0:00:02 > 0:00:04Today, the heir hunters discover a family mystery,
0:00:04 > 0:00:07stretching back over a century...
0:00:07 > 0:00:09We're just trying to figure out who this person was.
0:00:09 > 0:00:12He was born in 1911.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14- Mr Thandi, nice to meet you.- Hello.
0:00:16 > 0:00:19..while another team investigate the case
0:00:19 > 0:00:24of an unusual village character who tragically died in a house fire.
0:00:24 > 0:00:26Now, I know at some point when he was younger,
0:00:26 > 0:00:29that he didn't live at home and that he lived some of the time
0:00:29 > 0:00:30in the woods.
0:00:30 > 0:00:34A visit from an heir hunter can change lives.
0:00:34 > 0:00:35Hello.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37I'm not expecting a million,
0:00:37 > 0:00:39it's just going to be exciting to receive it.
0:00:50 > 0:00:53The cases that land on the heir hunters' desks
0:00:53 > 0:00:55involve people from all walks of life.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00One unique case that recently came to the attention of researchers
0:01:00 > 0:01:02was that of Stephen Chenery.
0:01:02 > 0:01:06Stephen used to paint everything, whatever he saw,
0:01:06 > 0:01:11whatever was nature, children, he could paint it just off the cuff.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14I've got a drawing of what Steve done of me.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17He done that in 1958 and then when I went round there one day,
0:01:17 > 0:01:21he gave it to me, which I think is very special.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24That artwork is absolutely priceless.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28Stephen lived all his life in the village of Shipdham, Norfolk,
0:01:28 > 0:01:30and was known for being a colourful chap.
0:01:32 > 0:01:36Steve was a small man, wore an old suit jacket
0:01:36 > 0:01:38and his trousers were
0:01:38 > 0:01:39held up with string,
0:01:39 > 0:01:42wore boots, never saw him in shoes.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45And he never would go to the doctor.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47He used to make his own potions,
0:01:47 > 0:01:49he'd have stinging nettle tea,
0:01:49 > 0:01:51he made pottery...
0:01:51 > 0:01:54Yeah, he was a real character.
0:01:54 > 0:01:56Stephen was born in 1927
0:01:56 > 0:02:02and reared animals on a smallholding in Shipdham, known as Watery Lane.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06The farm became popular with many local children.
0:02:06 > 0:02:10I best remember Steve down Watery Lane and meeting him there
0:02:10 > 0:02:14and milking the goat and feeding the cats.
0:02:14 > 0:02:16And down there is the pond
0:02:16 > 0:02:18where we used to get the sticklebacks
0:02:18 > 0:02:21and, obviously, put them in jars and take them home
0:02:21 > 0:02:23and this is where we used to just get soaking wet
0:02:23 > 0:02:26and we were told not to get wet and we did
0:02:26 > 0:02:30and then Steve helped us out of the muddle and dried our socks.
0:02:31 > 0:02:36Those who knew Steve well saw his eccentric financial management.
0:02:36 > 0:02:44I was sat with Steve and he got two biscuit tins out of a tea chest.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47I actually said to him, "What have you got in there, Steve, biscuits?"
0:02:47 > 0:02:50He said, "I sold some land."
0:02:50 > 0:02:53And he took the lid off these two biscuit tins
0:02:53 > 0:02:56and I've never seen so much money in my life.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02Stephen was remembered as a man who was uniquely at one with nature.
0:03:02 > 0:03:04He loved animals.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07I think he loved animals more than anything else.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10And I've seen a bird land on his shoulder
0:03:10 > 0:03:12and he took the bluetit off his shoulder
0:03:12 > 0:03:15and put it on the bird table, very few people could do that.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18He could name bird songs.
0:03:18 > 0:03:20He was somebody special.
0:03:20 > 0:03:26In his later life, Stephen Chenery lived alone, rarely venturing out.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28Some call him a hermit.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31He was restricted to one room
0:03:31 > 0:03:33and the rest of the house, you never got to see it.
0:03:33 > 0:03:37And it was quite a shame, cos he was not that mobile.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40But on the evening of the 11th of January 2015,
0:03:40 > 0:03:44there was a dramatic turn of events and his house went up in flames.
0:03:46 > 0:03:48It was quite late at night
0:03:48 > 0:03:50and all of a sudden I thought I could smell smoke.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52It was chaos out here.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55I think there were three fire engines, two ambulances,
0:03:55 > 0:03:58a couple of police cars, it was absolutely mad.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02No-one knows what caused the fire, it's believed it was started
0:04:02 > 0:04:04on the ground floor.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08Mr Chenery sadly passed away, aged 87.
0:04:08 > 0:04:13Everybody was really, really devastated.
0:04:13 > 0:04:15You know, especially the people who had been going in
0:04:15 > 0:04:19and keeping an eye on him and doing his bits of shop
0:04:19 > 0:04:23and his pension, you know, cos people were kind to him.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27Without any known next of kin,
0:04:27 > 0:04:31the case reached London-based heir hunters Fraser & Fraser.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35It was kind of the end of the day, people were packing up
0:04:35 > 0:04:37and I kind of noticed something
0:04:37 > 0:04:39about a man who passed away at his house
0:04:39 > 0:04:41and then we found out that he actually owned the property.
0:04:41 > 0:04:43We had to start working immediately.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46So, what was the story behind Stephen?
0:04:46 > 0:04:49The first port of call for case manager Mike Pow
0:04:49 > 0:04:51was to speak to the locals.
0:04:51 > 0:04:54The neighbours told us he was a reclusive gentleman,
0:04:54 > 0:04:56kept himself to himself and looks like he lived most of his life
0:04:56 > 0:04:58under the radar.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02Rumours circulated about what was found in his house
0:05:02 > 0:05:03at the time of his death.
0:05:03 > 0:05:07We discovered through some neighbours and, subsequently,
0:05:07 > 0:05:09later on that the deceased had some cash in the house.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13They found about £2,500 in his armchair, where he passed away.
0:05:13 > 0:05:18However, neighbours couldn't provide any family information.
0:05:18 > 0:05:20One of the first records that we look for in a case
0:05:20 > 0:05:22is the birth certificate, because that really is going to give us
0:05:22 > 0:05:24our starting blocks for the rest of the case.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27We'll get the date of birth, we'll have the parents' names
0:05:27 > 0:05:29and that's what we really need.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31He was born around the same town where he'd died.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33It's a weird one, cos it was, like,
0:05:33 > 0:05:36everyone lived in the exact same place.
0:05:36 > 0:05:39We then checked all the marriage indexes from his date of birth
0:05:39 > 0:05:42up until when he was 16 and over to see if he was married,
0:05:42 > 0:05:45but we couldn't find anything which matched the area he lived in.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48So, we were fairly certain that he died
0:05:48 > 0:05:51without ever getting married or having any children.
0:05:51 > 0:05:54The search began for his next of kin.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57Birth records established his father was a carpenter,
0:05:57 > 0:06:01Frederick Chenery, born in Mitford in 1886.
0:06:01 > 0:06:05His mother, Rosa Agnes Baker, was born in 1890
0:06:05 > 0:06:08and worked as a dressmaker.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10I don't think they ever went out anywhere,
0:06:10 > 0:06:13but his father, he was...
0:06:13 > 0:06:17From what I gather, he was a clever carpenter.
0:06:17 > 0:06:22When war broke out, he would have been 28 years old.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25Records show that Stephen's father Frederick was called up
0:06:25 > 0:06:27and served for 300 days.
0:06:29 > 0:06:30Frederick Chenery joined
0:06:30 > 0:06:34the Norfolk Regiment in about April 1916,
0:06:34 > 0:06:37but he was immediately transferred to a labour company.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39With the introduction of conscription,
0:06:39 > 0:06:42soldiers who were regarded as medically unfit
0:06:42 > 0:06:46for front-line service were transferred to labour companies.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52In the war, Frederick's duties would have involved
0:06:52 > 0:06:55maintaining the roads that brought essential supplies
0:06:55 > 0:06:57and food to the front line.
0:06:57 > 0:06:59He would be under the control of a sergeant
0:06:59 > 0:07:03and his sole life would be to maintain that bit of road.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08But they'd probably be living in an old corrugated-iron dugout
0:07:08 > 0:07:12in the ground and they'd be under continual shell
0:07:12 > 0:07:15and if he's further forward, machine-gun fire,
0:07:15 > 0:07:18because, of course, the German interest was to destroy these roads
0:07:18 > 0:07:21to stop the supplies getting to the front.
0:07:21 > 0:07:22For 30-year-old Frederick,
0:07:22 > 0:07:26his time on the front line must've been stressful and frightening.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31He will have seen numerous dead, rotting corpses,
0:07:31 > 0:07:35parts of bodies and things like that and, whatever they say,
0:07:35 > 0:07:39it must affect somebody's long-term mental ability
0:07:39 > 0:07:41and some people could cope better than others,
0:07:41 > 0:07:44but most First World War veterans would suffer
0:07:44 > 0:07:46from post-traumatic stress syndrome.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54After the war, Frederick moved back to Shipdham
0:07:54 > 0:07:57and married Rosa in 1919.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00We did a birth search using the names of the parents,
0:08:00 > 0:08:03which were Chenery and the mother's maiden name which was Baker,
0:08:03 > 0:08:04through which we discovered
0:08:04 > 0:08:06that there were two sisters of the deceased,
0:08:06 > 0:08:11an Ivy Monica Chenery, born the 10th of November 1919,
0:08:11 > 0:08:15and a Nora Agnes Chenery, born the 21st November 1920.
0:08:15 > 0:08:17Once we looked into the background of the house,
0:08:17 > 0:08:20we find out immediately he lived there with his family.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22When we'd done our enquiries, obviously,
0:08:22 > 0:08:24everyone knew that he had two sisters,
0:08:24 > 0:08:26one of them actually died a spinster at the house
0:08:26 > 0:08:29and the other one did get married and actually came back to the house
0:08:29 > 0:08:32to live with her brother.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34The research shows that none of Stephen's sisters
0:08:34 > 0:08:37had any children either, so no close family
0:08:37 > 0:08:40were going to be beneficiaries.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43And what was revealing was that with one war over
0:08:43 > 0:08:45and another on the horizon,
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Stephen decided to make a dramatic decision about his lifestyle.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53I know, when he was younger, that he didn't live at home
0:08:53 > 0:08:57and that he lived some of the time up near the aerodrome, in the woods.
0:08:57 > 0:09:01It was a subject that I don't think he really wanted
0:09:01 > 0:09:05to talk about, but for some reason he wasn't allowed to come home.
0:09:12 > 0:09:14Across the country, heir hunters are searching
0:09:14 > 0:09:17for relatives of people who have died with no family.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19Could they be knocking at your door?
0:09:19 > 0:09:21HE KNOCKS AT DOOR
0:09:21 > 0:09:23Hello.
0:09:23 > 0:09:28In Halifax, Christopher David Riggin sadly passed away, aged 70,
0:09:28 > 0:09:31on the 6th of August 2015.
0:09:31 > 0:09:37He was an educated lad, he finished up an accountant.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43Then, when his mother died, he were on his own, same as me.
0:09:43 > 0:09:47About three years ago, my wife invited him round for Christmas.
0:09:47 > 0:09:49A very intelligent man.
0:09:49 > 0:09:54Sat down with him, we spoke for ages about politics, all sorts.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57Brought a bottle of drink down with us
0:09:57 > 0:09:59and we had a real good time together.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03Christopher's friends, however, did not know any of his family,
0:10:03 > 0:10:07so his estate was passed to a firm of local solicitors.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09From what we've gathered,
0:10:09 > 0:10:10he lived with his mother
0:10:10 > 0:10:14until she passed away and also he was a recluse in his later years.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17His mother, no, she was very nice.
0:10:17 > 0:10:19She was always smartly dressed, immaculate.
0:10:19 > 0:10:22She used to have the house decorated every 12 months.
0:10:22 > 0:10:26She did everything for Christopher, she'd always have his meals ready.
0:10:26 > 0:10:29She just adored him. It was a good mum and son relationship.
0:10:29 > 0:10:34I went to the property and it was in a state of disrepair.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38As no will was found, heir-hunting firm Finders
0:10:38 > 0:10:41were called in to search for Mr Riggin's next of kin.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46Fortunately, the solicitors passed on personal documents
0:10:46 > 0:10:48found at Christopher's home.
0:10:48 > 0:10:50The solicitors
0:10:50 > 0:10:51on this case have informed us
0:10:51 > 0:10:54that the estate value should be in the region of around £200,000,
0:10:54 > 0:10:58so, obviously, it's a high-priority case for us,
0:10:58 > 0:11:00we need to try and find some beneficiaries.
0:11:00 > 0:11:02The first task - to try and establish
0:11:02 > 0:11:04if Christopher was married.
