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General => The Common Room => Topic started by: VillageDuckpond on Tuesday 01 May 07 18:02 BST (UK)
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I am going to the National History Show in London this coming Saturday with a friend and have never been to a big show before so am somewhat apprehensive ??? For first timers is there any good advice for us please?
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My advice is - have a good time!
What are your concerns, so we can provide more advice?
meles
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There will be lots of books and things to buy...so my advice is take lots of cash if you want to spend...or don't take any cash if you don't as it's likely that a lot of stalls won't take cards. ;D ;D
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Wear comfy shoes and take plenty of water to drink. Have a great time. Are you going by train?
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Many thanks to you all for your replies. We have decided that we are just going to enjoy ourselves, take some cash just in case, comfy shoes and plenty of water. And yes, we are going up by train :D
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Well we live a ten minute walk from Elsenham station, so I just wondered . . !
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Mrs Lizzy
Have sent you a pm.
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Anyone else going to the National History Show this weekend..? We're going on Sunday and really looking forward to it. ;D
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Yep - will be travelling up from Dorset with me Mum on Sunday morning.
Looking forward to the day out, but we've been a little disappointed with recent family history fairs so we have a backup plan if it's not that good - i.e. visit the Victoria & Albert Museum which is just down the road.
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This Family History Fair is supposed to be "all singing all dancing" so hopefully should be good.
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In case someone is thinking of making the trip this weekend:
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouarelive.co.uk/
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I'm going tomorrow (Saturday)
Strangly enough, I've just put a bottle of water in my bag ! lol !
I'm just going to have a look round, see a few LIVE bits and see what there is - collect any freebies and leaflets.
I'll then look through everything in the days following and place any orders online.
To everyone going - have a great time. Any idea how many people are going ? Saturday is now sold out apparently !!!!
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SCH
Might even see you there because a friend and I are going on Saturday too :D. I think the chances of our meeting are pretty slim but anyway I hope you really enjoy it.
Sasha
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Here's a hint: make a Rootschat badge & wear it with pride!
I have done that at local fairs.
Rootschat had hoped to exhibit, but the costs for a non-commercial site turned out to be prohibitive apparently. Maybe next time...
Have fun!
kind regards, Arranroots ;)
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Hi, I shall be there tomorrow, a day out to collect as many freebies & useful information as possible.
I shall be on the Beds F H S stand for some of the time. Look me up - leave a message..
Have fun, johnP
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I still haven't decided whether to go. Hope those who are there today will pop in here afterwards for a full debrief :)
Anna
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JohnP
Hello again - we met today (Saturday) :D
Sasha/VillageDuckpond
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Olympia today was excellent and full of information. I have so many leaflets to look at that I have enough reading matter for a week at least!
One thing I feel I should warn you about, however, is getting to hear the talks. Check (from your programme) when you arrive what it is you want to go to be it a talk or a workshop and get your tickets as early as possible. We made this mistake and missed out on a few.
Enjoy your day :D
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Sasha, That was nice, coming to find me & say hello. Hope you had good day.
Yes I noticed the workshops & taks were fully booked up, but I could stand outside the areas, see & hear OK, & follow the discussion. I saw Ian Hislop & Nick Barrett; got useful info from the Archives stand & had a good (although tiring) day. .... However if I had spent £20 on a ticket.... I'd think twice...
johnP
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We had a great time.
Cannot stress enough...............book those show tickets ASAP !!!
When you get in to the Hall, go straight all the way to the WDYTYA stage, next to that is a ticket booth...........just ask for your WDYTYA stage tickets there and then ! Avoid the queues.
As for the Theatre up on the Gallary level, no ticket required, but get there about 25 mins before the show is due to start.......and queue.
Ian Hislop was great. David Starkey was excellent.
I didn't bother going to any workshops.
All the 'ask the experts' and other 'query' bits and pieces were VERY popular.
You won't get everything done you want to, so you'll have to compromise.
Stay right to the end and it's much easier.......cos all the old folk go home and you get the last hour with clear stands (sorry but it's true !!).
Anyone going on Sunday or Monday................ENJOY !
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Thanks SCH.
I'm going tomorrow so will head your advice ;)
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Thanks SCH.
I'm going tomorrow so will head your advice ;)
And get there before 10am................cos you have to queue !!!!
If there is two of you......as soon as you enter the show..............one of you sort out the Live Show WDYTYA tickets.....the other one turn to the left and get the coffee's !!
If you want to sit in the Spitfire, it's in the back left hand corner ! It's not 100% original, it's part replica/part original bits !
