WDYTYA? - Charles Dance

Phew! What a start to the series!

Charles Dance's episode of Who Do You Think You Are? was... wow!

The first half was dedicated to his mother's family - artisans, originally from Europe - with one of his female ancestors, in his own words, looking like him 'in drag.'

(Seriously, the resemblance was amazing.)

It was the second half of the episode that hit hard though.

Charles' father died when he was very young - leaving him with very little information or connection to the man.

As he started to delve into his father's history, many things started to surface - not least that his father was much older than Charles had thought, and was actually born in the 1870s!

More surprises - about close family he never knew he had - followed thick and fast.

In true WDYTYA? style, Charles was overcome by it all, more than once - but then wondered why it hit him so hard.

He clearly needs to be kinder to himself. Because if I learned, within a few days, all that came to light for him, I would be a wreck!

An excellent start to the series, then. One of the more interesting episodes of recent years.

And if you missed it, you can catch up on the BBC's iPlayer.

Who Do You Think You Are is Back on Thursday!

Who Do You Think You Are? returns this Thursday on BBC1 @ 9pm.

(Yes, I know, it seems like I only blog when WDYTYA? is on - but I'm busy tracing all your families for you!)

Series 14 kicks off with Charles Dance, and will be split into two half-series.

The other celebs are:

• Craig Revel Horwood (off of Strictly)
• Clare Balding
• Adil Ray (aka Citizen Khan)
• Emma Willis (presenter on the Voice and married to that feller from Mc/Busted)

The second half of the series will air later in the year.

I'm hoping to give you all my usual little write-ups... and hopefully not lose any episodes along the way like I somehow did with the last episode of series 13!

WDYTYA? - Warwick Davis and Sunetra Sarker

Warwick Davis' family history was a mixed bag of revelations, making for an interesting episode.

From the confusion of bigamy, to the joy of finding a performer in the family, to the mixed feelings (i.e. uncomfortable horror,) of a modern perspective looking back at the realities of the blacked-up minstrel shows of the 19th Century, Warwick Davis' episode was certainly intriguing.

Plus, the man himself is a lot of fun.




Sunetra Sarker's episode of Who Do You Think You Are? was the story of the formation of two countries - modern India, and Bangladesh.

An interesting episode covering topics not widely-known in the west, it also told of the violence that led to the formation of Bangladesh, with the reminder that these atrocities took place in the relatively recent 1970s.




This week's episode is the last of the series, and features Sophie Raworth.

WDYTYA? Catch-Up Post - Cheryl, Ricky Tomlinson, Sir Ian McKellan, and Greg Davies

Looks like I got a little behind on these - ironically, I'm a genealogist with very little time at the moment!

Anyway, let's just give you a short round-up of the episodes of Who Do You Think You Are? that've aired since my last post, and then we can get back on track for the last two!

Cheryl (Tweedy, Cole, Fernandez-Versini,) found that she truly is Geordie through-and-through, with family based around the docks of the North-East, and a tragedy related to their seafaring profession.



Ricky Tomlinson discovered his connections to his working-class Liverpudlian ancestors, and the beginnings of worker's rights - something which he himself has been a passionate advocate for.



Sir Ian McKellen's was another tale of the apple not falling far from the tree, as he discovered that his family had an acting past that he had never known about.

Oddly enough, the various experts in theatre history seemed just slightly thrilled to meet him!



Greg Davies' family story was one I recognised - I've been researching similar stories of Welsh ancestry for over a decade now. Granted, I've never come across medieval royalty in any of the trees I've researched! (Yet! I live in hope.)

There's also plenty of family skeletons in Greg's tree (metaphorical ones,) including illegitimacy (which wasn't as uncommon in the 19th Century as you might think,) and running to the Rhondda to avoid scandal (as you do.)






The next (and last) three episodes of WDYTYA? will feature Warwick Davis (I love him!), Sunetra Sarker and Sophie Raworth.

WDYTYA? - Amanda Holden & Liz Bonnin

OK, this is going to be my write-up for both last week's and this week's episodes of Who Do You Think You Are? because, as a busy genealogist bee, I didn't have chance to write-up Amanda Holden's episode last week.

Amanda Holden's episode focussed on France - a connection to wine in Bordeaux which Amanda seemed thrilled with, and an interesting story of a an ancestor with a colourful character and a French wife.

Also in France was the tale of Amanda's paternal grandfather - a serviceman in WW2, he was caught up in the sinking of the Lancastria.

Not many people have heard of the Lancastria - a commandeered cruise ship which sank with thousands of people on board after being bombed.

More lives were lost on board than on the Titanic and the Lusitania combined, but it's less widely known because of the reporting ban Churchill placed on the event - too much tragedy was seen as bad for morale.



Liz Bonnin's episode was a fascinating tale of the double-edged sword that was colonialism. Colonialism brought oppression and servitude, but also, in many cases, opportunities - as Liz found when she traced her Indian-Trinidadian ancestors.

Another morally uncomfortable part of history is slavery. And Liz visibly struggled to reconcile the various aspects of slavery - that people were owned, and people were owners - with her own family on the French colony of Martinique.

History is something that must be learnt from yes, but also accepted. We can't change the past - it's simply the things that happened.

WDYTYA? - Danny Dyer

The 16th (16!) series of Who Do You Think You Are? kicked off last night with EastEnders actor Danny Dyer.

In honesty - it was actually a really fun watch!

I don't watch EastEnders (I know. Shock, horror!) so I wasn't really familiar with Danny Dyer - but he's certainly a character!

So, between the entertainment value of Danny Dyer, and the excessively interesting family he has (and yes, there are some very posh people in Danny Dyer's ancestry,) it was a great way to start off the series.

Of course, it wouldn't be Who Do You Think You Are? without the ability to reduce even the hardest of celebrities to tears, and it was the same here.

The story of Mary Ann Buttivant - one of Danny's ancestors - and the heartbreak she went through, was truly one of those WDYTYA? moments, and your heart really did go out to this lady.

Who Do You Think You Are? Season 13 starts tonight

Hi all!

Just a quick note to remind you that Who Do You Think You Are? Season 13 starts @ 8.00pm tonight on BBC1 with EastEnders actor Danny Dyer.

I'll be doing my write-up posts after each episode again this year, so look out for that!

The line-up, once again, suggests interesting episodes ahead:

• Danny Dyer
• Cheryl Tweedy/Cole/Fernandez-Versini
• Amanda Holden
• Sir Ian McKellen
• Sophie Raworth
• Ricky Tomlinson
• Warwick Davis
• Greg Davies
• Liz Bonnin
• Sunetra Sarker

Can't wait!