News from MyHeritage UK – 16 August 2011

Well, it’s definitely been a busy few weeks for UK genealogy. As I’m sure most UK-based people will relate to, we tend to keep many things for the summer months- and genealogy and family history interests tend to subscribe to that notion.

On the 10th August series 8 of the BBC’s ‘Who Do You Think You Are’ kicked-off with June Brown, otherwise known as Dot Cotton from Eastenders. The programme is often lauded with sparking a genealogical revolution in the UK and definitely hasn’t lost its edge over the last 7 series. The first installment didn’t disappoint with a bare-knuckle fighter, persecution and the Spanish Inquisition all components of June’s fascinating family history.

I’m told that the next episode (showing tomorrow on BBC1 at 9pm) charts the family history of JK Rowling and her French roots, including a ‘shocking’ revelation about her great grandfather – definitely one to watch.

Another bit of excellent news is that The Society of Genealogists’ Summer Membership Special Offer is now on. They are offering to completely waive the joining administration fee, which should make membership more accessible for many.

And finally, as if we didn’t need reminding about how popular genealogy is at the moment, the West Glamorgan Archive Service has just released figures that show that they’ve had their busiest year ever. According to Archive staff, the rise in popularity has in part been due to the popular BBC Wales series ‘Come Home’, on which celebrities trace their Welsh heritage for all to see.

Blimey, this genealogy stuff is getting more popular by the minute.