0:11:04 > 0:11:08It's a really unusual surname, to the point that there actually is
0:11:08 > 0:11:11no Christopher D Riggin within the period that we're looking at,
0:11:11 > 0:11:14so straightaway we know that he was a bachelor.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17The next step is to try and search records
0:11:17 > 0:11:19to trace Christopher's parents,
0:11:19 > 0:11:22but immediately there's a complication.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25We've been provided with the deceased's birth certificate
0:11:25 > 0:11:29and we can see that the mother of Christopher David Riggin
0:11:29 > 0:11:32was Maud Riggin, but she was actually formerly Shearn
0:11:32 > 0:11:34on the certificate.
0:11:34 > 0:11:35She hasn't actually mentioned a father.
0:11:35 > 0:11:37It's quite unusual to not have a father.
0:11:37 > 0:11:39Usually, when that were to happen,
0:11:39 > 0:11:41it would be due to an illegitimate birth
0:11:41 > 0:11:44whereby the mother was a spinster when the child was born
0:11:44 > 0:11:47and there's no way of really knowing who the father is.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50The certificate indicates that the mother was married previously,
0:11:50 > 0:11:53but, obviously, she'd separated from the father,
0:11:53 > 0:11:55whether they got divorced or not, we don't know,
0:11:55 > 0:11:58but she subsequently had a child with another gentleman.
0:11:58 > 0:12:02Already with mystery surrounding Christopher's parentage,
0:12:02 > 0:12:05the heir hunters will only be able to build half a family tree
0:12:05 > 0:12:09and trace heirs on Christopher's mother's side.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13Ryan delves further and unearths Maud's marriage certificate
0:12:13 > 0:12:17from 1937 to George Riggin, a civil servant.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21He was 41 when they married and she was 27,
0:12:21 > 0:12:23but she was a domestic servant,
0:12:23 > 0:12:27it's a profession where illegitimate births were more prevalent
0:12:27 > 0:12:30than some other professions.
0:12:30 > 0:12:32Among the papers Ryan has been given
0:12:32 > 0:12:35is a letter Christopher wrote to one of his mother's friends.
0:12:37 > 0:12:41He's used the electoral registers to find out more
0:12:41 > 0:12:44about his mother's life before he came along.
0:12:44 > 0:12:48It seems Christopher was also using records to get answers
0:12:48 > 0:12:51that he was never given by his family.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55He's established that his mum was living with her husband
0:12:55 > 0:12:58up until the Second World War.
0:13:10 > 0:13:131938 and 1939 registers,
0:13:13 > 0:13:16"They continue living together at the same address,"
0:13:16 > 0:13:18meaning his mother and her husband.
0:13:18 > 0:13:23Then he says, "Now comes the hiatus caused by the war."
0:13:23 > 0:13:26No electoral registers were taken throughout World War II,
0:13:26 > 0:13:30so he continued researching his mother's movements after the war,
0:13:30 > 0:13:33looking for clues as to who his father could be.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37He goes on to mention in 1945 that his mother
0:13:37 > 0:13:39was now separated from her husband
0:13:39 > 0:13:44and is living near to some of her family.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55In one of the last paragraphs, he says,
0:13:55 > 0:13:58"Frankly, I consider it extremely unlikely that George Riggin
0:13:58 > 0:14:00"was my biological father.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03"It would take DNA evidence to convince me otherwise."
0:14:03 > 0:14:05I guess he never really got the answers
0:14:05 > 0:14:06as to who his father really was.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15Ryan is keen to see if his mother Maud had any other children,
0:14:15 > 0:14:19as they would be the first in line to inherit from his estate.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21Can I just ask you a question?
0:14:21 > 0:14:23Cos this is, obviously, one of those situations
0:14:23 > 0:14:30where he wasn't born illegitimately, because she was married to him.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33I think she was obviously divorced or separated.
0:14:33 > 0:14:37- He's a father...- Yeah.- ..and then you've got whoever his father was...
0:14:37 > 0:14:38- Yeah.- ..plus any others.- Yeah.
0:14:38 > 0:14:42When we refer to half-blood, siblings of the deceased,
0:14:42 > 0:14:46for example, it means that they only share one common parent.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48In the case of Christopher Riggin,
0:14:48 > 0:14:51the one common parent was the mother.
0:14:51 > 0:14:53It means that everybody else
0:14:53 > 0:14:55who would be considered as a sibling,
0:14:55 > 0:14:57should be considered as a half-blood,
0:14:57 > 0:15:01because we don't know who the father was to that person.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07Ryan discovers that Maud did have a second son, Michael Riggin,
0:15:07 > 0:15:10but, again, no father is listed on the birth certificate.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13He sadly only lived for four days.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20With no living brothers or sisters,
0:15:20 > 0:15:22the search for Christopher's heirs
0:15:22 > 0:15:24has now moved to his aunts and uncles.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27Well, this is the bit where it gets interesting, really,
0:15:27 > 0:15:31because we can delve a bit further back into the history of the family.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34We can go across along the maternal side of the family
0:15:34 > 0:15:37and try and hopefully find some beneficiaries.
0:15:37 > 0:15:41I've just found the deceased's mother on the 1911 census
0:15:41 > 0:15:42with her parents.
0:15:42 > 0:15:46The copy of her marriage certificate says her father was William Shearn.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50William Shearn, a coal miner, marries Beatrice.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53They've been married about seven years, they've had three children.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55Obviously, one of those is the deceased's mother.
0:15:55 > 0:15:59There's another child mentioned on the census as well,
0:15:59 > 0:16:00her name is Annie Shearn,
0:16:00 > 0:16:04so she would have been a sister of the deceased's mother.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10The Shearn family were living in the coal-mining community
0:16:10 > 0:16:12in Wakefield.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15During William Shearn's life in the early 1900s,
0:16:15 > 0:16:17coal mining was a thriving industry,
0:16:17 > 0:16:20but conditions were hazardous.
0:16:20 > 0:16:26From 1900 to 1909, nearly 20,000 miners were killed or injured.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29William Shearn's early working life in the Wakefield district
0:16:29 > 0:16:31would have been very hand-to-mouth.
0:16:31 > 0:16:33He would've been working in a coal mine
0:16:33 > 0:16:34where there would've been no machinery,
0:16:34 > 0:16:36he would've been working with hand tools.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38It was a very exhausting job.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41They would've had a very poor diet.
0:16:41 > 0:16:45Housing itself - two-up, two-down terraced if they were lucky.
