0:00:02 > 0:00:06Heir hunters spend their lives tracking down the families of people who died without leaving a will.
0:00:06 > 0:00:10They hand over thousands of pounds to long-lost relatives
0:00:10 > 0:00:13who had no idea they were in line for a windfall.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15Could they be knocking at your door?
0:00:34 > 0:00:39Heir hunting company, Fraser and Fraser have a tough day with the heirs on a hugely competitive case.
0:00:39 > 0:00:43Could you just give me two minutes so I can ask you some family information? Nothing else, please.
0:00:43 > 0:00:47- It's all sorted out now. Don't bother me again. I'm OK.- What...
0:00:49 > 0:00:53And the heir hunters find themselves looking into the estate of a free spirited academic.
0:00:53 > 0:00:59She was different, I suppose, in the life that she chose for herself.
0:00:59 > 0:01:06She did something that in those days, it was quite adventurous.
0:01:06 > 0:01:12Plus how you may be entitled to inherit some of the unclaimed estates held by the Treasury.
0:01:12 > 0:01:14Could you have thousands of pounds heading your way?
0:01:19 > 0:01:23More than two-thirds of people die without leaving a will.
0:01:23 > 0:01:27If no obvious relatives are found, their money goes to the Government
0:01:27 > 0:01:31and last year they made a staggering £18 million from unclaimed estates.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34That's where the heir hunters step in.
0:01:34 > 0:01:40There are more than 30 heir hunting companies who make it their business to track down the rightful kin.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48Fraser and Fraser is one of the oldest firms of heir hunters in Britain.
0:01:48 > 0:01:50It is run by Andrew, Charles and Neil Fraser.
0:01:50 > 0:01:55Our job is incredibly exciting. We're tracing family trees, delving back into people's history,
0:01:55 > 0:02:00delving back in time and looking at the hidden mysteries around people's families.
0:02:02 > 0:02:10In its 30-year history, it's tracked down over 50,000 heirs entitled to a whooping sum of over £100 million.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22It's 7am on Thursday and the team are looking into the Treasury's list
0:02:22 > 0:02:26of unclaimed estates, which was published overnight.
0:02:26 > 0:02:28We've got to get these addresses.
0:02:28 > 0:02:34They've chosen several cases to follow and are cracking on with the initial research.
0:02:34 > 0:02:41I'm expecting it to be quite active today, quite competitive really, and fingers crossed we'll do well.
0:02:41 > 0:02:46One case they're following is that of Joan Hack, whose maiden name was Galloway.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49She died alone in 2002 in Bangor, North Wales.
0:02:49 > 0:02:54She had no brothers and sisters and no children, but for many years
0:02:54 > 0:02:58had lived with her husband in a small village on Anglesey.
0:02:58 > 0:03:03It was after his sudden death that Joan became more withdrawn from the community.
0:03:03 > 0:03:07Her neighbours, Richard and Helen Daniel, knew her better than most.
0:03:07 > 0:03:09Definitely she was a bit of a loner.
0:03:09 > 0:03:14When Victor passed away, her husband passed away,
0:03:14 > 0:03:17it left, you know, a hole, basically.
0:03:17 > 0:03:20And I don't think she could ever bridge that gap,
0:03:20 > 0:03:25because she wasn't a socialiser with the village community.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30You can't explain it, really. She was all right when he was alive.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33She used to speak to people, but when he went, she wasn't the same.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36She stopped speaking to the people in the village then,
0:03:36 > 0:03:39and people tried to help her, but she didn't want to know.
0:03:39 > 0:03:46She didn't leave a will, and her property, a small bungalow, was left unclaimed.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50I'm nearly certain that there was no close family.
0:03:50 > 0:03:54You know, I never saw anybody there as relatives
0:03:54 > 0:03:58in visiting their property. No, definitely not.
0:03:58 > 0:04:03Sadly, since her death, the house has fallen into disrepair.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06But despite its current condition,
0:04:06 > 0:04:10Joan's total estate is estimated to be worth as much as £200,000.
0:04:15 > 0:04:20The investigation is being run by one of the longest-serving
0:04:20 > 0:04:24case managers, David Milchard, also known in the office as Grimble.
0:04:24 > 0:04:32I've got a little job called Joan Evelyn Galloway. It looks like she's coming out of the Liverpool area.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36Got no near kin, so we're going for cousins.
0:04:36 > 0:04:42To track down any heirs, the researchers need to piece together a family tree.
0:04:42 > 0:04:48Working out generation by generation who the relatives are and if any are still alive.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52Fraser's aren't the only company working the Treasury list.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55With rival firms chasing the same cases,
0:04:55 > 0:05:00the team need to keep one step ahead of the competition and find this information as fast as they can.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03How are we getting on with the census?
0:05:03 > 0:05:07The UK Census, produced every ten years, lists all the members
0:05:07 > 0:05:11of each household and gives key information to get the hunt started.
0:05:11 > 0:05:15I've got the census on the mother's side and I'm now looking
0:05:15 > 0:05:19for the census on the father's side to confirm the top line if we can.
0:05:19 > 0:05:25From the census they've already identified Joan's parents - James Galloway and Evelyn Littleton,
0:05:25 > 0:05:29at least one uncle on the mother's side and seven aunts
0:05:29 > 0:05:32and one uncle on the father's side.
0:05:32 > 0:05:37Now they need to find their descendants in order to find living beneficiaries.
0:05:37 > 0:05:42Through the records, the team have also uncovered some of her paternal grandfather's interest in history.
0:05:42 > 0:05:46Born in 1843 Edinburgh, James Galloway moved
0:05:46 > 0:05:51to the boom town of Liverpool to pursue a career in shipbuilding.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57In the late 19th century, Liverpool was the second port
0:05:57 > 0:06:00of the British Empire and a hub of shipping and ship making.
