Death in Paradise's Ralf Little explores his Welsh roots in the latest episode of BBC family history show Who Do You Think You Are? - and discovers his great-grandfather, Albert Lockley, played for Wales' international football team. Ralf is desperate to know more about the roots of his grandmother Olive from North Wales in the episode shown on Thursday, June 30.
As someone who could have been a professional footballer himself, Ralf is excited following the news. He travels to Chirk, near Wrexham, to see where his grandmother grew up. With rumours of a 'professional footballer' in the family, he wants to know if there is any truth to the story. Ralf meets with his mother’s cousin, Heather, whom he hoped would have answers. This series of Who Do You Think You Are? has been full of family revelations, one of which was Matt Lucas' relative's connection to Anne Frank.
Ralf’s great-grandfather, Albert Lockley, worked as a miner in the Brynkinalt Colliery. A notably difficult occupation, Albert’s role did open doors for him to be involved in extracurricular activities in the area and one of those was sports. Ralf heads to Chirk football club and the truth is finally revealed.
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“I’ve always been a decent player,” Ralf says as he makes his way to the club, “I’ve never quite known where I got that from.” Meeting sports historian, Martin Johns, Ralf learns that North East Wales was the “cradle of the area” when it came to sports in the country. Playing for Chirk, although not a very big place, was considered a “big deal” at the time.
Upon finding out that his great-grandfather played centre forward for Chirk FC, Ralf beamed: “It’s crazy to think that this was more than 100 years ago and I’m genuinely delighted to find out that my great-grandfather was in one of the top teams in Wales and scoring.” Seeing one of Chirk FC’s trophies, the Welsh Football Association Challenge Cup trophy, he described how proud he was of his great-grandfather.
The surprises didn’t stop there, as Ralf was amazed to learn that Albert actually played for Wales’ international football team. “I knew it,” says the Death in Paradise star, as he finds out the news.
The good news quickly turned sour as Ralf finds out that his great-grandfather gave up football for ‘religion’. “As an atheist, I can’t begin to tell you how upsetting that is for me.” His “heartbreak” takes him to Capel Mawr, a chapel in the area, to understand why Albert made the decision.
A historian tells Ralf that Albert was inspired by Evan Roberts, a Welsh evangelist and leading figure of the 1904–1905 Welsh religious revival. The actor appears visibly upset that his great-grandfather had chosen religion over football. When finding out that some footballers would have burned their football kits during the revival, Ralf said: “That is the saddest thing I have ever read.” He is given some solace after finding out that Albert returned to football following the religious revival.
At the end of the episode, Ralf says of his discoveries: “It is very grounding. What connects [all] of my ancestors is this sense of sacrifice and responsibility. It has certainly made me reflect on my own life.”
Who Do You Think You Are? airs at 9pm on BBC One on Thursday, June 30
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