0:00:02 > 0:00:05Welcome to Heir Hunters, where we follow the search for relatives
0:00:05 > 0:00:10of people who've died without leaving a will, hoping to unite them with forgotten fortunes.
0:00:10 > 0:00:13Today, the heir hunters are looking into an estate
0:00:13 > 0:00:16worth a possible £80,000.
0:00:16 > 0:00:19Across the UK, the hunt is on for the relatives
0:00:19 > 0:00:22who could be in line for a windfall.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25Could someone be knocking at your door?
0:00:41 > 0:00:46On today's show, the heir hunters take a massive risk
0:00:46 > 0:00:50on an estate that may have debts attached.
0:00:50 > 0:00:52The work we do is a big gamble,
0:00:52 > 0:00:54cos we don't know the value of the estate.
0:00:54 > 0:00:59I'll be finding out about the creative career of a man who worked
0:00:59 > 0:01:02on one of our best-loved TV shows.
0:01:02 > 0:01:07David Frost came on the phone and he said, "What's all this idea?" I told him and he said, "Oh, great! Super!"
0:01:07 > 0:01:11And the team uncover the story of a courageous lady who braved bombs
0:01:11 > 0:01:16and blazes to serve her country during the Second World War.
0:01:16 > 0:01:21It was a dangerous job. You would be out in the raids,
0:01:21 > 0:01:25subject to the same kind of risks that the men were.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28Plus, how you could be entitled to unclaimed estates
0:01:28 > 0:01:31where beneficiaries need to be found.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33Could you be in line for an unexpected windfall?
0:01:39 > 0:01:40Every year in the UK,
0:01:40 > 0:01:45an estimated 300,000 people die without leaving a will.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48If no relatives are found, then any money that's left behind
0:01:48 > 0:01:50will go to the Government.
0:01:50 > 0:01:55Last year, they made £14 million from unclaimed estates.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58There are over 30 specialist firms competing to stop this happening.
0:01:58 > 0:02:03They're called heir hunters and they make it their business
0:02:03 > 0:02:06to track down missing relatives and help them claim their rightful inheritance.
0:02:06 > 0:02:12I make sure that the Government doesn't seize assets which do not belong to them.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22Heir hunting can be a risky business, and today, the team take
0:02:22 > 0:02:26a chance on a case they hope will have value. Will the gamble pay off?
0:02:26 > 0:02:30It's 7am on a Thursday morning, and staff at Fraser & Fraser,
0:02:30 > 0:02:34the UK's largest heir hunting firm, are already hard at work.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37The Treasury have just published their list of people
0:02:37 > 0:02:42who've died without leaving a will. The team are poring over the names.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46Today's list is particularly lengthy.
0:02:47 > 0:02:52Absolutely huge list for us today. I can't work them all.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54There's 38 on the list.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57But one case has caught partner Neil's attention.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01The only case we're looking at actively at the moment
0:03:01 > 0:03:05and drawing up trees is a case called Luckarift.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07The reason we're doing that is
0:03:07 > 0:03:11we were able to find the deceased was a company director at one time.
0:03:11 > 0:03:16Heir hunters are paid a percentage of an estate's final value.
0:03:16 > 0:03:20So there must be enough money in the case for them to cover costs
0:03:20 > 0:03:21and hopefully make a profit.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24A company director is likely to have had high earning power
0:03:24 > 0:03:28and could have left a substantial sum of money.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31So Neil is hopeful this will be a valuable estate.
0:03:35 > 0:03:40Edward Luckarift died on 29th March 2010 in North Wales.
0:03:40 > 0:03:42He was 90 years old.
0:03:42 > 0:03:45He spent the last years of his life
0:03:45 > 0:03:49in the small Welsh seaside resort of Penmaenmawr, and it was here
0:03:49 > 0:03:54that he struck up a friendship with fireman Harry Colecliffe.
0:03:54 > 0:03:55Harry met Edward by chance
0:03:55 > 0:03:59when he was conducting a fire service training exercise in a scrapyard.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03Somebody came running into the scrapyard, and said,
0:04:03 > 0:04:08"There's an elderly gentleman on the floor outside, near the road."
0:04:08 > 0:04:11We got the crew together, went out to render first aid
0:04:11 > 0:04:14and phoned an ambulance. And that was Edward.
0:04:14 > 0:04:18And just as he was getting into the ambulance, he handed me some keys
0:04:18 > 0:04:22and said, "Could you look after my dog?" And off he went.
0:04:22 > 0:04:24That was the first time I met Edward.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28It was also the beginning of a strong friendship,
0:04:28 > 0:04:32as Harry started to visit Edward in hospital.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34I was stuck with his dog,
0:04:34 > 0:04:37so I went to find out how long he'd be in hospital,
0:04:37 > 0:04:42and it built up a friendship. He was a real gentleman.
0:04:42 > 0:04:47Quite a wit about him. He had so many interesting little stories.
0:04:47 > 0:04:52So you sat there and you didn't actually say a word!
0:04:52 > 0:04:56All you would say is, "Oh, what happened then?"
0:04:56 > 0:05:00Off he'd go again and tell you another part of the story!
0:05:00 > 0:05:04In the office, Neil has tracked down Edward's address,
0:05:04 > 0:05:07but he's also discovered a financial record
0:05:07 > 0:05:10which suggests there may be debts on this estate.
0:05:10 > 0:05:18That address has got a caution on...by a bankruptcy firm,
0:05:18 > 0:05:20which doesn't sound that good,
0:05:20 > 0:05:24but I think it's because he probably owned it at some time.
0:05:24 > 0:05:31Taking on a case where the deceased has filed for bankruptcy is risky.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34If there's no money in the estate, the team could end up
0:05:34 > 0:05:35working for no reward.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38But if Edward owned the property he lived in, in Wales,
0:05:38 > 0:05:40it could be worth £80,000.
0:05:40 > 0:05:44So Neil thinks it's a risk worth taking.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49There are very few people with the surname Luckarift in Britain.
0:05:49 > 0:05:51The team have less names to work with
0:05:51 > 0:05:54and a higher chance of finding the right family.
0:05:54 > 0:05:58So research gets off to a flying start,
0:05:58 > 0:06:02and by 8am, Neil thinks he's found Edward's paternal grandparents.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07Frederick Alfred, he's 50, so was born in 1860.
0:06:07 > 0:06:08Anywhere in particular?
0:06:10 > 0:06:13Er, Jersey. This one here, wife is Carterelle.
0:06:13 > 0:06:18They were married circa 1883 and they had three children.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22The father's side of the family appear to be
0:06:22 > 0:06:25based in Jersey in the Channel Islands.
0:06:25 > 0:06:27Neil believes Edward's paternal grandparents
0:06:27 > 0:06:30were Frederick and Carterelle Luckarift.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32They had three children -
0:06:32 > 0:06:35Kathleen, Evelyn and Frederick, who is Edward's father.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41Kathleen and Evelyn would be Edward's paternal aunts.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43And if they had any living children,
0:06:43 > 0:06:46they could be heirs to Edward's estate.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50At the moment, I'm looking at the Evelyn stem.
0:06:50 > 0:06:54She's married to a Nightscale, but I've just found her death.
0:06:54 > 0:06:57She's died as Nightscales. Even though she's changed the name slightly,
0:06:57 > 0:07:00she still hasn't had any children.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04So looks like it's probably a dead stem, unless she adopted someone.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07If Evelyn has had no children,
0:07:07 > 0:07:09the only remaining hope on the father's side
0:07:09 > 0:07:14is Edward's aunt Kathleen, but Gareth is having trouble tracking her down.
0:07:14 > 0:07:19All we know is that she's born around 1889, in Jersey,
0:07:19 > 0:07:24and living in 1911 in Salford. Other than that, I'm not finding anything.
0:07:24 > 0:07:28Most likely scenario is she's gone back to Jersey.
0:07:28 > 0:07:32The team still don't know whether there's any money in this estate,
0:07:32 > 0:07:35so all their hard work could end up being for nothing.
0:07:35 > 0:07:39But it's still only 8.30 and, although they've hit a dead end
0:07:39 > 0:07:43on the father's side, on the mother's side, they're racing ahead.
0:07:44 > 0:07:50So we've got Ernest Cox, he's head. He's male. Born 1862.
