Zintle Makeng

When South Africa aired its first season of the local version of Who Do You Think You Are?, Nthathi Moshesh, HHP (real name Jabulani Tsambo), Candice Moodley, Meshack Mavuso and Kurt Schoonraad were just some of the celebrities who went in search of hidden stories in a bid to uncover their ancestry and roots.

That version of the show won’t be coming back any time soon but what you can fixate your eyes on is the US version showing on BBC Knowledge.

As you can guess, the show follows some of America’s most loved celebrities as they go in search of their lineage. The journey on this show is usually long and emotional, as it often uncovers hidden family truths, sometimes scandals or heart-warming inside information.

We are told that this season of the series features some of the biggest names in entertainment; including Lionel Richie, Sex and The City actress Kim Catrall and Hollywood star Gwyneth Paltrow. We often feel we know our favourite celebrities just from their screen characters or their music.

This show brings out a human element in them that we rarely get to see in scripted tunes and movie lines.

Everyone needs to know who they are in order to go forward, they too are no different. This is a show about relativity. Who Do You Think You Are? airs on BBC Knowledge at 22.25pm.

zintlem@thenewage.co.za