A Forgotten Wrestling Champion

#TwiceRemoved

Imagine discovering your family tree contained forgotten wrestling champions! It just goes to show that you really might discover anything when you start delving into family history.

Kirsty Surgey uses family history to create performances. She plays with family history in imaginative ways that inspired me to take a second look at how I tell my genealogy stories.

Resources:

• Support the podcast & buy me a cup of coffee Ko-fi.com/genealogystories
• www.genealogystories.co.uk/forgotten-champions
• https://heardofcats.co.uk/

Minute Notes:

[00:29] What is a performance maker and researcher?

Kirsty explains how she uses family history to create performances.

[03.24] How does the traditional research of places and time periods fit into performance making?

Kirsty explores ideas of heritage as performance.

[04.46] Kirsty discusses how an individual’s story is far more interesting if that individual is telling it rather than someone else - because telling our stories creates a relationship and connection to that story.

[05.16] How much do you think family history helps people to form their own identity?

Kirsty explains how the discovery of a place where generations of her ancestors had lived gave her a sense of rootedness.

[08.04] Kirsty describes how sharing our stories helps us to understand what life was like in the past

[09.53] What was it that lead you to research your family tree?

Kirsty tells a story about the death of her Grandfather’s cousin and the subsequent clearing of his house. Riffling through memorabilia she rediscovered wrestling champion ancestors! She discovered a female ancestor (Isabella) whose stories had been lost to time which stimulated her interest in researching her family tree.

[14.11] Kirsty discovered a family bible with Isabella’s name inscribed inside and a sampler she had made when she was 12. These items led her to explore and imagine what Isabella's adult life was like.

[14.35] Kirsty and I discuss how past objects and photos provide a snap shot in time which can evoke a strange feeling of nostalgia and uncanniness. Kirsty explains her game Lines and Ladders.

[20.10] I ask Kirsty to tell me about her favourite stories

[20.22] Kirsty talks about her Great Grandmother, who during WWI went to university to study to become a doctor. The recordings of her life and that of her brothers were made by their Mother in a diary. The diary catches the pride and expectations their Mother had for them, but their lives do not plan out as expected.

[26.09] We discuss keeping a diary during the pandemic and how that, even now looking back while still in the pandemic, past entries seems strange because you know the outcome.

[26.41] Kirsty explains that individual stories can connect into each other and by playing the board game she has created, people can find connections to each other and to the past.

[29.27] Discussion on how playing the board game can engage people to share their stories and stimulate those who may think their ancestry are boring.

[30.46] Do you have a favourite time period?

[31.15] Kirsty explains how she likes to jump into different parts of her history. She advices us not to get hung up about going back as far as possible, as very recent history is still history.

[40.44] If you met someone that was sitting on the fence thinking about tracing their family history what would you say to them?

[41.09] Kirsty shares her passion for family history.