TV & RADIO
All the must-see/hear programmes
Who Do You Think You Are? Saturday 22 April, from 2pm Yesterday
At the very earliest, it will be later in the year before there are any new episodes of WDYTYA? to enjoy. In the meantime, the UKTV network continues to re-run the series, including a weekend event in which Yesterday shows season 11, originally broadcast in 2014.
It was a series that featured one of many fans’ favourite-ever episodes, the largerthan-life encounter between larger-than-life Brian Blessed and his own family history. The actor wasn’t interested in finding royal connections. “I’m looking for humanity!” he boomed as he set out on his family research. He found it in the 19th century story of Jabez Blessed, a workhouse orphan who overcame huge obstacles through a combination of “guts and courage and imagination”.
It’s by no means the only remarkable story in the series, which also features actor Sheridan Smith exploring the troubled story of a musical forebear and taking up the banjo as a result; TV presenter Reggie Yates reconnecting with his Ghanaian roots on an emotional journey to sub-Saharan Africa; and, rather wonderfully, Mary Berry discovering that her great-great grandfather was a baker, albeit one whose bread likely wouldn’t have passed muster on Bake Off.
There’s also the remarkable story of Brendan O’Carroll’s paternal grandfather, Peter. In October 1920, Peter was shot and murdered in Dublin – but why? The creator of Mrs Brown’s Boys turned historical detective for an episode that told a story of political assassination linked to the Irish War of Independence (1919-21) and even identified Peter’s likely killer. Last year, O’Carroll returned to the same era for Brendan O’Carroll – My Family at War, which explored the involvement of three of his uncles – Liam, James and Peadar O’Carroll – in the Easter Rising.
The series also featured Dame Julie Walters, Tamzin Outhwaite, Martin Shaw, Billy Connolly and Twiggy. Jonathan Wright