My friend has found out that she was not wife number two to her husband but number four and he hadn`t told her. We`ve also heard from a couple of sources that he has more kids somewhere. Is it possible to go to St Catherine`s house and just look up the marriages and births of someone by their name or do you have to go to each individual local authority where the marriages/births take place? (which she doesn`t know)
Your friend could either visit St. Catherine's House, or if she wished to start by investigating on-line I would suggest using either Find my Past, who detail BM & D's to 2006, or Ancestry.co uk, whose records can be searched up to 2005:
Although these are not free websites, it will be quicker than trawling through the St. Catherine's records, and any relevant certificates can be ordered on-line.