0:07:50 > 0:07:55He's been married for 16 years. Wife, white female, born December...
0:07:56 > 0:07:581865.
0:07:58 > 0:08:031865. She's married. OK, so now we know, that on the mother's side,
0:08:03 > 0:08:05there's only her and her brother.
0:08:05 > 0:08:10Tony has discovered that Edward's maternal grandparents,
0:08:10 > 0:08:14Ernest Gresley Cox and Amelie, only had two children -
0:08:14 > 0:08:18Edward's mother Ernestine and her brother, Edward.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22Edward Gresley Cox was born in 1891, which would make him 23
0:08:22 > 0:08:24at the outbreak of the First World War.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28So Neil wonders whether there might be an Army record for him.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32British Army. Is he old enough for the Army? Yes.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35His hunch proves correct.
0:08:35 > 0:08:39He was a Flight Lieutenant. General...
0:08:39 > 0:08:42No, he'd be in the Royal Flying Corps, wouldn't he?
0:08:42 > 0:08:43He is, he's in the Royal Flying Corps.
0:08:43 > 0:08:49From an old Army record, Neil has discovered that Edward Luckarift's
0:08:49 > 0:08:54uncle, Edward Gresley Cox, fought for his country in World War I.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57He trained as a pilot and served as Second Lieutenant
0:08:57 > 0:09:02in the Royal Flying Corps from 1917 to 1918.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06The Royal Flying Corps is a separate entity of the British Army.
0:09:06 > 0:09:11It was formed in 1912. They'd been going about two years before
0:09:11 > 0:09:12the First War started.
0:09:12 > 0:09:18The First World War introduced a new form of battleground.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21Whereas before, wars were fought on land and sea, the development
0:09:21 > 0:09:26of the aeroplane meant the battle could also be taken to the skies.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29And this created a new kind of hero.
0:09:29 > 0:09:33Brave young aviators prepared to risk their lives in the skies
0:09:33 > 0:09:36far above the battlefields.
0:09:36 > 0:09:42It certainly attracted people with more of a spirit of adventure,
0:09:42 > 0:09:48and many chaps I met were certainly slightly different.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52They had this sense of adventure. Aviation attracted people like this.
0:09:52 > 0:09:58During the First World War, Edward Gresley Cox was stationed
0:09:58 > 0:09:59out in Salonika in Greece,
0:09:59 > 0:10:03where the initial role of the British Army was to help the Serbs
0:10:03 > 0:10:07who were being attacked by German, Austro-Hungarian
0:10:07 > 0:10:08and Bulgarian forces.
0:10:08 > 0:10:13The Royal Flying Corps provided air support and reconnaissance.
0:10:13 > 0:10:18But being so far removed from front line action had its disadvantages.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22The other theatres where the British Army fought were known
0:10:22 > 0:10:25as the sideshows, sort of not the main event,
0:10:25 > 0:10:30and any decent equipment was always held back for operations
0:10:30 > 0:10:31on the Western Front -
0:10:31 > 0:10:34Passchendaele, Arras and the Somme.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37These other theatres, and Salonika in particular,
0:10:37 > 0:10:41really got only the poor or obsolete equipment
0:10:41 > 0:10:43which wasn't needed on the Western Front.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47These obsolete aircraft were no match
0:10:47 > 0:10:49for the modern German machines,
0:10:49 > 0:10:52which were faster and much more effective in battle.
0:10:52 > 0:10:56The British response to this problem was to borrow some fighters
0:10:56 > 0:10:58from the French air force.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01But these planes also came with built-in problems.
0:11:01 > 0:11:05The aeroplanes they borrowed off the French was the Nieuport Scout,
0:11:05 > 0:11:08a standard fighter in the French Air Service.
0:11:08 > 0:11:14It was equipped with a rotary engine. These were pretty unreliable
0:11:14 > 0:11:19and could be fickle, so engine failures were not infrequent.
0:11:19 > 0:11:22It was unfortunately while flying one of these aircraft
0:11:22 > 0:11:24that Edward Gresley Cox died.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30On February 22nd, 1918, he and another pilot
0:11:30 > 0:11:32in another French Nieuport Scout
0:11:32 > 0:11:35went out on a reconnaissance mission.
0:11:35 > 0:11:40Unfortunately, Gresley Cox had an engine failure,
0:11:40 > 0:11:44and while trying to put the aircraft down on suitable terrain,
0:11:44 > 0:11:48crashed and was killed.
0:11:49 > 0:11:53Back in the office, Neil has just discovered
0:11:53 > 0:11:56this tragic turn of events.
0:11:56 > 0:11:57Killed.
0:11:57 > 0:11:58That's important.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04So he died 22nd February, '18.
0:12:04 > 0:12:10War records are a vital tool in genealogy, providing heir hunters
0:12:10 > 0:12:13with valuable clues about people's lives and family histories.
0:12:13 > 0:12:18Most soldiers were required to make a will before going into combat.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22And it doesn't take Tony long to find one for Edward Gresley Cox.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26This is the probate for the uncle of the deceased,
0:12:26 > 0:12:30who was killed in the Royal Flying Corps in 1918.
0:12:30 > 0:12:34Just to say that he's left £141 in 1918.
0:12:34 > 0:12:40The team must establish who Edward Gresley Cox left his money to.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43Could he have left it to a wife and children?
0:12:43 > 0:12:45If he did have children and they're still alive,
0:12:45 > 0:12:51they would be cousins of Edward Luckarift's and heirs to his estate,
0:12:51 > 0:12:53an estate whose value the team have yet to discover.
0:12:54 > 0:12:58Neil has taken a risk in pursuing this case.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01The work we do is one big gamble,
0:13:01 > 0:13:04cos we don't know the value of the estate.
0:13:04 > 0:13:08And he's yet to find out if his gamble has paid off.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16The heir hunters still have a lot of investigating to do,
0:13:16 > 0:13:20but their research doesn't just reveal beneficiaries.
0:13:20 > 0:13:26The heir hunters discovered that Edward Gresley Cox, the uncle of Edward Luckarift,
0:13:26 > 0:13:30lost his life during WWI by uncovering his Army records.
0:13:30 > 0:13:36So how can military archives help you find out more about your relatives who served in the forces?
0:13:36 > 0:13:40I'm meeting heir hunter Simon Grosvenor, who can tell me more.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45So how do military records help in an heir hunt?
0:13:45 > 0:13:49They're very useful because the Army were very organised about keeping records.
0:13:49 > 0:13:53So there are a lot of records relating to people who've served
0:13:53 > 0:13:57not only in the Army, but the Navy and eventually the Air Force as well.
0:13:57 > 0:14:02They have a lot of records that tell you things about people we can't find out elsewhere.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06For example, in WWI, soldiers were asked to make a will
0:14:06 > 0:14:10and in their service book, there was a page - curiously page 13 -
0:14:10 > 0:14:16where they could make a will and they would write down their next of kin or whoever they wished it to go to,
0:14:16 > 0:14:20and sign it. If they were unfortunately enough killed,
0:14:20 > 0:14:24the Army would be able to know who their next of kin were.
0:14:24 > 0:14:28The wills in the soldiers' pay books detailing their final wishes
0:14:28 > 0:14:31sadly proved very necessary during WWI.
0:14:31 > 0:14:36It's estimated that up to 1 million British soldiers
0:14:36 > 0:14:39died in the conflict, with 60,000 casualties
0:14:39 > 0:14:42on the first day of the Battle of the Somme alone.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45And what if you had a relative who'd died in the war?
0:14:45 > 0:14:49There are various websites that record records of soldiers who died
0:14:49 > 0:14:52and war graves you can trace as well.
0:14:52 > 0:14:58Those will give you more information about people if you can find it.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02So I have my great-grandfather's brother, I think, died in the war.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04Is it possible to look him up?
0:15:04 > 0:15:07We can. Do you know his name?
0:15:07 > 0:15:12He was Thomas Lister Holmes, which was H-O-L-M-E-S.
0:15:16 > 0:15:18And there he is.
0:15:18 > 0:15:23- You only get the initials.- OK. - T L Holmes - we've only got the one,
0:15:23 > 0:15:24and it's almost certainly him.
0:15:24 > 0:15:28It gives his rank, his regiment, his age, when he died
0:15:28 > 0:15:30and his service number.
0:15:30 > 0:15:37You'll also note that it says here he was buried in Sturton-LeSteeple Cemetery...
0:15:37 > 0:15:42- Also where he was born.- Which is where the address was - it tells us it's in Withington in Manchester.
0:15:42 > 0:15:46It would suggest therefore that he was at home when he died.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49I would imagine he died as a result of wounds he'd received.
0:15:49 > 0:15:52There are various other sources that can be useful
0:15:52 > 0:15:56when tracing your ancestors who served in the military,
0:15:56 > 0:15:58including pension records,
0:15:58 > 0:16:01regimental indexes of births, marriages and deaths
0:16:01 > 0:16:05and service records of soldiers, which contain details
0:16:05 > 0:16:08of their postings, as well as personal information.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11The next of kin originally here
0:16:11 > 0:16:16was his father. And then it's been changed to an aunt, so I presume
0:16:16 > 0:16:17that his father died.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21I think it's amazing. You can get so much information
0:16:21 > 0:16:26from this Army record that for an heir hunter, this must be gold.
0:16:26 > 0:16:27They are very useful.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31If you can find it, it will tell you things that you might not be able to find,
0:16:31 > 0:16:35particularly if they are abroad and you don't know where they've gone.
0:16:35 > 0:16:40You can find out if they had children, who they were, when they were born.
0:16:40 > 0:16:44You can find out something about what they looked like
0:16:44 > 0:16:48and how tall they were. You might find out if you're really tall,
0:16:48 > 0:16:52you had a very tall great-grandfather or a very short great-grandfather.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55And I think people like to know that. So you get to know more about them
0:16:55 > 0:16:58than you would just from a death certificate or something.
0:16:58 > 0:17:02- It actually builds a picture up, doesn't it?- Thank you.
0:17:05 > 0:17:09Next, the story of a woman who did her duty for this country.
0:17:09 > 0:17:14But can the heir hunters find any relatives entitled to inherit her estate?
0:17:14 > 0:17:18Heir hunting cases can come from a variety of different sources.
0:17:18 > 0:17:22Most are published on the Treasury list, but some are referred
0:17:22 > 0:17:26by individuals or solicitors acting on their behalf.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28This was the case with Diana Paine.
0:17:28 > 0:17:31She lived an exciting and glamorous life,
0:17:31 > 0:17:34surrounded by people who loved her.
0:17:34 > 0:17:38She was always full of life and game to do anything at all.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41But for some reason, she decided not to leave a will.
0:17:41 > 0:17:48Diana died on 14th April 2010, in Langton Green near Tunbridge Wells.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50She was 91 years old.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54She had spent the last 18 years of her life with her companion,
0:17:54 > 0:17:59Ernest Armstrong, who she met via a lonely hearts advert in a magazine.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03My wife died in 1991,
0:18:03 > 0:18:07and, like a lot of men,
0:18:07 > 0:18:11not knowing what to do with themselves,
0:18:11 > 0:18:16I put the advert into the magazine, and Diana got in touch with me.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20Both of us were looking for one thing and one thing only,
0:18:20 > 0:18:22and that was companionship.
0:18:22 > 0:18:27You can't wander round a house all day long looking at pictures.
0:18:27 > 0:18:33You have to do something. We were very lucky. We clicked right away.
0:18:33 > 0:18:37Diana left an estate worth £20,000,
0:18:37 > 0:18:39but she died without leaving a will.
0:18:39 > 0:18:44I don't know why she didn't make a will. I've no idea.
0:18:44 > 0:18:49Whether simply because she didn't have any relations as such,
0:18:49 > 0:18:53or any nephews or nieces or anything like that,
0:18:53 > 0:18:56to whom the money would have gone.
0:18:56 > 0:19:01Keen to find out whether Diana did have any family,
0:19:01 > 0:19:04and thus prevent her money going straight to the Government,
0:19:04 > 0:19:07Ernest contacted a firm of solicitors.
0:19:07 > 0:19:09They referred the case to the heir hunters.
0:19:09 > 0:19:14We were instructed by the solicitors. They knew we could act quickly
0:19:14 > 0:19:16and try to trace the next of kin.
0:19:16 > 0:19:20There was some urgency to get this case tied up.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22Diana had been living in rented accommodation,
0:19:22 > 0:19:26and until an heir was found who could legally cancel the rental
0:19:26 > 0:19:29agreement, rent would continue to be paid out of her estate.
0:19:29 > 0:19:34So the pressure was on case manager Dave Slee to find some heirs
0:19:34 > 0:19:35before the money ran out.
0:19:37 > 0:19:43At the start, the only information Dave had to go on was that Diana had once been married to a Harry Paine.
0:19:43 > 0:19:49His first step was therefore to obtain a marriage certificate.
0:19:49 > 0:19:51The information on the marriage certificate confirmed
0:19:51 > 0:19:57that the deceased in fact had been married previously and that marriage had ended in divorce.
0:19:57 > 0:20:02I was then able to find the deceased's first marriage to a Mr Salmon,
0:20:02 > 0:20:06which was about six years prior to her second marriage.
0:20:06 > 0:20:11Diana married her first husband John Griffith Salmon in 1940,
0:20:11 > 0:20:14but divorced him some time during the Second World War.
0:20:14 > 0:20:22She went on to marry Harry Paine in 1946, and stayed with him until his death some 40 years later.
0:20:22 > 0:20:30But sadly neither of these marriages produced any children, which was a cause of great sadness to Diana.
0:20:30 > 0:20:36She certainly would have loved to have had a family of her own, which she unfortunately couldn't have.
0:20:36 > 0:20:41Even Cocker Spaniels don't make up for the lack of children.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44The fact that Diana had had no children
0:20:44 > 0:20:48meant Dave would have to cast the net wider in his search for heirs.
0:20:48 > 0:20:53He knew from Diana's marriage certificates that her maiden name was Vaughan-Fowler.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56But this initially gave him cause for concern.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00I'm never happy researching double-barrelled surnames.
0:21:00 > 0:21:04They're often the product of people with delusions of grandeur and are made-up names.
0:21:04 > 0:21:08But in Diana's case, the name was genuine.
0:21:08 > 0:21:13She was born as Vaughan-Fowler and even her grandfather was born as Vaughan-Fowler
0:21:13 > 0:21:17so it was a name that had gone back in history with the family.
0:21:17 > 0:21:25Diana was born in West Sussex in 1919, the daughter of Alfred Vaughan-Fowler and Mabel Potter.
0:21:25 > 0:21:30She grew up and went to school in Tunbridge Wells and initially worked as a shorthand typist.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33But when the Second World War started,
0:21:33 > 0:21:39her life was to change dramatically, as all women of working age were conscripted into the war effort.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42There were an awful lot of jobs
0:21:42 > 0:21:48that needed to be done and we just didn't have the people to do them
0:21:48 > 0:21:50and so uniquely in our history,
0:21:50 > 0:21:56the entire female population was conscripted and they volunteered for all sorts of jobs.
0:21:57 > 0:22:03Before the war started, Diana's father had been a car salesman and he had taught her how to drive.
0:22:03 > 0:22:07It was quite unusual for women to drive at the time.
0:22:07 > 0:22:11The situation where, as happened with Diana,
0:22:11 > 0:22:14the fact that her father was in his line of work
0:22:14 > 0:22:19meant that it would be pretty easy for her to learn to drive.
0:22:19 > 0:22:24Generally, middle-class women might be the ones who learnt to drive.
0:22:24 > 0:22:28Diana volunteered to work as a driver for the National Fire Service.
0:22:28 > 0:22:34During the war the demands on the fire service increased dramatically,
0:22:34 > 0:22:40as the Luftwaffe dropped bombs and incendiary devices on London and nearby towns.
0:22:40 > 0:22:45And as demand for personnel increased, so the roles of women began to change.
0:22:45 > 0:22:50Initially women had a very limited range of roles that they were offered.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54There would be clerical and telephone work on switchboards.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56It expanded and expanded.
0:22:56 > 0:23:02Initially, what was perceived as something where women would work behind the dangerous stuff,
0:23:02 > 0:23:07very quickly, women were out as much as the men in the raids.
0:23:11 > 0:23:17Working for the fire service during the raids brought women like Diana into constant danger.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19It was a dangerous job.
0:23:19 > 0:23:21There's no two ways about it.
0:23:21 > 0:23:28You would be out in the raids and subject to the same kind of risks that the men were.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35The Germans learned when they were bombing cities
0:23:35 > 0:23:42that part of the tactics they evolved was that you would start fires through incendiaries
0:23:42 > 0:23:48and then once the fires were started, subsequent bombers would actually attack those fires
0:23:48 > 0:23:53and part of it would be about disrupting and targeting the services
0:23:53 > 0:23:57like the fire services and the ambulance services.
0:24:00 > 0:24:06Diana was based in Tunbridge Wells and was the driver for the chief of the Tunbridge Wells Fire Brigade.
0:24:06 > 0:24:11Tunbridge Wells was never subject to the intense bombardment that London suffered,
0:24:11 > 0:24:14but the job would still have involved certain risks.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18It was a brave job for a woman to do at the time, and it gave Diana
0:24:18 > 0:24:23a new-found status that she hadn't enjoyed before the war.
0:24:23 > 0:24:30She was very proud. She had a status as an officer in the fire service.
0:24:30 > 0:24:33She really enjoyed it very much. She enjoyed driving a lot.
0:24:33 > 0:24:40It was also while working in the fire service that Diana met her second husband, Harry Paine.
0:24:40 > 0:24:45At the end of the war, her husband, who had been in the Navy,
0:24:45 > 0:24:47joined the fire service
0:24:47 > 0:24:52and that is when they met up and got married in 1946.
0:24:53 > 0:24:58Harry had been injured during the war and he suffered from ill health throughout their marriage.
0:24:58 > 0:25:04But Diana was devoted to him and she looked after him until his death 40 years later.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Having established that Diana and her husband had no children,
0:25:10 > 0:25:14Dave's next step was to track down any surviving siblings.
0:25:14 > 0:25:21Because we are dealing with a hyphenated surname the research was fairly straightforward
0:25:21 > 0:25:28in being able to establish that the deceased had two siblings, one of whom died as an infant
0:25:28 > 0:25:32and the other sibling, whose name was Joan, she died as a spinster.
0:25:32 > 0:25:36This meant that Diana had no nieces or nephews,
0:25:36 > 0:25:42and Dave would have to expand the search to find any surviving heirs.
0:25:42 > 0:25:48Our next stage is to try and trace paternal and maternal family and their descendants.
0:25:48 > 0:25:52But while Diana's father's name Vaughan-Fowler was easy to research,
0:25:52 > 0:25:58simply because there aren't that many hyphenated Vaughan-Fowlers in Britain,
0:25:58 > 0:26:01investigating Diana's mother's side would prove much more difficult.
0:26:01 > 0:26:08I knew that the research on the maternal family, of the surname Potter, was likely to be far harder
0:26:08 > 0:26:15than researching the hyphenated Vaughan-Fowler name of the paternal family.
0:26:15 > 0:26:21Coming up, Diana's story proves an inspiration to the family member she's never met.
0:26:21 > 0:26:28The impression I'm getting is she was quite a strong woman which I find interesting and encouraging.
0:26:36 > 0:26:40Heir hunters solve thousands of cases a year and millions of pounds
0:26:40 > 0:26:44are paid out to rightful heirs. But not every case can be cracked.
0:26:44 > 0:26:50The Treasury solicitor has a list of over 2,000 estates which baffled the heir hunters and remain unclaimed.
0:26:50 > 0:26:55Bona vacantia is Latin for ownerless goods. We deal with the estates
0:26:55 > 0:26:59of people who die intestate and without known kin.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02This could be money with your name on it
0:27:02 > 0:27:06as long as you are correctly related to the deceased.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09People entitled are those that trace their relationship
0:27:09 > 0:27:12in a direct line from the deceased person's grandparents.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16So a spouse would be entitled, children would be entitled,
0:27:16 > 0:27:20aunts and uncles, nephews and nieces, first cousins.
0:27:20 > 0:27:25So are today's featured cases relatives of yours?
0:27:25 > 0:27:30Could you be in line for hundreds, thousands or even millions of pounds?
0:27:30 > 0:27:33Today we're focusing on three names.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36Are they relatives of yours?
0:27:38 > 0:27:44Mary Frances Foyle died way back in March 1967 in Chelsea in London.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47Some new assets of Mary's may have come to light,
0:27:47 > 0:27:50meaning her name is now on the list of unclaimed estates.
0:27:50 > 0:27:52Was there a Mary Foyle in YOUR family?
0:27:52 > 0:27:57Could you be the long-lost heir entitled to her cash?
0:28:01 > 0:28:05Vernette Pienaar died on 8th May 2009 in Kilburn, London.
0:28:05 > 0:28:12The surname Pienaar is of Huguenot origin and is now common in South Africa.
0:28:12 > 0:28:17Did you know Vernette? Did she ever speak to you about her background or any family she might have had?
0:28:20 > 0:28:25James Fred Grant died in Bangkok, Thailand on 26th October 1989.
0:28:25 > 0:28:31Although James died in Asia, the surname Grant is very prominent in Northern Scotland.
0:28:31 > 0:28:35Did you know James, either in Thailand or the UK?
0:28:35 > 0:28:38Can YOU help solve this case?
0:28:38 > 0:28:40If James was a relative of yours,
0:28:40 > 0:28:45the Treasury wants this money to go to you, its rightful owner.
0:28:47 > 0:28:50My division isn't allowed to make a profit, we don't make commission,
0:28:50 > 0:28:52or huge bonuses for passing money to the Treasury.
0:28:52 > 0:28:57In fact, the Treasury is more interested in - are we finding more kin? Which we are.
0:28:57 > 0:28:59Are we good value for taxpayers' money? Which we are.
0:28:59 > 0:29:02A reminder of those names again.
0:29:02 > 0:29:06Mary Foyle, Vernette Pienaar and James Grant.
0:29:09 > 0:29:12If any of today's names are relatives of yours,
0:29:12 > 0:29:15then you could be entitled to their unclaimed estate.
0:29:20 > 0:29:23Now it's back to the search for relatives of Edward Luckarift.
0:29:23 > 0:29:26Later, I'll be finding out more about Edward's career,
0:29:26 > 0:29:30but first, let's catch up with the search for heirs.
0:29:30 > 0:29:36Heir hunters Fraser and Fraser are investigating Edward's case.
0:29:36 > 0:29:41He died in North Wales in March 2010 without leaving a will.
0:29:41 > 0:29:43He owned a property worth £80,000.
0:29:43 > 0:29:48But the team have also discovered that he may have had debts.
0:29:48 > 0:29:52Neil has therefore taken a calculated risk in pursuing the case.
0:29:52 > 0:29:55If there's no money in the estate, the team will not get paid.
0:29:55 > 0:29:58But if the value of the property has remained intact,
0:29:58 > 0:30:03and not been eaten into by debts, it could be a fairly valuable estate.
0:30:03 > 0:30:07The team have been researching the mother's side of the family
0:30:07 > 0:30:10and have discovered an uncle, Edward Gresley Cox.
0:30:10 > 0:30:16He died in a flying accident in 1918 and he left a will.
0:30:16 > 0:30:20The team wondered whether he might have had a wife and children.
0:30:20 > 0:30:23Emily Elise Gresley Cox, widow.
0:30:23 > 0:30:25- Widow?- Yeah.
0:30:25 > 0:30:28But this turns out not to be the case.
0:30:29 > 0:30:34He's left a grant, letters of administration, probably to his mother.
0:30:35 > 0:30:41The fact he's left letters of administration to his mother rather implies he wasn't married.
0:30:41 > 0:30:44It's therefore some sense to imply he didn't have any children.
0:30:44 > 0:30:49Edward Gresley Cox is the only maternal uncle of Edward Luckarift.
0:30:49 > 0:30:54If he had no children, this means there are no heirs on the mother's side of the family.
0:30:54 > 0:30:59So the team's only remaining hope of finding an heir is to go back to the father's side.
0:30:59 > 0:31:03They've established that Edward's paternal aunt Evelyn had no children.
0:31:03 > 0:31:09So they must now try to find some records for Edward's paternal aunt Kathleen.
0:31:09 > 0:31:12We've only got one outstanding person to find - Kathleen -
0:31:12 > 0:31:16and at the moment we can't find anything for her at all.
