Below you can see the 1911 census returns for Herbert Henry Asquith, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 to 1916. The forms were filled in by Maurice Bonham Carter (Asquith’s private secretary and future husband of his daughter Violet).

Click image to enlarge

You can also see that the line recording Violet Asquith is written in completely different handwriting to the rest. This could suggest that Violet filled in her own name herself, inferring that she was in the same room as Maurice when he completed the household’s schedule. Maurice and Violet married in 1915 and the census seems to suggest that the pair were already close to one another in 1911. Violet and Maurice are the grandparents of actress Helena Bonham Carter.

This is a great example of how the 1911 householder forms can provide information or suggestions that would have been lost in the Enumerator’s summary pages. The householder forms for the 1841-1901 censuses were all destroyed which means that the 1911 census is the only census with this benefit available at the moment, making it very special.

We’ve had a look at actor Hugh Jackman’s ancestors’ 1911 census return. The results are from his paternal Bellas and Furniss lines.

The 1911 census return shows Hugh’s paternal grandmother, Glory Margaret Bellas, under one month old and living in a rather busy household - 13 people (nine of whom were adults) living in a nine-roomed house!

Glory was living with her parents (Hugh’s paternal great-grandparents), Nicholas Isidor Bellas and Dora Bellas nee Furniss, and her grandparents (Hugh’s paternal great-great-grandparents), Charles and Margaret Furniss.

The extended family had been born in various places around north England and the midlands; Glory and her mother had both been born in Manchester, Charles Furniss in Derby and Margaret Furniss in Bolton, Lancashire. However, Glory’s father was Greek and had been born in Constantinople. We can see that Nicholas had certainly lived in Constantinople for some of his earlier life as his eldest two children had also been born there. These children are probably from another marriage as Nicholas and Dora had only been married for six years and the ‘number of children born alive to the marriage’ has been listed as two.

In 1911, Charles Furniss (aged 85) recorded himself as being retired on a pension, having worked for the railway. Nicholas Bellas was working as an accountant for a company manufacturing cigarettes.

Our sister-site findmypast.com has now added a full set of 1911 census enumerators’ summary book (RG78) images, all of which can be viewed via their new subscription. When you view a 1911 census image on findmypast.com you will now see links to the accompanying summary book pages in the frame above the image (as shown below).

Find out what it was like in your ancestors’ neighbourhood

The enumerators’ summary book (RG78) images are filled with useful information about the neighbourhoods in which your ancestors lived and they can also reveal details of relatives living nearby.

The new images include:

• the front page of the volume in which the enumerator’s summary sheet was stored.
• enumerator’s summary original page - this not only shows the names of heads of households and how many people occupied the houses (showing you the neighbours), but also lists other buildings, whether houses or not.
• population statistics for the area.
• a description of the Enumerator’s walk.
• a map of the Enumerator’s walk (in some cases).

See annotated sample images of the enumerators’ summary book pages

New household schedule images

As well as the RG78s, we’ve added some extra RG14 household (or institution) schedule images, which also make interesting viewing:

• The address panel from the back of the schedule, showing the address as written by your ancestors and the registration district and subdistrict
• The front page of the volume in which your schedule was stored, giving more detailed information on parishes and districts

Find out more about the only 1911 census subscription online

Please note: some household schedules do NOT have Enumerators Summary Books, as a small number did not survive.

Our sister-site, findmypast.com, has officially launched the first and only 1911 census subscription available anywhere online. This means you can now access the England and Wales 1911 census for a fixed fee and without the worry of wasting PayAsYouGo credits. Findmypast.com is also the only site to offer a complete 1841-1911 census collection.

Buy a full subscription and get 20% off - just 10 days to claim

Findmypast.com’s full subscription gives you unique access to records from every census (1841-1911) plus millions of other records, including military, migration and parish records. If you purchase the full subscription you’ll get a 20% discount (offer only valid until 31 October). This means you can do all your family history from a single website, for a fixed fee.

