Gail Dixon
Gail Dixon is a freelance writer and regular contributor to Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine
Recent articles by Gail Dixon
A mysterious photograph of a Second World War airman led to my meeting a long-lost cousin in America
Alan Fraser had a tangled problem to solve when he tried to identify a family photograph of an American Second World War airman
I read my father’s war diary… and discovered he was at Dunkirk, El Alamein and D-Day
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Mike Wood has published A Soldier's Story, his father Neville's Second World War diary
I discovered the truth about the four British Home Children in my grandmother’s family
Rosemary Johnston discovered that her grandmother's four brothers were sent to Canada as British Home Children
These moving letters from my mother’s grandfather capture live in a small English village in the 1930s
Bridget Yates explains how she found letters from her great grandfather Robert Thornhill to her mother Barbara
I traced the history of TE Lawrence’s ‘earthly paradise’ Dorset home back to the 17th century
Martin Gething, a National Trust volunteer at TE Lawrence's house Clouds Hill in Dorset, explains how he traced the history of the house
We discovered the tragic story of our Shetland sailor great-uncles who both died in the First World War
Ann Bianchi and Ian Elliott discovered their great uncles were both sailors from Shetland who died in the First World War
My wife’s great uncle was a First World War pilot who died battling the Red Baron
Mike Christopher discovered his wife's great uncle James Wynn served with the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War
The men in our family have served in the Armed Forces in every decade since 1794
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Paul Darran reveals how he traced his ancestors' service in the Armed Forces
I discovered my great great grandmother was forced by poverty to place her illegitimate son in the workhouse
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Peta McCauley shares the story of her great great grandmother Elizabeth Measey
My father never spoke about his war… but I discovered he could have been at the liberation of Belsen
Stephen King's parents ran a sweet making business and lived through the Second World War and the Blitz in Southend-on-Sea
I discovered my great aunt was a renowned artist who painted portraits of Battle of Britain pilots
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Rebecca Blacker Jones shares the story of her great aunt Elva Blacker, a celebrated war artist
It took 42 years, but a DNA test revealed the truth about my elusive great grandfather
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Rosemary Wilmot reveals how she found out more about her great grandfather George Gray
“If my 3x great grandfather was an inch taller, he would have been killed at sea in 1813”
David Joy discovered his ancestor Edward Rexworthy rose through the ranks in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars
“Nine-year-old James’ guardians attached a label to him and put him on a one-way train journey alone”
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Jan Marshall discovered her missing relative James Robinson's difficult upbringing
My relative earned medals for bravery in the First World War and was one of the first men to drive a tank
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader David Stokes discovered his relative George Harrington drove a tank in the First World War
I discovered what happened to my grandmother’s missing half-sister after their mother died
Victor Nutt discovered that his great grandmother, grandmother and great aunt all overcame hardship in Victorian England
My father’s carpentry genius was crucial to Allied surveillance in Burma in the Second World War
David Cunningham used his carpentry skills to build crates for airdropping radios into occupied Burma during the Second World War
I discovered my ancestor was a suffragist who campaigned for women and the working class
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Erica Ward talks about her ancestor Eleanor Grizzell, who was a suffragist and Sheffield councillor
My grandfather lost his eye after being shot in the forehead on the Western Front
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Jon Gliddon discovered his grandfather Herman Pike lost an eye in the First World War
My ancestor rose from poverty to wealth in 18th century Britain by morally suspect means
Jean Thomson's 3x great grandfather William Jones was born in poverty in Wales and rose to be a lawyer and prison marshal in London
My great grandfather played for Arsenal, stood for Parliament and set a cycling record
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Graham Sheppard shares the astonishing story of his great grandfather John
My grandfather was abandoned at an orphanage in Italy. Over a century later, I discovered the truth
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine reader Paula Daily explains how she traced her Italian-American immigrant grandfather's origins
A newspaper article revealed that my ancestor died saving his wife and children in an accident
Nigel Ellis discovered that his great great uncle Samuel Scarff died saving his wife and children from a runaway horse
A rags-to-riches rise, a knighthood and a missing daughter: My ancestor’s astonishing life
In his family history research, Graham Ashdown unearthed a connection to Curtis Ashdown, a shipping magnate who was knighted by George V