0:00:02 > 0:00:09In Birmingham, Heir Hunters are searching for people who could inherit a whopping £150,000.
0:00:09 > 0:00:14- Are you doing the siblings?- They're looking for long-lost relatives
0:00:14 > 0:00:19- who have no idea they could be in line for a windfall. - Polish Brummies.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22Could they be knocking at your door?
0:00:37 > 0:00:45On today's programme: the mystery of three brothers and how they came to be wrenched apart.
0:00:45 > 0:00:51- The court split up the kids.- Yeah. He was really resentful because he wanted to be with his dad.
0:00:52 > 0:00:57And it's last-chance saloon in the case of barmaid Evelyn Edwards,
0:00:57 > 0:01:01a case that spans two centuries, but remains a riddle.
0:01:01 > 0:01:07It was really a standout case on the Treasury list.
0:01:07 > 0:01:13Plus how you could be entitled to money where heirs still need to be found.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16Could you be in line for a cash pay-out?
0:01:22 > 0:01:28Every year in the UK, more than 300,000 people die without leaving a will.
0:01:28 > 0:01:33If no relatives are found, any money they've left behind will go to the Government.
0:01:33 > 0:01:38And last year that was a staggering £14 million.
0:01:38 > 0:01:43But there are over 30 specialist firms competing to stop this.
0:01:43 > 0:01:47They're the Heir Hunters and they track down missing relatives
0:01:47 > 0:01:52and help them claim their rightful inheritance.
0:01:52 > 0:01:59The best aspect is telling people about their families. It's wonderful to put people back in touch.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10It's 7.15 on a Thursday morning.
0:02:10 > 0:02:15Overnight the Treasury has published a list of unclaimed estates.
0:02:15 > 0:02:19It's going to be a busy day for Fraser and Fraser.
0:02:19 > 0:02:21Bob, Neil.
0:02:21 > 0:02:25Partner Neil is juggling several cases at once.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27Sorry, yeah.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30And one Anglo-Polish name on the list has him stumped.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34This...Garry Szymanski.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37Born in 1954.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41It looked a little strange with the Christian name being Garry.
0:02:41 > 0:02:46That's not a very Ukrainian, Polish, Russian sort of name. The surname is Polish.
0:02:48 > 0:02:54Garry Szymanski died alone in 2010. He was only 56 years old.
0:02:54 > 0:03:00The police had found his body, which had lain undiscovered in his house in Birmingham for several months.
0:03:00 > 0:03:04He hadn't left a will and had no known relatives.
0:03:06 > 0:03:12Ken and Ivy Bullock knew Garry as a neighbour and got to know him better when he decorated their house.
0:03:12 > 0:03:17He kept himself to himself. It was as if he hadn't got confidence,
0:03:17 > 0:03:23but in meeting Ken and I, we brought him out of himself.
0:03:23 > 0:03:28Garry was a quiet man, but he was a jovial man.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31He'd always like a joke.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35These jokes, he would just reel them off and we'd just...ache.
0:03:35 > 0:03:41We'd say, "Garry, you'll have to stop." The tears would be rolling down our faces.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45In later years, Garry had lots of health problems.
0:03:45 > 0:03:52He had to give up his decorating business when he broke his back and he also lost an eye to cancer.
0:03:52 > 0:03:57Through the tough times, Ken and Ivy were there to support him
0:03:57 > 0:04:00and they were impressed at his sense of humour against the odds.
0:04:00 > 0:04:03Even his new glass eye was fun.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07He used to take it out and laugh and put it in upside down.
0:04:07 > 0:04:13- It was so funny. He used to make us laugh. - He'd come in and say, "Eye-eye!"
0:04:14 > 0:04:20Garry had come to rely on Ken and Ivy so much that when they decided to move out of the area,
0:04:20 > 0:04:23he was devastated.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27He said, "You can't. You can't leave me."
0:04:27 > 0:04:32I said, "Well, it's a case of having to. This house is too big for us," you know.
0:04:32 > 0:04:39And I think it really affected Garry in that way because he thought he would lose the friendship.
0:04:39 > 0:04:45After Ken and Ivy moved, they tried to contact Garry, but never heard back.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48They had no idea he had passed away.
0:04:48 > 0:04:54With no known next of kin, Garry's name went onto the Treasury list.
0:04:54 > 0:04:59And in London the team are now looking for heirs to his estate.
0:04:59 > 0:05:01You know where it is?
0:05:01 > 0:05:06Garry lived in this semi-detached house in Great Barr, Birmingham.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08It's valued at £150,000.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12Property usually forms the bulk of someone's fortune
0:05:12 > 0:05:17and often the Heir Hunters use it to determine the value of an estate.
0:05:17 > 0:05:23- They need to find out if Garry rented or owned the property. - I still don't know if he owned it.
0:05:23 > 0:05:30Neil must now start the hunt for relatives. An unusual name like Szymanski will be easier to find.
0:05:30 > 0:05:34- Szymanski.- What? - If I'm pronouncing it correctly.
0:05:34 > 0:05:38The first stage of any hunt is to draw up a family tree.
0:05:38 > 0:05:45Heir Hunters use these documents like treasure maps. They break down each generation, step by step,
0:05:45 > 0:05:48until they find the person entitled to inherit.
0:05:48 > 0:05:54- Neil's looking at birth registers. - We've found a birth for him in Lichfield,
0:05:54 > 0:05:56which is Staffordshire.
0:05:56 > 0:06:03Also on the register are several other Szymanskis, all the right age to be brothers and sisters.
0:06:04 > 0:06:09Dorien, which Neil thinks is a misspelling of Doreen,
0:06:09 > 0:06:11Mark and another sister.
0:06:11 > 0:06:17If these people are related to Garry, they could be potential heirs.
0:06:17 > 0:06:23Now he knows the family might be in Birmingham, Neil phones Senior Researcher Paul Matthews.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25Hello?
0:06:27 > 0:06:33- Paul is one of a group of travelling Heir Hunters. - 'In 500 yards, left turn.'
0:06:33 > 0:06:40Their job is to chase down leads on the ground, feeding back information to the office team.
0:06:40 > 0:06:43You're probably expecting me.
0:06:43 > 0:06:49Crucially, they give Frasers the edge in reaching the heirs before the competition.
0:06:49 > 0:06:53Neil fills Paul in on the research so far.
0:06:53 > 0:06:59He's probably born in England. He was born after the war. Born in Lichfield, March '54.
0:06:59 > 0:07:02As Garry Szymanski.
0:07:02 > 0:07:06Probably three siblings, oldest being...
0:07:06 > 0:07:11Doreen, I think, but it's spelt D-O-R-I-E-N.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16- Yeah, good.- OK? Right, bye.
0:07:20 > 0:07:26Paul's on his way to where Garry lived in Birmingham to speak to neighbours.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29In the London office, they've got to work out how much this is worth.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32I'll hand you across to Neil.
0:07:32 > 0:07:38Heir Hunters work on commission, taking a percentage of money received from each heir they sign.
0:07:38 > 0:07:44They need a good-sized estate to cover costs and Neil's made a discovery that is great news.
0:07:44 > 0:07:49It's developed slightly because we found out he owns the property,
0:07:49 > 0:07:55which is quite important in deciding how many people will work on it.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59Garry's house is worth a whopping £150,000.
0:07:59 > 0:08:07The chase is on and the team now know the competition to get to the heirs will be fierce.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10They need to find Garry's brother and sisters.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15- Are you doing the siblings? - Yeah.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27Paul's arrived where Garry lived.
0:08:29 > 0:08:33He's shocked to think no one knew Garry had died for several months.
0:08:34 > 0:08:39Decent area, but apparently he was in the property for a few months,
0:08:39 > 0:08:46so obviously must have kept himself to himself and, sadly, he couldn't have been missed.
0:08:46 > 0:08:48Life is cruel sometimes.
0:08:55 > 0:09:01Paul's hoping the neighbours might be able to give him more information about Garry's family.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03I work for Fraser and Fraser.
0:09:03 > 0:09:09Garry from number 154, who passed away last year, I'm told you may have known him.
0:09:09 > 0:09:15- Yes.- Is it all right if I ask a couple of questions?- Yes. - Thank you very much.
0:09:15 > 0:09:20- I didn't know he'd got any brothers and sisters.- Did you socialise?
0:09:20 > 0:09:24Only just talking outside. He kept himself to himself.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30While Paul's not having much luck in Birmingham,
0:09:30 > 0:09:35in London there's been a development that could change everything.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39Neil's found out that Garry had a wife.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42We've got a marriage for the deceased.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50Garry tied the knot with a woman in Birmingham in 1975.
0:09:50 > 0:09:57And if they haven't divorced, she could be the sole heir to his entire estate.
0:09:57 > 0:10:01Debbie, do you want to keep on that wife?
0:10:01 > 0:10:08While Debbie hunts through the marriage registers, Alan scours Birmingham telephone directories
0:10:08 > 0:10:12looking for Garry's siblings and he's made a curious discovery.
0:10:12 > 0:10:18There's over 1,000 hits for that name. It's not an unusual surname, which is incredible.
0:10:18 > 0:10:23- I've never heard of the name. - They're Polish Brummies. Yeah.
0:10:27 > 0:10:34The birth records have led them to Garry's parents and it solves the riddle of the unusual name.
0:10:34 > 0:10:39Garry's mother, Mary Thomas, who died in 2008, was Welsh.
0:10:39 > 0:10:44But his father, Czeslaw Szymanski, was from eastern Poland.
0:10:44 > 0:10:51From the records, the team can see that Garry's father Czeslaw would now be aged 89 years old.
0:10:52 > 0:10:58And, crucially, if he is still alive, he is next in line to inherit after Garry's wife.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01It's vital they find him.
0:11:01 > 0:11:08In the office, senior researcher Simon is looking at death records to see if Czeslaw has passed away.
0:11:08 > 0:11:13There are three deaths for Czeslaw Szymanskis. I think they're all wrong.
0:11:13 > 0:11:19So it's still an open question as to whether Garry's dad might be an heir.
0:11:19 > 0:11:24By looking at the marriage records, though, Neil can rule out one person for sure.
0:11:25 > 0:11:30He's found a record for another marriage for Garry's wife.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34The wife gets remarried afterwards and we've got no kids,
0:11:34 > 0:11:39so our first port of call being the wife, she's obviously had a divorce.
0:11:39 > 0:11:44So finding an heir to Garry's £150,000 estate
0:11:44 > 0:11:46all hinges on his immediate family.