0:16:45 > 0:16:48There wouldn't have been an indoor toilet, that would've been outside
0:16:48 > 0:16:50and shared with a number of other people.
0:16:50 > 0:16:52It's not a very brilliant life, to be honest.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56Ryan and the team now need to check the 1911 census
0:16:56 > 0:17:01and see if any more children were born after it was compiled.
0:17:01 > 0:17:06We can do a birth search from 1911 onwards until roughly
0:17:06 > 0:17:09when the deceased's maternal grandmother, in this case,
0:17:09 > 0:17:11was about aged 45.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15It looks as though there's properly five more siblings
0:17:15 > 0:17:17of the deceased's mother.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20So, we're looking at maybe, so far,
0:17:20 > 0:17:24seven aunts and uncles on the maternal side.
0:17:24 > 0:17:27Ryan now needs more manpower and for his team to focus
0:17:27 > 0:17:29on the aunts and uncles one by one.
0:17:31 > 0:17:32The census is there.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35Can I just give you a line of this?
0:17:35 > 0:17:38This is the main tree, so you can have a copy of that.
0:17:38 > 0:17:40There's a daughter called Annie, there's a mystery one.
0:17:40 > 0:17:45So, if you want to do John and Lucy and Suzanne,
0:17:45 > 0:17:47if you can do Renee...
0:17:47 > 0:17:50And there's a complication surrounding one of the aunts
0:17:50 > 0:17:51listed on the census.
0:17:51 > 0:17:56Mysteriously, her birth certificate is missing from the records.
0:17:56 > 0:18:01I'm hoping that I can find who this missing person is,
0:18:01 > 0:18:05that had been born prior to 1911.
0:18:05 > 0:18:06While they're working in the office,
0:18:06 > 0:18:09the heir hunters' travelling researcher is out on the road,
0:18:09 > 0:18:12to give them on-the-ground support when they need it.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16There are a lot of interesting characters that we do meet.
0:18:16 > 0:18:18Our biggest problem when we go to some villages
0:18:18 > 0:18:20is trying to find the house itself.
0:18:26 > 0:18:27Every year in Britain,
0:18:27 > 0:18:30thousands of people get a surprise knock on the door
0:18:30 > 0:18:32from the heir hunters.
0:18:32 > 0:18:33It just seems a big miracle,
0:18:33 > 0:18:38so, you know, nobody ever thinks this sort of thing happens.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41Today, we've got details of two estates
0:18:41 > 0:18:43on the Treasury Solicitor's bona vacantia list
0:18:43 > 0:18:45that are yet to be claimed.
0:18:47 > 0:18:51The first case is Gerald Barber, who died in Oxford
0:18:51 > 0:18:56on the 14th of August 2004, aged 72.
0:18:56 > 0:19:01He was born on the 13th of May 1932, also in Oxford.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05The name Barber is of French origin
0:19:05 > 0:19:08and surnames originally reflected occupations,
0:19:08 > 0:19:12so one of his ancestors may have been a barber.
0:19:12 > 0:19:16Could there still be family links to Gerald in Oxford?
0:19:16 > 0:19:18Does his name mean anything to you?
0:19:18 > 0:19:21Could you be the beneficiary they're looking for?
0:19:24 > 0:19:27Next, the case of Margaret Mary Addis,
0:19:27 > 0:19:30who was born in Mitchelstown, Cork, in Ireland
0:19:30 > 0:19:34on the 5th of May 1893.
0:19:34 > 0:19:40She died in Slough, Berkshire, aged 92, on the 10th of February 1986.
0:19:41 > 0:19:45Margaret's husband was Harold Stephen Addis,
0:19:45 > 0:19:49who died in Eton, Berkshire, in 1951, aged 62.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53Her maiden name was O'Keeffe
0:19:53 > 0:19:56and it's believed she had brothers and sisters.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59Could there be a connection to Margaret in either Ireland,
0:19:59 > 0:20:01Slough or Eton?
0:20:01 > 0:20:04If you think you might be related to either of these people,
0:20:04 > 0:20:07you would need to make a claim on their estate through
0:20:07 > 0:20:09the Government Legal Department.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13If so, you could have thousands of pounds coming your way.
0:20:20 > 0:20:23In the small village of Shipdham, in Norfolk,
0:20:23 > 0:20:25the heir hunters are trying to find out more
0:20:25 > 0:20:28about the life of mysterious Stephen Chenery,
0:20:28 > 0:20:31who grew up in the 1930s and '40s.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35Well, Steve, he was one in a million, I mean,
0:20:35 > 0:20:37you don't meet people like him every day, do you?
0:20:37 > 0:20:39He was just a one-off.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43He was a very kind man, there is no doubt about that.
0:20:43 > 0:20:44A man that time forgot.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46Time had passed him by.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49I can remember sitting with him in front of his fire
0:20:49 > 0:20:53in the light of a paraffin lamp and, I mean,
0:20:53 > 0:20:55who uses paraffin lamps now?
0:20:55 > 0:20:58Not many people, but that was Steve.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01The heir hunters search for his family has discovered
0:21:01 > 0:21:03that Stephen lived on the village green all his life
0:21:03 > 0:21:05with his parents and two sisters.
0:21:07 > 0:21:11His parents, I think they were very close, very close, yeah, yeah.
0:21:11 > 0:21:13His mother especially.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17All I know is...ever knew was his sister Nora
0:21:17 > 0:21:19and the other sister Ivy.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22One was a very...seemed a very posh lady
0:21:22 > 0:21:24and the other one was very down-to-earth.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26Oh, they adored him.
0:21:26 > 0:21:31I think, how my mum talked, they all adored him and he was spoilt.
0:21:32 > 0:21:38In 1939, when Stephen was 12, World War II broke out.
0:21:38 > 0:21:42Conscription came in and all men and boys over the age of 18
0:21:42 > 0:21:44were expected to register,
0:21:44 > 0:21:48but for many families this was a terrifying prospect.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52The social implications of not registering for conscription
0:21:52 > 0:21:54would have been quite extreme
0:21:54 > 0:21:58because you'd have been outlawed by your own community.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01Other people - your neighbours' children - are listed.
0:22:01 > 0:22:02"Why aren't you going?"
0:22:02 > 0:22:05And after the war, it would have got even worse
0:22:05 > 0:22:07because he didn't do his bit.
0:22:07 > 0:22:11So I would suggest that anybody who actively avoided conscription
0:22:11 > 0:22:15after the war was not popular.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18Despite the severe penalties, Frederick Chenery didn't want
0:22:18 > 0:22:23to risk his own son enduring similar frightening experiences to his own.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26So he made a remarkable decision.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30The theory is that something possibly could've happened
0:22:30 > 0:22:33to his father during the Great War.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38And it was so horrific that I don't think he wanted the same
0:22:38 > 0:22:39happening to Steve.
0:22:39 > 0:22:43And I although Steve would've only been able to serve
0:22:43 > 0:22:48in the end of the Second World War, I think whatever old Mr Chenery saw,
0:22:48 > 0:22:53that it was enough to stop him letting Steve be called up.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56So he just sent him away from the house
0:22:56 > 0:22:58and he was told he had to live in the woods.
0:22:59 > 0:23:03No-one knows at what age Stephen lived in the woods from or until,
0:23:03 > 0:23:06but perhaps his father believed he was taking every precaution
0:23:06 > 0:23:10to try and save his life and his sanity.
0:23:11 > 0:23:16There was a big fear in the villages that you might get called up
0:23:16 > 0:23:21from the age of 16 and I think that old Mr Chenery's fear
0:23:21 > 0:23:25of having him sent off was enough to make them say no.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28"You don't exist. Go and live in the woods.
0:23:28 > 0:23:30"That way you can't be called up."
0:23:31 > 0:23:35Stephen's friends believed he lived in the woods for more than two years
0:23:35 > 0:23:37and wasn't seen at all during this time.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43I think you'll find that this is the area.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45This is where he said that he used to live.
0:23:45 > 0:23:47Probably it's all right on a summer's day
0:23:47 > 0:23:52but on a winter's day or a cold day, I wouldn't want to live out here.
0:23:52 > 0:23:57For Stephen, as a young lad, it must've been very, very hard
0:23:57 > 0:24:00because he would've had to have probably shot what he ate.
0:24:00 > 0:24:04He wasn't supposed to be seen but I think it was more to keep
0:24:04 > 0:24:09the authorities from knowing he existed rather than from neighbours.
0:24:09 > 0:24:11Stephen eventually moved back home,
0:24:11 > 0:24:15but in some way his father's eccentric plan worked.
0:24:15 > 0:24:20He never went to war. No-one did seem to be bothered about
0:24:20 > 0:24:21him not going to war.
0:24:21 > 0:24:25I never did hear any reason why he didn't, you know, from other people
0:24:25 > 0:24:26why he didn't go to war
0:24:26 > 0:24:29and I never did hear of anybody talk about it much.
0:24:36 > 0:24:39Back in the offices of Fraser & Fraser and the team have
0:24:39 > 0:24:43been researching Stephen's mother - Rosa Baker's side of the family.
0:24:43 > 0:24:47Out of three siblings, only one had any children.
0:24:49 > 0:24:53Rosa's sister Ellen, she married a Stephen Bradshaw
0:24:53 > 0:24:54and went on to have three children.
0:24:54 > 0:24:58All of those three children had passed away before the deceased
0:24:58 > 0:25:00so we then had to look into their children.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04On that stem we actually found a total of five heirs
0:25:04 > 0:25:07so it was relatively small but we got in very quickly
0:25:07 > 0:25:10and I think we spoke to them before every other company.
0:25:10 > 0:25:12Next, the heir hunters had to try
0:25:12 > 0:25:14and track down Stephen's father's family line
0:25:14 > 0:25:16but this proved much more difficult.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21Just because the deceased was born 1927.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25He was born relatively late to be having uncles born 1866
0:25:25 > 0:25:29so the likelihood of us getting a first cousin of the deceased on
0:25:29 > 0:25:34this job was probably very unlikely, which is harder work for us.
0:25:34 > 0:25:35It's a lot harder work because we're
0:25:35 > 0:25:37not going to be able to phone someone up and them
0:25:37 > 0:25:41to be able to give an account of who the deceased was or who his
0:25:41 > 0:25:44parents were because the likelihood of them knowing him is very slim.
0:25:44 > 0:25:49In the end, the team tracked down 34 heirs on the father's side,
0:25:49 > 0:25:50making it 39 in total.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55Probably the best reward of a case is locating the heir.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Essentially, that's what the job is.
0:25:58 > 0:25:59If we don't find heirs,
0:25:59 > 0:26:02then we're not going to be in business for very long.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05One of them - a first cousin once removed - lives in
0:26:05 > 0:26:07Barton, in Cambridgeshire.
0:26:07 > 0:26:11The first approach, the gentleman walked up the path
0:26:11 > 0:26:15and he was very relaxed, very chatty and very friendly
0:26:15 > 0:26:16and came in and sat down.
0:26:16 > 0:26:22And it very quickly became apparent he knew an awful lot about the
0:26:22 > 0:26:26Chenery side of the family and he knew more than I did.
0:26:26 > 0:26:30I think it was my mother's first cousin,
0:26:30 > 0:26:32but I didn't know Stephen existed.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37John was particularly intrigued to find a part of the family
0:26:37 > 0:26:39he wasn't aware of.
0:26:39 > 0:26:40It was incredibly interesting
0:26:40 > 0:26:43because I've done research on my own family.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46I've gone back four generations and written a book
0:26:46 > 0:26:49and had it published, mainly for my two children.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52Because if I hadn't had done it,
0:26:52 > 0:26:54all that history would have been gone when I died.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57So the Chenery line only came
0:26:57 > 0:27:01into my line when my father married a Chenery.
0:27:01 > 0:27:03The heir hunters don't know
0:27:03 > 0:27:07when John will receive his windfall or how much it will be.
0:27:07 > 0:27:10And John hasn't considered how he will spend this
0:27:10 > 0:27:11out-of-the-blue inheritance.
0:27:13 > 0:27:14I have no idea.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17It's like counting your chickens before they're hatched.
0:27:17 > 0:27:20No, I have no idea what I'm going to spend it on.
0:27:20 > 0:27:26At the same time, Stephen was an old boy who lived in Norfolk and we're
0:27:26 > 0:27:31not expecting any large amount of money from the inheritance.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34The Chenerys are scattered all over Norfolk.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37There must be at least 40 of us, but I'm not expecting a million.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40It's just going to be exciting to receive it.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48The bulk of any inheritance will come from the sale of any property.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51When we're dealing with an estate where there's a property,
0:27:51 > 0:27:54we often sell them either on the open market or in auction.
