0:00:02 > 0:00:05'Every year, thousands die without leaving a will
0:00:05 > 0:00:08'and, seemingly, with no next of kin.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11'But often a relative stands to inherit,
0:00:11 > 0:00:14'and that's where the heir hunters come in.
0:00:32 > 0:00:37'On today's programme, Dave Pacifico tracks down an unsuspecting heir
0:00:37 > 0:00:40'and gives him quite a surprise.'
0:00:40 > 0:00:43The call came completely out of the blue.
0:00:43 > 0:00:47I was, to use a phrase, completely gob-smacked.
0:00:47 > 0:00:52'And a family is amazed that they had an inventor for a relative,
0:00:52 > 0:00:55'who spent his life searching for that eureka moment.'
0:00:55 > 0:01:00Down in his cellar, it was made like a little workshop,
0:01:00 > 0:01:03full of little models of things he'd invented.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07'Plus, details of some of the hundreds of unclaimed estates.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10'Could you be in line for a windfall?
0:01:12 > 0:01:16'In the UK, about two-thirds of people do not have a will
0:01:16 > 0:01:19'and, therefore, no record of their last wishes.
0:01:19 > 0:01:23'If they die and an obvious relative cannot be found,
0:01:23 > 0:01:27'then their money defaults to the government
0:01:27 > 0:01:31'who, last year, made £18 million in unclaimed estates.
0:01:31 > 0:01:35'Heir hunters must leave no stone unturned.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39'There are over 30 companies competing to find beneficiaries
0:01:39 > 0:01:42'of the fortune they never knew existed.
0:01:42 > 0:01:47'With so much money at stake, there's a lot of competition
0:01:47 > 0:01:49'so time is of the essence.'
0:01:51 > 0:01:56We've every confidence in the team and I'm sure that we will triumph!
0:01:57 > 0:02:01'Fraser and Fraser are one of the oldest heir hunting companies
0:02:01 > 0:02:07'and have handled £100 million of inheritance in the last ten years.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10'Run by Neil, Charles and Andrew Fraser,
0:02:10 > 0:02:13'the company employs dozens of researchers,
0:02:13 > 0:02:17'all keen to be the first to sign up an heir
0:02:17 > 0:02:20'and solve the case as fast as possible.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27'It's Friday morning and work at Fraser and Fraser is under way.
0:02:27 > 0:02:31'Yesterday, the Treasury released its list of unclaimed estates.
0:02:31 > 0:02:34'Although a lot of cases have been started,
0:02:34 > 0:02:40'some less valuable, but no less challenging, ones are waiting to be cracked.
0:02:40 > 0:02:44'Case manager David Pacifico is looking into one such case.'
0:02:47 > 0:02:52Today's case we're looking at is Ruth Perkins, formally Logan.
0:02:52 > 0:02:57She died in 2008 in Northampton.
0:02:57 > 0:03:02We think it could be worth £30,000 and if so, worth looking into.
0:03:04 > 0:03:10'The company has little information so they use census and birth, death and marriage certificates
0:03:10 > 0:03:12'to build a family tree.
0:03:12 > 0:03:14'Generation by generation,
0:03:14 > 0:03:20'the team hopes to uncover potential heirs to an estate.
0:03:24 > 0:03:30'Ruth Vera Joyce Perkins died in February 2008 in Northampton,
0:03:30 > 0:03:37'leaving behind an estate worth an estimated £30,000, but no will.
0:03:37 > 0:03:39'Ruth was known to friends as Joyce.
0:03:39 > 0:03:43'She married Raymond Perkins in July 1947 in Northampton.
0:03:43 > 0:03:48'They were together for 51 years until Raymond died in 1998.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50'The couple had no children.
0:03:50 > 0:03:58'Towards the end of her life, Joyce moved into sheltered accommodation and lived there for five years.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02'Mary Spillane, the warden, became a good friend of Joyce's.'
0:04:03 > 0:04:07Joyce was a very lovely lady, really independent.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Very social lady. She loved going on holiday.
0:04:10 > 0:04:15A couple of times a year - when she could afford it, I think.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18Joyce was a lady that you'd feel...
0:04:18 > 0:04:22I looked on her as part of my family.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25She lived just across the way there.
0:04:25 > 0:04:30I'd pop round, even when I wasn't working, to see how she was.
0:04:30 > 0:04:36'As Joyce entered her final years it seems she was aware that she would be leaving an estate,
0:04:36 > 0:04:40'but not naming anyone as a beneficiary.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43'Mary recalls how Joyce asked for her help.'
0:04:43 > 0:04:48Joyce made me very aware that she didn't have immediate family.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51She was chatting one evening with me and said,
0:04:51 > 0:04:56you know, would I like to inherit and look after her.
0:04:56 > 0:05:01I didn't know at the time that she did have any money, the lady.
0:05:01 > 0:05:05But from my experience, over the years, I declined.
0:05:05 > 0:05:10But I did visit her on several occasions at her private place.
0:05:10 > 0:05:12She was very settled there.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16'After Mary was unable to help, and despite earlier intentions,
0:05:16 > 0:05:19'Joyce took the decision to not make a will.
0:05:19 > 0:05:27'After only meeting in the final years of Joyce's life, her friendship made an impact on Mary.'
