Family Tree Talk

Episod

• How do you know when you’ve got it right, or not…? 29.06.2026 51min

  Join podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey for this week’s Family Tree Talk chat, as Nathan shares where he’s got up to in his research. He’s looking at 4x and even 5x great-grandparents 🙌, but is feeling a bit unsure about the details he’s finding… Has he got it right or not? Together they mull over ideas to help with clarity and confidence about putting the pieces together and making sure they really fit.
• Grandfathers are ancestors too! (Save the clues before it’s too late) 22.06.2026 40min

  You know the feeling when you’ve been researching all those great-great-grandparents… but you’ve not really looked into the generations that are closer at hand, because you ‘already know them’. This is the spot that Family Tree Talk podcast co-host Nathan Ward found himself in this week. Tune in as he and Helen Tovey share ideas for gathering clues about those family members that people remember… before it’s too late.
• Not doing as much family history as you want? 15.06.2026 43min

  ‘Don't beat yourself up for not doing as much family history as you want,’ says podcast cohost Nathan Ward. ‘Yes, even if you're doing a little, you're still winning,’ agrees Helen Tovey.Join Nathan and Helen this week for your next dose of family history chat - and encouragement to keep going, even when it can feel as though you have the world of genealogy tasks you’d like to do. When that sense of overwhelm is looming, little by little is the key!
• How the family history community makes all the difference 08.06.2026 42min

  Join podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey for genealogy chat. This week Nathan Ward is continuing on the trail of his great-grand uncle Alexander MacKay. Feeling a little stuck where to turn next, he tentatively asked listeners for help… and they have come up trumps. Tune in for family history discoveries, learning points, and to see how a family history helping hand makes all the difference
• Why is it so difficult sometimes? 01.06.2026 39min

  Once we start on family history we all soon realise that it’s not that easy-breezy experience that we sometimes see portrayed on the telly. But, nonetheless, it can shake our confidence in our ability if we can’t find the info we need. This week on Family Tree Talk, cohost Nathan Ward weighs up the info he’s found, and not found, with Helen Tovey. Has he forgotten those family history search skills that he’s worked so hard to get? Or is he just facing a particularly knotty family history research situation? Tune in to find out. We’d love you to join us.
• Nathan's (rather good) note system to the rescue! 25.05.2026 51min

  Tune in for family history chat as Family Tree Talk podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey discuss 'negative space', how to work out whether you've searched high and low enough, and the way in which Nathan's Excel sheet may be just what you need to keep your research in order. Plus Nathan dives into the whisper of a family mystery, a possible child, and the question of 'Who Was Dolly?'.... We'd love you to join us.
• It’s like a box of chocolates…. 18.05.2026 52min

  Tune in for this week’s genealogy chat with podcast co-hosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey … who are joined by a very special guest – Family Tree publisher Matt Hill. He’s got some exciting news to share about our BRAND NEW website, which is, though we say it ourselves, as delicious as a box of genealogical chocolates. Tuck in!PS Has Nathan been visited by The Family History Angel?
• But how do you know it’s right? 11.05.2026 47min

  This week Family Tree Talk podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey mull over the topic of ‘how do you know it’s right?’. You know, those questions that we’re all faced with when doing our family history, such as ‘How do you know that an index entry is definitely for your ancestor?’, ‘Is that old photo really who it’s said to be?, and so forth. Plus, they chat about which steps to take to try to minimise their chances of getting it wrong. Tune in for genealogy chat – we’d love you to join us.
• Making sense of making mistakes 04.05.2026 49min

  Join Family Tree Talk podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey this week as they chat family history. What it feels like when you make a mistake... How you unpick the problem, and then pick yourself up and keep going. The value of stopping to take stock and reflect on your findings. The importance of learning about your ancestors' lives and times - both to help you get a feeling for the world they once lived in, and also to provide you with new ideas and inspiration for the next step on your research journey.
• The hazards of leaping to conclusions 27.04.2026 53min

  Join podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey as they catch up about their recent research forays. Nathan has completed his quest to find the death dates for all 16 of his 2x great-grandparents, while Helen has been enjoying the new 1926 Irish Census... and wishing she hadn't been leaping to too many false conclusions. (She'd like to apologise for getting into monologue mode in her excitement). Tune it - we'd love you to join us.
• Feeling a bit stuck? Try these brickwall-bash-through techniques 20.04.2026 1j 4min

  Are you feeling a bit stuck? Facing a family history situation that you can’t work out? Then tune in to the latest episode of Family Tree Talk, where Dr Sophie Kay will be chatting about some of the techniques she uses to make research progress – even when the going gets really tough. Plus, first, podcast co-hosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey catch up on their recent research forays – and Nathan tells us about his (rather enviable) new genealogy journal.
• The perseverance in family history 13.04.2026 51min

  For weeks and weeks now, podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey have been chipping away at their respective research goals. Nathan is working on finding the death dates for each of his 2x great-grandparents, while Helen is building her family tree out and down, tracing her ancestors’ siblings and their descendants. Is it taking time? Yes! But is it worth it? Definitely so. See how the research gradually adds up to so many new exciting discoveries.
• Just shooting the (genealogy) breeze 06.04.2026 44min

  Podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey catch up on their recent research. Discussing what they’ve found. Discussing how to look for answers without necessarily spending money. Reflecting on the importance of doing the tasks… but also how absolutely important it is to keep it fun! Thoughts on the possibility of ‘getting your tree done in a single weekend’… and why would you want to?! The correlation, or not, between a good attitude to physical exercise and to family history. You know, just shooting the genealogy breeze. Tune in – we’d love you to join us.
• How to make sure your tree is secret & other tips 30.03.2026 47min

  In this week’s genealogy chat Family Tree Talk podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey chat about a world of family history related topics, from the ethical dilemmas of doing research for a friend; to how to make sure an online family tree is secret (if it needs to be), plus chat about Ancestry tags, scores and more!
• How to stop behaving like a headless chicken 23.03.2026 48min

  Usually family history can be a bit of an escape, can’t it? … An oasis of calm in our busy lives. But sometimes those research puzzles and projects and send us hither and thither like headless chickens, rushing about making a lot of noise, but very little progress. This week in Family Tree Talk, podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey chat about their recent research forays, and discuss ideas to get the research back on track – with the aid of a research plan.
• Starting a new chapter of your family history 16.03.2026 40min

  In this episode of Family Tree Talk, podcast co-host Nathan Ward shares his most recent discoveries and reflections with Helen Tovey. They discuss the family history process – considering: what does it really feel like to do family history? What is the best next step to take, when you completed a family history goal, before you move on to a new chapter in your research? And they chat about the many different forms that family history can take – from formal research to conversations and memory sharing with loved ones today.
• Is it time for the Genealogical Proof Standard? 09.03.2026 50min

  Podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey chat family history, as Nathan discusses the research steps he’s taken recently to unpick an online tree tangle, dig deeper into the records, and work out once and for all who his 3x great-granny really was. Tune in to see how he got on, and the usefulness of enlisting the power of the Genealogical Proof Standard to help ensure your research is rock solid. And, oh yes, a bit about GEDCOM files to try and cure Nathan’s aversion to this trusty format.
• Taken a wrong turn in your research? 02.03.2026 43min

  Ertswhile newbie Nathan had nearly finished collecting all 32 of his 3x great-grandparents (superb effort, hey?) … when he realised that not all the facts were stacking up. Where had his research taken a wrong turn? And how was he going to get it back on track? This episode podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey chat about recent research forays and share ideas and steps to help fix those facts.
• Game, set & match! A genealogy milestone reached 23.02.2026 42min

  Family history erstwhile newbie Nathan Ward has only been tracing his family tree for a little over a year, but this week sees him ‘collect’ the final missing ancestor of his 3x great-grandparents. But is that 32nd person really his. With impressive will-power, Nathan weighs up the facts before proceeding to add them to his tree. Tune in for Family Tree Talk podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey for nitty-gritty nuts-and-bolts family-history chat.
• You are in charge! Tips to manage your Ancestry tree 16.02.2026 42min

  This week podcast cohosts Nathan Ward and Helen Tovey chat about the tools that help you manage your Ancestry tree the way that you wish: how to cope with hints; how to merge duplicate people on your tree; how to check that living people’s details are really hidden & more. Plus the battle of the tree score continues – Nathan is leading the way with an impressive 9.9. Is an Elite score of 10 out of 10 within his reach?