World Of Secrets - Searching for Soldier Dad: 4. The dads

Episode Date: May 11, 2026

Lawyer James has an extraordinary breakthrough for teenage orphan Yvonne. Could her father be alive? Meanwhile, it’s time for the big day in court. Can the legal team convince the judge to confirm Cathy and Peter’s fathers? Searching for Soldier Dad is a BBC Long Form Audio production for the BBC World Service. Please note, the image being used is for illustrative purposes only and the child depicted is a model. Presenter: Ivana Davidovic Series producer: Josephine Casserly Sound design: Tom Brignell Executive producer: Matt Willis Commissioning senior producers: Katy Davis and Anne Dixey Commissioning editor: Jon Manel

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. Chicago, 2011, a cop is murdered. Police and prosecutors swear they have the trigger man. He swears he didn't do it. How far will each side go to prove their right? Like it's just one bombshell after another, you know, where you're like, what? What? The story of a PlayStation, a brain-eating amoeba, and the relentless pursuit of justice.

Off duty, out now. Listen wherever you get your podcast. Hello. Hi, Rose. Very nice to see you. Hi there. I'm back in lawyer James Netto's office, overlooking St. Paul's Cathedral.

And James seems nervous. So, it's really good to see you again. Yvonne and her grandma Rose pop up on the screen. When we first met in their village, 17-year-old Yvonne told us that both her parents were dead. According to her grandmother, back when Yvonne was very young, British soldiers passed on a message to the family that Yvonne's father had died.

For months, James has been looking for a lead in Yvonne's case. What he's found has the potential to change her life. And this is the moment he's going to tell her. And we might have some information for you about living relatives in England. After they took Yvonne's DNA sample, it was uploaded to Ancestry's database. And they found a match, a woman living in Devon in the south of England.

This is exactly what Yvonne hoped might happen, an extended family member in the UK. So I wrote to her and I said to her, do you have anyone in your family who was in Kenya around the time of your birth, or just before your birth, in 2007? and I didn't hear back for a few weeks and then all of a sudden I got a call in my office.

It was Yvonne's relative, calling back. She told James there was only one person in her family who had any involvement in the army, the son of her cousin. This man is alive and well, living somewhere in the UK. It could, could be that this man is related to you. And specifically, there is a chance, we do not know 100% yet,

but there is a chance that this guy could be your father. I watch Yvonne and her grandma rose on a big screen where the Zoom call is projected. Yvonne's eyebrows shoot up and her eyes widen. Kelvin, the Kenyan lawyer, is sat next to them. There's a few seconds delay as he quickly translates into Swahili for Grandma Rose. Although we have no common language, her face says it all. Shock, surprise, disbelief. She's asking how has they now come back alive?

How can this man be back from the dead? I have that question as well. I don't know. That's why I wish I could say to you, Yvonne, this guy is definitely your father, but there are so many questions in this whole story that don't add up correctly. Yvonne sits listening to all of this in stunned silence.

I know it's a lot to take in. How do you feel? Navas. Don't feel nervous. I mean, it's exciting, but we need to go very carefully. Just six months ago, we had no information about this man, no name, no address, nothing. The only thing we knew was that he worked for the British military in Kenya

at the time of Yvonne's conception. Without this DNA detective work, he would never have been found. So I think our next step is to get this guy, oblige this guy to come to court and see what he's got to say. And for him to provide a DNA sample specifically. That's the only scientific way we can get 100% confirmation that he is your father or not. It's pointing in a good direction, I think. After the call ends, we catch out with Yvonne.

She speaks calmly, but the shock on her face tells a different story. I think I'm super excited. I can't believe I'm going to be a daddy's girl. Yeah, that's what I'll give him another chance. This desire of Yvonne's to be, as she calls it, a daddy's girl, feels so innocent and generous to this man who, for nearly two decades, may have allowed his daughter to believe he was dead. Is it possible that Yvonne might get the father she should be.

father she saw badly once. This is World of Secrets, Season 12. Searching for Soldier Dad, a BBC World Service investigation. I'm Ivana Davidovich, a BBC journalist. Episode 4, The Dads. The DNA samples taken in Nanuki in Kenya have started to offer answers to questions that have lingered for decades. The children with missing fathers, British soldiers who left Kenya and lost

contact are beginning to be identified. By the summer of 2024, DNA analysis has identified 13 possible fathers. I spend days scouring the internet, trying to find more information about these men. Some have no online presence at all, but one is easy to find. Once we have a name for Yvonne's possible dad, a quick Google search finds him. To maintain his privacy, we've done. giving him a pseudonym, Kieran. He's in his 40s with thick brown hair and a wide smile.

He has a public profile and has had several businesses. But there's a complication. Kieran has a brother, and brothers, of course, share a lot of their DNA. So, without knowing more, either of them could technically be Yvonne's dad. But it's only Kieran who was in the army. And only Kieran, who has a link to Kenya. in 2007 when Yvonne was conceived. And he's certainly not trying to hide.

I think at this point that he should be easy to contact. But I'm about to be proved very wrong. Kieran doesn't reply to any messages through social media or any emails. As a lawyer, James has more tools at his disposal than we do. He goes through the courts and manages to get several addresses for Kieran from government departments and the Ministry of Defence. He writes to him and we wait for a response. Meanwhile, James is preparing the legal case.

It's sort of taken over my life for the last few weeks. It will be heard by the highest judge in the family court. I think he's taking it exceptionally seriously. And James will try to convince him to accept the evidence he presents, including from the DNA testing, and to confirm the paternity of each of these fathers in court. We want to get these cases into court as soon as possible, Because the sooner they go into court, the sooner they get resolved.

The sooner they get resolved, the quicker it is for these families in Kenya to actually get some sort of outcome. If this happens, the fathers will be added to the birth certificates, opening the door to their offspring being granted British citizenship. And there's never been a case like it. Nothing like this has ever been done before where you're engaging DNA testing on such a scale. Cases on such scale all heard at one time. and all of them having this common thread

and the common thread is that all of them are in the British Charming. Months past since we first tried to contact Kieran and we've heard nothing. In September, three months after the first attempt to contact him, the producer Josephine catches up with James for an update. And what about Yvonne's dad? Missing. And we are looking for this chap all over the shop.

And every time we try and knock on his door, he's not there. or he's somewhere else, or he's not home, or a mate is home but he's not. And I don't know exactly where he is, but we're narrowing down on him. It might not be him. We just don't know where he is, so the hunt continues for him. James needs to prove that Kieran has received the legal documents before the court case can proceed.

But every door the court bailiff's knock on, he's not there. And James' caseload is growing by the day. Each case is a case letter. So, Yvonne's case A, and at the moment we're up to case L. I'm going to run out of letters? That's least of our worries. I'm just not sure how we're going to stay on top of all of them. It's very, very exciting.

I mean, we can only go so far. The way we're looking at it, we're not judging them for what they may have done 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 years ago is what they do when they find out about this information now in 2025 and whether they'll actually embrace their kids. I've never had anything like this. The courts of them had anything like this, that's for sure. The weeks roll by, and I called James for an update. So the bailiff attended the property yesterday.

No response. We'll be trying again hopefully later today or later tomorrow. I'll update you again after that visit. Let me email him right now. James calls later to let us know. Again, there was no response. I also sent him messages, but we hear nothing. It feels like he doesn't want to be found.

But elsewhere, there's a reaction from another father that is very different. It's so nice to hear you and the line is really clear, which is amazing. Yeah, it's so nice to hear. Sorry, we've not... James tells me there's been a development in Cathy's case, so I give her a call. with the latest. I know that James has shared some information with you. Kathy's mom was in a relationship with her dad, Phil.

He wrote her love letters and proposed to her publicly in Nairobi Airport. But when Kathy was a baby, he went on deployment and never returned. In her teenage years, Kathy messaged her dad on Facebook, telling him all about her life, but never received a reply. He told me that my dad accepted being my parent and my dad actually messaged me before James did. James wrote to Kathy's dad and heard back within days. He accepted that he is her father immediately.

He didn't even request a DNA test through the courts to confirm. Kathy tells me that he reached out so quickly to her mom through Facebook that it was even before James had a chance to speak to her. I'm having a mixed emotions here, but it's better than not knowing anything, to be honest. He said he wanted to call me, but I keep deflecting. Why is that? It's too much to take in all at once. They've been messaging for a couple of days.

I mean, you can't just tell me that you forgot. And then all of a sudden, just because the law has pushed your side, you decide, oh, shit, I did have a family. If that was not the case, you'd still be quiet and then blaming it on the mental illness. Right. Okay. So is that what he's saying to you? His bad mental health was at play? Yeah, he says after the army, his mental health declined.

I don't want to be hard on him because he is still my dad, but there's still like a big gap that he needs to account for. What do you want to feel and see from him going forward? Well, I just want to feel that, you know, paternal love that I've never gotten. Like, you know, just the normal things that you expect from a dad, I feel like he just ignored me for 19 years. But I still need him in my own way. So it's not too late, is it?

It's not too late. I mean, I am still young. But he has missed a lot in my life. Reaching adulthood, going through a lot of phases, a lot of complications. joy, sadness, depression and all that. He's missed all that. And my accomplishments as well, he's missed all that. Phil has a lot of questions to answer.

Where did he go? Why didn't he reply to all those messages from Maggie and Kathy over the years? I've heard so much about this man. I want to talk to him. I reach out. I say the same thing as I do to all of the fathers a contact. that I just want to talk, hear his side of the story, that it can be off the record.

Most of the other fathers reply with a firm no, or don't reply at all. So when I send the message to Phil, I'm not expecting much. To be honest, I mean, I wasn't, who knows? I didn't even know whether you'd be found and what would happen. But what happens next will take me by surprise. She was the sister who went unnoticed.

A daffodil might look plain next to a lily, but on its own there is much to be admired. Now, her greatest chapter is yet to come. The most important thing is to be yourself. From the world of Jane Austen's pride and prejudice comes a new Britbox original drama. Mary, you will flourish. Based on the best-selling novel, The Other Bennett Sister,

now streaming only on Britbox. Watch for the free trial at Britbox.com. Chicago 2011. cop is murdered. Police and prosecutors swear they have the trigger man. He swears he didn't do it. How far will each side go to prove their right? Like it's just one bombshell after another, you know, where you're like, what, what? The story of a PlayStation, a brain-eating amoeba, and the relentless pursuit of justice. Off-duty, out now. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. We're sitting outside a cafe. Across from me is a man,

his 50s, his bolding, chatting. Just explain a bit what your life looks like now. Where do you live? Where do you work? Yeah, I work doing security, and I'm living in a shared house with another family. Basically, I'm staying there. Since I've been there, I've had a couple of jobs. What's it like living in a shared house with a family at your age?

Feels like the army. It really does. This is Phil Kathy's dad Maggie's ex-fiance the man behind all those love letters I've been homeless before I joined the army

because I'd no job prospects whatsoever you know it's like I've got to do something but you couldn't find a job you know So that's why you joined the army Yeah that's the reason

I joined the army you know I loved it I really did he's just having a laugh 24-7 He tells me that when he got the letter

from James the lawyer saying Cathy might be his daughter he was delighted. After hearing all Maggie and Cathy's attempts to contact him over the years, the calls, the Facebook messages, I thought he might be more reluctant. Very happy surprise, yeah. No stress, no drama, no fear, no, oh my God.

I was actually really happy this happened. I ask what he remembers about Maggie. It's been 19 years since you've seen her. Yeah. Do you remember her? I do, I do, yeah. What is your memory of her? She was beautiful, really beautiful, absolutely lovely person, you know.

I had a photograph of her when we were at the pool table, and I had that for ages. The pool table was in the middle, and she was sitting on the side. She was stunning, really stunning. Yeah, seriously, I was like, oh, my life, well happy. Did you ever think about her? Maggie? Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. Were you in love? Yeah. I still love her. You know, I mean, I know it's been a long time, but it's like, yeah, it was, I was... I don't know, we just clicked.

You know what I mean? It was just not natural. With her, I don't know, I just felt really nice. It was like being around there. She's just such a nice person. Were you planning a future at the time? Yes. The whole idea was to get, this is even before Maggie was pregnant.

You know, it's like bring her over here, basically she could live there. Do you mean, like, get married? Yeah, yeah. Where were you when she told you she was pregnant? Hounslow. Yeah, Hounslow. For London. I used to go.

go down to the local shops and you could buy international cards. I remember those? Yeah, yeah. And I used to call her up every Friday. You know, she's like, told me. I was like, wow, that's awesome. And then what happened afterwards? I went back to Africa, met up with Catherine.

She was a baby at the time. Yeah, we went off and got her papers done and everything. Tell me about your feelings when you held her. I was very happy. It was like, I know, it's hard to explain. You know, I mean, it's like, the joy that you feel by holding another life in your hands that you've created. At that time, what did you think was going to happen?

I was hoping that I could get her across to England as quickly as possible. You know what I mean? So, yeah, I was saving my money up to get her across with Maggie. Phil talks so warmly about their love story, just like Maggie did. She said it was like Romeo and Juliet. So what I need to understand is how things went from this to him disappearing for 18 years. Phil says it all started when his mobile phone was stolen. You know, the phone got stolen, therefore all the details went, you know,

the plan just diminished from there. He says that all his contacts, including Maggie's number, were gone. Do you think you could have done certain things better? Like, for example, when your phone was... stolen at some point after just flown to Nairobi and gone and find her. I thought about that, but the fact of the matter is it's going to Nairobi would be no problem. It's getting to Nunuki would be the problem because I don't know how to get there because I'm dyslexic and I've got problems of learning and things like that. I'm just thinking, well, I wouldn't have

enough money though just charged me like a silly amount and I'd just be stuck out there. Did you try to reach out to somebody in Batuk and say, I kind of need some assistance. I have a child now in the region. Can you help me? Did you try to do something like that potentially? If you found it hard to go to yourself. It's like it's embarrassing. It was like, I tried to ask a few people.

It's all, well, no, what did it just go out there? Well, I don't know how to get to that. So how did you feel then? Like, talk me through that. So you had your phone stolen. You felt like you couldn't go back. and you felt like you couldn't really ask for help for somebody to locate them locally.

So you knew you had this woman you were in love with, you say. You knew you had a child who was under the age of one. He must have been absolutely distraught, or were you? Yeah. Were you? Yeah. You know, so I'm not very good at things like that. You know, the army controls you, what you can do, where to go and things like that.

When we met Margaret, she was showing us messages that she was sending you once Facebook started and she found you and she was sending pictures of Cathy and she never got a reply. Yeah. What happened there? I didn't know it was her. I didn't see those messages. I've got a lot of messages that come on my Facebook. I've got one last week from Africa.

I don't know who it is and I get so many people adding me on Facebook who I don't. know who they are, I just blocked them all. And when I've had the paperwork, realizing she has been trying to get in touch of me, I looked through the block list and she was on there. I didn't realize it was her. Sitting here, I can't help but think about all those desperate messages that Kathy and Maggie sent Phil over the years. So when you saw the photos of that little girl,

you thought that's just some random girl? I didn't know. You didn't even open it. you know, so I just, everything just got blocked. I wasn't in a very good place either, you know, because I just come back from a really nasty part of my life, been homeless and then got homeless again. Within a month, I've made homeless like three times.

And it was like, it was getting too much for me, so I had to go down to the mental health clinic. I got put on medication because I wasn't sleeping at all. I slept like four or five days, and it's like my brain doesn't stop. It just keeps one taking over, and it's like, I just needed to sleep, and I couldn't. You know. After he left Kenya, Phil was deployed in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo. It's clear that Phil's life has not been easy.

He's had his own struggles. If someone said to you, I hear your story, I know it's hard leaving the army, you've had mental health problems, but all I can hear is excuses. Yeah. What would you say to that? Nothing to say, you know. I've never been any good at organising anything. You know what I mean?

It's like, it's always been done for me, you know what I mean? It's like when you go through that line, it's like when people come out of prison, that's the reason why they go back to prison. Because it's like when you come out of the army, it's like there's no one there to really help you. You're used to being having so many people around you. It's difficult outside,

especially if you've been in for so long and he's got no one to get in touch with. When you were at this really long moment, homeless and really struggling, were you thinking about Cathy at all? I was just thinking about one day at a time. That's all I could do. I was just trying to survive at the time. Do you think that the army can do more to help people that it employs for over a decade,

like it was in your case? Yeah. I think they should do, yeah. What do you want now, Phil? Do you want to be a dad? Do you want a chance to be a dad? Yeah. Yeah, well, I've had this conversation with Cathy,

and I told her it doesn't matter what I do. I never make up for the amount of time that I've lost with her, but all I can do is to do the best that I can. And since I spoke on the phone to Kathy, the two of them have been in more contact. They've even had a three-hour phone call. Was Kathy angry with you? I did say to her, and the first message that I sent to her,

I do understand if you're angry and she says yes. But the three-hour conversation that we had, it was like we've never been apart. That's what I liked about it. We just got on so well. He tells me he's also spoken with Maggie. Tell me about the first time you heard her voice after 19 years. Wow. So I'll just picture in front of me like she used to look, you know, it's weird.

It's hard to explain. I'm just so happy, though, I've got her back in touch her, though. And I told her, I'm not going through that again. At the moment, I'm trying to say. up enough money to send over. How do you feel about Maggie now? Hopefully we're going to patch things up. Do you think?

I hope so. Be nice. I wasn't expecting to hear this, that Phil has hopes that him and ex-fiance Maggie might get back together after all these years. Is that just because you've been a bit lonely all these years? Or do you genuinely think this is a chance to this? Yeah, there is a chance. Because obviously we're a child together.

It's like hopefully we get on still. You know what I mean? We can rekindle that fire that we had. But if it doesn't work, it doesn't mean that we can't not keep in touch. You know what I mean? I still send her over money. You know what I mean?

I still help her out when she needs it. You feel like you've been given like a second chance and life? Yeah. Very much so. You know, I'm just happy that it's happened. What happens if ultimately Kathy doesn't accept you easily?

What are going to do? I'm still her father and I can't change that. You know, I mean, she ends up hating me, okay, that's understandable, but unfortunately, I'm still the dad and I'll still do everything I can for her. So you're not going to give up again, someone might say? No, no way. As we say goodbye to Phil, I'm left with more questions. Could a lost phone really be the reason for abandoning your child,

the one you held when she was seven months old? But the way he speaks about Maggie, the way he looks when he mentions her, I can tell his feelings for her were real. Phil has also suffered. In some ways, he too is a victim, of poor mental health, of being institutionalised after following orders for almost two decades. I wonder how different his life might have been if he had followed through with his plan to bring Maggie.

and baby Kathy to the UK all those years ago. I can imagine that she would have made a success of life in the UK, perhaps open her own business and worked to establish herself here. It's impossible to say, but maybe Phil's life would also have been more stable, richer and happier with Maggie and Kathy by his side. Just a few days after speaking to Phil, we meet James outside the Royal Courts of Justice,

an imposing Gothic Victorian building in the heart of London. It's the biggest day of the legal case so far. Today, James will try to persuade the judge to confirm the paternity of seven of the fathers. Among them are Cathy's dad, Phil, and Peter's father that he had a video call with. We walk through the cathedral-like entrance and head towards the family court.

The usual cases they are dealt with here are things like divorce settlements and child custody. We sit on a bench outside the courtroom waiting for a sign to enter. James and his colleagues are catching up in hushed tones. It's time to begin and we're ushered inside. We can't record so we turn off our microphones. We sit alongside some other journalists on a narrow bench. As we wait for the judge, I take in the grandeur of the courtroom with its wood paneling and arch ceiling.

Even though they can't be here, for the women and children in Anuki to have access to justice here, for their case to be heard by the highest family court judge in the country, feels very significant. The judge readily accepts the DNA evidence presented to him by James and his colleagues. He reads through the names of the successful applicants, there are seven names on the list. Among them are Kathy and Peter. Their fathers are confirmed in the eyes of the law. There are still eight cases outstanding and a future court date is

scheduled. It's over in a flash, but it's a moment which will define the future of these seven people. Some will now begin their applications for British citizenship and for those under 18, their mothers can now also demand child maintenance. Well, that was a very good day in courts. Outside, James is excitedly waving his folder of case files. I'm so happy for these kids. Look at the seven. I'm really near to hear it. It's crazy, isn't it?

Having spent months tracking these men down and having received many positive responses, even witnessed reunions, This now feels like an opportunity for new beginnings. These men, they're doing the right thing. They're good guys deep down. I hope it lasts. I really hope it lasts.

I think it will. I'd love to see what happens in a few months' time. Do you feel like the clients are accepting fully of some of the reasoning that the fathers are giving for not being in touch? There's been a common theme that some of these men said, oh, I had no idea. I thought when I got these weird messages,

it was spam, or it was a bot, or it was fake. And maybe there's some truth in that. There's a ring of truth in it. But look, let's not focus on that. Let's focus on what's going forward, getting these declarations. It's like nothing else ever. But Yvonne's father, Kieran, is still nowhere to be seen. And one's still missing, right?

One is still missing. He's got to be somewhere. Coming up next time, we go to a military barracks in the southwest of England to put our questions to a senior army officer. And we have a breakthrough in the search for Yvonne's dad when I speak to a long lost relative. Well, the thing is, I'm kind of a bit, I obviously don't want to dump anybody in it,

but in my heart of heart, I'm quite convinced. That's next time on World of Secrets. This has been episode four or five of season 12 of World of Secrets, searching for Soldier Dad from the BBC World Service. World of Secrets Searching for Soldier Dad is a long-form audio production for the BBC World Service.

It's presented by me, Ivana Davidovich. The series is produced and written by Josephine Cassily. The series editor is Matt Willis. Our script advisor is Lucy Proctor. Sound design and mix by Tom Brignall. We would like as many people as possible to hear our investigations. So please leave a rating and a review

and do tell others about World of Secrets. She was the sister who went unnoticed. A daffodil might look plain next to a lily, but on its own there is much to be admired. Now, her greatest chapter is yet to come. The most important thing is to be yourself. From the world of Jane Austen's pride and prejudice comes a new Britbox original drama.

Mary, you will flourish. Based on the best-selling novel, The Other Bennett Sister, now streaming only. on Britbox. Watch with a free trial at Britbox.com.