Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace returned to screens with a heartbreaking story
A new series of Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace aired on Monday.
The first episode of the ITV series (August 3) saw hosts Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell help foundling David Stevenson find answers after he was abandoned as a baby.
Back in 1960, David made frontpage news. Wrapped in a rainbow of colourful knitted clothes, he was just a few days old when he was discovered inside a locked apartment block.
Now 65, David still had no idea who his parents were or why he was left. Over the years, he has returned to West Heath Court in Golders Green many times.
“This place is part of me, part of my identity, no question. This is where my story starts, so coming back here is an emotional thing, there’s no doubt about it,” David explained, reports the Mirror.
Remarkably, David wasn’t left on the front porch or the foyer of the building, but outside one of the flats on the second floor. He was cold but wrapped up and well fed.
The inhabitants of the building were interviewed by police at the time, but enquiries failed to link them to the baby or identify the birth parents. David was fostered and later adopted by the Stevenson family, and grew up in nearby Edgware.
After 30 years of looking for answers, David was soon given some news about his heritage. The show’s search lead Ariel Bruce and her team uncovered a strong connection to a specific Dutch family.
Two members of the family, including a woman named Marianne, agreed to undergo DNA tests, ultimately leading to the identification of David’s mother, Petra, who sadly passed away in 2010.
Davina later revealed that the devastating news of Petra’s death was given to David away from the cameras, saying: “We’ve told David away from the cameras that his mother has passed away.”
The host later arrived at David’s home, where she offered her support. “I know you got some difficult news last night. How have you been?” she asked.
David replied: “It’s a shame because it closed an avenue that might have been open to me. I hope today to answer some questions that have been present my entire life.”
An emotional meeting later took place in Rotterdam, as David met his aunt Marianne – Petra’s sister – and cousins Bart, Saskia and Jan.
“One of the most rewarding things is hearing them talk about [Petra] and it’s helped me form an idea of her character,” David shared.
At the end of the episode, viewers were given an update, which revealed that David was in regular touch with his new found Dutch family. It added that he supported both England and the Netherlands in the World Cup.
Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace is available to stream on ITVX
