Joe Swash will break down in tears as he reads a letter from his great great grandfather in an emotional Who Do You Think You Are? episode next week.
The former EastEnders star will take a trip down memory lane in the latest episode of the BBC show, looking back through his family history across Italy.
And Joe, 44, will be moved to tears in one ‘moving’ moment, where he is presented with a letter written by a family member thought to be illiterate.
Sitting down with his mother Kiffy at the start of the episode to discuss what she remembers of his family history, the actor will learn of how his great grandfather Charlie Swash, married his great grandmother Maria, whose family was from Italy.
Tracing their story back, starting with a census showing their address in Clerkenwell, London, Joe discovers that his great great grandfather, Maria’s father Giuseppe, was illiterate at the time.
Unable to sign his name at the bottom of the document, Joe is told by experts: ‘Usually that meant the person couldn’t write their name… It wasn’t uncommon at all around here, especially for the Italian migrants.’
Joe Swash will break down in tears as he reads a letter from his great great grandfather in an emotional Who Do You Think You Are ? episode next week
The former EastEnders star will take a trip down memory lane in the latest episode of the BBC show, looking back through his family history across Italy
He later learns Giuseppe worked in London as a street performer to earn money after coming to London in 1894, before becoming a factory worker and later, a piano tuner in what is described as an ‘immigrant success story’.
Giuseppe’s name went on to appear in a newspaper alongside suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst, speaking as part of a meeting at the Communist Workers Movement who campaigned for workers rights and against Mussolini’s totalitarian dictatorship in Italy.
And when Joe enquires for more information about his great great grandfather, he learns that Giuseppe was in fact able to read and write.
Presented with a letter written by Giuseppe, Joe will break down in tears as he reads the words written by his late family member as part of a newspaper article about achieving world peace.
Reading the letter aloud, Joe, who is married to Stacey Solomon, says: ‘If we desire peace, we must organise against this brutal system, we must abolish the greed of gain, and unite in serving our neighbours.
‘When we do that, armies will no longer exist and there shall be no blood shed. Joy and happiness shall be supreme and humanity will be flowers of spring.’
Struggling to hold back his emotions, he tells the expert on hand: ‘I think it’s beautiful, and I’m a little bit more emotional than I thought I would ever be about my relatives, I thought I could detach myself.
‘There’s something quite touching about reading something like that. It’s beautiful, it really is, and I thought my [great great] grandad was illiterate because he signed everything with a cross… He wasn’t stupid.’
Reading the letter aloud, Joe, who is married to Stacey Solomon, will break down in tears
Wiping away tears, Joe responds to his grandfather was ‘taking risks’ by writing into the newspaper by saying: ‘He was a good guy. It’s just nice to know that I’ve got a little bit of him in my DNA.
‘I’m just so proud and honoured to have him as one of my ancestors. This is a man that’s come over from Italy with nothing, starting at the very bottom.
‘Through all the trials and tribulations, he still had the passion, the gumption, to get up and speak his mind even though he knew that was probably going to put him in danger. It shows me what kind of man he was.
‘I started this journey thinking, “What is my story going to be? Have I got a story?”. Not in a million years would I have thought that I would have been related to such a legend.’
The duo will be joined by the likes of Mr Bates vs the Post Office actor Toby Jones, who will make an ‘astonishing discovery’ as to his lineage in north India.
Things will take an emotional turn for broadcaster Zoe, 55, as she unearths a tragedy about her family history in Cornwall.
Meanwhile, Strictly Come Dancing professional Amy, 35, will be followed by the BBC cameras as they solve a murder, and find another story that hits very close to the recent experiences of her own life.
The series, which sees famous faces step back in time with the help of experts to uncover their family’s stories, will this time span centuries and see the celebrities journey across the UK, Australia, Tasmania, Italy, India, Kenya and the Bahamas.
Dancer Amy, who recently revealed she had beaten breast cancer, has been tipped to take a look at a story very similar to her own life as part of her episode.
The new series of the BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are? will see Amy Dowden break down in tears as she faces a series of family tragedies
Things will take an emotional turn for broadcaster Zoe, 55, as she unearths a tragedy about her family history in Cornwall
Her look back into the past will also lead her to a West Wales farmhouse, and a valley named after one of her ancestors, according to the publication.
Meanwhile, TV and radio presenter Zoe will look at both her Scottish and Cornish roots and on her way, discover a tragic tale of survival.
Actor Toby, 59, will be lead to north India as part of his journey into the past, arriving at the location where his great-great-grandfather was stationed during his time with the British Army.
Elsewhere, EastEnders actor and I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! star Joe Swash will journey to southern Italy to uncover more about a ‘dramatic’ family story that details outlaws and their crimes.
Olympic heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson will look back at her Bahamian family history, learning about their migration to Miami, USA, during segregation and the rise of the Ku Klux Klan.
And Doctor Who actress Ruth Madeley is said to dig out a secret family adoption that had long been buried, using DNA to uncover a long lost family member.
BAFTA winning actor Adeel Akhtar will travel away from the UK in his episode, tracing his Indian-Kenyan roots by heading to the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.
Finally, Olivier and Emmy award winner Dame Harriet Walter is said to uncover the secret intelligence role one of her family members held during World War II, as well as a serious scandal for one her Italian ancestors.
Toby, 59, will be lead to north India as part of his journey into the past, arriving at the location where his great-great-grandfather was stationed
A BBC insider told The Mirror: ‘This series never fails to astonish and surprise.
‘And in all of the hidden histories it uncovers – aided by the generosity and openness of a simply exceptional cast – we can find a sample of the incredible richness and diversity that makes up modern Britain.’
The show’s executive producer, Colette Flight, added: ‘We see their astonishment, delight, laughter and tears as they discover how the incredible stories of their ancestors have shaped their family, and them.
‘Along the way they learn about the dramatic social forces and historical events that impacted their families, from Victorian silent prisons to the American civil rights movement and from Italian brigands to bankruptcy.’
The series is in the works and tipped to return on BBC this spring, with four episodes launching, and a further four to come in the summer after a short break.
It comes after comedian Diane Morgan was seen taking a catty swipe at the Who Do You Think You Are producers as she appeared on the BBC show.
Last year, the comedian and actress, 49, explored her father’s side of the family after he passed away six years ago.
Diane certainly showed off her funny side as she talked to the camera about taking part in the programme, bringing up some of her work that has poked fun at the series.
Diane Morgan (pictured) takes a BRUTAL swipe at the Who Do You Think You Are producers in the next episode of the BBC show
Sitting on a brown leather sofa, she cheekily said: ‘This is what I can’t understand about any of those shows, like this one, where people go on a journey, you know, you’d think people would stop using those tropes.
‘Even the tiny little things like walking past the camera… I wonder how much wondering aimlessly I’ll be doing in this…’
The actress added: ‘So I wrote this comedy called Mandy, about this woman who can’t hold a job down, in one episode she goes on Who Are You, Do You Think? Loosely based on Who Do You Think You Are.’
As the actress burst into laughter, a scene from the programme appeared on screen, as Diane’s character Mandy could be seen in a jacuzzi Deborah Meaden.
She concluded: ‘I never thought in a million years you’d ask me to be on it.’
The genealogy show, which follows famous faces as they find out about their family tree, hit our screens on the Beeb in 2004 and has had 177 episodes over 20 seasons.
Who Do You Think You Are? continues June 2 at 9pm.
