Twofour’s documentary, Secret Family Fortunes, made for Channel 4’s flagship Cutting Edge strand is due to air in the summer.

In Britain today, approximately one in three individuals die without making a will. The treasury swallows about  an estimated £10 million every year in unclaimed estates, and people all over the country can, without knowing it, be in line to inherit a fortune from a long-lost or unknown relative.

Secret Family Fortunes follows the resourceful investigations of a firm that tracks these beneficiaries down to uncover the poignant, and sometimes startling, stories of those who have died – and the saddening circumstances that led to a solitary death.

Through these case-studies, Secret Family Fortunes pieces together a picture of the lives of the deceased, building an affecting portrait of those that have ended up dying alone, sometimes unnoticed for months. From the testimony of old friends, distant relatives, neighbours and acquaintances, the film reveals that behind their financial legacies are family histories that feature adoption, mental illness, divorce, separation, lost friendships and disconnection.

The film also gives an original insight into the world of beneficiary tracing. When the Treasury publishes a list of those who have died intestate, London-based company Kin spring into action. Speculating as to which of the estates is worth pursuing, they must employ their forensic skill to track down the nearest living relative, while desperately trying to beat competitors who are doing the very same. With most cases solved within 48 hours, it’s a race against time: and with complicated family circumstances creating false trails, surnames causing confusion, relatives living abroad, and the distressing duty of bringing upsetting news of a relative’s death an inevitable part of the process, matters get complicated very quickly. 

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