TOM UTLEY: Susie, the serene goddess of Countdown, has thrown in the towel - but I'm still manning the barricades against the language louts!

Daily Mail30-05-2025

Et tu, Susie? Just as Julius Caesar thought his friend Brutus was the last man on Earth who would betray him, so I imagined Susie Dent would defend to her final breath the correct pronunciation of common English words.
But no. This week, the serene goddess of Countdown's Dictionary Corner appeared to throw in the towel over the widespread mispronunciation of the word mischievous.
So many people get it wrong, she declared, that it no longer bothers her to hear it pronounced 'mischievious', to rhyme with 'devious', as if it were spelt with a third 'i' after the 'v'.
True, she was not saying the mispronunciation had now become standard English. Nor was she endorsing it as 'acceptable', as one or two mischievous headline-writers have suggested.
But she did seem to regard the mistake with a certain detached, academic resignation, as if it were merely an interesting illustration of the way language evolves.
My own instinct, by contrast, is to man the barricades against assaults on our language and 'rage, rage against the dying of the light'.
Speaking at the Hay Festival, where she was promoting her new murder mystery, Guilty By Definition, Dent said: 'Something which used to rile me was people pronouncing mischievous as mischie-vi-ous. But now it's everywhere and there is a very good reason why people do.
'It's the way English people have always pushed out a pronunciation that is no longer familiar to them. We don't have any 'ievous' words any more, and they're pushing it to something that they do know, and that's 'evious'.
'So I have now decided it's a fascinating snapshot of how language works and it doesn't really bother me – not any more.'
Well, all I can say is that it bothers me a lot. Indeed, far from becoming more tolerant as the years go by, I find that the older I get, the more such petty crimes against our language irritate me.
Oh, I know that in this vale of tears, with wars raging in Ukraine, the Middle East and elsewhere, and our own country plunging headlong into bankruptcy, there are far more important things to worry about than the mispronunciation of a common English word.
I know, too, that Dent, who is a far more distinguished student of words than I will ever be, is quite right to say that living languages evolve with the passage of time. After all, it's not only pronunciations that change, but spellings and even the meanings of words.
To take one frequently cited example, the word 'silly' went through a whole range of meanings – including happy, holy, rustic, weak and lowly – before it settled on its modern definition as a synonym for daft.
Meanwhile, I'd hate to think I'm becoming as pedantic as my late grandfather, a classics scholar, who insisted on pronouncing 'margarine' with a hard g (apparently it comes from the Greek word for a pearl, which is spelt with a gamma) and cinema as 'Kye-knee-ma', because its ancient Greek root begins with a kappa.
As I may have mentioned before, he was also such a stickler for correct grammar that when my mother asked him if he'd like more spaghetti, he replied: 'Well, perhaps just a few'. (The word spaghetti, you understand, is the plural of spaghetto; strictly speaking, it's therefore wrong to speak of 'just a little spaghetti'.)
But there must be at least some trace of my grandfather in me, since I constantly find myself wincing over common mispronunciations and grammatical mistakes.
It sets my teeth on edge, for example, when I ask almost anyone under the age of about 35 'How are you?', and the answer comes back: 'I'm good'.
Indeed, I have to bite my lip to stop myself from saying: 'I wasn't asking about your morals. I just wanted to know if you were well!'
In the same way, it irritates me like anything when people ask at the bar: 'Can I get...', when the traditional form, on my side of the Atlantic at least, is 'May I have...'
And why do so many of the young insist on starting every other sentence with the word 'so'? (Ask them what they do for a living, and the chances are they will give some incomprehensible answer, such as: 'So, I'm a local government project outreach manager.')
Won't somebody teach BBC reporters, meanwhile, that singular subjects take singular verbs? I've lost count of the number of times I've switched on the news to hear sentences such as: 'The collapse in shares are sending shock-waves through the financial world.' Are it really?
Or take the way in which many who are confused or ambiguous about their sexual identity like to be referred to by the plural pronouns 'they' and 'them'. What bugs me quite as much as any other consideration is the way this mangles English grammar.
As for quirks of pronunciation, I suppose I should admit that some of my objections are merely snobbish.
For example, nobody on BBC London seems able to say the word 'hospital' in the way I was brought up to pronounce it. Asad Ahmad and most of his colleagues give it three equally stressed syllables ('hosp-it-tool'), instead of rhyming it with little or skittle. (Mind you, some of them say 'littool' and 'skittool' as well.)
It annoys me, too, that Sir Keir Starmer seems to have trouble pronouncing his own job title, rendering it more often than not as 'Pry-Mister'. And don't get me started on the Chancellor's hideous, grating pronunciation of the name of the kingdom she's bringing to ruin, which she insists on calling the 'Yew-Kye'.
But some common pronunciations are just plain wrong. I'm thinking in particular of words we get from the French, such as restaurateur and lingerie. Again and again, you will hear the former pronounced as if it had an 'n' in it, and the latter as if it ended in -ay.
Mind you, my late father regarded it almost as his patriotic duty to mispronounce French words. I'll never forget his rebuking me once for pronouncing Marseilles the French way, as 'Mar-say.' 'Mar-say, boy? Mar-say?' he spluttered. 'The word is Mar-sails! You don't pronounce Paris 'Paree', do you?'
Other examples of common mispronunciations that are just plain wrong include 'Joo-le-ree' for jewellery, 'Feb-you-airy' for February and 'amen-o-knee' for that admittedly tricky tongue-twister, anemone.
Meanwhile, Dent herself cites the widespread mispronunciation of nuclear as 'nucular', saying it understandably irks a lot of people, while observing with her lexicographer's detachment that she thinks this is influenced by such words as molecular and secular.
She tells me: 'I'm certainly not saying 'anything goes'. Language needs to be fluent and articulate (and wherever possible, beautiful!) in order to be effective, and when we deviate from the standard it can affect the quality and comprehensibility of our writing or speech.'
All she is pointing out, she says, is that pronunciations have evolved for centuries, as we have adjusted sounds that no longer seem familiar to those that are.
'It can be irritating of course, and many will believe it is a degradation of English, all of which I understand,' she says. 'But there is perhaps reassurance in the fact that this is nothing new.'
Ah, well, I'm sure she's right on every count. But may not an old man rant?

