Strictly Come Dancing star Layton Williams broke down in tears on the most recent episode Who Do You Think You Are?, after learning that his ancestors were enslaved.
The BBC One show recently returned to screens with another season, bringing a new group of celebrities on a journey to uncover their families' history.
The latest episode saw Williams travel to Porus in Jamaica to explore his father's side of the family tree.
The Oliver-award-winning actor learned that his great-great-grandmother was a washerwoman who worked hard to build a better life for her family after her father, Alexander Denton, was born into slavery in 1825.
He also learned that Alexander’s mother Jessie was born in Africa but was forcibly taken to Jamaica.
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Williams broke down tears as he was told this, saying: "I’m proud to have come from people who went through that but came through the other side.
"It’s really beautiful and it’s important that we don’t forget, because it’s real and it happened and it was sad, and I’m sure it was awful, but we’ve made it here.
"I will look back at this experience for sure and be really happy and really proud of the family that came before me."
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The new season of Who Do You Think You Are? has also featured Spider-Man actor Andrew Garfield, who embarked on an emotional rollercoaster as he explored his Jewish roots.
EastEnders legend Ross Kemp ended up in Casablanca trying to solve a family mystery, and was stunned to find out that his 4x great grandfather was a drummer boy during the Napoleonic Wars.
Other celebs set to appear on the series include Aisling Bea, First Dates' Fred Sirieix and singer Will Young.
Who Do You Think You Are? airs on BBC One and streams on iPlayer.
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Social Executive, Entertainment Portfolio After completing her joint honours degree in Journalism and English Literature at Cardiff University, Iona joined Digital Spy as a Content Production Intern in 2022, where she wrote across both news and features, specialising in TV and movies. Following her internship, Iona continued contributing to the site as a freelance reporter, becoming social executive for the Hearst UK entertainment portfolio in summer 2025. Iona now leads the DS social channels, covering red carpets with stars such as Paul Mescal, Austin Butler, and more.
