Who do you think you are...Richard Osman

Michael Parkinson was one who researchers found to boring for tv.

Just watched this last night and thought it was boring, the content was mediocre.
My SIL is a big Richard Osman fan but he thought it should have ended up on the cutting room floor too.

harrigran

Just watched this last night and thought it was boring, the content was mediocre.
My SIL is a big Richard Osman fan but he thought it should have ended up on the cutting room floor too.

I wasn’t bowled over by it either, and actually got slightly irritated by his incessant mentioning of his books….which I don’t rate anyway.

It was definitely not the best, but there were some interesting facts. My DD lives in Brighton which may have helped.

I found it one of the more interesting ones Harrigran but maybe because it resonated with some of my own family.
I am just envious that I am not a celeb so don't have researchers queuing up to explore my fascinating family tree

Matt Lucas tonight

Very moving indeed and with another extraordinary coincidence.
No spoilers but keep the tissues handy - you will need them.

That was amazing and very timely.

It must be tricky for the programme makers to get the balance between an interesting story and an engaging subject. Richard Osman is very engaging but the story wasn't particularly interesting, and there have been interesting stories about the families of celebrities who are annoying to watch.

One of my favourites was Jeremy Paxman, ages ago. his ancestors led very different lives from one another, and the researchers were able to go back quite far back. Paxman was visibly moved by what was found.

Some of them stick with one side of the family and concentrate on one incident, such as an experience in a particular battle. I prefer the ones where there is a lot of variety, but I guess it's the luck of the draw.

Yes, I remember the Paxman episode and his reaction to finding out about the grinding poverty his ancestors experienced.
I can’t stand some of the ‘celebrities’ but they usually have an interesting history or wouldn’t be featured.

Doodledog I remember the Jeremy Paxman one too. I suppose it was unexpected watching as his tough outer skin peeled away to expose a tender heart and fury at the injustices of life.
Likewise Matt Lucas was no longer a comic but just a fortunate human being who, by chance, had escaped -am I allowed to say? the holocaust

Matt Lucas came over as a very serious man, like many comedians I suppose, he's not the character he portrays on TV. Mind you, what he was hearing was pretty serious.

For me, the very best was the episode with Ruby Wax a while back.
The Holocaust, familial mental illness down the decades and its treatment both here and abroad - riveting and intensely moving.
Thoroughly recommended viewing.

Matt Lucas - another story with an amazing coincidence. I admired his stoicism throughout the filming. I wonder how much of that was due to the inevitability of what he was going to discover about his grandmother's cousins. For me, the most profound revelation was understanding why Margot was angry when he dropped out of university. Now we know why. In a way, it goes back to the Paxman episode when he stood outside that Scottish tenement and said "We don't know we're born.'"