0:27:54 > 0:27:58A lot of the properties that we have are, you know, unfortunately,
0:27:58 > 0:28:01in not the best of conditions so that's something that a developer
0:28:01 > 0:28:04would want to buy and auctions are the best place to find out.
0:28:04 > 0:28:08Today, Andrew Fraser is overseeing the sale of Stephen's
0:28:08 > 0:28:09burned-out house at auction.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14We've gone with a very low guide price in order to track
0:28:14 > 0:28:16the maximum amount of interest.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19Although there is no planning permission in there's no guarantee
0:28:19 > 0:28:21that you'll be able to build
0:28:21 > 0:28:23anything other than what's already there.
0:28:23 > 0:28:27The house is being sold at the Landmark Hotel in London.
0:28:27 > 0:28:28The burnt out property that
0:28:28 > 0:28:29we've got, which is lot number 83,
0:28:29 > 0:28:31is one of the most interesting lots
0:28:31 > 0:28:32in the whole catalogue.
0:28:32 > 0:28:36As with all auction lots, the more roughed up they are, the better.
0:28:36 > 0:28:38Buyers love to be able to add value.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41That particular property has had a ton of interest.
0:28:41 > 0:28:44I think we're guiding it around 50,000 and I thoroughly expect it
0:28:44 > 0:28:46to go for at least twice that.
0:28:46 > 0:28:48I'd like to save face and make sure
0:28:48 > 0:28:51it sells for over and above the 75,000.
0:28:51 > 0:28:54Anything over 100,000,
0:28:54 > 0:28:59someone's paying a true premium for this site.
0:28:59 > 0:29:0383. Lot 83 is Quarry View. I'm going to start the bidding at 75.
0:29:03 > 0:29:07You want to come in at 80? 90. I'm doing 95. You want to say 100?
0:29:07 > 0:29:11- It's gone up very quickly. - Now give me 126 if you will, sir.
0:29:11 > 0:29:16126 is bid. Give me 130 on the phone. 130. 131, yeah? 134 now.
0:29:16 > 0:29:18Back to the telephone.
0:29:18 > 0:29:21- MAN:- 135.- 135, even better. That's more than I was asking for.
0:29:21 > 0:29:23For the first time, £135,000.
0:29:23 > 0:29:25Second time £135,000. This is it.
0:29:25 > 0:29:28It is going to go then for the third and final time for £135,000.
0:29:28 > 0:29:33- Well done. On the phone at 135. - It's been an excellent result.
0:29:33 > 0:29:37That's significantly above where we would consider any developer
0:29:37 > 0:29:41would want to be, given it has no planning permission and therefore
0:29:41 > 0:29:46there's an awful lot of hope value now assigned to that purchase price.
0:29:48 > 0:29:53The money from the sale will now be split between his 39 heirs.
0:29:53 > 0:29:57As Stephen Chenery's legacy moves on, his friends and neighbours
0:29:57 > 0:30:00will always cherish the memories they have of him.
0:30:00 > 0:30:06My happy days were gone with all the children down the watery lane
0:30:06 > 0:30:10watching him paint, watching him draw.
0:30:10 > 0:30:12He was a really clever artist.
0:30:13 > 0:30:15He was just a good friend of mine, really.
0:30:15 > 0:30:18I really was probably as good a friend with him as anybody,
0:30:18 > 0:30:19to be quite honest.
0:30:19 > 0:30:23He was just could company, really, and everything we did together
0:30:23 > 0:30:25and all the things he taught me.
0:30:25 > 0:30:28He did teach me a lot, really, cos he was a clever man.
0:30:28 > 0:30:31Steve was one of a kind.
0:30:31 > 0:30:36He was a man that possibly that years ago there were quite a few
0:30:36 > 0:30:38because they were village characters
0:30:38 > 0:30:41but Stephen was one of the last of the few, I'm sure.
0:30:50 > 0:30:54In London, heir hunting firm Finders are looking for beneficiaries for
0:30:54 > 0:30:56Christopher David Riggin's estate.
0:30:56 > 0:31:01And case manager Ryan Gregory's team have a mammoth task ahead
0:31:01 > 0:31:05trying to track down his seven aunts and uncles in line to inherit.
0:31:05 > 0:31:08This estate of Christopher David Riggin
0:31:08 > 0:31:11has come into us by a firm of solicitors so they were able
0:31:11 > 0:31:13to give us a good indication of how much it's worth.
0:31:13 > 0:31:17We think it should be in the region of around £200,000.
0:31:17 > 0:31:21After searches of birth, death and marriage records, they think their
0:31:21 > 0:31:24search for two of Christopher's mother's family has paid off.
0:31:25 > 0:31:29It's good news. We've managed to find a couple of beneficiaries,
0:31:29 > 0:31:30I think.
0:31:30 > 0:31:33These heirs appear to be aunts of the deceased.
0:31:33 > 0:31:37We're looking at the sisters of the deceased's mother.
0:31:38 > 0:31:42On standby on the road is travelling researcher Parmjit Thandi.
0:31:42 > 0:31:45He goes all around the country meeting potential heirs
0:31:45 > 0:31:48and has been doing the job for over two years.
0:31:49 > 0:31:53What I enjoy most about this job is actually meeting
0:31:53 > 0:31:55the people that we have to go and see.
0:31:55 > 0:31:59And also I do get to see a lot of the country as well.
0:31:59 > 0:32:02In the office, Ryan is calling one of the heirs -
0:32:02 > 0:32:05Christopher's aunt, 85-year-old June.
0:32:05 > 0:32:09Hello, is June Brown there, please? Hello there.
0:32:09 > 0:32:11We're looking at the Shearn family tree.
0:32:11 > 0:32:15Does that name ring a bell with you at all? It does.
0:32:15 > 0:32:17Right, so your father was William Shearn and your mother
0:32:17 > 0:32:19was Beatrice Allen.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21Is your sister "Rene" still alive?
0:32:21 > 0:32:23Renee. OK.
0:32:25 > 0:32:27Just the two of you left, OK.
0:32:27 > 0:32:28Yeah, sure.
0:32:28 > 0:32:31Would you want me to call you back or is it OK to hang on?
0:32:33 > 0:32:36- HE WHISPERS:- She's gone to put her lunch in the oven.
0:32:41 > 0:32:44Hello. Annie was the eldest, OK.
0:32:44 > 0:32:48And then Maud would have been after that.
0:32:48 > 0:32:49And there was Elizabeth as well. OK.
0:32:49 > 0:32:52I think it was Elizabeth that we didn't have.
0:32:52 > 0:32:55Right, OK, so that would kind of makes sense, then.
