Beckham's scavenging ancestry

My Account
Logout

Create an Evening Standard Account

Use your social network

Save time by using your existing account to sign in to Evening Standard

We'll never share your information or post anything to your account without your permission

Welcome! Sign in here

Use your social network

Save time by using your existing account to sign in to Evening Standard

We'll never share your information or post anything to your account without your permission

Forgot your password ?

Registration

* indicates fields that are mandatory

Email *

Password *

Confirm Password *

First name *

Surname *

Postcode *

Country *

Mobile phone number

Username *

Gender *

Year of birth *

When you sign up...

You will have access to all our online competitions, discounted offers and can post comments on our site.

You will also receive The Weekender newsletter sent every Thursday - it’s full of fantastic offers and ideas for the weekend. You can update your email preferences in your account page when you log in.

Other newsletters and emails

Homes & Property Newsletter - Yes I want to receive the weekly email with all the latest news on property in the capital

Occasionally we would also like to send you relevant emails detailing specific offers either from ourselves or carefully selected partners. If you would prefer not to receive these then please tick the appropriate boxes below. We will never pass on your details.

I do not want to receive additional offers and information from the Evening Standard

I do not want to receive additional offers and information sent by Evening Standard on behalf of carefully selected partners

Terms and Conditions

* I have read, understood and agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of Evening Standard

Registration

Mail Sent for Registration Confirmation.

A confirmation email has been sent. Please activate your account by clicking on the activation link sent in your mail box.

Records of people living in London more than 100 years ago from the 1911 census are available online for the first time today. The documents of about 35 million people then living in England and Wales reveal the humble family origins of some of the country's most famous individuals.

Beckham's great-great-great-great grandfather, John Beckham, born in 1846, was employed by a council in Walworth as a scavenger, while his great-great-great grandfather William Beckham, born 1870, was working as a cart or van driver.

Winehouse's family background was similarly lacking in grandeur. Like many European Jews, her maternal ancestors emigrated from Russia to London in the 19th century and were living in Spitalfields in 1911.

Abraham Grandish, born 1855, worked as a hawker selling fruit while his daughter Fanny, born 1895, was employed as a waterproofer - protecting coats with rubber. Debra Chatfield of findmypast.com website, which digitised the documents, said: "We knew Beckham and Winehouse had backgrounds in England and Wales so we did some research into their families to find out who their ancestors were."

The documents occupy two kilometres of shelving at The National Archives in Kew and can be viewed at the click of a button.

Oliver Morely, director of customer and business development at The National Archives, said: "We are bringing history to life for millions. The 1911 census is a poignant reflection of how different life was in early 20th-century Britain."