Who Do You Think You Are? - Season 20

Andrew Lloyd Webber is a global superstar of musical theatre, still writing and producing blockbuster shows. He has also combined his nose for business with his love of architecture by renovating the Theatre Royal Drury Lane to its original condition. Andrew knows he comes from a musical family, including virtuoso cellist brother, Julian – but he'd love to find out where his showbiz genes and his love of musical theatre come from.

A quick investigation of his own archive reveals a much posher lineage than expected. By following his mother's line, Andrew soon uncovers his four-times great Uncle Peregrine, who played a key role under Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo. Peregrine in turn leads Andrew to his 12-times great-grandmother Katherine Willoughby, a Tudor duchess and powerful player in Henry VIII's court who was later persecuted and threatened with death for her religious beliefs. As her dramatic life unfolds, Andrew is not only astonished by her determination and resilience but delighted to learn of her association with some of Britain's most architecturally important stately homes.

Next, Andrew investigates his father's side – a much humbler line, with both his grandfather and great-grandfather working as plumbers. With the help of his cousin Anne, he discovers his two-times great-grandfather Henry Simmonds was a missionary who dedicated his life to helping the poor and needy. Described as a ‘real working-class hero', Andrew is thrilled to find out that Henry was the author of the first architectural guide to Battersea.

Andrew still wants to uncover any musical links, and with the help of genealogist Laura Berry, he finally traces more musicians in the family, including his five-times great-grandfather Henry who has the curious surname Magito – which Andrew soon learns is Dutch. What follows next is a series of extraordinary resonances with Andrew's own life - an extended family of Magitos, who were not only accomplished musicians, but also showmen and producers making their living by staging the 18th-century equivalent of musical theatre.

But the coincidences don't stop there. More investigation proves his five-times grandfather Henry Magito had a brother, Alexis Magito, who was also a cellist. A trip to Leiden uncovers a long-lost sonata written by Alexis that reveals he was an accomplished composer and player for the cello. Andrew can't wait to return to London to meet with his younger brother Julian and share the extraordinary coincidences of their shared ancestry.

Actress Claire Foy is best known for playing the young Queen Elizabeth in The Crown. Having enjoyed researching the lives of her onscreen characters, she's now looking forward to delving into the lives of her own ancestors.

Claire starts with a visit to see her mum and her 93-year-old grandad. After reminiscing about their Irish roots, her grandad tells Claire the tragic story of his father, Claire's great-grandfather, Charles Stimpson, who was killed on his motorbike. Curiously, Claire's great grandad Charles's place of birth is marked as the rather posh-sounding ‘The Castle' in Carlisle - so that's where Claire heads next.

The Castle turns out to be the site of the military barracks where her great-great-grandparents Henry and Maria Stimpson lived. It's Henry's life as a soldier that leads to another tragic story – his drowning during an off-duty cross-country race. Claire visits the river where he died and is saddened by an accident that also left a widow with five children, who were now homeless and without an income. Claire is heartened to read how the local community reacted to the tragedy, raising money to help them continue their lives.

Next, Claire investigates her paternal side. Her dad David was adopted but was reunited with his birth mother Joyce later in life. Despite having got to know Joyce, he knows nothing of her ancestors, so Claire sets out to find out more.

With help from a genealogist, Claire takes her paternal line back to her three-times great-grandparents John and Eliza Martin and is pleased to see that, just like her maternal family, her dad's line also has Irish roots - John was born in Dublin. Claire is shocked to read a local newspaper story about John's arrest in 1867 when he was accused of rioting in Manchester. Further investigation reveals that John is accused of being present during an attack on a police van transporting Fenian prisoners, in which a policeman was fatally shot. The Fenians were a secret society dedicated to overthrowing British rule in Ireland. If found guilty of this charge of joint enterprise, her three-times great grandfather John would be sentenced to death.

John and his brother William were arrested alongside many other Irish men in Manchester. Despite protesting their innocence, eyewitnesses placed them at the scene. Their trial was national news, and with the help of historian Rose Wallis, Claire slowly pieces together the story of a riveting court case. In a tense courtroom with the odds stacked against them – the lives of Claire's three-times great-grandfather John and her four-times great-uncle William hang in the balance until the stand is taken by witnesses called by the defence - including Claire's three-times great-grandmother Eliza. Thanks to the alibis provided by Eliza and the other witnesses, the brothers are found not guilty.

