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
Letters
A MUSICAL MYSTERY
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
Q & A • Our team of experts offers tips and inspiration
HAVE YOU HIT A BRICK WALL?
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...
