There are two types of B,D,M records that you may be able to access :

• Civil Registration records - This commenced on the 1st July 1837.  The index to these records is commonly known as the 'St Catherine's House Index' and can be found, on microfiche at larger Public Libraries and Family History Centres.

  The FreeBMD Project is attempting to transcribe these indexes and make them freely available on the internet.  There are over 100 million records in the complete index and only a small percentage has been transcribed but the searchable FreeBMD is still worth visiting as new records as continually being added.

  Other helpful sites are :

  • At GENUKI - Mike Foster's online transcripts include
    • Marriages for the March Quarter of 1849, 
    • The ongoing transcription for 1856, 
    • Entries missing from the published indexes for 1856, 1858 & 1861 
    • Selective Transcriptions for South-East England which include the fourth quarter of the year entries for the 1843 Marriage Index for East London.
  • Also, at GENUKI are the civil registration districts for London and Middlesex.
  • The Public Records Office leaflet 'Domestic Records Information 11' which explains what information will be listed on a certificate.
  • The Births, Deaths & Marriages Exchange for the United Kingdom.

  
  You don't have to have the index entry details to obtain a birth, marriage or death certificate but it will cost you more if you have to pay the Registry - or a private researcher - to search the index for you.

  You can order certificates from National Statistics.  They currently don't accept online payments but if you have a credit card you can phone or e-mail your order.  Further information, and the rate of fees for standard and priority services is available form this site.  (If you are researching from outside of Great Britain the Yahoo! Currency Converter is also useful for working out the 'real' cost.)

  You can also obtain certificates through the local District Register Offices - and this may be less expense.  Further information on how this is available at GENUKI.

• Parish records - Also, know as 'Church records'.  These can include baptisms or christenings, weddings and burials.  Parish records are likely to be your main source of information prior to the introduction of  Civil Registration in 1837 and they can also provide additional information for Births, Deaths and marriages after that year.

  One of the most accessible sources of information for Parish Records is the Church of Latter Day Saints' International Genealogical Index (IGI).  The IGI is an incomplete index to Parish records from the 1500s to the late 1880s which is available on microfiche at many Libraries and Family History Centres and for online searching at the LDS Family Search website. 

  Family Search provides a number of guides for further information on the IGI and it also worth reading the PRO's leaflet 'How to use: The International Genealogical Index' - although it only refers to the microfiche version the information is still very helpful.

  There is also an unofficial index to IGI Batch numbers - having the batch number will allow you to search all entries for one surname with birth or marriage entries at a particular Church.  GENUKI also provides a page which outlines a potential method for finding batch numbers at the LDS site.

  Similar to the FreeBMD Project is the FreeREG Project which is aiming to provide a free online searchable index for baptism, marriage, and burial records of U.K. parish and non-conformist church registers.  The project is still currently under development.

  GENUKI also has an information page on Church Records in England and specific information for London and Middlesex.

  It is also worth visiting the website for the relevant Family History Group.  Click here for GENUKI's list of FHS groups for London and Middlesex.