About Chris Paton BA (Hons), HND, Pg.Dip. Genealogical Studies
A former television producer and director on BBC history programmes, I now work as a professional Scottish based genealogist, writer, lecturer and tutor. With my wife and two young sons I reside in the picturesque Ayrshire town of Largs, on the Western Scottish coast.
Previous media career
After graduating from the University of Ulster in 1991 (HND Design & Communication) and the University of the West of England in 1994 (BA Hons Time Based Media), I spent twelve years working as a documentary maker for both the British Broadcasting Corporation and Scottish Television, primarily working on historical series such as Secret History, Meet the Ancestors, Coast, and the aerial archaeology series Time Flyers. My television career saw me filming in a variety of locations across the world, from Italy to California, capturing the experiences of many diverse groups and individuals, including Battle of Britain fighter pilots, the modern day Ku Klux Klan, and liver and kidney transplant surgeons at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. I left the BBC after asking for voluntary redundancy in February 2006, in order to pursue a career in genealogical research.
Genealogy
Having left the BBC, I initially studied for a Postgraduate Certificate in Genealogical Studies at the University of Strathclyde to further my passion for family history research, with which I have been engaged and fascinated by for over a decade. Amongst my studies I completed a dissertation on the role of the handloom weaving community of Perth from 1770 to 1845, creating a database employing seldom seen privately held documents on the Weavers Incorportaion, which I have continued to develop since finishing the course.
After the certificate I studied for the Postgraduate Diploma in the same subject, with the final year dissertation this time concerning the role of the King James VI Hospital in Perth as a 19th Century feudal superior.
In addition to running the Scotland's Greatest Story family history research service, I also write regularly for most of the British family history press. My clients to date have been located as far afield as Egypt and Nova Scotia, and have included the cousin of two tragic murder victims and a current life peer within the House of Lords. With over sixteen years experience in historical research and the construction of story telling narratives, I firmly believe that every one of us has a fascinating story to tell, and the greatest story that we can ever discover is that of ourselves.
In addition to running the Scotland's Greatest Story research service, I also write the Scottish Genealogy News and Events blog, described by Simon Fowler of Ancestors magazine as 'an excellent genealogical blog'.
Tutoring
I am a tutor with online family history and genealogy course provider Pharos Teaching & Tutoring Limited, teaching the Scottish Research Online course.
The five week course, which costs £42.99, provides a detailed introduction to the key online databases used in Scottish family history research, as well as instruction on the most effective techniques to help you structure a plan for your research.
The next course commences on August 24th 2009. For more information please visit www.pharostutors.com.
Writing
A regular features and news writer for the UK's leading family history publications Your Family Tree, Practical Family History, Ancestors, Family History Monthly and Discover My Past Scotland, I am also a frequent contributor to many newspapers and magazines such as The Scotsman, The Sunday Herald, Cothrom, True Crime, and others. The Writing page on this site lists the majority of the articles i have so far contributed.
I am currently writing two separate genealogical books, Researching Scottish Family History for the Family History Partnership, to be published later this year, and another genealogical book for Pen and Sword, to be published early 2010. Along with Matt Barrett and Ann Muir, I also co-wrote the scripts for the BBC Scotland/BBC4 Scottish religious history series, The Sword and the Cross, on which I both scripted and directed, and these were later adapted to form a book of the same name in 2006, published by Saint Andrew Press.
