anyone familiar with this Dr. Spence who claims that DNA analysis is a HOAX?

[Matilda]

12. I don't know anything about this Dr. Spence,

but I've been doing a lot of reading about DNA testing, partly out of curiosity about whether I could trace where my more distant ancestors came from, and more recently because of my interest in the testing carried out on the descendants of the sister of Richard III.

The second case is undoubtedly genuine, but when you consider the issues - the rarity of the find, and the importance of correct identification, you know that many thousands, tens of thousands, of pounds would have been spent in the testing process. They couldn't afford the tiniest error on that one.

But while this is technically possible, it does seem that only the most general kind of testing can be carried out on all the individuals who want to find out where they came from, because there isn't the time or resources to be as thorough as people might wish. The fact that the results from various sites can vary is proof that while the science is genuine, the process of mass testing leaves a lot to be desired.

Dr Spence seems to imply that it's all a cynical con game, and maybe that's true to some degree. I think it probably is a way of cashing in on the great interest in genealogy that's come about from series like Who Do You Think You Are?, and there are accredited websites that do imply they can achieve much more than they really can, even claiming you might find a link to Elizabeth I, or Louis IV, etc. To prove a link to anybody who died hundreds of years ago, you'd need not only your DNA but theirs as well, so unless family records show your descent from somebody illustrious, you're never going to be able to prove it.

I decided to save my money and just keep ploughing through records now and then to see if anything new has come up.