0:00:02 > 0:00:06Heir hunters track down families of people who've died without leaving a will.
0:00:06 > 0:00:09They hand over thousands of pounds to long-lost relatives
0:00:09 > 0:00:12who had no idea they were in line for a windfall.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14Could they be knocking at your door?
0:00:31 > 0:00:34Today, on Heir Hunters, the Fraser's team
0:00:34 > 0:00:37are frantically chasing blood relatives on a valuable estate.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40But they're not the only ones in the hunt.
0:00:40 > 0:00:44- Whilst I was there, two other companies rang up.- 'You're joking?'
0:00:44 > 0:00:48But what they don't know is that this case has a shocking twist.
0:00:48 > 0:00:53At that time, it was just like somebody hitting you with a cricket bat.
0:00:53 > 0:00:56Plus, two sisters who thought they were only children
0:00:56 > 0:00:59are brought together after a lifetime apart.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02Oh, you've all steamed up!
0:01:02 > 0:01:06And we'll have details of the hundreds of of thousands of pounds' worth
0:01:06 > 0:01:08of unclaimed estates held by the Treasury.
0:01:08 > 0:01:12Could you be a rightful heir and in line for a windfall?
0:01:15 > 0:01:19Amazingly, two out of three people in Britain have no will.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22If they die without one, and no family is found,
0:01:22 > 0:01:25all their cash goes straight into the Government's coffers.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28Last year, the Treasury advertised
0:01:28 > 0:01:31millions of pounds' worth of unclaimed assets,
0:01:31 > 0:01:34of which a whopping £18 million went to the Government.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39Across the UK, more than 30 probate research companies
0:01:39 > 0:01:43compete to find missing heirs and help them claim the cash.
0:01:43 > 0:01:49One company, Fraser & Fraser, is run by family members Charles, Andrew and Neil Fraser.
0:01:50 > 0:01:55In the last ten years, work carried out by Fraser & Fraser
0:01:55 > 0:01:58has enabled over £100 million to be inherited.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00It's a different journey every day.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03We're tracing a different family and trying to find new heirs.
0:02:03 > 0:02:08It never ever becomes stale and it's just one of the things I love about what we do.
0:02:11 > 0:02:12It's Thursday.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16The day the Treasury published the list of unclaimed estates.
0:02:16 > 0:02:21In the Central London office, partner Neil thinks he's found a case worth investigating.
0:02:21 > 0:02:29The first case we're working is Charlotte Walker, she dies in Barnsley earlier this year.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31It looks like it's a good case cos it would appear that
0:02:31 > 0:02:37she owns a property there, so value-wise could be up to 100,000-150,000.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39Charlotte Walker,
0:02:39 > 0:02:43known to her friends as Lottie, lived in this modest 1930s-semi,
0:02:43 > 0:02:46in the mining town of Elsecar, just outside of Barnsley.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50She was a colourful character in the village,
0:02:50 > 0:02:54and her husband's nephew, Peter and his daughter Linda remember her fondly.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57She was a jolly, happy person.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59She liked meeting people.
0:03:00 > 0:03:04Holidays, she adored going away.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07She was the first person in the family
0:03:07 > 0:03:11to fly on an aeroplane on holiday with her husband from Blackpool.
0:03:11 > 0:03:16Lottie and her husband, Lydon were married in 1934,
0:03:16 > 0:03:21and when he died they had been together for 49 years.
0:03:21 > 0:03:25She missed Lydon, I would say every day from the day he died,
0:03:25 > 0:03:28to the day she died to the day she died.
0:03:29 > 0:03:35Every time you went, she always mentioned him in some way,
0:03:35 > 0:03:40but she wasn't a sad person, she was always glad for the years they had.
0:03:40 > 0:03:46The couple never had children of their own, but that didn't stop Charlotte sharing her love of life.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49She was always young at heart.
0:03:49 > 0:03:54When she was 80, she had a bouncy castle for her birthday,
0:03:54 > 0:03:58cos she'd seen one on the television, and she wanted one for the children.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00Before the end of the party, she actually
0:04:00 > 0:04:03had to go on the bouncy castle and have a bounce with the children.
0:04:03 > 0:04:09And at the age of 100, she had plenty of birthday parties.
0:04:09 > 0:04:14On Lottie's 100th birthday, she got a telegram from the Queen.
0:04:14 > 0:04:18And right up to a couple of days before her birthday she kept saying,
0:04:18 > 0:04:20"I'm not going to be 100, I'm not going to be 100,
0:04:20 > 0:04:24"and I don't want a card from her cos I'm not sending her one."
0:04:24 > 0:04:28And actually, on the day, she was absolutely thrilled with it.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33Charlotte was close to her family, and spent a lot of time with them,
0:04:33 > 0:04:37but Fraser & Fraser had no idea of this when they started researching her family tree.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40And what would become crucial in this case,
0:04:40 > 0:04:43is that Peter and Linda were members of her husband's family,
0:04:43 > 0:04:45not Charlotte's own blood relatives.
0:04:47 > 0:04:52Neil has valued her estate at at least £100,000.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56It's a lot of money, and the race is now on to find Charlotte's heirs.
0:04:56 > 0:05:01The team need to work fast. At this stage of the investigation,
0:05:01 > 0:05:04all that the team know about Charlotte is her name and address.
0:05:04 > 0:05:08Neil has asked case manager, Tony Pledger to manage the hunt.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12I'm ringing from Central London for a company of probate researchers.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16And he's delegated the office leg work to Simon and Debbie.
0:05:16 > 0:05:21They also need to get someone up to Barnsley to speak to Charlotte's neighbours.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26Fraser's employ a dedicated team of travelling heir hunters.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29They spend every Thursday ready to travel across the UK,
0:05:29 > 0:05:33wherever the hunt for heirs takes them.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36They collect certificates, talk to neighbours,
0:05:36 > 0:05:38and ultimately, they will speak to heirs.
0:05:38 > 0:05:40I'm trying to speak to Lilian.
0:05:42 > 0:05:47With all the travelling researchers who live in the North already on other jobs,
0:05:47 > 0:05:49Neil is having to look further afield.
0:05:49 > 0:05:51He is calling Sussex-based, Bob Smith.
0:05:51 > 0:05:53So, go to Barnsley, yes?
0:05:53 > 0:05:57- Up North, yes.- Sorry, mate. Barnsley.
0:05:57 > 0:06:02It's a long drive. The case is Charlotte Walker nee Bott.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05- Take care, mate.- Cheers, Neil. Bye.
0:06:05 > 0:06:12Here I live in deepest Sussex and I've been asked to go Yorkshire, to Barnsley.
0:06:12 > 0:06:17Never been there before, so it's quite exciting.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20It promises to be a long day for Bob.
0:06:20 > 0:06:25Barnsley is a 215-mile journey north.
0:06:25 > 0:06:29Bob's got to go all the way round the M25 and up the M1
0:06:29 > 0:06:31before he can get to Barnsley.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36While Bob heads north, the team in the office are trying to get a head start.
0:06:36 > 0:06:41Researcher, Debbie, is scouring the birth records in the Barnsley area.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45Neil thinks that this case will be interesting to work.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48Charlotte dies in 2009, but she's born in 1908,
0:06:48 > 0:06:52so she's over 100 years old when she dies, and this,
0:06:52 > 0:06:56there's not many cases which are over 100.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01Using birth records they have on file for the Barnsley area,
0:07:01 > 0:07:04Debbie has traced Charlotte's parents' address in 1908.
0:07:04 > 0:07:09She's now looking at the 1911 census, hoping to find Charlotte's family.
0:07:09 > 0:07:14The census is a national survey conducted every ten years,
0:07:14 > 0:07:16it lists the names, ages and genders
0:07:16 > 0:07:19of all the people living at every address in the UK.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21The Census will tell Debbie if Charlotte,
0:07:21 > 0:07:25who was three at the time, had any siblings living with her.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28And it looks like Debbie has struck gold.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31I've just found the family, hopefully,
0:07:31 > 0:07:36and it's a case of piecing it together now and seeing if there's any more issue.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39Now, the team can begin to put together a family tree.
0:07:39 > 0:07:43Heir hunters use trees like treasure maps,
0:07:43 > 0:07:45taking the family back generation-by-generation
0:07:45 > 0:07:48until they find blood relatives in line to inherit.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52So, apparently there was five children for the 1911,
0:07:52 > 0:07:54three still living and two are dead.
0:07:55 > 0:08:00Charlotte's parents were William Bott, a miner, and Sarah Whitehouse.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04She was the youngest of five girls, but only three,
0:08:04 > 0:08:08Kate, Lily and Charlotte herself had survived into adulthood.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12As Charlotte had no children, her sisters Kate and Lily's descendants
0:08:12 > 0:08:16would be near kin and in line to inherit.
0:08:16 > 0:08:22Case manager, Simon Grosvenor is trying to find out if Lily and Kate had any children.
0:08:22 > 0:08:24Let's see if we can find marriages for the two sisters
0:08:24 > 0:08:30and, if we can, find then deaths and children and then get the certificates to show that
0:08:30 > 0:08:32the two we found are indeed sisters of Charlotte,
0:08:32 > 0:08:35and that the marriages we've got for them are right.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38But with an estate of at least £100,000,
0:08:38 > 0:08:40the competition will be fierce.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44So the team will also look at cousins.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47While they can't rule out there aren't any nieces and nephews,
0:08:47 > 0:08:52Tony will go back in the family tree to look for brothers and sisters for Charlotte's mum and dad.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56His aim is to find living cousins who might be heirs.
0:08:56 > 0:09:01We're speculating on whether or not we've got the mother of the deceased in the 1891 or we haven't.
0:09:01 > 0:09:07If we have, then she's possibly got nine brothers and sisters.
0:09:07 > 0:09:10Simon is hoping to find these people.
0:09:10 > 0:09:12William Henry up here.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16On the Census, he has a brother James and a sister Elizabeth.
0:09:16 > 0:09:22Charlotte's father, William had a brother James, who went on to have four children.
0:09:22 > 0:09:25Florence, John, Leonard and James.
0:09:25 > 0:09:27They would have been Charlotte's first cousins.
0:09:27 > 0:09:32Unfortunately, they have passed away, but their children might still be alive.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35Simon has found someone he thinks might be John's son.
0:09:35 > 0:09:40He is called Alan Bott and he's living in Nottinghamshire, somewhere.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43Hello, sorry to disturb you, Mr Bott?
0:09:43 > 0:09:48Hello, my name is Tony Pledger and I work for a company called Fraser & Fraser.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50What we do is we trace missing heirs,
0:09:50 > 0:09:57and I'm hoping that your father would have been John James William Bott.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00What I would like to do is make an arrangement
0:10:00 > 0:10:02with somebody to come and see you later on today.
0:10:02 > 0:10:08But Mr Bott lives in Nottinghamshire and the only travelling heir hunter available is Bob,
0:10:08 > 0:10:10who is on his way to Barnsley.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12Hello, Bob.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14- Hello, Tone.- Where you going to?
0:10:14 > 0:10:17I've just put in Barnsley.
0:10:17 > 0:10:19Try taking Barnsley out and putting Newark, Nottinghamshire.
0:10:19 > 0:10:21Oh, right. OK.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27Two and a half hours after I've left my home, I'm to head towards Newark,
0:10:27 > 0:10:35which is in Nottinghamshire, rather than Barnsley, and go and see this guy.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38See what he knows about the family and the deceased,
0:10:38 > 0:10:41and hopefully get a signature.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44Back at the office, Tony knows he's taking a calculated risk.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49We're not ruling out near kin, but we do have positive cousins,
0:10:49 > 0:10:51so we're going to go and see those.