0:05:27 > 0:05:30I will remember Joyce as an exceptionally lovely lady,
0:05:30 > 0:05:32a real English lady.
0:05:38 > 0:05:40'Back in London,
0:05:40 > 0:05:47'David Pacifico is leading the investigation and feels the team has got off to a strong start.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51'Joyce's mother's name is offering them some leads.'
0:05:51 > 0:05:55Perkins is coming along. We've identified the mother's death.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59She died unmarried in Northampton when she was 90.
0:05:59 > 0:06:04We crossed checked it to her birth and she was born in Mile End, 1888.
0:06:04 > 0:06:09The census shows that she was one of three children.
0:06:09 > 0:06:16She's got two siblings and the question arises, did the siblings have any children themselves?
0:06:16 > 0:06:19Hopefully, one of them did, so we may have cousins.
0:06:19 > 0:06:25'William Logan married Ruth Cushion and they had three children -
0:06:25 > 0:06:27'Ruth, William and Ethel.
0:06:27 > 0:06:31'Ruth had a daughter, our deceased, Joyce.
0:06:31 > 0:06:35'Did Joyce's aunt and uncle have children of their own?
0:06:35 > 0:06:40'It looks as though the mother's side will produce the only leads,
0:06:40 > 0:06:43'as Joyce was born illegitimately.'
0:06:45 > 0:06:48We can't investigate the father.
0:06:48 > 0:06:52No father's name is on the birth certificate of the deceased,
0:06:52 > 0:06:56or, for that matter, on her marriage certificate.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00We can only search the mother's side of the family.
0:07:00 > 0:07:05If her siblings didn't get married or have surviving descendents,
0:07:05 > 0:07:07this could be a dead case.
0:07:08 > 0:07:15'Senior researcher Alan has made a breakthrough in investigating Joyce's aunt and uncle.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19'It's not the news David was hoping for.'
0:07:19 > 0:07:23- March 1983, Northampton. Spinster. - Oh.
0:07:23 > 0:07:28Well that's... The aunt has died a spinster in Northampton.
0:07:29 > 0:07:34Which means we may be down to just the uncle.
0:07:34 > 0:07:36It's not so good news now.
0:07:36 > 0:07:41We've eliminated, it looks like, one branch of the family.
0:07:41 > 0:07:46Unless the uncle gets married, there could be nobody entitled.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52'This is potentially very bad news for the team.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56'Their research could be in vain and they could make a loss.
0:07:56 > 0:08:00'They need to find out what happened to Joyce's Uncle William,
0:08:00 > 0:08:03'as he's their only hope.'
0:08:04 > 0:08:12Ethel died as a spinster and I'm now trying to identify the death of the maternal uncle, William,
0:08:12 > 0:08:14in the First World War.
0:08:14 > 0:08:19I couldn't identify a death for him in the records after 1969.
0:08:19 > 0:08:23One of several scenarios. He either died before 1969.
0:08:23 > 0:08:27Or he may have gone overseas.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30'And things go from bad to worse.
0:08:30 > 0:08:35'The team thinks they've found a marriage for Uncle William,
0:08:35 > 0:08:38'but the dates don't fill Dave with confidence.'
0:08:38 > 0:08:42We've found a possible marriage for William Samuel Logan.
0:08:42 > 0:08:44If it's right, he married age 47.
0:08:44 > 0:08:50'Unless William married a younger woman or had children by a previous marriage,
0:08:50 > 0:08:54'there is little chance of children at all.'
0:08:54 > 0:09:00With the aunt dying a spinster, unless she's got illegitimate children,
0:09:00 > 0:09:03this case is not looking too good at the moment.
0:09:03 > 0:09:07We occasionally get cases where there's nobody.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11One of those things. So the government get the money.
0:09:11 > 0:09:16'The cash the government could collect, they estimate at £30,000.
0:09:19 > 0:09:24'At this stage, all hope is pinned on William having had children.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27'Otherwise, the case is dead in the water.
0:09:27 > 0:09:32'Under pressure, Alan thinks he's found a child of William's.'
0:09:32 > 0:09:35- That marriage?- Definitely a child.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39He could have married a much younger person and had a child.
0:09:39 > 0:09:41I'm talking absolute rubbish.
0:09:41 > 0:09:45'But it seems he's read the records incorrectly.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49'It's one step forward and two steps back.'
0:09:49 > 0:09:54I was looking at the marriage form not the birth form.
0:09:54 > 0:10:01'Kiera and Alan are looking at the records of births around the time William might have married.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04'They've had a few possible matches.
0:10:04 > 0:10:08'Could this be the breakthrough they've been hoping for?'
0:10:08 > 0:10:14- I was looking at marriages thinking they're births.- None of these are...
0:10:14 > 0:10:17- What about Kenneth S? - Any of those could be.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21- Can you print that one out? - Northampton, Alan.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23'All is not lost.
0:10:23 > 0:10:28'After a closer look, William may have had children after all.'
0:10:28 > 0:10:34Possible marriage for William Samuel in Pancras in 1939.
0:10:34 > 0:10:39Got two possible boys, though they're both born out of area.
0:10:39 > 0:10:43One of those boys I've got an up-to-date address for in Brighton.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47It's probably a red herring, the wrong marriage.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50I've got a phone number for the guy. We can ask him.
