Len Goodman

Known to millions as the lead judge on the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing, Len Goodman nearly became a welder until a friend told him to try out ballroom dancing because it is 'full of girls and virtually no boys'. Now Len feels it is time to find out about his ancestors.

He spent much of his childhood with his mother's parents in Bethnal Green, and it is this side of the family that Len wants to investigate. Len discovers how the shadow of the workhouse loomed large over his family and led to tragic consequences. He also uncovers a connection to silk weaving and sets out to solve the mystery of an ancestor's descent into poverty.

Len also follows the trail of his Polish great-great-grandfather, Joseph Sosnowski. He wants to know how Joseph ended up in Portsmouth in 1834. As Len follows in his footsteps, he discovers the dramatic part Joseph played in the struggle for Polish independence.