Genealogy experts in bitter £100k court battle
THEY are experts in genealogy, celebrated for their hit BBC shows investigating family histories.
But away from the genteel image of their profession, Daniel Curran, star of Heir Hunters, and Philip Turvey, the probate detective behind Who Do You Think You Are?, are locked in a bitter legal battle.
Turvey claims Curran and his colleagues sent their business associates defamatory emails about him and his father Peter.
One alleged Turvey stalked Curran’s seven-year-old daughter, and another claimed his father had been convicted of sexual harassment.
The Turveys, who through their company Anglia Research helped the BBC trace the ancestors of the likes of actress Sheridan Smith, deny the allegations and are suing Curran for up to £100,000 in the High Court.
It is not the first time that Curran, who was once married to Elizabeth Hurley’s sister, has been accused of maligning Turvey.
Three years ago, Curran, who runs Finders Geneaolgists, made a public apology and settled out of court for defamation against his rival. But the antagonism has rumbled on.
According to legal papers in the new case, one email dated June 8, 2015, read: ‘Mr Turvey ran an abusive account on Twitter for over a year before Finders were able to have it closed down. This included stolen pictures from Finders staff personal Facebook accounts which they posted online, and they followed Daniel Curran’s seven-year-old daughter’s school.’ Another email said: ‘We have established that Peter Turvey was convicted of sexual harassment and the bitterness of his attacks and persistent harassment of me & Finders is somewhat explained by his criminal record in my view. ‘We are also currently pursuing Anglia for a potentially fraudulent claim on an estate of approx £1 million in value.’ The business of heir hunting, in which probate detectives track down relatives of people who died without a will, has become increasingly lucrative and competitive since the BBC1 show Heir Hunters launched in 2007. Finders Genealogists has net assets of £4million, while Anglia Research has assets of £1.2 million. The Turveys declined to discuss the new court case. Curran said: ‘I have worked in this industry for 28 years and there is no doubt it is fiercely competitive. I acknowledge there is an ongoing legal issue.’