Danny Dyer’s Right Royal Family
Late January BBC One
It’s safe to say that the moment when EastEnders star Danny Dyer discovered that he could trace his lineage directly to Edward III (1312–1377) was one of the most memorable scenes in the long history of Who Do You Think You Are? (the monarch is the actor’s 22x great grandfather). Clearly, it’s whetted his appetite to learn more because he’s now turned living-history presenter for a much-anticipated two-part series that takes viewers through 800 years of British history, as Danny experiences how his royal and aristocratic forebears lived.
He begins in the 9th and 10th centuries, when his 35x great grandfather, the Viking adventurer Rollo (c860–c930), became the ruler of Normandy. Eating sheep’s tongue and fighting are involved. Moving forward in time, Rollo’s descendants included Danny’s ancestor William the Conqueror. The man who took the crown in 1066 was a keen hunter and Danny tries his hand on horse and foot, in the style of the Normans.
Danny also spends time at Dover Castle, where he’s treated like a king. But if all this is fun, Danny also has to live for a day in the manner of French monarch Louis IX (1214–1270), a man famed for his piety.
In the second episode, Danny dons 14th-century armour, as would have been worn by his 19x great grandfather Henry ‘Hotspur’ Percy (1364–1403), a man who led successive rebellions against Henry IV; and, donning a ruff, hosts an Elizabethanstyle sugar banquet attended by his family, who all get to share in the fun of dressingup. “I’m still in shock at the fact that I’m related to such important people,” Danny