0:10:50 > 0:10:52Hopefully, he's up to date.
0:10:52 > 0:10:57'With a potential marriage for William and possibly two sons,
0:10:57 > 0:11:03'Alan is keen to start the tree, even if he's not 100% convinced.'
0:11:03 > 0:11:05I'm going to write in pencil.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09If it's all wrong, you can rub it off easy.
0:11:12 > 0:11:14He married very late in life.
0:11:14 > 0:11:19If it is correct, it's possibly going to be a second marriage.
0:11:19 > 0:11:21'Alan might be clutching at straws,
0:11:21 > 0:11:26'but it's better to try something rather than nothing.'
0:11:26 > 0:11:30- If it is correct...- Thanks, Alan.
0:11:33 > 0:11:38'When Dave calls the potential heir, there's nobody at home.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41'It's another anticlimax for the team.
0:11:46 > 0:11:51'Coming up, Dave finally sees some light at the end of the tunnel.'
0:11:51 > 0:11:55There could still be an heir on this case, which is good news.
0:12:00 > 0:12:04'Frasers' deal with thousands of unclaimed estates,
0:12:04 > 0:12:10'mainly awarding large sums of money to unsuspecting beneficiaries.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13'Some cases unearth secret lives that turn out to be
0:12:13 > 0:12:18'far more valuable to a family than any estate could be.'
0:12:19 > 0:12:25People are often just a name, so it's very nice to discover history about the deceased.
0:12:27 > 0:12:32'The history uncovered about Kenneth was that he was an inventor.'
0:12:32 > 0:12:37Very interesting fella to have known. I'd love to have known him.
0:12:37 > 0:12:39I bet he were really nice to talk to,
0:12:40 > 0:12:42find out what were going on up here.
0:12:47 > 0:12:52'Kenneth Clement Routledge died in August 2006 in Leeds.
0:12:52 > 0:12:56'Records show that he never married and had no children.
0:12:56 > 0:13:03'He left an estate worth an estimated £160,000, based on the value of his property -
0:13:03 > 0:13:07'a highly valuable case for the Frasers' team.
0:13:07 > 0:13:12'Kenneth kept himself to himself and was not a social figure.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15'Lewis Bentley was his neighbour.'
0:13:15 > 0:13:17In my mind, he was a bit of a hermit.
0:13:17 > 0:13:22We could go months without seeing him, or anybody seeing him.
0:13:24 > 0:13:31You would occasionally see him walk to... I would think he walked to the shop and back.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34He was up straight. He could walk about OK.
0:13:34 > 0:13:39He didn't use a stick or anything.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42He was tall, over six foot.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45He had his cap and his raincoat.
0:13:45 > 0:13:50He were dressed the same every time we saw him. He never changed.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53Whether it be winter, summer or whatever.
0:13:53 > 0:14:00'Lewis and the neighbours were only able to monitor if Kenneth was OK by the sounds from his house.'
0:14:02 > 0:14:05If you asked the neighbour
0:14:05 > 0:14:10had he seen him, he would say, "No, but he must be all right.
0:14:10 > 0:14:12"Cos his radio was on."
0:14:13 > 0:14:15He listened to his radio.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20That's the only way we knew that there was somebody in there.
0:14:20 > 0:14:24'But after leading a deeply private life for so long,
0:14:24 > 0:14:28'one day, things took a dramatic turn for the worst.'
0:14:28 > 0:14:35The day that they found him, the police bashed the door down, like they do.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39He asked me, "When did you last see him?"
0:14:39 > 0:14:42I said, "Oh, it's weeks, months."
0:14:42 > 0:14:47Um... He said, "I'm afraid this is bad news."
0:14:49 > 0:14:52How long the body had been there, we don't know.
0:14:52 > 0:14:57It was sad, actually, to know that he'd died alone
0:14:57 > 0:15:00in the circumstances he'd died in.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03I did feel sorry for the chap, yes.
0:15:03 > 0:15:08When I saw them take him away, it were really sad.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11That he'd been alone,
0:15:11 > 0:15:13died alone
0:15:13 > 0:15:16and he left alone.
0:15:21 > 0:15:27'When the case arrived for the Frasers' team, senior researcher Gareth set to work.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31'With the estate worth an estimated £160,000,
0:15:31 > 0:15:36'they knew they could face competition so could waste no time.'
0:15:36 > 0:15:40Because Routledge is quite a good name,
0:15:40 > 0:15:44we were confident we were on to the right family.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47We established that there was no kin -
0:15:47 > 0:15:52the deceased didn't have brothers and sisters and had no children.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54So we started looking at cousins.
0:15:54 > 0:16:00Basically, Thomas, the father, and Gladys were both Yorkshire people.
0:16:00 > 0:16:05The family seemed to come from Yorkshire, which was a help for us.
0:16:05 > 0:16:11Routledge being a good surname and the family staying in the area all help in our research.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18Because it was a Yorkshire name,
0:16:18 > 0:16:22we sent people to the area to pick up the certificates,
0:16:22 > 0:16:26the birth certificate of the deceased and of the parents.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31'Alongside birth, death and marriage records is the census,
0:16:31 > 0:16:34'another weapon in the heir hunters' armoury.
0:16:34 > 0:16:40'Censuses record every person who lived in a property at that time,
0:16:40 > 0:16:44'and are made public 100 years after they were first recorded.
0:16:44 > 0:16:49'In this case, the team made great use of the census from 1901.'
0:16:49 > 0:16:52The first thing we saw from the 1901 census
0:16:52 > 0:16:57was, although the deceased's father, Thomas, was born in Hunslet,
0:16:57 > 0:16:59where we expected him to be born,
0:16:59 > 0:17:03his siblings were all actually born in Ireland.
0:17:03 > 0:17:08The fact that we found Thomas's birth was a lucky break.
0:17:08 > 0:17:14We would never have found the brothers and sisters, or it would be much harder.
0:17:17 > 0:17:22'From the census, the team could begin to build a family tree.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26'John Simpson married Mary Hall and they had five children.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28'One of these children was Thomas.
0:17:28 > 0:17:33'He married Gladys Windsor and they had one child,
0:17:33 > 0:17:35'Kenneth, our deceased.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39'Kenneth never married or had children.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42'The team looked to the brothers and sisters of Thomas.
0:17:42 > 0:17:47'If they had children they would be cousins, who could be heirs.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50'With four stems to investigate,
0:17:50 > 0:17:54'it looked like a busy tree for the heir hunters.'
0:17:54 > 0:17:59It looked like most of the heirs would come from the Routledge side.
0:17:59 > 0:18:05The Windsor side, there was one uncle James, who died without issue.
0:18:05 > 0:18:10So it looked like all the heirs would come from the Routledge side.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16We actually were falling over heirs.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20We found all of the heirs almost of the entire case on the same day.
0:18:20 > 0:18:25For instance, we quite quickly found Isabelle's marriage.
0:18:25 > 0:18:29She married Mr Elmey and it quite quickly led us
0:18:29 > 0:18:35to Kenneth John Elmey, who was a cousin once removed of the deceased.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38We were able to contact him on the same day.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41From our point of view, a good day's work.
0:18:43 > 0:18:45'Kenneth had four aunts and uncles -
0:18:45 > 0:18:48'Isabelle, Henry, Robert and John -
0:18:48 > 0:18:51'all of whom married and had children.
0:18:51 > 0:18:56'Isabelle married William Elmey and had two boys, John and Horace.
0:18:56 > 0:19:01'John married and had two sons, both of whom would be heirs.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04'One of these sons was Ken Elmey.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07'In total, the team would find seven heirs,
0:19:07 > 0:19:13'all entitled to a share in Kenneth's £160,000 estate.
0:19:13 > 0:19:17'When Frasers' put their call in to Ken, they were met with scepticism.
0:19:17 > 0:19:24'Fearing a hoax, Ken was less than receptive to the idea that he might be about to inherit a fortune.'
0:19:24 > 0:19:26I put the phone down
0:19:26 > 0:19:29and thought about it for a while.
0:19:29 > 0:19:35My son-in-law checked on the internet and found that Fraser and Fraser were genuine.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39So I rang them back and arranged for one of their researchers to see me.
0:19:39 > 0:19:45'Frasers' sent a local researcher to interview Ken immediately.'
0:19:45 > 0:19:51We sat down, he asked a few questions about my mother and father, my grandma
0:19:51 > 0:19:54and any other relatives.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58And then told me that I could be due for an inheritance.
0:19:58 > 0:20:03'Despite being named as an heir to Kenneth Routledge's estate,
0:20:03 > 0:20:10'and potentially inheriting a considerable sum, "Routledge" was completely unfamiliar to Ken.'
0:20:10 > 0:20:12I'd never heard it before.
0:20:12 > 0:20:19I didn't even know that my grandma's name was Routledge before she was married.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22When I visited my grandma, it was Grandma Foster.
0:20:22 > 0:20:26That was the first time I heard the name Kenneth Routledge.
0:20:26 > 0:20:31'Ken was made the administrator to Kenneth's estate.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35'It was up to him to prepare the house for the market.'
0:20:35 > 0:20:39I visited two or three times to let people look around,
0:20:39 > 0:20:41and also to get all the...
0:20:41 > 0:20:45terrible rubbish that was in there, everything out
0:20:45 > 0:20:47and clean it up for re-sale.
0:20:47 > 0:20:54'Ken had little information on the circumstances surrounding Kenneth's death.
0:20:54 > 0:20:59'Visiting his home helped him begin to understand his distant cousin.'
0:20:59 > 0:21:04Seemed like he was a loner. He was devoted to his mother.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07I found all his mother's clothes upstairs,
0:21:07 > 0:21:11all neatly folded and put away and everything.
0:21:11 > 0:21:13They were all her clothes.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17But...he had...a strange way...
0:21:17 > 0:21:22In the house, upstairs, we found a box,
0:21:22 > 0:21:26a big cardboard box with 40 pairs of trousers with the tags on.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29They hadn't even been tried on.
0:21:29 > 0:21:32And another box with 20 or 30 shirts.
0:21:32 > 0:21:38All the same, though, all checked shirts that had never been tried on.
0:21:38 > 0:21:43So he must have had nothing to spend his money on. He just spent it.
0:21:43 > 0:21:47Anyway, they all went to the charities.