As she comes to the end of her journey Claire can't help but be grateful to the communities that have rallied and supported her family in times of need.

As an adventurer, wilderness expert and chief scout, Bear Grylls has travelled to some of the most hostile environments in the world, sharing his survival secrets with audiences of millions. Bear is curious about a tendency to ‘follow the path less trodden' so he's now embarking on a journey into his family's history. The trail starts at home where, alongside his wife Shara, Bear explores his paternal grandfather Ted Grylls's old trunk, intriguingly full of documents marked ‘Top Secret'!

Bear heads to Sandhurst Military Academy where his grandfather Ted trained to be an army officer in the 1920s. Here Bear discovers Ted's fascination with all things mechanical – especially tanks. With help from the team at the British Tank Museum, Bear learns how Ted became one of the British Army's biggest experts in armoured vehicles and tank warfare, advising both the British and Americans on how to win on the battlefield and contributing to the success of the D-Day landings.

But it's Ted's job leading top secret organisation T-Force that helps Bear really understand the pressures his grandfather faced and reveal clues about his character. Charged with identifying, tracing and sometimes even kidnapping Germany's best scientists for interrogation by the Allies after the war, Ted had to stay in Europe long after World War II was over, working on a morally complex mission, far from his family.

Bear also wants to find out more about the life of his beloved, ‘bear hug of a man', grandad Neville. Neville's father and Bear's great-grandfather, Lionel Ford, is revealed to be a loving family man and progressive headmaster who modernised Harrow School. In Harrow's Headmaster's House, where his grandad played as a boy, Bear discovers the truth behind a family tragedy – the death of his great uncle Richard, who died of an infection as a teenager. As a father of three boys himself, Bear is moved to read Lionel's own words about his grief and love for a lost son.

Finally, following his family line back several centuries reveals, to Bear's delight, Scottish ancestry. His habit of walking the dog in a kilt no longer feels fraudulent! A trip to Scotland uncovers the story of Bear's ten-times great-grandfather the Duke of Argyll, whose religious beliefs and devotion to Scotland cost him his head, courtesy of the Scottish maiden, a gruesome type of guillotine. And at his last destination, his mum's dreams of a royal connection come true. At the Argyll Mausoleum, Bear discovers his 21-times great-grandfather is none other than a famous Scottish king.

Kevin Clifton came to fame as a dancer on Strictly, eventually winning the series with his partner in dance – and now in life – Stacey Dooley. Known on set as ‘Kevin from Grimsby', he's proud of his northern roots but wants to investigate a long-standing family rumour from much further afield.

According to his dad, the Cliftons might be related to a mysterious woman called Matooski from the First Nations in Canada.

After discovering from censuses that his great-great-grandmother Emma was born in Canada, and that she was in an orphanage there, Kevin travels to Canada to investigate. He soon learns she spent a year in an orphanage even though her parents were still alive. Solving this mystery uncovers a powerful story of life in one of the colonial towns of Canada and a divorce, which was rare at the time. It made national news, enabling Kevin to read all the details of the case as it passed through the court. Despite allegations of abuse against her husband, Kevin's three-times great-grandmother Grace had her three children taken away, and they ended up in the orphanage.

Tracing Grace's family further back, Kevin heads to York Factory, a remote trading post on Hudson Bay, once the centre of the British Canadian fur trade. It's here that he discovers his five-times great-grandmother is Matooski – one of the very few First Nations women to be recorded in historical documents. Matooski was also known as Nancy and became the ‘country wife' of the head of the trading post, John George McTavish. Nancy, and other women like her, provided indispensable local knowledge and skills that enabled posts like York Factory to succeed.

Nancy was eventually abandoned by her British ‘husband,' and Kevin discovers how she and her daughter Grace, Kevin's four-times great-grandmother, narrowly survived a dangerous river journey inland. By the end of his journey, Kevin finds out that he comes from a long line of skilled and courageous female ancestors who survived – and thrived – against the odds.

Doctors Chris and Xand van Tulleken are identical twins, medical doctors and science broadcasters. They grew up in London, surrounded by old paintings and documents commemorating a host of characters from their Dutch ancestry. But despite the wealth of the family archive, the twins know very little about their Dutch family history, except how to pronounce their surname correctly and rumours of a connection to Dutch nobility.