0:32:55 > 0:32:57OK. Fantastic, OK.
0:32:57 > 0:32:59Thanks so much, June. Cheers. Bye-bye.
0:32:59 > 0:33:03The beneficiary I just spoke to was really helpful, really friendly.
0:33:03 > 0:33:05I had a really nice chat with her.
0:33:05 > 0:33:08She was able to give me some more details on the family.
0:33:08 > 0:33:10We're kind of struggling to get any quick leads
0:33:10 > 0:33:13on one of the maternal aunts
0:33:13 > 0:33:18and she said that this maternal aunt called Aida M Shearn,
0:33:18 > 0:33:21known as Margaret, may have been adopted out of the family.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24When a blood relative is adopted out of the family
0:33:24 > 0:33:25and into someone else's family,
0:33:25 > 0:33:31that basically cuts off their inheritance from the birth family,
0:33:31 > 0:33:33but it does also mean that they can
0:33:33 > 0:33:35inherit from the family that they've been adopted into.
0:33:36 > 0:33:41That means one less stem to research but the mysterious aunt Elizabeth
0:33:41 > 0:33:45could still be a beneficiary and June had news on her too.
0:33:45 > 0:33:50One of those she was able to clarify who the mystery person was
0:33:50 > 0:33:52who was missing from the 1911 census.
0:33:52 > 0:33:56The lady I spoke to did say that that person was called Elizabeth.
0:33:56 > 0:34:00I just spoke with one of the aunts on the maternal side, so we're just
0:34:00 > 0:34:04trying to figure out who this person was who was born in 1911.
0:34:04 > 0:34:07- This one right here.- They left a gap for him or her.
0:34:07 > 0:34:12The lady I spoke to did mention an Elizabeth. Now, I've got the Shearn
0:34:12 > 0:34:14births between 1903,
0:34:14 > 0:34:16when they married in 1911, when this took place.
0:34:16 > 0:34:17None of them were Elizabeth.
0:34:17 > 0:34:23I did find one Elizabeth, but born pre-1903. Maybe that's her?
0:34:23 > 0:34:27Can you print that off for me and I'll order that as well?
0:34:27 > 0:34:30The team need to dig from before 1911 and look at Christopher's
0:34:30 > 0:34:35grandparents William and Beatrice's life at this time for more clues.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44Back in 1905, records show that Christopher's grandfather William
0:34:44 > 0:34:47was already a miner in Wakefield.
0:34:47 > 0:34:49He and Beatrice had married
0:34:49 > 0:34:54two years earlier and had a child, Annie, but life was tough
0:34:54 > 0:34:56and William, then 26,
0:34:56 > 0:34:58was determined to do well for his family.
0:35:00 > 0:35:04Around this time, Pennsylvania, in the USA, was
0:35:04 > 0:35:08advertising for experienced miners to work in its new mines.
0:35:10 > 0:35:13William Shearn would have been looking for new opportunities
0:35:13 > 0:35:16to increase his wage packet and his quality of life.
0:35:16 > 0:35:19And Pennsylvania and the anthracite coalfields there
0:35:19 > 0:35:20could well have been one of them.
0:35:20 > 0:35:22They would have been building new housing
0:35:22 > 0:35:24so living standards should have been, hopefully,
0:35:24 > 0:35:26a lot better at the time.
0:35:26 > 0:35:28It looks like William upped sticks
0:35:28 > 0:35:31and headed to Pennsylvania for a new job.
0:35:31 > 0:35:34His young family followed shortly afterwards.
0:35:34 > 0:35:38This is the shipping records which show the maternal grandmother,
0:35:38 > 0:35:42Beatrice Shearn, going over with her baby daughter Annie.
0:35:42 > 0:35:49That was in 1905, so not long after William settled over in America.
0:35:49 > 0:35:52But life in the New World was not all the family had hoped for
0:35:52 > 0:35:56and three years later, records finally shed light on
0:35:56 > 0:35:58Christopher's missing aunt.
0:35:58 > 0:36:02Now we've got another record of an incoming passenger list this time.
0:36:02 > 0:36:06This is in 1908, so a few years later.
0:36:06 > 0:36:09And this is the most interesting one for us.
0:36:09 > 0:36:14It was actually Beatrice, William, along with the baby Annie
0:36:14 > 0:36:17that they had and now this Elizabeth Shearn,
0:36:17 > 0:36:19daughter that had been born in the States.
0:36:19 > 0:36:22The life that they'd hoped for in Pennsylvania didn't quite
0:36:22 > 0:36:24work out the way they'd hoped
0:36:24 > 0:36:28and they missed the old life so coming back to West Yorkshire,
0:36:28 > 0:36:32getting back in with wider family and also with colleagues
0:36:32 > 0:36:36and other friends as well was probably something of a comfort.
0:36:36 > 0:36:39I don't think that emigrating is the right thing for everybody.
0:36:39 > 0:36:43Having now found birth records for Christopher's aunt Elizabeth in the
0:36:43 > 0:36:48USA, if she was alive, she would be an heir to Christopher's estate.
0:36:48 > 0:36:51We had no reason to suspect that the person missing
0:36:51 > 0:36:55from the 1911 census was in fact born in the United States.
0:36:57 > 0:36:59Birth records show William and Beatrice
0:36:59 > 0:37:02went on to have six more children in the UK
0:37:02 > 0:37:04and William carried on as a miner.
0:37:04 > 0:37:06Working practices did improve
0:37:06 > 0:37:09but life in the pits was still hazardous.
0:37:10 > 0:37:14Sadly, we know 50 years later, after returning to West Yorkshire,
0:37:14 > 0:37:16William actually died of pneumoconiosis,
0:37:16 > 0:37:18or what we call miner's black lung.
0:37:18 > 0:37:21It's a terminal condition and it was a very common one as well
0:37:21 > 0:37:23and a very big killer of miners.
0:37:28 > 0:37:31With the Shearn family tree now complete, the team have found
0:37:31 > 0:37:33eight heirs to Christopher's estate.
0:37:37 > 0:37:41The next day, Parmjit is sent to Yorkshire to meet some of the heirs
0:37:41 > 0:37:42and explain the case to them.
0:37:43 > 0:37:46Our biggest problem when we go to some villages is trying to find
0:37:46 > 0:37:51the house itself because some of them tend to just have the name
0:37:51 > 0:37:53and not any numbers on.
