Who Do You Think You Are?

[HPD76]

Can I just recommend to you the latest Josh Widdecombe episode of this? I’m not a huge fan of his, and I can mostly take or leave WDYTYA, but this was the most incredible hour of telly I’ve watched in a long time. It gave me goosebumps.

Whats a groom of the stool then

A groom of the stool was someone who'd accompany the King to the toilet and even wipe the Kings bottom! Apparently it was one of THE jobs to have, and show how high up the food chain you were within the kings household.

I had no idea too what the job was until I watched the programme.

I thought it was brilliant...he was very funny and I loved the way he read the inscription in the tomb with absolute awe. Only thing I was surprised he didn't seem to know was Elizabeth 1 not marrying, everyone knows that! If only doing your own family tree was as easy with historians waiting to greet you when you arrived at some distant place!

Isn't Boris Johnson related way back as well?

I think it's good they do some episodes which go a long way and some which just focus on grandparents who've done something notable

@DobbyTheHouseElk

Oh I wonder why my All 4 isn’t showing it. Odd.

It's on BBC iPlayer

@RevolutionRadio She's talking about the episode of The Last Leg where they talk about Josh's Who Do You Think You Are.

@RevolutionRadio

Iplayer?? But it’s a C4 program isn’t it?

[quote DobbyTheHouseElk]**@RevolutionRadio

Iplayer?? But it’s a C4 program isn’t it?[/quote]
Yep, The Last Leg is, but I think @RevolutionRadio thought you were talking about Who Do You Think You Are, which is BBC.

Sorry RevolutionRadio I think we are at crossed purposes. It’s my fault
I’m talking about the Last Leg where they discuss WDYTYA. 8th October episode. It’s not on my All4 and on my iPad it’s there, but won’t play. So maybe there’s a issue at C4.

Apparently the WDYTYA team began research into Michael Parkinson but could only find Barnsley miners and nothing interesting enough to make a programme.
Michael Parkinson was a bit miffed I think.

Sorry, but I think this is really unlikely. First of all, the vast majority of WDYTYA programmes focus on social history and on the jobs and way of life of 'ordinary' people. An episode all about miners would be exactly the kind of thing the programme makers would go for and I am sure Parkinson himself would have been delighted with a programme focussing on his 'humble' roots. It's actually quite rare that the programme turns out to be about aristocrats and royals. Danny Dyer is the only other episode I can remember.

Secondly, it can't be true that Parkinson's family were all miners because
mining on a big scale only started during the industrial revolution. Before that his family would have been doing something else. And thirdly, if you go back far enough (as happened with Josh W and Danny D) most people related to somebody aristocratic (and most aristocrats have somebody humble in their family too)You just have to keep going back generations and looking at all branches of the family.

Apparently the WDYTYA team began research into Michael Parkinson but could only find Barnsley miners and nothing interesting enough to make a programme.
Michael Parkinson was a bit miffed I think

Sorry, but I think this is really unlikely. First of all, the vast majority of WDYTYA programmes focus on social history and on the jobs and way of life of 'ordinary' people. An episode all about miners would be exactly the kind of thing the programme makers would go for and I am sure Parkinson himself would have been delighted with a programme focussing on his 'humble' roots. It's actually quite rare that the programme turns out to be about aristocrats and royals. Danny Dyer is the only other episode I can remember.

Secondly, it can't be true that Parkinson's family were all miners because
mining on a big scale only started during the industrial revolution. Before that his family would have been doing something else. And thirdly, if you go back far enough (as happened with Josh W and Danny D) most people related to somebody aristocratic (and most aristocrats have somebody humble in their family too)You just have to keep going back generations and looking at all branches of the family.

OMG sorry. Bold fail x 2!

In 2009 this was in The Guardian:

Michael Parkinson has said that he was rejected from BBC1's hit geneaology series Who Do You Think You Are? because his family history was so "boring".
The former chatshow host said he was approached to take part in the genealogy programme, but told producers he thought his story was not interesting enough. The production team did not believe him and undertook its own research, but six weeks later he was told he was right.
"I'm addicted to Who Do You Think You Are?,"

"It's the fascination we all have for our roots, the intriguing story of our lives. Some are more interesting than others. I had known for some time that the story of my genealogy was unremarkable. On my father's side miners and farm labourers; on my mother's railwaymen and domestics. So when Who Do You Think You Are? called and asked if I was interested, I said I would be delighted, but warned that my own research had unearthed nothing of note. 'Oh, they all say that. But we always find something,' they said. Six weeks later they phoned to apologise. My story was so boring they had to cancel the entire project. I was gutted."

@CommonRoom

*Apparently the WDYTYA team began research into Michael Parkinson but could only find Barnsley miners and nothing interesting enough to make a programme. Michael Parkinson was a bit miffed I think*

Sorry, but I think this is really unlikely. First of all, the vast majority of WDYTYA programmes focus on social history and on the jobs and way of life of 'ordinary' people. An episode all about miners would be exactly the kind of thing the programme makers would go for and I am sure Parkinson himself would have been delighted with a programme focussing on his 'humble' roots. It's actually quite rare that the programme turns out to be about aristocrats and royals. Danny Dyer is the only other episode I can remember.

Secondly, it can't be true that Parkinson's family were all miners because
mining on a big scale only started during the industrial revolution. Before that his family would have been doing something else. And thirdly, if you go back far enough (as happened with Josh W and Danny D) most people related to somebody aristocratic (and most aristocrats have somebody humble in their family too)You just have to keep going back generations and looking at all branches of the family.