0:31:16 > 0:31:20However we're starting to think that maybe she's died a spinster.
0:31:20 > 0:31:22The most likely scenario is that Kathleen has gone back to Jersey.
0:31:22 > 0:31:28Jersey is quite difficult for us to research, so we'll have to get someone there to do the research.
0:31:30 > 0:31:36Although most of Edward's family hailed from Jersey, he himself was born in Salford, near Manchester.
0:31:36 > 0:31:41But he was a free spirit who never stayed in one place for long.
0:31:41 > 0:31:45Harry Colecliffe only knew Edward during the last five years of his life.
0:31:45 > 0:31:51But in that time Edward regaled him with stories of an exciting career which took him across the Atlantic
0:31:51 > 0:31:55and brought him into contact with all sorts of interesting people.
0:31:55 > 0:32:02He started off as a journalist with the Royal Navy, that would have been 1944 to '45.
0:32:06 > 0:32:11In 1946 the Canadians were sent back to Canada after the war
0:32:11 > 0:32:16and what the Navy wanted was somebody to go with the troops,
0:32:16 > 0:32:23find out a little bit about them and write it in some form of newsletter to send back.
0:32:23 > 0:32:28He had to go from ship to ship and the only way they could do it was to string a line across,
0:32:28 > 0:32:32put him in a bosun's chair and swing him across.
0:32:32 > 0:32:35He said it was terrifying, but he did it.
0:32:35 > 0:32:40After he left the navy, Edward wanted to travel around America.
0:32:40 > 0:32:45So a chance meeting with a rather unusual person seemed like the answer to his prayers.
0:32:45 > 0:32:48He was a guy called Karl Wickman.
0:32:48 > 0:32:52He was the guy who owned Greyhound Buses
0:32:52 > 0:32:56and he offered Edward a job. He gave him a wad of money to start with
0:32:56 > 0:33:02without even giving him a job, sent him down to Fort Lauderdale,
0:33:02 > 0:33:06waited down there for him to come, finally turned up
0:33:06 > 0:33:10and said, "Right, here's your job, go around all of the Greyhound stations
0:33:10 > 0:33:17"and write a little piece on that station for the newsletter." And he did that for 12 months.
0:33:17 > 0:33:21With his wanderlust satisfied, Edward then returned to Britain.
0:33:21 > 0:33:27Having enjoyed his experience of writing in the US, he decided to continue along this career path,
0:33:27 > 0:33:32and he got a job writing radio plays for the BBC.
0:33:32 > 0:33:38He did show me files that he had that were all little plays he'd written
0:33:38 > 0:33:43and apparently they were actually used on radio at that time.
0:33:43 > 0:33:47Soon after this, he landed an extremely prestigious job
0:33:47 > 0:33:51as a writer on a cutting-edge, new television series.
0:33:51 > 0:33:54# That was the week that was... #
0:33:54 > 0:34:00That Was The Week That Was was broadcast on the BBC in 1962 and 1963.
0:34:00 > 0:34:05Why in fact has Mr MacMillan, the Prime Minister, retired?
0:34:05 > 0:34:10I've done two series on the trot and my agent says he doesn't want me to be typecast.
0:34:10 > 0:34:12# That was the week that was... #
0:34:12 > 0:34:19Edward was in the company of some great comedy writers, including John Cleese, Peter Cook and Eric Sykes.
0:34:19 > 0:34:24And the show was groundbreaking in the way it poked fun at the establishment.
0:34:24 > 0:34:28We pledge ourselves to ensure that pensioners continue to share
0:34:28 > 0:34:31in the good things that a steadily expanding economy will bring.
0:34:31 > 0:34:34A million pensioners a week will have to undergo
0:34:34 > 0:34:38the means test of national assistance in order to avoid starvation.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43They're not laughing back in the office
0:34:43 > 0:34:48where the search for heirs is becoming increasingly frustrating.
0:34:48 > 0:34:51They've established that there are no heirs on the mother's side of the family,
0:34:51 > 0:34:55as Edward's only maternal uncle died without having any children.
0:34:55 > 0:35:01On the father's side, they've ruled out Edward's Aunt Evelyn, who also had no offspring.
0:35:01 > 0:35:04So it looks like it's probably a dead stem.
0:35:04 > 0:35:09So their only remaining hope of finding an heir is through Edward's Aunt Kathleen.
0:35:09 > 0:35:12If she has had children, they would be first cousins
0:35:12 > 0:35:16of Edward's and possible beneficiaries to his estate.
0:35:16 > 0:35:19But Neil has taken a huge risk on this case.
0:35:19 > 0:35:24A bankruptcy notice that he discovered rang alarm bells early on.
0:35:24 > 0:35:28But Neil believes that Edward owned his £80,000 property,
0:35:28 > 0:35:34and if its value has remained intact, there could still be money in the estate.
0:35:34 > 0:35:36Take a seat, sit down and read this.
0:35:36 > 0:35:43It's early afternoon, and the team have finally found a record for Edward's paternal aunt, Kathleen.
0:35:43 > 0:35:48This was one last stem which... we haven't been able to find a marriage for, but we think
0:35:48 > 0:35:53we've found a death for, and if that death is right, then there's probably children off that.
0:35:53 > 0:35:59But Neil has also just discovered the true value of the estate, and it's not looking good.
0:36:00 > 0:36:04We think the property is worth £80,000 and we've been informed
0:36:04 > 0:36:09that there are debts in the estate exceeding the £80,000.
0:36:09 > 0:36:12So it is probably going to be an insolvent estate.
0:36:12 > 0:36:19This was the last thing they wanted to hear, especially when they were so close to tracking down heirs.
0:36:19 > 0:36:22Neil took a gamble in pursuing this case.
0:36:22 > 0:36:26And he now has no choice but to pull the plug.
0:36:26 > 0:36:32Sometimes the feelings we get and our ideas are proved totally wrong.
0:36:32 > 0:36:34Luckarift has been one of those cases.
0:36:34 > 0:36:37We looked at it, because we thought it was going to be quite easy.
0:36:37 > 0:36:43Then we found the reference to the deceased being a director of a company.
0:36:43 > 0:36:48As inquiries have come in, sometimes values on estates can go up and up and up.
0:36:48 > 0:36:52Other times, they go down and down and lead to nothing.
0:36:52 > 0:36:57This is one of those cases, so it is a bit of a no-hoper for us.
0:36:57 > 0:37:00Luckily we found out early enough where it has not cost us too much.
0:37:02 > 0:37:05Edward Luckarift was a man who lived for the moment,
0:37:05 > 0:37:09and it's perhaps not surprising that he didn't leave any money.
0:37:09 > 0:37:13If you even went to his house, the one thing he wasn't was materialistic.
0:37:13 > 0:37:19It didn't really bother him at all that he didn't have a lot of material things.
0:37:19 > 0:37:26He spent the last years of his life looking after his beloved dog, and playing and watching cricket.
0:37:28 > 0:37:33He loved his cricket. He travelled down to Lord's, watched the cricket down there.
0:37:33 > 0:37:35Played up here in Wales.
0:37:35 > 0:37:40In his house at this moment is still his cricket gear in a cricket bag down in the cellar.
0:37:40 > 0:37:46I think, if there's anything I would remember him by, it was his contentment.
0:37:46 > 0:37:49He had his dog, he had his cricket
0:37:49 > 0:37:52and he had his memories and his writing.
0:37:52 > 0:37:55As long as he had what he had,
0:37:55 > 0:37:56that was enough.
0:37:56 > 0:37:58I think, well,
0:37:58 > 0:38:02you know, you can't beat that as a lesson in life, really.
0:38:09 > 0:38:12So, unfortunately, no heirs were found this time,
0:38:12 > 0:38:15but what a fascinating career Edward had.
0:38:16 > 0:38:19'I'm meeting writer David Nobbs who also wrote for
0:38:19 > 0:38:21'That Was The Week That Was, back in the day.'
0:38:21 > 0:38:26- Hello, David.- Hello, Lisa. - Lovely to meet you.- And you.
0:38:26 > 0:38:29Edward Luckarift worked as a writer on That Was The Week That Was.
0:38:29 > 0:38:31Was it easy to get a writing job back then?
