Thirteen proved no unlucky number for the 13th series of WDYTYA as the current run of the popular family history show drew to a close last week. The content and showbiz factors joined seamlessly to produce a season which I'm sure will be regarded as the best yet. The 10th and final episode was every bit as gripping, informative and entertaining as the previous nine, with BBC News presenter Sophie Raworth in the hot seat of the time machine.

She was quickly in the thick of it after discovering that, contrary to family lore, her 4 x Great Grandfather - Samuel Mott was not after all the inventor of the Sostenente Piano, who played for King George IV. Indeed he was in fact dismissed from the family piano business, having occupied a lowly position within it as something of a family black sheep, whilst his brother and cousin courted glory and royalty. She discovers that her ancestor was in fact "a mule of a chap" and disappointed, reflects that "it's not quite the same is it". Tragedy would be a hallmark of Samuel Motts life as Sophia discovers; aged 11 he is orphaned in New York, his parents falling victim to yellow fever where they had fled following the Birmingham Priestly Riots in 1791. He spends time with a bankrupt guardian, before returning home and ultimately in due course, suicide.

Following these heart wrenching discoveries a visibly moved Sophia switches tracks and investigates another family rumour, that of her Great Grandfather - Edgar Cussons Crowder who, family lore has it, worked at Kew Gardens. To Sophie's obvious delight and relief, this turns out to be the case, her delight turning to joy, as she learns that he actually worked in the iconic Palm House. Happy in thought she takes a stroll around the building reflecting on how many times she has taken her own children around it without knowing its ancestral significance. Her search moves to Doncaster where she learns that her 5 x Great Grandfather Abraham Crowder, was a pioneer in the cultivation of Pineapples in this country. Her quest to know more takes her to Tatton Park and one of the last surviving 'Pinery Vinery' houses in the country and the bonus of potting and taking home two young Pineapple plants.

The discovery of this horticultural heritage is all the more gratifying, as she is not just the presenter of the Chelsea Flower Show as a job of work, but passionate about gardening herself, something handed down from her parents and as we found on this journey to the past, one with strong green fingered roots!