American kids ‘start using British words and accents’ after watching so much Peppa Pig – and Brits love it

Children in the US are beginning to speak with English accents and using British words after watching a lot of Peppa Pig, it has emerged.

The phenomenon has been dubbed as “The Peppa Effect” and has coincided with a rise in the popularity of the children’s television programme in America over lockdown.

Thanks to Peppa, her friends Suzie the Sheep and the show’s other animal-themed characters, American children are changing American-English phrases, such as “vacation”, to their British-English equivalent, like “holiday”.

According to The Wall Street Journal, who reported on the trend, one parent in California was surprised when her 5-year-old child asked her in an English accent: “Mummy, are you going to the optician?”

Many British Twitter users reacted to the news with glee and commented on the sneaky way in which the show has influenced America’s children.

One person wrote: “Obsessed with the Peppa Pig stealth op to indoctrinate millions of unsuspecting American children into proper etiquette, vocabulary and mannerisms.”

Another, said: “The takeover of the united states begins anew, the shining beacon of conquest is... [checks notes] Peppa... Pig.”

One Twitter user joked: “LMFAO THE KIDS ARE PIPPIP CHEERIOING FROM PEPPA.”

On the other side of the Atlantic, American parents responded with their own experiences of this with their children.

One mother wrote: “My daughter definitely now says ‘holiday’ instead of ‘vacation’ and ‘trolly’ instead of ‘shopping cart’ as a result of her countless Peppa Pig binge days.”

Another said: “I can attest to this. My children were saying ‘lift’ and ‘holiday’. My son had a little British accent for a bit too.”

Peppa Pig was first released in 2004 and, according to data from Parrot Analytics Ltd., which tracks the demand for TV shows, it is the world’s second most popular cartoon after SpongeBob SquarePants.

In a statement, the owners of Peppa Pig, Entertainment One Ltd. wrote: “Young Peppa fans see her as a friend…and, as we do with friends that we admire, pick up some of their characteristics.”

It added: “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.”