0:10:51 > 0:10:55At the same time, we are trying to establish the near kin aspect of it.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58If Charlotte's sisters did have any children,
0:10:58 > 0:11:01their claim will take precedence over any cousins.
0:11:01 > 0:11:03The heir hunters must pray their decision
0:11:03 > 0:11:09to send Bob to Nottinghamshire won't cost them an heir in Barnsley.
0:11:13 > 0:11:18Still to come, the heir hunters are having to be inventive.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21He's using the name Winsper and he's just picked up people
0:11:21 > 0:11:23in the right area in the phone book.
0:11:25 > 0:11:26From the sounds of it he's got quite lucky.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35In the search for missing relatives,
0:11:35 > 0:11:39the heir hunters often uncover families torn apart by separation.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42For Jeremy Ford of Hoopers, one of the greatest rewards
0:11:42 > 0:11:46is when his work brings a family back together.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49When we work on these matters, it's not, at times, just about
0:11:49 > 0:11:53the money, or the windfall or the financial gain.
0:11:53 > 0:11:57There can be a lot more to it than that, and we do from time-to-time,
0:11:57 > 0:12:01experience cases when heirs do specifically request
0:12:01 > 0:12:04to be linked up with family members.
0:12:04 > 0:12:08But when it involves a parent who has abandoned their children
0:12:08 > 0:12:13or started a new family, it can be especially difficult to come to terms with.
0:12:13 > 0:12:20This is the story of two women who both grew up thinking they were only children.
0:12:20 > 0:12:24But the heir hunters research discovered they had the same dad.
0:12:24 > 0:12:25They were half-sisters.
0:12:25 > 0:12:30That was my mum and dad in 1944 when they got married.
0:12:30 > 0:12:35Shirley Hughes, seen here with her Aunt Marjorie, was three when her father
0:12:35 > 0:12:40left the family home in Liverpool to work in the West Midlands, and she never heard from him again.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43I can vaguely remember him when I was little,
0:12:43 > 0:12:45but I don't know a great deal about him.
0:12:45 > 0:12:47No-one else seems to know much.
0:12:47 > 0:12:52The people that could answer those questions have both passed away, my mum and auntie.
0:12:52 > 0:12:57So I have to rely on aunties and uncles to try and fill in the gaps.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00But this one is a better one of your dad, don't you think?
0:13:00 > 0:13:03Obviously, I'd wonder why they split up.
0:13:03 > 0:13:07I didn't know whether perhaps it was because of work, or whether there
0:13:07 > 0:13:11was anything else that was involved, but it was just kept quiet.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13No-one would discuss it.
0:13:13 > 0:13:17150-miles to the south in Tipton, West Midlands,
0:13:17 > 0:13:21Joyce Coley had grown up the apple of her father's eye.
0:13:21 > 0:13:25My dad was what you would call a gentle giant.
0:13:25 > 0:13:31He was almost 6ft 4, 19-and-a-half-stone, he was quite a big chap,
0:13:31 > 0:13:33and he was a real softie.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36He always bought me everything I ever wanted.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39Never questioned anything.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42But when her father died suddenly,
0:13:42 > 0:13:46when she was 15, her world changed radically.
0:13:46 > 0:13:49It was like losing a limb.
0:13:49 > 0:13:53He was dad, a perfect dad.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56And you couldn't want for anything more from him.
0:13:56 > 0:14:01And with her father's passing she missed siblings to share her memories with.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04I grew up on my own,
0:14:04 > 0:14:09I had a step-sister and a step-brother, but they married
0:14:09 > 0:14:15and were gone by the time I came on the scene, so I was pretty much alone.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19But the sisters were about to find out that they weren't alone.
0:14:19 > 0:14:25200-miles to the south in London, probate research company Hoopers
0:14:25 > 0:14:29had begun a case tracing heirs to the estate of Cyril Curtis.
0:14:29 > 0:14:33He had died in Great Yarmouth in 2008,
0:14:33 > 0:14:38leaving a £23,000 estate, but no will.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41Cyril was 80 years old when he died.
0:14:41 > 0:14:45Towards the end of his life, he was very reclusive.
0:14:45 > 0:14:51The heir hunters had little to work with. Jeremy Ford led the case.
0:14:51 > 0:14:55It's a very much a blank canvas scenario,
0:14:55 > 0:14:59no idea what became of the deceased and we were able to establish
0:14:59 > 0:15:02he never married or indeed had any children,
0:15:02 > 0:15:07and was a child of Frederick and Helen Curtis,
0:15:07 > 0:15:09who married also in Great Yarmouth,
0:15:09 > 0:15:12and we started piecing the jigsaw together.
0:15:12 > 0:15:17The researchers were quick to find Cyril's brothers and sisters.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20Father Fred had been married twice and Cyril
0:15:20 > 0:15:22was one of his six children.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25If any of Cyril's brothers and sisters
0:15:25 > 0:15:29or their offspring are alive, they would be heirs.
0:15:29 > 0:15:33We established that one of Cyril's brothers was a Leonard Edgar Curtis.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38It was while the team were investigating Leonard that they came
0:15:38 > 0:15:43across a family secret which had been buried for more than 50 years.
0:15:43 > 0:15:47We did trace the family, and that brought us on to
0:15:47 > 0:15:52tracing a daughter by the name of Joyce,
0:15:52 > 0:15:58who later became Joyce Coley, whose mother was Emily,
0:15:58 > 0:16:02and we established that her parents never married.
0:16:02 > 0:16:07It seems that in 1956, Leonard had a child, Joyce,
0:16:07 > 0:16:11with his partner Emily Shepherd.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14Emily had two previous children, Jill and Robert.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17But as they weren't legally adopted by Leonard,
0:16:17 > 0:16:19they were not heirs to Cyril.
0:16:19 > 0:16:23Joyce, on the other hand, was Cyril's niece and therefore an heir.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25Silly lad.
