Plot Synopsis

Combining key moments in history with compelling personal stories, MY GRANDPARENTS' WAR is a one-hour history-genealogy series that takes journey into the past to understand the extraordinary impact of World War II on the families of four British actors: Helena Bonham Carter, Mark Rylance, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Carey Mulligan. Each star hosts a one-hour journey into their respective family histories as they travel to historic locations, from the beaches of Dunkirk to the former site of a prisoner-of-war camp in Hong Kong, to retrace their grandparents' footsteps during the conflict that changed their lives forever. They discover remarkable stories of bravery amid the most harrowing circumstances, uncovering the life-and-death decisions their grandparents were forced to make. The series examines universal themes of love, courage and self-sacrifice through the dramatic human stories of ordinary people caught up in one of the most horrific wars of all time. The four episodes in the first season include:

"Helena Bonham Carter" (US premiere on Sunday, April 4, 2021 at 8pm): Helena Bonham Carter's grandparents -- two in France, two in England -- weren't conventional war heroes. They didn't fight in any battles but did save countless lives. Bonham Carter explores the story of her maternal grandfather, Eduardo Propper de Callejon. A Spanish diplomat, de Callejon defied his government's orders by issuing visas to help Jewish people escape the Holocaust as the Nazis invaded France. She learns her paternal grandmother, Lady Violet Bonham Carter, took her own stand against anti-Semitism. A mother of four and a liberal politician, Violet was also ahead of her time, volunteering as an air raid warden and campaigning for women's rights.

"Mark Rylance" (US premiere on Sunday, April 11, 2021 at 8pm): Actor and peace activist Mark Rylance explores the World War II story of his grandfather, Osmond Skinner, who spent almost four years as a Japanese prisoner of war. Rylance learns how Skinner, a banker, bravely joined the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps and was thrown into a deadly battle to defend the island. With no military training, he was shot on Christmas Day and was taken as a POW. Rylance's views on war are tested as he uncovers the real and shocking story of how his grandfather survived Hong Kong's notorious POW camps.

"Kristin Scott Thomas" (US premiere on Sunday, April 18, 2021 at 8pm): Kristin Scott Thomas' grandfather, William Scott Thomas, served as a commanding officer in the Royal Navy throughout World War II. He survived some of the most devastating battles, from Dunkirk to D-Day, but never spoke about his experiences. For the first time, Thomas uncovers how her grandfather saved thousands at Dunkirk and endured the horrors of the Russian Arctic convoys. Her journey of discovery is packed with revelation and emotion as she meets the families of people her grandfather saved and veterans who served alongside him.

"Carey Mulligan" (US premiere on Sunday, April 25, 2021 at 8pm): Carey Mulligan's grandfather, Denzil Booth, a teenager from the Welsh Valleys, traveled thousands of miles to fight the Japanese military in the final months of the war. Mulligan discovers his university education meant Booth was fast-tracked to be a junior officer in the Navy. On board Britain's biggest warship -- the first ever attacked by a Japanese kamikaze aircraft -- he lost his closest friends. Mulligan travels to Japan to understand the Japanese military strategy of the era. She's shocked by the ages of the pilots and the horrors her grandfather faced when he arrived in Tokyo.
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Season 2 of MY GRANDPARENTS' WAR made its U.S. debut on Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at 9pm on PBS (check local listings), featuring personal stories set during some of the most dramatic moments of World War II. Discoveries are made and secrets revealed as they travel to historic locations -- from the Scottish Highlands, all the way to Kenya and Zambia, where the British colonial wars were being fought -- to retrace their grandparents' footsteps during the events that changed their lives forever. The four stars featured in Season 2 were mostly unfamiliar with their grandparents' experiences during wartime. Some of their grandparents were instructed not to discuss what happened during their service; others remained silent, not wanting to revisit a painful past. Season 2 reveals that romance was often ignited in the dramatic circumstances of war, as couples met, fell in love and married in record time. Themes of courage, self-sacrifice and resilience emerge, as ordinary people caught up in the chaos of war continually rose to the challenge and accomplished extraordinary things. The four episodes in Season 2 include:

"Kit Harington" (U.S. premiere on Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at 9pm): Kit Harington, who has been cast as a soldier, a spy, and, in GAME OF THRONES, a warrior, discovers that his grandparents played comparable roles in their real lives during World War II. His maternal grandparents, Mick and Pippa Catesby, fell in love during a bombing raid in a hospital where she was a nurse and he was a patient. Awarded a military cross for bravery, Captain Catesby never talked about his experiences. Kit's paternal grandparents, John and Lavender Harington, were stationed in the Caribbean, where they met and then married a few days later. John served in British Intelligence Services, keeping an eye on the Duke of Windsor, the former king of England and a Nazi sympathizer. Harington is delighted to learn author Ian Fleming was also serving in Jamaica at the time, and speculates that perhaps his grandfather might even have inspired the character of James Bond.

"Keira Knightley" (U.S. premiere on Tuesday, April 18, 2023 at 9pm): Keira Knightley has acted in several films about World War II yet admits she never knew much about her grandparents' wartime experiences. In this episode, she discovers her grandfather fought in some of the Navy's deadliest battles and her grandmother played a secret role in the D-Day landings. But both were struck by tragedy as their brothers went missing in action. Keira's maternal grandfather, Mac, served on the HMS Wolverine, which was sent to fight the Germans after they invaded Norway. Although the British were defeated, the crew of the Wolverine rescued around 700 Irish Guards from a nearby sinking ship. In the summer of 1942, both Mac and Keira's grandmother Jan worked in Greenock, Scotland, preparing for the arrival of some 1.5 million American forces. Keira learns that Jan was engaged in the efforts to secretly move troops in preparation for the D-Day landings, receiving praise from her superiors.

"Toby Jones" (U.S. premiere on Tuesday, April 25, 2023 at 9pm): 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. Toby learns that Reggie joined the Royal Artillery as a gunner after Hitler invaded Poland. A performer, Dorki became part of the Entertainment National Service Association (ENSA) and traveled with a company of actors to Northern France to lift the spirits of British soldiers. On May 10, 1940, the Nazis invaded France. Thousands of British soldiers and hundreds of ENSA performers, including Dorki, were soon evacuated by the Royal Navy, departing as bombs fell. In February 1942, Reggie left for India, now facing an invasion from the Japanese on the border with Burma. On March 8, 1944, the Indian Army, including Reggie, confronted 100,000 Japanese soldiers. Under siege for months, the 20th Indian Division finally prevailed, inflicting the biggest defeat the Japanese Army had ever suffered. On the ship returning home, Reggie was explicitly instructed not to talk about his wartime experiences. Reggie and Dorki's children and grandchildren knew little about their experiences until now.

"Emeli Sande" (U.S. premiere on Tuesday, May 2, 2023 at 9pm): Award-winning singer-songwriter Emeli Sande explores her grandparents' remarkable stories, which span World War II, the Mau Mau insurgency in Kenya, and the fight for independence in Zambia. With grandparents split across fault lines, she faces a mix of emotions. Emeli's maternal grandfather Bob served in the British Army during World War II, while grandmother Betty joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service, the women's Army. Just months after Bob returned home from Egypt in 1943, Bob met Betty, and they were married. In 1953, he was sent to Kenya to help quell an insurrection by the Mau Mau, a secret militia fighting to get their land back from the British. Her paternal grandfather, Saka Sande, also became involved in the British colonial wars, fighting for independence against the apartheid regime in Zambia, then known as Northern Rhodesia. Saka, who worked in the copper mines that provided 70% of British copper, lived in crowded townships with other Black miners and made less than one-tenth of what white miners earned.