0:21:48 > 0:21:53'Coming up, Ken delves into the imaginative mind of his cousin.'
0:21:53 > 0:21:56"An electric hold-on jam jar lid."
0:21:56 > 0:22:00He's quite inventive, as you can see.
0:22:07 > 0:22:12'For every case that is cracked, many thousands remain a mystery.
0:22:12 > 0:22:19'These sit on the Treasury's unsolved list and can remain there for up to 30 years.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24'The estates range wildly in value from £5,000 to millions,
0:22:24 > 0:22:30'with the rightful heirs unaware of the windfall they could claim.
0:22:30 > 0:22:34'Today, we've got two cases heir hunters have failed to solve.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38'Could you have the answer? Could you be in line to inherit?
0:22:38 > 0:22:44'Ronald Irwin passed away in January 1997 in Newcastle Upon Tyne.
0:22:44 > 0:22:49'In the 13 years since, nobody has come forward and offered any clues
0:22:49 > 0:22:52'which might lead to a rightful heir.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55'Could you be in line to inherit his estate?
0:22:55 > 0:23:00'Dorothy May Firman died in June 2001 in Ipswich, Suffolk.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03'She left behind an estate and a mystery.
0:23:03 > 0:23:08'Might you offer information that might lead to her beneficiaries?
0:23:08 > 0:23:13'Or could you personally be entitled to her unclaimed fortune?
0:23:20 > 0:23:23'Joyce Perkins passed away in 2008,
0:23:23 > 0:23:27'leaving an estate worth an estimated £30,000.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29'Although Joyce married,
0:23:29 > 0:23:34'she never had children and was an only child born illegitimately.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37'The team's only hope of finding an heir
0:23:37 > 0:23:40'lay with brothers or sisters Joyce's mother had.'
0:23:40 > 0:23:44The aunt has died a spinster in Northampton.
0:23:44 > 0:23:48Which means we may be down to just the uncle.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51So it's not so good news now.
0:23:51 > 0:23:55'During her final years, Joyce had a friendship with Mary Spillane.
0:23:55 > 0:24:00'Chats often turned to reminiscing about Joyce's early life.'
0:24:00 > 0:24:04Joyce used to talk about her husband.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08She told me she worked on a farm in the early years of her life.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14'Joyce was referring to her time in the land army.
0:24:14 > 0:24:20'Records show that she served in 1942, when she was 22 years old,
0:24:20 > 0:24:26'one of 80,000 women in the land army during the Second World War,
0:24:26 > 0:24:31'putting in 50 hours and earning just 28 shillings a week.
0:24:31 > 0:24:36'Their jobs could be anything from harvesting wheat to tending animals.
0:24:36 > 0:24:41'Whilst the work didn't prevent rationing, it did prevent famine,
0:24:41 > 0:24:49'and the efforts of women like Joyce were required for several years after the war ended in 1945.
0:24:55 > 0:25:02'Back in the office, David is following up two potential cousins, children of her Uncle William.
0:25:02 > 0:25:07'After calling one with no answer, he's keen to contact the other.
0:25:07 > 0:25:12'Just as the team seems to be making progress, Alan calls with an update
0:25:12 > 0:25:15'which throws everything into question.'
0:25:15 > 0:25:20He had an address of a cousin. That cousin we now know is not correct.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23'But there is some good news, too.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26'Alan's found another marriage of a William Logan.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31'On this marriage, William would have wed at 26, a more realistic age
0:25:31 > 0:25:37'and, better still, it looks as though he started a family.'
0:25:37 > 0:25:43He may have had a child of that marriage. That child would be a cousin.
0:25:43 > 0:25:49I need to check what they have got but there could still be an heir, which is good news.
0:25:49 > 0:25:54'With this revelation, Alan confidently starts the tree again.
0:25:54 > 0:25:58'This time, he's doing it in ink, rather than pencil.'
0:25:58 > 0:26:01- He married as plain William. - Are you sure?
0:26:01 > 0:26:05- Yeah, because he's left a probate. - To...?- Dorothy Querry.
0:26:08 > 0:26:11They had a daughter, Winifred Eve.
0:26:11 > 0:26:13- Born when?- Sep 19.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16- In Romford. - Any issue on that marriage?- Yeah.
0:26:16 > 0:26:18Two sons. There's a Roger A.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24'According to Alan's new research,
0:26:24 > 0:26:27'Joyce's Aunt Ethel died a spinster.
0:26:27 > 0:26:31'Her Uncle William married and had a daughter, Winifred.
0:26:31 > 0:26:35'She was married to Kenneth Broughton and they had two sons,
0:26:35 > 0:26:37'one of whom is Roger.
0:26:37 > 0:26:42'Both could be the sole heirs to Joyce's estate.'
0:26:42 > 0:26:47It looks on this case we're going to have kin, cousins once removed.
0:26:47 > 0:26:49Possibly only two people.
0:26:49 > 0:26:54'By mid-afternoon, the team can put in a call to Roger Broughton,
0:26:54 > 0:26:59'fairly confident that he's one of the heirs they've been looking for.'
0:26:59 > 0:27:01Hello, Mr Broughton...?
0:27:01 > 0:27:05'And best of all, it seems he's at home.'
