‘Pitch perfect’: The Responder viewers praise Martin Freeman’s Liverpudlian accent

One fan called for the star to win a Bafta just for his voice

BBC One’s new police drama, The Responder, began last night (24 January) – and many fans were impressed with Martin Freeman’s Liverpudlian accent.

The series stars Sherlock actor Freeman, who grew up in Hampshire and Surrey, as a Liverpool-based police officer with personal issues that are pushing him to the edge.

Freeman previously admitted to Metro that he “spoke to himself in Scouse” for eighteen months in preparation for the role.

His approach seems to have worked, because Twitter was full of praise for the actor’s accent on Monday.

“Can’t get over how good Martin Freeman’s scouse accent is,” tweeted one viewer.

“Martin Freeman’s scouse accent is spot on. Non native accents usually give me itchy teeth but this was seriously impressive,” added another.

Read The Independent’s review of The Responder here.

A third said: “As a Scouser I always get wound up with non Scouse actors doing the accent. It’s never natural it’s always more stereotypical and over exaggerated... but Martin Freeman has done an excellent job there..”

The Responder continues on Tuesday 25 January at 9pm on BBC One and is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.

Read The Independent’s review of The Responder here, in which critic Sean O’Grady writes: “It was a smart move by the makers of the BBC’s new crime series to hire Martin Freeman as knackered-before-his-time scouse copper Chris Carson.

“Freeman is a fine actor and he is at his very best when playing the bewildered Everyman on the edge of breakdown. So he fits the role of the troubled Carson perfectly.”