The Voice of Niels Bohr
The other night I watched the 2023 film Oppenheimer on TV. I had seen it before, on a plane flight, and enjoyed it, though I thought it was overlong. Fortunately it was a long flight. Watching it again a couple of days ago reminded me of something that struck me first time, and that was the cameo performance by Kenneth Branagh as Niels Bohr. You can see him at the start of the trailer here:
Niels Bohr was born in Copenhagen, a place I visited many times in the past and can recognize the local accent, though had never heard the speaking voice of Niels Bohr himself. I was a underwhelmed by Branagh’s rendition because he doesn’t sound very Danish to me. I assumed that because it was a relatively small part, Branagh didn’t put much effort into it. He doesn’t look like Niels Bohr, either.
But what did Niels Bohr actually sound like? Here is a lecture by him given in 1957 so you can decide for yourself.
Having heard this recording I think Kenneth Branagh’s version is not too far off, in fairness, though there are clear vocal mannerisms he did not capture.
The thing that strikes me most about the lecture, however, is that his delivery is very pedestrian, not to say rambling. People say he was like that in ordinary conversation too…
In the Dark 
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