent.”
Someone else posted on X, formerly known as Twitter: “Sarah Lancashire speaking that posh just took me by surprise!! Her Yorkshire accent is spot on in happy valley!”
The National Television Awards 2023 (NTAs) winners in full
Special Recognition Award – Sarah Lancashire
Serial Drama – Eastenders
Talent Show – Strictly Come Dancing
New Drama – Wednesday
Reality Competition – The Traitors
Authored Documentary – Lewis Capaldi: How I’m Feeling Now
Returning Drama – Happy Valley
TV Presenter – Ant & Dec
Factual – Paul O’Grady: For The Love Of Dogs
Drama Performance – Sarah Lancashire
The Bruce Forsyth Entertainment Award – Gogglebox
TV Interview – The Graham Norton Show
Serial Drama Performance – Danielle Harold
Quiz Game Show – The 1% Club
Rising Star – Bobby Brazier
Daytime – The Repair Shop
Comedy – Young Sheldon
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TV & Showbiz
Gladiators Live Tour to make ‘triumphant’ return to Manchester on UK arena tour
Emily Sergeant
The Gladiators Live Tour will make a triumphant return in 2026.
Following its explosive debut in 2025 and overwhelming fan demand, the Gladiators Live Tour is set to head out on a UK tour later this year, bringing the iconic phenomenon back to arenas nationwide for an electrifying new run of shows, and making a stop off in Manchester, of course.
Audiences will, once again, have the chance to experience the action-packed spectacle featuring the stars of the hit BBC reboot series on an epic scale.
The 2025 live tour thrilled audiences nationwide, selling over 200,000 tickets and proving the arena spectacular is ‘bigger, bolder, and more electrifying’ than ever, and that energy is only set to continue this year when the show returns to Manchester’s popular AO Arena.
GLADIATORS, READY!
Following its epic debut in 2025 the triumphant live show brings the energy to Manchester on 14 & 15 Nov!
This adrenaline-fuelled event sees the legendary Gladiators storm back into the arena to face fearless contenders in a heart-pounding live adaptation of the smash-hit television phenomenon.
Expect iconic fan-favourite events, breathtaking stunts, epic head-to-head battles and the unforgettable Eliminator finale.
Featuring stars from the hit BBC series, audiences are being told to expect a truly immersive, high-octane experience, as arenas are transformed into modern gladiatorial battlegrounds complete with purpose-built sets, spectacular lighting, and cinematic staging.
The Gladiators Live Tour 2026 kicks off in Aberdeen on 10 October, before heading to other major cities like Glasgow, London, and Birmingham, as well as northern locations like Leeds and Newcastle, and of course, Manchester’s AO Arena for two nights on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 November.
Tickets officially go on sale this Friday 27 March, with two shows per day available, and you can grab them when they go live here.
Featured Image – Supplied
TV & Showbiz
Lord of the Rings live in concert is coming to Manchester
Danny Jones
The fellowship is not lost: JRR Tolkien fans are being invited to come along to see the beloved first film in the Lord of the Rings trilogy live in concert here in Manchester.
Undoubtedly, some of the most beautifully shot and, crucially, rousingly scored Hollywood blockbusters in history, the LotR movie soundtracks still remain among the most iconic to this day.
So just imagine how incredible they must be to witness it in the flesh…
Well, that opportunity is just on the horizon, as a live performance of The Fellowship of the Ring by a fully-fledged live band is coming to the city centre’s biggest indoor arena later this year.
Available either as an evening or matinee show, ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of The Ring – In Concert’ arrives this winter at Co-op Live.
Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the iconic Academy Award-winning film, which kick-started a mega franchise both on the big and the small screen nowadays, what better way to toast the date than by rewatching it like never before?
Teaming up with the one and only Hallé – Manchester’s premier orchestra since 1858 – the production will be bringing Howard Shore’s legendary original scores to life in person as they soundtrack the epic motion picture playing behind them.
We’ve got chills just thinking about some of those scenes: the council of Elrond in Rivendell; the ‘Argonath’ passing, that first stunning New Zealand vista as Middle-Earth, and SO many more.
Here’s a sample of what it’s like to hear those instantly recognisable sounds live:
Come on, how incredible is this?
For those looking to attend the Manchester showings of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of The Ring – In Concert, as always, official Co-op members will be granted early access through the venue’s presale window.
This will open at 10am on Wednesday, 25 March; meanwhile, general admission tickets will then be available from the same time the following Friday (27 Mar).
Daisy Jackson -
6th September 2023 