The special introductory prices are:

• 12 month full subscription – £119.95 (includes 20% discount)
• 6 month full subscription – £74.95 (includes 20% discount)

Don’t miss out: offer ends 31 October.

Claim your discounted findmypast.com subscription today

Better value than PayAsYouGo

If you plan to view fewer than 10 households (images and transcriptions), it will be cheaper for you to continue using PayAsYouGo credits, but if you view more than 10 records, a subscription will be your best option.

Subscribe without losing your credits

If you have existing credits, their expiry date will be extended to three months beyond the expiry date of any subscription you buy, so don’t worry, you won’t lose them. You can also use them to access the records not included within our subscriptions, such as Living Relatives searches.

Subscribe to findmypast.com

We are delighted to announce that the 1911 census will be available in October as a new subscription package on our sister website findmypast.com. 1911census.co.uk will continue as a PayAsYouGo-only site. findmypast.com is the only site to offer a subscription to the census.

Subscriptions to the 1911 Census on findmypast.com will be available as two packages:

• 12 months ‘1911′ subscription: £59.95 - the equivalent of viewing 15 transcripts and images using PayAsYouGo credits.
• 6 months ‘1911′ subscription: £39.95 - the equivalent of viewing 10 transcripts and images using PayAsYouGo credits.

Money saving tip: if you plan to view fewer than 10 households, it will be cheaper for you to use PayAsYouGo credits rather than buying a subscription.

The 1911 Census has not been included within findmypast.com’s existing Explorer subscription. If you want comprehensive access to findmypast.com’s records, you can buy the Explorer and 1911 Census subscriptions together at a special introductory price, for a limited time. These discounted prices will be available for at least a month after the launch of the subscription:

• 12 months ‘Explorer and 1911′: £119.95 - a saving of 20%
• 6 months ‘Explorer and 1911′: £74.95 - a saving of 20%

Existing findmypast.com subscribers will be able to upgrade to the new combined subscription using their loyalty discount (currently 20%) at any time - if you decide to upgrade, we will automatically refund the remaining days of your current subscription at a daily rate and deduct this from the price of your new upgraded subscription. Existing findmypast.com subscribers will also get exclusive early access to the 1911 Census before it is made available to the general public.

The 1911 Census will be available as a subscription on findmypast.com no later than October 21st - to receive updates on the launch date, make sure you have opted in to receive newsletters from 1911census.co.uk or findmypast.com.

Finally, don’t forget that you can use your 1911census.co.uk sign in details and credits on findmypast.com, and vice versa. If you plan to buy a 1911 Census subscription, now is a good time to use your remaining credits on the millions of other family history records available on findmypast.com. We’ll add more detail on the 1911 census subscription to the site shortly - if you have any questions at the moment, please contact our Customer Support team.

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An exhibition to mark the bicentenary of Poet Laureate Lord Alfred Tennyson’s birth has opened at his former home, Farringford House, on the Isle of Wight. Tennyson moved into the house in 1853, remained there for the rest of his life, and immortalised it in a poem to his friend Rev F. D. Maurice.

During Tennyson’s 39-year tenure, islanders were treated to regular visits from notables ranging from politicians, painters, and authors, to scientists, and even royalty. Benjamin Disraeli, Charles Darwin, Lewis Carroll, Giuseppe Garibaldi, and the Queen of Hawaii were Tennyson guests at one time or other.

The 1861 census provides an early glimpse at Tennyson’s idyllic Isle of Wight home, where he was living with his wife and two sons. The other occupants – a tutor, gardener, page, nurse, cook, housemaid, parlour maid, and a kitchen maid – give some idea of the opulent lifestyle the family enjoyed (click the image to enlarge).

Farringford House on the 1861 census

On the 1891 census an 81-year-old Tennyson is described as a peer of the realm, and his one-year-old grandson, Lionel (a future England cricketer) is now part of the household.

Farringford House on the 1891 census

Lord Tennyson would die just a year later. A search of the findmypast.com records reveals he was a shareholder in the Great Western Railway, and we discover that his wife, Emily, and eldest son, Hallam, acted as executors.

