Cheryl Cole advised to keep her Geordie accent

Cheryl Cole has been warned not to drop her Newcastle accent in her bid to crack America.

The Girls Aloud singer is thought to be thinking about taking up elocution lessons, after Simon Cowell allegedly told her that US audiences may not be able to understand what she was saying.

However, a languages expert has said that Chezza's accent is a part of her charm and that changing it could means she loses appeal at home.

"If she is seen to be changing her accent for commercial reasons, this could damage her image here...In the UK, the Geordie accent is viewed very positively and studies of reactions to accents consistently show that it is considered friendly, honest and generally attractive," said Joan Beal, professor of English Language at Sheffield University. "There are lots of voice coaches who claim to be able to soften regional accents, and I'm sure Cheryl would have access to reputable ones who've worked successfully with actors. But does she want to be seen as putting on an act?"

Plus there are always subtitles.

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