Showbiz royalty
Top stars in a game of thrones
TV soap king Danny Dyer is set to star in a new history show after he discovered that he was related to William the Conqueror and Edward III.
He says: “I’m still in shock at the fact that I’m related to such important people.” For Danny Dyer’s Right Royal Family the 41-year-old will eat and dress like his royal ancestors.
But he’s not the only celeb with blue blooded connections. Here JAMES MOORE has throne together a look at some of the other stars with royal links...
KIT HARINGTON: Best known for his role as King of the North in TV’s Game of Thrones, it turns out that the 31-year-old is descended from Charles II through his father’s mother. The star says he’s branded posh because of the link.
HUGH GRANT: The star of Paddington 2 is related to the first Tudor king, Henry VII, through his mother’s side. The 58-year-old also counts James IV, King of Scotland between 1488 and
1513, as an ancestor.
TOM HANKS: He’s Hollywood royalty thanks to starring in flicks such as Saving Private Ryan, but it turns out that the 62-year-old is also a descendant of King John of England, who ruled from 1199 to 1216, making him
24th cousin to the Queen. JOHNNY DEPP: Known for his roles in films such as Pirates Of The Caribbean, the 55-year-old actor is related to King Edward III, who died in 1377. The link is via a branch of Depp’s family that hails from Yorkshire and relatives of the 3rd Earl of Northumberland, Henry Percy, who died in
1489. He was Edward’s four-times great-grandson. Depp is 20th cousins with the Queen.
GUY RITCHIE: The Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels director is related to the Duchess of Cambridge. The pair are sixth cousins, once removed. Their connection is through an 18th Century Norfolk couple David Martineau and Sarah Meadows. Ritchie went to the royal wedding in
2011.
MADONNA: The pop star is a distant cousin of the Duchess of Cornwall. They both share 17th Century FrenchCanadian ancestors Madeleine Ernard and Zacharie Cloutier. Another singer, CELINE DION, has the same link.
RALPH FIENNES: The British actor,
55, who played Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter movies, is a descendant of King James II of Scotland and eighth cousin to Prince Charles.
UMA THURMAN: A descendant of
13th Century King Edward I, on her father’s side, makes her a 21st cousin, once removed of the Queen.
BRAD PITT: The movie icon is related to King Henry II, who ruled from
1154 to 1189, through his mum. BORIS JOHNSON: The former foreign secretary is a distant cousin of the Queen. Through his paternal grandmother, Yvonne Eileen Williams, the 18th Century King George II is Bojo’s great-great-great-greatgreat-great-great-great-grandfather.
ROBERT PATTINSON: The 32-year star of the Twilight vampire movies can claim to be a distant cousin of Prince William and Prince Harry through their dad, but chillingly his family is also related to ancient Romanian ruler Vlad the Impaler… the real-life inspiration for Dracula.