0:00:02 > 0:00:07Heir Hunters earn their money tracing relatives of people who've died without leaving a will.
0:00:07 > 0:00:12They hand over thousands of pounds to family members who had no idea they would inherit.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14Could they be knocking at your door?
0:00:31 > 0:00:34- On today's show... - Is this all of them, yeah?
0:00:34 > 0:00:39..the heir hunters have a surprise in store for two long-lost nieces.
0:00:39 > 0:00:43I was very shocked to find out that I was going to be one of the heirs
0:00:43 > 0:00:46because things like that don't happen to people like us.
0:00:46 > 0:00:48And has the team struck gold
0:00:48 > 0:00:51in the case of a family of Russian aristocrats?
0:00:51 > 0:00:56We could be dealing with an estate worth tens of thousands of pounds,
0:00:56 > 0:00:58possibly even millions of pounds.
0:00:58 > 0:01:01Plus, how you could be entitled to unclaimed estates,
0:01:01 > 0:01:03where beneficiaries still need to be found.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06Could you be in line for an unexpected windfall?
0:01:12 > 0:01:18Every year in the UK, an estimated 300,000 people die without leaving a will.
0:01:18 > 0:01:19If no relatives are found,
0:01:19 > 0:01:23then any money that's left behind will go to the Government.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28And last year they made £12 million from unclaimed estates.
0:01:31 > 0:01:35But there are over 30 specialist firms competing to stop this happening.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38They're called heir hunters, and they make it their business
0:01:38 > 0:01:43to track down missing relatives and help them claim their rightful inheritance.
0:01:43 > 0:01:45That's what I enjoy most about it.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48The personal satisfaction that I've cracked the case,
0:01:48 > 0:01:53and I know that it's maybe been unsolved for 15 or 20 years.
0:02:02 > 0:02:04It's 7am on a Thursday.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09At midnight last night
0:02:09 > 0:02:13the Treasury released their weekly list of unclaimed estates.
0:02:13 > 0:02:14And in central London,
0:02:14 > 0:02:17the list is being carefully scrutinised
0:02:17 > 0:02:21by staff at the country's largest heir hunting firm, Fraser and Fraser.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24All we know about him is that he's dead.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27I haven't been able to find his address.
0:02:28 > 0:02:32Partner Neil Fraser has already spotted a potential case.
0:02:32 > 0:02:36We're going to look at a case of Robert William Thomas.
0:02:36 > 0:02:39He's from Orpington in Kent.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43Death is not too long ago, January of 2010.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45So fingers crossed, it's quite recent,
0:02:45 > 0:02:49and there's a possibility there's going to be a property on that.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52At the moment, I haven't got any idea of the value.
0:02:52 > 0:02:57The Treasury's list is a major source of work for heir hunters.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01It shows the names of people who've died without leaving a will,
0:03:01 > 0:03:04and also lists their date and place of death.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07But it doesn't show how much money they've left behind,
0:03:07 > 0:03:11and amounts can range from £5,000 to many millions of pounds.
0:03:11 > 0:03:13Thanks, bye.
0:03:13 > 0:03:15When the values are unknown like this,
0:03:15 > 0:03:19the heir hunters usually work for a pre-agreed percentage of the estate.
0:03:19 > 0:03:23And this makes their job a real gamble.
0:03:25 > 0:03:29For us to receive a workable budget, a workable amount of money,
0:03:29 > 0:03:32we have to have a reasonable-sized pot to start with.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35The first thing the heir hunters want to find out
0:03:35 > 0:03:38is whether Robert William Thomas owned his own home.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40But they've already hit a problem.
0:03:40 > 0:03:45Robert William Thomas is a popular name, and he could have been born anywhere.
0:03:45 > 0:03:49All we know is he dies in 2010 in Orpington, so got to start there.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52The team will have their work cut out.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56Thomas is the ninth most common surname in Britain.
0:03:57 > 0:04:01Robert Thomas grew up in the 1920s.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04After serving in the Second World War,
0:04:04 > 0:04:08he returned home to marry his sweetheart Winifred.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12The couple didn't have any children,
0:04:12 > 0:04:14and according to neighbour Lily Young,
0:04:14 > 0:04:19Robert was passionate about two things in life, his wife and his car.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21His car was always immaculate.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25He'd come down with his bowl and go out there with his chammy leather.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28If he was going to take Winnie out,
0:04:28 > 0:04:31he made sure it was all polished before he took her.
0:04:31 > 0:04:36I think that was all part of how he felt about Winnie
0:04:36 > 0:04:38cos he always spoke about her.
0:04:38 > 0:04:42Robert was a caring and dedicated husband,
0:04:42 > 0:04:45and in later life, he also became a keen gardener.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49His garden was immaculate. He used to grow all his own vegetables.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52He used to love to be able to say to Winnie,
0:04:52 > 0:04:56"What do you want for vegetables today?" And run down and get them.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00You wouldn't find a weed down there. Now you can't find his shed in the corner.
0:05:02 > 0:05:06I think he was quite lost without her after she...
0:05:06 > 0:05:11I think this happens in lots of cases where people have to do a lot for a person.
0:05:11 > 0:05:15When that person dies, they are really lost.
0:05:15 > 0:05:17They don't know what to do with theirself.
0:05:17 > 0:05:21Sadly, Winifred died in 1994, leaving Bob a widower
0:05:21 > 0:05:25until his own death 16 years later at the age of 88.
0:05:28 > 0:05:33In the office, the race is on to try and find beneficiaries to Robert Thomas's estate,
0:05:33 > 0:05:37and with rival firms competing to be the first to find and sign up heirs,
0:05:37 > 0:05:39the team must work fast.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42I'm hoping to find addresses,
0:05:42 > 0:05:45and from the addresses, trying to work out a value.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49The team is trying to find out if Robert owned his own home, and it's not looking good.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53His address belongs to a housing association,
0:05:53 > 0:05:57which suggests the estate may be low in value.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00Normally a case like this would go on the back burner,
0:06:00 > 0:06:06but today is quiet, so manager David Pacifico decides to take it one step further.
0:06:06 > 0:06:08I've got Bob Smith doing an enquiry.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11I'm hoping that enquiry will come up with
0:06:11 > 0:06:14some more definite information to help us,
0:06:14 > 0:06:17because we're dealing with very common names here.
0:06:23 > 0:06:27The company employs a network of regional heir hunters
0:06:27 > 0:06:30who are on standby from 7am every morning.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34Covering all corners of the country,
0:06:34 > 0:06:38they're ready to go wherever the search takes them.