0:27:05 > 0:27:08..son of Winifred Broughton, formerly Logan.
0:27:08 > 0:27:13We believe that a cousin of your mother's on your grandfather's side
0:27:13 > 0:27:17has recently died without leaving a valid will.
0:27:17 > 0:27:22You and your brother could well be entitled to share in this estate.
0:27:22 > 0:27:27We're not certain what the value is. Would it be convenient to see you?
0:27:30 > 0:27:34One of my colleagues, probably Mr David Hadley.
0:27:34 > 0:27:35Bye bye.
0:27:37 > 0:27:39'At last, success!
0:27:39 > 0:27:43'Roger has confirmed much of the team's research
0:27:43 > 0:27:47'and it's finally time to send a travelling heir hunter to see him.
0:27:52 > 0:27:57'Throughout the UK, Frasers' have researchers on stand-by,
0:27:57 > 0:28:00'able to hit the road at a moment's notice.
0:28:02 > 0:28:07'They find records and track down clues to help crack the case.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09'Dave Hadley is based in the southeast.
0:28:09 > 0:28:16'It's up to him to interview the potential heir and fill in any gaps on the tree.
0:28:16 > 0:28:24'Roger Broughton lives in Colchester and could be a beneficiary to Joyce Perkins' estimated £30,000 estate.'
0:28:26 > 0:28:30I don't think that the heir knows who the deceased is.
0:28:30 > 0:28:34I don't know how close he would be to the deceased anyway.
0:28:34 > 0:28:40So perhaps a little bit of delicate questioning when I first go in.
0:28:40 > 0:28:48If the deceased was close to the heir, it's going to come as a shock and they're going to be upset.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51That's my main concern.
0:28:54 > 0:28:58- Mr Broughton?- Yes. - Hello. David Hadley.
0:28:58 > 0:29:02- Your mother was Winifred?- Yeah. - Your father Kenneth?- That's right.
0:29:02 > 0:29:09- And therefore, your grandfather would have been William Logan?- Yes.
0:29:09 > 0:29:14- And your grandmother Dorothy Query. Query, Querry?- Yes. Querry.
0:29:14 > 0:29:19I did say to David that, being a fella,
0:29:19 > 0:29:23I've never been overly interested in genealogy.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27I've been, "Forget yesterday, drive onwards to tomorrow."
0:29:27 > 0:29:30- Sort of thing, you know?- Yeah.
0:29:30 > 0:29:34- So I don't know a great many names from old aunts.- That's OK.
0:29:34 > 0:29:38A lot of memories are from when I was quite young,
0:29:38 > 0:29:42so they're probably a bit hazy.
0:29:42 > 0:29:46Traditionally, it is ladies and wives that hold families together.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49There were two sons.
0:29:49 > 0:29:53- You're the oldest?- My brother is four and a half years younger.
0:29:53 > 0:30:00- We did use to visit some old, very old aunts...- Yeah?- In Northampton.
0:30:00 > 0:30:05There was a very old lady and her two daughters all living together
0:30:05 > 0:30:10in one small house in Northampton.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13Ah. Right. Well, that might be...
0:30:13 > 0:30:20I'm not sure where they fitted into the picture. Never paid it a great deal of attention.
0:30:20 > 0:30:26'David's fairly confident that the aunts Roger remembers visiting could be Joyce,
0:30:26 > 0:30:28'her mother and her aunt.
0:30:28 > 0:30:34'With his knowledge of the family, it seems Frasers' have found the correct family.
0:30:34 > 0:30:39'They sign up Roger and his brother, who will share Joyce's estate.'
0:30:39 > 0:30:44If you've got any questions, don't hesitate to give David a call.
0:30:44 > 0:30:48- Pleasure to meet you. Thank you. - Thank you very much. Bye bye.
0:30:48 > 0:30:54He told me a little bit about the family. Nothing we didn't know.
0:30:54 > 0:30:56He signed the agreement.
0:30:56 > 0:31:00Everything's going to go through smoothly, I would think.
0:31:00 > 0:31:05It's a pretty straightforward job. It looks like only two heirs.
0:31:05 > 0:31:09They'll be sharing the estate. It's been quite a quick result.
0:31:09 > 0:31:13And a good result. It's a job well done.
0:31:21 > 0:31:28'Confident in his research, David Pacifico is happy as the case draws to a close.'
0:31:28 > 0:31:34The case was fairly easy to solve, although we did have a couple of false starts.
0:31:34 > 0:31:38In this instance, the deceased was illegitimate
0:31:38 > 0:31:43and therefore, we only had to look at the maternal side of the family.
0:31:43 > 0:31:47We've managed to sign up the only two heirs who, between them,
0:31:47 > 0:31:50will now, we believe, receive the whole estate.
0:31:50 > 0:31:54'Roger is already dreaming of foreign shores
0:31:54 > 0:31:59'and how he might spend his surprise windfall, whatever it's worth.'
0:31:59 > 0:32:04I want to make use of any legacy sufficient to enable me to travel
0:32:04 > 0:32:06farther afield, like New Zealand,
0:32:06 > 0:32:11China - fascinating places. Have a look at Hong Kong.
0:32:11 > 0:32:15Not sure about Dubai. Something a bit new about that.
0:32:15 > 0:32:20Some older places in the world will be interesting to visit.
0:32:24 > 0:32:28'Frasers' have been looking into the case of Kenneth Routledge.
0:32:28 > 0:32:33'Although the case was fairly simple to solve, it uncovered some details
0:32:33 > 0:32:36'that were really rather unusual.'
0:32:36 > 0:32:38This little book
0:32:38 > 0:32:43of all the things he thought of which he would try and invent.
0:32:43 > 0:32:45There must be 50 or 60 items.
0:32:45 > 0:32:50'Kenneth Routledge was a private man who kept himself to himself.
0:32:50 > 0:32:56'On his death, he left behind an estate worth an estimated £160,000,
0:32:56 > 0:32:58'but no will.
0:32:58 > 0:33:03'His cousin once removed, Ken Elmey, is one of seven heirs to his estate.
0:33:03 > 0:33:08'Tragically, although Kenneth died alone in his Leeds home,
0:33:08 > 0:33:12'he had scores of relatives locally, who never knew of his existence.'
0:33:12 > 0:33:18I passed his house hundreds of times. I have relatives up there.
0:33:18 > 0:33:22And I've probably passed within a hundred yards of his house
0:33:22 > 0:33:25countless times over the years.
0:33:25 > 0:33:30Whether he would have let me in if I went to see him, I don't know,
0:33:30 > 0:33:32but I'd love to have had the chance.
0:33:32 > 0:33:37'The first news the family had of Kenneth's life
0:33:37 > 0:33:43'was when they were informed by the heir hunters that they would be inheriting his estate.'
0:33:44 > 0:33:48It would have been lovely to have met him.
0:33:48 > 0:33:52He must have brought it on himself, to an extent.
0:33:52 > 0:33:54He didn't socialise much.
0:33:54 > 0:33:58I think he must have died a sad man.
0:33:58 > 0:34:00Pity.
0:34:10 > 0:34:16'Naturally, Ken felt compelled to pay his respects to his distant cousin in person.'
0:34:22 > 0:34:24Wish I'd have met you.
0:34:26 > 0:34:28You certainly changed my life.
0:34:30 > 0:34:33And I thank you very much.
0:34:33 > 0:34:36I don't know what else to say.
0:34:39 > 0:34:42But it's still nice to know where he is.
0:34:42 > 0:34:44Um...
0:34:45 > 0:34:49Definitely. Nice to know that he's...
0:34:49 > 0:34:54I'd love to have seen a headstone, though, or something.
0:34:54 > 0:34:58Maybe we can do something in future.
0:34:59 > 0:35:01We'll see.
0:35:12 > 0:35:15'As administrator to the estate,
0:35:15 > 0:35:18'Ken was in charge of some of his cousin's belongings,
0:35:18 > 0:35:23'and began to understand his relative a lot better.
0:35:23 > 0:35:28'Although Kenneth hid himself away, he was certainly keeping busy.'
0:35:28 > 0:35:31It seems he was a bit of an inventor
0:35:31 > 0:35:35and liked to tinker with all types of thinks.
0:35:35 > 0:35:38In fact, his cellar was made like a little workshop.
0:35:38 > 0:35:43It was full of bits of aluminum and plastic
0:35:43 > 0:35:46and little models of things he'd invented.
0:35:46 > 0:35:52It transpired that the deceased sounds like an interesting chap.
0:35:52 > 0:35:55Working the case, he's just a name.
0:35:55 > 0:35:58As the case progressed, we found more about him.
0:35:58 > 0:36:04As far as I recall, and I've been doing this job for a while, he's my only inventor
0:36:04 > 0:36:08I can picture him a bit more than just a name now.
0:36:08 > 0:36:13It's always good to have extra information. It humanises the job.
0:36:16 > 0:36:19This is a suitcase we found.
0:36:19 > 0:36:21And it's full of...
0:36:21 > 0:36:24Well, it's full of photographs
0:36:24 > 0:36:28and all his letters from the patent companies
0:36:28 > 0:36:30where he sent the inventions.
0:36:30 > 0:36:34There's quite a few patents among them as well.
0:36:34 > 0:36:37Inventions.
0:36:37 > 0:36:39It seems he took newspaper cuttings,
0:36:39 > 0:36:43adverts, and tried to improve on them,
0:36:43 > 0:36:48and then wrote off and asked is his idea better than that one.
0:36:48 > 0:36:53And so we've quite a lot of letters, some to America, some to Japan,
0:36:53 > 0:36:58a lot of companies in Britain, and all had answers back.
0:36:58 > 0:37:04Whether he actually made the items or got the items made, I'm not sure.
0:37:06 > 0:37:12'Every time we put on the washing, make a phone call or set our alarm,
0:37:12 > 0:37:19'we are utilising someone's unique invention that, more often than not, improves our quality of life.
0:37:19 > 0:37:25'In 2008, more than 16,000 seemingly original ideas and inventions
0:37:25 > 0:37:30'were filed with the UK Patent Office, with over 2,000 granted.
0:37:30 > 0:37:37'Many applications fall on the desk of Lawrence Smith-Higgins at the UK Patent Office.'
0:37:38 > 0:37:42We're proud of the tradition we've got
0:37:42 > 0:37:45in terms of invention and innovation.
0:37:45 > 0:37:48We've had some outstanding innovators,
0:37:48 > 0:37:52the great Victorian age of invention, where wealth was created.
0:37:52 > 0:37:56It's a tradition that we carry on to this day.
0:37:56 > 0:38:01We still are proud that there is a great number of British inventors.
0:38:03 > 0:38:07British inventors demonstrate dogged determination,
0:38:07 > 0:38:10a characteristic we're proud of.
0:38:10 > 0:38:12It's one thing to have your idea.
0:38:12 > 0:38:17It's another thing to know what to do, get it protected by a patent.
0:38:17 > 0:38:21Probably the biggest hurdle is to get your idea to market.
0:38:21 > 0:38:29'Among those British inventors desperate to see their idea in production was Kenneth Routledge.
0:38:29 > 0:38:32'Records show he had an original and imaginative mind
0:38:32 > 0:38:37'and invested time developing his ideas and filing for patents.'
0:38:37 > 0:38:40What's interesting is the breadth of applications.
0:38:40 > 0:38:46Mr Routledge was not just interested in one patent. He had several.
0:38:46 > 0:38:50'A favoured design was one for a hairdryer.'
0:38:50 > 0:38:56We looked at our database and pulled up a copy of the application.
0:38:56 > 0:38:59Importantly, the drawings.
0:38:59 > 0:39:03I would presume, certainly one of the unique features
0:39:03 > 0:39:08is that this hair drying device, though heated electronically,
0:39:08 > 0:39:10once on the head,
0:39:10 > 0:39:17as Mr Routledge puts it, "..enables the wearer to move about freely during the use thereof."
0:39:17 > 0:39:22Which means that you can be drying your hair while doing other things,
0:39:22 > 0:39:25and not sitting under the plugged-in,
0:39:25 > 0:39:32static kind of hairdryers that would have been popular at this time.
0:39:32 > 0:39:38From our research, it looks as though Kenneth had four patents,
0:39:38 > 0:39:43three relating to hairdryers and one for a darts game.
0:39:43 > 0:39:45The latest patent was filed in 1971.
0:39:45 > 0:39:48Unfortunately, our records can't tell us
0:39:48 > 0:39:55whether these were ever turned into a commercial entity - that we can't say.
0:39:55 > 0:39:59Their value really lies in the fact that Mr Routledge
0:39:59 > 0:40:02has joined a unique band of individuals
0:40:02 > 0:40:08who have had patents granted for their unique innovative ideas.
0:40:08 > 0:40:13'Some of Kenneth's ideas never made it past the drawing board.'
0:40:13 > 0:40:15There's some ideas he had.
0:40:15 > 0:40:18"Foam plaster paper.
0:40:18 > 0:40:20"A wig setting block.
0:40:20 > 0:40:23"An electric hold-on jam jar lid."
0:40:23 > 0:40:26So he's quite an inventor, as you can see!
0:40:26 > 0:40:31"Artificial respirator. Unsinkable lifeboat."
0:40:31 > 0:40:33CHUCKLES
0:40:33 > 0:40:37"Two-way astro jet engine!" I don't know what he was going for!
0:40:37 > 0:40:43So it shows he never stopped inventing things.
0:40:43 > 0:40:45He seems a very interesting man.
0:40:47 > 0:40:51I wish he could have been more successful.
0:40:52 > 0:40:56We found some photographs here
0:40:56 > 0:41:00of his family and old war photographs.
0:41:02 > 0:41:06I think this was his mother or his grandmother.
0:41:06 > 0:41:10I think this is his grandmother and grandfather.
0:41:10 > 0:41:15'Thinking he had no tangible connection to Kenneth,
0:41:15 > 0:41:19'Ken was in for a surprise when he looked through the photographs.'
0:41:19 > 0:41:22This photograph is my grandmother,
0:41:22 > 0:41:27Bella Routledge or, as I knew her, Grandma Foster.
0:41:27 > 0:41:32That's my father and that's my Uncle Horace.
0:41:32 > 0:41:36This one, also, is of my father and my mother.
0:41:36 > 0:41:39And my! Doesn't she look trendy?!
0:41:39 > 0:41:44It's fantastic that, to find a picture of my mother again.
0:41:44 > 0:41:49They're the only two I found of my family in his box.
0:41:49 > 0:41:53But he must have known them and they must have known him,
0:41:53 > 0:41:56though they never told me about him.
0:41:56 > 0:42:00Seeing that really shocked me, actually. It's quite nostalgic.
0:42:00 > 0:42:04I've never seen photographs of my mother and father
0:42:04 > 0:42:08at that stage of their life.
0:42:08 > 0:42:12I can't believe my mother's such a good-looking woman. Beautiful.
0:42:12 > 0:42:16It might be his mother that knew my mother and father.
0:42:18 > 0:42:23'Opening up this box of photographs has raised questions for Ken.'
0:42:23 > 0:42:27Perhaps my mother and father, who obviously knew him,
0:42:27 > 0:42:31took his name to give me.
0:42:31 > 0:42:33Maybe they liked the fella.
0:42:33 > 0:42:37Maybe they got on right well with him in his younger days
0:42:37 > 0:42:40and maybe I were named after him.
0:42:47 > 0:42:53'If you would like advice about your family tree or making a will go to:'
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