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DEAR DEIDRE: BEING desired by men used to make me feel so powerful and good about myself, but recently I've been feeling guilty about all the casual sex I've been having. I'm 28 and a single mother to two daughters, aged seven and three. I support us all by myself and we have a nice life. They are my everything and yet I spend so much money on babysitters so I can go out on casual dates. I wake up in the morning thinking, 'Never again'. Then I'm straight back on the apps, looking for my next hook-up. Last year I met a man I really hoped would be The One. He seemed kind and caring, and I got to know him slowly before we had sex. When we finally did, I cried because it was both passionate and loving. A few months later, my best friend found him on Tinder still. Relationships have never been easy for me. I get very clingy and emotional — boyfriends don't stick around long. But I've always loved sex, mainly because it makes me feel so good about myself, for a short time at least. I met my girls' father when I was only 18 and got pregnant by accident. We tried to make the relationship work but we had nothing in common. My sex drive was much higher than his and the constant rejection ruined my confidence. When we split up, I had one-night stands to reassert my independence. I thought it would be a phase but I'm finding it impossible to stop. I'm constantly looking for sex and I almost don't care who it's with. But I'm worried my daughters will grow up to do the same. Dear Deidre: Understanding why your man's gone off sex DEIDRE SAYS: A craving to be desired is often a sign of low self-esteem, which usually develops at a young age. You don't say what growing up was like for you, or how you were treated as a child, but it may be the root cause of your feelings. It might also explain your attachment style and why you feel so vulnerable in relationships. The good news is, being a loving mother will help your own daughters grow up with a more secure foundation. 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But you know who does have ginger hair? My daughter's old next-door neighbour. I never liked him. He's much older than my daughter and seemed to live a sketchy life, full of 'deals' and far-fetched stories. My daughter liked him, though, and they often met for coffee or went shopping. He has money – I don't know where from – and was always helping her out financially. He's the spitting image of my granddaughter and I can't help but assume he's the father. I daren't say anything in case I spark a family rift, but I think my daughter's partner deserves the truth. He's working all hours to support them, while the neighbour swans around like nothing's happened. I asked my daughter if she'd ever had a fling with her old neighbour and she looked at me in horror. She swore on her daughter's life that nothing had ever happened. But I don't know. Each child gets half their genes from each parent, and the final combination can be unexpected. It's not unusual for parents to have a child who looks nothing like either of them. Appearances can change over time, too. Your daughter's partner might seem darker-skinned, but his outdoorsy job could just have tanned him. And babies' eyes often look blue when they're born, but can change during the first year. It wouldn't be wise to go storming in and would probably damage your relationship with your daughter. You're right in thinking you might spark a family feud if you voice your doubts again. You risk setting the couple against each other too, at a time when they need to be united for your granddaughter's sake. Your role is to support your family, not create conflict. DUMPING HIM OVER SEX I'M so sick of my boyfriend turning me down for sex, I've decided to dump him. The final straw happened tonight. We don't live together – we're both 22 – so I texted him a sexy message, asking if I should pop over for some fun. His reply? 'I've just put my tea on.' What red-blooded man would rather watch a ready-meal in the microwave than have sex with his girlfriend? After that, I realised we are only ever intimate when he initiates it. I sent him a long message explaining how hurt I felt, and he simply replied, 'OK.' That's it. He's blocked. DEIDRE SAYS: You're understandably upset. Sex should be a loving act enjoyed by both of you, not something only he can initiate. He sounds like he is keen to keep everything on his terms. If you want to work on this then meet up to discuss how he feels about your relationship, explain how rejected you feel. You won't get any answers by blocking him. My support pack, Looking After Your Relationship, explains more. FAMILY FORUM DEAR DEIDRE: MY son's real dad got back in touch, so I'll have to finally tell my son about him. I'm 45, my son is 15. He thinks my husband, who is also 45, is his father. He's not. His real dad is a man I had a fling with, who vanished as soon as I got pregnant. 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Counselling – ideally as a couple, but individually if necessary – is a good way to process issues like infidelity. It lets you work through all your feelings and then find a way to move past them. I realise you're finding it hard to forgive your husband but remember, forgiveness is something you do for you, not anyone else. It's not letting him off the hook, it's giving yourself permission to move forwards. When it comes to revealing the news to your son, you can find advice through Family Lives ( 0808 800 2222). Talking to him is going to be difficult, and only you can decide when the right time is. But impress upon him that your husband has always been there for him and loves him unconditionally.

