 Going Underground Nik - thanks for agreeing to be interviewed, as a tube "fan" and a professional voice over artist this seemed too good an opportunity to miss.
Nik Fox (Nik) ‘tis OK. Glad to be of service (& indulge my anorak passion for trains! Oh er!)
GU Firstly, I don't know whether you heard but there was a survey that some people thought the voice of Sonia was too "posh" and a voice like Marilyn Monroe proved more popular in tests. Who do you think would make a good female replacement?
Nik London Underground could do a lot worse than to roll Emma Clarke out across all lines, she has a very calming quality about her voice. Of course, I’m always up for a go if the chaps at TFL (Transport for London) think I’m up to it have a listen to my dulcet tones at http://listen.to/nikthevoice.
GU I understand that you know Emma Clarke (or Miss Mind the Gap) who does the current female voiceover. What's she like and does she sound like Sonia in the flesh?
Nik Well, Emma, as you probably know is only responsible for the voice on the Central, Bakerloo & Victoria lines.
It’s hard to know which is the real Emma talking actually, her voice is so versatile, but she sounds nothing like Sonia, I can reveal that much! "Off Duty" she does have a bit of an accent actually...Aside from her voice, she’s a really great person & has a wicked sense of humour a pleasure to work with.
(GU - she is indeed - check out a very funny interview she did with b3ta)
GU You've said that you can do a very good impression of Emma, (this is rather worrying for a man to admit they can sound a bit like a posh woman) so how do you manage to get that effect?
Nik Not quite sure how I manage it, I naturally have quite a "high" voice anyway. It’s a matter of listening to a voice, adjusting yours to match as closely as possible & then trying to maintain it. I once had a few people fooled on the Central Line at Bond St telling them to "Change here for Selfridges' corner shop" but that’s another story...you know you’re a total voice-over anorak though, when you find yourself talking along on the Northern Line, with a carriage of passengers giving you weird looks!! One day I’m going to try "The next station is CITY ROAD" he he he!
Off duty, you’d never recognise my voice, especially not if I’m among friends in Essex \ London \ Kent!
GU Have you ever done an audition for a tube announcement yourself?
Nik No, I haven’t, but I’d absolutely love the chance to audition, let alone actually make it through! Imagine the power ;-) Seriously though, the opportunity would be great. I have however, been the voice of a local department store, several on-hold systems & even a couple of radio adverts – I’ll say anything for money – even done somebody’s home answerphone for £20!!
GU For a man what do you think the casting director would be looking for in a tube announcer - clarity seems pretty obvious - but do you think they would ask you to sound a particular age, class or from a particular region?
Nik In my experience of the travel industry (a lot!) they tend to go for fairly "neutral" voices, without a heavy regional \ class inflection. When you’re in the voiceover business, you have to learn to drop any accent you may have (I’m from Essex originally!) & become the character the casting directors are looking for. The best 'Mind The Gap Man' voice would be clear, concise & have perhaps a slightly 'commanding' inflection - the traveling public need keeping in shape...."Mind the gap!" isn’t as effective as "There’s about 640volts below you. Go careful!" I can bet!
GU How do you actually practice for voice overs?
Nik Well, there’s a number of things, the most simple being that you need to warm your voice up first, you can do this by humming, or maybe just reading through a script out loud chewing something is also good (mmm, toffee! Good excuse!) to loosen up the muscles of your jaw
Making sure your throat & vocal cords are clear is another must. There’s a little known throat pastille that does this job brilliantly not giving that secret away though ;-)
One secret I will let you into is Apples...Yes, apples & apple juice – gets rid of excess saliva, which is a real pain when you’re trying to sound clear on the mic.
GU I think that's it for now Nik, but if you have anything else you'd like to say or think I should be asking, feel free to ask or say ;-)
Nik Nothing other than, if people want to discover more about me & what I do, they can visit my up & coming website at http://listen.to/nikthevoice.... & if anyone at LU is reading this, call me! ;-) One can dream eh?!
  
 
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