0:06:00 > 0:06:06With the Merseyside docks at its heart, the population of the city trebled.
0:06:06 > 0:06:14James began as a boiler cleaner, but moved up the ranks to become a contractor and it seems he ended up
0:06:14 > 0:06:19an influential man with a Liverpool road named after him.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23Records reveal that all but one of the James's children were born in West Derby,
0:06:23 > 0:06:30a district of Liverpool, and the team believe many of the descendants will still live in the area today.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34The researchers need to find birth, death and marriage records for all
0:06:34 > 0:06:37the aunts and uncles to find their descendants who would be heirs.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41All the births, deaths and marriages are on our machines and it's just a case of trawling
0:06:41 > 0:06:46through them and making sure, you know, we don't miss anything and doing it as quickly as possible.
0:06:46 > 0:06:52With a lot of family, there's a lot of searches to do.
0:06:52 > 0:06:54I need at least two people to help me and Dom.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56Al, worklist, mate.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58Getting somewhere at last.
0:06:58 > 0:07:04The office are in high spirits and with lots of people now working the case, they quickly come across
0:07:04 > 0:07:10the marriage records of Joan's paternal uncle, Joseph Galloway to an Eliza Burns and this leads
0:07:10 > 0:07:15to the births of their children, George, Joseph, Cyril and Jessie.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18It also seems that 81-year-old Jessie,
0:07:18 > 0:07:21a first cousin to Joan, may still be alive.
0:07:21 > 0:07:26If the Heir Hunters can speak to her, she may have some vital clues to the rest of the family,
0:07:26 > 0:07:30so they need to contact her as soon as they can.
0:07:30 > 0:07:36The uncle, Joseph, who had four children, we've got one of his daughters still living in Liverpool.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39I tried to call her, but the line is engaged.
0:07:39 > 0:07:41I'm now trying to get Paul Matthews,
0:07:41 > 0:07:46who is about 15 miles away from Liverpool, to go and call on her.
0:07:50 > 0:07:55Fraser's employs a squadron of travelling Heir Hunters
0:07:55 > 0:07:58who are ready to go wherever the hunt takes them.
0:07:58 > 0:08:03Their job is to sniff out new clues and follow new leads.
0:08:03 > 0:08:08To help the case, they rush round the country collecting vital birth, death and marriage certificates
0:08:08 > 0:08:11as well as interviewing neighbours of the deceased.
0:08:11 > 0:08:18But the really key part is meeting and signing up heirs before the competition.
0:08:18 > 0:08:23Ex-police sergeant Paul Matthews is their Midlands-based heir hunter
0:08:23 > 0:08:27and is well used to spending his Thursdays on the road.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29Am I still heading towards Liverpool to start off with?
0:08:29 > 0:08:32You're going to a place walled Waterloo in Liverpool.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36Because of the estate's estimated £200,000 value, Grimble suspects
0:08:36 > 0:08:42lots of competition on the case and wastes no time in getting Paul Matthews to call at the address.
0:08:42 > 0:08:50The deceased had an uncle Joseph and Jessie is his daughter
0:08:50 > 0:08:54and Jessie is still alive,
0:08:54 > 0:08:59so hopefully if we get lucky, she'll be good for her age
0:08:59 > 0:09:02and not only can we get her signed up,
0:09:02 > 0:09:07we can get what information she knows about the family because hopefully she knows
0:09:07 > 0:09:13all about her uncles and aunts and their children, which will save us an awful lot of time and research.
0:09:13 > 0:09:16It's only two hours into the investigation
0:09:16 > 0:09:20and they've already identified their first potential heir.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24As there is no close kin, in this case, it's cousins they're looking for.
0:09:24 > 0:09:29Having already found the daughter of Joan's paternal uncle, they now
0:09:29 > 0:09:34concentrate all their efforts on tracing the descendants of Joan's seven paternal aunts.
0:09:34 > 0:09:36There's Nellie up here who's still outstanding.
0:09:36 > 0:09:38Annie, Nellie, Elizabeth.
0:09:38 > 0:09:42Three of them outstanding still.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45I can't even read what her middle name is.
0:09:45 > 0:09:50Martha...Pool, ooh...
0:09:50 > 0:09:55Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Liverpool, Paul is having some problems of his own.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58ENGAGED TONE
0:09:58 > 0:10:04It's engaged for a while, so it could be off the hook. Who knows?
0:10:04 > 0:10:06So we'd better get our skates on.
0:10:06 > 0:10:10The heir in Liverpool has been engaged all morning and back in the office,
0:10:10 > 0:10:13they're starting to worry that a rival company has got there first.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17You don't get two minutes up here to do things.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21And the stress is beginning to show.
0:10:21 > 0:10:26Speaking to family members can be vital as it may unlock the whole family tree.
0:10:26 > 0:10:31So as Paul arrives in the street of Jessie, the potential heir, he gives it another try.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37'Please leave your message after the tone.'
0:10:37 > 0:10:40Hello, Mrs Winstanley.
0:10:40 > 0:10:45My name is Paul Matthews, I work for a probate research company called Fraser and Fraser.
0:10:45 > 0:10:51A relative of yours, a distant cousin, has passed away, left a sum of money. We're trying to find
0:10:51 > 0:10:56family members so that estate gets shared between them as opposed to going to the Government.
0:10:56 > 0:11:00If when you come back, if you give us a phone call and I'll tell you a bit more about it.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11As Jessie doesn't seem to be answering to anybody, Paul Matthews
0:11:11 > 0:11:15resorts to knocking on neighbours' doors
0:11:15 > 0:11:18to see if anyone knows of her whereabouts.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21She can't be too far away, I wouldn't have thought.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25But we don't know, because there is nobody here who can tell us where she is.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27That's a little bit frustrating.
