21 August 2024
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On a quest to try and discover some of her family’s unknown stories, actor Vicky McClure MBE follows the story of her paternal grandmother ‘Nonna Jean’, to try to work out why she was abandoned as a baby in the 1920s; and then, on her mother’s side, Vicky looks into the experiences of her great-grandfather Harry who died as a Japanese Prisoner of War in World War 2.
About Vicky McClure's Who Do You Think You Are? episode
How to do your own WDYTYA family history research
When we watch the inspiring TV series Who Do You Think You Are? and see the discoveries made, the family stories uncovered, the family mysteries solved and the amazing research trips undertaken, it’s easy to wish that our family could be researched in this way.
While the overseas research trips may be much harder to come by, many of the other discoveries made during the Who Do You Think You Are? TV series are ones we can all make, many even just by searching online, and sometimes requiring a trip to an archive or museum.
Read on for ideas on where to look to find clues about your own family history, by following similar steps to Vicky McClure.
Nonna Jean’s story: researching a baby given away – why?
THE STORY...
Born in December 1925, Vicky McClure’s Nonna Jean was abandoned as a child, and taken in by some ‘awful people who treated her very badly’, says Vicky McClure.
She just doesn’t know why her grandmother would have been given up. “We’ve heard bits and bobs, but it’d be nice to find out more,” says Vicky. Nonna Jean’s stepmother was an alcoholic and a sex worker, who used to beat her.
This finding was a contrast to Vicky’s memories of her grandmother. As an adult, Nonna Jean was so into family and so happy. Vicky’s aunt shone some light on this, explaining that Nonna Jean said, “I suffered, my children never will. I just want to give my babies all the love I never had”.
The 1921 Census helped provide information about Nonna Jean’s mother and Nonna Jean’s older siblings. Nonna Jean was born four years later.
Nonna Jean’s father was absent from the 1921 Census. She knows from Nonna Jean’s birth certificate that he was a steward on a steamship. Using his Certificate of Discharge, Vicky noted the names of the vessels that he served on. She then looked these up in Lloyd’s Register of Shipping. This revealed that he was bound for Canada in early 1925, not returning to the UK until July 1925… This brought to light a further discovery – that he was clearly not the father of Nonna Jean. Could this be the reason why Nonna Jean was given away as a baby?
Vicky met up with her half-great-aunt’s son (aka Vicky’s half second cousin once removed. Confused? Check out our mini video guide ‘What is a Second Cousin?’). Unfortunately he couldn’t shed any light on Nonna Jean. His mother Pearl had never mentioned her. However, he did have a family letter that showed the financial pressure Nonna Jean’s birth family and mother were under.
THE RESEARCH TIPS
Find out more – Start your search …
Search the 1921 Census for England and Wales: www.findmypast.co.uk (£)
Search the 1921 Census for Scotland: www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk (£)
Read a guide to Merchant Navy records, with useful links for you to follow up. Some records will have been digitised.
Browse Lloyd’s Register of Shipping (free - follow the links provided)
Find out what a Second Cousin is in our one-minute video
Harry’s story: researching a miner & WW2 prisoner of war
THE STORY
On her mum’s side, she wants to find out about her great-grandfather, Harry, who died in Taiwan as a Japanese Prisoner of War.
Again (as with Nonna Jean’s story) Vicky’s family were lucky enough to have a letter, from Harry in Malaya (now Malaysia) from the time of the Second World War, which showed how close the family was. Vicky’s grandmother’s birth certificate gave a clue to Harry’s pre-war occupation – that he was a coal miner. Vicky followed this up in the 1921 Census, and then the 1939 Register, which showed that he continued in the mine for 18 years.
“From what I know of my roots… I really feel proud of my roots… Harry and his family were working hard.”
To find out about his war years, Vicky studied the service record of her great-grandfather.
Vicky used the memoirs of another serviceman in her great-grandfather’s regiment, to try and gain insights to what the times and their war experiences would have involved.
When you find a date in the records, it’s really useful to think about a few things:
1. What else was going on in your ancestors’ lives? (Eg Vicky’s great-grandpa went AWOL at Christmas early on in the war, in December 1940 – and that would be the last time he saw his family at Christmas, so it’s a significant moment for her family).
2. It’s also important to research what was going on at the time. When Vicky’s great-grandpa was shipped out, he had no idea of the destination due to wartime needs for secrecy. It turned out he would arrive at Singapore in 1941, and soon after the Japanese began an assault and Harry and his fellow troops were trapped. This was a really important period and location at that time in the Second World War, and Harry was involved. On 15 February 1942 the British surrendered to the Japanese. Vicky’s great-grandfather Harry was one of the 130,000 troops captured by the Japanese as Prisoners of War.
3. How typical was your ancestor’s experience for the time? Harry died in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. Approximately 25% of Prisoners of War died in Japanese POW camps; by comparison 4% of POWs died in European POW camps.
THE RESEARCH TIPS
Find out more – Start your search…
Search the 1921 Census for England and Wales: www.findmypast.co.uk (£)
Search the 1921 Census for Scotland: www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk (£)
Search the 1939 Register for England and Wales: www.findmypast.co.uk and www.ancestry.co.uk (£)
Order Armed Forces service records: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/requests-for-personal-data-and-service-records
Search the internet for military histories of people in the same lines of military service, same units etc as your ancestor. There are many published examples, some online freely available; some as printed works.
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Image credits:
Vicky McClure (BBC/Wall to Wall/Stephen Perry)
Black and White photo of Harry Millership (second from right) stood with four fellow soldiers (BBC/Carol McClure/unknown)
Vicky McClure, Vicky's Grandma Iris, Vicky's Grandad and Vicky's Sister (BBC/Carol McClure/unknown)
