i'd heard about the michael parkinson situation myself. as i've said, i did find the prog interesting but not as an ancestry programme. as for researching him myself, it did occur to me to have a go actually. when will you be on the prog then? i'm watching them all so will obviously see you. that'll be great trqace ----- Original Message ----- From: <roy.stockdill@btinternet.com> To: <yorksgen@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, September 01, 2012 11:45 AM Subject: Re: [YORKSGEN] WDYTYA? Patrick Stewart > From: "Spring Flower" <spring.flower@polomint.plus.com> > >> i was starting to think it was just me!! >> >> the information given was very interesting but as a family history >> programme it was rubbish. >> >> trace> > > If you are really that keen on knowing more about Patrick Stewart's > ancestry beyond his > father, then what's to prevent you from tracing it yourself? All the > necessary data is there > online at FreeBMD, the GRO births, marriages and deaths indexes at > Ancestry and/or > Findmypast and the census returns. I bet I could do it in half a day! > > Stewart has a lengthy Wikipedia entry that gives his precise birth date > (13 July 1940) and the > names of his parents, Alfred Stewart and Gladys Barrowclough who were > married at > Dewsbury in 1933 when Patrick's elder brother Geoffrey was already 8 years > old (as was > mentioned in the programme). You should be able to find both Alfred and > Gladys in the 1911 > census and take it from there. You might actually enjoy doing it yourself! > > Having myself been involved in an episode of WDYTYA? (subject the comedian > John > Bishop, to be shown at a later date), I know how the team works. They > follow what they > believe to be the best story and also with regard to what the subject > themselves wants to > know. In Patrick Stewart's case this was obviously the truth about his > father, which I > personally (and others) found fascinating. > > I happen to know that they were doing Michael Parkinson at one stage in an > earlier series but > abandoned him because they couldn't find a single interesting story in his > entire ancestry. > "Parkie" was quite p - - d off about it apparently. They also abandoned > another mega name, > June Whitfield, because at the preliminary meeting she turned up with a > large cardbod box > full of files that contained her family history because she'd done it all > herself - something the > WDYTYA? team won't accept. You have to understand the exigencies and > demands of > television which I do, having been involved in one or two programmes > myself. Above all, it is > meant to be ENTERTAINMENT for the ordinary viewers and not meant for > grumpy, > demanding family historians like us !!! > > -- > Roy Stockdill > Genealogical researcher, writer & lecturer > Famous family trees blog: http://blog.findmypast.co.uk/tag/roy-stockdill/ > > "There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, > and that is not being talked about." > OSCAR WILDE > > > > > ..... > Ancestors in Yorkshire? http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/index.html; > www.ryedalefamilyhistory.org; www.wharfedalefhg.org.uk; > www.yorkshireparishregisters.com; www.yorkshireroots.org.uk; > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > YORKSGEN-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >