New Series of Who Do You Think You Are

[LaliqueSaltGrinder]

Anyone watching? I liked the Zoe Ball episode, interesting story on both sides ofher family and she came across very well.

The Amy Dowden one was interesting but there was a fair amount of her leaping to conclusions such as people being hard working, or the motives for murder when there was no evidence for it. She did come across as very engaged with it all though.

Yes, he was good fun. And he's usually a "Quick, where is the remote?" whenever he appears on TV person.

Where is this tonight? Just bumped for the footie?

Disgraceful.

Must be bumped for football. Disappointed.

I agree - it feels very frustrating and 'bitty' now they trace a few family members from both sides in each programme. I'm sure it used to be more of a coherent trail through the same line, and they took it back further (the ultimate being the famous 'related to God' one - was that Matthew Pinsent?). It felt far more interesting, somehow.

(Btw I was dying to know why Johnny Ball's middle name was 'Thalben' when they showed the Ball family tree - Thalben Ball was a famous organist, but born in Australia. I can’t believe they were actually related but I'd love to know!)

Btw I was dying to know why Johnny Ball's middle name was 'Thalben' when they showed the Ball family tree
Despite what Google AI overview(!) says, he is not related to Thalben-Ball. According to an article in the Dundee Courier on 28 March 1980, Johnny Ball's father was an admirer of the classical organist, so named his son after him.

That’s one of my favourite ones!
to give Alastair his due, his ancestry must have come as quite a surprise when iirc the family had accepted the different skin tone was a result of working in greenhouses…

my second favourite was I think John hurt when he discovered he wasn’t actually Irish after all…

I just watched the Joe Swash one (missed it somehow) and, while I normally give him a big swerve, I thought it was great - much more like the WDYTYO of old. And he’s quite a good-looking chap when he’s not wildly gurning!

I enjoyed the Joe Swash one too. He came across well and it was an interesting story.
I think my all time favourite was Kevin Clifton. That was a truly surprising story.

Just watched Ruth Madeley (must admit, didn't know who she was) on Morning Live. She's on an upcoming WDYTYA and mentioned that her dad had had a DNA test. They discovered his mum had been adopted and nobody knew so don't know if the DNA test was a last resort as the researchers were struggling. They also said their whole "journey" took three years from the initial contact with the research team. Amazing.

Ooh this sounds like it could be an interesting episode! 3 years, wow!

If you're convinced your great grandparents did x, y and z, but then discover you're not related to them at all, it makes the paper trail (for the celeb), meaningless, possibly.

That is such an interesting point

Joe Swash was fantastic, one of my favourites. I'm missing it while the football is on, looking forward to a new episode. It doesn't surprise me that it takes three years - genealogy can be a very slow process!

Anyone watch last night’s programme with Ruth Madeley ?

I did! Don’t want to give away spoilers. What did you think of it. It was a different format and I’m not liking how they concentrate on one strain of the family more

Oh I really enjoyed it. When she spoke to her dad in the car and his reaction, that was so unexpected. And then to find the link at the end. That was lovely.

Also trying to avoid spoilers, I thought it was really interesting.

I guess not every branch of the family is worth following up.

And they seemed to invest a huge amount of time and research into that one line. Maybe they have a budget of time and money

That was a brilliant episode last night. Loads of great detective work with the records and Ruth and her family were lovely.

I've not watched last night's yet but this is the one she said took three years' worth of research.

The Ruth Madeley episode was wonderful. Her great grandmother was described as a 'servant' and I wonder if that had something to do with what happened to her, awful if so, but many such girls and women were predated upon by their employers.

Ooh, very happy to read that they’ve finally shown the next episode (have quickly scrolled past the posts with details in them!). Yes, Joe Swash was great. One of the things I love about the programme is how the people you like least can have the most absorbing stories. For me, the best example of that was the Mrs Brown’s Boys guy (I can’t even remember his name).

My all-time favourite episode is Sarah Millican, with the diving bell diver and the boy from Orkney who went to be a fur trapper in Canada.

That was an excellent episode. Yes I was wondering that about the grandmother.

I love WDYTYA. Wasn't it John Humphreys who said he was approached to be on it but when they did his family tree it was just farm workers all the way back and nothing noteable at all, so they didn't bother?

I just hope it doesn't fall back into the 'celebrity' trap that so many programmes do and start trawling through influencers and YouTube 'stars' that nobody has ever heard of.

Mind you, now I've said that, even ordinary people can have fascinating stories to tell, so maybe they SHOULD expand their repertoire.

It was Michael Parkinson who was too “boring” to be on the show

Agree that I liked the Joe Swash one a lot. Liked his Mum too.

My favourite one remains Mishal Hussein because I loved the way she did proper interviews of the researchers she met who sometimes looked a bit taken aback. Better than the ‘oh wow’ ‘oh interesting’ non responses they sometimes get.

The Ruth Madeley episode was great, best one I’ve seen for a while.

I did think that too. 🥲if so.