Who Do You Think You Are?

Save

Season 22
8 episodes

History

Summary

More famous faces embark on journeys researching their family trees, uncovering surprising facts about their past and the roles their families played in shaping British history.

Episode 3: Ross Kemp

Summary

Actor and documentary-maker Ross Kemp traces his ancestry, believing sifting fact from fiction will be the biggest challenge when it comes to his family history. He starts with his maternal great-grandfather Arthur Chalmers, finding out he served in the Merchant Navy during two world wars. Ross then turns his attention to his four-time great-grandfather on his father's side, who joined the Royal Navy as a drummer boy when he was only 13 and served in the Napoleonic Wars

Review

Jane Rackham

Ross Kemp is convinced that his family tree will reveal someone who has a connection to the sea and to travel, because these things have always been important to him. He’s especially interested in his great-grandfather Arthur Chalmers, known as Pop, because he was in the merchant navy and looked a bit like Popeye the Sailor Man. The actor and presenter has heard many colourful stories about this character and, as an emotional Ross discovers, he was a man who was married to the sea.

However, his first port of call — appropriately, considering his role in EastEnders — is a pub in Portsmouth, where some of his antecedents lived — including his “wrong ‘un” of a great uncle. And the seafaring stories continue as he investigates his father’s side of the family, including the discovery that one relative joined the Royal Navy as a drummer boy when he was only 13 years old and served in the Napoleonic Wars.

How to watch

Next showing

There are no live broadcasts scheduled for this show. But it is available via the streaming provider below.

Streaming

BBC iPlayer

Details

Released on

2025-05-06

Languages

Formats

Colour

Credits

Crew

rolenameParticipantRoss KempDirectorSue HillsSeries producerLucy SwinglerProducerKate HoleExecutive producerColette Flight

All episodes

Episode 8

Diane Morgan

Loading
Episode 7

Will Young

Loading
Episode 6

Fred Sirieix

Loading
Episode 5

Aisling Bea

Loading
Episode 4

Layton Williams

Loading
Ad
Episode 3

Ross Kemp

Summary

Actor and documentary-maker Ross Kemp traces his ancestry, believing sifting fact from fiction will be the biggest challenge when it comes to his family history. He starts with his maternal great-grandfather Arthur Chalmers, finding out he served in the Merchant Navy during two world wars. Ross then turns his attention to his four-time great-grandfather on his father's side, who joined the Royal Navy as a drummer boy when he was only 13 and served in the Napoleonic Wars

Review

Jane Rackham

Ross Kemp is convinced that his family tree will reveal someone who has a connection to the sea and to travel, because these things have always been important to him. He’s especially interested in his great-grandfather Arthur Chalmers, known as Pop, because he was in the merchant navy and looked a bit like Popeye the Sailor Man. The actor and presenter has heard many colourful stories about this character and, as an emotional Ross discovers, he was a man who was married to the sea.

However, his first port of call — appropriately, considering his role in EastEnders — is a pub in Portsmouth, where some of his antecedents lived — including his “wrong ‘un” of a great uncle. And the seafaring stories continue as he investigates his father’s side of the family, including the discovery that one relative joined the Royal Navy as a drummer boy when he was only 13 years old and served in the Napoleonic Wars.

How to watch

Next showing

There are no live broadcasts scheduled for this show. But it is available via the streaming provider below.

Streaming
- BBC iPlayer
Details

Released on

2025-05-06

Languages

Formats

Colour

Credits

Crew

rolenameParticipantRoss KempDirectorSue HillsSeries producerLucy SwinglerProducerKate HoleExecutive producerColette Flight

Show more
Episode 2

Mishal Husain

Loading
Episode 1

Andrew Garfield

Loading