And if you want a bit of a break from the show go to the Gallary level, cos you can sit there, it's not crowded, bar and toilets. You can look at the show below and plan your next stage !
ENJOY !
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Will get up bright and early and put my queue-ing shoes on!
Thanks again ;D
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Who has been today then ?
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Hi SCH
We went today. Thanks for your tip about getting there before 10 and then going straight to the ticket place. It worked very well.
We went by train as Olympia Railway station is right next door which was very easy.
We had a good day. It's quite hard work wandering about but there are lots of places to stop for coffee and sandwiches (in main hall and also up in gallery level for those going tomorrow). We saw a couple of speakers and then wandered around looking at the stalls... picking up free back-issues of magazines and trying to avoid subscribing to all the publications offering discounts!
So - an interesting if tiring day...
If anyone is going tomorrow...enjoy!
;D ;D
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Brilliant stuff
Which mags were offering free back issues ?!?!
Tomorrow, it's only 10am - 4pm
(but I'll bet there will be some great discounts by 3.30pm on some stands !)
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I went yesterday - I managed to get Family History, Family Tree and History today, back issues, several of each with the free CD's. I travelled from Lancashire - it was a long day and I'm glad I did it, but if I had paid £20 I would have been disappointed. I think the ticket system for the workshops was badly organised, and I wish I had seen David Starkey and Nick Barrett rather than attending workshops. I didn't really learn anything from the workshops that I didn't already know. As I said, I'm glad I went but for me to go again next year it would have to be better organised and perhaps in a central location such as the NEC in Birmingham. Still, it's the first one of its kind and it can only get better.
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Yes, that is fair comment - from what I saw it was geared more to the less experienced or newer researcher rather than the expert and as a family history fair it was not as good as some others I have been to. Didn't seem to be half as many of the local Family History Society stalls as usual. I would not have paid £20 to go. Luckily I did not have to travel far so it was a nice day out, but I would not have wanted to travel a long way.
SCH
I cant remember now which freebies I got - they were random ones in goodie bags. One stall (can't remember which mag was selling back issues at full price which was not going down too well. But Family History Monthly were doing them for £2 each or all of the last 12 issues for £10 which I thought was pretty good.
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Hello Bluebellwoods and welcome to rootschat ;D
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Brilliant stuff
Which mags were offering free back issues ?!?!
Tomorrow, it's only 10am - 4pm
(but I'll bet there will be some great discounts by 3.30pm on some stands !)
I would think popping by the FAMILY HISTORY MONTHLY stand at about that time would be a very good idea. ;D ;D
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I've only ever been to one FH fair - that was Bucks at Aylesbury last summer, and that was spread over two halls at a school.
To compare the two is not really possible. They were both very different.
The WDYTYA Show was very similar to the shows I have been to in the past such as Autosport, The Car Show, The Bike Show (all these at the NEC) - so pricing for tickets, coffee, sandwiches were all within my expectation. I did get 2 tickets for £20.
Live entertainment in the middle stand, a few celebs talking, things to see etc etc.
The idea of spliting up the stands into rough 'groups' was very good indeed, this made it much easier to look around.
The show itself was positioned between a 'traditional' FH Show and an 'all singing-all dancing' type of show you get in 2007.
It did very well indeed - I was very happy with what I got done - no chance to do any reasearch as such.
The feedback in the magazines will be interesting to see, as if they all knock it, then I'd doubt there would be a 2008 show. But if the majority is positive then I'd expect a 2008 Show.
They can improve the ticketing for the individual shows inside the hall, but it's difficault to know what to expect when you run the first show.
If anyone is going today, have a great time - and stay to the end !
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Yes - I hope there is positive feedback from everyone, not just in the magazines. It would be a shame if it didn't happen again because it could grow into a great annual event.. And I agree about it to being geared to newcomers and beginners - and there is nothing wrong with that. Family history is more accessible to everyone than it has ever been,so why not promote it.
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I went on Sunday and enjoyed it. Managed 5 lectures and the Peter/Dan Snow WDYTYA live thing - the latter because daughter is a big fan (of Peter mainly!). The SOG lectures I went to were all good - learnt at least one new thing in each of them, several in some. I liked the two on maps and mapping - but that is just my personal quest.
I forgot about doing a Rootschat badge as discussed some time ago. A shame it was too pricey to have a presence.
I thought getting 5 good talks for £20 was fair. I hope that they do it again.
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I've never been to a FH fair which is really sad given I've been doing this since I was 17 - and that was a LONG time ago. OH adores me though [smug grin] so with a bit of luck I'll get taken to a good one next year. ;D