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OUR much-loved astrologer Meg sadly died in 2023 but her column will be kept alive by her friend and protégé Maggie Innes. Read on to see what's written in the stars for you today. Sign up for the Mystic Meg newsletter. Your info will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy. ARIES MARCH 21 - APRIL 20 1 With Mercury sharpening your creative thinking, you possess the ability to review numerous ideas and instantly identify the best one for you. While barriers may still emerge, they will now seem temporary and beatable. In love, it's tempting to keep planning a grand reveal, but your chart is ready for you to simply go for it. A family new moon favors fresh ways of bonding with someone whose name begins with "D." DESTINY DAYS Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, think about sleep quality and make some simple bedtime changes. Reconsider a set of work figures or documents over the weekend. Horoscope traits What does your star sign mean for you? Aries - The best and worst characteristics of the head of the zodiac Aquarius - The traits you need to know for the air sign Capricorn - What does this star sign mean for your personality? Cancer - The key traits for the sign include a keen love of food Gemini - The traits to be aware of for the sign with a symbol of twins Leo - The best and worst characteristics of the fire sign Libra - What does the seventh star sign mean for your personality? Pisces - The key traits for the sign include an interest in the arts Sagittarius - The traits you need to know for the fire sign Scorpio - What does this star sign mean for your personality? Taurus - The best and worst characteristics of the earth sign Virgo - The key traits for the sign include loyalty and kindness MAKE THIS THE WEEK YOU Really believe in your right to be your true self, rather than keeping up a pretense. Connect, with curiosity, with every new neighbor and/or workmate. TAROT CHALLENGE Finding the right balance between acting too soon and waiting too long, that is what the JUDGEMENT card can help you achieve. You have so many positive influences this week for moving on and making good choices. Plus, you can weigh up all facts, figures, and viewpoints, and reach strong, rational conclusions. So do not wait for anyone else to give permission; take the lead yourself in your own life. You will not look back. Fabulous is the home of horoscopes, with weekly updates on what's in store for your star sign as well as daily predictions. You can also use our series of guides to find out everything from which star sign to hook up with for the steamiest sex to what it's like to .

TOM UTLEY: Susie, the serene goddess of Countdown, has thrown in the towel - but I'm still manning the barricades against the language louts!

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