TV review:
Who Do You Think You Are? saw
EastEnders’ Dot Cotton, aka actress
June Brown, find out about her Jewish roots across Europe and the Middle East.

June Brown Who Do You Think You Are?
Dot Cotton found out who she was on BBC1 (Picture: BBC)

Who Do You Think You Are? featured its oldest ever guest tonight, in the form of EastEnders veteran actress June Brown, who began proceedings by complaining that viewers can’t distinguish her from her character Dot Cotton as she puffed away on a fag very much in the manner of Dot Cotton.

This is how she appeared for much of the episode, drily regaling her family and the audience at home with anecdotes as a half-fag-half-ash cigarette hung limply from one corner of her mouth.

A large number of the celebrities who appear on Who Do You Think You Are? have some claim to Jewish roots and the Jewish story of persecution and immigration is perfect fodder for a social history programme like this one.

So June, a matrilineal Jew whose parents were from the East End of London, was able to take us on a journey through Holland, Italy, Iran and Algeria, covering everything from bare-knuckle boxers to the Spanish inquisition.

There were no major shocks along the way, but with this fabulous East End matriarch at the helm tonight, the opening episode of Who Do You Think You Are?’s eighth series was a rare treat.

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