Why family history matters – for every single one of us

I was very interested to read Nicola Johnson’s article exploring the world of stokers in your January 2026 issue. My great grandfather, John Thomas Gray, was a stoker on the HMS Indomitable during the

Sixteen-year-old Clifford Harris died on RMS Titanic because he was ‘just’ a member of the crew. He was a bell boy, earning £2 for the voyage, one of the youngest workers on board when the Titanic sai

Picture the scene: a former NHS chef ‘Clem’ Clements is celebrating his 98th birthday, sitting in his front room surrounded by his medications, an oxygen mask and a discreet tape recorder. He is recal

Q My ancestor, Charles Hayes, was born on 6 October 1700 in Harrow on the Hill to Charles Hayes and Ann Ewster. He attended University College Cambridge and, described as “one of the Gentlemen of the

In 1939, at the start of the Second World War, the government planned to evacuate 1.5 million civilians, mostly school children, mothers and other vulnerable people, from cities at risk of bombing to

Last autumn we decided to move house. We have lived in our present house since 1988, and have loved living here. It is a tall Victorian terraced house near Preston city centre and only 10 minutes’ wal