Lord Tennyson on the Great Western Railway Shareholders index

Our last glimpse at Farringford House is on the 1911 census. Lord Hallam Tennyson (who has inherited his father’s title) is the head of the household. The other residents are his wife Lady Audrey Tennyson, and seven servants. In the years that followed Farringford House became a hotel, and still serves that purpose today.

Farringford House on the 1911 census

The ‘Tennyson at Farringford’ exhibition runs until 9 September at Farringford House.

This week it’s the turn of the actress Kim Cattrall to take part in Who do you Think you Are?. Though the actress is best known for her roles as Americans, she was actually born in Liverpool and raised in Canada.

The family’s journey to Canada can be found on findmypast.com’s Passenger Lists. Kim is seen at three months old travelling with her sister, Cherry, and her mother Shane (listed as Gladys on official documents) in November 1956.

Kim Cattrall on the Passenger Lists

Kim’s father Dennis had travelled several months earlier in April, when Shane was pregnant, so Kim was on her way to meet her father for the first time.

Kim Cattrall's father on the Passenger Lists

Kim’s family have remained close to their Liverpudlian roots and Kim has returned many times over the years. This time Kim is on a mission to solve the mystery surrounding her maternal grandfather George Baugh.

George married Kim’s Grandmother Marion Thomas in 1928. The event can be found in findmypast.com’s birth, marriage, and death indexes.

Kim Catrall's grandfather's marriage

However, George walked out on his wife and three daughters when Shane was eight – leaving the family in poverty – and was never heard from again. The only clues Kim has are a photograph and a newspaper article from the 1980s, which mentions her grandfather’s sister.

Shane and her sisters are desperate to know what happened to their father, but will they like what they find? Is Kim’s prediction that ‘I think it’s going to end in tears’ going to be right? Watch BBC One tonight at 9pm to find out.

You may have read in the news yesterday that 1911census.co.uk’s parent company, brightsolid, has bought Friends Reunited Group, which includes the Friends Reunited and Genes Reunited websites. We’re delighted to confirm that this is true.

Actor and comedian David Mitchell has always had a passion for the past. He studied history at Peterhouse, Cambridge and one of his earliest projects after graduating was a show about the First World War. This makes him a relatively well-placed subject for hit genealogy series, Who Do You Think You Are?, on which he appears tonight at 9pm on BBC One.

David already knew he had paternal Scottish ancestry, and that the Mitchells were wealthy sheep farmers. Part of his quest on tonight’s show is to discover whether they were involved in the notorious Highland Clearances: one of the darkest chapters in Scottish history.

During the Clearances, which took place in the nineteenth and late-eighteenth century, wealthy land owners cast tens of thousands of men, women and children from their homes, so they could use the land for more profitable large-scale sheep farming. Tenants who refused to leave saw their houses burnt to the ground and were removed by force, at the point of a musket or sword. They were pushed out towards the coast, where they lived in barren plots of land (or crofts), and were expected to sustain their communities by fishing. The result was widespread destitution and starvation, and ultimately the destruction of the Highland people and their culture.

Some of those affected sought a better life across the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean. Details of their hopeful journeys towards strange new lands can be found in the earlier part of the official Passenger Lists. These late nineteenth-century migrants were the forebears of countless native citizens living in those countries today.

The Clearances, which occurred in several waves, are among the most contentious issues in Scottish history, and still divide opinion today. We’re eager to discover whether David Mitchell’s ancestors played a part, and we’ll be tuning in tonight to find out.

David’s Scottish ancestors

With the help of our sister-site ScotlandsPeople, we decided to do some pre-emptive research, and track down the Mitchells on the censuses.

David’s family owned the same farm, Ribigill in Tongue, Sutherland, for three generations. We found them living there on every available census (apart from in 1871, when they were living elsewhere). In 1901 the head of the household was William Mitchell, a widower living with four grown-up children and two servants:

If, like David, you have Scottish forebears, why not search for them online today?