On 5 Dec 2009 at 16:49, Roy Stockdill wrote: > A double-page spread in today's Daily Mail reports that the > "scandalous" diaries of Anne Lister (1791-1840) of Shibden Hall, > Halifax, are to be turned into a television drama series. > > For those who have not heard of Anne Lister (and probably not many > people have, but that is about to change), a spot of simple Googling > will turn up umpteen web pages about her. You can read some of the > extracts online. Her diaries, some of them coded to disguise the > sexual references, run to some 4 million words. If you enter "Anne > Lister+Daily Mail" you can also read the full article - it's the very > first website that appears. > > Because of her mannish appearance, clothes and lust for female lovers, > Anne was dubbed by the nickname of "Gentleman Jack". She lived and > behaved more like a man than a woman in an era when most upper-class > women were more like Jane Austen's genteel heroines. She rampaged > around the countryside, riding and shooting and seducing other women, > also travelling widely on the Continent. > > She entered into a lesbian "marriage" with her last lover, a > neighbouring landowner called Ann Walker, and lived with her at > Shibden Hall. Anne died while visiting Russia in 1840 and was brought > home by Ann Walker to be buried. Ann Walker can be found in the 1841 > census, still living at Shibden Hall (HO107 Piece 1303 Book 11 Folio > 17 Page 26). > > Anne Lister is to be played in the TV series by Maxine Peake, who has > played Myra Hindley, the Moors Murderer, and also appeared in Victoria > Wood's Dinnerladies. > I can never read or hear about historical characters without wanting to know about their ancestry - it must be the "anorak genealogist" in me! Since posting the earlier message, I have been looking up Anne Lister's pedigree. She was seemingly born at South Cave in the East Riding but baptised on 12 Sep 1791 at Halifax Parish Church. Her parents were JEREMY (sometimes Jeremiah) LISTER and REBECCA BATTLE, who were married on 2 Aug 1788 at Welton With Melton, near South Cave. Rebecca, the daughter of an East Riding landowner, would have been only 17 or 18 at the time of the marriage, since her baptism is in the IGI on 22 Sep 1770 at Welton With Melton, the daughter of William Battle and Rebecca. Jeremy Lister, according to Wikipedia, was 18 years older than his wife, having been born in 1752 at Shibden Hall which was in the Lister family for over 300 years. Jeremy was an ensign in the 10th Regiment of Foot and fought at Lexington and Concord in the early stages of the American Revolutionary War. Jeremiah (as he appears in the IGI) was baptised at Halifax on 28 Sep 1752, son of another Jeremiah Lister. I hope this is of use to any listers interested in the Listers (if you'll pardon the double- reference pun) of Shibden Hall. -- Roy Stockdill Professional genealogical researcher, writer & lecturer Newbies' Guide to Genealogy & Family History: www.genuki.org.uk/gs/Newbie.html "There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about." OSCAR WILDE