Returning to the Workhouse.

Genealogy does not feature very regularly on British television. Neither, too, do depictions of the kind of grinding poverty that was a feature of so many lives in the nineteenth century. But this unusual combination was last night featured on prime time television, in the form of ITV's Secrets from the Workhouse.

Ripon Workhouse, as visited by the novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford.

     
The premise of having celebrities visit, or simply find out about, workhouses associated with their relative, was not altogether a bad one. In the case of Kiera Chaplin, the fact that her antecedent was so famous rather skewed the perspective; evidence coming from Charlie Chaplin's autobiography removed the sense of genuine social history and discovery that the each of the other cases in their own way brought. Similar to Who Do You Think You Are?, to which comparisons by producers and audience must have been obvious, the emotive quality of the past was brought to life. At least in this case, no-one could have expected much else from the title. Again, the success of the programme may depend on how the celebrities are judged to react, but for me the merit of the show (or otherwise) must lie in its historical presentation and interpretation.

The depiction of nineteenth century social history, was, in fact, riveting. The sheer poverty of life outside the workhouse in many cases was not omitted and the particular use by the elderly and mothers of illegitimate

Shoreditch Workhouse today, where Louis Glück's
daughter was born in 1846.

children were rightly highlighted. My own family connection to a workhouse comes through the last of these: in 1846, after the death of his first wife, my ancestor Louis Glück had a daughter by a woman called Sarah Brown, who gave birth in the Shoreditch workhouse on the eighteenth of February. The story of this woman and her daughter ends here, but it is perhaps telling that Louis never allowed his legitimate family to see the inside of one of these institutions in his lifetime. Genealogical connections aside, the shocking modernity of this institution was laid bare. Barbara Taylor Bradford spoke to a woman in Ripon, who had herself been an inmate in the 1940s.

The workhouse, whose shadow was cast over so much of the last two centuries, must also be reflected in genealogical survey of the time. As Brian Cox described it, this "endless assault on human dignity", must not be forgotten.

http://www.itv.com/presscentre/press-releases/secrets-workhouse-trailer

     

Who Do You Think You Are - Live 2013: Society Saturday

Few events in the genealogical world cause as much excitement, or indeed are as widely noticed by the unitiated, as the annual Who Do You Think You Are?- Live show in National Hall, Olympia, London. Family history societies of varying sorts from all over the UK take part, and use the opportunity to increase membership, as well as field any enquiries in their particular field. As a volunteer on the Jewish Genealogical society of Great Britain stall, this year as in the three before, I've heard all manner of queries, from those who think they might possibly have discovered a Jewish family member, to deeply moving personal stories. I've even discovered a cousin - but that I think is a tale for another time!

There's always a lot going on at WDTYA-L so it's hard to catch it all. I had a fair chance to look around today, and shall be back again tomorrow, and will report back after that too (hopefully). Although the show seemed a little less busy today that Saturdays I've seen in the past - I don't think the freezing cold weather helped! - there was still a great buzz. The large service providers were all very busy, and vendors of everything from genealogy printing materials to silverware seemed to be plying a healthy trade. When you've been to the show, as well as around the genealogy circuit, a few times, February at Olympia is a nice time to catch up with people, some of whom I hadn't seen since the previous year. I always love helping people find out just that little bit more about their family too, so it was great to do a bit of that too.

I hope to give a fuller report of the show- maybe finding some photos and things to go with it- some time after the show tomorrow!

Who Do You Think You Are? A review...

Last night's edition of the BBC's Who Do You Think You Are? was in my opinion a return to form for the programme, now in its eighth series.It featured celebrated gourmand Gregg Wallace [spoiler alert!] and his rather tragic family history. I still greatly enjoy the series overall, and yet I find this merits further exploration; what is it that the viewer, and in so many cases, genealogically minded viewer, enjoys?

One of the chief reasons for the programme's success is its emotional appeal. In the case of last night's epsiode, it was the tragic nature of Wallace's ancestors culminating in his emotionally charged recreation of a fatal accident. It was not, evidently, genealogy, but it was tangible and important family history. Similarly, the visit to the former Lunatic Asylum in Exminster was atmospheric, and given the boom in popularity of converted homes from large Victorian structures, a fascinating reminder of their sometimes melancholy past. This is particulary of interest to me, as my local Reform Synagogue was once the Chapel of a lunatic asylum. Such institutions, with their sad stories, are part of Britain's architectural fabric and whether or not they can be maintained for public use, or are converted into residential dwellings, they are considerably better than their modern replacements should they demolished.

There is something too be said for the attraction of the "star" in the programme. It must be difficult for the producers to find someone who has antecedents neither too famous (Nigella Lawson and Lyons' Tea Houses, anyone?) nor indeed too dull- infamously, the TV personality Michael Parkinson was rejected by the show's makers for his supposedly limited family background. Tastes vary amongst the show's audience, but anecdotally I've noticed that some find certain actors overly theatrical in their reactions to every revelation, though many are genuinely moved by the unexpected responses from certain quarters- one of WDYTYA's delights is that it reveals not only a new genealogical, but sometimes deeper side to a well known personality.

Now for the appeal to that niche, genealogical audience. Genealogists must (though I myself refrained yesterday) be shouting at their television sets: "You're making it look too easy!", "How convenient, just opening up the ledger and finding the right record", or even "I could do all this too if the BBC paid for my numerous and extensive research costs!" These are all reasonable points and, while they might cause much frustration, shouldn't distract from what can sometimes be gleaned from the show. Actually, not much of genealogical interest was shown- the material dealt with a few generations only, the certificates were straightforward, and the relations uncomplicated. I did find it useful in that, as in the previous week's episode, it reminded us of the value of local libraries and their newspaper resources, as well as the occasional kindliness of the librarians. Contrived as such situations are it is important to remember that such places can often hold useful if unhighlighted resources.