0:38:31 > 0:38:35I don't think it's ever been easy and I don't think anyone would
0:38:35 > 0:38:38ever pretend that at any stage you just walked in and did things,
0:38:38 > 0:38:42but I suspect it might have been a bit easier then than it is now.
0:38:42 > 0:38:46Because there were programmes like That Was The Week That Was which ate up material.
0:38:46 > 0:38:48I just rang up and got something accepted, you know.
0:38:53 > 0:38:55# That was the week that was
0:38:55 > 0:38:57# Time for Tories to take stock... #
0:38:57 > 0:39:02Edward wrote over 40 letters to the BBC from the mid-1940s onwards,
0:39:02 > 0:39:06sending in all sorts of radio plays and programme ideas.
0:39:06 > 0:39:08So, what kind of ideas did he submit?
0:39:08 > 0:39:13Well, he was very ambitious. These are submissions for whole series.
0:39:13 > 0:39:16He didn't start with one-liners, like I did.
0:39:16 > 0:39:20He started with, "This is an idea for a series of variety shows
0:39:20 > 0:39:23"called Star Citizens - well-known actors, composers,
0:39:23 > 0:39:28"building a programme around them and having competitions. For crooners if it was a crooner, and so on."
0:39:28 > 0:39:31And how did he get his first big break?
0:39:31 > 0:39:35Well, he had a break on radio, certainly, when he had a radio play
0:39:35 > 0:39:39called Mrs Jarrett Comes To Stay accepted, and he did a few
0:39:39 > 0:39:41other plays, including I think one called
0:39:41 > 0:39:45Hobbs Bats on a Sticky Wicket, which is rather intriguing.
0:39:45 > 0:39:50But obviously he wanted to get into television, and as far as
0:39:50 > 0:39:53we know That Was The Week That Was was his first attempt at it.
0:39:53 > 0:39:56# That was the week that was
0:39:56 > 0:39:58# It's over, let it go... #
0:39:58 > 0:40:00So how did you get your break?
0:40:00 > 0:40:03Well I was working on a local paper, rather like Edward Luckarift,
0:40:03 > 0:40:05but I was in London.
0:40:05 > 0:40:08And I had this idea and I wrote it.
0:40:08 > 0:40:11I had nipped out of Hampstead Magistrates' Court where
0:40:11 > 0:40:18I was reporting and, um, I phoned them and they said, "Send it in."
0:40:18 > 0:40:22And I said, "I can't send it in, it's for this week. You've got to have it urgently.
0:40:22 > 0:40:24"The Post Office will never get it to you."
0:40:24 > 0:40:27So suddenly David Frost, he came on the phone and he said,
0:40:27 > 0:40:31"What's all this idea?" I told him and he went, "Oh, great. Super!"
0:40:31 > 0:40:33And he said, "Ring me tomorrow."
0:40:33 > 0:40:37So I rang him the next day and he said, "I'm going to use it."
0:40:37 > 0:40:40I was so excited I told everybody I knew, "I'm going to be on television!"
0:40:40 > 0:40:43Used one line from it - it was a three-minute sketch
0:40:43 > 0:40:44and he used one line.
0:40:44 > 0:40:47It was rubbish. But I had started.
0:40:49 > 0:40:51I hear, I hear that this country is now
0:40:51 > 0:40:54- without an effective prime minister. - Hold on, what's new about that?
0:40:54 > 0:40:57We haven't had an effective prime minster for years!
0:40:57 > 0:41:00How did the writers work on That Was The Week That Was?
0:41:00 > 0:41:04Well, we all used to do our stuff at home and send it off,
0:41:04 > 0:41:05or in our offices.
0:41:05 > 0:41:07All separately, and send it off by taxi.
0:41:07 > 0:41:11There were taxis winging their way through London to the BBC,
0:41:11 > 0:41:13always one envelope in them.
0:41:13 > 0:41:17And I used to ring Ned Sherrin every week and say I've got a couple of ideas,
0:41:17 > 0:41:18and he'd say, "Tell me them."
0:41:18 > 0:41:20I'd tell him one and he'd say, "Like it."
0:41:20 > 0:41:23I'd tell him the other one and he'd say, "Don't like it."
0:41:23 > 0:41:26I'd do them both out of sheer cussedness and we'd always do
0:41:26 > 0:41:30the one he said he didn't like and never do the one he said he did like.
0:41:30 > 0:41:32Good news for air travellers -
0:41:32 > 0:41:35more plane services than ever before and we have slashed
0:41:35 > 0:41:39prices at midnight from Glasgow to London to only two guineas.
0:41:39 > 0:41:40That's sensational!
0:41:40 > 0:41:44- Which company has permission for these two guinea flights?- BOAC.
0:41:44 > 0:41:47So I can now fly BOAC Glasgow to London for only two guineas?
0:41:47 > 0:41:50Not entirely. The route is operated by BEA.
0:41:50 > 0:41:53So BOAC aren't actually running any of these flights?
0:41:53 > 0:41:55Don't be silly - we'd lose a bloody fortune!
0:41:55 > 0:41:57- So there wasn't a big table that you all sat around?- No.
0:41:57 > 0:42:00No, that happened to me later with the Frost Report
0:42:00 > 0:42:06and I had the great privilege of sitting round with all the boys who later did Monty Python.
0:42:06 > 0:42:09- Fantastic!- Wow!- But I was a shy little boy in those days,
0:42:09 > 0:42:12I sat there in my little bedsit doing it on my own.
0:42:12 > 0:42:14So how many people wrote for it?
0:42:14 > 0:42:17Every week there would be 18, 19, 20 probably.
0:42:17 > 0:42:23A lot of very famous people. I mean, Dennis Potter started out on this.
0:42:23 > 0:42:28Waterhouse and Hall were there and Peter Shaffer, all sorts of famous people.
0:42:28 > 0:42:30- And somewhere along the line, Edward Luckarift.- Yes.
0:42:30 > 0:42:33Dear Lord Hailsham.
0:42:33 > 0:42:35I have just been reading in the papers
0:42:35 > 0:42:38where you're going to give up your title.
0:42:38 > 0:42:42I know you are a busy man, but what I'm writing to ask is,
0:42:42 > 0:42:47if you're quite sure you've finished with it, whether I can have it?
0:42:47 > 0:42:50Edward went from writing That Was The Week That Was
0:42:50 > 0:42:52to going back and writing for radio.
0:42:52 > 0:42:55Was that usual for writers to work across different genres?
0:42:55 > 0:42:59I think a lot of writers have always written for both
0:42:59 > 0:43:02and in fact the classic route is to start on radio and move forward,
0:43:02 > 0:43:04get a reputation on radio.
0:43:04 > 0:43:07Cut your teeth on radio, and then move to television.
0:43:07 > 0:43:10But sometimes, for various reasons, including necessity,
0:43:10 > 0:43:16- writers go the other way.- I think we have got an example.- We have.
0:43:16 > 0:43:19And this, actually, I mean, this is very touching for me.
0:43:19 > 0:43:22Because of all the things he's written over the years,
0:43:22 > 0:43:24this is the one thing that we have left.
0:43:24 > 0:43:27And it's a small journalistic piece for Radio North.
0:43:27 > 0:43:31Rather amusingly entitled the Whistling Willie Of Warburton.
0:43:31 > 0:43:35'Edward Luckarift's only surviving work is a feature about a poacher
0:43:35 > 0:43:41'turned gamekeeper called William Noblett who had an unusual whistle.'
0:43:41 > 0:43:44"Listen to his epitaph which is still readable on the weather-worn stone:
0:43:44 > 0:43:48"Though herein he lies a dead Whistling Willie's fame will spread
0:43:48 > 0:43:52"For his double tone, piercing drone Which chilled the marrow to the bone
0:43:52 > 0:43:58"And will be made by him no more It will surely continue by the law.
0:43:58 > 0:43:59"What does it mean?
0:43:59 > 0:44:04"One of the squire's most frequent visitors was Sir William Peel,
0:44:04 > 0:44:06"who built up our police force as we know it today,
0:44:06 > 0:44:10"right down to constables' whistles which have that double tone,
0:44:10 > 0:44:13"piercing drone mentioned in Noblett's epitaph.
0:44:13 > 0:44:16"It was on one of his visits to Warburton that he heard Willie
0:44:16 > 0:44:20"that Robert Peel got the idea of the policeman's whistle."
0:44:20 > 0:44:23It's a nice little story, a rather sweet little story
0:44:23 > 0:44:27and perhaps a nice little epitaph for Edward Luckarift's efforts.
0:44:27 > 0:44:29# That was the week that was! #
0:44:45 > 0:44:49Here are some more unsolved cases where heirs still need to be found.
0:44:49 > 0:44:54The list of unclaimed estates is operated by a government department
0:44:54 > 0:44:56- the Bona Vacantia division.
0:44:56 > 0:44:59The Bona Vacantia unclaimed list is a list of cases
0:44:59 > 0:45:02that we haven't found kin for.
0:45:02 > 0:45:03The list goes back to 1997
0:45:03 > 0:45:06because that's when our list management system came online.
0:45:06 > 0:45:10The idea is to produce a list of all those solvent cases.
0:45:10 > 0:45:13So there should be a few thousand there, possibly many thousands.
0:45:13 > 0:45:17And this is money you could be entitled to.
0:45:17 > 0:45:22Monies raised through Bona Vacantia goes to the General Exchequer
0:45:22 > 0:45:24to benefit the country as a whole.
0:45:24 > 0:45:29But it is important to note that the Crown doesn't want all estates at all costs.
0:45:29 > 0:45:34It's not how it operates. It wants kin to be found and that's what we work very hard to do.
0:45:34 > 0:45:37Let's look at some of the estates from the unclaimed list.
0:45:40 > 0:45:43Do these names mean anything to you? Are they relatives of yours?
0:45:43 > 0:45:47Frances Triplow died on the 12th of February 2009,
0:45:47 > 0:45:50in Letchworth, in Hertfordshire.
0:45:50 > 0:45:52The surname "Triplow" has its roots in Old English
0:45:52 > 0:45:55and refers to a lost place on a map.
0:45:56 > 0:46:00It is most common in Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.
0:46:01 > 0:46:04Do you share Frances's unusual surname?
0:46:04 > 0:46:05Could you be related to him?
0:46:05 > 0:46:11Lillian Jessie Gould died back on the 8th of August, 1977.
0:46:11 > 0:46:14As Lillian died over 30 years ago, it's probable
0:46:14 > 0:46:17some new assets of hers have come to light,
0:46:17 > 0:46:20meaning her estate is now on the unclaimed list.
0:46:20 > 0:46:23Was there a Lillian Gould in your family's past?
0:46:23 > 0:46:26Was she a relative of yours?
0:46:28 > 0:46:32Gladys Margaret Allum died on the 2nd of September 2008,
0:46:32 > 0:46:34in Welwyn Garden City.
0:46:34 > 0:46:36I've got Gladys's death certificate
0:46:36 > 0:46:38which contains more information about her.
0:46:38 > 0:46:41It shows that she was married to Geoffrey Allum.
0:46:41 > 0:46:43Did you know Geoffrey and Gladys?
0:46:43 > 0:46:47Did you know anything about Gladys's relatives?
0:46:47 > 0:46:51The death certificate also reveals that Gladys was formerly known
0:46:51 > 0:46:53as Gladys Margaret Brimley.
0:46:53 > 0:46:56Did you know her under this name? Was she a relative of yours?
0:46:56 > 0:46:59If you think you're related to any of the names today,
0:46:59 > 0:47:04you need to prove your link to the deceased in order to claim their estate.
0:47:04 > 0:47:07If someone thinks that they are entitled to an estate that
0:47:07 > 0:47:11we're dealing with, then they need to contact us.
0:47:11 > 0:47:15They can do that direct or via an agent, it's up to them.
0:47:15 > 0:47:19And we need to have a simple family tree showing how they think
0:47:19 > 0:47:23they are related to the deceased person. Nothing complicated.
0:47:23 > 0:47:26Just something straightforward and simple.
0:47:26 > 0:47:28And then we will be able to make sure that we're
0:47:28 > 0:47:30talking about the same family.
0:47:30 > 0:47:34And then we'll ask them to provide certificates of birth, death,
0:47:34 > 0:47:36marriage, and also documents of identity
0:47:36 > 0:47:39to prove that they are who they say they are.
0:47:39 > 0:47:41And then we can look at the claim.
0:47:41 > 0:47:44A reminder of those names again -
0:47:44 > 0:47:48Frances Triplow, Lillian Gould and Gladys Allum.
0:47:51 > 0:47:53If today's names are relatives of yours,
0:47:53 > 0:47:55you could have a windfall coming your way.
0:47:59 > 0:48:04Finally today, let's return to the search for heirs
0:48:04 > 0:48:08to the estate of Diana Paine, who died aged 91 without leaving a will.
0:48:08 > 0:48:13In April 2010, the heir hunters were investigating Diana's case.
0:48:13 > 0:48:18She died near Tunbridge Wells, leaving an estate worth £20,000.
0:48:18 > 0:48:21Heir hunter Dave Slee had established that she had
0:48:21 > 0:48:26no children, and no surviving siblings or nieces and nephews.
0:48:26 > 0:48:33So the search was on for aunts, uncles and cousins, who could be heirs to Diana's estate.
0:48:33 > 0:48:38On the father's side, the team had an easy name to work with, Vaughan-Fowler.
0:48:38 > 0:48:41There weren't many hyphenated Vaughan-Fowlers in the UK,
0:48:41 > 0:48:45so Dave was quickly able to pinpoint the family.
0:48:45 > 0:48:51I found her father's birth and I was able to establish that he had two siblings, he had two siblings,
0:48:51 > 0:48:56one died a bachelor and one was married and had descendants,
0:48:56 > 0:49:00so eventually we were able to locate eight paternal beneficiaries
0:49:00 > 0:49:02who would be entitled in the estate.
0:49:02 > 0:49:06So far, research had been exceptionally speedy.
0:49:06 > 0:49:12Dave would now write to these beneficiaries to determine their exact entitlement to Diana's estate.
0:49:12 > 0:49:15But the search wasn't over yet.
0:49:15 > 0:49:17In fact, the hard graft was only just beginning.
0:49:17 > 0:49:22Dave now had to turn his attention to the mother's side of the family.
0:49:22 > 0:49:27The maternal family... I knew it would be a lot harder because the surname was Potter.
0:49:27 > 0:49:32There are thousands of people with the surname Potter in Britain, so Dave had his work cut out.
0:49:32 > 0:49:38But after hours of painstaking research, he was finally able to find a record for Diana's mother.
0:49:38 > 0:49:45I located the birth of the deceased mother, Mabel Potter, in Brighton, and she was the daughter
0:49:45 > 0:49:51of the unusually named Harding Potter, and her mother was Maria, formerly Bryant.
0:49:51 > 0:49:56The next stage was to see if Diana's mother had any siblings.
0:49:56 > 0:50:04Reviewing the census returns, we were able to establish that Harding Potter and Maria Bryant
0:50:04 > 0:50:06had six children including the deceased's mother.
0:50:06 > 0:50:14Diana's maternal grandparents, Harding Potter and Maria Bryant, married in 1862 in London.
0:50:14 > 0:50:18They had six children - Ada, Elizabeth, Kate, Florence,
0:50:18 > 0:50:21Ethel and Mabel, Diana's mother.
0:50:21 > 0:50:24If any of Diana's five aunts had children,
0:50:24 > 0:50:26they would be first cousins of Diana's.
0:50:26 > 0:50:31And if any of them were still alive, they could be heirs to her estate.
0:50:31 > 0:50:34The pressure was now on Dave to track them down.
0:50:35 > 0:50:41When the Second World War ended, Diana settled into married life with her husband, Harry.
0:50:41 > 0:50:46But the pioneering spirit she'd shown in her work for the National Fire Service hadn't diminished.
0:50:46 > 0:50:51At a time when most women were content to be stay-at-home wives and mothers,
0:50:51 > 0:50:56Diana took her first step towards becoming a successful business woman.
0:50:56 > 0:51:00She decided that she was going to take over the reins
0:51:00 > 0:51:02and she bought this shop in Battle.
0:51:02 > 0:51:06The shop was a women's clothing boutique,
0:51:06 > 0:51:09and Diana threw herself into the running of the place with gusto.
0:51:09 > 0:51:13She proceeded to smarten the place up
0:51:13 > 0:51:15and bring it up to date.
0:51:15 > 0:51:19For 25 years, she ran this shop in Battle.
0:51:19 > 0:51:23She went on to open two more branches in nearby towns
0:51:23 > 0:51:27and she even ran fashion shows two or three times a year.
0:51:27 > 0:51:32She got all her own staff and one or two other ladies
0:51:32 > 0:51:35to make a fashion show and she did very well.
0:51:35 > 0:51:41The show was run for one reason only and that was for the Guide Dogs for the Blind.
0:51:41 > 0:51:47Diana was tireless in her work for charity, and her clothing business became a great success.
0:51:47 > 0:51:51But she was also still caring for her husband, Harry.
0:51:51 > 0:51:57He had been injured during the war, and his condition deteriorated as time went on.
0:51:57 > 0:52:02When her husband started to get really ill, she gave up the shops,
0:52:02 > 0:52:10and they came to live at Speldhurst and they lived in Speldhurst for quite a few years,
0:52:10 > 0:52:13until her husband died.
0:52:13 > 0:52:20Diana had looked after Harry for nearly 40 years, and when he died, she was all alone.
0:52:20 > 0:52:24She never spoke of her family and believed she had none.
0:52:24 > 0:52:26But as Dave Slee was about to discover,
0:52:26 > 0:52:32she did actually have a whole set of relatives not a million miles away.
0:52:32 > 0:52:37Dave had established that Diana's mother had five sisters
0:52:37 > 0:52:40and he was trying to find out whether they'd had children.
0:52:40 > 0:52:44He was able to discount two of the sisters straightaway.
0:52:44 > 0:52:50Two maternal aunts, Ada and Elizabeth... we established both died as minors.
0:52:50 > 0:52:55But Kate, Florence and Ethel had all married and had children.
0:52:55 > 0:53:00If these children were still alive, they would be first cousins of Diana's and heirs to her estate.
0:53:00 > 0:53:04However, it soon became apparent that most of these cousins were born
0:53:04 > 0:53:08around the turn of the century and had already passed away.
0:53:08 > 0:53:09All except one.
0:53:09 > 0:53:14The first maternal where we were able to locate
0:53:14 > 0:53:18was a son of Ethel Potter.
0:53:18 > 0:53:25She married a Mr Pearson, and her son, Bernard, was in fact the only first cousin
0:53:25 > 0:53:27who survived the deceased.
0:53:29 > 0:53:34Dave wrote to Bernard, who signed an agreement with the company.
0:53:34 > 0:53:38Finally, the team had their first maternal heir.
0:53:38 > 0:53:40OK, let's recap.
0:53:40 > 0:53:44Having established that Diana's other cousins were no longer alive,
0:53:44 > 0:53:48Dave's next task was to look for their descendants.
0:53:48 > 0:53:53Diana's Aunt Kate had had three children - Mabel, Kate and Gladys.
0:53:53 > 0:53:56I knew that the deceased's cousin Mabel, who was born in 1898,
0:53:56 > 0:54:02was likely to be deceased, so I firstly looked for her marriage,
0:54:02 > 0:54:07and she married a Walter Wyatt, and then I undertook the search to see if she had any children.
0:54:07 > 0:54:13Mabel's marriage to Mr Wyatt... we established that there were three children born to that marriage -
0:54:13 > 0:54:16two females and one male.
0:54:16 > 0:54:21Dave discovered that the son had passed away, so he wrote to the two daughters.
0:54:21 > 0:54:26I informed them that they would be entitled in the estate, and they informed me
0:54:26 > 0:54:28that their brother married and he had children,
0:54:28 > 0:54:31who are cousins twice removed to the deceased.
0:54:31 > 0:54:37Diana's cousin Mabel had three children - two daughters and a son, Walter.
0:54:37 > 0:54:43Walter had passed away in 2003, but Dave discovered that he had four children.
0:54:43 > 0:54:46He managed to find an address for the daughter, Elizabeth,
0:54:46 > 0:54:47and he wrote to her.
0:54:47 > 0:54:51His letter came as a big surprise.
0:54:51 > 0:54:55When I first got the letter from Frasers, I think it was back in May,
0:54:55 > 0:54:57I was quite surprised.
0:54:57 > 0:55:00It just mentions that you may be the heir to someone who's died,
0:55:00 > 0:55:04and you have no idea who it might be.
0:55:04 > 0:55:10But Liz and her brothers were curious to find out more, so they wrote back to the company.
0:55:10 > 0:55:16You're asked for lots of details about other family members - names, addresses, dates of birth.
0:55:16 > 0:55:19I think it was as a result of sending that in,
0:55:19 > 0:55:25I got a letter back saying... regards the estate of Diana Ferelyth Paine.
0:55:25 > 0:55:28Liz had never heard of Diana.
0:55:28 > 0:55:33She was the cousin of Liz's grandmother, so two generations removed from Liz herself.
0:55:33 > 0:55:37But she was fascinated to hear about this distant relative.
0:55:37 > 0:55:43The impression I am getting is she was quite a strong woman, which I find interesting and encouraging.
0:55:43 > 0:55:50I have heard that she was a driver for the fire brigade or something like that during the war.
0:55:50 > 0:55:53I've heard she had businesses.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56It is fascinating to find out little bits about Diana.
0:55:56 > 0:55:59Someone that happens to be related to you but you've never met.
0:55:59 > 0:56:04Liz and her brothers signed with the company, who, in return for an agreed percentage,
0:56:04 > 0:56:08would help them claim their share of Diana's estate.
0:56:08 > 0:56:13Receiving money from someone she didn't know was a strange experience for Liz.
0:56:13 > 0:56:16One of my daughters did mention this is a bit weird, you know -
0:56:16 > 0:56:20why should you get money from someone you've never known in their lifetime?
0:56:20 > 0:56:23And I suppose that does seem very strange, in a way.
0:56:23 > 0:56:28But the opportunity to find out more about her family was priceless.
0:56:28 > 0:56:32I've been thinking a lot about why I haven't heard about Diana.
0:56:32 > 0:56:37I can't remember ever asking my dad, which I'm regretting now and thinking
0:56:37 > 0:56:40maybe he never shared it, maybe he never knew it.
0:56:40 > 0:56:43I think the whole experience has been fascinating,
0:56:43 > 0:56:47and it is very interesting to find out more and more about your family.
0:56:47 > 0:56:54The team had invested many hours in this case and they had finally tracked down all the heirs.
0:56:54 > 0:56:58On the maternal family, I was able to establish
0:56:58 > 0:57:02that there was one cousin, unfortunately now deceased, entitled,
0:57:02 > 0:57:07and there are nine other cousins once removed or twice removed.
0:57:07 > 0:57:14So our research has now concluded that there are 18 heirs entitled to share in Diana's estate.
0:57:14 > 0:57:19The final value of the estate was confirmed to be £20,000.
0:57:19 > 0:57:22This would be shared between ten heirs on the mother's side
0:57:22 > 0:57:25of the family and eight heirs on the father's side.
0:57:25 > 0:57:29From our point of view, the research went very well.
0:57:29 > 0:57:36It was nice to be able to find the heirs quickly for the solicitor's point of view.
0:57:36 > 0:57:39A nice tidy estate for us to research.
0:57:39 > 0:57:46Although she never got to know her extended family, Diana wasn't lonely in later life.
0:57:46 > 0:57:50She was lucky enough to find love third time around with Ernest.
0:57:50 > 0:57:55And they travelled the country together, providing friendship and companionship for one another.
0:57:55 > 0:58:01I was only looking for somebody who may have had the same outlook in life and looking
0:58:01 > 0:58:06forward to a little bit of enjoyment in the last years of our lives.
0:58:06 > 0:58:12I wasn't expecting to hit the nail on the head first time round.
0:58:12 > 0:58:16But I was very lucky in finding Diana.
0:58:16 > 0:58:20It was just we enjoyed being with each other all the time
0:58:20 > 0:58:26and we didn't have to think about, what about a round-the-world cruise? That didn't come into it at all.
0:58:26 > 0:58:30We didn't have to have very expensive things to enjoy life together.
0:58:36 > 0:58:43If you would like advice about building your family tree or making a will, go to bbc.co.uk.
0:58:52 > 0:58:55Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:55 > 0:58:58E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk