Friday, April 28, 2006

Herbert Bunt - BBC 1 Television Programme

We received a very interesting e-mail from Martyn Elmer:

"At 9.30 to 10.30 pm on May 10th 2006 (check – it might be 9th) on BBC1 there is a programme hosted by Katie Adie about orphans who traced their family trees (as she did!).

About half the programme will be about Herbert Bunt from Kent. His “real” family name was Paske; he is direct relation of mine through my great grandmother Pamela (Paske) Elmy (aged 6 in the ‘new’ 1841 census). Her brother James Paske also married one of my other relations Jemimah Elmy. Herbert’s mother was “defrocked” by the owner of a famous café in London, who arranged for the child to be sent to a (terrible) boarding school at Berkhamsted; from there he was automatically drafted into the Army. It was not until he was over 70 that he had the time or the money to find his blood line.

My great grandfather Henry was a gamekeeper at Walberswick near Southwold, for generations the Paske’s were gamekeepers at Benacre near Southwold, around Bury St Edmunds and also on the Luton Hoo estate.

I was unable to meet the BBC crew who filmed in Blythburgh (it clashed with a special Picon meeting in Warwickshire) however my sister Margaret (Nichols) was interviewed in the churchyard, at this stage we have not seen a preview of the programme so don’t know what if any they will show of east Suffolk."


We had the pleasure of meeting Herbert 2 years ago, and he allowed us to scan his extensive album, his research notes, and narratives that he had compiled on his family. We have included this information on the website. With Martyn's help, we have extended the information and traced back to Thomas PASK (circa 1700 - 1754) from Theberton Suffolk.

Congratulations to Herbert. We will look forward to the program with great interest.