0:11:46 > 0:11:51They're tracked down a number for a Mark Szymanski in Birmingham.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55Could this be Garry's brother and potential heir?
0:11:55 > 0:11:59This could crack the case, but they need to tread carefully.
0:11:59 > 0:12:04If Mark IS Garry's brother, he may not know that Garry has passed away.
0:12:04 > 0:12:09Case manager Francis Brett has made the call.
0:12:11 > 0:12:16- Hello. Mr Szymanski? - She's got through to Mark's son.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19Do you have a mobile number for him?
0:12:20 > 0:12:24Thank you ever so much for your help.
0:12:24 > 0:12:30The son confirmed that his dad, Mark Szymanski, had a brother called Garry,
0:12:30 > 0:12:36but didn't know much more. It seems they've found their man. They just need to speak to him.
0:12:36 > 0:12:42He's at work. I have a mobile number. Whether I can get hold of him is another matter.
0:12:46 > 0:12:50Coming up: will the Heir Hunters find Garry's father?
0:12:50 > 0:12:55- Hello. Mr Szymanski?- And will they beat the competition to the heirs?
0:12:55 > 0:13:03- Don't be surprised if somebody else might be sitting there waiting for him to come home.- Oh, right.
0:13:08 > 0:13:14For every case that is quick to solve, there are others that remain shrouded in mystery.
0:13:14 > 0:13:22But the clock is ticking. After 30 years, if no heirs are found, all the money goes to the Treasury.
0:13:22 > 0:13:29When case manager Saul Marks of Welsh-based Celtic Research took on the case of Evelyn Edwards,
0:13:29 > 0:13:33it had been sitting on the Treasury list for more than 25 years.
0:13:33 > 0:13:38And it was to take him on a journey that would span two centuries.
0:13:38 > 0:13:44This case was unusual. It caught my eye, not least because it was in our area, in North Wales,
0:13:44 > 0:13:50but because she actually died in 1985, which is over 25 years ago.
0:13:50 > 0:13:54It was really a stand-out case on the Treasury list.
0:13:54 > 0:14:00Evelyn was born to parents Frank and Helena Harrison. She grew up in the small community of Gresford
0:14:00 > 0:14:03in Wrexham, north Wales,
0:14:03 > 0:14:07and remained there until her death aged 92.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10She had spent her final days in this care home.
0:14:10 > 0:14:15Evelyn was very fond of the garden. She loved the garden. It was lively surroundings.
0:14:15 > 0:14:22She used to sit on the porch outside. She had no family. She never spoke about any family.
0:14:22 > 0:14:27Her only visitor was a young social worker who was very nice. She came once a fortnight.
0:14:29 > 0:14:36When Evelyn died in 1985, she left a sizable sum of £97,000, but no will.
0:14:36 > 0:14:40It's a large amount of money, but no family came forward,
0:14:40 > 0:14:44so her estate was advertised by the Treasury.
0:14:44 > 0:14:50With the clock ticking, Saul decided he'd have a last-ditch attempt to break Evelyn's case.
0:14:50 > 0:14:56We were able to look her up on the death index and established that she was born in 1893,
0:14:56 > 0:15:02so we obviously knew that this case, just because of the timeframe involved,
0:15:02 > 0:15:06was going to stretch back further into history than our normal cases.
0:15:06 > 0:15:12In the search for heirs, the first place to look was Evelyn's immediate family.
0:15:12 > 0:15:16She'd got married, but hadn't had any children.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20While she did have a sister, there were no nieces or nephews.
0:15:20 > 0:15:26Her mother, Helena, had been an only child, so there were no heirs on her line.
0:15:26 > 0:15:32That left Evelyn's father, Frank. Perhaps he would hold the key to finding an heir to her estate?
0:15:32 > 0:15:39Saul decided to have a look at the 1911 Census for Gresford to trace Evelyn's family.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43Amazingly, he found Evelyn living in this pub in Gresford.
0:15:43 > 0:15:4918-year-old Evelyn was working as a barmaid for her father, Frank Harrison.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53He was listed on the 1911 Census as being a hotel proprietor.
0:15:53 > 0:15:59Saul was able to use Evelyn's father's death record to find his birthplace and date.
0:15:59 > 0:16:05From there, he started to trace brothers and sisters and he made an exciting discovery.
0:16:05 > 0:16:10Evelyn had eight uncles and aunts on her father's side.
0:16:10 > 0:16:16Frank was the youngest of nine children and the Harrison family originated in Great Barr
0:16:16 > 0:16:19and Rushall in Staffordshire.
0:16:19 > 0:16:23This was fantastic news. A large family would shorten the odds,
0:16:23 > 0:16:27so Saul turned back to the Census.
0:16:27 > 0:16:32It was to prove a fascinating snapshot of Victorian Britain.
0:16:32 > 0:16:40We picked up Daniel Harrison, who is Evelyn's grandfather, on the 1851, 1861 and 1871 Censuses
0:16:40 > 0:16:43working as a master maltster and brewer.
0:16:43 > 0:16:48Evelyn's grandfather had run his own small brewery in Staffordshire
0:16:48 > 0:16:52and three of her uncles and aunts had also worked there.
0:16:52 > 0:16:56He owned 52 acres, so there was a lot of work to be done.
0:16:56 > 0:17:02The family brewery, named Rushall after the village, was in this actual building.
0:17:02 > 0:17:07In Victorian times, it would have been surrounded by countryside.
0:17:07 > 0:17:13Brewing in this part of the Black Country was a thriving business.
0:17:13 > 0:17:17Evelyn's grandfather was riding the crest of a wave.
0:17:17 > 0:17:23The brewery we're talking about was probably one that made around 5,000 barrels a year.
0:17:23 > 0:17:25Not the smallest, but quite small.
0:17:25 > 0:17:31They would buy in the barley from farmers and it's likely that they bought the finished malt.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35And they would buy in the hops.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39They would use their premises and a small tower brewery.
0:17:40 > 0:17:45In the brewery museum in Burton on Trent, there are lots of relics from this era.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49And, incredibly, after 120 years,
0:17:49 > 0:17:55an original bottle from Evelyn's grandfather's brewery still survives in a local archive.
0:17:55 > 0:17:59It seems that the business of producing the Rushall ale
0:17:59 > 0:18:03would have been sustained by a genuine thirst for amber liquid.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07At the time we're talking about, the turn of the century,
0:18:07 > 0:18:13a lot of manual labour, a lot of heavy work. You would drink to put back the liquids
0:18:13 > 0:18:17so particularly public houses outside shipyards were very popular.
0:18:17 > 0:18:24And the beer that family made would have been quite different from today's mass-produced lager.
0:18:24 > 0:18:28The average strength of beer was between 5.6 and 6% alcohol.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32Now it's about 4%. It would be a cheap beer, though.
0:18:32 > 0:18:37Four old pence a quart. 70p a pint.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40It was drunk in great quantities.
0:18:40 > 0:18:44But the strength of the beer became a problem.
0:18:45 > 0:18:51Drunken behaviour was on the rise and the public became increasingly alarmed.
0:18:51 > 0:18:57By the time Evelyn was working for her father, Frank, in Gresford at the Plough Inn,
0:18:57 > 0:19:00beer had become a political hot potato.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04The Liberal Party tried to introduce severe controls.
0:19:04 > 0:19:11The brewers were outraged. They fought against it, Hyde Park was thronged
0:19:11 > 0:19:17with 750,000 people with banners. And it went through the House of Commons, the licensing of pubs,
0:19:17 > 0:19:19but the Lords chucked it out.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23It was a turbulent time to be a brewer or a publican
0:19:23 > 0:19:29and Evelyn's father, Frank, would have felt the repercussions in Gresford.
0:19:29 > 0:19:35Frank Harrison with the Plough Inn would have had a hard time in the Edwardian period.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39If he survived until 1910, he'd be in a very good position.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43The beer trade then picked up quite quickly.
0:19:43 > 0:19:49But fascinating as Evelyn's family history was, Saul Marks still had to find an heir
0:19:49 > 0:19:53to her £97,000 estate.
0:19:53 > 0:19:58You would think having a family of nine children would produce a healthy crop of heirs,
0:19:58 > 0:20:02but on investigation Saul found it wasn't the case.
0:20:02 > 0:20:08I was thinking, "We're going to have this enormous family and no heir!"
0:20:11 > 0:20:18Heir Hunters solve thousands of cases a year and millions are paid out to rightful heirs,
0:20:18 > 0:20:23but not every case can be cracked. The Treasury has a list of over 2,000 estates
0:20:23 > 0:20:27that have baffled Heir Hunters and remain unsolved.
0:20:27 > 0:20:31Could you be the heir they've been searching for?
0:20:31 > 0:20:37Could you be in line for a windfall worth hundreds, thousands or even millions of pounds?
0:20:37 > 0:20:42Estates stay on the list for up to 30 years. We're focusing on three.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44Are they relatives of yours?
0:20:44 > 0:20:48William Aspey died in Cosham, Hants, on the 10th February, 2000.
0:20:48 > 0:20:55Aspey is a relatively rare surname in the UK, with the highest concentration being in Lancashire.
0:20:55 > 0:20:59If no heirs are found for his estate, it goes to the Government.
0:20:59 > 0:21:05Janet Mary Disley died in July, 2003, in Braunstone, Leicester.
0:21:05 > 0:21:10Janet's last name, Disley, originates from the town of Disley in Cheshire.
0:21:10 > 0:21:14Do you remember Janet? Could you be related?
0:21:14 > 0:21:16Perhaps Bernard Zoe sounds familiar?
0:21:16 > 0:21:19He died in 2007 in Camden, London.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23So far, all efforts to trace any heirs have failed.
0:21:23 > 0:21:29If the names William Aspey, Janet Disley or Bernard Zoe mean anything to you,
0:21:29 > 0:21:33you could have a fortune coming your way.
0:21:41 > 0:21:46The Treasury is about to call time on the case of barmaid Evelyn Edwards.
0:21:46 > 0:21:51She died in the village of Gresford near Wrexham, north Wales, in 1985,
0:21:51 > 0:21:55leaving a large sum of £97,000, but no will.
0:21:55 > 0:21:59The real problem with this as the research progressed was
0:21:59 > 0:22:03that even though we had such a big family on the paternal side,
0:22:03 > 0:22:06I couldn't find any heirs!
0:22:06 > 0:22:13If case manager Saul Marks can't find an heir, every penny of her £97,000 estate
0:22:13 > 0:22:16will go to the Treasury.
0:22:16 > 0:22:22He's uncovered plenty about Evelyn's rich family history in the brewing industry in Staffordshire
0:22:22 > 0:22:29and the fact that she had eight uncles and aunts, but he can't locate any heirs.
0:22:29 > 0:22:33Saul thinks that one of the reasons the case is so hard to solve
0:22:33 > 0:22:37is because the large family dispersed.
0:22:37 > 0:22:42Evelyn's father started in Staffordshire and Evelyn was born there,
0:22:42 > 0:22:47but he then moved up to north Wales to run a hotel and took his family.
0:22:47 > 0:22:51So they were a little bit removed from their family's origin,
0:22:51 > 0:22:57which is possibly why, initially, there were no heirs that could be found back in 1985.
0:22:57 > 0:23:01And because he was working so far back in time,
0:23:01 > 0:23:06Saul realised it would be difficult to trace the uncles and aunts,
0:23:06 > 0:23:13but after scouring the search engines, he stumbled on a website that unlocked the case.
0:23:13 > 0:23:19I found a Charles Harrison who was actually a vicar in a village in Nottinghamshire,
0:23:19 > 0:23:22a little way from Staffordshire.
0:23:22 > 0:23:24It was a major breakthrough.
0:23:24 > 0:23:31Charles was one of Evelyn's uncles. If he had any descendants, they could be heirs to her estate.
0:23:31 > 0:23:37He married a lady named Dorcas Brown and, with an unusual name like Dorcas,
0:23:37 > 0:23:42she becomes very easy to find in censuses, birth and death indexes.
0:23:42 > 0:23:47The name Dorcas was a huge asset. Rare names are like gold dust to Heir Hunters
0:23:47 > 0:23:51because rare names are easier to research.
0:23:51 > 0:23:58Just the combination of an unusual first name with a common surname is enough to make it much easier.
0:23:58 > 0:24:00We could then follow the line down.
0:24:00 > 0:24:05In three generations of Charles Harrison's family, there was a Dorcas
0:24:05 > 0:24:11and Saul was able to follow this thread to find Evelyn's first heir, Dorcas Kilgas.
0:24:11 > 0:24:18She's Evelyn's first cousin twice removed. Being contacted by Saul was like a bolt from the blue.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22Obviously, the letter took me by surprise.
0:24:22 > 0:24:26Eventually I decided to phone him and to find out more about it.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29And he told me that...
0:24:29 > 0:24:33this person could have left money.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35My grandmother Grace...
0:24:35 > 0:24:40Dorcas was all the more amazed because she and her partner Malcolm had done the family tree.
0:24:40 > 0:24:46They had no idea Evelyn and her father Frank existed.
0:24:46 > 0:24:51We had gone back to Evelyn's grandfather and we knew he'd had a lot of children,
0:24:51 > 0:24:54but we hadn't picked up Frank.
0:24:54 > 0:25:00Maybe the reason they missed out Frank was because he had moved away from Staffordshire.
0:25:00 > 0:25:06When it came to building the family tree, like Saul, Dorcas and her family were thankful
0:25:06 > 0:25:13- that her unusual Christian name was passed down the line. - It's a name from the Bible.
0:25:13 > 0:25:17Well, I always thought you were a bit holier than thou.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19Really?
0:25:20 > 0:25:25Dorcas's namesake was her mother's cousin Dorcas Harrison.
0:25:25 > 0:25:30She's now passed away and her daughter Diana is another heir to Evelyn's fortune.
0:25:30 > 0:25:36She and cousin Dorcas lost touch when they were children and now they are to meet.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40I'm really looking forward to meeting Dorcas Patricia
0:25:40 > 0:25:45as we always knew her because my mother was Dorcas.
0:25:50 > 0:25:57Diana and Dorcas are going to meet each other in the village of Gresford to compare family notes.
0:25:57 > 0:26:03They're about to meet at the Plough, the very pub Evelyn worked in nearly a century ago.
0:26:03 > 0:26:08- The two women haven't seen each other in nearly 52 years.- Hello!
0:26:08 > 0:26:13- Gosh, how lovely. How lovely to see you.- It's fantastic.
0:26:13 > 0:26:19- After all this time. - You don't look any different! - I can't remember you, to be honest.
0:26:19 > 0:26:24- I'll remind you.- I must have been very small.- You were.
0:26:24 > 0:26:28- I don't know how old I was. - You were seven.- Was I?
0:26:28 > 0:26:34Dorcas and Diana are just two of the 14 heirs to Evelyn's £97,000 estate.
0:26:36 > 0:26:40Their get together is a chance for them to look back at family.
0:26:40 > 0:26:46- Charles Harrison was the only one that was the vicar.- That's right.
0:26:46 > 0:26:51- And all the others, I presume, were in the brewing trade.- That's right.
0:26:51 > 0:26:53Public houses.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55Oh, yes.
0:26:56 > 0:27:01If it hadn't been for Saul's perseverance in tackling this case,
0:27:01 > 0:27:05the cousins would never have been reunited
0:27:05 > 0:27:11- and the case would be unsolved.- One of the best aspects of this job is telling people about their families.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14It's wonderful to put people back in touch.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17Dorcas and Diana are over the moon.
0:27:17 > 0:27:23- They've not only found a long-lost relative, Evelyn... - She looks happy there.- Yes.
0:27:23 > 0:27:28..and received an unexpected windfall, but they've also found each other again.
0:27:28 > 0:27:35Bringing us together is really the best part of the whole thing.
0:27:35 > 0:27:40- I mean, we would never have met.- No. - If this hadn't happened.
0:27:53 > 0:28:00Heir Hunters Fraser and Fraser are trying to solve the case of Garry Szymanski.
0:28:00 > 0:28:07He died in 2010, leaving a fortune of £150,000, but no will and with no known next of kin.
0:28:07 > 0:28:14A painter and decorator by trade, Garry was a faithful regular at his local pub.
0:28:14 > 0:28:18Garry was in here most days. He liked his jokes.
0:28:18 > 0:28:22Unfortunately, they weren't always the best ones!
0:28:22 > 0:28:27His jokes were so bad that you had to laugh at them anyway!
0:28:27 > 0:28:31Garry had suffered a broken back from a car accident in 2004
0:28:31 > 0:28:35and was more or less forced to give up his decorating business,
0:28:35 > 0:28:38but he refused to be downhearted.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41He did have an awful lot of bad luck in life.
0:28:43 > 0:28:46And he somehow overcame this
0:28:46 > 0:28:52- because he had got a positive attitude. - He was resilient.- He was.
0:28:52 > 0:28:54Yes, indeed.
0:28:54 > 0:29:01But although they spent a lot of time with Garry, he never revealed too much about his family.
0:29:01 > 0:29:06Garry was very secretive. I didn't even know if he had any brothers.
0:29:06 > 0:29:11Also, Garry had a very fond affection for his dad,
0:29:11 > 0:29:15which a lot of people don't know. He used to talk about his dad a lot.
0:29:21 > 0:29:25It's Garry's father that the Heir Hunters are trying to find.
0:29:25 > 0:29:29Case manager Simon has been looking at the death records.
0:29:29 > 0:29:35There are three deaths for Czeslaw Szymanskis and I think they're all wrong.
0:29:35 > 0:29:40As they can't find a death record, Garry's father could still be alive.
0:29:40 > 0:29:44If he is, he'll be first in line to inherit his son's estate.
0:29:45 > 0:29:48Czeslaw was from eastern Poland.
0:29:50 > 0:29:54Like many Poles, he came to the UK during the war to escape the Nazis,
0:29:54 > 0:29:59but little did he know it would be a one-way ticket.
0:29:59 > 0:30:04Agata Blaszczyk-Sawyer is a researcher on the period.
0:30:04 > 0:30:09In 1945 it became clear that Poland was losing its independence and freedom.
0:30:09 > 0:30:15The Soviet regime was quite well-established and for many soldiers there was no way back.
0:30:15 > 0:30:21To adjust to life in Britain, Garry's father joined the Polish Resettlement Corps.
0:30:21 > 0:30:25Although not much is known about what happened to Czeslaw in the war,
0:30:25 > 0:30:31his army documents give us an insight into the trials he must have suffered.
0:30:31 > 0:30:35Up to 1943 he was in Germany, forced to work.
0:30:35 > 0:30:41Czeslaw was in a forced labour camp and then made to fight for the Germans in France.
0:30:41 > 0:30:48This one is interesting. It says the place of capture. He was captured in Paris.
0:30:48 > 0:30:50In August, 1944.
0:30:50 > 0:30:55He was brought to the UK as a prisoner of war
0:30:55 > 0:31:01and, once released, he settled in the West Midlands and had three children,
0:31:01 > 0:31:04one of which was Garry.
0:31:04 > 0:31:09But the Heir Hunters also believe there were also two girls - Dorien spelt with an I,
0:31:09 > 0:31:12another sister and a brother, Mark.
0:31:12 > 0:31:16They are all potential heirs to Garry's £150,000 estate,
0:31:16 > 0:31:20but at the moment all eyes are on Czeslaw.
0:31:20 > 0:31:25Parents are first in line to inherit a child's fortune.
0:31:25 > 0:31:31Case manager Francis Brett is about to call Mark Szymanski, Garry's brother.
0:31:31 > 0:31:35The question on everyone's lips is is his father still alive?
0:31:35 > 0:31:39And does Mark even know that his brother has passed away?
0:31:39 > 0:31:41Hello. Mr Szymanski?
0:31:41 > 0:31:45This could be a difficult call for Francis and Garry's brother.
0:31:45 > 0:31:51I am terribly sorry to say that the subject of our inquiries is your brother Garry.
0:31:53 > 0:31:58Um... He passed away last...last year.
0:31:59 > 0:32:04So I'm really, really terribly sorry to have to break that news to you.
0:32:04 > 0:32:09On the other end of the phone, Mark is obviously stunned.
0:32:09 > 0:32:13He tells Francis that the last time he saw his brother was 23 years ago
0:32:13 > 0:32:18and he had tried to contact him when his own wife died.
0:32:18 > 0:32:21It does take two, so don't feel so badly.
0:32:21 > 0:32:26Francis arranges for travelling Heir Hunter Paul Matthews to see Mark.
0:32:26 > 0:32:29Now what time would suit?
0:32:29 > 0:32:35- Half past four? - But then Mark reveals a piece of worrying news for the Heir Hunters.
0:32:35 > 0:32:39No, it wouldn't have been... It wouldn't have been us.
0:32:39 > 0:32:42A rival has already been in contact.
0:32:42 > 0:32:47I mean, it could be somebody else about this, but...
0:32:47 > 0:32:49As I said,
0:32:49 > 0:32:52I'm terribly sorry.
0:32:52 > 0:32:57Telling a family member that a brother or sister has passed away is never easy
0:32:57 > 0:33:01and for Francis this call was especially upsetting.
0:33:01 > 0:33:04I really feel for...for Mark
0:33:04 > 0:33:11because he said he'd been thinking of his brother Garry, thinking he ought to give him another ring.
0:33:11 > 0:33:18And he is now beating himself up for the fact that he hadn't made contact.
0:33:18 > 0:33:26Although it was a tough conversation, they can now fill in the blanks on the family tree
0:33:26 > 0:33:31and the million-dollar question - is the boys' father Czeslaw still living? If he is,
0:33:31 > 0:33:36he'll be the sole heir to Garry's £150,000 estate.
0:33:36 > 0:33:40But Mark confirmed his dad passed away in Germany several years ago.
0:33:42 > 0:33:47And they've discovered that the spelling on the records was correct, so it is Dorien,
0:33:47 > 0:33:50Garry's brother, not sister.
0:33:50 > 0:33:53Dorien has a home address in Perth,
0:33:53 > 0:33:59but he spends 10 months of the year in the Outback working with the Aborigines.
0:33:59 > 0:34:04And he's extremely hard to keep in touch with.
0:34:04 > 0:34:08He's virtually uncontactable.
0:34:08 > 0:34:13The sister is an illegitimate half-sister, born to their mother, Mary Thomas,
0:34:13 > 0:34:20so she's not entitled. That leaves Garry's two brothers, Mark and Dorien, as the only beneficiaries
0:34:20 > 0:34:23to his £150,000 estate.
0:34:25 > 0:34:29If the Heir Hunters are to make any money on this case,
0:34:29 > 0:34:33they must persuade the brothers to let them assist with their claim.
0:34:33 > 0:34:40Francis calls Birmingham-based travelling Heir Hunter Paul Matthews to tell him about Mark.
0:34:40 > 0:34:47Hi, Paul. I have fixed you up an appointment to see Mark Szymanski at 5 o'clock tonight at his home.
0:34:47 > 0:34:51- Oh, right.- He did get a call last night from somebody
0:34:51 > 0:34:56- and he thought it was just a sales call, so...- Yeah.
0:34:56 > 0:35:02..don't be surprised if somebody else is sitting there waiting for him to come home.
0:35:02 > 0:35:03Yeah.
0:35:03 > 0:35:08Paul will present the paperwork to Mark ahead of the competition.
0:35:08 > 0:35:11Francis has been left stunned.
0:35:11 > 0:35:15Garry's brother Mark told her the reason the brothers lost touch.
0:35:16 > 0:35:18- The court split up the kids?- Yeah.
0:35:18 > 0:35:26He was really resentful. He wanted to be with his dad, like his brothers, and he got Mum.
0:35:36 > 0:35:42It's five o'clock and in Birmingham Paul has arrived at Mark Szymanski's house.
0:35:42 > 0:35:47- Paul Matthews.- I was expecting you. - Nice to meet you.- Come on in.
0:35:47 > 0:35:49Thank you.
0:35:49 > 0:35:53He was stunned to hear the news about his brother's lonely death.
0:35:53 > 0:35:55The last time I seen him,
0:35:55 > 0:35:58my wife was pregnant with my son.
0:35:58 > 0:36:03That must be 23 years now since I seen him last.
0:36:03 > 0:36:08We just lost contact through the years. I just can't believe it.
0:36:08 > 0:36:14Yeah. Sometimes it happens. People have their own lives and move to different areas.
0:36:14 > 0:36:19- Five weeks becomes five months becomes five years.- Yes.
0:36:19 > 0:36:26Mark's parents, Czeslaw and Mary, were separated when he was just six weeks old
0:36:26 > 0:36:34- and their long, messy divorce took years to settle.- We've all just gone...- Separate ways.
0:36:34 > 0:36:38The last real phone call I had off him, he just said, like,
0:36:38 > 0:36:43"Our family's all split up. I'm the black sheep of the family."
0:36:43 > 0:36:47He said, "I'd sooner you not have any contact with me."
0:36:47 > 0:36:52- And that was the last.- There's not much you can do about that.- No.
0:36:52 > 0:36:59- It's...- That's the way he wanted to live his life. You've not got anything to feel guilty about.- No.
0:37:00 > 0:37:06After his parents separated in the early '60s, Mark lived with his dad and brothers.
0:37:06 > 0:37:12He was four when the divorce came through and they forced him to go to his mother,
0:37:12 > 0:37:16while his brothers, Garry and Dorien, stayed with their dad.
0:37:16 > 0:37:22I'd spend every weekend at my dad's and obviously my brothers were living with my dad.
0:37:22 > 0:37:24That's when I spent time with them.
0:37:24 > 0:37:30It was just like they grew up and they drifted into their own lives
0:37:30 > 0:37:35and my dad decided to up sticks and move to Germany with his mother.
0:37:35 > 0:37:38The family just fell apart, really, I think.
0:37:38 > 0:37:41Once again, thanks.
0:37:41 > 0:37:45- OK, OK, all the best. - Thank you.- Cheers.- Take care.
0:37:45 > 0:37:49It's a poignant story and Paul knows that without the Heir Hunters
0:37:49 > 0:37:53Mark would never have known that his brother Garry had passed away.
0:37:53 > 0:37:57He's got a few regrets because he didn't keep in touch with him.
0:37:57 > 0:38:01At least this chap's been made aware that his brother has passed away.
0:38:01 > 0:38:06Obviously, it's right that his brother's estate goes to these two.
0:38:06 > 0:38:10And earlier fears of competing Heir Hunters have proven unfounded.
0:38:10 > 0:38:14I'm surprised that we've seen none of our rival companies,
0:38:14 > 0:38:19but that's good news. We've got a signed agreement now,
0:38:19 > 0:38:23so the company will be very happy and we'll progress the claim.
0:38:25 > 0:38:30The final amount of Garry's estate was £130,000.
0:38:30 > 0:38:34This has been an emotional case for all concerned
0:38:34 > 0:38:41and partner Neil is shocked at the story of how the young Szymanski brothers were split up.
0:38:41 > 0:38:47The divorce court, for some reason, decided two brothers went with the father and one with the mother.
0:38:47 > 0:38:52It's unbelievable, really. That one action by one judge
0:38:52 > 0:38:56meant that these two brothers didn't have much to do with each other.
0:38:56 > 0:39:02So much so that one's passed away alone and the other one is going to inherit his money.
0:39:02 > 0:39:07It's a... a bit of a heart-wrenching story.
0:39:12 > 0:39:18But perhaps the most tragic of all, although Mark lived just 21 miles away,
0:39:18 > 0:39:22he hadn't seen his brother Garry in nearly a quarter of a century.
0:39:22 > 0:39:29He's arrived at Garry's old local to meet with some of Garry's closest friends.
0:39:29 > 0:39:35It's sad, really. I never spent much time with him, like, in these last years.
0:39:35 > 0:39:42If I knew he was that ill, I'd have, you know... I'd have been there for him.
0:39:43 > 0:39:49I've come over here to meet some friends of Garry's, Ken and Ivy,
0:39:49 > 0:39:55and hoping to hear some stories about Garry. I'm hoping it will bring some good memories for me.
0:39:55 > 0:40:00It's a bittersweet moment for Mark and for Ken and Ivy, too.
0:40:00 > 0:40:02Are you Ken and Ivy?
0:40:02 > 0:40:05I'm Garry's brother, Mark. Hiya.
0:40:05 > 0:40:07All right, love?
0:40:09 > 0:40:13- All right? - Thank you for coming.- No, it's OK.
0:40:13 > 0:40:17- Thank YOU for coming. Hiya, Ken.- How do you do?
0:40:17 > 0:40:23Ken and Ivy met Garry when they were neighbours and he became a regular fixture in their lives.
0:40:23 > 0:40:27They show Mark the road they lived on.
0:40:27 > 0:40:33- Garry used to come from the pub and come into our house. - For a cup of tea?- A cup of tea.
0:40:33 > 0:40:38- And a chat?- And a piece of cake. - He liked his cake.
0:40:38 > 0:40:42- A drop of whisky if it was available.- If it was available.
0:40:42 > 0:40:46- Was it available often?- No! - Ah, that's good.
0:40:46 > 0:40:48The whisky was, believe you me!
0:40:48 > 0:40:54- So this is where you lived? - This is where we lived. Garry would open the porch,
0:40:54 > 0:41:00- put his veggies in there and then we knew he'd come back for his cup of tea.- Oh, right.
0:41:00 > 0:41:05- That was a sign he'd be on his way. - And then he'd leave from there
0:41:05 > 0:41:10- and go down there to where Garry lives.- OK.
0:41:12 > 0:41:15Garry's house is several doors down.
0:41:15 > 0:41:22- It's many years since Mark has seen it.- We always knew he was in. He put the light on in the bedroom.
0:41:22 > 0:41:27- Oh, right. So you knew... - We knew he was in. - Have you been in since?- No.
0:41:27 > 0:41:32Not at all, no. Like I say, it was '88 when I was here last.
0:41:32 > 0:41:34- Yeah, yeah.- A long time ago.- Yeah.
0:41:39 > 0:41:43Garry was found and buried by strangers.
0:41:43 > 0:41:49Ken, Ivy and Mark don't even know where his grave is. For the three of them, this meeting is their chance
0:41:49 > 0:41:55- to share their memories of a friend and brother.- He always felt to me that he was shy.- Yeah.
0:41:55 > 0:42:01He gave the impression of being shy. And that is why we sort of befriended him in that way.
0:42:01 > 0:42:06- We thought he was lonely. And shy. - Yeah. I think...
0:42:06 > 0:42:14I think when my mum and dad got divorced, it all stemmed from that. I think he went into himself
0:42:14 > 0:42:20and in later life he got worse and worse in that respect. Keeping himself to himself.
0:42:20 > 0:42:28- That's right.- And Mark is relieved to know that his reclusive brother had found friends like Ken and Ivy.
0:42:28 > 0:42:33- I bet he adopted you as his mother and father, really.- In a sense.
0:42:33 > 0:42:39I'd like to thank you, really. What you've been saying is you were always there for him.
0:42:39 > 0:42:44He had somebody to turn to, you know what I mean? Thank you for that.
0:42:44 > 0:42:49- It's been really nice meeting you. - I'm so glad, glad of this.
0:43:07 > 0:43:10Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd