News on the American series

[mattelton]

The new US series of Who Do You Think You Are? will start in the States in just over two weeks' time, on Friday 5 March. Although an exact UK transmission date hasn't been announced, we're interested to see how the show differs from the much-loved original - but, with the likes of Lisa Kudrow and Sarah Jessica Parker on board, it certainly looks set to get people talking.

Do you have any connections with the US that you'd like to see explored? How do you think the show will translate for an American audience? Share your thoughts below - and don't forget that you can read more about the new show in our May issue, on sale from Tuesday 20 April.

[steve bannister 1]

I'll be honest, I really don't care about the American series. When I first heard that it was to be made, I thought, 'I bet it's going to be full of big-headed Americans, boasting and bragging on about their heritage and trying to claim that they are all decended from George Washington, or something'. The UK series is renowned for people being very humble about the origins.

It wasn't much of a surprise, then, to find out that Lisa Kudrow, who is the Executive Producer, who is also producing the show in conjunction with her own production company for the American version, was to make the very first episode that they filmed, all about herself. Also, her episode will be shown as the season finale! So, no ego's there! I wonder if she'll tell us about her nose job in 1979, or will it all be about her dad's work into the research of headaches? Or her mum, the travel agent? No, I think it will be another program all about the holocaust, even though Lisa comes from an upper-middle class Jewish family.

From the California Gold Rush to the Salem witch trials, from European aristocracy to the beaches of Africa, and from the Civil War to the Holocaust, "Who Do You Think You Are?" will reveal the fabric of humanity through everyone's place in history. Each week, a different celebrity takes a journey into their family's past, traveling all over the world. Viewers are given an in-depth look into their favorite stars' family trees, and each episode will expose surprising facts and emotional encounters that will unlock people's emotions -- showing just how connected everyone is not only to the past, but to one another.

1 March 5, 2010 Sarah Jessica Parker
2 March 12, 2010 Susan Sarandon (In 2006, Susan Sarandon and 10 of her relatives (including her then-partner Tim Robbins and her son Miles) traveled to Wales to trace her family's Welsh genealogy. Their journey was documented by the BBC Wales program, Coming Home: Susan Sarandon.)
3 March 19, 2010 Spike Lee
4 March 26, 2010 Matthew Broderick
5 TBA Brooke Shields
6 TBA Emmitt Smith (Who?!! Retired American Footballer and 2006 winner of 'Dancing With The Stars')
7 TBA Lisa Kudrow

Surely, we could have got a 'two-for-one' with Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, couldn't we? Considering that they are married in real life?

So many UK programs fail to make it in America, once the Americans get their hands on them. But, we'll wait and see.

[1daydarjeeling]

I'll admit I'm very much looking forward to the US version of WDYTYA, set to premiere on 5th March. I'm a Brit who now lives in Tucson, Arizona, married to an American man, and am a subscriber to the UK WDYTYA magazine. I attend a local weekly geneaology meeting and I am researching ancestors in my husband's family, one side of which come from England, as well as researching my own.

I sent NBC (the US WDYTYA broadcast channel) an e-mail to see if they are featuring 'ordinary' people, but the e-mail was unsent as they only accept e-mails on current programmes! The celebrities lined up for the programmes have no personal interest to me, as I do not watch any TV or films featuring any of them, but I'm hoping the show will assist those of us researching our own histories.

I have some ancestors who have US links, but where I have been totally foxed in my research is the history of my mother's family in British India. I have accessed the British Library's India Collection and FIBIS also, but every name I have entered has drawn a total blank. I cannot even get details of my mother's birth or even those of her siblings, let alone those of my older ancestors. Even her WW2 service is blank! I would have loved to have the show feature my family, but we shall see how it goes on 5th March. I certainly hope that WDYTYA publishes a US version of the magazine.

[shezzy]

I too am looking forward to the Us series - especially when it gets show over here later in the year (or am I being hopeful).

Anything that makes people more aware of their history I believe is a good thing - it brings the history to life.

I know the comment about Lisa Kudrow is one point of view - but I understand she saw the UK series whilst in Ireland and got hooked on it and wanted to be part of it.

[Ezzie Bromwich]

I will say I as an American and a genealogist I was not enthused over the program with Sarah Parker. Not to say I was not happy that she found some family but...where and when did the information become found. Who paid the researchers to research and come up with the information? From watching the program one would think you just walked into the library/archives or what ever and just said the name and recieved all the information they could find on the subject. We all know that is not true...and her mother what was that all about..

