AN AUSTRALIAN woman has been left speaking with a broad Irish accent as a result of a rare type of migraine.
30-year-old Kate Baggs has never once set foot on the island of Ireland but, as The Sun reports, that hasn't stopped her from developing the familiar Irish brogue.
It’s all down to the fact Kate suffers from hemiplegic migraines, a persistent and aggressive type of headache that can cause everything from paralysis and stroke to, in some instances, foreign accent syndrome.
In 2015, one migraine left her speaking in a Canadian accent, despite never having been to Canada.
This latest incident occurred during a holiday wither her godparents.
Out of nowhere, Kate began speaking with an Irish accent – and she’s been doing so ever since.
“I was at the shop buying a toothbrush and I started the sentence sounding like the Australian me and by the end of the sentence I realised something was odd,” she told The Sun.
“My godmother thought I was making a joke, mimicking something from a movie we were talking about.
“It’s been Irish ever since and it doesn’t show any signs of going away anytime soon.”
According to Kate, the change is a result of the fact many of the migraines she suffers are taking place around the speech and language centre of her brain.
Though she is on preventative medication, there’s no evidence the headaches are causing any lasting damage to her brain.
And despite not having much in the way of contact with Irish people in her day-to-day life, Kate has had plenty of compliments about how strong her accent is.
“People usually tell me: ‘it’s so authentic, you sound like you could be from Ireland’,” she told the Sun.
The new accent has also got her thinking about her next holiday too.
“Going to Ireland has always been a dream of mine - hopefully it will be my next trip and I’ll be able to sound like a local.”
She'd be welcome any time!
You can read the complete interview with Kate here.
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