I don't really agree with this. As someone who does research family history, some trees are just really boring with nothing of note happening at all. People are born, they marry, have children, work average jobs and they die.

WDYTYA always has to have something worthy of research and something interesting to hang their stories on.

My husband has a great mistress, illegitimate child situation in his family history which would be amazing in a tv series. Sadly he's not remotely famous.

I have nothing in mine that would be of interest to anyone, but me.

And thirdly, if you go back far enough (as happened with Josh W and Danny D) most people related to somebody aristocratic (and most aristocrats have somebody humble in their family too)You just have to keep going back generations and looking at all branches of the family.

Yes, but for most people it's impossible to get back far enough to make that connection.

The earliest records in which (more or less) everyone is included is the 1841 census. Before that they only time most people's existence was recorded is in the parish records when they were baptised, married and buried. And those generally just say things like "John Smith, son of Richard and Anne, baptised 1 April 1781".

Not only does this mean that it is generally impossible to find out anything about the stories of these people, but you usually fairly quickly run into problems working out who is related to who because there are several Richard Smiths born in the same parish (so no way of knowing which one was John Smiths father) or , worse, there are no Richard Smith born in the same parish (so now you have no idea where Richard Smith came from).

People like Josh Widdicombe and Danny Dyer who have a clear unbroken line of ancestors dating back to the middle ages are pretty exceptional.

Alexander Armstrong is also a descendent of God and William the Conqueror I believe?
Brian Blessed is still the best episode ever.

NotDavidTennant I agree with you.

The furthest I have gone back is 1732 with one branch of the family and that is only because they stayed in the same village from that date. When your ancestors are agricultural labourers and sawyers the records become more and more sparse until they disappear entirely. The only reason JW could have his family traced back so far was because they were Royalty.

There's a place for all stories on WDYTYA - the interesting stories about ordinary people and the OMG trees that go back to Kings and Queens. I love both.

Josh W's Who Do was fascinating. Really interesting. Josh was lovely and interesting to watch.

He was humble and happy to be astounded and ask questions. Very humble, nice, approachable man.

Alexander Armstrong has ancestors buried/interred at the crematorium grounds of my home town.

Jason Donovan has a surprising family history. He is related to an Australian historical figure. Unfortunately, he has no relationship with his mother. Never really has had.

(My great grandfather did a year's hard labour as a punishment for stealing. He later bigamously married his female accomplice who had aliased herself as Mrs LastName for some years already.) Would make an interesting t.v. drama but they would have to spice it up and they wouldn't want me coaching from the side lines regarding accuracy !

Jason Donovan and I share a similar ancestry. His ancestor and mine did a similar thing only mine did it first!

Charles Dance's episode sticks in my mind. He found out he had a half-sister born 40 years before him and who'd died in an accident as a child. Imagine discovering that when you yourself are in your 70s. And then he discovered he'd had another unknown half-sister in Australia, but I think she'd also died. He had a lovely reunion with her kids.

David Mitchell's episode I remember being quite amusing. He came from stern Scottish stock.

""It's the fascination we all have for our roots, the intriguing story of our lives. Some are more interesting than others. I had known for some time that the story of my genealogy was unremarkable. On my father's side miners and farm labourers; on my mother's railwaymen and domestics. So when Who Do You Think You Are? called and asked if I was interested, I said I would be delighted, but warned that my own research had unearthed nothing of note. 'Oh, they all say that. But we always find something,' they said. Six weeks later they phoned to apologise. My story was so boring they had to cancel the entire project. I was gutted."

That all sounds quite interesting to me.

But I guess none of them did anything remarkable, were connected with anything remarkable or worked for anyone well known.

I absolutely loved this. He was really endearing - love his laugh. And he was interested in the research (memories of the professionally bored Katherine Ryan). I had no idea what a groom of the stool was or knew anything about Mary Boleyn.

For Michael Parkinson, I suppose it depends who else was in that series. I think there's always some story in there - people moving for work, hard lives, widowhood and orphans. But maybe someone else in that series had a lot of a similar story.

swedish interesting you mention the k Ryan episode. I didn’t really know who she was at that point - boy was she disinterested and kind of ‘flat’ about the whole thing.
One remarkable Carribean roots episode was fascinating and taught me about the continuation of British slave trade after abolition through use of other nations flags. Etc. It’s such a great programme.

Ainsley Harriet's 'Who Do' was fascinating. He was utterly disgusted by the slave ownership that had touched his family. I remember him being on location in the Caribbean. Standing in an old building and being advised of its' history. He was equally choked and furious.

I wonder if any slebs have refused to take part. I think Bill Oddie might have been hesitant as his mother struggled with her mental health issues which affected his childhood but his Who Do story was moving.

Robert Lindsay's Who Do was good. I learned something too i.e. what day of the week a certain date was.

Jane Horrocks' Who Do was just her being paid to do her 'piece to cam.' I don't think she was that interested.

Jerry Hall just thought her 'red neck' ancestry was far far behind her. And far far beneath her too !

Didn't Jerry Hall have to go to Oldham? .

But, yes, K Ryan was so flat, as you say @HeronLanyon. Do they not appreciate what a huge privilege it is to have someone doing all the legwork for you and paying for you to go and see these places?

I think there have been some really interesting ones over the years.

Ones that stand out for me-Jerry Springer, Zoe Wanamaker & Martin Freeman & Ainsley Harriott.