0:37:53 > 0:37:56So you do spend a lot of time trying to locate the exact address.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02June Brown is Christopher's youngest aunt,
0:38:02 > 0:38:05born in 1930 and living in Leeds.
0:38:05 > 0:38:06KNOCKING ON DOOR
0:38:09 > 0:38:12- Hello, June. I'm Mr Thandi. Can I come in?- Yes, dear.- Thank you.
0:38:14 > 0:38:16I want to explain to you why we're here.
0:38:16 > 0:38:19- Yeah, it's about my nephew Christopher.- Yes.
0:38:19 > 0:38:25- Christopher David Riggin, who passed away on the 6th August.- This year?
0:38:25 > 0:38:27- This year.- This year?- This year.
0:38:27 > 0:38:29Oh, has he been off for a long time?
0:38:29 > 0:38:33I honestly don't know what he died of, but the office will do.
0:38:33 > 0:38:36We can always ring the office later and they'll tell you
0:38:36 > 0:38:38what he passed away.
0:38:38 > 0:38:41I can just remember a little bit when he was small,
0:38:41 > 0:38:42but for the past few years,
0:38:42 > 0:38:44we haven't seen much of him, really, at all.
0:38:44 > 0:38:48When he was young, he wasn't interested in lots of storybooks.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51He preferred to look through an encyclopaedia.
0:38:51 > 0:38:53He was intelligent.
0:38:53 > 0:38:55Can I have your signature there, please, June?
0:38:57 > 0:39:00With him being a lot younger than me, you don't think that
0:39:00 > 0:39:02you're going to outlive somebody like that, do you?
0:39:04 > 0:39:07- You will hear from us, yep.- OK. - Thank you.
0:39:07 > 0:39:10'OK, I've just seen my first beneficiary who signed up with us'
0:39:10 > 0:39:13and agreed for us to look after this matter for her behalf.
0:39:13 > 0:39:16And she's also given us further information which helped us fill the
0:39:16 > 0:39:20blanks in our family tree for this matter, so it's been really useful.
0:39:23 > 0:39:27Parmjit is now on his way to see June's older sister -
0:39:27 > 0:39:29the seventh child of William and Beatrice.
0:39:32 > 0:39:38This one I believe has come through solicitors to us today.
0:39:38 > 0:39:40So there hopefully should be no competition
0:39:40 > 0:39:42as this came directly to us.
0:39:44 > 0:39:48She was born in 1927 and lives in West Yorkshire.
0:39:49 > 0:39:51Eileen Lawrence - Christopher's cousin -
0:39:51 > 0:39:54and the daughter of the American aunt Elizabeth and her husband
0:39:54 > 0:39:58have both travelled from Nottingham to be here for Parmjit's visit.
0:39:59 > 0:40:06- Christopher was quite shy.- Yes, he was a very private person, actually.
0:40:06 > 0:40:08- So he never really... - Didn't have many friends.
0:40:08 > 0:40:11- He didn't have much to do. - No, never married, of course.
0:40:13 > 0:40:17And lived all his life in that little house in Halifax.
0:40:17 > 0:40:19He's died alone, hasn't he?
0:40:21 > 0:40:26I mean, I've had a lot in my lifetime, deaths, anyway.
0:40:27 > 0:40:3249 years next week since my husband died. Well, what do I want?
0:40:32 > 0:40:37I mean, I'm 88. I mean, 88 and a half.
0:40:37 > 0:40:42So, I didn't know what to think. I don't know what to think.
0:40:42 > 0:40:46Eileen has firm memories of Christopher as a child.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49He used to come on holiday with us with his mum.
0:40:49 > 0:40:54His mum really spoiled him because he was her only child.
0:40:54 > 0:40:55But after that, as he grew up,
0:40:55 > 0:40:59he just sort of disappeared out of our life.
0:40:59 > 0:41:02- Thank you.- All right, love, thanks ever so much.
0:41:02 > 0:41:05That was very successful and luckily there was another beneficiary.
0:41:05 > 0:41:09Her niece also turned up at the same address, which remains to sign, so
0:41:09 > 0:41:12it's virtually two birds with one stone, it's brilliant.
0:41:14 > 0:41:19But Parmjit's work still isn't done. Now he has to head to York.
0:41:19 > 0:41:21The time now, it's just gone 7.10.
0:41:21 > 0:41:26We have to see the last two beneficiaries on our list for today.
0:41:26 > 0:41:31They are maternal cousins of the deceased - brother and sister.
0:41:33 > 0:41:38Hello, Mark. It's Mr Thandi. Nice to meet you.
0:41:38 > 0:41:41I couldn't believe it when they rang up and said that they got in touch
0:41:41 > 0:41:44with us about some inheritance, they wanted to get in touch
0:41:44 > 0:41:46about the family tree.
0:41:46 > 0:41:51So just one of them things. I never expected it coming to us.
0:41:52 > 0:41:55If we do inherit a bit of money, I'm sure my partner and kids
0:41:55 > 0:41:57will be wanting a holiday.
0:41:57 > 0:41:58Mortgage is due to be paid off
0:41:58 > 0:42:01so hopefully get a bit of that paid off.
0:42:01 > 0:42:03I have two horses and I need a new horsebox
0:42:03 > 0:42:06so some of it will probably go towards that.
0:42:06 > 0:42:09And then... I don't know, really, just other little things.
0:42:09 > 0:42:13Might be worth going through the family tree to see what else
0:42:13 > 0:42:14we can find out.
0:42:15 > 0:42:17We've had a fantastic day.
0:42:17 > 0:42:18We've signed up two more
0:42:18 > 0:42:20beneficiaries that we've seen at this house.
0:42:20 > 0:42:24I'm starving now, it's been a long day and I'm looking forward
0:42:24 > 0:42:28to having a bite now when I get somewhere close enough to eat.
0:42:30 > 0:42:32Overall, the team are happy they've been able to find
0:42:32 > 0:42:35eight beneficiaries for Christopher Riggin's estate,
0:42:35 > 0:42:39which is estimated to be worth £200,000.
0:42:39 > 0:42:42We're just preparing a report to go over to the solicitors
0:42:42 > 0:42:46and a good job from everybody involved.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48Christopher's legacy lives on through the memories
0:42:48 > 0:42:51of his family and neighbours.
0:42:51 > 0:42:53I just think is sad when you...
0:42:53 > 0:42:57another member of your family has gone.
0:42:57 > 0:42:58It...
0:43:00 > 0:43:02..puts everything in perspective.
0:43:02 > 0:43:05Yeah, he's going to be missed. He will be missed.