On Sunday, July 26, 2015 at 9pm EST, Who Do You Think You Are? (WDYTYA 2015) returns to TLC in the United States for more great episodes:
TLC will air the U.S. premiere of J.K. Rowling’s episode, where the best-selling author sets off to uncover her maternal French roots. She finds that a family war story might not be what she thought when military records reveal a surprising twist.
Tom Bergeron, who is aware of his French Canadian roots on his paternal side, but wants to know what brought his ancestors to North America. He goes as far back as his 10x great grandmother to find the answer.
Bryan Cranston, who comes to discover an unfortunate pattern amongst the men in his family.
Ginnifer Goodwin, who sets out to learn about her mysterious paternal great grandparents, whom her father, regretfully, does not know much about either.
Alfre Woodard, who strives to find out more about the paternal side of her family, and explores how her surname came to be.
While you’re waiting for Who Do You Think You Are Summer 2015 to kick off, enjoythis unseen footage from the J.K. Rowling episode on the old WhoDoYouThinkYouAre website and these fun interviews with genealogy television industry leaders:
A FREE Genealogy Gems podcast interview with Henry Louis Gates, host of the popular PBS show Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr;
FREE access to the Genealogy Gems Premium podcastinterview with Dan Bucatinsky, Executive Producer of Who Do You Think You Are?
This Sunday evening on TLC, Bill Paxton is the celebrity guest on Who Do You Think You Are?
I took a sneak peek at the episode, and I love two things about it. First, Bill’s unabashed love for his father, who recently passed away and whom he mentions throughout the episode (“My dad would love this!”). I think of how many of us have lost someone who we wish could hear about our family history discoveries and know that we’re appreciating the past.
Second, of course, the ancestor stories on WDYTYA? always fire my imagination and teach me some history. This episode is no exception. Bill’s four-times great-grandfather Benjamin Sharp was a Revolutionary War veteran who served at the age of 14. As a spy. (How cool is that? How worried must his mother have been?) The show takes Bill to the site of a battle where Bill reads his ancestor’s first-hand account of the event.
But that wasn’t the whole story: Benjamin Sharp still lived a full, rich life after becoming a veteran by age 18. He rose in the ranks of civil service under the young U.S. government. But of course there’s a twist in his later life that dismays Bill and complicates his growing admiration for Benjamin. As most celebrity guests on WDYTYA? conclude, our ancestors were complex people who were just living their lives, not trying to create squeaky-clean legacies their descendants could brag about.
If you watch WDYTYA? this Sunday, tell us what you think of the episode on our Facebook page! We’d love to hear from you.
Are you ready for a hearty dose of genealogy edu-tainment? It’s all there in the newest episode of the free Genealogy Gems podcast: a genealogy television celebrity, a best-seller for our new Genealogy Gems Book Club title and an industry insider peek at Ancestry’s DNA products.
Since it’s the beginning of the year, a lot of television shows are ramping back up (like WDYTYA in March). Genealogy Roadshow on PBS will it be back with new episodes and a new addition to the panel of hosts: professional genealogist Mary Tedesco. She joins Lisa in this episode to talk about her experience on the show and about Italian research, her specialty.
Did you hear about our new featured book for Genealogy Gems Book Club? It’s the internationally best-selling novel Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline! Tune in to the episodes or click to the show notes to learn more about the book and why I chose it for our virtual book club. And don’t forget the best part of our book club: the author will join us for an exclusive interview! The interviews are fun even if you haven’t read the book, and fantastic if you have. That interview is coming up in May.
DNA Guide Diahan Southard also makes an appearance on the January Genealogy Gems podcast episodes. She offers a frank insider’s opinion of what’s going on with AncestryDNA and Ancestry.com’s DNA Circles feature. Stay up-to-date in this fast-moving and fascinating aspect of genealogy with Your DNA Guide on Genealogy Gems!
Finally, you’ll hear about Lisa’s newest project. Available by popular demand is therevised and updated 2nd edition ofThe Genealogist’s Google Toolbox!
According to TLC the new season of Who Do You Think You Are? (WDYTYA) will launch on Sunday, March 10, 2015 instead of in February asoriginally announced.
Wondering about the WDYTYA 2015 season lineup? The announcement of the delaydidn’t indicate whether the celebrity guest list had changed: the four previously announced are Bill Paxton, Julie Chen, Angie Harmon and Sean Hayes.
Digital Spy and TV By the Numbers have announced that Who Do You Think You Are? (US) will return in February 2015 with a new round of stories and celebrities.
According to the reports, eight new episodes are lined up for WDYTYA 2015. Only four have been announced:
Bill Paxton, who visits a Revolutionary War battle site to walk in his ancestors’ steps;
Julie Chen travels to China to learn more about her grandfather;
Angie Harmon turns back the clock to explore an ancestor connected with George Washington;
Sean Hayes jets to Ireland to celebrate his Irish roots (click here to catch his antics on his return flight).
The season premieres on February 24th on TLC; check your local listings.
On Sunday, July 26, 2015 at 9pm EST, Who Do You Think You Are? (WDYTYA 2015) returns to TLC in the United States for more great episodes:
Did you hear about our new featured book for Genealogy Gems Book Club? It’s the internationally best-selling novel Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline! Tune in to the episodes or 
