Sadiq Khan changed his way of speaking to sound more posh

Sadiq Khan as a lawyer in 2001. The mayor of London said the client made him realize it was better to be himself. Credit: Tim Boyle/Getty Images North America

Sadiq Khan said he changed his way of speaking at law school to sound more posh.

Khan, who has been mayor of London since 2016, grew up in a council council. an estate in Tooting, South London that was 'light years' away from the world of law and politics.

The 52-year-old worked as a human rights lawyer before entering politics and attended a 'really posh' law university in Guildford, Surrey.

But he felt like an outsider, so he began to “speak posh.” to fit in, and stated that it was like two languages ​​because he spoke differently at home.

Khan told the Big Fish podcast, “I grew up on a council estate. My dad was a bus driver. It took me only a few light-years from my growing up to go from this experience to a career first as a lawyer and then as a parliamentarian.

“I'm not an actor”

“So when I first went to law school — I went to a really swanky law school in Guildford College of Law — I started changing my way of speaking to fit. To sound great.”

He said, “You can change the way you talk very easily. It's not as difficult as people think. I'm not an actor, but you can change the way you talk. Then I became a trainee lawyer and still spoke at a high level.

“I was almost bilingual, spoke at a high level at work and spoke the same as usual when I was at home.

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“One of my clients told me – since we were talking – the reason I chose you as my lawyer was because I know your background. Why are you trying to be someone that you are not Are you?”

“Then I realized that being authentic, whether you're a lawyer or a politician, is much more important. Because I speak differently, I stand out. Because I have different skin colors, I stand out. Because I'm short, I stand out.

“Of course, there were times when I felt like an outsider.”