0:00:02 > 0:00:06Every year, around 300,000 people die in the UK without leaving a will
0:00:06 > 0:00:09and with no known relatives.
0:00:10 > 0:00:14In all the time I knew him, I never, apart from carers,
0:00:14 > 0:00:16I never saw a visitor.
0:00:17 > 0:00:19If no family members come forward,
0:00:19 > 0:00:21their money will go to the Government.
0:00:21 > 0:00:25And that is where the heir hunters come in.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28They specialise in tracking down beneficiaries who had no idea
0:00:28 > 0:00:30they are entitled to part of an estate.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33I just was in shock, really. I just couldn't...
0:00:35 > 0:00:38..take it all in, really. I thought this happened to other people.
0:00:40 > 0:00:42They face tough competition
0:00:42 > 0:00:45while working on estates worth thousands of pounds.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49We think there's a property involved which is valued at around £200,000.
0:00:49 > 0:00:54And they can uncover fascinating family histories and tragic secrets.
0:00:54 > 0:00:59My mum chucked him out when he was younger
0:00:59 > 0:01:02and he didn't want to know us.
0:01:02 > 0:01:07But it also opens doors to the past and can reunite families.
0:01:07 > 0:01:09- Hello.- Come in.
0:01:09 > 0:01:14Above all, it's about giving people news of an unexpected windfall.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17Could the heir hunter's be knocking at your door?
0:01:22 > 0:01:24Coming up:
0:01:24 > 0:01:27In the race to track down heirs,
0:01:27 > 0:01:29a costly mistake leads the team up the garden path.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34We have to start again on the paternal side of the family.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38And a legacy from a long-lost relative
0:01:38 > 0:01:40leaves a beneficiary stunned.
0:01:40 > 0:01:42I was absolutely amazed.
0:01:44 > 0:01:46I was absolutely shocked.
0:01:46 > 0:01:49Plus, how you could be entitled to inherit
0:01:49 > 0:01:51unclaimed estates held by the Treasury.
0:01:51 > 0:01:54Could thousands of pounds be heading your way?
0:02:00 > 0:02:03It's Wednesday morning at Fraser and Fraser,
0:02:03 > 0:02:06one of the largest companies in the heir hunting business.
0:02:06 > 0:02:10One of the firm's youngest case managers, 23-year-old Mike Powell,
0:02:10 > 0:02:12is working on a new unclaimed estate.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17I've got a case that has come in from a member of the public
0:02:17 > 0:02:19who lived next door to a lady.
0:02:19 > 0:02:21She recently passed away.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24It looks like she was just living with her brothers
0:02:24 > 0:02:27and the house has been in the family for about 60 odd years.
0:02:27 > 0:02:31The team believes this case could be worth in excess of £100,000
0:02:31 > 0:02:34and so they will be throwing all their resources at solving it.
0:02:36 > 0:02:42Rosamund Ethel Copper died in March 2013 at home in Sidcup, Kent.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46She had lived in the same house for over 20 years
0:02:46 > 0:02:49and was known by her middle name of Ethel.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53But it was only latterly that next-door neighbours really got to know her.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57Unfortunately, there are no surviving photographs of Rosamund.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59The copper family were very quiet.
0:02:59 > 0:03:00When we first moved in,
0:03:00 > 0:03:04we didn't get to know them for a number of years.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07They kept themselves to themselves for a very long time.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10It was only in the latter years that we really started
0:03:10 > 0:03:13to get to know, particularly Ethel.
0:03:14 > 0:03:18She just used to come out and chuck a load of food out for the birds.
0:03:18 > 0:03:20She was still doing that before she died.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22The front garden down there was
0:03:22 > 0:03:24always covered in breadcrumbs and stuff like that.
0:03:24 > 0:03:26She loved her birds.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33It's believed Rosamund died without leaving a will and the company
0:03:33 > 0:03:36have been informed about her estate by a concerned neighbour.
0:03:38 > 0:03:42The heir hunters' work can come from a variety of different sources,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45including cases advertised by the Treasury Solicitor.
0:03:45 > 0:03:50But these cases are hotly contested so tip-offs direct from members of the public
0:03:50 > 0:03:53can give them an edge over the competition.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56The only frustrating thing is, if they give it to more than one company,
0:03:56 > 0:03:58then obviously it becomes competitive.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01If they have given it to them before giving it to us,
0:04:01 > 0:04:04obviously we are at a disadvantage because we are behind.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08This is actually the second tip-off the team have received this week.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11Yesterday, case manager Gareth Langford also had
0:04:11 > 0:04:14a call from a concerned neighbour about another unclaimed estate.
0:04:14 > 0:04:18Believing it was worth several hundred thousand pounds,
0:04:18 > 0:04:21he and the team dropped everything to try and find heirs.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25We have just been advised of a potential new estate.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27Actually, by a member of the public.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30The deceased passed away some time ago, in 2009.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33The impression I'm getting is that the neighbours are concerned
0:04:33 > 0:04:35that his estate is not being dealt with
0:04:35 > 0:04:37and the property is obviously falling into...
0:04:37 > 0:04:40It's becoming derelict.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45But when they began contacting relatives, they got a nasty shock.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49We are a company that specialises in tracing missing heirs and beneficiaries.
0:04:51 > 0:04:54No. I don't think that was us. Did they ask you to sign anything?
0:04:56 > 0:04:57Right, OK.
0:04:57 > 0:05:02They are a very similar company to us and we will obviously leave it to them to deal with.
0:05:04 > 0:05:06So we are about 12 months behind on this one.
0:05:06 > 0:05:10The team might have missed out on yesterday's neighbour referral,
0:05:10 > 0:05:14but they are hoping they will be ahead of the competition in the case of Ethel Copper.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17I am waiting for David Hadley at the moment,
0:05:17 > 0:05:19who I have sent down there to do some enquiries
0:05:19 > 0:05:23and knock on a few doors to see if anyone actually knew the deceased.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26Early indications, it looks like the family own the house.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30There is always the point that a will might turn up at a later date.
0:05:30 > 0:05:33Obviously, we can't go into the house and look for one,
0:05:33 > 0:05:36but there may be one as this has come from a member of the public,
0:05:36 > 0:05:38not from the Treasury Solicitor's office.
0:05:40 > 0:05:44Heir hunter Dave Hadley is out on the road and on the case.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48Dave is one of the company's travelling heir hunters,
0:05:48 > 0:05:51who track down vital information on cases around the country
0:05:51 > 0:05:55and if necessary travel abroad to help solve the family mysteries
0:05:55 > 0:05:57surrounding unclaimed estates.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02It's their job to sign up newly discovered heirs before any rivals
0:06:02 > 0:06:07so that the team is ensured payment from an agreed percentage of any legacy.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13We got the information from a concerned neighbour.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16He is concerned because the house is now empty.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19It has already been burgled. The garden is over growing.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22He feels that nobody is doing anything about it.
0:06:22 > 0:06:26So I've been asked to come down and do some local enquiries.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29Dave will be knocking on doors in the neighbourhood
0:06:29 > 0:06:32where Rosamund lived to try and find out if anyone has
0:06:32 > 0:06:36any information on her family which could lead to potential heirs.
0:06:40 > 0:06:44Back in the office, the team is getting to grips with the basics of the family tree.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50Research reveals she was one of seven children,
0:06:50 > 0:06:53born to Henry Peter Copper and Charlotte Ellen Broome.
0:06:55 > 0:06:59We're just making sure we have picked up all of the children
0:06:59 > 0:07:01that are on the 11 census.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05We're trying to identify which ones are deceased.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08The team quickly establish that one sister died in infancy
0:07:08 > 0:07:12while Rosamund, her sister Dorothy and brothers, John and Samuel,
0:07:12 > 0:07:16all died without marrying or having children.
0:07:16 > 0:07:20Two brothers, Harry and Arthur, married, but neither her children.
0:07:21 > 0:07:25As none of Rosamund's siblings are alive or had children,
0:07:25 > 0:07:27the team must look to her parents' siblings
0:07:27 > 0:07:30to see if Rosamund had any surviving cousins.
0:07:30 > 0:07:33One of the paternal uncles of the deceased,
0:07:33 > 0:07:37he married in 1901 in Bromley.
0:07:37 > 0:07:39I have found them on the 11 census.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42He has got two children.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46The hunt is on in earnest to crack the case
0:07:46 > 0:07:50and sign up any beneficiaries before any rival firms can beat them to it.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54The team knows that Rosamund's mother, Charlotte Broome,
0:07:54 > 0:07:59was one of nine children born to Charles Broome, a gardener, and Emily Adams.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04It's down to rising research star, Emily, to trace them.
0:08:04 > 0:08:08I have just found a marriage for a maternal aunt,
0:08:08 > 0:08:10Bessie Margaret Broome.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16She was born in 1890 but she marries in 1945.
0:08:16 > 0:08:21So we can already know that she's not going to have issue from that marriage.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24I've just double checked, obviously.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28But there's confirmed no issue. I have got a death for her in 1971.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32So that stem is dead already.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36Every time Emily can establish that an aunt or uncle has died
0:08:36 > 0:08:40without having children, she can eliminate a stem of the family tree,
0:08:40 > 0:08:42which narrows down her search.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48Emily is getting excited. She is killing people!
0:08:50 > 0:08:52But there is barely a moment for Emily to celebrate
0:08:52 > 0:08:55her research technique as there is no time to waste.
0:08:57 > 0:09:00We have got 10 on one side and nine on the other side.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05So let's just hope they don't all have the same amount of children.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09With such a large family, the team know they are going to have their
0:09:09 > 0:09:13work cut out, both in the office and on the road to track them all down.
0:09:14 > 0:09:17- It looks like both sides are going to be huge.- Really?
0:09:17 > 0:09:20- One side is 10 and one side is nine. - Right. OK.
0:09:22 > 0:09:24While Emily is working on the maternal side,
0:09:24 > 0:09:27the paternal side is causing headaches all round.
0:09:28 > 0:09:31The team is struggling to find the family on any records
0:09:31 > 0:09:35and Mike is beginning to think the problem lies with the family name.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39They were all born a Copper, but the family name seems to be Cooper.
0:09:39 > 0:09:44So I think they have changed their name at some point from Cooper to Copper for some unknown reason.
0:09:44 > 0:09:49We have double checked and there is only one Henry P. Cooper
0:09:49 > 0:09:54who matches the date of birth and date of death that we have got.
0:09:54 > 0:09:58There is no birth of a Henry Copper, so we are safely assuming
0:09:58 > 0:10:01that the surname is actually Cooper not Copper.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06The team has taken a huge gamble, assuming the name has changed
0:10:06 > 0:10:09or been written down incorrectly in records.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12Following the name Cooper is a risk
0:10:12 > 0:10:14but it is all part of the heir hunting game.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19But even the surname Cooper is not without its problems.
0:10:20 > 0:10:24At the moment, I am still trying to identify all the births on the Cooper side.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29We have only got one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34Eight children at the moment identified.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38And on the 11 census there are 10 who are still alive
0:10:38 > 0:10:40and three that have died.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43So we are still trying to work out which one is which.
0:10:43 > 0:10:48And with many thousands of Coopers to sift through, Dan is going to need a bit of luck
0:10:48 > 0:10:51to find the right surname in that particular haystack.
0:10:53 > 0:10:57Meanwhile, travelling researcher Dave Hadley is dispatched
0:10:57 > 0:10:59to a local graveyard to try and find the family
0:10:59 > 0:11:02and verify the surname of Rosamund's mother, Charlotte.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07It's vital that the team confirms the correct name
0:11:07 > 0:11:09before they spend any more valuable time
0:11:09 > 0:11:13on what could be a wild goose chase, researching the wrong family.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18I've had a look at the headstones over there and there is a Hopper.
0:11:19 > 0:11:22But not a Copper.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25I mean, I'm thinking if the last brother was buried about two years ago,
0:11:25 > 0:11:28the headstone is going to be fairly new.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33But I've had a look at the new ones and I cant see anything with Copper on it.
0:11:34 > 0:11:39So no Copper or Cooper. Could this be another frustrating dead end?
0:11:41 > 0:11:43Found it.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48Charlotte Ellen Copper.
0:11:49 > 0:11:54It could be right, actually, because it shows the death of May 12, 1976,
0:11:54 > 0:11:58which would be about right from the information I got from the neighbour.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01The team's gamble has not paid off.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04It seems the family were called Copper after all
0:12:04 > 0:12:08and the research they've done into the name Cooper needs to go in the bin.
0:12:09 > 0:12:12Dave calls in his findings.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15- Hello, Dave.- Hi, Mike.
0:12:15 > 0:12:19Right, Copper is the name of this case, not Cooper.
0:12:19 > 0:12:24Dave's research is backed up by birth certificate which the team has just received.
0:12:24 > 0:12:26It looks like they were actually called Copper.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31The name change was just a bit of a coincidence.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35It seems all that work was for nothing.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38That means we have to start again on the paternal side of the family.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42We did take a bit of a leap of faith doing it.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46It is something that we do and if it doesn't work out,
0:12:46 > 0:12:49then that is one of the risks of the job.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59The job of the heir hunter is to find entitled relatives.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02But more often than not, their work also reveals
0:13:02 > 0:13:05remarkable stories about the person who has died.
0:13:05 > 0:13:09That was just what they found when the heir hunters started working
0:13:09 > 0:13:12the case of Geoffrey Sumner, which appeared on the list
0:13:12 > 0:13:15of unclaimed estates issued by the Treasury Solicitor.
0:13:17 > 0:13:21Experienced senior case manager Dave Slee took up the search for heirs.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24A search which had a very promising start.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27The internet was a great help to us.
0:13:27 > 0:13:31It gave a lot of information about Geoffrey's background,
0:13:31 > 0:13:33especially his occupation.
0:13:33 > 0:13:37He was a chief political journalist with the BBC.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41I was also able to establish that Geoffrey owned property
0:13:41 > 0:13:45in the Blackheath area of London, which is an exclusive area.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48So we knew that this state probably had a lot of value.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52With the property worth an estimated half a million pounds,
0:13:52 > 0:13:55this was a valuable case and with that comes
0:13:55 > 0:13:58a lot of competition from rival firms to find heirs.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02So the pressure was on to solve this case as quickly as possible.
0:14:05 > 0:14:0968-year-old Geoffrey Sumner died unexpectedly and alone
0:14:09 > 0:14:14on April 23, 2012, at his home in Blackheath, London.
0:14:15 > 0:14:18His friend and fellow journalist, Nick Jones,
0:14:18 > 0:14:22had known him for 30 years and was due to meet up with him.
0:14:22 > 0:14:26I used to go out for a walk with Geoff about once a month
0:14:26 > 0:14:28or once every two months.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32We had fixed up a walk on the South Downs.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35Geoff told me he was sorry but he had got a virus
0:14:35 > 0:14:38and a bad cough and he couldn't go.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41Then I got a call from the police to say they had gone to his home.
0:14:41 > 0:14:46He had called an ambulance, but when they got there, it was too late.
0:14:47 > 0:14:52I think the sadness for me was that having known Geoff's history,
0:14:52 > 0:14:58I think it was pretty tragic that he died on his own.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00That he had to call the ambulance
0:15:00 > 0:15:03and there was no-one there at the end.
0:15:05 > 0:15:09Nick has very fond memories of his old friend.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12Geoff was one of those friends that one can have in life
0:15:12 > 0:15:14who was very solid and reliable.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16He never got very close to me.
0:15:16 > 0:15:21He never asked me many questions. But I think he liked friendship.
0:15:21 > 0:15:26He liked going out on walks or going for lunch somewhere.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29He was never happier than with a glass of red wine in his hand.
0:15:35 > 0:15:38With no will or known close relatives, it was up to the
0:15:38 > 0:15:43heir hunters to try and find out more about Geoffrey and his family.
0:15:43 > 0:15:45Geoffrey was born in 1944.
0:15:45 > 0:15:49His parents were married some 10 years prior to that.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53So what we undertake is, we do a sweep of birth searching
0:15:53 > 0:15:58from the marriage in 1934 up until Geoffrey's birth in 1944
0:15:58 > 0:16:00and go past that for 20 years.
0:16:00 > 0:16:02We did not find any brothers and sisters.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07One of the first things that became clear was that Geoffrey had
0:16:07 > 0:16:10had a long and distinguished career as a journalist and broadcaster.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15This had taken him from a cub reporter on local newspapers
0:16:15 > 0:16:20to shaping the news stories in a BBC radio newsroom in the 1970s,
0:16:20 > 0:16:26to running some of the corporation's most important political programmes in the 1990s.
0:16:26 > 0:16:30Geoff had moved to Westminster, to the BBC at Westminster,
0:16:30 > 0:16:33where I had become a political correspondent.
0:16:33 > 0:16:37Geoff's job was editing the Parliamentary programmes
0:16:37 > 0:16:42like 'Yesterday in Parliament', 'Today in Parliament', 'Westminster Live'.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44But we got the chance to work together
0:16:44 > 0:16:46because Geoff was editor for a time
0:16:46 > 0:16:49of a weekly programme called 'Scrutiny'.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51I was the presenter.
0:16:51 > 0:16:56This was, I think, perhaps one of the most rewarding passages in my career
0:16:56 > 0:16:59because Geoff was a brilliant editor.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03But in spite of the close friendship he shared with Nick,
0:17:03 > 0:17:06Geoffrey was not an easy man to know.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10He was somebody who was very self-contained
0:17:10 > 0:17:15because it wasn't as though I was ever invited to his flat.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18I mean, I invited him to my home but I was never invited back.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21So I always got the impression there was a bit of a barrier there.
0:17:21 > 0:17:24He didn't want to get close to anybody.
0:17:26 > 0:17:31A clue to Geoffrey's self-contained nature might have been hidden in his past.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36What we found out was that Geoffrey was raised by a paternal aunt.
0:17:36 > 0:17:38His father's sister.
0:17:39 > 0:17:41Research uncovered an early tragedy
0:17:41 > 0:17:44that had struck at the heart of Geoffrey's small family.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48His mother suffered from MS and died when he was just eight.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53Two years later, his father died of kidney failure,
0:17:53 > 0:17:56leaving Geoffrey an orphan by the age of 10.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01Geoffrey's birth certificate gave no indication
0:18:01 > 0:18:03to the fact that he was legally adopted away.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06You normally have an amendment at the end of the certificate.
0:18:06 > 0:18:11So we presumed that he either went into foster care
0:18:11 > 0:18:15or was raised by a family member, which transpired was indeed the case.
0:18:15 > 0:18:20He was raised by one of his father's sisters. His paternal aunt.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24Geoffrey's Aunt Rosina and her husband came to live
0:18:24 > 0:18:29at the Sumner family home in Surrey to look after their orphaned nephew.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32But with both parents dead and no siblings,
0:18:32 > 0:18:35heir hunter Dave had to look to the wider family
0:18:35 > 0:18:38and it quickly became clear that the team was taking on a huge task.
0:18:40 > 0:18:44Research indicated that the deceased's father,
0:18:44 > 0:18:48of the Sumner family, had seven brothers and sisters.
0:18:48 > 0:18:53And on the mother's family, which were named Slattery, there were six brothers and sisters.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57With so many potential heirs to trace,
0:18:57 > 0:19:00the pressure is on the team to find heirs ahead of their rivals,
0:19:00 > 0:19:03particularly as the stakes had just got higher.
0:19:05 > 0:19:10Initially, we only knew about one property that Geoffrey owned
0:19:10 > 0:19:15and what transpires is, in fact, he owned two properties in Blackheath.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20The team had an early breakthrough.
0:19:20 > 0:19:25They managed to trace Pamela, the daughter of Geoffrey's mother's sister and so his first cousin.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28Pamela knew very little about Geoffrey,
0:19:28 > 0:19:33so the news of his death and her potential inheritance was like a bolt out of the blue.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36I was absolutely amazed.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41I was absolutely shocked, as you would be, really.
0:19:41 > 0:19:43I just couldn't take it all in, really.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46I thought this happened to other people.
0:19:46 > 0:19:52Although I was pleased, I was obviously very sad to hear about Geoffrey
0:19:52 > 0:19:55and sorry that he didn't know us and we didn't know him.
0:19:55 > 0:20:00Sadly, Pamela has no direct memories of Geoffrey.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02I never met Geoffrey.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04However, I do have a vague recollection of my mother
0:20:04 > 0:20:08saying, "Poor little Geoffrey" and I can only assume
0:20:08 > 0:20:12that is when his mother died when he was eight-years-old.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16Finding Pamela enabled the heir hunters to get in touch
0:20:16 > 0:20:19with her sister, Patricia, which quickly gave them
0:20:19 > 0:20:23two heirs signed up to a contract which gave the heir hunters
0:20:23 > 0:20:25an agreed percentage of their legacy.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29Although this was a good start to the case, there was still
0:20:29 > 0:20:33a huge challenge ahead to track down all of Geoffrey's potential heirs.
0:20:33 > 0:20:37Dave was now focused on another branch of the maternal family,
0:20:37 > 0:20:39Pamela's uncle, Patrick, and he had hit a snag.
0:20:41 > 0:20:45We had a problem with one of the maternal stems, Patrick Slattery.
0:20:46 > 0:20:51We know he was born in Southwark but we could find no record
0:20:51 > 0:20:54pertaining to his marriage or his death in this country.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58As he delved deeper, Dave discovered that there was a shocking
0:20:58 > 0:21:02tragedy that had consumed the family in the 1960s.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06Geoffrey's uncle Patrick had been born in London.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09He had married Geoffrey's aunt, an Irish woman named Clara,
0:21:09 > 0:21:13and had moved to Belfast where they had four children.
0:21:13 > 0:21:16Geoffrey's first cousins and potential heirs.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20Patrick made a career for himself as a cook in the Merchant Navy
0:21:20 > 0:21:24and landed a job on a 1,000 ton coaster ship called the Ardgarry.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27The Ardgarry was only five years old.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30She was of that generation of ships that was coming through in the late
0:21:30 > 0:21:341950s, which offered much better living conditions for her crew.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37As a coaster vessel and with a crew of 12,
0:21:37 > 0:21:41the Ardgarry made short voyages picking up and delivering cargo.
0:21:41 > 0:21:47In September 1962, the Ardgarry was on its way from Swansea with a cargo of coal.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51Obviously, coal export was big business for South Wales at that time.
0:21:51 > 0:21:54It was on its way to Rouen in northern France.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56But what should have been a routine trip
0:21:56 > 0:21:59quickly turned into a maritime disaster.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02The weather conditions were absolutely appalling.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06There was a very violent storm. The waves were 30 feet high. Visibility was very poor.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09There is very little information on what actually happened to it.
0:22:09 > 0:22:14There was no distress signal which suggests that whatever happened happened very quickly.
0:22:16 > 0:22:20The only report at the time was from a Dutch coaster which
0:22:20 > 0:22:23reported in a rather garbled form that it had seen a ship capsize.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26Geoffrey's whole family was affected by the disaster.
0:22:26 > 0:22:30They tried to launch the lifeboat time and time again
0:22:30 > 0:22:33but it was being thrown back. It was dreadful.
0:22:33 > 0:22:37I am told the villagers had hurricane lamps and blankets
0:22:37 > 0:22:40and they were standing on the cliff.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44It upsets me a bit.
0:22:45 > 0:22:46Hoping for survivors.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52But sadly, that wasn't to be.
0:22:54 > 0:22:58Geoffrey's uncle Patrick was one of 12 crew who perished when the Ardgarry sank,
0:22:58 > 0:23:02devastating his wife and four children.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05It was a terrible, terrible time for them.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08Our auntie went blind with the shock.
0:23:08 > 0:23:10The shipping company
0:23:10 > 0:23:15and also the Seamen's Union made no contact with them.
0:23:15 > 0:23:19They had no financial assistance at all. The whole thing is dreadful.
0:23:19 > 0:23:21And to have no support.
0:23:23 > 0:23:24Financially.
0:23:28 > 0:23:29It's really quite appalling.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35Eventually, Patrick's wife regained her sight
0:23:35 > 0:23:38and the family emigrated to Canada where they had relatives
0:23:38 > 0:23:40and they built a new life for themselves,
0:23:40 > 0:23:43making every effort to put the past behind them.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47But that wasn't the end of Patrick's story.
0:23:48 > 0:23:52Miraculously, 40 years later,
0:23:52 > 0:23:55information was received by my cousins in Canada
0:23:55 > 0:24:01that a diving team at the Lizard in Cornwall
0:24:01 > 0:24:07had come across a wreck that maybe the Ardgarry that was lost in 1962.
0:24:08 > 0:24:11The diving team brought up the ship's bell
0:24:11 > 0:24:14in order to prove beyond doubt that the newly discovered wreck
0:24:14 > 0:24:16was indeed the long lost Ardgarry.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19It was covered in barnacles, apparently.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23And they cleaned the bell.
0:24:23 > 0:24:25And it said the Ardgarry.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29Which was just like a miracle.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32My cousin got on a plane in Canada that night
0:24:33 > 0:24:38and came over and met up with people from the diving team.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41And eventually, he was able to touch the bell
0:24:41 > 0:24:45and he said it was just a wonderful feeling
0:24:45 > 0:24:49to be reunited with his father after all those years.
0:24:49 > 0:24:53He just felt close to him again and it was meant to be.
0:24:53 > 0:24:58And he obviously felt peace at last, as did all my cousins.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04With the search for heirs for Geoffrey's £1,000,000 estate
0:25:04 > 0:25:08going global, and the pressure on to track down beneficiaries
0:25:08 > 0:25:13before the competition, heir hunter Dave is up against it.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16There were a number of cousins who we interviewed who were
0:25:16 > 0:25:19completely unaware of Geoffrey's existence.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30Heir hunters trace thousands of rightful beneficiaries every year
0:25:30 > 0:25:33but not all cases can be cracked.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37There are over 10,000 estates on the Treasury's Bona Vacantia list,
0:25:37 > 0:25:40that have eluded the heir hunters and remain unsolved.
0:25:40 > 0:25:42Unclaimed cases can be
0:25:42 > 0:25:44referred to us by many people.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46Erm, these can be, for example,
0:25:46 > 0:25:48local authorities who've arranged the funeral,
0:25:48 > 0:25:50it can be friends of the deceased, erm,
0:25:50 > 0:25:54it can also be private firms of solicitors, hospitals.
0:25:54 > 0:25:58So, really, anyone can refer an estate to us if they know of one.
0:25:59 > 0:26:02Today, we're focusing on two cases that are yet to be
0:26:02 > 0:26:04solved by the heir hunters.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07Could you be about to inherit some money from a long, lost relative?
0:26:10 > 0:26:13First, it's the case of Anne Margaret Whitwam,
0:26:13 > 0:26:16who died on the 30th of November, 2001,
0:26:16 > 0:26:19in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire.
0:26:21 > 0:26:25Anne was also born in Huddersfield, on the 26th of February, 1949
0:26:25 > 0:26:27and never married.
0:26:27 > 0:26:30Her mother's maiden name was Lancaster.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33With so little information to go on,
0:26:33 > 0:26:36tracing Anne's relatives has so far proved impossible.
0:26:37 > 0:26:42Could you be a relative of Anne's, entitled to a share of her estate?
0:26:42 > 0:26:45Or do you know anything which could shed some light on her family.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51Next, do you have any clues that could crack open
0:26:51 > 0:26:52the case of Ralph Yates?
0:26:52 > 0:26:56Ralph was a bachelor, born on the fourth of June, 1917,
0:26:56 > 0:26:59on the Channel Island of Jersey.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03He died nearly 90 years later on the first of January, 2007,
0:27:03 > 0:27:05in Guildford, Surrey.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09Yates is an ancient Anglo-Saxon name,
0:27:09 > 0:27:12mainly associated with the West Country.
0:27:12 > 0:27:14Could any of his relatives have been based
0:27:14 > 0:27:16there before moving to the Channel Islands?
0:27:16 > 0:27:19If so, could there be a direct connection to him
0:27:19 > 0:27:21still living there.
0:27:21 > 0:27:26Did you know Ralph or do you have any information about his family?
0:27:28 > 0:27:31Both Anne and Ralph's estates remain unclaimed
0:27:31 > 0:27:36and if no-one comes forward, their money will go to the government.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39The money raised by the Bona Vacantia division is passed
0:27:39 > 0:27:43annually to the Treasury and it goes into the Consolidated Fund.
0:27:43 > 0:27:46Therefore, to benefit the country as a whole.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48Do you have any clues that could help solve
0:27:48 > 0:27:51the cases of Anne Whitwam or Ralph Yates.
0:27:51 > 0:27:54Perhaps you could be their next of kin.
0:27:54 > 0:27:58If so, you could have thousands of pounds coming your way.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08Having wasted time looking for heirs with the name Cooper,
0:28:08 > 0:28:11it's back to the drawing board for heir hunters
0:28:11 > 0:28:14looking into the paternal side of the estate of Rosamund Copper.
0:28:18 > 0:28:20Although there is no photograph of Rosamund,
0:28:20 > 0:28:24research showed that she'd lived in the same house for most of her life.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27It was the family home and in her later life,
0:28:27 > 0:28:30Rosamund lived there with her brothers, John and Samuel,
0:28:30 > 0:28:32until they passed away and she was alone.
0:28:34 > 0:28:35They were just very quiet,
0:28:35 > 0:28:37we just used to see them in the
0:28:37 > 0:28:39garden, they used to do the hedge.
0:28:39 > 0:28:43Erm, we just used to say hello to them in passing, really.
0:28:43 > 0:28:46Rosamund, who was also known as Ethel,
0:28:46 > 0:28:50spent her whole life living in the family home with her brothers.
0:28:51 > 0:28:53When we really got to know them, there was
0:28:53 > 0:28:57two brothers and Ethel and she used to look after the family.
0:28:57 > 0:28:58Apparently another brother,
0:28:58 > 0:29:02who lived there, was injured in the war and as the mother got
0:29:02 > 0:29:07older she Ethel left her job to look after the family.
0:29:07 > 0:29:10Her brothers died, leaving Ethel alone.
0:29:10 > 0:29:13But she was determined not to be a burden on anyone,
0:29:13 > 0:29:15even towards the end of her life.
0:29:16 > 0:29:20She needed some help and we helped her get a new cooker
0:29:20 > 0:29:22and a new phone.
0:29:22 > 0:29:25And she was very grateful...
0:29:25 > 0:29:30..and she was...you know, she didn't want to impose on anybody.
0:29:30 > 0:29:33That was the problem, she didn't want to, you know, she had to
0:29:33 > 0:29:36ask for help but she didn't really want to.
0:29:37 > 0:29:42But she was a lovely lady, really, very quiet, unassuming.
0:29:44 > 0:29:47While the team is back to square one on the paternal side,
0:29:47 > 0:29:51researcher Emily has made progress with the maternal tree.
0:29:51 > 0:29:58This is a stem of the Charles John Broom, an uncle of the deceased.
0:29:58 > 0:30:04He marries A Grace Mary Gaypher in 1901, in Bromley, erm,
0:30:04 > 0:30:07I've got them on the '11 census and they've got two children
0:30:07 > 0:30:11and there's also another child born in 1914, as well.
0:30:11 > 0:30:15All in Bromley, so all sticking to area, which is a good thing.
0:30:15 > 0:30:17I think a lot of the heirs will probably be just down the road,
0:30:17 > 0:30:20really, from where the deceased died.
0:30:21 > 0:30:24With so many branches of the family tree to follow,
0:30:24 > 0:30:27the case has become a major challenge for the team.
0:30:27 > 0:30:29The families are so big, erm,
0:30:29 > 0:30:32Emily and Dan are still trying to work out the other side.
0:30:32 > 0:30:35Cos we can't seem to find a birth under Copper.
0:30:35 > 0:30:37But I think they've found a war record, which indicates
0:30:37 > 0:30:41who his parents are and he's in the right age and he's in the right area.
0:30:41 > 0:30:44Finally, the team appears to have made a breakthrough.
0:30:44 > 0:30:47There's a first cousin who who's living in Orkney
0:30:47 > 0:30:48and he's got a phone number,
0:30:48 > 0:30:51so I'm going to get Michael to phone him
0:30:51 > 0:30:55and see if he can confirm that his Uncle Henry married
0:30:55 > 0:30:57Charlotte Broom and had Rosamund, our deceased.
0:30:58 > 0:31:01But, obviously, if he didn't then we know it's wrong
0:31:01 > 0:31:03but hopefully he'll be able to confirm, either way,
0:31:03 > 0:31:06whether or not it's right and then we can carry on working it.
0:31:06 > 0:31:10If he can confirm that he is part of our family, then, obviously,
0:31:10 > 0:31:12that makes him an heir and his siblings
0:31:12 > 0:31:14and all of the other cousins that he's got.
0:31:14 > 0:31:16Hello there, sir. I'm very sorry to trouble you.
0:31:16 > 0:31:19It's nothing untoward. I'm currently trying...
0:31:19 > 0:31:22Mike manages to get a potential cousin on the phone.
0:31:24 > 0:31:26Would that be yourself?
0:31:26 > 0:31:27OK, brilliant. Now, I wonder if you
0:31:27 > 0:31:30know much about your aunties and uncles.
0:31:32 > 0:31:35It's great news! The team have finally found a Copper.
0:31:35 > 0:31:37A first cousin to Rosamund
0:31:37 > 0:31:40and a major leap forward in tracing the wider family tree.
0:31:41 > 0:31:44And, while Mike calls potential heirs in one
0:31:44 > 0:31:47part of the country, he's sent travelling researcher, Dave Hadley,
0:31:47 > 0:31:51to visit more cousins they've uncovered with their research.
0:31:51 > 0:31:55Right, well, I've just arrived at the address of Mr David Cooke,
0:31:55 > 0:31:57at least, I hope it's his address.
0:31:57 > 0:31:59And I'm going to go and knock on the door and see
0:31:59 > 0:32:01if he's willing to speak to me.
0:32:02 > 0:32:06First up is the son of Rosamund's first cousin, on her mother's side.
0:32:08 > 0:32:10- Mr David Cooke?- Yes.
0:32:10 > 0:32:12- David Hadley.- Nice to meet you.- And you.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15Now, we're dealing with a case at the moment where a lady
0:32:15 > 0:32:19passed away and we believe that she's related to you
0:32:19 > 0:32:22through your mother's line of the family.
0:32:22 > 0:32:27- Can you tell me your mother's full name?- Bessie Violet Cooke.
0:32:27 > 0:32:29David confirms the research
0:32:29 > 0:32:32and he is definitely an heir.
0:32:32 > 0:32:34I've been and see the house today
0:32:34 > 0:32:36and spoken to neighbours.
0:32:36 > 0:32:41It's at a very early stage at the moment and anything can happen.
0:32:41 > 0:32:44So, I always say this to people, you know, don't...
0:32:44 > 0:32:45Don't get excited.
0:32:45 > 0:32:49Don't get too excited and don't book the world cruise just yet.
0:32:49 > 0:32:51No, no, no chance!
0:32:51 > 0:32:53Until you know how much it is. Thank you ever so much.
0:32:53 > 0:32:57Dave wastes no time in letting the office know the good news.
0:32:57 > 0:32:59Spoken to David Cooke.
0:32:59 > 0:33:02He wants to discuss it with his brother, Ronald,
0:33:02 > 0:33:03but I don't see any problems.
0:33:03 > 0:33:06I'm pretty sure. I'm confident that he's going to sign
0:33:06 > 0:33:08the agreement, send it through to us.
0:33:08 > 0:33:12It seems Dave's on a roll and is off to the next address.
0:33:12 > 0:33:15He's been pointed in the direction of the heir's workplace,
0:33:15 > 0:33:19where beneficiary Barbara, from the deceased mother's side of the family
0:33:19 > 0:33:23is keen to help Dave fill in some of the missing pieces of this puzzle.
0:33:23 > 0:33:26I've got your dad as William
0:33:26 > 0:33:28but you say it's not.
0:33:28 > 0:33:32It's Irvin Charles William Brecon. He was always known as Bill.
0:33:32 > 0:33:35My grandad called him Billy-Boy from the day he was born.
0:33:35 > 0:33:39- Your grandmother was Lillian Annie Broom.- Yes.
0:33:39 > 0:33:41Dad was Charles John Broom.
0:33:41 > 0:33:43And that's where we get the connection
0:33:43 > 0:33:46because the person that's died was a child of his sister.
0:33:49 > 0:33:53- In effect, she would have been a cousin of your grandfather.- Right.
0:33:53 > 0:33:56We don't know, for sure, that she hasn't left a will.
0:33:56 > 0:33:59- Right, OK.- We do know that she was living on her own
0:33:59 > 0:34:02and she'd never married, didn't have any children
0:34:02 > 0:34:06and all of her siblings had all passed away before her.
0:34:06 > 0:34:08I hope it's a nice amount for you.
0:34:08 > 0:34:09Yes, yeah, that would be lovely.
0:34:13 > 0:34:19Right, I have just finished the interview with Barbara Holmes.
0:34:19 > 0:34:23Possible heir and really nice lady, actually.
0:34:23 > 0:34:26Good interview, gave me quite a bit of information,
0:34:26 > 0:34:28filled in a few holes as well.
0:34:28 > 0:34:30I've left the agreement with her.
0:34:30 > 0:34:33She's got five siblings,
0:34:33 > 0:34:36so she wants to discuss it with all of them before they decide what they
0:34:36 > 0:34:39want to do but I'm fairly confident that she'll sign the agreement.
0:34:39 > 0:34:43So, erm, it's been a really successful day.
0:34:43 > 0:34:47A few days later, the team in the office have also come up trumps
0:34:47 > 0:34:49and have managed to complete the family tree
0:34:49 > 0:34:52and sign up all 25 heirs.
0:34:52 > 0:34:56They've agreed to pay the company a percentage of their individual
0:34:56 > 0:35:00legacies from Rosamund's estimated £100,000 estate.
0:35:00 > 0:35:02A good case, coming from a tip off,
0:35:02 > 0:35:07where we've been able to sign all the beneficiaries on a
0:35:07 > 0:35:10reasonably valuable estate, prior to anyone else becoming aware of it.
0:35:10 > 0:35:13So, for us, we're very pleased.
0:35:21 > 0:35:22From their offices in London,
0:35:22 > 0:35:26the heir hunters were racing against time to beat the competition to find
0:35:26 > 0:35:30heirs to the estate of retired BBC journalist Geoffrey Sumner.
0:35:31 > 0:35:35They believe the estate to be worth, in excess of, £1,000,000.
0:35:35 > 0:35:39Bearing in mind that we knew that this estate had value,
0:35:39 > 0:35:44we had staff researching both sides of the family tree simultaneously.
0:35:46 > 0:35:49Geoffrey's father had been one of seven children
0:35:49 > 0:35:51and his mother one of six.
0:35:51 > 0:35:54So, tracing all the potential heirs to Geoffrey's estate was
0:35:54 > 0:35:56a painstaking and time-consuming business.
0:35:58 > 0:36:02Having solved the mystery of Geoffrey's Uncle Patrick and traced
0:36:02 > 0:36:07his children to Canada, research on the maternal side was now complete.
0:36:07 > 0:36:10On the paternal side, they were making good progress too.
0:36:10 > 0:36:13They'd found six first cousins but, as they did so,
0:36:13 > 0:36:17something mysterious began to emerge.
0:36:17 > 0:36:21What surprised me was that there were a number of cousins who
0:36:21 > 0:36:26we interviewed who were completely unaware of Geoffrey's existence.
0:36:26 > 0:36:31Now, I put that down to the fact that he was raised by a paternal aunt
0:36:31 > 0:36:35and, therefore, the maternal family had very little,
0:36:35 > 0:36:38if any, contact with him.
0:36:38 > 0:36:41For a man who spent his life meticulously communicating
0:36:41 > 0:36:45breaking news stories, his own personal story was a mystery.
0:36:47 > 0:36:51We all knew, at work, that he had this terrible, tragic childhood
0:36:51 > 0:36:57and, I think, because of that people were prepared to go along with
0:36:57 > 0:37:00Geoffrey if he was in one of his...a bit cussed
0:37:00 > 0:37:03when it came to dealing with people who'd asked him silly questions.
0:37:03 > 0:37:05Because that was the point, you see.
0:37:05 > 0:37:07He was somebody who was well read himself.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10He had come up the hard way
0:37:10 > 0:37:15and I think he expected other people to respect that.
0:37:16 > 0:37:18But it seems that Geoffrey found a way to make up for any
0:37:18 > 0:37:21shortfalls in his private life.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23When he was at Westminster,
0:37:23 > 0:37:27he began to work very closely with his teams of journalists.
0:37:27 > 0:37:31There would be outings, there would be a trip, perhaps, on the Thames.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34This was during a break in work, of course.
0:37:34 > 0:37:38And Geoff would be so warm and embracing to the younger
0:37:38 > 0:37:41members of the team and ensure that they enjoyed themselves.
0:37:41 > 0:37:46And I always thought that here was someone who was able to have
0:37:46 > 0:37:50acquired, at long last, a bit of a family.
0:37:50 > 0:37:53One of the cousins on the paternal side was Joan.
0:37:53 > 0:37:57She was the daughter of Rosina, the aunt who'd raised Geoffrey
0:37:57 > 0:38:00and having been contacted by the heir hunters, she was able to
0:38:00 > 0:38:04shed some light on what had driven her cousin away from the family.
0:38:05 > 0:38:08I knew Geoffrey, yes.
0:38:08 > 0:38:13I met him as a child and after his parents died,
0:38:13 > 0:38:17erm, my mother took over as foster parent.
0:38:17 > 0:38:21I did see him quite often but not as often as I'd like
0:38:21 > 0:38:26because I lived in London and worked in London and he lived in Surrey.
0:38:26 > 0:38:32Geoffrey enjoyed collecting butterflies and reading.
0:38:32 > 0:38:37He seemed quite advanced in his reading literature and so on.
0:38:39 > 0:38:41In fact, the young Geoffrey was advanced enough to win
0:38:41 > 0:38:45a scholarship to the local grammar school at the age of 11.
0:38:45 > 0:38:48Education, when Geoffrey was at school in the 1950s, had
0:38:48 > 0:38:52improved significantly, thanks to a change in the law, a decade earlier.
0:38:54 > 0:38:57What the 1944 Education Act
0:38:57 > 0:39:00did was to make sure that each
0:39:00 > 0:39:06Local Education Authority provided secondary education for everyone.
0:39:06 > 0:39:09Prior to 1944, most people,
0:39:09 > 0:39:11the vast majority of people left school at 14.
0:39:13 > 0:39:17All school children had to sit the 11-plus aptitude test.
0:39:17 > 0:39:19Those who passed went on to grammar schools
0:39:19 > 0:39:23and those who didn't went to a secondary modern school.
0:39:23 > 0:39:26For a bright boy like Geoffrey it was essential that he
0:39:26 > 0:39:28got into grammar school.
0:39:28 > 0:39:31It opened up a whole new world of learning.
0:39:31 > 0:39:35Grammar schools really focused on intellectually rigorous
0:39:35 > 0:39:39academic subjects, erm, such as the teaching of history,
0:39:39 > 0:39:43modern languages, the classics, advanced mathematics.
0:39:44 > 0:39:47It seemed that Geoffrey thrived at school
0:39:47 > 0:39:49but then something happened which could explain why
0:39:49 > 0:39:52he closed the door on his family in later life.
0:39:54 > 0:39:56My mother told me
0:39:56 > 0:39:59the story that she had been called in
0:39:59 > 0:40:05by the headmaster of the school he was at to say that he
0:40:05 > 0:40:10reckoned, at 16, Geoffrey would be university material.
0:40:12 > 0:40:18My mother replied that he was to leave at 16
0:40:18 > 0:40:23because I was made to leave at 14.
0:40:24 > 0:40:28Having to leave school at 16 was a bitter blow for Geoffrey, whose
0:40:28 > 0:40:30dreams of attending university
0:40:30 > 0:40:34and having a high-flying career appeared to be in tatters.
0:40:34 > 0:40:37And it seemed Geoffrey never forgave his aunt for
0:40:37 > 0:40:41so cruelly cutting short the blossoming of his academic career.
0:40:41 > 0:40:45His bitterness appeared to have spread to the wider family, even to
0:40:45 > 0:40:48his cousin, Joan, who visited him as a child and wrote to him
0:40:48 > 0:40:53in the '70s as an adult, in the hope of re-establishing their connection.
0:40:54 > 0:40:58I just wanted to hear how he was
0:40:58 > 0:41:00but he never replied.
0:41:02 > 0:41:04In spite of the early blow to his education,
0:41:04 > 0:41:08Geoffrey was determined to make something of himself
0:41:08 > 0:41:11and after leaving school he got a job as a junior reporter that
0:41:11 > 0:41:15would set him on the path of a glittering career in journalism.
0:41:16 > 0:41:20But, finally, 40 years later, he was able to follow his heart
0:41:20 > 0:41:22and go to university.
0:41:22 > 0:41:24It was actually a great honour,
0:41:24 > 0:41:26to be honest. To be able to,
0:41:26 > 0:41:28in particular, to supervise his PHD.
0:41:28 > 0:41:30Because at that level you, actually,
0:41:30 > 0:41:32very, very quickly get into,
0:41:32 > 0:41:35erm, really intense intellectual discussions.
0:41:35 > 0:41:39And with a student as smart as Geoffrey,
0:41:39 > 0:41:41it was just a real honour.
0:41:41 > 0:41:45For Geoff, this was such an important finale, really,
0:41:45 > 0:41:47if you like, to his career.
0:41:47 > 0:41:51That he'd actually found a vehicle to use all of his knowledge
0:41:51 > 0:41:53and actually produce something himself.
0:41:53 > 0:41:56Something that was going to assessed, properly, by a university
0:41:56 > 0:42:02and I think it was, he was a changed man as a result of it.
0:42:02 > 0:42:05All in all the heir hunters have managed to track down 24 heirs
0:42:05 > 0:42:06to Geoffrey's estate,
0:42:06 > 0:42:08who are dotted around the world.
0:42:08 > 0:42:11From Canada, New Zealand and to Scotland.
0:42:11 > 0:42:14And, as the final settlement is still being worked out,
0:42:14 > 0:42:19Dave reflects on one of the rewarding aspects of his job.
0:42:19 > 0:42:24It is satisfying to be able to put all the pieces together...
0:42:24 > 0:42:28of the jigsaw and be able to inform family members of information
0:42:28 > 0:42:31they would never have known without us.
0:42:33 > 0:42:36Although Geoffrey spent his adult life denying his family,
0:42:36 > 0:42:40his cousins Pamela and her sister Patricia, who never met him,
0:42:40 > 0:42:43are now benefiting from his estate.
0:42:43 > 0:42:46They've come to where he lived, to pay their respects
0:42:46 > 0:42:49and to show that he'll always have a place in their hearts.
0:42:50 > 0:42:53It's opposite where he used to live
0:42:53 > 0:42:57and where he found great happiness when he was studying.
0:42:57 > 0:43:01Erm, there are other trees of remembrance here
0:43:01 > 0:43:03and his is going to be a white rose tree,
0:43:03 > 0:43:09which will stand up perfectly and will be a place where the
0:43:09 > 0:43:14relatives will now know that Geoffrey has been laid to rest.