John Arlott OBE - A Relative?:
John Arlott OBE, was born on the 25th February 1914 in Chapel Hill, Basingstoke, Hampshire and died on the 14th December 1991 on Alderney in the Channel Islands. He was an author, journalist and cricket commentator. He was employed by the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) and the Guardian newspaper.  
   
Jane Arlott was born in Burghfield, Hampshire in 1842 and married Thomas Barnes in 1863. Thomas (my great-great grandfather) was born in Heckfied, Hampshire in 1838. It was believed that Jane Arlott was somehow related to John Arlott the famous cricket commentator and in 1984 Elizabeth Freda Victoria Druett (nee Barnes and my great-aunt Freda) wrote to John Arlott via the Guardian newspaper. John Arlott replied by letter on the 29th February 1984. A copy of this letter is shown below.
 		  
Although John was in no doubt that there was some family connection between the Arlott and Barnes families, it was not in John's immediate family. As he says in his letter, in his grandfather's family there was only one girl and her name was Mildred and Mildred went on to marry a Mr. Roach. I have carried out some research on Jane Arlott's family and I have not been able to find any link between Jane's family Arlott and John's family. As John Arlott says in his letter, 'he has no doubt that our families were connected because my grandfather came from near the Hampshire/Berkshire border'; the Barnes family also originated from the same area, living in the villages of Heckfield and Mattingley, which are conveniently located on the road that leads to Basingstoke. A link is possible, although it may be very distant. Aunt Freda thought that there was some family link involving the Channel Islands. In amongst her possessions was a photograph / post card of a woman taken in Jersey - the photographers name 'Albert Smith' and 'Jersey' are embossed on the lower right hand edge of the photographer.  
The photograph of 'sister Penn' sent to 'dear Jenny' and dated 'Xmas 1924'.

This photograph was found in the possessions of Elizabeth Freda Victoria Druett (nee Barnes). There is no other information as to who this might be except that being from Jersey this person may well be named 'Arlott'.

The reverse of the photograph.

Dated 1914, this photograph is of 'our dear old Penny, Blanche, Maud and John'. It seems to be addressing 'sister Anne'.

The reverse of the photograph. On the left it reads, 'our dear old Penny, Blanche, Maud and John 1914.
sister Anne(?) I have been very bad obliged to g to the doctor again little better today(?) Best/Bert(?) <unreadable> Torn or Tom(?) <unreadable> old self. On the right it says 'dear old Jenny ask Anne(?) if she will wash these old curtains for me she need not iron them starch them and pull them out will do for me <unreadable> you <unreadable>.		  
   
Albert Smith (1853-1914) was originally from Liverpool and worked in a studio in Waterloo before going to Jersey in 1892 and purchasing the photographic business of Monsieur Baudoux and Sons at 59 New Street, St Helier. He worked from several different premises in St. Helier and was able to advertise as being the largest photographic establishment in the Channel Islands. Although he was a prolific photographer he would not have taken all the photographs attributed to him, many would have been taken by his employees.