0:16:25 > 0:16:27There we go. There we go.
0:16:27 > 0:16:32The news of her Uncle Cyril and her father's family came as quite a surprise for Joyce
0:16:32 > 0:16:35as she'd never known much about her father's background.
0:16:35 > 0:16:42I had no idea about Cyril, or any other brothers or sisters.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46Nobody had ever mentioned him so he was...
0:16:46 > 0:16:52it was a total shock to hear about such things, especially at my age.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55Although she was brought up by Leonard,
0:16:55 > 0:16:58Joyce knew very little about her father's past.
0:16:58 > 0:17:02I wasn't allowed to ask questions.
0:17:02 > 0:17:07If I did, at any time ask, you know, if I'd got any uncles or aunties
0:17:07 > 0:17:13or anything on my dad's side, the question was never answered. Never.
0:17:19 > 0:17:23Although Joyce had been located, the case was far from closed.
0:17:23 > 0:17:29Before being presented to the Treasury, every case must be thoroughly investigated.
0:17:29 > 0:17:33Through the course of the research, another bigger secret emerged.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35As a result of digging around a little bit more,
0:17:35 > 0:17:39regarding the death of Leonard,
0:17:39 > 0:17:44we established that the administrator of the estate was a lady by the name
0:17:44 > 0:17:49of Hilda Curtis, and we thought well, who is this person?
0:17:49 > 0:17:54So, we what we had to do next was try and fit her in.
0:17:54 > 0:17:58We did establish that Leonard did marry Hilda.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01This marriage took place in 1944.
0:18:01 > 0:18:04From that marriage, we carried out a birth search and we established
0:18:04 > 0:18:07that he did have a child from that marriage,
0:18:07 > 0:18:09a daughter by the name of Shirley.
0:18:09 > 0:18:13Prior to meeting Emily and having Joyce, Leonard Curtis
0:18:13 > 0:18:17had married Hilda Tomlinson, whom he'd never divorced.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21Together in 1948, they had a daughter, Shirley.
0:18:21 > 0:18:26Like Joyce, she too was a niece to Cyril, and an heir.
0:18:26 > 0:18:27There we were in the situation,
0:18:27 > 0:18:31we had found Leonard's marriage, a daughter from the marriage,
0:18:31 > 0:18:34we had evidence of a subsequent relationship
0:18:34 > 0:18:36and a daughter from that relationship.
0:18:36 > 0:18:42And we had the feeling that neither of them knew of the other's existence.
0:18:42 > 0:18:46Jeremy knew to proceed with caution in breaking the news.
0:18:46 > 0:18:49It's quite an emotional and involved situation,
0:18:49 > 0:18:52they find out about their Uncle Cyril,
0:18:52 > 0:18:55they never even knew of this person,
0:18:55 > 0:18:58and they found out that they did have a half sibling.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04For Shirley, the news that she had family was very exciting.
0:19:04 > 0:19:10When Jeremy spoke to me from Hoopers and he told me about Joyce,
0:19:10 > 0:19:15I said I'd like to meet her perhaps one day, and he did say to me that if I wanted to,
0:19:15 > 0:19:20I could write a letter and he would forward it on to her.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23I didn't hesitate. I just wrote a letter,
0:19:23 > 0:19:28probably a lot of garbage was in it, but I wrote who I was,
0:19:28 > 0:19:31that I was married with four children,
0:19:31 > 0:19:36and that we both shared the same dad, and it would be lovely to hear from her
0:19:36 > 0:19:38when she felt the time was right.
0:19:38 > 0:19:42Shirley wrote her a letter in September,
0:19:42 > 0:19:46but as days, weeks and then months passed Shirley heard nothing.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49You're waiting and every time the phone went
0:19:49 > 0:19:51I'd think it was her ringing,
0:19:51 > 0:19:54the post went, the letter box would go
0:19:54 > 0:19:56and I'd keep looking for a letter.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59Christmas came and I was looking for a Christmas card.
0:19:59 > 0:20:04In Tipton, Joyce was trying to come to terms with what she had learned.
0:20:05 > 0:20:06When I first got the letter from Shirley,
0:20:06 > 0:20:11it was a mixture of emotions, it was excitement,
0:20:11 > 0:20:17it was fear, it was everything you could ever think of.
0:20:17 > 0:20:22It was an excitement, I wanted to see her,
0:20:22 > 0:20:24but I didn't want to see her.
0:20:24 > 0:20:29It was so many years, and I just wondered how she would accept me.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34What she expected of me,
0:20:34 > 0:20:37I know what I expected of her, I wanted a big sister.
0:20:37 > 0:20:39The big sister I never had.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42For Shirley, family is everything.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46He has his own name badge, don't you?
0:20:46 > 0:20:48She gave up work a few years ago
0:20:48 > 0:20:51to help out with son Tony and granddaughter Jennifer.
0:20:51 > 0:20:56I never had a large family when I was little.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00It was just me on my own and I always said I'd like to have a big family one day.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04See you later. Bye.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06See you later.
0:21:06 > 0:21:10It was March, and after six months of waiting for a response from Joyce,
0:21:10 > 0:21:13Shirley wondered whether the chance to know more
0:21:13 > 0:21:16about her family might be slipping away.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21I've just left it up to her, but it would be nice to hear from her,
0:21:21 > 0:21:23even it was just to say, to acknowledge,
0:21:23 > 0:21:27"I received your letter, but I don't think we should go further."
0:21:27 > 0:21:33In Tipton, Joyce was struggling to come to terms with things.
0:21:33 > 0:21:39I will contact her, but it's getting straight in my mind
0:21:39 > 0:21:41what's gone on in my life.
0:21:41 > 0:21:46I want to get that straight first, and then I can move on.
0:21:46 > 0:21:48You know,
0:21:48 > 0:21:52it's a big step. It's a real big step.
0:21:56 > 0:21:58I will do it.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09I kept the card that she sent me,
0:22:09 > 0:22:12and I kept it on the fireplace for five months,
0:22:12 > 0:22:15and I kept picking it up, and I put it down,
0:22:15 > 0:22:18and I'd looked at the phone number that was on the bottom,
0:22:18 > 0:22:21and should I contact her, shouldn't I?
0:22:21 > 0:22:25I decided one afternoon, I'd been to work and I'd had a rough day
0:22:25 > 0:22:29and I came back and I was sitting there and I thought, "Do it".
0:22:29 > 0:22:33PHONE RINGS
0:22:33 > 0:22:37I was excited when I answered the phone to her and realised it was her
0:22:37 > 0:22:42because I thought, "At last, she's acknowledging me,"
0:22:42 > 0:22:47and as the conversation went on,
0:22:47 > 0:22:53she seemed to relax a little bit more, and she lost her nervousness.
0:22:55 > 0:22:59The sisters arranged to meet in a hotel in late March.
0:22:59 > 0:23:01That cab journey was nerve-racking.
0:23:01 > 0:23:07My stomach was all knotted and I didn't know what to expect,
0:23:07 > 0:23:11I didn't know what she'd be like, whether she'd be tall, or what.
0:23:11 > 0:23:16Neither Shirley nor Joyce had even seen a photograph of the other.
0:23:16 > 0:23:21I was sitting in the hotel foyer, waiting for Shirley to come in,
0:23:21 > 0:23:26I'd got butterflies and stomach ache and I thought I've made a mistake.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29But after all those years apart,
0:23:29 > 0:23:33would the sisters really be able to connect?
0:23:37 > 0:23:39Still to come...
0:23:39 > 0:23:44If the sisters find common ground, will they be able to bury the ghosts of the past?
0:23:44 > 0:23:47Why was it such a secret?
0:23:48 > 0:23:50I don't understand.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52I don't think I ever will and I don't think
0:23:52 > 0:23:54I'll ever find out the truth,
0:23:54 > 0:23:59but it would be nice to ask those questions now, I just wish he was here.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07For every case that is solved,
0:24:07 > 0:24:11there are still thousands that remain a mystery.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14Currently, over 3,000-names drawn from across the country
0:24:14 > 0:24:17are on the Treasury's unsolved case list.
0:24:17 > 0:24:22With estates valued at anything from £5,000 to millions of pounds,
0:24:22 > 0:24:25the rightful heirs are out there somewhere.
0:24:25 > 0:24:30Today, we've got two cases heir hunters have, so far, failed to solve.
0:24:30 > 0:24:32Could you be the key?
0:24:32 > 0:24:34Could you be in line for a pay out?
0:24:34 > 0:24:42Kathleen Marion Coomer died in Dartmouth on 4th February 2006.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45Was Kathleen a friend or neighbour of yours?
0:24:45 > 0:24:50Could you even be related to her and entitled to her legacy?
0:24:50 > 0:24:56William Daly passed away on 4th December 2004 in Highgate Hill, London.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00So far, every attempt to find his rightful heir has failed.
0:25:00 > 0:25:02If no relatives can be found,
0:25:02 > 0:25:06his money will go to the Government, but could it be meant for you?
0:25:07 > 0:25:12If the names William Daly or Kathleen Coomer mean anything to you
0:25:12 > 0:25:16or someone you know, you could have a fortune coming your way.
0:25:23 > 0:25:27One name that stood out for the on the Treasury's list of unclaimed estates
0:25:27 > 0:25:34was that of Charlotte Walker, who died leaving a small fortune of at least £100,000.
0:25:34 > 0:25:39A popular character in the Peak village of Elsecar, Barnsley,
0:25:39 > 0:25:42she loved children, but sadly never had any of her own.
0:25:42 > 0:25:46Before she died, Charlotte reached a full century.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49Her late husband's great niece remembers her birthday.
0:25:49 > 0:25:54She was up really early, and she was waving at people
0:25:54 > 0:25:59in the street and shouting "Hello, I'm 100 today", and she had a party
0:25:59 > 0:26:03and all the family came and bouncy castle, we had a barbecue.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06She wanted a modern birthday.
0:26:06 > 0:26:10She sat out with her rug round her, watching the children,
0:26:10 > 0:26:14until she actually fell asleep outside because she was so tired.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18But she absolutely revelled in the whole day.
0:26:18 > 0:26:23Sadly, Charlotte died just five months later.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26But there is a shocking twist in this tale.
0:26:26 > 0:26:30Usually, when a name appears on the Treasury list, it's because there's no will.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33But Charlotte did make a will.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36She had left her entire estate to her husband's family in Barnsley
0:26:36 > 0:26:41and she'd appointed her nephew Peter as the executor of the will.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46We took it along to the solicitors and gave it to the solicitors.
0:26:46 > 0:26:51She said "Oh, yes, we have got the deeds to the house,
0:26:51 > 0:26:56"hang on a minute, it's only got one signature on it, this will,
0:26:56 > 0:27:04"and you're not direct descendants, so it's nothing to do with you."
0:27:04 > 0:27:09So at that time, it was just like somebody hitting you with a cricket bat.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15To make a legal will, of course, you have to have two witnesses
0:27:15 > 0:27:19and they have to be able to read the will and witness your signature
0:27:19 > 0:27:25and sign it at the same time, so it is vital to not only make a will,
0:27:25 > 0:27:29but to make a will properly and the only way to be ensured of doing that
0:27:29 > 0:27:31is to do it through a qualified solicitor.
0:27:31 > 0:27:38With the will declared invalid, Charlotte's estate of at least £100,000
0:27:38 > 0:27:42has now been advertised on the Treasury's list of unclaimed estates.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45And right now, the heir hunters are desperately trying
0:27:45 > 0:27:47to trace her blood relatives to inherit.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49Hello, sorry to trouble you, Mr Bott?
0:27:49 > 0:27:53And after five hours on the case they have made contact
0:27:53 > 0:27:56with a paternal cousin once removed, Alan Bott,
0:27:56 > 0:28:01and in Nottinghamshire, travelling heir hunter Bob Smith has managed to see him.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04- Good morning.- It's Robert Smith from Fraser & Fraser.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07I have an appointment to see you. Can I come in?
0:28:07 > 0:28:09- Yes.- Thank you very much.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13- Do you remember the lady Charlotte that we are talking about?- Yes.
0:28:13 > 0:28:20She lived near, in a huge Victorian house,
0:28:20 > 0:28:22- sat in its own grounds.- Right.
0:28:22 > 0:28:27And the house she lived in, her standard of living,
0:28:27 > 0:28:30and furniture and all that, she was obviously
0:28:30 > 0:28:36a bookmaker's wife, she was reasonably well-off.
0:28:36 > 0:28:38But she married a bookmaker?
0:28:38 > 0:28:40I heard that from my father.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43This news is very exciting.
0:28:43 > 0:28:48Could it be that the estate is worth substantially more than £100,000?
0:28:48 > 0:28:52The heir hunters won't know for sure until the heirs submit the claim.
0:28:52 > 0:28:55Back in the office, researcher Debbie has
0:28:55 > 0:28:57been tracing relatives through the Census information
0:28:57 > 0:29:01and it seems there's no shortage of cousins.
0:29:01 > 0:29:02It was obviously a very fertile family.
0:29:02 > 0:29:05On one stem alone she has one,
0:29:05 > 0:29:09two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven.
0:29:09 > 0:29:13So the deceased has 11 cousins on one stem out of seven.
0:29:13 > 0:29:15Meanwhile, senior researcher Simon
0:29:15 > 0:29:19has ordered up copies of Charlotte's sisters' wills,
0:29:19 > 0:29:23and as they feared, there might be a niece or nephew.
0:29:23 > 0:29:26Probates for the two sisters of the deceased,
0:29:26 > 0:29:28who we don't think had any children,
0:29:28 > 0:29:32the wills would seem to suggest they don't have any children.
0:29:32 > 0:29:34There is however mention of a great niece,
0:29:34 > 0:29:40which would suggest that there might be a great niece of the deceased.
0:29:40 > 0:29:43This news could really put a spanner in the works.
0:29:43 > 0:29:46With their travelling heir hunter already visiting a potential heir,
0:29:46 > 0:29:50they have no-one on the ground to investigate this lead.
0:29:50 > 0:29:54Back in Nottinghamshire, there's an unwelcome surprise.
0:29:54 > 0:29:58There's been a call from a competing heir hunter, but Alan is not having it.
0:29:58 > 0:30:00First come, first served.
0:30:00 > 0:30:03I'm not interested in anything else.
0:30:03 > 0:30:07I've got enough bloody worries without fighting between companies.
0:30:07 > 0:30:11Having left the paperwork for Alan to consider,
0:30:11 > 0:30:13Bob phones the news into Tony.
0:30:13 > 0:30:15Whilst I was there two other companies rang up.
0:30:15 > 0:30:17- 'You're joking!'- No.
0:30:17 > 0:30:23But I was told that if Mr Bott has agreed
0:30:23 > 0:30:26he will sign with me, he will sign with me.
0:30:27 > 0:30:31Back in London, Tony knows that even with the competition hot on their heels,
0:30:31 > 0:30:34they can't afford to take short cuts.
0:30:34 > 0:30:38There are other companies looking at it, I know,
0:30:38 > 0:30:40so we do try to speed up a bit,
0:30:40 > 0:30:42but you still have to make sure you're doing it properly.
0:30:42 > 0:30:44We don't know where it will lead to.
0:30:44 > 0:30:47Sure enough, there's another development.
0:30:47 > 0:30:50Simon has confirmed that the grand niece mentioned
0:30:50 > 0:30:54in Charlotte's sister's will is not a blood relative.
0:30:54 > 0:30:57We can stop panicking, because...
0:31:01 > 0:31:04..the husband's niece is a Mrs Greenfield,
0:31:04 > 0:31:10and Marie Senior, who's a great niece, is born as Greenfield in 1942,
0:31:10 > 0:31:14so she's the husband's niece, not the deceased's niece,
0:31:14 > 0:31:16in which case we're back to cousins.
0:31:16 > 0:31:20Now the team know for sure they have taken the right track,
0:31:20 > 0:31:22finding cousins and signing Alan Bott.
0:31:22 > 0:31:24And just as well.
0:31:24 > 0:31:28So far they have found round 20 heirs on Charlotte's father's side alone.
0:31:28 > 0:31:33Tony is concentrating on the maternal side of the tree.
0:31:33 > 0:31:37Charlotte's mother Sarah had seven brothers and sisters.
0:31:37 > 0:31:41The team have traced a marriage record for her sister Esther to a William Winsper.
0:31:41 > 0:31:43It's an unusual name.
0:31:43 > 0:31:45You hear us talking about good bad names all the time.
0:31:45 > 0:31:48The good name, we can do a lot more things with.
0:31:48 > 0:31:51We can gamble, that's what Tony is doing. He's taking a total gamble.
0:31:51 > 0:31:54He's got the phone books, he's using the name Winsper,
0:31:54 > 0:31:58and he's just picked up people in the right area in the phone book,
0:31:58 > 0:32:01and from the sounds of it he's got quite lucky.
0:32:01 > 0:32:06We think the Winspers, provided it's the right Winspers, might have an entitlementment.
0:32:06 > 0:32:09It's the end of the day and the team have contacted
0:32:09 > 0:32:12over half of the heirs on Charlotte's father's side,
0:32:12 > 0:32:14and some on the maternal side.
0:32:14 > 0:32:18But while Charlotte's great age had been useful to begin with,
0:32:18 > 0:32:21it's now making things more difficult.
