Relatively

Jen Baldwin was introduced to family history when was about 10 and has been obsessed ever since. Inspired by stories told to her by her Grandma, she now has a career in genealogy and loves spending her days "delving into the history of humanity one person at a time". In this episode she picks her three favourite stories from this series of Relatively - from Kit De Waal and Dean O' Loughlin , Sophie and Edward Robinson and Jean and Pat Owtram: stories of squished potatoes, chemists, Barons, dog licenses and Bronze Age urns.. and she tells Catherine a heartbreaking siblings story from the pews of a church in Northern England to the shores of California USA, via two World Wars.

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Findmypast is the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Poorna and Priya or 'Poobles' and 'Preebles' were born in Kent but spent a chunk of their childhood apart, with Priya in India and Poorna in the UK. the pair are very close and work on being friends as well as sisters - providing support to each other through bereavement, motherhood and their careers. In this episode they talk about sibling separation, manky gym kit, last minute packing and daily voice note habits. Priya’s book on motherhood, race and identity is out in Spring 2023 and Poorna’s award winning book Stronger  is out in paperback now.  

TW: suicide

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Shakira and Ashanti Akabusi grew up in the UK and the US, supporting their dad - Kris Akabusi's - stellar athletics career. Encouraged by him and their "tenacious" German mum, they had a very outdoorsy childhood with limited junk food and telly... The weight of expectation which came with their famous name was tough for a time, but both sisters are now incredibly proud to be Akabusis and value the work ethic they inherited. Being keen to protect each other from the hard stuff meant that Shakira suffered alone with post natal anxiety for a while, until she reached out to family. Shakira's new book The Strong Like Mum Method is out this week.

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Leroy and Hyacinth grew up in North London in the 1960s and 1970s. They inherited their work ethic from their Windrush parents, who came to the UK from Spanish Town in Jamaica. Assaulted by police officers in 1982, Leroy's father struggled to accept his son's decision to join the force. Hyacinth says "I never thought of Leroy as an officer, I still don't. I just wanted him to be safe." Actor John Boyega plays Leroy in the Steve McQueen film 'Red White and Blue' about his ascent to Superintendent: despite the racism form inside the force and hostility from his own community. In this episode, Hyacinth - who works as a nurse - and Leroy, who still works as a campaigner- talk about public service, faith, race, a free range childhood, re-enacting TV stunts and enjoying a warm and safe childhood in Finsbury Park.

Leroy's book about life as a cop is called 'Closing Ranks'

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Pat and Jean Owtram are believed to be the only living sisters who signed the official secrets act.. and as a result it was not until after WW2 that they were able to tell one another what they had been doing to help the Allies defeat the Germans. Independent, clever and adventurous, the sisters are now a remarkable 98 and 96.  Born in the aftermath of WW1, the girls were (unusually) determined not to settle for conventional lives. We talk about code breaking, travel, letter writing and memories from a childhood in the 1920s. And the sisters reflect on being each other's 'most important person' for nearly 100 years. Their book is called Codebreaking Sisters: Our Secret War.   

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Sisters Beatrice and Rosemary Mac Cabe grew up in Ireland but now live near one another in the USA. They started their hilarious hit podcast Not Without My Sister in March 2020, locked down in a house in Indiana together (maybe with some wine). In this episode they talk about: the Catholic church; their irrepressible mum and strict dad; fun facts about pigs and sex; depression as one way of getting more than your fair share of parental attention and being miracle babies.

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Dame Esther Rantzen and her little sister Scilla grew up in London and - briefly - New York, where Esther got a taste for life in the limelight. Since 1981, Scilla has lived in Australia, which leaves a "real gap" in Esther's life. Technology helps the pair stay in touch and they talk all the time, staying close to their nieces and nephews, too. Brought up by their anarchist mum and engineer dad to be ambitious, the sisters pursued very different paths, but have supported each other regardless. As kids Esther may have stood up for Scilla many times, but also used her as a bit of a willing 'canary down the mine' .. !

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Author Kit De Waal and little brother Dean O'Loughlin are 2 of 5 siblings, who grew up in Birmingham in the 60s and 70s. Their Irish mother and Kittitian father were ill-equipped to provide the care their charismatic and clever children needed, and life was 'predictably unpredictable'. Despite the hunger and the cold which characterised their childhood, the siblings nevertheless have happy memories too, and banded together like 'Vietnam vets', bonded by the unique experiences they shared. Now Kit and Dean work as screenwriters together, drawing on their incredible knowledge of classic film, inherited from their father, whose love of cinema was an escape from tougher realities. Kit's memoir 'Without Warning and Only Sometimes' is published this summer.

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Middle child Louise - of Mamas Still Got It fame, grew up in London with baby brother George and older sister Bonnie. As kids, George was subjected to 'loving abuse' by the girls, but nonetheless as an adult is their biggest fan. As a boy he helped direct some of Louise's very early modelling attempts and as a teen he helped her when the demands of the fashion industry to be ever thinner left her unrecognisable to the family. In this episode Louise talks about making peace with her body, harmonising in the car and how George found her a husband by accident.

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

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Queen of colour, Sophie Robinson (Sops) is a TV presenter and interior designer. Her little brother Edward (Smudge) left a career in fashion for interiors, also appearing on telly. Their love of a project was inspired by their DIY- mad parents, who moved the kids around the country, renovating houses as they went. This nomadic period of childhood was an adventure for golden-child Sophie and a bit tough for Edward, who was struggling with his identity. In this episode they talk about rainbow wallpaper, fancying your games teacher, pyromania and confiding in each other as adults.

Our sponsor for this third season of Relatively is Findmypast, the exclusive online home of the 1921 Census. Joining Findmypast gives you access to a unique snapshot of life one hundred years ago. Plus, with extensive British and Irish records and fascinating newspaper archives, you can answer those burning questions you have about your family, your past and yourself. Where will your past take you? Join Findmypast to find out.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.