How to speak like a BBC newsreader

For a BBC newsreader, it's not what you say but how you say it that is most important. Which is why for 80 years, they have referred to the corporation's in-house guide to the pronunciation of difficult words and names.

Now, Auntie's secrets of speaking properly are to be made public for the first time.

The Oxford BBC Guide to Pronunciation, to be published next week, explains how to pronounce words such as scone, skon (although skohn is equally commonly used), Kenya, ken-yuh, and Van Gogh, Van Gokh (rather than the Americanised Van Goh).

There is also a useful tip on avoiding astronomical embarrassment when referring to Uranus (it should be pronounced 'Yoor-uh-nuhss', in case you were wondering).