0:32:21 > 0:32:24What's making this job hard, and this family hard,
0:32:24 > 0:32:28is the age of the deceased where she is over 100,
0:32:28 > 0:32:31the birth rate at the time when the top line has been born
0:32:31 > 0:32:35is much higher than it would be on a usual case.
0:32:37 > 0:32:42And as the weeks go by, Tony is left counting heirs.
0:32:42 > 0:32:4954, 55, 56. 56. Could easily be 60, 70 heirs on it, eventually.
0:32:49 > 0:32:51With so many heirs, it's likely their share
0:32:51 > 0:32:56of the £100,000 will be small, but still a pleasant windfall.
0:32:56 > 0:32:59Many are distant relations.
0:32:59 > 0:33:02The beneficiaries we're locating now,
0:33:02 > 0:33:07their grandparents are cousins of the deceased.
0:33:07 > 0:33:10So you know, they're cousins, but three times removed.
0:33:11 > 0:33:15One of the last heirs they contact is on the maternal side.
0:33:15 > 0:33:19Charlotte's mother Esther had a grandson called Colin.
0:33:19 > 0:33:22He is Charlotte's first cousin once removed.
0:33:22 > 0:33:26The news of his inheritance has brought up mixed emotions.
0:33:26 > 0:33:28I never knew Charlotte Walker.
0:33:28 > 0:33:33It's a bit sad somebody leaving me money that I'd never even met.
0:33:33 > 0:33:38We've been thinking about doing a family tree for some time,
0:33:38 > 0:33:42so once we knew the name we started to delve into the family tree.
0:33:42 > 0:33:45That's Charlotte's mum's sister.
0:33:45 > 0:33:51Colin's already got an idea of what do with his share of the £100,000.
0:33:51 > 0:33:56If there is any money forthcoming, it would be nice to put it towards a trip,
0:33:56 > 0:34:00and find out exactly what happened to Charlotte
0:34:00 > 0:34:02and the rest of the family.
0:34:02 > 0:34:05Without a valid will, under intestate law
0:34:05 > 0:34:10only a blood relative can act on behalf of the deceased.
0:34:10 > 0:34:13Charlotte's family through marriage were told
0:34:13 > 0:34:15that even though they had known her all their life,
0:34:15 > 0:34:18they couldn't even carry out her last wishes.
0:34:18 > 0:34:22Being told we were not Lottie's family,
0:34:22 > 0:34:28when all us life we'd considered Lottie as family,
0:34:28 > 0:34:31was very hard.
0:34:34 > 0:34:38My difficulty at the time was I'd lost Lottie
0:34:38 > 0:34:40a few days previously,
0:34:40 > 0:34:45and then on the day my dad came home and told me that,
0:34:45 > 0:34:48I felt like I'd lost her twice.
0:34:48 > 0:34:54Because I'd lost a right to call her my auntie somehow,
0:34:54 > 0:34:57and it took me a long time to get
0:34:57 > 0:35:00beyond that, and to recognise for myself that she was my auntie
0:35:00 > 0:35:03and nobody could take that away from me.
0:35:08 > 0:35:10We've got the memories, that's it.
0:35:10 > 0:35:13We'll enjoy them.
0:35:16 > 0:35:18Let it be a warning to everybody -
0:35:18 > 0:35:21things are not that simple.
0:35:38 > 0:35:42As we've just seen, the impact of loved-ones dying intestate
0:35:42 > 0:35:45can be devastating on the family left behind,
0:35:45 > 0:35:48but sometimes there is a silver lining.
0:35:48 > 0:35:54On rare occasions, family who never even knew of each other's existence can be brought together.
0:35:54 > 0:35:56For most, this is welcome news,
0:35:56 > 0:35:59but it can be the start of an emotional journey.
0:35:59 > 0:36:03We always have to be very careful when we approach heirs
0:36:03 > 0:36:06in any investigation, because we never know
0:36:06 > 0:36:09what we're going to open up or uncover.
0:36:10 > 0:36:13Cyril Curtis died on February 9th 2008 in Great Yarmouth,
0:36:13 > 0:36:18leaving an estate of £23,000.
0:36:18 > 0:36:21He had no family around him.
0:36:21 > 0:36:24So when Jeremy Ford of heir hunting company Hoopers
0:36:24 > 0:36:28tracked down four entitled heirs to his £23,000 estate
0:36:28 > 0:36:32they were surprised to hear of Cyril, but that wasn't the only shock.
0:36:34 > 0:36:39Two of those heirs were nieces Joyce Coley and Shirley Hughes.
0:36:39 > 0:36:43Are we crossing here or walking down?
0:36:43 > 0:36:45They were both daughters of Cyril's brother Leonard,
0:36:45 > 0:36:48buy two different mothers and therefore half-sisters,
0:36:48 > 0:36:52but they'd never known of the other's existence.
0:36:54 > 0:36:57I went silent with shock.
0:36:59 > 0:37:03And excitement really, that the thought that I had family out there.
0:37:03 > 0:37:07Which is strange. Never met any of the family at all.
0:37:09 > 0:37:13Never knew who they was, didn't know they existed.
0:37:13 > 0:37:17Leonard Curtis left his wife Hilda and daughter Shirley
0:37:17 > 0:37:20when Shirley was three-years-old.
0:37:20 > 0:37:22He went on to meet Emily Shepherd,
0:37:22 > 0:37:26and while they never married, they did have a daughter Joyce,
0:37:26 > 0:37:29who Leonard was father to until his death.
0:37:33 > 0:37:36After an initial period of coming to terms with the news,
0:37:36 > 0:37:39Joyce agreed to meet Shirley on neutral ground.
0:37:39 > 0:37:43Neither sister had seen a photo of each other.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47When I was sitting in the hotel foyer waiting for
0:37:47 > 0:37:51Shirley to come in, I had got butterflies and stomach ache.
0:37:51 > 0:37:56I had everything you could ever have and anxieties that were running through my head.
0:37:56 > 0:37:58I thought I'd made a mistake.
0:38:04 > 0:38:06Hello!
0:38:06 > 0:38:08It's lovely to meet you.
0:38:14 > 0:38:17INDISTINCT MUFFLED VOICES
0:38:19 > 0:38:21You've all steamed up.
0:38:23 > 0:38:26Thank you. I brought you one, as well.
0:38:26 > 0:38:30Thank you so much. Something to remind you, to be reminded by.
0:38:32 > 0:38:35Oh, dear.
0:38:37 > 0:38:39I'm so grateful for this.
0:38:39 > 0:38:43You know, it's just..
0:38:43 > 0:38:46I just wish we could have met sooner.
0:38:46 > 0:38:49Looking at you, we're so alike.
0:38:49 > 0:38:50- We are.- It's unbelievable.
0:38:51 > 0:38:54We're so alike.
0:38:54 > 0:38:55My colour's out of a bottle!
0:38:55 > 0:39:01Yes, well, I need mine doing now, but that, that's Dad, our dad.
0:39:01 > 0:39:04- That's him. - Was that taken in Llandudno.
0:39:04 > 0:39:06It was Wales.
0:39:06 > 0:39:09Gosh, I can't believe that. It's lovely.
0:39:09 > 0:39:11And that's how I was always dressed.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14Just like that. Constantly.
0:39:14 > 0:39:18After their first meeting, the sisters have kept in touch,
0:39:18 > 0:39:22but they are both still wrestling with a mixture of emotions.
0:39:22 > 0:39:28The last ten months have been the most amazing time of my life.
0:39:28 > 0:39:32Suddenly to be thrust into this new family, you know, and there's lots
0:39:32 > 0:39:38of new people, and you're learning about them every single day, and it's...
0:39:39 > 0:39:45..it's been amazing, it's been a real rollercoaster of a ride. It really has.
0:39:45 > 0:39:49We've seen quite a bit of each other since we first met.
0:39:49 > 0:39:53We met up in Llandudno, they were on holiday in Rhyl.
0:39:53 > 0:39:57So we met up there for the day and had a nice day,
0:39:57 > 0:40:01and then they came here and stayed for a few days.
0:40:01 > 0:40:05But along with the joy of discovering each other,
0:40:05 > 0:40:08it's also been an unsettling time.
0:40:08 > 0:40:12When we do start the process of trying to bring heirs together,
0:40:12 > 0:40:15we're aware of the great many sensitivities involved,
0:40:15 > 0:40:18particularly when the relationship is very close,
0:40:18 > 0:40:20as in the case of Joyce and Shirley,
0:40:20 > 0:40:23and of course there's a lot of anxieties involved
0:40:23 > 0:40:26and the whole process has to be delicately considered.
0:40:26 > 0:40:30Of course, there's a number of emotional hurdles that have to be cleared.
0:40:30 > 0:40:34Joyce has returned to where her father's ashes
0:40:34 > 0:40:37were scattered 30 years ago.
0:40:37 > 0:40:41Until her father died just before her 15th birthday,
0:40:41 > 0:40:43she was the apple of his eye.
0:40:43 > 0:40:45Joyce was devoted to him.
0:40:45 > 0:40:49But a year on, the news that the father she worshipped
0:40:49 > 0:40:51for all those years
0:40:51 > 0:40:56had abandoned her half-sister Shirley has left Joyce questioning the past.
0:40:56 > 0:41:03If I could speak to my dad now, I would ask him why he did what he did,
0:41:03 > 0:41:06why did he set up a new life?
0:41:06 > 0:41:09Why did I come along?
0:41:11 > 0:41:14Why did he abandon Shirley the way he did?
0:41:14 > 0:41:21And I would love to ask him why he did that, why was it such a secret?
0:41:21 > 0:41:22I don't understand.
0:41:22 > 0:41:27I don't think I ever will and I don't think I'll ever find out the truth,
0:41:27 > 0:41:32but it would be nice to ask those questions now, I just wish he was here.
0:41:32 > 0:41:38I can't understand why dad would cover up so much, really.
0:41:38 > 0:41:41He left my mum and I.
0:41:41 > 0:41:43As far as I know he went to work in West Bromwich,
0:41:43 > 0:41:46and that was the reason he left, was through work.
0:41:46 > 0:41:50Every time I mentioned him I was told to be quiet.
0:41:50 > 0:41:53No-one would talk about him and I could never understand why.
0:41:53 > 0:41:56I thought, "If he's just left for work, for a job,
0:41:56 > 0:42:00"there must be something more to it than what there was."
0:42:00 > 0:42:03All that Shirley knows is that he left
0:42:03 > 0:42:06and some time later had another daughter.
0:42:06 > 0:42:10There's eight years between us, and in all those eight years,
0:42:10 > 0:42:12there must have been something that's...
0:42:14 > 0:42:19..he's hidden from even perhaps her mum, we don't know.
0:42:19 > 0:42:21Or did her mum know everything?
0:42:21 > 0:42:25It's just one of those secrets, I don't think we'll ever find out.
0:42:25 > 0:42:29For most of the 19th century, divorce was a difficult,
0:42:29 > 0:42:32expensive and scandalous process.
0:42:32 > 0:42:35Perhaps the plain fact is that Leonard could
0:42:35 > 0:42:38not find the courage to tell his two separate families the truth.
0:42:38 > 0:42:41Well, of course dad isn't here now,
0:42:41 > 0:42:47and there's just me and Shirley now, and we finally found one another,
0:42:47 > 0:42:51and we're starting a new life together as best we can.
0:42:54 > 0:42:56If you would like to find out more
0:42:56 > 0:43:02about how to build a family tree or write a will, go to bbc.co.uk.
0:43:18 > 0:43:20Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:43:20 > 0:43:24E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk