Tamzin Outhwaite

Actor Tamzin researched her Italian ancestry on Who Do You Think You Are? six years ago

The former EastEnders star remembers her maternal grandfather Remo, but knew little about his family’s origin in Italy until episode three of series 11, which first aired on 21 August 2014. His father Adelmo Santi left Tuscany as a teenager in 1913 and ended his days in Fishburn, County Durham. The Santi family originates in the hill town of Barga in western Tuscany. It was a poor area in the early 20th century, and as a result many people moved to Glasgow, including Adelmo. He became a successful

business owner and ice-cream maker who was called “the richest man in Fishburn”.

However, after Italy joined the Second World War in 1940, male Italian immigrants in the UK over 16 years old were declared “enemy aliens” and rounded up for internment. Adelmo and his eldest son, Peter, were sent to a camp on the Isle of Man. Adelmo found himself labelled as a Fascist simply because of his Italian origins. Thankfully, neither man turned against his adopted home, and both Adelmo and Peter became naturalised British citizens in 1957.

Tamzin also learned during her episode that Adelmo had previously contended with a personal tragedy. One of his children died in 1936 at the age of 12. Arthur, as he was then known, couldn’t afford to pay for the funeral, so the local community in Fishburn raised the money. Later, Adelmo showed his gratitude when he bought a field that’s now used as a children’s playground, and Tamzin visited the site and saw a plaque commemorating his generosity.