Archive to uncover families' criminal pasts.

Byline: MARTIN WILLIAMS 

A FREE website will uncover the criminal background of past generations.

With a new series of the BBC's popular "Who Do You Think You Are?" programme back on our screens next week, the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) is inviting amateur genealogists and local historians from North Wales to access a free online historical archive.

But it warns that you may just end up unearthing a skeleton or two.

The AHRC is Wales' leading funder of academic research in the arts and humanities. It has recently funded The Old Bailey Online, an archive which it hopes will be of interest to people who are trying to research or trace their local or family histories.

The archive gives genealogists and local historians the chance to investigate whether any of their ancestors ever appeared at the Old Bailey, either as a victim or even if they had been summonsed as a witness.

The AHRC-funded archive contains details of over 197,745 criminal trials.

An AHRC spokesperson said: "The Old Bailey Online is of great value to many people, particularly to genealogists and family and local historians.

"It's a chance to investigate a potentially very colourful side of your family history. Even if you can't trace any of your ancestors, you can also search by names of towns and villages. "Some of the cases make for incredibly interesting reading."

. For further information visit www.oldbaileyonline.org.