I mainly write articles for genealogy magazines like Family Tree and Who Do You Think You Are? 

Having recently held our 6th Emmposium, you might want to read the blog on Family Tree Magazine here or here.

Clocking on and clocking off, letting your hair down, rubbing someone up the wrong way… these expressions originated from textile mills in the 19th century.  To read my blog about them, try

Help me answer a question about the folded apron a joiner wears in a photo in my book, Tracing your Trade and Craftsman Ancestors.   What was the significance of this apron? The blog is at;

‘For the past two years, I have volunteered for one morning a week in a wonderful charity bookshop and it was here I found the postcard of a young man wearing HMS Drake cap, military metal buttons and a miserable expression.’ Read the full article at

To discover how I found my grandfather’s personnel records dating from 1909 in Manchester Central Library read this one.   If your ancestors worked for Dukinfield Carriage and Coach Works building railway carriages, you might find their original records on index cards!   I couldn’t believe they had survived.