Lesley Manville is “bursting with pride” to find out she had a relative who was transported to Australia after leading a revolution.
Lesley Manville loved finding out about her Australian family
The 'Crown' star was fascinated to find out her great-great-great grandfather Aaron Harding was transported to Australia after leading a revolution to protest poor pay and working conditions in the 1830 2,000-strong Swing Riots.
Lesley discovered on the BBC One genealogy series ‘Who Do You Think You Are’ - which will air on 27 July at 9pm - that he avoided being put to death by being sent Down Under.
According to the Daily Mirror newspaper, the 67-year-old actress says on the show: “I’m bursting with pride. He was this poor man not being properly paid. He sounds like such a fantastic character.”
Lesley was awash with sympathy for her ancestor - who was a widower with nine children relying on him - as he was often without “love” or “family” when he was sat on death row, but was taken off it when he became one of the 481 people sent to a penal colony in Australia.
She said: “He would have been without anyone that he knew. No love, no family.”
The BAFTA winner called it “extraordinary” to find out she had family in the country due to Aaron - who was pardoned in 1937 - meeting his new wife Alice and having two sons with her.
Lesley said: “Aaron had descendants! It’s bizarre to think I’ve got family here. It’s extraordinary.”
The ‘Mrs Harris Goes to Paris’ star - who has son Alfie, 35, with her ex husband Gary Oldman, 65 - was “so excited” to make her debut at the Proms on the first night last week.
Lesley said: “I absolutely adore the Proms and am so excited to be involved in the iconic First Night to narrate Sibelius’s Snöfrid with all its dramatic lyricism and tempestuous energy. The Proms is a brilliant festival, and I can’t wait to join in and kick off this summer’s celebrations!”
Tagged in Gary Oldman