Gemma Collins finds wholeness in family history journey on Who Do You Think You Are?

Gemma Collins has admitted that she didn’t feel ‘whole’ before discovering the truth about her family history while filming BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?

The former TOWIE star, 43, is set to go on an emotional journey into her mother Joan’s past, with Gemma set to learn the real reason why Joan was fostered as a baby.

The research into her Essex roots, which goes back 200 years, sees Gemma make a shocking discovery about why her then teenage grandmother, also called Joan, had to give up her child, with the show also uncovering long-lost relatives who it turns out, do not live too far from the Collins family.  

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And while the exploration into Joan’s past and the answers it brought were both ‘healing and ‘cathartic’ for her mother, Gemma told how it was beneficial for her too as the missing piece of the puzzle in her life was now found.

In an exclusive interview with MailOnline ahead of her season 21 episode airing on September 26, the TV personality explained how for several years growing up, her family knew little about or spoke of Joan’s past, with the issue becoming a ‘taboo subject’.

Gemma Collins has admitted that she didn’t feel ‘whole’ before discovering the truth about her family history while filming BBC ‘s Who Do You Think You Are ?

The former TOWIE star, 43, is set to go on an emotional journey into her mother Joan’s past, with Gemma set to learn the real reason why Joan [pictured with Gemma] was fostered as a baby

But after delving into the history of Joan’s upbringing, the truth felt like a weight had been lifted, with Gemma explaining: ‘I’ve grown up for many years, and especially my mum, growing up not knowing her background and her roots. It was always a taboo subject that we never discussed, but doing this show has been so healing and cathartic for her.’

Adding that she feels ‘whole’ after learning what she did, she added: ‘It’s like opening Pandora’s box. It’s been lovely to know I’ve got family down the road and so lovely to know that it’s not too late. It’s been lovely for my mum to link up with these people again.’

Gemma went on to liken the opportunity to delve into her family ticket to getting a chance to visit the fictional Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory, saying: ‘I went into the experience with open arms, it was such a honour.  It’s like someone giving you a golden ticket to get this information.

The eye-opening episode followed Gemma as she visited hospitals in Epsom and the Royal College of Psychiatry to learn more about her grandmother, who it was discovered had mental health issues and likely had her baby taken away from her. 

The show also took her to Dagenham and Tower Hamlets in a bid to dig deeper into her family’s past, with Gemma along the way discovering a shock link to Jack the Ripper.  

The social media star added that she’s grateful to have been able to explore the family past before it was too late as not everyone is able to do so, with Gemma noting that filming occurred before her mum’s real father passed away this year. 

She shared: ‘I feel like everything was done at the right time because she’s got the answers now that she needed.’

Her episode on the BBC genealogy series sees the moving moment Gemma meets her mum’s long lost cousin, Christine, at her home in Dagenham, where she learns of Christine’s memories of her mum as a child and also gets to see a picture of her grandmother for the first time. 

Gemma said of her relative: ‘Christine is a really lovely person and what a shocker that we got to meet her and she only lives down the road. It’s a shame in a way that she’s been so close for so long and not known, but we can certainly make up for lost time.’

The research into her Essex roots sees Gemma make a shocking discovery about why her then teenage grandmother, also called Joan, had to give up her child, with the show also uncovering long-lost relatives who it turns out, do not live too far from the Collins family

And while the exploration into Joan’s past and the answers it brought were both ‘healing and ‘cathartic’ for her mother, Gemma told how it was beneficial for her too as the missing piece of the puzzle in her life was now found 

In an exclusive interview with MailOnline ahead of her season 21 episode airing on September 26, the TV personality explained how for several years growing up, her family knew little about or spoke of Joan’s past, with the issue becoming a ‘taboo subject’.

The former Dancing On Ice contestant revealed that Christine and her family have been to Gemma’s for a visit after the cameras stopped rolling, with the group all getting on like a house on fire.

On her newly-discovered extended family, she continued: ‘I really am fond of them, it’s just like being with your own. It’s so lovely. Christine and my mum have so much in common. We all get on, it’s nice for dad too.’

Gemma is known for her close relationship with her beloved mum, with their bond no doubt strengthened after embarking on this important journey together.

Her love for Joan is so great that while she found the experience therapeutic for herself, her main concern was that Joan finally found closure after years of feeling abandoned and unwanted.

Gemma explained: ‘I’m close to my mum, it’s been very healing for her, unanswered questions that are now answered, there’s nothing like having a bit of clarity over a situation.

‘Hopefully now she won’t feel like she was abandoned. She’ll feel that she had a lovely family. My mum’s been a great mum. Fostering stories can be amazing and actually, my mum’s been one of those great foster stories. 

After delving into the history of Joan’s upbringing, the truth felt like a weight had been lifted, with Gemma explaining: ‘I’ve grown up for many years, and especially my mum, growing up not knowing her background and her roots’ [Joan pictured]

Her love for Joan is so great that while she found the experience therapeutic for herself, her main concern was that Joan finally found closure after years of feeling abandoned and unwanted [Gemma and Joan pictured]

‘I went into the experience with open arms, it was such a honour. It’s like someone giving you a golden ticket to get this information’

On whether she’d embark on fostering herself, Gemma – who has a great relationship with fiancé Rami Hawash’s step-son Tristan, six [pictured] – Gemma responded: ‘Who knows!’ 

‘My mum didn’t have the most glamorous of upbringings and although she had a lovely foster family, she could never really understand it all because she always felt like no one wanted her – and she was very much wanted.’

Gemma also revealed how nice it was that fans get to see a different side to her, remarking that she couldn’t’ be the ’40-year-old diva forever’. 

She noted: ‘That’s why I loved doing this show so much because I didn’t need to be the GC, I was stripped back and people love to see that side.’

On whether she’d embark on fostering herself, Gemma – who has a great relationship with fiancé Rami Hawash’s step-son Tristan, six – Gemma responded: ‘Who knows!’ before emphasising that ‘fostering has so many successful outcomes’. 

Gemma’s Who Do You Think You Are episode airs Thursday 26 September at 9pm on BBC One.