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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Mia O'Hare

BBC confirms return of Who Do You Think You Are? with a list of star-studded guests

The BBC has confirmed the return of Who Do You Think You Are? with a list of star-studded guests set to appear in the show.

The popular genealogy programme will appear on screens once more on June 1st on BBC One and follow nine celebrities on their extremely personal journeys.

Each celeb will delve into unknown family ancestry and unearth startling facts and truths about their heritage as part of series 20 of the show.

This year's celebs will be Claire Foy, Emily Atack, Bear Grylls, Chris Ramsey, Kevin Clifton, Dev Griffin, Chris & Xand van Tulleken and Lesley Manville.

They will be taken on a journey across the UK as well as to Ireland, the Netherlands, Canada, Jamaica and Australia in pursuit of the truth behind their family stories.

Claire Foy will take part in the BBC show (Getty Images for SeeHer)
Emily Atack will discover a connection to Ryan Reynolds (Dave Benett/Getty Images for WFTV Awards)

In the series, musical theatre master Andrew Lloyd Webber unearths uncanny parallels between his life and those of his ancestors.

Actor and comedian Emily Atack will discover that she, Ryan Reynolds and a certain football club have a lot more in common than she might ever have guessed.

Award-winning actors Claire Foy and Lesley Manville dive head-first into their family histories only to stumble upon stories worthy of any TV drama.

The Crown's Claire finds out her family were caught up in a murder trial and Lesley learns how an ancestor fighting for workers’ rights ended up paying a hefty price.

Meanwhile, Strictly Come Dancing winner Kevin Clifton and DJ Dev Griffin find themselves travelling overseas on the trail of their ancestors.

Kevin ends up in one of the most remote places in Canada and Dev travels to Jamaica where he’s surprised by some very personal records about his great-grandparents.

Bear Grylls appears on the show to find out he has a royal link (Getty Images)
Kevin embarks on a trip overseas for his family history discovery (Dave J Hogan/Getty Images for Strictly Ballroom The Musical)

Comedian, podcaster and TV host Chris Ramsey discovers some extraordinary survival stories and an ancestor who won a very unusual lottery.

Twin doctors and presenters Chris and Xand van Tulleken make their Who Do You Think You Are? journey together, on the trail of their Dutch ancestry, and adventurer Bear Grylls is delighted to end up in the wild, surprisingly through a royal connection.

Simon Young, BBC Head of History, said: "As one of Britain’s most beloved documentary series returns for series 20, the line-up of household names, and the array of astonishing family histories, grow from strength to strength.

"This series is often imitated but never bettered, and this latest edition demonstrates why."

Colette Flight, Executive Producer for Wall to Wall, added: "Who Do You Think You Are? is back with nine much-loved celebrities investigating their ancestry.

"The series will see them uncover incredible, moving and dramatic stories as their individual family trees reflect and shine a light on all of our shared history."

The new series of Who Do You Think You Are? launches on BBC One on 1st June with Andrew Lloyd Webber.

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