Emeli Sandé
Singer-songwriter Emeli Sandé explores her grandparents’ remarkable stories, which span World War II, the Mau Mau insurgency in Kenya, and the fight for independence in Zambia. She faces a mix of emotions: “Both sets of my grandparents were involved in violent struggles in Africa,” she says. “One, tasked with upholding the British Empire. The other: trying to overthrow it.”
Episodes
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Emeli Sandé
S2 E4 - 44m 43s
Singer-songwriter Emeli Sandé explores her grandparents’ remarkable stories, which span World War II, the Mau Mau insurgency in Kenya, and the fight for independence in Zambia. She faces a mix of emotions: “Both sets of my grandparents were involved in violent struggles in Africa,” she says. “One, tasked with upholding the British Empire. The other: trying to overthrow it.”
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Toby Jones
S2 E3 - 44m 15s
Actor Toby Jones uncovers the remarkable World War II stories of his maternal grandparents, Reggie and Dorki, whose love endured despite the trauma and hardships they faced. He learns about his grandmother’s dramatic escape from the Nazis in Northern France, and solves the family mystery of how his grandfather was shot while fighting the Japanese.
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Keira Knightley
S2 E2 - 44m 4s
Actress Keira Knightley (Pride and Prejudice, Atonement) has starred in several films set during World War II, yet admits she never knew much about her grandparents’ actual wartime experiences. Now, through conversations with family members and historians, she learns of the triumphs and tragedies her grandparents faced during some of the biggest conflicts of the century.
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Kit Harington
S2 E1 - 42m 2s
Actor Kit Harington, who has played soldiers, spies, and – in "Game of Thrones" – warriors, discovers that his grandparents played comparable roles in their real lives during WWII. Speaking with family members and historians, he gains a new appreciation of the courage and sacrifice all four grandparents shared as they fought for their country and for a cause.
Extras + Features
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Emeli Sandé’s Parents Share Her Grandparents’ War Stories
S2 E4 - 2m 41s
Singer-songwriter Emeli Sandé visits with her parents, who share her grandparents’ war stories. Emeli’s maternal grandfather, Bob, spent four years fighting in the Egyptian desert, and when WWII ended was sent to Kenya as the British fought to maintain colonial rule. At the same time, her paternal grandfather, Saka, was caught up in the independence movement that was sweeping across Africa.
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Emeli Sandé's Grandfather Lived Through Zambian Apartheid
S2 E4 - 3m 15s
Singer-songwriter Emeli Sandé meets Dr. Sishuwa Sishuwa, a Zambian expert on race relations, to find out more about her grandfather Saka’s life during the 1950s. He worked in the Rowan Antelope mine in the heart of the Copperbelt, producing the important metal for the British war effort. Dr. Sishuwa explains the workers lived under an apartheid regime, with deeply segregated living conditions.
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Emeli Sandé Preview
S2 E4 - 32s
Singer-songwriter Emeli Sandé explores her grandparents’ remarkable stories, which span World War II, the Mau Mau insurgency in Kenya, and the fight for independence in Zambia. She faces a mix of emotions: “Both sets of my grandparents were involved in violent struggles in Africa,” she says. “One, tasked with upholding the British Empire. The other: trying to overthrow it.”
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Toby Jones Learns About WWII’s Impact on His Family
S2 E3 - 2m 33s
Actor Toby Jones sits down with his mother, Jennifer, and two aunts, Juliet and Caroline, to learn what they know about the wartime experiences of his grandparents, Reggie and Dorki. They married in 1940 at age 21, and Reggie was almost immediately sent to the Far East to fight the Japanese. When he returned home, he was not the same patient man he was before — which they now recognize as PTSD.
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Actor Toby Jones Is Following In His Grandmother’s Footsteps
S2 E3 - 3m 5s
Actor Toby Jones meets Professor Anselm Heinrich in Béthune, France — at the very theater where his grandmother, Dorki, performed in 1940. She was part of ENSA, the Entertainment National Service Association, which staged shows to raise the spirits of hundreds of thousands of British troops during the height of World War II.
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Toby Jones Preview
S2 E3 - 32s
Actor Toby Jones uncovers the remarkable World War II stories of his maternal grandparents, Reggie and Dorki, whose love endured despite the trauma and hardships they faced. He learns about his grandmother’s dramatic escape from the Nazis in Northern France, and solves the family mystery of how his grandfather was shot while fighting the Japanese.
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What Keira Knightley’s Grandmother Did to Prepare for D-Day
S2 E2 - 3m 20s
Actress Keira Knightley speaks with military historian Sarah-Louise Miller to learn about her grandmother’s involvement in World War II. She learns her grandmother, Janet Williams, was instrumental in organizing the secret movement of troops to support the Allied war effort — including moving tremendous numbers from Scotland to the South Coast in preparation for the D-Day landings.
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How Keira Knightley’s Great-Uncle Survived as a POW
S2 E2 - 3m 13s
Actress Keira Knightley meets her cousin, Brian, to read excerpts from his father Andrew’s memoir about his World War II service. Andrew was the younger brother of Keira’s grandmother, Jan, and was serving in the Royal Air Force when his plane was shot down over Germany in 1943. First reported missing in action, Andrew was held as a prisoner of war for two years.
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Keira Knightley Preview
S2 E2 - 32s
Actress Keira Knightley ("Pride and Prejudice," "Atonement") has starred in several films set during World War II, yet admits she never knew much about her grandparents’ actual wartime experiences. Now, through conversations with family members and historians, she learns of the triumphs and tragedies her grandparents faced during some of the biggest conflicts of the century.
-
Kit Harington Preview
S2 E1 - 32s
Actor Kit Harington, who has played soldiers, spies, and – in "Game of Thrones" – warriors, discovers that his grandparents played comparable roles in their real lives during WWII. Speaking with family members and historians, he gains a new appreciation of the courage and sacrifice all four grandparents shared as they fought for their country and for a cause.
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Was Kit Harington’s Grandfather the Inspiration for Bond?
S2 E1 - 2m 56s
Actor Kit Harington speaks with historian Phil Tomaselli about his grandfather’s service during World War II. He learns that his grandfather, John Harington, was recruited by the Naval Intelligence Division in 1941, and stationed in Jamaica at the same time as Ian Fleming — who would go on to write the series of James Bond novels, drawing inspiration from his time in British intelligence.
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The Spy Who Was Kit Harington’s Grandfather
S2 E1 - 2m 44s
Professor Richard Aldrich tells actor Kit Harington about his grandfather’s time in the British Intelligence Service during World War II. John Harington was stationed in Jamaica as an agent of MI5 and MI6 to keep an eye on Edward, Duke of Windsor — Nazi sympathizer and former King of England, who abdicated his throne and served as governor of the Bahamas during the war.
Schedule
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My Grandparents’ War
Mark Rylance
Sunday
Dec 3
1 Hour
Actor and peace campaigner Mark Rylance explores the World War II story of his grandfather Osmond Skinner, who spent almost four years as a Japanese prisoner of war. -
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My Grandparents’ War
Mark Rylance
Sunday
Dec 3
1 Hour
Actor and peace campaigner Mark Rylance explores the World War II story of his grandfather Osmond Skinner, who spent almost four years as a Japanese prisoner of war. -
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My Grandparents’ War
Kristin Scott Thomas
Sunday
Dec 3
1 Hour
Kristin Scott Thomas uncovers the story of how her grandfather William saved thousands at Dunkirk while serving as a commanding officer in the Royal Navy throughout World War II. -
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My Grandparents’ War
Kristin Scott Thomas
Monday
Dec 4
1 Hour
Kristin Scott Thomas uncovers the story of how her grandfather William saved thousands at Dunkirk while serving as a commanding officer in the Royal Navy throughout World War II. -
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My Grandparents’ War
Kristin Scott Thomas
Monday
Dec 4
1 Hour
Kristin Scott Thomas uncovers the story of how her grandfather William saved thousands at Dunkirk while serving as a commanding officer in the Royal Navy throughout World War II. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Kristin Scott Thomas
Sunday
Dec 10
1 Hour
Kristin Scott Thomas uncovers the story of how her grandfather William saved thousands at Dunkirk while serving as a commanding officer in the Royal Navy throughout World War II. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Kristin Scott Thomas
Sunday
Dec 10
1 Hour
Kristin Scott Thomas uncovers the story of how her grandfather William saved thousands at Dunkirk while serving as a commanding officer in the Royal Navy throughout World War II. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Carey Mulligan
Sunday
Dec 10
1 Hour
Carey Mulligan learns how her grandfather fought the Japanese in the final months of World War II, and lost his closest friends from a kamikaze attack at sea. -
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My Grandparents’ War
Carey Mulligan
Monday
Dec 11
1 Hour
Carey Mulligan learns how her grandfather fought the Japanese in the final months of World War II, and lost his closest friends from a kamikaze attack at sea. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Carey Mulligan
Monday
Dec 11
1 Hour
Carey Mulligan learns how her grandfather fought the Japanese in the final months of World War II, and lost his closest friends from a kamikaze attack at sea. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Carey Mulligan
Sunday
Dec 17
1 Hour
Carey Mulligan learns how her grandfather fought the Japanese in the final months of World War II, and lost his closest friends from a kamikaze attack at sea. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Carey Mulligan
Sunday
Dec 17
1 Hour
Carey Mulligan learns how her grandfather fought the Japanese in the final months of World War II, and lost his closest friends from a kamikaze attack at sea. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Kit Harington
Sunday
Dec 17
1 Hour
Kit Harington digs into his grandparents' experiences during World War II. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Kit Harington
Monday
Dec 18
1 Hour
Kit Harington digs into his grandparents' experiences during World War II. -
Image
My Grandparents’ War
Kit Harington
Monday
Dec 18
1 Hour
Kit Harington digs into his grandparents' experiences during World War II.
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