Who Do You Think You Are? | Preview (BBC One)

Who Do You Think You Are? returns to BBC One this spring with another star-studded line-up. The new series launches on Thursday 26th May, followed by a break for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, returning on Thursday 9th June.

Sue Perkins, Richard Osman, Matt Lucas, Anna Maxwell Martin and Ralf Little follow in their ancestors’ footsteps in this new five-part series with stories of bravery, loss, heartbreak, sacrifice, resilience and joy filtering down through the generations.

In the opening episode presenter, comedian and, we learn, enthusiastic boxer Sue Perkins investigates the poignant story of her orphaned grandfather and a great grandfather interned as an ‘enemy alien’ during the First World War. In the second episode, quiz show presenter and crime novelist Richard Osman learns that one of his ancestors ended up entangled in a notorious murder trial.

Actor, comedian and presenter Matt Lucas wants to know more about his Jewish grandmother Margot, who came to the UK from Germany in 1939. The Holocaust looms large in what he discovers, in both Berlin and Amsterdam.

Actress Anna Maxwell Martin discovers a harrowing story of separation in her grandfather’s childhood which is redeemed by family solidarity and actor Ralf Little is delighted to discover a footballing legacy and a deeper connection to his hometown of Manchester.

Executive Producer for Wall to Wall, Colette Flight, says: “Who Do You Think You Are? is back with another line-up of Britain’s best loved celebrities delving into their family trees, taking us from Brighton to Berlin, Manchester to Amsterdam, and Scotland to Lithuania...

“In an extraordinary array of stories, they uncover a Victorian murder trial, personal tragedy, sporting triumph, and families fleeing for their lives and caught up in the tide of war. The stories are at once unique and universal – a reminder of our shared history and how it has shaped who we are today.”

Who Do You Think You Are? Returns later this month on BBC One.