EastEnders legend Ross Kemp was overcome with emotion as he discovered a tragic story about his family in his new BBC show Who Do You Think You Are?
EastEnders’ Ross Kemp was visibly moved as he embarked on a personal journey into his genealogy for the BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?
Now at 60, it’s been years since the actor became a household name as Grant Mitchell in EastEnders during the 1990s.
More recently, Kemp has carved out a new chapter as a hard-hitting documentary presenter, risking life and limb in the world’s most perilous hotspots.
Turning the spotlight on himself, Kemp set out to unravel the mysteries within his own lineage, acknowledging that separating truth from family lore loomed as his biggest hurdle.
Kemp began his ancestral quest with his great-grandfather on his mother’s side, Arthur Chalmers – affectionately known as Pop. From what his mother recounted, Pop was brought up in a pub in Portsmouth and hailed from a brood of 11 in the Chalmers clan.
Ross was always told that his great-great-granddad originated from Ireland and that maritime life was deeply rooted in Pop, who supposedly spent much of his existence at sea, reportedly surviving two shipwrecks, reports Belfast Live.
During the throes of World War II, tales of Pop’s disappearance circulated until he astonishingly reappeared donning a US army outfit, as remembered by Kemp’s mum.
However, these anecdotes were met with clarity when genealogist Maggie Lewis corrected the record, confirming the Chalmers’ Portsmouth heritage spanned four generations, thus nullifying the Irish roots narrative.
Undeterred, Kemp sought concrete evidence about the shipwreck stories and uncovered a passenger list from 1943 that listed Pop in Casablanca as “a survivor ex the Duchess of York”.
Ross eventually travelled to Casablanca to meet historian Sarah-Louise Miller, who provided him with key insights into his family history. Miller informed Ross that the Duchess of York had encountered disaster 300 miles from the Portuguese coast on 11 July 1943.
The vessel was part of a convoy that the Germans torpedoed, leading to the sinking of the ship and the tragic loss of 89 lives. Ross’s grandfather ‘Pop’ was among the survivors who faced a perilous 700-mile trek to Casablanca, the closest significant port under Allied control at that time.
Upon arrival, Pop was outfitted in a US military uniform at a base there – a uniform he later wore as he made his way home. This detail brought Ross immense joy, confirming the long-standing family tale of the shipwreck and clarifying why his mother recalled Pop returning in an American uniform.
After receiving confirmation of Pop’s ordeal from Louise, Ross shared his mixed emotions: “It’s like I’m smiling at the fact he was shipwrecked but I was questioning if that ever happened.
“It’s very odd. I make lots of documentaries about a lot of stuff but when it’s about you or your family it has a very different impact, it really does. Oh Pop, what a life he had.”
Reflecting on his grandfather’s legacy, Ross expressed, “It’s such a complex feeling to think about somebody who I was told about all my life by my grandmother, and my mother, had been this kind of interesting, traveller and there are similarities that I’m drawing from understanding him that I see in myself.”
Who Do You Think You Are? is available to watch on BBC iPlayer