0:06:38 > 0:06:43Whether they're speaking to neighbours or picking up certificates from register offices,
0:06:43 > 0:06:46they leave no stone unturned in the race to find and sign up heirs.
0:06:53 > 0:06:57Ex-Customs official Bob Smith enjoys life at the sharp end.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01Phone calls may glean some information,
0:07:01 > 0:07:05but it's always better for someone to be on the doorstep.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07It's a bit like a detective,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10knocking on doors, asking questions about people
0:07:10 > 0:07:14and their lifestyle, their family, information, that sort of thing.
0:07:14 > 0:07:16You know, it's just something different.
0:07:16 > 0:07:20And Bob's experience has given him a hunch about the deceased.
0:07:20 > 0:07:25I wouldn't mind betting that he probably originally came from Wales.
0:07:25 > 0:07:29Surname Thomas. Just a guess.
0:07:29 > 0:07:34If Robert is Welsh, the team will have a real headache.
0:07:34 > 0:07:39In Wales, nearly six per cent of the population has the surname Thomas.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42But Bob's first concern is to speak to Robert's neighbours.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44Did you know him as Bob?
0:07:44 > 0:07:47- Oh yeah, they used to just call him Old Bob.- Right.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50As Robert didn't own his own house,
0:07:50 > 0:07:53Bob Smith is looking for any other signs of wealth,
0:07:53 > 0:07:56and one of the neighbours is particularly helpful.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59- Right. But he didn't own this property?- No, he rented it.
0:07:59 > 0:08:05- I know he had two, er, company pensions that he...- Right.
0:08:07 > 0:08:11He phones back to the office with this new information.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14Well, they said he was quite old,
0:08:14 > 0:08:17and obviously he's drawing a pension.
0:08:17 > 0:08:22Yeah. So basically, he could have been living a comfortable lifestyle.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25Well, he's got two pensions and a state pension
0:08:25 > 0:08:27and he's just bought an £800 plasma TV.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30Well, it's certainly worthwhile...
0:08:30 > 0:08:32I don't think it's going to be a big estate,
0:08:32 > 0:08:36but it might be one of those 20, 30, 40 grand, maybe you know.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39Yeah. The question is, where was he from?
0:08:39 > 0:08:42We've got a potential birth in Shoreditch.
0:08:42 > 0:08:45We'll have to get the death day. That's the thing, isn't it?
0:08:47 > 0:08:51Bob's estimate of £20,000 to £40,000 is good news for the team.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53It means this case is worth working.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56If the person lived in rented accommodation,
0:08:56 > 0:08:59it doesn't mean to say he had nothing in the bank.
0:08:59 > 0:09:03Looks like he may have had a spare few bob or so there.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05Now it's all systems go in the office,
0:09:05 > 0:09:08as the team begins the search for relatives.
0:09:08 > 0:09:12Robert Thomas's neighbour told them he hadn't had any children,
0:09:12 > 0:09:15so the team must look to his wider family tree.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18Although Thomas is a difficult name to research,
0:09:18 > 0:09:23David decides he's willing to take a chance on the possible birth he's found in Shoreditch in 1921.
0:09:25 > 0:09:27And if this is the correct Robert Thomas,
0:09:27 > 0:09:29they have already found a brother.
0:09:29 > 0:09:34- Henry Charles Thomas. - That's your brother, yeah? - Still alive in Gillingham.
0:09:34 > 0:09:39This would be a significant breakthrough. Have they found the first heir?
0:09:39 > 0:09:43Noel, in searching, identifying the deceased's birth,
0:09:43 > 0:09:46found what could be a brother,
0:09:46 > 0:09:48which has the same mother's maiden name
0:09:48 > 0:09:51and born in the same district.
0:09:51 > 0:09:56Born as Thomas, mother's maiden name Dyer, born Shoreditch.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58So it looked like two brothers.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01And if that is the case,
0:10:01 > 0:10:04we think that this brother may still be alive
0:10:04 > 0:10:10and he found a probable address for him by virtue of the electoral rolls
0:10:10 > 0:10:12in Gillingham in Kent.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15The heir hunters are working on the idea
0:10:15 > 0:10:18that Bob and Henry Thomas are brothers
0:10:18 > 0:10:20because they were both born in Shoreditch,
0:10:20 > 0:10:23and have a mother with the maiden name Dyer.
0:10:23 > 0:10:24It looks promising,
0:10:24 > 0:10:28but so far they have no proof that this is the right Robert Thomas,
0:10:28 > 0:10:30let alone that he had a brother Henry.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35To confirm their research, they need Robert's death certificate,
0:10:35 > 0:10:38which will show his date and place of birth.
0:10:38 > 0:10:40So Bob is sent to Bromley Register Office.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42If they've got it right,
0:10:42 > 0:10:45this case could be sewn up before midday.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48I'd like a copy of a death certificate if I may.
0:10:48 > 0:10:52Straight away, Bob can see that one of his early fears was unfounded.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55Robert Thomas wasn't Welsh after all.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57Oh, he was born in London.
0:10:57 > 0:10:59It doesn't say where.
0:10:59 > 0:11:03- Oh, well. Thank you very much. - OK, thank you. Bye-bye.- Take care.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06Bob needs to pass the rest of the information on to the office.
0:11:06 > 0:11:08Hello?
0:11:08 > 0:11:10- David, hi, it's Bob.- Hello, Bob.- Hi.
0:11:10 > 0:11:12- I've got this death now.- Yeah?
0:11:12 > 0:11:15- Died 16th January 2010.- Yeah?
0:11:15 > 0:11:18Born 4th March 1921.
0:11:18 > 0:11:19London.
0:11:19 > 0:11:21London, right.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25Even though the death certificate doesn't specify where in London Robert was born,
0:11:25 > 0:11:28it's still great news for the office.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32It looks like the birth and the brother are right.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35The brother might be at this address in Gillingham.
0:11:35 > 0:11:37OK, all right, no, I'll go and do that now.
0:11:39 > 0:11:41If Henry Thomas is the brother of Robert Thomas,
0:11:41 > 0:11:46he could be the sole heir to an estate worth £20,000 to £40,000.
0:11:46 > 0:11:50It's likely that rival firms will also be looking at this case,
0:11:50 > 0:11:54so Bob must get to Gillingham as quickly as he can.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57It'll be interesting just to speak with him and, er...
