Former Strictly Come Dancing star Kevin Clifton is the latest celebrity to investigate his ancestors on Who Do You Think You Are? And it’s an emotional journey for the new dad.
Kevin, who is dating Stacey Dooley, believes he’s northern through and through – despite a lingering rumour in his family about an indigenous woman called Matooski…
Knowing little about his father’s side of the family, the dancer embarks on an extraordinary journey which ultimately takes him to Canada, a country he later admits he “doesn’t want to leave”.
But it’s not always an easy ride…
Kevin Clifton on Who Do You Think You Are?
Former Strictly pro Kevin Clifton – aka Kevin from Grimsby – investigates a rumour of an ancestor from Canada’s First Nations. The so-called folklore takes him on a journey to the country’s remote 18th-century trading posts.
The emotional trek reveals that he comes from a long line of skilled and courageous ancestors who survived – and thrived – against the odds. Ultimately, his search introduces him to Matooski, an indigenous woman who was his five-times great grandmother.
A mother of seven, she was subjected to racism as a result of being considered a “half-breed”. Kevin also discovers that she was abandoned by her husband, his great-great-great-great-great grandfather.
But, despite the odds, Matooski was a fighter. Ultimately, she went on to survive a terrifying boat crash and saved her daughter Grace in the wreckage… Had she died, Kevin Clifton would not exist.
At the discovery, Kevin admits it was “one of the most overwhelming moments of my life”. He continues: “What a woman. I’m so proud of her. What an icon.”
Kevin discovers sordid details about his past
The performer also discovered some unsavoury truths within his past, not least that his great-great-great-grandfather was horribly abusive to his wife.
Kevin, 40, discovers that John Russell and his wife Grace found infamy in newspapers at the time, due to their publicised divorce – an “incredibly rare” occurrence at the time.
The couple divorced due to “infidelity on the part of Mrs Russell”. However, closer inspection showed that John Russell was violent towards his wife, and mother of his three kids.
Kevin is visibly shaken when he discovers that his relative “struck his wife” and “blackened her eyes”. There were even allegations that John had chased his wife with an axe, threatening to split her head open.
In shock, Kevin tells the camera: “Grace was in a violent and abusive relationship. Everything was stacked against her. It’s so unbelievably unfair.”
He went on to say: “My ancestor was a villain.”
Kevin Clifton on Who Do You Think You Are? ‘My ancestor was a villain’
At the time, had Grace seemed upset in court, she would have been labelled “hysterical”. The judge found Grace guilty of adultery, and granted the divorce. Her children were taken away from her, and given to their father – however they ended up in an orphanage for a year.
Tragically, Kevin later discovered that his great-great-great grandmother Grace had “gone entirely to the bad” when she travelled to San Francisco with a new partner. He subsequently abandoned her and stole her money.
“You can’t change history,” sighs the archivist when Kevin expresses his disgust. No, but you can learn from it…
Kevin Clifton appears on Who Do You Think You Are? on Thursday, June 22, 2023 at 9pm on BBC One.
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