Gene Detectives

Chris Paton · Post by **Chris Paton** » Sun Mar 04, 2007 12:02 pm

Yes, it was mentioned on another discussion board. Deeply disappointed if it is true.

Chris

Russell · Post by **Russell** » Sun Mar 04, 2007 12:07 pm

Hi Chris

What a great letter

Crisp, clear, concise.

I love it when folks sharpen their arrows before firing them. Just a pity that they struck the uiltimate in elephant hide and apparently bounced off.

How many signatures on an electronic petition wouid it take to show how frustrated and disgusted we (the folks who provide their income) are

Russell

Chris Paton · Post by **Chris Paton** » Sun Mar 04, 2007 12:38 pm

Arrows are all I have left - the trebuchet broke!

It will be interesting to see how the genealogy mags deal with the series - a few were bigging it up prior to its transmission.

Chris

DavidWW · Post by **DavidWW** » Sun Mar 04, 2007 1:36 pm

Chris Paton wrote:Arrows are all I have left - the trebuchet broke!

It will be interesting to see how the genealogy mags deal with the series - a few were bigging it up prior to its transmission.

Chris

Dare I be cynical

....... if it increases their circulation will they be bothered

David

Cathy · Post by **Cathy** » Sun Mar 04, 2007 5:30 pm

Hi David. Thanks for that.

Mary,
scraps of family lore have mentioned Java, Indonesia, Borneo,
tea-planters and shipping.
I have some of the family on 1891 and 1901 census as being born in Canton, China, but they may only have been educated there at some point.

Chris Paton · Post by **Chris Paton** » Sun Mar 04, 2007 7:49 pm

DavidWW wrote: Dare I be cynical ....... if it increases their circulation will they be bothered

David

Probably not!

It is interesting that the reaction to it is as much a story in its own right, and coming from the members of the general public who are into genealogy, it will be interesting to see whether the mags go with the flow, or whether they try to gloss over it! I think it might be a dilemma for them...! How can you justify praising it if your readers disagree with it?

Looking forward to the coverage...! lol

Chris

Falkyrn · Post by **Falkyrn** » Sun Mar 04, 2007 11:18 pm

The reaction of both the magazines and the SoG will be interesting since both were "bigging it up" before transmission.

Unfortunately, I believe that common sense will not prevail and the voyeuristic audience for whom this type of television was made will win setting a new low in standards for the next series to aim for.

Strangely enough the series does have quite vociferous supporters who rounded on me when I dared to suggest that its only redeeming feature was that it provided positive proof of the BBC dumbing down genuine science.

~RJ Paton~

Chris Paton · Post by **Chris Paton** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 12:10 am

Well I was rather brilliantly accused earlier today of having "suspect motives" for being so vocal against it by one particularly vociferous supporter on the YFT forum!

Still trying to work out if he is in the SOG or the BBC...! lol

Chris

Post by **emanday** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 12:40 am

I've been talking to friends who watched this series of programmes. None of them are personally doing any kind of genealogy research, so I think their opinions could be regarded as "uninformed and therefore unbiased"?

To a man/woman, they all found it a bit suspect! None believed that the programme makers didn't already know who the real rellie was before the "tests"! Only one thought that the facial characteristics might be relevant, and none gave any credance to the "body quirks" theory! One of these friends, by the way, already knows from a study done by an academic group here in Bristol, that he is directly descended from slaves and, as far as he knows, has no white blood in his veins. We met for the first time eight years ago on an IT contract.

However, he and I can wiggle our ears in exactly the same way (Our ears and our scalps move without any discernable movement in any other parts of our heads!). Also, we both have to take Thyroxine tablets for the rest of our lives because of underactive thyroids! We both also have lower than average blood pressure!

According to Gene Detectives pseudoscience, that could indicate we might share ancestry?

Phooey

Chris Paton · Post by **Chris Paton** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 1:08 am

Hi emanday,

I share your views...!

I note you were born in Glasgow and went to Bristol - I spent six years in Bristol (at university then the BBC), then moved up to Glasgow.

Have you taken to saying 'girt' and 'innit' a lot yet....?! lol

When I left Bristol, my distinctly dodgy Ulster accent used to rise at the end with the Bristolian inflection - took me ages to get rid of it...! I worked for a while at the Asda in Bedminster, on the deli, and used to call the numbers out for the queue. On one occasion, I called out "86, 87, 88..." - I was duly stopped by a customer and asked why I had called him an idiot...! lol

Say hi to everyone in the city for me..!

Chris