0:11:58 > 0:12:03Cos he obviously is almost certainly unaware that his brother has died.
0:12:03 > 0:12:07And if the information from the neighbours is anything to go by,
0:12:07 > 0:12:09he never kept in contact with him either,
0:12:09 > 0:12:13so it'll be interesting to find out the circumstances
0:12:13 > 0:12:15as to why that is.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21Back at the office, there's been another breakthrough.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24The team has found Robert Thomas's birth certificate,
0:12:24 > 0:12:28which confirms his parents are Robert William Thomas and Rose May Dyer.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31The possible brother we thought we may have an address for,
0:12:31 > 0:12:33we've now proved it correct.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35It was a Henry Charles Thomas,
0:12:35 > 0:12:39so it looks like he's still alive, living in Gillingham in Kent,
0:12:39 > 0:12:41where Bob Smith is on his way to see him.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44From this, they've established that as well as Henry,
0:12:44 > 0:12:47Robert seems to have had a second brother.
0:12:47 > 0:12:51We'd identified one brother, Henry Charles Thomas born in 1930,
0:12:51 > 0:12:55but having gone back and checked on a different computer system,
0:12:55 > 0:12:58we found an extra brother, Albert G Thomas,
0:12:58 > 0:13:00who was born 1924 in Shoreditch.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03So very close in area and in age to the deceased,
0:13:03 > 0:13:06so the combination of names is right as well.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08On top of that,
0:13:08 > 0:13:12we've now discovered that he died in Lewisham in November 2005,
0:13:12 > 0:13:16which is the sort of area where his brother Henry Charles was too,
0:13:16 > 0:13:18so it's all looking quite good.
0:13:18 > 0:13:20But if it's been this easy
0:13:20 > 0:13:23for them to crack a potentially difficult Thomas case,
0:13:23 > 0:13:27it could have been easy for other heir hunting companies too.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29They need to stay ahead of the competition.
0:13:29 > 0:13:33So before Bob Smith reaches the house of Robert's brother Henry,
0:13:33 > 0:13:35David gives him the latest information.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37PHONE RINGING
0:13:37 > 0:13:38Bob Smith?
0:13:38 > 0:13:42- Hi, Bob, just to let you know, it's going to be right.- OK.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44Um, the other thing is,
0:13:44 > 0:13:46there's another brother, looks like, who died.
0:13:46 > 0:13:51- And he may have children. Died in Lewisham, 2005. Albert George.- Yeah.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54Might have at least four children. Maybe more, maybe less.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56OK.
0:13:56 > 0:13:57All right, thanks, Dave.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00The team now knows that Bob Thomas,
0:14:00 > 0:14:03son of Robert Thomas and Rose May Dyer
0:14:03 > 0:14:05had two brothers,
0:14:05 > 0:14:09Henry Thomas, who's alive, and Albert, who's deceased.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11Albert may have left four children,
0:14:11 > 0:14:14which would give them five possible heirs.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16But when Bob gets to Henry's house...
0:14:16 > 0:14:18Does Mr Thomas live here?
0:14:18 > 0:14:20..it's bad news.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23- Henry went on holiday this morning. - Blimey.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25Granddaughter Jenny is looking after the house.
0:14:25 > 0:14:29Does she know about the other brother Albert and his children?
0:14:29 > 0:14:31- They obviously didn't keep in contact.- No.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34- Were they were separated when they were younger?- Yeah.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37What was the situation with that, then?
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Well, um, Granddad was taken to Somerset.
0:14:40 > 0:14:41Right.
0:14:41 > 0:14:46And then, Albert and Bobby, as they know him,
0:14:46 > 0:14:48was taken... they was in the army.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51- Right, OK. - But they didn't stay in contact.
0:14:51 > 0:14:53I don't think. I know...
0:14:53 > 0:14:55PHONE RINGING
0:14:55 > 0:14:58Jenny helps Bob by getting her mum on the phone.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01Do you know anything about Albert's children?
0:15:01 > 0:15:03- Lynda.- Yeah.
0:15:03 > 0:15:05- Lynda's married.- Oh, she is? - To Martin.
0:15:05 > 0:15:08- To Martin. Do you know his surname? - Do we know his surname?
0:15:08 > 0:15:12- No, she doesn't know his surname. - OK, that's all right.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14Any of the others?
0:15:14 > 0:15:16What about any of the others? What about Iris?
0:15:17 > 0:15:20- She's not married. - Thank you very much for that.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24Really appreciate that. Sorry to call you out of the blue.
0:15:24 > 0:15:28That's very helpful. Obviously, I'm sorry to say that Bobby's died,
0:15:28 > 0:15:33um, but as a result, your granddad and Albert's kids will benefit now.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36I don't think it's going to be a great deal of money. All right?
0:15:36 > 0:15:39- I'll leave my card with you. - Right, thank you.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41- Thanks very much, anyway. - Bye.- Cheers.
0:15:43 > 0:15:45It's a frustrating setback for the team,
0:15:45 > 0:15:50who are under pressure to sign up an heir before the competition.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52He flew out to Turkey today.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55- Hah!- He's got a home in Turkey.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58He was delayed because of the volcano.
0:15:58 > 0:16:01Right, shame it wasn't tomorrow, isn't it?
0:16:02 > 0:16:06All they can do is courier a letter out to Henry in Turkey,
0:16:06 > 0:16:12and hope they can find other heirs to Robert's £20,000 to £40,000 estate.
0:16:12 > 0:16:14- You're the daughter of Albert, is that right?- Yeah.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24In 2009, the heir hunters looked into
0:16:24 > 0:16:27the estate of a quiet lady from Buckinghamshire,
0:16:27 > 0:16:28who seemed to have led
0:16:28 > 0:16:30a fairly unassuming life.
0:16:30 > 0:16:31But little did they know
0:16:31 > 0:16:33they were about to uncover
0:16:33 > 0:16:35a tale of incredible wealth,
0:16:35 > 0:16:36world travel,
0:16:36 > 0:16:38and international espionage.
0:16:39 > 0:16:44Alexandra Koshevnikova died in June 2008 in Beaconsfield.
0:16:44 > 0:16:47She'd lived to an incredible 100 years old
0:16:47 > 0:16:50and was fondly remembered by friends like Hazel Francis.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54Alex was kind, loving and very friendly,
0:16:54 > 0:16:56and everybody adored her.
0:16:57 > 0:17:02Sometimes she used to skip along the balcony, "Hello", waving,
0:17:02 > 0:17:03and that was it, you know.
0:17:03 > 0:17:05But she always said hello to you.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08Alexandra was a keen poet
0:17:08 > 0:17:10and an accomplished pianist,
0:17:10 > 0:17:12but she was also a very modest lady,
0:17:12 > 0:17:14and for the most part,
0:17:14 > 0:17:15kept herself to herself.
0:17:15 > 0:17:20Janet Smith was Alexandra's neighbour for 44 years.
0:17:21 > 0:17:23Alexandra lived immediately above us.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26Um, it was just a three-bedroom maisonette.
0:17:27 > 0:17:29When Sandra was playing the grand piano,
0:17:29 > 0:17:33we would turn the television off, just to sit and listen,
0:17:33 > 0:17:37because it was so beautiful and it used to come down through the floor.
0:17:37 > 0:17:38And we did enjoy that.
0:17:38 > 0:17:42Because Alexandra Koshevnikova died without leaving a will,
0:17:42 > 0:17:45her estate was advertised by the Treasury in 2008.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54Her unusual surname caught the attention of Neil Fraser,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57partner at heir hunting firm Fraser and Fraser.
0:17:57 > 0:18:03On this particular case, we started looking around the surname,
0:18:03 > 0:18:04trying to play with the surname
0:18:04 > 0:18:09to see if there were other people in the UK records, with the same surname.
0:18:09 > 0:18:11A rare name like Koshevnikova
0:18:11 > 0:18:14could make the search for relatives quite easy.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16And initially, they made quick progress.
0:18:16 > 0:18:21We were able to identify not only the mother, but also her brother.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24Um, so that's two hits, really.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27It certainly helps form a family tree.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29It's two steps in the right direction, at least.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32Alexandra's mother Susanna
0:18:32 > 0:18:33and her brother Vladimir
0:18:33 > 0:18:35had both died in the UK,
0:18:35 > 0:18:38but they were unable to find any other relatives in the country.
0:18:38 > 0:18:43The only other information they had was that the family came from Russia.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46One of the things which we have to do
0:18:46 > 0:18:48is try and locate a place of birth.
0:18:48 > 0:18:52The majority of the time, when we have someone who's born overseas,
0:18:52 > 0:18:56the death certificate just gives the country of birth, not the place.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59Without knowing the exact place of birth in Russia,
0:18:59 > 0:19:03the teams had no real way of finding any family.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09Neil had no choice but to call a halt to the research.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12But then, something remarkable happened.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15Although we'd stopped research on this case,
0:19:15 > 0:19:19our feelers had already gone out to try and find a place of birth,
0:19:19 > 0:19:21and we've had letters back from America,
0:19:21 > 0:19:25which have indicated some more information about Alexandra.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29Neil had ordered the family's naturalisation papers,
0:19:29 > 0:19:32which detailed their journey from Russia to the UK.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36Unlike a usual naturalisation which we'd find,
0:19:36 > 0:19:40which may be two, three, four pages long,
0:19:40 > 0:19:45this one had 50 or 60 pages in, and a very, very detailed history
0:19:45 > 0:19:49about the life which the family had had in Russia,
0:19:49 > 0:19:53and their journey throughout the world before they came to the UK.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57But a significant piece of information in the records
0:19:58 > 0:20:02was that in 1921, Alexandra, Vladimir and their mother
0:20:02 > 0:20:04had spent several months
0:20:04 > 0:20:07living at one of the world's most expensive hotels,
0:20:07 > 0:20:09the Waldorf Astoria in New York.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13An immigrant family living in, not just a hotel,
0:20:13 > 0:20:15but the Waldorf Astoria,
0:20:15 > 0:20:19um, you suddenly think, they must be very, very rich indeed.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22Now the case looked very exciting.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25It suddenly makes us see that
0:20:25 > 0:20:28maybe we're not dealing with a small estate,
0:20:28 > 0:20:29but we could be dealing with
0:20:29 > 0:20:32an estate worth tens of thousands of pounds,
0:20:32 > 0:20:34possibly even millions of pounds.
0:20:35 > 0:20:37And there was more good news.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41A university in America had sent Neil letters and poetry
0:20:41 > 0:20:43written by Alexandra.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46When we eventually got sight of her letters,
0:20:46 > 0:20:48they came back, and they were all in Russian,
0:20:48 > 0:20:51for a start, which is slightly problematic
0:20:51 > 0:20:53because I don't speak Russian.
0:20:53 > 0:20:55Having had them translated,
0:20:55 > 0:20:59the team noticed that Alexandra sometimes used the alias Tulunova,
0:20:59 > 0:21:01meaning Lady from Tulun.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05This Tulun is the place where she's actually born originally.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08So having searched for quite a while,
0:21:08 > 0:21:11trying to find the place of birth,
0:21:11 > 0:21:14all the time it was staring me straight in the face, really.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17Her alias gave me her place of birth.
0:21:17 > 0:21:18Bit by bit,
0:21:18 > 0:21:21they were starting to build a picture
0:21:21 > 0:21:23of Alexandra's life in Russia.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26She had been born into a wealthy mining family
0:21:26 > 0:21:29in the Central Russian town of Tulun in 1907.
0:21:29 > 0:21:33At a time when most Russians were living in poverty,
0:21:33 > 0:21:37Alexandra and her brother Vladimir enjoyed a privileged upbringing.
0:21:38 > 0:21:42Both brothers and sisters would go to good schools.
0:21:42 > 0:21:43They would also have
0:21:43 > 0:21:46a very wide musical education,
0:21:46 > 0:21:48they would be taken to museums,
0:21:48 > 0:21:49they would travel.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53But all that changed in 1917,
0:21:53 > 0:21:57as Russia plunged into revolution and civil war.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00GUNFIRE
0:22:00 > 0:22:04Tsar Nicholas II was overthrown by the working class population
0:22:04 > 0:22:07who were starving to death under his oppressive regime.
0:22:07 > 0:22:12It was a violent seizure of power.
0:22:12 > 0:22:14There was a great deal of bloodshed,
0:22:14 > 0:22:21there was a great deal of elimination of groups.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25Fighting broke out between the working class Bolsheviks
0:22:25 > 0:22:29and the aristocratic White Russians like Alexandra's family.
0:22:31 > 0:22:34And in 1921, disaster struck.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37Bolshevik soldiers murdered Alexandra's father,
0:22:37 > 0:22:39leaving her mother a widow
0:22:39 > 0:22:41in a desperate situation.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43She would have to try and escape,
0:22:43 > 0:22:48because otherwise, er, she could get killed,
0:22:48 > 0:22:50the children could get killed
0:22:50 > 0:22:54if they found themselves involved in the civil war.
0:22:55 > 0:22:58There was really no future for her.
0:22:58 > 0:23:01Fearing for the lives of herself and her two children,
0:23:01 > 0:23:04Susanna had little choice but to flee her homeland.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07It seems she grabbed all the money she could find,
0:23:07 > 0:23:09and escaped through Asia to America,
0:23:09 > 0:23:13finally checking in to the Waldorf Astoria.
0:23:15 > 0:23:19Designed to be the most luxurious hotel in the world,
0:23:19 > 0:23:23the Waldorf Astoria oozed opulence from every corner.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26But luxury like this came at a price.
0:23:26 > 0:23:30A suite cost thousands of dollars a year in the 1920s.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33As Susanna's savings began to run dry,
0:23:33 > 0:23:36the family was forced to relocate.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40For an educated and cultured family like the Koshevnikovs,
0:23:40 > 0:23:42the obvious destination was Berlin.
0:23:42 > 0:23:46Berlin was certainly an attractive goal.
0:23:46 > 0:23:51There were rather different, but still very strong cultural links.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53Until the early thirties,
0:23:53 > 0:23:56Russians, particularly in Berlin,
0:23:56 > 0:23:58were quite numerous,
0:23:58 > 0:24:04and were part of the postwar intellectual and cultural life
0:24:04 > 0:24:08of Germany in those years, in that decade.
0:24:08 > 0:24:11Surrounded by like-minded people,
0:24:11 > 0:24:13Susanna and her two children settled in Germany.
0:24:13 > 0:24:17Vladimir went to university to study journalism,
0:24:17 > 0:24:22and Alexandra indulged in her passion for music and poetry.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25The Koshevnikovs seemed to have found their home from home.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29Yet in 1951, they showed up in England.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31The heir hunters were on the trail
0:24:31 > 0:24:34of uncovering what happened to their fortune.
0:24:34 > 0:24:38They were about to reveal the family's links to British espionage
0:24:38 > 0:24:41in the middle of the Cold War.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44They were part of a group of people
0:24:45 > 0:24:50um, to whom this country owes its freedom.
0:24:54 > 0:24:57Heir hunters solve thousands of cases a year,
0:24:57 > 0:25:01ensuring that millions of pounds are paid out to rightful heirs.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03But not every case can be cracked.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06The Treasury has a list of over 2,000 estates
0:25:06 > 0:25:08that have baffled the heir hunters
0:25:08 > 0:25:10and remain unclaimed.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14These estates stay on the list for up to 30 years,
0:25:14 > 0:25:19and each one could be worth anything from £5,000 to many millions.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22Today, we're focusing on three names from the list.
0:25:22 > 0:25:24Are they relatives of yours?
0:25:24 > 0:25:27Could you be in line for an unexpected windfall?
0:25:29 > 0:25:34Peter Paul McQualter died in Greenwich in 1997, aged 54,
0:25:34 > 0:25:36and may have come from Ireland.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40If his heirs aren't found, his money will go to the Government.
0:25:41 > 0:25:45Did you know Gordon Lewis Monteith Keevil from Enfield in Middlesex?
0:25:45 > 0:25:50He died on 17th May 2008, aged 85.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53So far, no-one's come forward to claim his estate.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Also on our list is Graham Colpoys-Johnson,
0:25:58 > 0:26:00who was from Richmond in Surrey.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03He died in Poole in Dorset in February 2005.
0:26:03 > 0:26:07So far, all efforts to trace his relatives have drawn a blank.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10If the names Peter McQualter,
0:26:10 > 0:26:13Gordon Keevil or Graham Colpoys-Johnson
0:26:13 > 0:26:15mean anything to you or someone you know,
0:26:15 > 0:26:18you could have a fortune coming your way.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29The heir hunters were searching for an heir to a mysterious Russian lady
0:26:29 > 0:26:31who died in Buckinghamshire.
0:26:31 > 0:26:35They'd uncovered new evidence they hoped might finally give them a lead.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40Alexandra Koshevnikova was from a rich family
0:26:40 > 0:26:42who'd fled the Communist forces
0:26:42 > 0:26:44after the Revolution.
0:26:44 > 0:26:46After crossing three continents
0:26:46 > 0:26:48and staying in luxurious hotels,
0:26:48 > 0:26:51Alexandra and her family had settled in Germany.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55Now the heir hunters have been sent her naturalisation papers,
0:26:55 > 0:26:59and it seemed that Alexandra could have been very wealthy.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01An immigrant family living in,
0:27:01 > 0:27:04not just a hotel, but the Waldorf Astoria.
0:27:04 > 0:27:08Um, you suddenly think they must be very, very rich indeed.
0:27:08 > 0:27:10But did Alexandra
0:27:10 > 0:27:11die a wealthy woman?
0:27:11 > 0:27:14And were there heirs to her estate?
0:27:14 > 0:27:16To find out, the team needed to know
0:27:16 > 0:27:18why she, her mother and her brother
0:27:18 > 0:27:20all came to the UK.
0:27:20 > 0:27:22BOMBS EXPLODING
0:27:22 > 0:27:2560 years ago, the family was living in war-torn Berlin.
0:27:25 > 0:27:30But the money they'd brought from Russia was starting to run out.
0:27:30 > 0:27:32They probably thought,
0:27:32 > 0:27:33as many Russians did,
0:27:33 > 0:27:36that once things had settled down,
0:27:36 > 0:27:38they would be able to go back.
0:27:38 > 0:27:42That may be one explanation of why they spent so much money
0:27:42 > 0:27:44so quickly,
0:27:44 > 0:27:46and then,
0:27:46 > 0:27:51suddenly they realised that their Russia was no longer there.
0:27:51 > 0:27:52- They- couldn't- go back.
0:27:54 > 0:27:56With their mother Susanna now in her sixties,
0:27:56 > 0:28:00the responsibility of providing for the family fell to Vladimir.
0:28:00 > 0:28:04In the late 1940s he moved to England in search of work,
0:28:04 > 0:28:06and landed a remarkable job.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10After the Second World War, the Government needed Russian speakers
0:28:10 > 0:28:13to train British spies.
