Post date: 27/09/2112.15

Two-time BAFTA-winning programme Who Do You Think You Are? produced by Wall to Wall returns to BBC One screen for its 18th series and there are a whole host of stars taking part hoping to find out about their family history and uncover the moving and fascinating lives of their ancestors.

“We are very excited for this new series of Who Do You Think You Are? and for viewers to share in the extraordinary mix of personal celebrity histories taking us across the world, and which together reflect our rich collective history.”

— Emily Smith, BBC Commissioning Editor for Documentaries

New 'Who Do You Think You Are?' Series this October.

Series 18 of Who Do You Think You Are? which has been broadcast since 2004 will feature another lineup of Britain’s best-loved celebrities exploring their family histories including Dame Judi Dench, Joe Lycett, Ed Balls, Alex Scott, Josh Widdicombe, Pixie Lott and Joe Sugg. The family history stories they will uncover include including the lives of Victorian chimney sweeps, facing down fascism in the 1930s and even a link to William Shakespeare.

The new series of Who Do You Think You Are? launches on BBC One this October 2021.

Here is an introduction to the latest lot of celebrities to feature in the new 18th series.

Dame Judi Dench

Dame Judith Olivia Dench CH, DBE, FRSA (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. Regarded as one of the best British actresses, she is thought to be a “peerless performer” with roles ranging from James Bond films to Shakespearean dramas

In this episode Dame Judi Dench find out more about her father, Reginald – who never spoke of his experiences during the First World War. Travelling further into her family genealogy Judi unearths Danish roots and some intriguing Shakespearean connections.

Ed Balls

Edward Michael Balls (born 25 February 1967) is a British broadcaster, writer, economist, professor and former politician who served as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2011 to 2015. A member of the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Normanton and later for Morley and Outwood between 2005 and 2015.

In this episode former Labour Politician and presenter Ed Balls uncovers great bravery and some less admirable conduct when he looks into the life of an assistant ship’s surgeon. However, he uncovers a more inspiring story when investigating the life of an ancestor who lived through the agricultural depression of the 1820s.

Pixie Lott

Victoria Louise Lott (born 12 January 1991) better known by her stage name “Pixie Lott” is an English singer and songwriter. Lott has also occasionally acted in film, television and stage, including starring in the UK production of the Richard Greenberg play Breakfast at Tiffany's in 2016.

In this episode singer-songwriter, Pixie Lott discovers a musical legacy three generations strong on her mother’s side of the family. She also learns of her great grandfather’s harrowing experiences in the First World War.

Joe Lycett

Joe Harry Lycett (born 5 July 1988) is a British comedian and television presenter. He has appeared on TV shows including Live at the Apollo, Taskmaster, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, 8 Out of 10 Cats and QI.

Comedian Joe Lycett discovers a darker side to his family history as he finds out that his two-times-great grandfather was a boy chimney sweep in the 1850s who later joined the Royal Marines and travelled the world, but struggled to process his experiences.

Alex Scott

Alexandra Virina Scott MBE (born 14 October 1984) is an English television presenter, pundit, and former professional footballer who mostly played as a right-back for Arsenal W.F.C. in the FA WSL. She made 140 appearances for the England women's national football team and represented Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Alex Scott discovers more about the Jewish ancestry on her mother’s side and hears that her great-grandad faced down fascism in London’s East End in 1936 – the same year that the infamous Battle of Cable Street took place. Alex also travels to Jamaica to uncover history on the other side of the family and learns of tremendous hardship and suffering, as well as some uncomfortable and upsetting history.

Joe Sugg

Joseph Graham Sugg (born 8 September 1991) is an English YouTuber, actor and author. In August 2012, he began posting videos on the YouTube channel ThatcherJoe.

YouTuber, Joe Sugg enlists help from his sister and fellow YouTuber Zoe Sugg to explore their family tree. He discovers a great-great-great-grandfather who was involved in the earliest days of communication by telegraph, ancestors who fled religious persecution in France and a relative who survived the Great Fire of London.

Josh Widdicombe

Josh Michael Widdicombe (born 8 April 1983) is an English comedian and presenter. He is best known for his appearances on The Last Leg, Fighting Talk, Insert Name Here, Mock the Week and his BBC Three sitcom Josh.

Comedian Josh discovers an ancestor cut out of the family fortune and a courtier with intimate access to the King’s commode, whose story ends disastrously during the Civil War. From there it’s a dizzying journey back to Elizabethan and Tudor nobility, culminating in an incredible ancestral line.