Claire Foy’s visit on Who Do You Think You Are? became quite emotional as she learned the truth about a horrific tragedy from her family’s past.
The British actress, 39, is best recognised for her depiction of a youthful Queen Elizabeth II in Netflix’s historical drama The Crown’s first two seasons.
Her portrayal garnered her an Emmy for outstanding lead actress in a drama series, and she later returned as the Queen in flashbacks.
Claire, who was born in Stockport in 1984, was researching her family tree on the long-running BBC documentary programme Who Do You Think You Are?
Recently, the series included Matt Lucas, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Richard Osman, all of whom investigated their ancestors and uncovered surprising findings.
Claire was the latest in a long line of celebrities to realise that her family’ stories were filled with suffering and tragedy.
After receiving her great-grandfather’s birth certificate, she found his name was Charles Stimpson and his father’s name was Henry.
She travelled to Carlisle after learning that Charles had perished in a motorbike accident and that Henry had drowned.
Claire fell into tears after reading an official document detailing the exact conditions that led Henry to drown when she discovered the location of his death.
Henry was swept floating in the River Eden with two other men and perished; he was identified by his clothing after police started a search.
Claire fought back tears as she read a piece from a local newspaper at the time about how Henry’s body was discovered.
After she finished reading the article, all she could say was, ‘That’s very sad.’
Watch Who Do You Think You Are? on BBC iPlayer.