0:28:13 > 0:28:16There were Soviet sympathisers,
0:28:16 > 0:28:18not just within the Civil Service,
0:28:18 > 0:28:19but actually within
0:28:19 > 0:28:22the British intelligence community,
0:28:22 > 0:28:24who were meant to protect us from the Soviets.
0:28:24 > 0:28:26When that became clear,
0:28:26 > 0:28:31it really did make British policy makers understand
0:28:31 > 0:28:33that the Soviet threat was a real threat.
0:28:34 > 0:28:39In 1951, the Government set up the Joint Services School for Linguists,
0:28:39 > 0:28:42and employed native Russians as language teachers.
0:28:42 > 0:28:44They quickly recruited Vladimir,
0:28:44 > 0:28:48who was a Russian exile opposed to the Soviet regime.
0:28:49 > 0:28:51The purpose of the JSSL
0:28:51 > 0:28:56was to train British servicemen
0:28:56 > 0:29:00to speak and understand
0:29:00 > 0:29:02the sort of Russian
0:29:02 > 0:29:07that was being used by Soviet tank commanders, Soviet pilots,
0:29:07 > 0:29:11Soviet naval captains,
0:29:11 > 0:29:13Soviet submarine commanders.
0:29:13 > 0:29:17To listen to the wireless traffic that they generated,
0:29:17 > 0:29:20and that intelligence was vital,
0:29:20 > 0:29:22and it prevented the Cold War
0:29:22 > 0:29:27from ever turning into a hot one in Europe.
0:29:28 > 0:29:31This World War II airfield in Crail in Scotland
0:29:31 > 0:29:34was a base for the top-secret language school
0:29:34 > 0:29:36where Vladimir became a teacher.
0:29:38 > 0:29:42Dave Allen was taught by Vladimir in the 1950s.
0:29:42 > 0:29:46He's now making his first visit back in over 50 years.
0:29:47 > 0:29:50At the time, this was a very busy roadway,
0:29:50 > 0:29:52with soldiers, sailors and airmen
0:29:52 > 0:29:57all going about their Russian language courses,
0:29:57 > 0:30:00and I think there were also Polish and Czech courses
0:30:00 > 0:30:02going on here at the same time.
0:30:02 > 0:30:04But they were in the minority.
0:30:04 > 0:30:06Most of the people here were learning Russian.
0:30:10 > 0:30:12This is a typical classroom
0:30:12 > 0:30:15that we'd have had one of the lessons with Mr Koshevnikov.
0:30:15 > 0:30:18We'd have had the tables here,
0:30:18 > 0:30:22and Vladimir Koshevnikov would have sat in the front,
0:30:22 > 0:30:26usually in a fairly relaxed position, sort of leaning back.
0:30:26 > 0:30:30He was quite a big guy and he had sort of brown, wavy hair.
0:30:30 > 0:30:32Very good-looking man.
0:30:32 > 0:30:37And, er, it would be really quite pleasant.
0:30:37 > 0:30:42Dave's not the only former student with fond recollections of Vladimir.
0:30:42 > 0:30:44The first really mad Russian
0:30:44 > 0:30:46we'd ever met.
0:30:46 > 0:30:48It was a sort of, I don't know,
0:30:48 > 0:30:49a kind of concept
0:30:49 > 0:30:51that Russians were a bit wild.
0:30:51 > 0:30:53And that was Vladimir Koshevnikov.
0:30:53 > 0:30:57Anyway, Vladimir Koshevnikov was thoroughly eccentric.
0:30:57 > 0:31:00We would flop down on the grass.
0:31:00 > 0:31:03He would put two bottles of white wine on the grass,
0:31:03 > 0:31:06and throw down some packets of cigarettes.
0:31:06 > 0:31:09And you had to have a glass of wine
0:31:09 > 0:31:13before you were allowed to read or recite a poem.
0:31:13 > 0:31:17Because he said the object of drinking wine is to liberate the soul.
0:31:17 > 0:31:21That's what the Russians believe. They still believe it, incidentally.
0:31:21 > 0:31:24That a bottle of vodka, you drink it to liberate the soul.
0:31:24 > 0:31:29Vladimir's informal teaching style appealed to the trainee spies.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32Vladimir Koshevnikov was a unique teacher,
0:31:32 > 0:31:37and a very gifted man, very artistic.
0:31:37 > 0:31:40And he created a very good learning environment.
0:31:40 > 0:31:42Because his knowledge of Russian was so good,
0:31:42 > 0:31:46we learned a lot about Russian in a kind of literary sense.
0:31:46 > 0:31:51The Koshevnikovs had the perfect credentials for the JSSL,
0:31:51 > 0:31:54so Vladimir's sister Alexandra was also recruited,
0:31:54 > 0:31:59and in 1951, the whole family moved from Berlin to the UK.
0:31:59 > 0:32:05There was a sister there, and she went on to teach in later courses.
0:32:05 > 0:32:09But the mother must have been a burden to some extent
0:32:09 > 0:32:10because she was an old lady
0:32:10 > 0:32:13who had to be looked after in a foreign country.
0:32:13 > 0:32:17This close-knit family who'd travelled across six countries
0:32:17 > 0:32:21finally settled in Beaconsfield in 1966.
0:32:21 > 0:32:24Immersed in their work at the JSSL,
0:32:24 > 0:32:29neither Alexandra or Vladimir ever married or had any children.
0:32:29 > 0:32:33Instead, they lived together with their mother Susanna
0:32:33 > 0:32:34for another 25 years,
0:32:34 > 0:32:36until she died in 1976.
0:32:36 > 0:32:41Sadly, Alexandra's beloved brother Vladimir died just two years later,
0:32:41 > 0:32:46and for the first time in her life, she was alone.
0:32:46 > 0:32:49Sandra was on her own when her mother and brother had died,
0:32:49 > 0:32:53yes, I would say, she was a lonely person to a certain extent,
0:32:53 > 0:32:56although she seemed quite self-sufficient in many ways.
0:32:56 > 0:33:00But yes, I would have said she was a lonely person.
0:33:00 > 0:33:03Alexandra threw herself further into her work,
0:33:03 > 0:33:05and became increasingly reclusive.
0:33:06 > 0:33:10I gather she'd had a hard life before they came to this country,
0:33:10 > 0:33:14and although I know she'd always worked as a translator,
0:33:14 > 0:33:17I would have thought she'd have had some money,
0:33:17 > 0:33:20but she always appeared not to have a lot of money,
0:33:20 > 0:33:24and, you know, I just assumed she hadn't got a lot of money.
