Who Do You Think You Are?: April 16

This week on the excellent Who Do You Think You Are? actor Don Hany delves into his Hungarian ancestry to learn about secrets and lies that still divide his family.

Actor Don Hany embarks on an emotional journey that reunites his mother and aunt for the first time in over 30 years. Don knows something of his father’s Iraqi side of the family but his mother’s Hungarian heritage seems to be one of secrets and pain, and centres around one man, Don’s Hungarian grandfather, József Szabó. Don’s mother Csilla’s relationship with her Hungarian relatives has all but
vanished completely and she hasn’t spoken to her sister in over three decades. What Don does know is that his family’s past is painful and his mother has nothing good to say about her father, calling him a violent, controlling and unfaithful man. But, even more trouble for Don, is that his mother keeps telling him he reminds her of József. As a new father and family man, Don wants to know more about this man and find out if his mother’s stories are true.

Don travels to Hungary and delves into its recent tumultuous Cold War history and finds that his grandfather was at the centre of the action. A rising star in the communist party, József became president of his local agricultural cooperative, which put him in the firing line during the Hungarian uprising. József was abducted by the rebels during this period and didn’t return home for two weeks. Don attempts to uncover what happened to József in later years after the uprising and is faced with the very different public and private personas of his grandfather, as he unravels a labyrinth of secrets and lies that still divide his family.

Tuesday, 16 April at 7.30pm on SBS ONE.