Who Do You Think You Are? - Claire Foy

Actress Claire Foy is perhaps, appropriately, best known for playing historical figures in period dramas.

And while none of the family members who featured in her episode of WDYTYA? on Thursday were of the ranks of nobility - unlike Andrew Lloyd Webber last week - their stories were definitely drama-worthy.

There was tragedy in her maternal line - beginning with her charming Irish grandfather having lost his father at a young age in a motorbike accident.

That great-grandfather had, himself, lost his own father to a tragic accident.

It was this great-great-grandfather's accident that Claire turned to first - in England, rather than Ireland, to the site of a military training exercise which went terribly wrong, leading to the drowning of several men in a treacherous stretch of river.

Perhaps most heart-breaking was how close rescue could have been - the bank where their bodies came to rest being only a short distance downstream from the point where they went into the water.

On her paternal line, Claire turned to her father's biological family - the Foy family being his adopted line.

Moving further back in this line, Claire discovered an Irish veteran of the British army, who settled in Manchester.

She learned that he and his brother were arrested in Manchester in 1867 following an attack on a police van carrying prominent Fenian prisoners, during which a policeman guarding the prisoner transport, a Sergeant Charles Brett, was killed.

The Fenians, also known as the Irish Republican Brotherhood, were a movement fighting - often via violent means - for home rule in Ireland.

Over 40 men were arrested in the days following the murder of Sergeant Brett.

28 men were charged with joint enterprise murder - which did not require the accused individual to have actually shot Sergeant Brett, but only that they were involved in the violent disorder that resulted in Brett's death; at the time this carried the death penalty.

To begin with, the case against Claire's relatives seemed suspicious, but as she learned more and more about the circumstances, the question became whether they were guilty... or simply Irish.

The addition of a police sketch artist to this episode was really quite entertaining, and added more realness to the story of these two men, on trial for their lives.

It's definitely something that the shows producers should consider incorporating in future episodes, where appropriate.

Ready to start your own family history journey? I offer a range of professional genealogy services, check out my website for more details.

Who Do You Think You Are? - Andrew Lloyd Webber

 

Andrew Lloyd Webber kicked off series 20 of Who Do You Think You Are? last Thursday with a strong episode.

Though it may have come as a surprise to him, many people would probably have assumed Andrew Lloyd Webber - a Lord who composed music for the recent coronation - had nobility in his family's background. He is, after all, very much an establishment figure - though his own personal background is far more humble.

His mother's side of the family, though, revealed a knighted hero from the Battle of Waterloo - commemorated in the official paintings of that event, no less - and, further back still, a woman whose wardship (essentially a form of custody for nobles,) was sold by Henry VIII to a man who would marry her in her teenage years. 

This was a state of affairs even the Spanish ambassador felt worth mentioning, since her 'guardian' and husband was in what we would now consider middle-age at the time of the union.

Her second marriage, after being widowed, appears to have been for love (and more power to her,) and it's from this second marriage that Andrew Lloyd Webber's family is descended. Things were not all plain-sailing however, with the family having to flee the country during the reign of Queen Mary I due to their staunch Protestant faith.

Further back, in Andrew Lloyd Webber's working-class paternal line, is where the most interesting stories come in, though 

- tales of show-men and musicians from the Magito family, making their names in the world of 18th Century European entertainment.

There were odd parallels between Andrew Lloyd Webber's distant ancestors and the lives of himself and his brother, Julian, Britain's most well-known cellist. 

Not least the existence of Alexis Magito - a Dutch cellist, often known as 'Mr Alexis,' who composed and performed in England.

While the other parts of the episode were entertaining enough, it is this last focal point of the Magito family that truly makes this episode fascinating, and well worth the watch.

Ready to start your own family history journey? I offer a range of professional genealogy services, check out my website for more details.

Who Do You Think You Are? - Series 20

 

Who Do You Think You Are? is back tonight at 9pm.

As has become relatively common with WDYTYA? as of late, the advertising has been almost non-existent, but here's our new round of celebs:

• Claire Foy
• Bear Grylls
• Chris Ramsey
• Kevin Clifton
• Dev Griffin
• Chris & Xand van Tulleken
• Lesley Manville
• Andrew Lloyd Webber

- That's actually quite a sizeable series of 8 episodes; a lot of the recent series have been 4 or 5 episodes only.

Lot's to enjoy here, then!

I will be writing my usual write-ups after each episode, so look out for that.

I offer professional family history research services in the UK, check out my website for more information.

Christmas 2022 Orders

Hi everyone!

I know it feels early to be thinking about Christmas, but yes, it is that time again!

Because of the nature of my packages, I need time to do the research that makes each and every one so special.

That means that the very last date for Christmas 2022 orders is 31st October 2022

My Branch and Double-Branch packages in particular make for excellent presents, printed beautifully and entirely unique to your family.

For price and order information, please see my website here.

Or you can drop me an e-mail at enquiries@familyhistorybycerys.co.uk

Gift certificates will be available until Monday 19th December @ 6pm GMT by post, or Saturday 24th December @ 1pm GMT by e-mail.

Please remember that due to the ongoing postal strikes, there will be mail disruption over the next few months which may delay delivery - please order early to avoid disappointment.

I hope to hear from you soon!

Who Do You Think You Are? - Ralf Little

 

The last episode of Series 19 of Who Do You Think You Are? featured the actor Ralf Little.

Ralf Little is best known for roles in TV series like The Royle Family, Two Pints of Lager and A Packet of Crisps, and Death In Paradise.

Much of Ralf's episode was a little like a Boys' Own adventure - full of aeroplanes, war, and football!

As seems to have been quite a theme this series, Ralf found out previously unknown-to-him things about his grandparents.