I would rather see someone one has no idea and watch as he goes about gathering information from different places. Not someone that stands with their hands out and it misses and falls in their lap.
I am sorry but I did not enjoy it ..

[lizjones]

Any news on whether the series will be shown in the UK? I would love to see it!
Liz

[1daydarjeeling]

Ezzie, I couldn't agree with you more. I go to a Genealogy class every week and everyone there said the same thing as you. I was very disappointed with the show. The usual celebrity blurb, without any information to the casual (or not so casual viewer) as to how to go about researching your family history. Most people know nothing at all about their family further back than their great grandparents, and would have no clue as to how to start researching, or how to overcome obstacles along the way. A big miss as far as I'm concerned, I'm afraid.

[Ezzie Bromwich]

I am sure, without a doubt that people will watch the program and think I can do this.. My question to them is what is your intent? And why are you doing this?
A few years back I was working with an individual in the USA that grab all these names and put them on her tree. When I questioned her she said well the last name is part of my tree. And it was so hard to explain that just because they are the same last name (unless it is strange like mine an old English name)it does not mean they are yours. So what happens when they take the names and insert them into their trees and they pass on or lose interest in genealogy...as if that is possible..But then there it is on their tree for life and one would take them at their word, for it was on the internet, in a magazine, in their tree so it has to be true. Why do you think it is so hard to first take the information, place it in a notebook of similar items and learn about the people, the country, and what was going on in their world. Then as you search you can see the world through their eyes, eyes of the ancestor. How fast people are to say that is mine and when you prove that they were rich, or of a noble family and they did not fit in your family but you found theirs to be a poor shoemaker. Oh not not theirs, it could not be. One of the ladies wrote her ancestor great uncle was a lawyer. I found him as a labor working on a dock in NY census. I sent her the information. Traced him down for her too prove it was the right person. When she wrote about him in her little story she put him in as a lawyer. Not as a dock worker.
I find most people are strange when they work with their trees. And then there are those that just want to know, and they ask how, what, why...and you are so happy to help them. So maybe just maybe
the American series will give us some hints along the way. I for one did not as I stated like it, but heaven help me I can not stop from watching it....errrrrrrr

[ESmith]

The new US series of Who Do You Think You Are? will start in the States in just over two weeks' time, on Friday 5 March. Although an exact UK transmission date hasn't been announced, we're interested to see how the show differs from the much-loved original - but, with the likes of Lisa Kudrow and Sarah Jessica Parker on board, it certainly looks set to get people talking.

Do you have any connections with the US that you'd like to see explored? How do you think the show will translate for an American audience? Share your thoughts below - and don't forget that you can read more about the new show in our February issue.

Haven't seen it yet but I have been meaning to.

It's interesting the sorts of reactions given on this thread.

I've been doing my own genealogy research for a little over a decade now and as an American who isn't living amongst East Coast or southern US peoples who are distantly descended from peoples from Britain, I can say, without hesitation, that I don't place much worth in finding famous relatives either.

Having said that, I also don't have a problem with those who do.

My family tree consists of people from all over Europe, Canada, Australia, and the UK. I am however of mostly Germanic descent and tend to favor their genealogical websites and programs over the UK stuff for the info I can gather.

Genealogy in the US, has been seeing a huge surge in interest. This has been going on for over a decade here and is due, in part, to access to info over the internet (which is both good and bad).

I'm a bit surprised and confused actually, that some think it's a relatively new thing. But perhaps a distinction needs be made between online genealogy and real life footwork for me to discern the true intent of the comment?

Here's some links we use this side of the planet (which are no doubt familiar to many in this forum ):
http://www.cyndislist.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genealogy

[Davena]

I think that no matter who the subject is for these programmes, hearing about the past is always interesting. I am especially interested in genealogy and so it matters not a jot to me whether the person researched is from the USA or wherever. I think it's brilliant that Liza Kudrow saw fit to introduce the programme to the USA. The more people who make educational and socially interesting programmes the better, I would have thought. I really didn't like the tone of the second letter in this section and I wonder why the writer, Steve Bannister, was so very smug-sounding.

Anyway, does anyone know when the US series will be broadcast in the UK, please?
I can't wait!