A Yorkshire Accent Given to King Richard III in Groundbreaking Voice Project
In a groundbreaking project, state-of-the-art technology has been used to give the last Plantagenet king, Richard III, a Yorkshire accent. History buffs were treated to a digital avatar of the medieval king at York Theatre Royal, where his reconstructed voice was showcased.
The project, led by voice teacher Yvonne Morley-Chisholm, began over a decade ago as a comparison between Shakespeare’s portrayal of Richard III and the real man. It quickly evolved into a research initiative focused on recreating the long-lost voice of the king.
The team at Face Lab at Liverpool John Moores University, led by expert Professor Caroline Wilkinson, created an avatar based on a reconstruction of Richard III’s head. Collaborating with various fields such as speech and language therapy, dentistry, forensic psychology, and archaeology, experts pieced together the puzzle to give the medieval king a voice once again.
Richard III’s remains were famously discovered under a car park in Leicester in 2012 by Philippa Langley through her Looking For Richard Project. He was King of England from 1483 until his death at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, marking the end of the Plantagenet dynasty and the rise of the Tudor dynasty.
The project sheds new light on the life of this enigmatic king and offers a glimpse into the past through cutting-edge technology. The avatar’s Yorkshire accent adds a new dimension to understanding the historical figure, bringing him to life for a modern audience.
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