As an Irishman who spent my youth in Birmingham, I never had trouble understanding the Brummie accent, even though it sounded strange to me. but when I moved here to the Black Country in the late 70's it was just like moving to another country. I can speak (or should I say Spake) the dialect like a native now, but for the first two years had to carry a note book around with me To learn what most words meant i.e how Am ya, how bist ya, ow bin ya, how bae ya, yow, yam, feur,. Yet still I can hear a Brummie accent from Miles away. Awright