The following is a short column originally published as Kuster, J. M. At Long Last, A Positive Portrayal of Stuttering. The ASHA Leader, February 15, 2011. It is copied below without the external outdated links in the original article.

At Long Last, A Positive Portrayal of Stuttering

By Judy Kuster

Years ago, after much searching, I found a disc recording of King George VI's speech, delivered Sept. 3, 1939, to use as an example of "famous people who stutter" in my stuttering course. The Internet has made the king's speech much easier to find. Now this historical event became the subject of the award-winning film, The King's Speech" which provides a sympathetic and accurate portrayal of stuttering.

The script was written by the very patient David Seidler, a person who stutters; he promised the Queen Mum it wouldn't be produced until after her death, which occurred in 2002 at age 101.

The film brings together three actors from the British version of "Pride and Prejudice" - Lizzy, Darcy, and Mr. Collins - and features an actress in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." Their acting, and the film itself, have received high critical praise.

Lionel Logue (played by Geoffrey Rush) and King George VI (played by Colin Firth)

Speech-language professionals and people who stutter may view the film from a different perspective. Some of its ideas are dated of course, as the film depicts the 1930s and 1940s. The professionals in the film use techniques that are now thoroughly discredited - marbles in the mouth and smoking to "relax the throat" (which probably contributed to the king's death of lung cancer). Other film ideas were current at the time but no longer hold - stuttering is caused by forcing a left-handed child to become right-handed, adult stuttering may be "cured," and stuttering is caused by a harsh upbringing.

Some of the methods used in the film (whether or not they were what actually happened in Logue's therapy) are still credible. In many ways he was a good "therapist."

Recognizing motivation as essential in therapy, rather than forcing the issue, he waited until the king was "ready." He established an ideal clinical relationship - supportive, reinforcing, encouraging - and an equality between client and therapist. Logue made it clear that stuttering was not just a physical/motor problem yet allowed the the king to set the initial goal of working on physical/motor symptoms.

Logue demonstrated the temporary fluency-enhancing effects of masking, singing, speaking loudly, and cursing, but his therapy included much more. He involved the family (the queen) in therapy and used techniques still part of some therapy programs today - desensitization through continuous practice, encouragement for the king to explore ways to expand his "comfort zone," relaxation, diaphragmatic breathing, and continuous phonation. Other techniques shown in the film are pausing, bouncing, light contacts, gliding into a word with a slight prolongation, emphasizing how sounds are produced, focusing on "forward moving," starting a problem word with a slight exhale, and monitoring rate.

The film made it clear there are no "quick fixes" and that the client/clinician "relationship" is more important than techniques taught to the client. Although the king's stuttering was not "cured," he became an effective communicator. The king demonstrated his increased self-confidence after his great "speech" with a flash of humor. Logue told the king, "You still stammered on the 'w,'" and the king replied, "I had to throw in a few extra ones so they knew it was me." Actor Colin Firth, who played the king, found that quote in the Logue diary. In an interview, Firth said that when he found it, he thought, "We've got to have that in the film."