He had known that his grandfather did 'something in the war,' but not what - or that his service with the Royal Navy's air division involved working as an engineer on 'Seafire' aircraft. The Seafire was the Naval version of the well-known Spitfire planes of World War Two.

His grandfather had made his way to the Royal Navy as a medical assistant, a job that continued his prior medical experience - namely working as a male nurse in a mental hospital.

This entire episode in Ralf's grandfather's life was unknown to him - but vital to the history of Ralf's family, as this was where his grandfather had met his grandmother, who was working in the hospital laundry.

What really thrilled Ralf, though, was the story of another ancestor - who played international football for Wales.

...Although it's safe to say that his ancestor's relationship with football was not straight-forward, being entangled, as it was, with one of the (several) Welsh religious revivals.

Traditionally, football is a less popular sport than rugby in Wales - certainly in a 'national sport' sense -  in part due to the dislike of football by many Welsh chapels and religious leaders. 

The links between football and hooliganism, foul language, and a culture of drinking, meant that many chapels saw the sport as a bad influence on young men.

The most Puritanical of chapels saw sport in general - and football in particular - as taking away time that could be spent in the service of God and the community. 

For most, though, it was the culture of alcohol and gambling that caused them to try and divert their congregations away from the sport.

Looking for your own family's story? I offer a range of genealogy services. Feel free to drop me an e-mail to discuss your research needs.

Who Do You Think You Are? - Matt Lucas and Anna Maxwell Martin

Presenter and comedian Matt Lucas' episode of Who Do You Think You Are? was focussed on the experiences of his Jewish family during the terrible events of the Holocaust.

Specifically, he wanted to know about his Jewish grandmother's experiences in pre-war Berlin, and what had become of her extended family afterwards.

Recent history can sometimes be the most devastating, affecting, as it does, people we knew and loved.

Like many, Matt Lucas' relatives sought safety in a place that they thought would be safe - Amsterdam in The Netherlands.

Sadly, The Netherlands did not remain safe for long - despite being a neutral country, Germany invaded and occupied the country from 10th May 1940. 

This meant that Dutch Jewish communities were also persecuted and murdered in the Holocaust. The safety of Amsterdam was no longer safe.

A big surprise came when Matt found that one of his family members had known, and lived with, Anne Frank and her family before they went into hiding - and in fact Anne had mentioned him in her diary.

It's another example of just how personal the past becomes through the lens of family history.

Actress Anna Maxwell Martin's episode also featured difficult events in the lives of her grandparents.

Following her Irish paternal family, her uncle explained a little more to her about how difficult it was for their grandparents when one of their three sons died of Leukaemia. 

It was also interesting that her uncle's view, as the older brother, was a little more measured than the experiences of Anna's father, who was younger when their brother died and felt more of a coldness in their collective childhoods than Anna's uncle did.

Turning to her maternal Scottish family, Anna looked into the family of her grandfather, Maxwell - whose name she took as part of her stage name.

Maxwell's upbringing was harder and more cruel than Anna had imagined. As a five-year-old child, after the death of his mother, Maxwell had been sent to an orphanage - where he was separated from his sisters, due to a policy of splitting boys and girls.

His father - Anna's great-grandfather - was still alive at the time, which led Anna on a journey of finding out why he had not been able to care for his younger children.

What followed was a tale of drunkenness and severe domestic abuse - for which Maxwell's father went to prison several times.

He was obviously returning to his wife when released from prison, as many of their large family of children were born after his first recorded offence.

Which may explain why, despite having died in her 40s, the picture of Maxwell's mother looks like an elderly lady. Her life was not an easy one.

One of the more difficult things about family history is that we can't change the past.

We can only try to understand and honour what our family members have been through.

Looking for your own family's story? I offer a range of genealogy services. Feel free to drop me an e-mail to discuss your research needs.

Who Do You Think You Are? - Sue Perkins and Richard Osman

Who Do You Think You Are? series 19 kicked off at the end of May with Sue Perkins' episode.

This episode was an excellent start to the current series, having that classic WDYTYA? combination of good story and charming celebrity.

Comedian and actress Sue Perkins kept the episode moving with her fun commentary, accompanied partly by comedy partner Mel Giedroyc.

In a story that, as Sue points out, you couldn't make up, the episode followed Mel's family as they were swept up in the tide of history.

Sue's family story is one of immigration, hard work, and bad luck.

It's also one of war - both the First and the Second World War.

Sue's family members found themselves either 'too German' or 'not German enough,' in the eyes of those around them, their fates decided by their birthplace and heritage at every turn.

There's also a devastating discovery of the death of one of the family's children, who had a learning disability, amongst the horrors of the Holocaust and the Nazis' plan of so-called purity.

Family history makes the past personal - knowing that family members were caught up in historic events makes those events more real, and harder hitting, to our modern eyes.

Sometimes it can even make us see things from a new perspective.

Richard Osman's episode also featured war as author and broadcaster Richard looked into his beloved grandfather's service record.

This, in many ways, was more personal even than Sue Perkins' episode, because of the bond that Richard and his grandfather had throughout his life.

The attention-grabber in this episode, though, was the involvement of some of Richard's ancestors in a murder enquiry.

Aptly for a crime writer, the tale had it all - grisly discoveries, amateur sleuths (comprising mostly of Richard's family,) and a dramatic criminal trial.

The level of detail in the 19th Century press when it comes to murder - both in the traditional newspapers and the infamous penny broadsheets - is often a bizarrely quaint combination of coy and gruesome.

If nothing else, it seems likely that Richard got a fair few novel ideas out of his Who Do You Think You Are? experience!

Looking for your own family's story? I offer a range of genealogy services. Feel free to drop me an e-mail to discuss your research needs.