0:11:27 > 0:11:33We've got here before anybody else, I think, and we haven't got a reply.
0:11:33 > 0:11:38I might have to sit back and wait and I'll tell the office what is going on
0:11:38 > 0:11:44and I'll leave her a letter to give us a call as soon as she gets back.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47All he can now do is wait.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50George R Galloway - who's got the marriages?
0:11:50 > 0:11:55In the office, the pressure to find a breakthrough to the elusive paternal aunt is mounting.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58We still haven't got anything for Nellie.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05There's too many people running around and it is not all coming together how it should do.
0:12:05 > 0:12:11Not one to give up, Paul decides to give Jessie one last try.
0:12:11 > 0:12:12- Hello, is that Mrs Winstanley?- Yes.
0:12:12 > 0:12:16Paul Matthews from Fraser and Fraser. I've left you...
0:12:16 > 0:12:18The matter's in hand, thank you.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22I've been here - I know another chap has also contacted you.
0:12:22 > 0:12:26Could you spare me just two minutes of your time, please?
0:12:26 > 0:12:28I'm in the same road as yourself.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32I was there earlier and left you a letter. Could you spare two minutes?
0:12:32 > 0:12:34You did, but the matter's in hand now, thank you.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38Could you just give me two minutes so I can ask you some family information, nothing else, please?
0:12:38 > 0:12:41No. It's all sorted out now.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44- Don't bother me again.- But what... - I'm OK. Thank you.- But...
0:12:48 > 0:12:51We managed to speak to one heir so far
0:12:51 > 0:12:55and we're the third people to contact them,
0:12:55 > 0:13:01so from all the sounds of it, we're not doing very well at all.
0:13:02 > 0:13:06After a good start this morning, the competition are now hot on the case.
0:13:06 > 0:13:11Will an unusual piece of research that the team uncover be the key
0:13:11 > 0:13:14to getting them one step ahead of their rivals?
0:13:21 > 0:13:23Not all cases have such tough competition, especially
0:13:23 > 0:13:27if the Heir Hunters get them before they appear on the Treasury list.
0:13:27 > 0:13:32This is what happened when Fraser's found themselves being asked
0:13:32 > 0:13:33to investigate the estate
0:13:33 > 0:13:36of Barbara Thompson, a free-spirited intellectual from Sheffield.
0:13:36 > 0:13:41I think she saw the world as her oyster at a time when perhaps other people hadn't
0:13:41 > 0:13:47quite woken up to the fact that there is a world out there and I think that she was there and ready to go for it.
0:13:47 > 0:13:51But Barbara's love of foreign places meant there were troubles ahead.
0:13:52 > 0:13:56We're fairly good at knowing who inherits following the probate law.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59In Barbara's case, as soon as we realised there was French property,
0:13:59 > 0:14:02we've had to throw the rule book out the window.
0:14:02 > 0:14:05French property law is totally different.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10Barbara Thompson died in Sheffield in December 2007.
0:14:10 > 0:14:14She was 70 years old and had never married or had kids.
0:14:14 > 0:14:18For most of her adult life she'd lived and worked abroad
0:14:18 > 0:14:21as a translator, fluent in seven languages.
0:14:26 > 0:14:30Her estate consisted of her parents' martial home in Sheffield where
0:14:30 > 0:14:34Barbara had grown up and her flat in Paris where she'd lived for years.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Barbara had died without leaving a will and it was a family member
0:14:40 > 0:14:45who asked the Heir Hunters for their help to resolve the case.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48It's been referred to us by what we refer to as a member of the public.
0:14:48 > 0:14:50It's a second cousin to the deceased.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54Knowing second cousins weren't entitled to inherit under English
0:14:54 > 0:14:58and Welsh law, she called for help in tracking down any closer kin.
0:14:58 > 0:15:04My first impressions on this was it was an estate which didn't appear
0:15:04 > 0:15:10to have any beneficiaries and was going to be claimed by the Crown.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13In hope of keeping Barbara's fortune in the family, the second cousin
0:15:13 > 0:15:18gave the researchers a head start to finding heirs by passing on crucial family information.
0:15:18 > 0:15:25The second cousin started off by giving us the name of the deceased, Barbara. Barbara Thompson.
0:15:25 > 0:15:32Also was able to provide the date of death and the date of birth and the last known address for Barbara.
0:15:32 > 0:15:37Now if we put that back into a Treasury solicitor's eyes and how we normally start our cases,
0:15:37 > 0:15:44we never get given the date of birth, so already we've got more information than we normally start with.
0:15:44 > 0:15:49So they began the hunt for heirs. On the deceased's maternal side, all trails went cold.
0:15:49 > 0:15:56They moved on to her father, Henry Thompson's side of the family, but there they ran into other problems.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00Thompson is not a very good name to research. It's quite a common name.
0:16:00 > 0:16:07So it means when we're trying to confirm stuff up, we've got lots of searching to do and it's very,
0:16:07 > 0:16:09very hard to identify an individual record.
0:16:09 > 0:16:15After wading through thousands of entries under the name Thompson, the researchers eventually found
0:16:15 > 0:16:19Barbara's two paternal aunts, Gladys and Annie.
0:16:19 > 0:16:24Gladys was found to have died without children, so there were no beneficiaries there.
0:16:24 > 0:16:26But Annie had married an Alfred Stokes
0:16:26 > 0:16:33and this led the Heir Hunters to their son, Derek, a first cousin to Barbara and a potential beneficiary.
0:16:33 > 0:16:38From the Stokes marriage we were able to straightaway find a birth and the birth of Derek.
0:16:38 > 0:16:43So really within five, ten minutes from having a horrible case to research
0:16:43 > 0:16:48with horrible names, which looked for all the best part and all our guts were telling us there weren't
0:16:48 > 0:16:53going to be any beneficiaries, we had a decent surname and we'd found a birth from it.
0:16:53 > 0:17:00Derek was certainly an entitled relative on this. He has certainly got a greater entitlement to any
0:17:00 > 0:17:06of the money than the Treasury have, so it's a huge turning point for us.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10With Derek identified as Barbara's first cousin and sole heir
0:17:10 > 0:17:13to her estate, the office needed to make contact and tell him the news.
0:17:13 > 0:17:20Derek Stokes and his wife Jill live less than half an hour from Barbara's Sheffield home.
0:17:20 > 0:17:28They'd known her all her life, but were used to not hearing from her for years at a time.
0:17:28 > 0:17:32Well, we got a phone call from Fraser and Fraser.
0:17:32 > 0:17:37Basically to say that Barbara had died and that Derek was the heir.
0:17:37 > 0:17:43It was quite a shock really, wasn't it? That Barbara had actually died.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46Barbara Thompson was born in 1937.
0:17:46 > 0:17:51An only child, she grew up in a loving home in Sheffield.
0:17:51 > 0:17:55Barbara would have grown up
0:17:55 > 0:18:00in a beautiful home, actually, a family home.
0:18:00 > 0:18:05Mediocre really, their financial situation, I would think.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08But they were very thrifty.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12At school, Barbara was top of her class and gained a scholarship
0:18:12 > 0:18:15to the prestigious Sheffield High School for Girls,
0:18:15 > 0:18:18where she met life-long friend Andy Jameson.
0:18:18 > 0:18:23I remember she went to Wales on holiday with her parents, probably,
0:18:23 > 0:18:26and came back speaking some Welsh.
0:18:26 > 0:18:31Later, she spent a bit of time in Egypt and came back speaking
0:18:31 > 0:18:35some Arabic, and she just seemed to be able
0:18:35 > 0:18:38to pick languages up quite easily.
0:18:38 > 0:18:43Barbara enrolled to study languages at St Andrew's University in 1957,
0:18:43 > 0:18:46a time when very few women went on to higher education.
0:18:46 > 0:18:52I think it would have been her real sort of home from home, you know.
0:18:52 > 0:18:58She would have found her metier, if that's the right word.
0:18:58 > 0:19:03She would have found her place, because she loved anything academic and bookish.
0:19:03 > 0:19:05Once Barbara had graduated,
0:19:05 > 0:19:09she struck out on her own to experience the world.
0:19:09 > 0:19:14She lived in Salamanca and in Paris, and worked in five languages -
0:19:14 > 0:19:18English, German, French, Italian and Spanish.
0:19:18 > 0:19:24She devoted herself to translating poetry, literature and other academic text.
0:19:24 > 0:19:29I think Barbara could have made a better living if she had translated
0:19:29 > 0:19:34perhaps novels and things like that, but it was just what she preferred.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38It is what she was interested in, and that's what mattered to her.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41It seems Barbara made a conscious decision
0:19:41 > 0:19:44not to settle down and get married.
0:19:44 > 0:19:49I would imagine she never married mainly because she was too independent. She would be just...
0:19:49 > 0:19:56- Too much for a man.- Too strong-willed and too independent to actually settle down and get married.
0:19:56 > 0:19:58Plus she loved to travel.
0:19:58 > 0:20:02- That's right.- And she might have felt that might impede her travels.
0:20:02 > 0:20:07And it was Barbara's travels that led her to settle in Paris, buying
0:20:07 > 0:20:11a small flat on the Left Bank that Andy visited several times.
0:20:11 > 0:20:17We had some fun together, and she opened doors for me to do
0:20:17 > 0:20:26things in Paris that probably I would never have had the opportunity to do.
0:20:26 > 0:20:30It gave me just a bit of an insight to what
0:20:30 > 0:20:36it would be like to live in Paris, so I remember her with great affection.
0:20:36 > 0:20:38While the flat was very small,
0:20:38 > 0:20:42its prime location close to the Notre Dame cathedral
0:20:42 > 0:20:47meant its value was fairly large, somewhere in the region of £150,000.
0:20:50 > 0:20:55Jill and Derek have just returned from their first ever visit to Barbara's flat.
0:20:55 > 0:21:01Well, I love the flat. When it was tidied up, as I say, it's quirky. It's in a beautiful part of Paris.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04I mean, we were only there a weekend and we worked very hard
0:21:04 > 0:21:09clearing the flat out, but we felt we had been away a couple of weeks, we were so relaxed there.
0:21:09 > 0:21:13It was this French property that was about to put a spanner in the works
0:21:13 > 0:21:18for Neil's rather neat-looking family tree.
0:21:18 > 0:21:24Initially it seemed that Derek was the heir to both the Sheffield property and the Paris flat,
0:21:24 > 0:21:28but deeper investigation revealed it was not to be that simple.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31We have to deal with this property under the French probate law
0:21:31 > 0:21:37and not the English probate law we've been dealing with the rest of the estate by.
0:21:37 > 0:21:43Under French law the net is cast much wider, allowing more distant relatives to inherit.
0:21:43 > 0:21:50In England we can only go back as far as the grandparents of the deceased and their descendants coming down.
0:21:50 > 0:21:56So in England we deal with first cousins or first cousins once, twice, three, four times removed.
0:21:56 > 0:22:02In France we can deal with second cousins or even third cousins should we have to go that far.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06So Barbara's second cousin who initially referred the case now
0:22:06 > 0:22:10became one of several second cousins entitled to some of her estate.
0:22:10 > 0:22:11That's really good news, in fact.
0:22:11 > 0:22:17That really makes us quite happy, because the person who gave it to us is now actually getting a reward.
0:22:17 > 0:22:22She is only getting the French part of the family, but it's still good,
0:22:22 > 0:22:26isn't it, that someone who gave it is getting the reward.
0:22:26 > 0:22:32A total of eight second cousins were tracked down, each entitled to a share of the French estate.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36The company's work on an estate does not end once the heirs have been found.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39When Neil has completed the research, his brother Andrew
0:22:39 > 0:22:45will take over the case and set about distributing the assets between the beneficiaries.
0:22:45 > 0:22:51The majority of assets we find on the larger estates, certainly are going to involve the property.
0:22:51 > 0:22:56On this particular case, it's a very interesting matter because we have two properties.
0:22:56 > 0:23:01We have a flat in Paris and we have the old family house up in Sheffield.
0:23:01 > 0:23:06Today, Andrew is on his way to Sheffield to look at Barbara's house
0:23:06 > 0:23:09with Derek Stokes, the sole heir to the property.
0:23:14 > 0:23:18So, let's see what we've got.
0:23:19 > 0:23:24She tried so hard to keep it in the 1930s mode,
0:23:24 > 0:23:27but she didn't have the money to do it.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31And I think this is what led
0:23:31 > 0:23:34to the gradual deterioration of the property.
0:23:34 > 0:23:39Well, it's quite heartbreaking really, isn't it? More so for you.
0:23:39 > 0:23:42It is, especially knowing Barbara, yeah.
0:23:42 > 0:23:47Once they've cleared the house of Barbara's belongings, Derek and Jill plan to sell the property on.
0:23:47 > 0:23:52- I would hope that somebody will... - Get it back to what it was.
0:23:52 > 0:23:56Yes, yes and improve it really and restore the garden
0:23:56 > 0:24:01and the garage, and turn it into the nice family home that it was really.
0:24:01 > 0:24:03- That's what I'd like anyway.- Yes.
0:24:08 > 0:24:14Jill and Derek had last seen Barbara at her mother's funeral in 1994.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17As far as we knew Barbara had gone back to France
0:24:17 > 0:24:20and she was there because that was the place she loved.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22That was where she would want to be.
0:24:22 > 0:24:26It turned out Barbara had got cancer and had actually returned
0:24:26 > 0:24:30to the UK, living just half an hour from her relatives.
0:24:30 > 0:24:34For all her free-spirited nature and love of life abroad, Barbara
0:24:34 > 0:24:38had come back to the family home for the last two years of her life.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41But she had chosen not to tell anyone about her situation.
0:24:41 > 0:24:48It came as a shock, but at the same time it explained certain things.
0:24:48 > 0:24:54I hadn't heard from her for two or three years perhaps.
0:24:54 > 0:24:59But Barbara's legacy lives on in the memories of the people who knew her
0:24:59 > 0:25:03and in the work she did that meant so much to her all her life.
0:25:03 > 0:25:10I think she left a lot of friends who will always regard her highly.
0:25:10 > 0:25:15I think she has probably left quite a mark in the academic world for the work that she's done,
0:25:15 > 0:25:22and I think that anybody who knew her will always remember her with affection and a smile.
0:25:22 > 0:25:24She was attractive.
0:25:24 > 0:25:29She was different, I suppose, in the life that she chose for herself.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33I shall remember Barbara with... SHE STRUGGLES TO SPEAK
0:25:33 > 0:25:36Sorry. ..With great affection.
0:25:43 > 0:25:48For every case that is solved, there are still those that stubbornly remain a mystery.
0:25:48 > 0:25:55Currently over 3,000 names drawn from across the country are on the Treasury's unsolved case list.
0:25:59 > 0:26:03Their assets will be kept for up to 30 years in the hope that eventually
0:26:03 > 0:26:08someone will remember and come forward to claim their inheritance.
0:26:08 > 0:26:14With estates valued at anything from £5,000 to millions of pounds,
0:26:14 > 0:26:19the rightful heirs are out there somewhere.
0:26:19 > 0:26:24Gerald Wilton of Andover in Hampshire passed on in February 2008.
0:26:24 > 0:26:27Does that name conjure up any memories for you?
0:26:27 > 0:26:33Did you know him? Could you even be related to him and missing out on your rightful inheritance?
0:26:33 > 0:26:39Stasy Narbutas of Denmark Hill in London died in January 2008.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43Despite Stasy's unusual name, heirs have so far proved elusive.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46Do you have recollections that could solve this mystery?
0:26:46 > 0:26:49Could you even be related?
0:26:56 > 0:27:00Back in London, since appearing on the Treasury's list of unclaimed estates,
0:27:00 > 0:27:04Fraser and Fraser have been investigating the case of Joan Hack.
0:27:04 > 0:27:11She died in 2002, leaving an estimated £200,000 fortune, which the team need to reunite
0:27:11 > 0:27:15with legal beneficiaries if they are to make their commission.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19As Joan has no near kin, it's the extended family who stand to inherit.
0:27:19 > 0:27:24Case manager Grimble had a great start, quickly identifying
0:27:24 > 0:27:31numerous aunts and uncles as well as a living first cousin, but a rival company got there first.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35She has obviously spoken to somebody else so, reluctantly, on this particular stem,
0:27:35 > 0:27:40on this particular branch of it, then obviously we have to back away because it's the right thing to do.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43If she doesn't want to see us, then that's it.
0:27:43 > 0:27:46I'm not here to go knocking on her door and harassing people.
0:27:46 > 0:27:53The more straightforward family genealogy will be attracting all the heir-hunting firms.
0:27:53 > 0:27:56Fraser's need to draw on their vast expertise in complicated research
0:27:56 > 0:27:59to break on to the more difficult family lines.
0:27:59 > 0:28:05For the last few hours, they've been searching for the marriage records of Joan's Aunt Martha, who they believe
0:28:05 > 0:28:09married a Henry Brookes, and they're still hunting for anything on her other aunt, Hester.
0:28:09 > 0:28:15But a trawl through their wealth of records has rewarded them with a brilliant clue.
0:28:15 > 0:28:20On a British Army record, I've been able to find a marriage for
0:28:20 > 0:28:25Hester in 1900, that's 21st November 1900, and that's actually in Malta.
0:28:25 > 0:28:29So it's why it didn't come up the first time through on our searches.
0:28:29 > 0:28:31We've then gone and done some overseas work.
0:28:31 > 0:28:35We've found a marriage for her in Malta, and that's to a Percy Edwin Walton.
0:28:35 > 0:28:38We've also been able to find two births off that.
0:28:38 > 0:28:45Finding these overseas records has helped identify Joan's relatives who descend from her Aunt Hester.
0:28:46 > 0:28:49- Hester...- Yeah?
0:28:49 > 0:28:53..marries Percy Edwin Walton.
0:28:53 > 0:28:57Hester Galloway married Percy Walton in Malta and they had
0:28:57 > 0:28:59two children, Violet and Winifred.
0:28:59 > 0:29:04Winifred is found to have died a spinster, so there won't be any beneficiaries there.
0:29:04 > 0:29:06But from Violet, they found
0:29:06 > 0:29:09the birth of a daughter, Janet.
0:29:09 > 0:29:11She is the first cousin once removed
0:29:11 > 0:29:13and an heir to Joan's estate.
0:29:13 > 0:29:19Their clever detective work has put them back on track, and a phone call to Janet sets up an appointment with
0:29:19 > 0:29:23travelling heir hunter Dave Hadley, who is only ten miles away from her home.
0:29:23 > 0:29:28- 'We actually need you in Saffron Walden.'- Saffron Walden?
0:29:28 > 0:29:33- 'Yeah.'- OK.- 'It's on the Herts/Essex border.'- OK.
0:29:36 > 0:29:43We're gradually beginning to get it all sorted out, but we've been hampered by a bit of competition.
0:29:43 > 0:29:45That's not helping us at the moment.
0:29:45 > 0:29:47But it will sort itself out.
0:29:47 > 0:29:53After meeting Janet, Dave has some crucial info to feed back to Grimble.
0:29:56 > 0:30:00Right, I've spoken to Mrs Garret.
0:30:00 > 0:30:04- Yeah?- Apparently James Galloway was married twice. Did you know that?
0:30:04 > 0:30:06'No, I didn't know that.'
0:30:06 > 0:30:10Right, she reckons that James Galloway has married twice.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13- 'Yes.'- And that Annie, Margaret and Elizabeth...
0:30:13 > 0:30:17- 'Come off the first marriage.' - Came off the first marriage.- 'Right.'
0:30:17 > 0:30:20And the rest came off the second marriage.
0:30:20 > 0:30:23'Right, lovely. That's great.'
0:30:23 > 0:30:27The team's lateral thinking which led them to Janet has paid off.
0:30:27 > 0:30:32From her, they know three of seven paternal aunts are not entitled,
0:30:32 > 0:30:36as they come off the grandfather, James Galloway's previous marriage.
0:30:36 > 0:30:40With those family branches out of the picture, the team can now
0:30:40 > 0:30:44focus their resources trying to trace aunts Nellie and Martha.
0:30:44 > 0:30:48The office's overseas records have proved invaluable in saving them
0:30:48 > 0:30:53a huge amount of research time and in finding them an heir.
0:30:53 > 0:30:58I don't think everyone else, or anyone else, none of our competition
0:30:58 > 0:31:00will find that very early.
0:31:00 > 0:31:04They may find it, but it will probably take them a couple of days.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07Because of that, the beneficiary which we're now speaking to,
0:31:07 > 0:31:11I don't think will be contacted by anyone else for at least a few days.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15Even better, the information she is feeding back has now alerted us
0:31:15 > 0:31:18that the grandfather may have been married twice.
0:31:18 > 0:31:20That again is great information.
0:31:20 > 0:31:24But investigations into Joan's Aunt Hester don't end there.
0:31:24 > 0:31:27The team have found a listing for a document held
0:31:27 > 0:31:32at the West Sussex records office, but it is very unusual.
0:31:32 > 0:31:36I found a record for a diamond wedding invitation.
0:31:36 > 0:31:38This is for a Percy E Walton.
0:31:38 > 0:31:45It's in 1960 - you need to be 60 years married to have a diamond anniversary.
0:31:45 > 0:31:48It ties up exactly with what we've got and it gives a good area of the country.
0:31:48 > 0:31:51The record says it's signed by all the guests.
0:31:51 > 0:31:55Now, if it was my 60th, my diamond wedding anniversary,
0:31:55 > 0:31:59I would be inviting all my brothers and sisters.
0:31:59 > 0:32:04So all the females we haven't been able to find marriage notes for, we maybe able to go and have a look
0:32:04 > 0:32:09at that invitation and suddenly get all of their surnames, all of their married surnames.
0:32:09 > 0:32:11It could cut us down hours.
0:32:11 > 0:32:17It could be a shortcut to the married names of the paternal aunts and, with these names,
0:32:17 > 0:32:22they could then identify any children they may have had, who would be potential beneficiaries.
0:32:22 > 0:32:26If Bob Barrett's not doing anything - I think
0:32:26 > 0:32:30he was only making a simple enquiry this morning - get him over there.
0:32:30 > 0:32:35It means calling on another of the travelling heir hunters and Bob Barrett's the man for this job.
0:32:35 > 0:32:44We often have to go to churchyards and look at headstones and check burial records.
0:32:44 > 0:32:50We visit archives at Kew to look at war records
0:32:50 > 0:32:55and to look at immigration records, but it's the first time
0:32:55 > 0:33:01I've had to look up a diamond wedding lunch invitation.
0:33:06 > 0:33:10I think this celebration was in the 1960s,
0:33:10 > 0:33:14so they probably started with prawn cocktail!
0:33:14 > 0:33:20Probably chicken for main course and then Black Forest gateau,
0:33:20 > 0:33:24all washed down with a nice bottle of rose.
0:33:24 > 0:33:29The invitation is held at the West Sussex Records Office.
0:33:29 > 0:33:36This is an unusual document for the researchers to track down, but they know from experience that unexpected
0:33:36 > 0:33:39and vital clues can sometimes come from the strangest places.
0:33:39 > 0:33:41Here we are.
0:33:41 > 0:33:44For each record they want to view, the heir hunters must give
0:33:44 > 0:33:49a unique reference number, which is what the team have tracked down.
0:33:49 > 0:33:53Then it's a matter of waiting... patiently.
0:33:57 > 0:33:59Thank you very much. Thanks.
0:34:03 > 0:34:05I was right about the prawn cocktail.
0:34:06 > 0:34:08Just a few signed names.
0:34:08 > 0:34:13And a few more overleaf.
0:34:13 > 0:34:19It will be a job to read the names, but Bob is used to deciphering handwritten records.
0:34:19 > 0:34:23As they'd hoped, it seems the menu does contain a lot of names,
0:34:23 > 0:34:26but unfortunately only a few surnames.
0:34:26 > 0:34:30Will this new evidence be of any use to Grimble?
0:34:30 > 0:34:31Hello, Grimble.
0:34:31 > 0:34:34I've got exactly what you want.
0:34:34 > 0:34:38- It was soup and prawn cocktail to start.- Oh dear!
0:34:38 > 0:34:41Actually, it's a bit disappointing.
0:34:41 > 0:34:44There isn't a guest list.
0:34:44 > 0:34:51All they've done is some of the guests have signed one of the menus.
0:34:51 > 0:34:56- Yeah.- Some of it is difficult to read anyway.
0:34:56 > 0:34:58Um, Mabel?
0:34:58 > 0:35:02As Bob feeds back the names, it becomes clear the invite doesn't contain
0:35:02 > 0:35:05the key bits of information the heir hunters had been hoping for.
0:35:05 > 0:35:08It's so bad it's not legible.
0:35:09 > 0:35:15Unfortunately, the invite doesn't contain the married surnames of Aunts Nellie and Martha.
0:35:16 > 0:35:21At the end of the day, we've got several names and whatnot, but only one of them really meant anything.
0:35:21 > 0:35:25It was still worth doing, because you never know what's going to happen.
0:35:25 > 0:35:31It's now nine-and-a-half hours into the case and the heir hunters still haven't signed any heirs.
0:35:31 > 0:35:36The wedding invitation may not have been the breakthrough they had been hoping for,
0:35:36 > 0:35:39but the researchers' persistent hard work has just rewarded them
0:35:39 > 0:35:43with something from the internet that's a gem of a find.
0:35:43 > 0:35:46What we're talking of here is either some amateur genealogist
0:35:46 > 0:35:52who's done their own family tree and submitted all the data or, more than likely in this instance,
0:35:52 > 0:35:57it's possibly someone of the Mormon belief, the Church of the Latter Day Saint.
0:35:57 > 0:36:02Part of their religious beliefs is that they have to go back and trace the family history.
0:36:02 > 0:36:06The Mormons have added a huge amount to the world of genealogy,
0:36:06 > 0:36:12and they were the first people who started computerising stuff. We're all quite reliant on their records.
0:36:12 > 0:36:16Someone has done the family tree already, and all the results
0:36:16 > 0:36:18were published on the internet.
0:36:18 > 0:36:23Well, we've got one coming up here - Mabel.
0:36:23 > 0:36:27This is on the Brookes stem.
0:36:27 > 0:36:31The Brookes stem is something we've had a huge problem in trying
0:36:31 > 0:36:34to identify the births on, because of the time period.
0:36:34 > 0:36:38It would have saved us an awful lot more time if we'd found this
0:36:38 > 0:36:42first thing this morning rather than last thing this evening.
0:36:42 > 0:36:45There is good information on here.
0:36:45 > 0:36:48This late discovery provides them
0:36:48 > 0:36:51with virtually all the family information
0:36:51 > 0:36:56relating to Joan's Aunt Martha, who they've had trouble tracing all day.
0:36:56 > 0:36:57She married a Henry Brookes,
0:36:57 > 0:37:01and this branch of the family turns out to be the largest of all.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04It leads them down to her five children
0:37:04 > 0:37:07and on to a whole new layer of heirs,
0:37:07 > 0:37:11including Joan's first cousins once removed, Eric and Barbara Brookes,
0:37:11 > 0:37:12who live in the Liverpool area.
0:37:12 > 0:37:20Eric has got a brother, Harry, who is now dead, and he has got a daughter, Barbara. We need to find her.
0:37:20 > 0:37:23So while Grimble hits the phones...
0:37:26 > 0:37:29..Paul Matthews hopes his luck with the heirs is about to change.
0:37:29 > 0:37:33SAT-NAV: Take the next left turn, and then right ahead.
0:37:33 > 0:37:40Hopefully we will find somebody in who will actually agree to see us.
0:37:47 > 0:37:52As he arrives to knock on more doors, will he finally get to meet an heir?
0:37:52 > 0:37:54What time is he due back?
0:37:54 > 0:37:58- He won't be back for a few weeks. He's away at the moment.- Oh, right.
0:38:03 > 0:38:05Eric is in Dubai.
0:38:05 > 0:38:08- 'In Dubai?'- Yeah. I've spoken to him.
0:38:08 > 0:38:11I've got an address for him.
0:38:11 > 0:38:14I've got an e-mail for him.
0:38:14 > 0:38:19I told him a little bit about it. He has a sister, Barbara, as you know.
0:38:19 > 0:38:22I've spoken to her and I'm on the way to see her.
0:38:22 > 0:38:25- She'll be home in about 15 minutes. - Oh, well done.
0:38:25 > 0:38:29At last, the team are making contact with the heirs.
0:38:29 > 0:38:34Paul Matthews has had a good result on the ground, and Grimble is having success on the phones.
0:38:34 > 0:38:36Hello, Mrs Sanderson? Hello there.
0:38:36 > 0:38:38Thank you for calling back. That's very kind of you.
0:38:38 > 0:38:42We've been dealing with the estate of a lady called Joan Hack.
0:38:42 > 0:38:47She would be a cousin to your father.
0:38:47 > 0:38:50It's been a long, hard day for the heir hunters.
0:38:50 > 0:38:53Their meticulous research has uncovered almost 20 legal heirs,
0:38:53 > 0:38:56but they've only managed to speak to a few of them.
0:38:56 > 0:39:00From that research, we think that you and your brother John
0:39:00 > 0:39:04may be entitled to inherit part of the estate.
0:39:06 > 0:39:11It's important for the company to see any beneficiaries that they can.
0:39:14 > 0:39:17- Hello.- Hi, Barbara. Paul Matthews from Fraser and Fraser.
0:39:17 > 0:39:19- Come in.- Pleased to meet you. - Thank you.
0:39:19 > 0:39:22- No doubt you're a bit mystified by all this.- I am, yes.
0:39:25 > 0:39:32And informing distant relatives of their unexpected windfall is usually welcome news.
0:39:32 > 0:39:36- Obviously a big family, lots of work to do.- Yes.
0:39:36 > 0:39:39You will get a sum of money. It's never ever going to cost you
0:39:39 > 0:39:41anything and you will only receive money.
0:39:41 > 0:39:44- OK.- And, of course, the family tree - that'll be good.
0:39:44 > 0:39:51By the time you work through that lot, it will be lucky if you get a smile out of it all!
0:39:51 > 0:39:58You might get 10p each! You could put it to a good cause. It will pay for a day-trip in Rhyl or somewhere.
0:39:58 > 0:40:02For Fraser's to make their money, they must get signed contracts
0:40:02 > 0:40:06and, with more heirs to meet and commission to win,
0:40:06 > 0:40:10the case rolls into the following day and Dave Hadley is back out on the road.
0:40:15 > 0:40:22It's the second day of this research in this case and I'm off to see
0:40:22 > 0:40:29a Stuart Galloway, who is a cousin, once removed from the deceased.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32I've got an appointment to see him at ten o'clock,
0:40:32 > 0:40:35and I'm looking forward to speaking to him.
0:40:35 > 0:40:42Stuart Galloway descends from Joan's Uncle Joseph and is a first cousin once removed.
0:40:42 > 0:40:46- Mr Galloway?- Yes. - David Hadley from Fraser and Fraser.
0:40:46 > 0:40:48Pleased to meet you.
0:40:48 > 0:40:50- Come in.- Thank you.
0:40:50 > 0:40:59There was some suggestion that your great-grandfather was James Galloway.
0:40:59 > 0:41:02Yeah, we actually named our son James, our first born.
0:41:02 > 0:41:07We just liked the name, but everybody thought that we'd done it
0:41:07 > 0:41:11to keep the Galloway name going, because we couldn't understand why,
0:41:11 > 0:41:16when he was born, we got all sorts of gifts that came through from people we'd never heard of.
0:41:16 > 0:41:23It turned out that the first born near enough in every Galloway is named James, which is quite...
0:41:23 > 0:41:27- An Irish tradition.- Yeah. But it was quite spooky because we did it
0:41:27 > 0:41:29without any of that knowledge,
0:41:29 > 0:41:33but a lot of people in the past said, "How thoughtful."
0:41:33 > 0:41:35Sadly it was done out of...
0:41:35 > 0:41:38You lapped it up nonetheless!
0:41:38 > 0:41:40Oh, absolutely! Absolutely, yes.
0:41:40 > 0:41:46It has been a rewarding meeting, not just for Dave Hadley, but also for heir Stuart Galloway.
0:41:46 > 0:41:52I learned a lot over the last few minutes with regard to past family,
0:41:52 > 0:41:56and I certainly found it very interesting and would
0:41:56 > 0:42:04certainly like to follow up, now that I've started to understand the family tree of the Galloways.
0:42:04 > 0:42:08- I hope everything works out OK for you.- Thank you very much.- Very nice meeting you.
0:42:08 > 0:42:16It certainly has been a rollercoaster few hours and I'm sure the outcome will have been worth it.
0:42:16 > 0:42:20While it's a positive outcome for the beneficiaries,
0:42:20 > 0:42:24Neil has mixed feelings about the case as, in the end, many of the heirs signed with the competition.
0:42:24 > 0:42:28The research has been exceptional. We've had hits on the Mormons.
0:42:28 > 0:42:30We've picked up stuff from a diamond wedding.
0:42:30 > 0:42:33We've picked up stuff in Malta.
0:42:33 > 0:42:35On the downside, I don't think it is going to be that
0:42:35 > 0:42:38profitable for us, because the competition has been so fierce.
0:42:38 > 0:42:42There have been so many firms working at this, it is unlikely that we'll actually cover our costs.
0:42:42 > 0:42:47Lonely recluse Joan Hack, whose life was never the same after her husband died,
0:42:47 > 0:42:51is now bringing together a family who she may not have even realised existed.
0:42:55 > 0:42:57If you would like advice
0:42:57 > 0:43:01about building a family tree or making a will, go to:
0:43:23 > 0:43:26Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:43:26 > 0:43:29E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk