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6 Episodes 2008 - 2008
Episode 1
Australian acting icon Jack Thompson unearths more than a couple of surprises - and significant Australian heritage-but where does he come from and who does he think he is? Born John Hadley Pain in Sydney in 1940, Jack took on the name of the Thompson family, who adopted him as a child after the death of his mother. In Who Do You Think You Are? Jack will for the first time endeavour to discover the real family history of his biological relations. Does he have a famous bushranger in the family or Indigenous ancestors and just what draws him to the forests of southern Queensland? As Jack's aunt, the family matriarch hands over the reins to him, he is about to find out more than he could have imagined.
Episode 2
Kate Ceberano is convinced she descended from 'pirates and bums' but as she delves into her family tree she uncovers links to an artistic past. Kate's expectation of pirates and bums is squashed when she learns that one early ancestor, an entrepreneurial Swede, sunk arterial wells in the Mallee region of Australia. On the trail of a mysterious Spanish sea captain, she heads to Tasmania where she finds, to her delight, a relationship with music teacher turned artist Henry Mundy. Kate will cross cities and cultures in the search of her past, uncovering pioneers and colonialists along the way.
Episode 3
Geoffrey Robertson QC believes that it is nature not nurture that shapes our moral integrity, but does his family history provide an aside to his theory? Fifth generation Australian Geoffrey has lived in London for decades, but he remains proudly Australian. He traces his Scottish ancestors-early mountain cattlemen who were the first of the self-made Robertsons in Australia-as well as another part of his family, ensconced in a life of wealth and privilege. Within his family history he finds links to royal patronage, the whiff of a cover-up and even a royal scandal. His own family, he discovers, is a perfect example of the cultural and ethnic melting pot that makes up Australia.
Episode 4
Athlete Catherine Freeman goes in search of the source of her drive and determination, unearthing an unexpected family heritage. Gold medallist in the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, Catherine is an inspiration to many. She possesses an irrepressible pride in her country and her people. Her strong sense of identity is something she believes has been passed down from her ancestors. Her mother Cecelia was born on Palm Island, a penal settlement for Aborigines and her father Norman, also a 'Murri', was a rugby league footballer, but little more of the family history is known. Now she's on a journey to find out where her fighting spirit comes from.
Episode 5
Sports commentator Dennis Cometti finds mystery, murder and a gift for the gab as he follows his family tree back to Australia's settlement. From a remote Western Australian goldfield to northern Italy, Dennis uncovers a rich Italian heritage before heading to east coast Australia where several more surprises-and more than one shady character-are revealed. It is a journey that leaves him with a lifetime of anecdotes and an extended family he never imagined possible.
Episode 6
Media personality and publisher Ita Buttrose discovers determination and drive may be hereditary as she puts her journalistic skills to the test to trace her global family. She knows of a relation named William Butters who sailed from Scotland to Adelaide but not how the family name changed from Butters to Buttrose. Following her maternal side, Ita discovers she has a strong Jewish connection, including a chief rabbi, in her family. She traces her Jewish ancestors to New York and Hungary. Along the way she hopes to find out if the Buttrose will to 'fight the system' is flowing through her veins.