0:33:24 > 0:33:29Alexandra passed away in June 2008 at the age of 100.
0:33:31 > 0:33:33But one question remained.
0:33:33 > 0:33:37Having been born wealthy and watched their mother's money run out,
0:33:37 > 0:33:39had Vladimir and Alexandra earned enough
0:33:39 > 0:33:44as spy school language teachers to leave a valuable estate?
0:33:44 > 0:33:46They've lived this very, very exciting life,
0:33:46 > 0:33:49and it looks as though it's a family
0:33:49 > 0:33:51which has ended up with virtually nothing.
0:33:51 > 0:33:53So from wealthy beginnings,
0:33:53 > 0:33:57it turned out the Koshevnikovs had died poor.
0:33:57 > 0:34:01And with no traces of any relatives in the UK,
0:34:01 > 0:34:03Neil had nowhere left to go.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07We have spent quite a lot of money.
0:34:07 > 0:34:11We spent quite a lot of money sending researchers out,
0:34:11 > 0:34:12sending letters to America,
0:34:12 > 0:34:14applying for naturalisations,
0:34:14 > 0:34:17having an awful amount of documents translated,
0:34:17 > 0:34:20and just the research in the first point.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23The number of staff we had on it.
0:34:23 > 0:34:25We're never going to make that money back.
0:34:25 > 0:34:29So this is a case which we unfortunately can't take any further.
0:34:29 > 0:34:31Unless we suddenly find out
0:34:31 > 0:34:34that the estate's worth a lot more than we thought.
0:34:34 > 0:34:36But I seriously doubt that.
0:34:36 > 0:34:38But for the heir hunters,
0:34:38 > 0:34:42the case of Alexandra Koshevnikova has been a memorable one.
0:34:42 > 0:34:44It's been quite a nice journey,
0:34:44 > 0:34:47even if we're not going to get any fees or anything out of it.
0:34:47 > 0:34:50It's taught us a bit more about research,
0:34:50 > 0:34:54which hopefully will come in useful next time we have to do a case.
0:34:54 > 0:34:58While the case isn't valuable enough for the heir hunters to continue,
0:34:58 > 0:35:02it's believed to be worth between £5,000 and £15,000,
0:35:02 > 0:35:03and it's still unclaimed.
0:35:03 > 0:35:06Could you be a rightful heir?
0:35:14 > 0:35:17The heir hunters are making progress on the case of Thomas,
0:35:17 > 0:35:21despite it being one of the most common surnames in the UK.
0:35:21 > 0:35:23How many births have we got on that, Noel?
0:35:23 > 0:35:2788-year-old Robert Thomas was a widower
0:35:27 > 0:35:29who died without leaving a will.
0:35:29 > 0:35:33But in a frustrating setback, the team has missed one heir,
0:35:33 > 0:35:35Robert's brother, by just hours.
0:35:36 > 0:35:39He flew out to Turkey today.
0:35:39 > 0:35:42He's got a home in Turkey.
0:35:42 > 0:35:44Shame it wasn't tomorrow, isn't it?
0:35:44 > 0:35:48Now the team at Fraser and Fraser are racing to find other heirs.
0:35:48 > 0:35:50Is this all of them?
0:35:50 > 0:35:53- There might be more, but they're the ones in area.- OK.
0:35:53 > 0:35:57The search is focused on Robert's other brother Albert, who has died,
0:35:57 > 0:35:58but had four children.
0:35:58 > 0:36:01He'd married a lady, Iris D Warren,
0:36:01 > 0:36:04and they've had several children.
0:36:04 > 0:36:07We've identified at least four children so far.
0:36:07 > 0:36:09Luckily, one of them is called Iris D Thomas,
0:36:09 > 0:36:12which is the name of Albert's wife,
0:36:12 > 0:36:14so it's all tying in quite nicely.
0:36:14 > 0:36:16New details for the Thomas family tree
0:36:16 > 0:36:21show Bob's brother Albert Thomas married Iris Warren in 1953.
0:36:23 > 0:36:25The team's found they had five children,
0:36:25 > 0:36:30but one was adopted out of the family, so will not be an heir.
0:36:30 > 0:36:33Lynda was supposed to be married to Martin.
0:36:35 > 0:36:37We've got that address there.
0:36:37 > 0:36:41They quickly find an address for one of the sisters, Iris Thomas.
0:36:41 > 0:36:46And for the second time today, Bob's off to try and meet an heir.
0:36:46 > 0:36:51Hopefully, she will be in contact with all her brothers and sisters,
0:36:51 > 0:36:54or sisters, there are no brothers.
0:36:54 > 0:36:57And sign her up and get all their details.
0:36:57 > 0:36:59Perfect day.
0:37:02 > 0:37:04Bob missed the last heir by a matter of minutes.
0:37:04 > 0:37:08He's hoping this time the house visit will produce results.
0:37:08 > 0:37:10- You're the daughter of Albert.- Yeah.
0:37:10 > 0:37:12- Is that right?- Albert, yeah.
0:37:12 > 0:37:16And he had brothers Robert and Henry? Is that right?
0:37:16 > 0:37:18Yeah, Uncle Henry, yeah.
0:37:18 > 0:37:20Right. I don't know if you're aware,
0:37:20 > 0:37:24but your uncle Robert, unfortunately died earlier this year.
0:37:24 > 0:37:26He never had children. He was married to Winnie.
0:37:26 > 0:37:30- That's right, yeah.- Do you want to come in?- Is that all right?
0:37:30 > 0:37:35The news of Robert's death has come as a surprise to his niece Iris.
0:37:35 > 0:37:37It's just a shock to me to know he'd passed away.
0:37:37 > 0:37:40I actually thought he'd passed away before my dad
0:37:40 > 0:37:43because we didn't see him for a long time
0:37:43 > 0:37:46and we was all saying, even my dad kept saying,
0:37:46 > 0:37:50"Bobby must have passed away because he hasn't been in touch."
0:37:50 > 0:37:53You know, you do get these things happen, don't you?
0:37:53 > 0:37:58Bob Smith fills out the paperwork, which Iris is happy to sign.
0:37:58 > 0:38:00I'll have the £90 and you can have the £10.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02It's a result.
0:38:02 > 0:38:06Finally, Bob's found an heir to the Thomas estate.
0:38:07 > 0:38:10Obviously, she was happy to sign a contract with us
0:38:10 > 0:38:12and I've got all the details of her sisters,
0:38:12 > 0:38:14so good day all round.
0:38:14 > 0:38:19In the office, David Pacifico is able to contact Albert's other daughters.
0:38:19 > 0:38:21Hello?
0:38:21 > 0:38:25My name is David Pacifico of a company called Fraser and Fraser.
0:38:25 > 0:38:28We've just been in contact with your sister Iris.
0:38:28 > 0:38:32Robert Thomas's neices will receive half of his estate.
0:38:32 > 0:38:34Right, well, as you know,
0:38:34 > 0:38:37we've been trying to track down the Thomas family
0:38:37 > 0:38:40regarding an estate of an uncle of yours who unfortunately passed away.
0:38:40 > 0:38:43While the other half of the estate,
0:38:43 > 0:38:46estimated between £20,000 to £40,000,
0:38:46 > 0:38:48will go to his brother Henry.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51The big rush is that because it's a new job,
0:38:51 > 0:38:54you know, potentially it could be competitive,
0:38:54 > 0:38:58and I want to make sure we get all our letters out today.
0:39:05 > 0:39:10Almost a month later, the heir hunters have learned their gamble was worth it.
0:39:10 > 0:39:13Robert Thomas's estate is worth £20,000.
0:39:13 > 0:39:15His neices Iris and Lynda
0:39:15 > 0:39:19have both had time to reflect on the unexpected windfall.
0:39:21 > 0:39:25I was very shocked to find out that I was going to be a heir, one of the heirs
0:39:25 > 0:39:29because things like that don't happen to people like us.
0:39:29 > 0:39:33And we didn't honestly think that Bob had money, did we?
0:39:33 > 0:39:36No, as far as we know,
0:39:36 > 0:39:39he lived in a little council maisonette in Orpington,
0:39:39 > 0:39:44um, and, all right, he might have had a big win on the National,
0:39:44 > 0:39:46got the bingo up, or whatever.
0:39:46 > 0:39:48Maybe that's what happened.
0:39:48 > 0:39:49Or the lottery.
0:39:49 > 0:39:52Yeah, obviously, as far as I know,
0:39:52 > 0:39:55I didn't even know he had money, to be honest.
0:39:55 > 0:39:59The experience has brought back fond memories of Uncle Bob.
0:39:59 > 0:40:04When the girls' parents split up and they moved in with their grandparents
0:40:04 > 0:40:06Bob would drive round to entertain them.
0:40:06 > 0:40:09He used to have three cars, a Morris Minor,
0:40:09 > 0:40:12a Volkswagen Beetle,
0:40:12 > 0:40:16and then, obviously, the Mini, and the Mini was our favourite of all.
0:40:16 > 0:40:18And he used to take us out for a little ride,
0:40:18 > 0:40:20every Sunday he'd come,
0:40:20 > 0:40:22to Blackwall Tunnel and back.
0:40:22 > 0:40:24And it was brilliant. We loved it.
0:40:24 > 0:40:28We used to say, "Take us for a ride, Uncle Bob, take us for a ride."
0:40:28 > 0:40:30He'd say, "All right, then."
0:40:30 > 0:40:31And we'd all pile in the back,
0:40:31 > 0:40:35and he'd take us all the way to the Blackwall Tunnel,
0:40:35 > 0:40:39which is no journey, really, but when you're a kid, it was a day out.
0:40:39 > 0:40:42We loved it, didn't we? Always through the Blackwall Tunnel.
0:40:42 > 0:40:44Always the same place.
0:40:44 > 0:40:45Always the same ride, yeah.
0:40:45 > 0:40:48The sisters have dug out a treasured photo
0:40:48 > 0:40:51of Uncle Bob and their dad Albert from the War,
0:40:51 > 0:40:53that their grandmother treasured.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56The story behind this was, um,
0:40:56 > 0:41:00Dad being in the Navy and Bob being in the Army,
0:41:00 > 0:41:02they was never home on leave at the same time.
0:41:02 > 0:41:06And this particular time, they were both home together,
0:41:06 > 0:41:09and Nan got a snapshot of her two lovely boys in uniform.
0:41:09 > 0:41:14And this always sat, pride of place, on Nan's mantelpiece, remember?
0:41:14 > 0:41:17- Always on her mantelpiece. - In that old-fashioned frame.
0:41:17 > 0:41:21- Yeah, it was lovely. - They look so young, don't they?
0:41:21 > 0:41:25Look at the lovely uniforms and that. Lovely.
0:41:25 > 0:41:27With no children himself,
0:41:27 > 0:41:33Bob was happy to spend some of his hard-earned cash on his neices.
0:41:33 > 0:41:36Quite exciting when Bob used to come down, wasn't it?
0:41:36 > 0:41:39Yeah, always used to give us our pocket money.
0:41:39 > 0:41:42We always used to thought he was rich, didn't we?
0:41:42 > 0:41:45Well, we did, because he had no children, I suppose,
0:41:45 > 0:41:48whereas our dad had to watch every penny he had.
0:41:48 > 0:41:51And I suppose, Bob, not having children,
0:41:51 > 0:41:53would give us sixpence here and there,
0:41:53 > 0:41:55and we just took it for granted
0:41:55 > 0:41:58that he was a cash cow at that point in our lives.
0:41:58 > 0:42:01What was it? Ten shillings, wasn't it?
0:42:01 > 0:42:03Sometimes a ten-shilling note, yeah.
0:42:04 > 0:42:07Now almost 20 years have passed
0:42:07 > 0:42:09since Iris and Lynda have seen Bob,
0:42:09 > 0:42:14and they wish they'd been able to pay their respects to a much-loved uncle.
0:42:14 > 0:42:16I miss not being able to say goodbye
0:42:16 > 0:42:19and going to his funeral, that I do miss.
0:42:19 > 0:42:20Yeah, definitely.
0:42:20 > 0:42:25Because it's something you need to do to someone in the family.
0:42:25 > 0:42:27Yeah, it's respect, isn't it?
0:42:27 > 0:42:29- But we've got good memories.- Yeah.
0:42:33 > 0:42:36I haven't got a tissue on me. Don't start blubbing. Come on.
0:42:36 > 0:42:38I'm all right, Iris.
0:42:42 > 0:42:47If you would like advice about building your family tree or making a will,
0:42:47 > 0:42:49go to bbc.co.uk
0:43:10 > 0:43:13Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:43:13 > 0:43:17E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk