Tracing Your Roots

[Georgette]

The new series starts this afternoon, on Radio 4, at 4:30pm :)

The first programme deals with tracing fathers that listeners lost touch with during the war and looks like it might well be an emotional one:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00mbf7p

[maggie_4_7]

Thank you.

[Buttercup Fields]

Thank you Georgette. XX BC

[maggie_4_7]

Thank you for that.

That was a brilliant program.

I did cry about SC's father a German POW and very happy to see she met up with her half sisters albeit one was actually a step sister in the end and S was actually his first child. Also that he actually talked about her his daughter in England and that he may one day find her.

The Dutch man's was sad too.

[Sweetpea]

Blow - missed that

[Georgette]

You can listen again, Sweetpea, in about half an hour there should be a link to do so on the page I posted up in the first post :)

It was good wasn't it Maggie? Have to admit I cried too during the first story :o

[maggie_4_7]

oh forgot to say her father was behind the Iron Curtain he died in 1987 2 years before the wall came down. He always talked to his daughters about finding her his daughter in England but he never did.

S doesn't know why he didn't possibly because he was in a communist regime but she is going to do some more research.

Maybe like everyone else he just didn't get around to it or because he was in the Eastern Block it was more difficult who knows.

Maybe a lesson for us all don't put of till tommorrow what you can do today.

[Olde Crone]

Although I missed this, I am reminded of a friend of mine, now in his 60s.

He had a horrible childhood, his father hated him and he never knew why. No matter what he did, he couldn't please him.

When he was about 55, he decided to have it out with his dad for once and for all. His father just said "Ask your mother why I hate you so much you little b******".

His mother confessed that during the war she was a nurse in a German Officer's recuperation hospital. She fell in love with a German Officer and had his baby.

When her husband returned from the war, he said "It's him or me" and she said "Well, I choose the baby - what are you going to do?".

He stayed with her, they had more children, but he never forgave his wife.

Now comes the emotional bit...she had sent a letter to his birth father once a year, with an uptodate photo. My friend got the address out of her, phoned Germany...spoke to his father, now in his eighties and went out there to meet his half siblings, who had always known about him. There were photos of my friend from birth to school leaving, his wedding etc, all on display on a special board.

Although this story had a happy ending for my friend, I was so angry on his behalf at the treatment he had received from his mother's husband. Why take it out on a child???

OC

[Jenny]

Its on bbci , I've just listened to it, and was very emotional.

Nice to hear SC found family :)

[Elaine]

Still available at the link Georgette posted.
I'm going to put my feet up and listen!

[Sweetpea]

Thanks for the link - just finished listening to it.

Very emotional.