Who Do You Think You Are - Hugh Dennis 12th Sep

[JessBow]

Enjoyed it, but the prog seems to have changed - again just concentrating on one generation. Very similar to the one before last.

In the trailer, Connie Huq used to feature - she seems to have gone now. Looking forward to Bill Roach and Celia Imrie episodes

[Guinevere]

It's quite chilling for me to realise that one of the bodies he buried at Arras was likely to be my father's cousin, who was also in the Suffolks.

[Merry]

Originally Posted by JessBow

In the trailer, Connie Huq used to feature - she seems to have gone now.

Had your time machine out again Jess??

Konnie was on Who Do You Think You Are? which was broadcast in Autumn 2008.

TBH I didn't notice her in the trailer, but I wonder if anyone (else) has been on the show twice?

As usual I haven't been able to watch this week's episode yet, as I'm not allowed to touch the remote until about 11pm, but hopefully will get to see it on iplayer this evening.

[kiterunner]

Some unseen footage:
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazi.../footage/13822

[Margaret in Burton]

Originally Posted by Vicwinann

I thoroughly enjoyed it. Particularly so, because one of my grandfather's was in the same places as his during WW1.
I watched it with my grandson who was unusually quiet after it finished. When asked why, he said "I wouldn't exist if your grandad had not come back, and that has just been brought home rather graphically. I am thinking about what he would have experienced"
I left him to be quiet with his thoughts.

We had a similar discussion.

My husbands grandfather was taken prisoner in 1915 and remained so until the end of the war. I said to OH, that probably saved his life, neither him nor his dad (b 1920) would have been born had he died.
My grandfather was called up in 1917 as one of the older men to go (b 1883). I suppose he was just lucky.

[WendyPusey]

My Grandfather was very near to where his was during WW1, only he didn't come back, he died in April 1918!

Quite interesting, but I enjoyed Patrick Stewarts more.

[Shona]

Patrick Stewart and Hugh Dennis both focus on the war experiences of close male relatives - father and grandfather respectively. Both absorbing episodes, but I feel these episodes are better suited to the History Channel.

One of my main areas of research is the First World War. However, my focus is their family lives before the war and the impact their service had on their families and communities. In one small town I'm studying, 17 men lost their lives on the same day in the same action. One woman in this town lost her husband and son on the same day - killed as the result of a booby-trapped dug-out.

So I am interested in the subject, but felt there was something lacking. Part of the joy of WDYTYA is challenging a person's perception of who they are. I loved the Alistair McGowan episode a few years back discovering he had Anglo-Indian and Irish blood, not Scottish as he thought. Hurdler Colin Jackson had the most wonderful heritage, as I recall.

[Merry]

I feel these episodes are better suited to the History Channel

I'm glad they're not, as we don't get the History Channel!

[Merry]

Well, I quite enjoyed that! Was slightly frustrated by the particularly slow pace of the programme though.

I would have liked to have heard a couple of minutes about the background of Godfrey Hinnels and about when and where his brother died to see how that fitted in with when Godfrey joined up (Godfrey was older than his brother Frank and Frank was 18 not 17 when he was killed but still younger than soldiers were supposed to fight abroad)

I thought the male line all looked very alike!

[Asa]

I like Hugh Dennis but I didn't enjoy this one as much - I've seen too much of this sort of programme before and I didn't get enough sense of either grandfathers' personality so it left me a bit cold.