Who Do You Think You Are?

Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine not only explores the stories behind the popular BBC genealogy TV series, but also helps you uncover your own roots. Each issue is packed with practical advice to help you track down family history archives and get the most out of online resources, alongside features on what life was like in the past and the historic events that affected our ancestors.

Welcome

SARAH’S TOP TIP • Check family names on the online catalogues for local archives

GET IN TOUCH

BE AN INSIDER

CONTRIBUTORS

A MUSICAL MYSTERY

Letters

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

More than one million Scottish church records released

Volunteers uncover aliases of First World War soldiers

CAN YOU HELP?

NEWS IN BRIEF

Findmypast rolls out improvements to image viewer

Family historians publish free magazine in Spanish

Archive funding bid approved

Records of WW1 air raids go online

Who Do You Think You Are? episodes made into podcasts

Over 1 million • The number of visitors who attended the online show RootsTech Connect on 25–27 February

Team read a 17th-century letter without opening it

What’s On

PICK OF THE MONTH • Watch a wide range of talks and discover how to break down your brick walls at this event

BOOK AHEAD • Discover more about the Poor Law in this online conference

SOCIETIES IN SICKNESS • Alan Crosby contemplates the future for family history societies after Covid-19

ARCHIVES IN LOCKDOWN • A year into the Covid-19 pandemic Jonathan Scott finds out how the UK’s archivists are rising to the challenge

WARWICKSHIRE • How a record office’s lockdown recipes have gone further than sourdough starters and banana bread

ONLINE LOCKDOWN PROJECTS • Just some of the archives that have added substantial resources to their websites during the pandemic of 2020/2021

ABERDEEN CITY AND ABERDEENSHIRE ARCHIVES • Despite the obstacles, a number of projects have made real progress

RESOURCES • Don’t miss these guides to online collections

FAMILY HISTORY AND creativity • Unleashing your creative side can help you bring your ancestors to life as never before, says Jerome de Groot

JOAN SKILLICORN/‘J CARMEN SMITH’, CHASING SHADOWS • Joan explains how a creative-writing class inspired her to turn her grandmother’s story into a pseudonymous novel

FIVE IDEAS FOR FAMILY HISTORIANS • Jerome shares his top shortcuts to get your creative juices flowing

KIRSTY SURGEY, THE SPACE IN-BETWEEN • The Sheffield-based researcher has been inspired by her forebear’s holiday slides

‘MY ANCESTORS WERE AT THE HEART OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION’ • On her journey through her family history, Janet Skirrow has uncovered forebears who came from far and wide to build new lives in Manchester, she tells Claire Vaughan

RESOURCES • These websites were especially helpful for Janet’s research

THE BIG PICTURE • Celebrating our ancestors caught on camera

HAVE YOU HIT A BRICK WALL?

Q & A • Our team of experts offers tips and inspiration

PICTURE ANALYSIS

BIG QUESTION

MILITARY PICTURE ANALYSIS

MY FAMILY ALBUM • Send us your favourite images for a chance to win £75 to spend on photo restoration. This issue Ryan Hill from Exeter shares his photographs, including one from the 19th century depicting his great great great grandmother

SHARE YOUR FAMILY ALBUM

SECRETS OF THE ASYLUMS • Rosemary Collins talks to the organisers of a project uncovering the stories in the records of Staffordshire’s asylums

NEWSPAPERS • Finding references to family in newsprint can be magical, says Jonathan Scott

EXPERT’S...