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Who Do You Think You Are?

(133 Posts)
AcornFairy Wed 13-Oct-21 11:34:59

The new season got off to a wonderful start with Josh Widdicombe. Has anyone on here been able to trace their ancestry back to royalty? Not that we need to aspire to that though. Family history can be full of surprises and a lot of interest.

Anniebach Wed 13-Oct-21 11:46:36

As my lot are and were all Welsh there will definitely be no link
to royalty !

Urmstongran Wed 13-Oct-21 11:53:55

What about Henry Tudor Anniebach born in Pembroke Castle? You never know!
?

Dee1012 Wed 13-Oct-21 11:55:04

I love this programme!

I've managed to go as far as the 1700's with my family tree and one surprise was that on both maternal and paternal sides, it all appears to originate around the "east end" of London...was there a palace close by I wonder? hmm.
The only other surprise was an ancestor with a LOT of wives, thankfully not at the same time!

Anniebach Wed 13-Oct-21 12:18:04

Nooo Urmstongran I want to be a descendant of .Owain
Glyndwr

DanniRae Wed 13-Oct-21 12:25:37

Really enjoyed this programme. I bet Josh was thrilled! Can you imagine his family's reaction if he did what he said he would - not tell them and just let them watch the programme?

MayBeMaw Wed 13-Oct-21 12:29:01

It was an amazing “pedigree “:though wasn’t it!
Descended from Mary, sister of Anne Boleyn (quite possibly fathered by Henry VIII who was having a fling with her at the time) but going even further back to Edward I and even further to Philip III (?) of France. Not to mention the Earl of Holland , “groom of the stool” to Charles I
He’s got more blue blood in him than most of the Royal Family!

Urmstongran Wed 13-Oct-21 12:32:36

The enormity of Josh’s reveal must have stunned him! I’d have fainted.

GillT57 Wed 13-Oct-21 12:34:17

What a great start to the series! Josh's humour as it all unfolded was a joy to watch, a great research and an entertaining programme.

Callistemon Wed 13-Oct-21 12:35:40

Anniebach

As my lot are and were all Welsh there will definitely be no link
to royalty !

I did enjoy this episode although what they failed to mention (unless I missed it) was that he is obviously related too to Sabine Baring-Gould, clergyman who wrote "Onward Christian Soldiers" and "Now the Day is Over" amongst other hymns.
I remember going to Lew Trenchard for dinner. There was a very old wooden cradle on the landing which would sometimes start rocking mysteriously on its own.

Anniebach of course you probably are.
Two of my friends and a woman I met in Australia all claimed to be descended from Welsh royalty.
Oddly enough, although they didn't know each other, they all looked very similar!

Witzend Wed 13-Oct-21 12:35:43

We watched it - v interesting.
Given connections so far back, though, I dare say half the country could be distantly related to some royal or other - if you could find the records. Or of course related to one of the many offspring over the generations born on the wrong side of the royal blanket - harder to find evidence for those, though!

Witzend Wed 13-Oct-21 12:37:29

My normally very level headed MiL used to say that way back in the mists, her mother’s side was descended from the Irish kings.

Grandma70s Wed 13-Oct-21 12:39:32

Witzend

My normally very level headed MiL used to say that way back in the mists, her mother’s side was descended from the Irish kings.

My grandmother said that, too. Those Irish kings had a lot of descendants!

Witzend Wed 13-Oct-21 12:41:47

And a lot on the wrong side of the blanket, I dare say!

Kali2 Wed 13-Oct-21 12:43:41

I absolutely love this programme- and can't wait for Judy's!

But last night was just 'wow' - what a shock for Josh. Just incredible.

Our eldest is working very hard on finding out about her ancestry and she has discovered so much we had nooo ideal about. We always knew so much of OH's grand-father and family- as he and other members are quite well-known, for varied reasons. But on his grand-mothers side, we knew very little. We have now found out about slaves from India and Indonesia, including Indian Royalty, and also Huguenot (like me)- and on his mother's side, local tribe slaves, Dutch, Norwegian, Huguenots from Northern France and more.

What an incredible family.

Alegrias1 Wed 13-Oct-21 12:43:53

I loved it that every time some new revelation came up, he was absolutely gobsmacked!

"So-and-so is buried in Westminster Abbey."

"of course she is" ?

Callistemon Wed 13-Oct-21 12:48:08

It's amazing what you find out

I don't think any of my ancestors are buried in Westminster Abbey though!

Josh's X times great grandmother did look very much like Queen Elizabeth I, didn't she.
Red hair like Henry VIII

Aveline Wed 13-Oct-21 12:55:43

I always liked Josh Widdecome. He seems so natural and friendly. I wonder if he's related to Ann W?

Callistemon Wed 13-Oct-21 13:01:15

I don't think so but he might keep that quiet!

MayBeMaw Wed 13-Oct-21 15:55:51

I did enjoy this episode although what they failed to mention (unless I missed it) was that he is obviously related too to Sabine Baring-Gould, clergyman who wrote "Onward Christian Soldiers" and "Now the Day is Over" amongst other hymns
I was waiting for that connection too but they didn’t mention him. Too eager to get onto the aristocratic/royal connections I expect.
BTW Aveline Josh and Ann spell their surnames differently - Widdicombe and Widdecombe respectively.

Blossoming Wed 13-Oct-21 16:08:40

Two of my ancestors are buried in St. Machars in Old Aberdeen, I keep meaning to fund out why. I think there had to be some connection to the church, you couldn’t just buy a lair.

Alegrias1 Wed 13-Oct-21 16:33:36

Blossoming

Two of my ancestors are buried in St. Machars in Old Aberdeen, I keep meaning to fund out why. I think there had to be some connection to the church, you couldn’t just buy a lair.

Fabulous ceiling.... smile

Farmor15 Wed 13-Oct-21 16:36:39

I'm seventh cousin of the Queen on her mother's side. A genealogist cousin found that link.

Doodledog Wed 13-Oct-21 16:40:34

I missed the first few minutes, so didn't see his parents or any grandparents - were they very grand, or 'ordinary people'?

Sparklefizz Wed 13-Oct-21 16:44:13

His parents live on a farm on Dartmoor -not grand at all.

I thought Josh came across as extremely likeable. I know his ancestry is being compared to Danny Dyer's but I can't stand DD so didn't enjoy his programme at all.