General Chat

Mrs Braham. The Cynthia Payne of the Victorian era. Strange how we are keen to criticise (rightly often) a mill owner for profiteering from his girls, yet seem to think this lady was a great entrepreneur rather than a criminal who should have had her assets seized and finished her days in Holloway.

I am really ashamed of two of my ancestors. One came over from Germany and rid Ireland of peasants in early 17th century. Another was involved on edges of slavery. Both had extensive estates and some titles and honours, but I am so ashamed of them.

Yet Alex last night (who seemed a nice enough girl but have never before seen her in my life) seemed to show inappropriate glee that her ancestor had got wealthy ruining so many lives of clients and staff alike. :-S :-S

The photographer was a fascinating subject and it reminded us of that wonderful band of women who raised healthy and happy families after the tragedy of WW1. Probably all of them dead now, but plenty of children and grandchildren who still remember them fondly.

This one was both informative and entertaining - her reaction when she realised the 'proffession' of her grt x n grandmother was priceless!

I'm fairly certain that one of the witnesses at the marriage of an n x aunt is the same on one of mine (Official from the Grt Synagogue) , so today's task is to re-watch that segment with the cert to hand

Well I had to laugh as Alexs gggrandmother Elizabeth Braham was involved with a Mary Ann Dalton the same name as my gggggrandmother but I do not think they are the same person

Not one military theme in tonight's programme

What an amazing woman Elizabeth Braham was!!
If I was Alex, I'd want to know which house Rosa was in charge of, and would look at the occupants of all the other houses (and scan any newspapers) to see if they were bawdy hoouses or rented out to families - and if rented to families,how many per house!!! :-D :-S

Yet another programme around military theme

A nudge as a reminder for tonight. ;-)

Emma

Well this weeks story was a good history programme, but I have like all of us family members who were out there but most did not come home.

But us trying to find records like he go it is like looking for a needle in a haystck, after the 1940 fire.

So he was lucky in some respects.

Glad we were'nt the only ones - at a point during the maternal g.father I realised I was leafing through a magazine and OH had gone asleep!

Most unusual as he usually finds it as interesting as I do.

I suppose the point I was trying to make was that people suffered so much in 'peacetime' down the pit and were just trying to earn a living and comparing it to the trials of war which in the case of the WDYTYA had featured in two of the stories but considered a background of mining wasn't deemed 'interesting' enough to feature as a story in the case of Michael Parkinson.

I haven't any family from a mining background but I have been to look underground at the mining museum and thought about the men/women and children who spent their lives making money for the owners and the conditions they endured. -jl

Janet, in WW1, They used miners to dig tunnels under the enemy lines then filled them with explosives and blew them up, sometimes they were unlucky an the Germans blew there tunnels up first and entombed them.Very brave men,a generation lost.For What??

Just digressing slightly and following on from Janet

My father in law born 1904 went to work down the mines at 14. He saw accidents injuries and even death to his work mates. He was a miner until he had to give up through sickness at 60 and died of the respiratory disease Silicosis at 66.

Hard life and a hard man, bless him

Mmmmm............ not too interesting but I guess once the groundwork has been done it must be difficult for a production team to say to a celebrity 'sorry but there is nothing of interest in your past'. Not to mention what it has already cost to come to that decision. That isn't the fault of the celebrity but more the team for not seeing what might be of interest.

I believe that Michael Parkinson was told his past in Barnsley was nothing special ,but going down a mine where most of his relatives worked can be made interesting. There is a mining museum just a few miles away and showing what conditions children as young as 6 had to endure can give some background to what many children and adults had to endure to earn a crust.

Its sometimes 'reality checks' that make us appreciate what our forefathers endured in order for us to benefit in modern times. Whilst the carnage of WW1 cannot be compared numerically with being down the mine the devastation of injury,death, entombing,gassing etc is no different to the conditions which prevailed in those dark days.-jl

I found it boring,,and his voice was boring as well

I have watched all of them so far. Good series, I think my favourite was Gregg Wallace. What a hard life his ancestors had.

Very good viewing in my oppinion. Can't wait for next week - hoping it is Alex Kingston. She is a good actress. Enjoyed her in Molly Flanders.

Dee

I also found it a bit boring

Maybe because an hour before I had watched a repeat of Gerry Springer's family during the war.Those who were murdered and those who escaped.

Genuinely heart breaking story and wonderful when he was surprized to meet a family member.

I find it getting a bit Boring and repetetive,most people on here have grandparents who served inWW1 and some in WW2 also.get some one of interest on and show us how we can get the same results and help in the same manner the BBC does,after all its our licence money that pays for it. :-S

I also found it rather boring...much prefer when they go further back and not concentrate solely on the war...maybe the men like that ..but I find it a bit maudlin even though the soldiers were very brave.

Next week Alex Kingston researches her family tree.
She investigates the military life of her great grandfather,
and her possible Jewish roots which goes back several
generations on a x times grandmother.

Emma

Again I found this boring.
It was only about two people and not about showing as the program states Who do you think you are.
Nothing about his ancestors apart from the two featured, very disappointing.
This series unfortunately is getting worse instead of better, perhaps its because GR have a hand in it.? don't know.
Yes, the part about the first world war was interesting, but apart from that, nothing.

George.

I also felt disappointed in last nights episode, but
saying that can understand how John and others
could find it interesting.

Emma