Actor Robert Lindsay, 74, reveals he adopted a posh accent to seek approval before using Derbyshire twang on screen

Actor Robert Lindsay has admitted he developed a well-spoken RP accent in part because he was seeking class approval.

The actor, who has starred in shows such as My Family and GBH, said he learned so-called received pronunciation because he wanted to be ‘a little better than where I came from’.

Mr Lindsay added that while learning the Queen’s English, as it is also known, helped him get roles, it was also because he wanted to be ‘approved of’.

The performer, 74, who became famous in the late 1970s for his role of Wolfie Smith in Citizen Smith, added he had wanted to ‘elevate my position’.

In an interview he said his forthcoming performance in the new series of BBC1’s Sherwood is the first time he has ever used his own accent in a part. He grew up in Ilkeston in Derbyshire.

Actor Robert Lindsay, 74, has admitted he developed a well-spoken RP accent in part because he was seeking class approval (pictured 2020)

The actor said he learned so-called received pronunciation because he wanted to be ‘a little better than where I came from’ (pictured in 1977 sitcom Citizen Smith) 

Speaking to The Observer’s magazine The New Review, he was asked about his RP accent.

He told the interviewer ‘you’ve made me say it’, adding ‘if I’m being really honest, yes, it was a class thing’.

He added: ‘I wanted to be a little better than where I came from.’

The actor, who also starred in the eighties revival of musical Me and My Girl, told the magazine: ‘I was told I could be other people [with RP]: that the world would be my oyster, that I could play a thousand characters – and that’s what I’ve always said about it, that it was just for acting.

‘But you’ve opened my eyes to something. Yes, I wanted to be approved of, I think, to elevate my position.’

He will join the likes of David Morrissey and Lesley Manville in the second series of crime drama Sherwood on BBC1, written by leading playwright James Graham.

The first season saw a series of killings take in a Nottinghamshire mining community still dealing with the legacy of the miner’s strikes of the 1980s.

Monica Dolan and David Harewood will also be joining the cast for the second outing which begins on Sunday.

Mr Lindsay added that while learning the Queen’s English, as it is also known, helped him get roles, it was also because he wanted to be ‘approved of’

The performer, 74, who became famous in the late 1970s for his role in Citizen Smith, added he had wanted to ‘elevate my position’ (pictured in My Family with Zoe Wanamaker)

In an interview he said his forthcoming performance in the new series of BBC1’s Sherwood is the first time he has ever used his own accent in a part. He grew up in Ilkeston in Derbyshire

Mr Lindsay said when he would visit his home in Ilkeston during the miner’s
dispute there were ‘terrible confrontations between fathers and sons’ in the local pub, adding ‘it’s still painful’.

In the interview Mr Lindsay admitted he was trying to be more careful on social media after he became embroiled in a ‘run-in’ with former EastEnders actress Tracy-Ann Oberman on Twitter about Jeremy Corbyn.

The actor told the magazine: ‘I’ve realised that I just can’t get involved with some issues. I had a run in with Tracy- Ann Oberman [ who is Jewish ] on Twitter over Corbyn and his support for the Palestinians. I think with some subjects, it’s easier to kind of step away.’