history lesson
The most shocking revelations to come out of Who Do You Think You Are? – from royal relatives to death by poisoning
One star discovered their father had been a bigamist and abandoned them to emigrate with his other family
IT'S been a mainstay of the BBC One schedule for 20 years now, and soon, Who Do You Think You Are? will be back with another new series.
The 21st series of the show will see a new batch of famous faces - including Gemma Collins, Vicky McClure, Paddy McGuinness and Olly Murs - delve into their family's pasts.
And if previous series are anything to go by, they're bound to be in for a few surprises.
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Ahead of its return this coming Thursday (August 15), here's a look back on some of the most shocking revelations so far.
Lesley Garrett, Series One
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Opera singer Lesley discovered a sinister cause of death in the family when she found records of her great-great-grandmother Mary’s carbolic poisoning.
Her great-great-grandfather Charles accidentally gave her carbolic acid, instead of the medicine she should have been taking.
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Danny Dyer, Series 13
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Former EastEnders star Danny had a shocking revelation that he is related to royalty.
After discovering that his 3 x great-grandmother was in and out of the workhouse, Danny was astonished to discover that his 10 x great-grandfather Robert Gosnold fought in the English Civil War on the royalist side, and that Robert’s mother, his 11x great-grandmother was a Tollemache, whose great-grandfather was Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s right-hand man.
Thomas Cromwell’s son Gregory married Elizabeth Seymour, the sister of Jane Seymour - Henry VIII's third and favourite wife.
Following the Seymour line back, Danny discovered the
unthinkable – King Edward III is his 22 x great-grandfather.
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Natasha Kaplinsky, Series Four
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Former newsreader Natasha made the surprising discovery that during a Nazi invasion, her great-uncle joined the Bielski brothers, a group of partisan fighters who fought a guerrilla war against the Germans.
The Bielskis built underground shelters in the woods and saved more than a thousand Jews from the Nazis.
Kevin Clifton becomes emotional on BBC's Who Do You Think You Are?
Matt Lucas, Series 19
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Little Britain star Matt Lucas discovered his ancestors fled to the Netherlands, where one of them actually rented a room from Anne Frank’s family and was even living with them when they left to go into hiding.
Matt’s ancestors died at Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp and Auschwitz.
Alistair McGowan, Series Four
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Funnyman Alistair expected to find Scottish ancestry but instead discovered his Indian heritage which his dad had never talked about.
Alan Cumming, Series Seven
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The Traitors US host and actor Alan was shocked to discover that his maternal grandfather Thomas Darling died during a game of Russian Roulette in Malaysia in 1951.
Kim Cattrall, Series Six
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Sex and the City star Kim - who was born in Liverpool - turned detective and set out to discover what happened to her maternal grandfather George Baugh, who simply disappeared, leaving behind his wife and three daughters.
One of the daughters was Kim’s mum who was just 8 at the time. He was never heard of again.
Kim knew that her mum and her family lived in poverty after George left and she wanted to find out what happened to him.
It’s a tale of twists and turns as Kim dealt with dead ends and red herrings, until she finally discovered the truth, that her grandfather was a bigamist and eventually emigrated to Australia with his new family.
Kevin Clifton, Series 20
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Former Strictly pro dancer Kevin had heard rumours in his family about them possibly having Canadian Indigenous ancestry, connected to a woman called Matooskie, but it felt unlikely to him, coming from Grimsby.
So Kevin was astonished and delighted when he ended up in a remote location called York Factory in Canada and discovered that Matooskie was his Canadian First Nations 5 x great-grandmother.
He was especially moved to see a photo of Matooskie.
Josh Widdicombe, Series 18
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A rich history of Earls and Countesses uncovers royal ancestry in comedian Josh Widdicombe, who discovered his 10x great-grandfather was a senior advisor to King Charles I.
He was also the King’s Groom of the Stool - responsible for escorting him to the bathroom, a very coveted position.
Josh also learned that his 14 x great-grandmother is Mary Boleyn, the sister of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII’s second wife.
Mary had a relationship with Henry VIII and some historians believe that Mary’s daughter, Katherine Knollys (Josh’s 13 x great-grandmother) was Henry VIII’s and not her husband’s – a revelation that Josh is delighted by.
Through Mary Boleyn, Josh is descended from Edward I – his 23 x great-grandfather.
Adil Ray, Series 14
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It was revealed that Adil is related to Ugandan royalty. Adil travelled to Uganda to meet his distant cousins, the nephews and nieces of Razia, his great-grandmother.
Here he discovered that Razia’s grandfather, Adil’s 3 x great-grandfather, was a chief called Kamanyiro.
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Kamanyiro’s sister was the mother of Bugandan King, Kabaka Mutessa I.
Who Do You Think You Are? returns on Thursday, August 15 at 9pm on BBC One.
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