This Saturday (29th June) sees the start of the Yorkshire Family History Fair at The Knavesmire Exhibition Centre, York Racecourse. It's on from 10.00-4.30pm. With over 100 exhibitors expected from all over the UK and Ireland, this is probably the largest local event of its kind in England.
Many family history societies, and family history websites such as TheGenealogist will be there as well as other family history suppliers. Lots of local history from the York area too. Entry is £4.50 for adults and children under 14 are free. There is plenty of parking and refreshments are available all day.
It's the 18th annual fair and there's more information available from their website.
The National Archives via their website are inviting aspiring filmmakers to take one of their suggested 'documents' and make a short film about it .
The competition, supported by the friends of the national archives, is aiming to encourage filmmakers to use the diverse collection of documents and pictures available from the TNA as the inspiration for an original feature .
Ten documents from the archives, ranging from the floor plan of a 19th century lunatic asylum to a West Indian view of life in post-war Britain, have been put online and entrants will need to use one or more of them as the starting point for a three-minute short film . it could be a character, a line, or the whole document - according to The National Archives website it is up to you to decide!
For more information go to The National Archives website for details on how to enter and closing dates .
Latest news from outgoing governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, is that the next redesign of the £10 note will feature the image of one of England's most famous novelists, Jane Austen.
Following the replacing of Elizabeth Fry on the forthcoming £5 note with the image of Winston Churchill, there has been an outcry over the lack of female representation (apart from the Queen) on the banknotes produced by the Bank of England.
The Austen family suffered degrees of financial hardship around the turn of the 19th century, so it is somewhat ironic she is scheduled to now appear on a banknote, but it cannot be argued she deserves her place among a series of Great Britons who have appeared on our banknotes!
Latest news from The National Archives is the appearance of their Chief Executive and Keeper, Oliver Morley, who will be on hand on three separate occasions in July to answer any questions on the future direction and management of the TNA and also to respond to any other views us family historians may have on The National Archives.
On the 2 and 18 July 2013, Oliver will be available in person to answer questions and on the 23 July will take part in a webinar on the TNA website. There's more details available including how to book on the events at the TNA website.
Latest news on the eagerly anticipated new series of Who Do You Think You Are? TV programme is the first episode in July will start off with the actress Una Stubbs.
The new series is promised to be both varied and filled with twists and turns according to the show producers.
The running order is provisionally set as follows with actress Una Stubbs on the first programme, followed by Nigel Havers, Minnie Driver, Lesley Sharp, Gary Lineker, Nick Hewer, Sarah Millican, Nitin Ganatra, Marianne Faithfull with the final episode featuring John Simpson.
Latest news and updates can be found on the Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine website
TheGenealogist has another new set of records now available to view online in a very busy week. Available to all levels of subscriber, the new records detail the records of Jews who fell or were wounded in the Great War or were decorated for bravery.
Looking at people such as Captain Robert Gee who was wounded several times but still performed heroic actions, Sergeant Issy Smith, Private Leonard Keysor and Lieutenant Frank Alexander de Pass, these are just some of the 2,500 men who can be found on the new record sets which further add to the military records available on TheGenealogist.
Captain Robert Gee, Victoria Cross winner for outstanding bravery
With details on how and where they served, it is a fascinating set of records of great interest to those with Jewish ancestry or for those with an interest in the First World War. There's more details available on TheGenealogist.
To search these records, select "Roll of Honour Records" on the search view, or find them under the military section of the master search on the website.
Latest news from TheGenealogist is the release of a new set of records relating to the Cornish Railway workers of the 1880s.
The records list the names of all the men employed by the Cornish Railway at the time of its take-over by the Great Western Railway Company on the 15 June 1889.
Information includes (where available) names, occupations, places of work, wages or salaries, dates of entering service, dates of birth of the officers and clerks and is now available on the Diamond subscription on TheGenealogist. There's more details available here on the TheGenealogist website.
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine has announced the new celebrities to be featured in the forthcoming TV series of Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine. They include Gary Lineker, Nigel Havers, Una Stubbs, actress Minnie Driver and BBC News Editor John Simpson. The series starts next month and promises to be a good one. Will you be watching?
There's more information at the Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine website
The latest email newsletter is now available from S&N Genealogy. Have you seen it? The issue is the special Father's Day edition with some great Father's Day offers and an article on the history of Father's Day.
There's also a feature on the forthcoming Wiltshire and York Family History Fairs and information on the new record releases on TheGenealogist. If you aren't receiving the Email News you can register for it here.
Recent reports on CNN have raised the plight of a teddy bear left behind at Bristol Airport over a year ago. However, this is no ordinary teddy bear. His rather worn features give a clue to his age as does the photograph that was left with him dating from 1918.
Lost teddy bear at Bristol Airport
The picture, produced as a postcard from the studio of Dura Ltd., shows a teddy with two small children in light dresses. The older one, her hair tied in ribbons, has her arm around the bear.
Efforts by airport staff and police to trace its owners have also proved fruitless -- so now the airport is hoping the general public can lend a hand in solving the mystery.
Some antique experts believe the teddy is a British-made Farnell Bear from the early 1900s. Others believe it could be either French or German.
There's more information at the CNN website
Anyone with information that might help find the bear's owners should contact: [email protected].