A chat with mum and dad provides some intriguing clues, a coat of arms that no-one can translate, a silver shovel that hints at an Indonesian connection and a document about a Dutch sea captain with links to the British Navy. Keen to find out the family stories behind all these familiar but mysterious artefacts, Chris and Xand start with sea captain Jan Tulleken and head to Chatham Docks.

They soon uncover the eventful seafaring career of their four-times great-grandfather Jan Tulleken, a staunch royalist who joined the Dutch navy at 13 and, as war engulfed the Netherlands, was exiled in England alongside his leader, the prince of Orange.

Chris and Xand follow the trail of Jan back to the Netherlands, where they discover how Jan was tasked to protect Dutch trade routes against Algerian pirates – a mission that ended in failure. Undaunted by his tarnished reputation, Jan applied for noble status. Excited to finally get to the bottom of their noble roots, a trip to The Hague's Supreme Council of Nobility brings Chris and Xand firmly back down to earth.

By following Jan's line further back, the twins uncover a letter that reveals an Ambrosius Tulleken, Jan's father and the twins' five-times great-grandfather, who died in Demerara (now Guyana,) which at the time was a Dutch colony. Following this lead reveals a troubling story.

The twins also believe there is a family connection with Indonesia and taking the silver shovel to an expert reveals the story of their three-times great-grandfather Hendrik de Bruijn, a Dutch engineer working on canals in Indonesia who married Maria de la Brethoniere, the daughter of a French coffee baron and an Indonesian woman. Chris and Xand have confirmed their Indonesian heritage and as they learn more about their three-times great-grandparents, the twins are moved to read a document that recounts Hendrik's profound grief after his wife's death, suggesting that this was a marriage of deep love.

For Chris and Xand, it's a journey that has changed them forever, as they've found answers about their name and their heritage that were previously unknown and entirely unexpected.

Comedian and actor Emily Atack knows she is from a long line of larger-than-life entertainers. Her mum is singer, actor and comedian Kate Robbins and Paul McCartney is Emily's grandmother's cousin, making him Emily's first cousin twice removed. Recalling fun days out with the McCartney family when she was little and how Grandad Mike turned every opportunity into a comedy show, Emily sets out to find out more about her showbiz genes.

On her mum's side, Emily discovers how her grandparents Mike and Betty both worked at Butlin's in the 50s – where Betty won a beauty contest. Both became redcoats, entertaining thousands of guests every summer with music and comedy – the perfect outlet for Emily's talented grandparents.

Emily is astonished to read a family letter to her grandad from a teenage Paul McCartney, telling him about his new band and looking for showbiz advice. A visit to Uncle Mike, Paul's brother, reveals even more entertaining stories about the McCartney family.

Inspired by the amazing McCartney musical tales, there's only one place it makes sense to visit – Liverpool. While there, Emily discovers that her family's musical roots go all the way back to the brass bands of industrial Britain.

Following on from her musical discoveries in Liverpool, Emily then heads to Wrexham to find out more about her great-grandfather Ted Robbins's involvement in the town's football club. She soon learns he played a greater part in Welsh football than she had originally anticipated, and that he was considered a hero to Welsh football fans.

Emily's dad's family line reveals even more showbiz glamour – her glamorous great-aunt Doreen Atack commanded huge audiences as a theatrical whistler. But before Emily's ancestors developed their skills as entertainers, like so many living in northern towns, they worked in the mines.

By following the family line up to Wakefield, Emily uncovers why her great-grandfather Bill fought so hard to get his family away from the pits. At Nostell in Yorkshire, Emily discovers a story of hardship, dangerous working conditions and struggles with mental health. The lives of her great-great-grandparents, Joseph and Emily Atack, still resonate with Emily over 130 years later.

Born to an Irish mum and a Jamaican dad, Dev Griffin grew up feeling he didn't fit in either community. He hopes discovering more about his ancestors will help him strengthen his sense of identity and belonging.

On his first ever trip to Ireland, Dev uncovers the momentous events surrounding the lives of his Irish grandmother's dad, his great-grandad Frank Weafer, and Frank's brother Patrick, Dev's great-great-uncle. Both were involved in Ireland's fight for independence in the early 20th century. Patrick Weafer marched to Dublin to fight in the Easter Rising, a decision that put him in a gunfight on Dublin's rooftops and in the middle of one of the most significant events in modern Irish history.

Similar to his brother, Frank became involved in the republican movement during the Irish War of Independence and had a role in a cycling corps, delivering intelligence messages. Both lived to see the declaration of the Irish Free State.

Next, Dev travels to Kilkee on the west coast of Ireland to learn about his Irish grandfather's dad, his great-grandfather James Griffin, who was known by his Gaelic name, Séamus Mór Ó Gríobhtha. As he uncovers Séamus's involvement in the Gaelic League, Dev learns about the battle to preserve Irish culture and language during this period. Dev is astonished by what he learns about Ireland's history and reveals how proud he is of his Irish ancestors.

Following his father's line, Dev travels to Jamaica. An emotional meeting with his newly discovered auntie Viveine leads Dev to an incredible document from the local Baptist church that reveals the day-to-day lives of his great-grandparents Joshua and Annie Riley, including some rather cheeky details, to paint an astonishingly intimate picture of island life in the early 20th century.

Discovering his ancestry uncovers stories of bravery, family and love, and Dev can finally claim both his Irish and Jamaican heritage with knowledge and pride.

Comedian Chris Ramsey draws huge audiences to his live comedy shows and also presents a podcast and TV show with his wife Rosie about the trials and tribulations of being married with children. From a South Shields working-class family, Chris feels he has a charmed and lucky life and wonders if his ancestors were as fortunate.

He starts by investigating his great-grandad Dryden Gordon Young, who fought in the First World War. A trip to the military base in Dorset where Dryden trained reveals he fought at Gallipoli, one of the deadliest campaigns of the war. After surviving the battle, Dryden's luck takes a different turn as he avoids fighting on the western front due to a nasty case of scabies and, after being captured, becomes a prisoner of war in Germany. Despite being involved in some of the most dangerous events of the war, Dryden survived to continue the family line.

Chris discovers more good fortune in his family when he learns about his grandad Alf Ramsey, who served in the navy in the Second World War. A trip to HMS Belfast reveals the freezing and dangerous conditions Alf endured during his work on the Arctic convoys, transporting vital supplies from Britain to Russia via the Arctic Ocean. After surviving German bombers and sub-zero temperatures, Alf later became one of the first British servicemen to witness the devastating aftermath of atomic warfare in Japan.

By tracing his family further back, Chris discovers his lucky streak goes back centuries, with the curious story of his five-times great-grandparents Gabriel and Ann's experiences at London's British Lying-In Hospital. One of the few places where poorer women could give birth in safer and more sanitary conditions, it was extremely difficult to secure a place there. In the late 18th century, when his five-times great-grandmother Ann was pregnant, only those lucky enough to pass a rigorous interview and then win a lottery were able to give birth there and help ensure that their children enjoyed a better start in life.

By the end of his journey, Chris's sense of good fortune is firmer than ever. He's here because of a long line of brave and determined ancestors, all helped along by a healthy dose of good luck.

Actor Lesley Manville never knew much about her grandparents but wants to get to the bottom of family rumours surrounding her mum's side of the family. Despite living in a time when having children out of wedlock was a scandalous choice, Lesley's maternal grandparents, James and Harriet, never married - and Lesley and her sister Diana's impression is that their grandfather 'wasn't a very nice man'.

By delving deep into Brighton's local archives, Lesley uncovers a complex story of wartime separation, adultery and the inaccessibility of divorce, which leads to her grandparents' unconventional family arrangement. As the records reveal more details of their lives, Lesley is profoundly moved to discover that her grandad comes across as a kind and loving man.

Tracing back her father's line reveals even more surprises as Lesley sets off to solve what happened to her three-times great grandfather Aaron Harding. With no record of his death, what happened to him is a mystery. A widower with a large family to feed, Aaron protested poor conditions and pay as an agricultural worker in rural Hampshire in 1830 - a protest that would become known as the Swing Riots. As one of the key figures in the riots, Aaron was arrested and subsequently transported to Australia. Lesley follows Aaron's trail to the other side of the world to learn about his final fate and ends up discovering family she never knew existed.