My word. We all know that the BBC are really good at making Who Do You Think You Are? (BBC One, Wednesday, 15 July, 9pm) but last night’s show was a real stonker. Davina McCall starred and to be honest, I thought it was going to be a good ‘un. Her personal life alone would make an excellent show in itself and, regardless of what you think of her professionally, there’s no hiding from the fact that she seems like a really likeable gal. Delving beyond her life, things got more interesting that I could’ve ever imagined!

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Reviewing shows like this are a bit tricky, as they can turn into an exercise in relaying exactly what happened and it what order. Effectively, it’s easier to do a recap than a review. I’ll endeavour to stray from straight fact telling, but with a show steeped in stats and tales, it may stumble toward regurgitation.

Basically, Davina McCall set off through the family story, thinking all the while that the best story would be found on her father’s side of the family. There were rumours that an ancestor of hers was illegitimate son of King George IV.

In treading that path, she walked straight into the world of industry and suicide. As interesting as it was, and as lovely as the people she met along the way were, it was pretty bog-standard stuff from Who Do You Think You Are?

The real meat came in France from her estranged (and recently deceased) mother’s side of the tracks. Her mother was a stunning and wild woman who drank a lot and took drugs and generally never grew up. I was all braced for a tale involving debauchery and dank basements.

However, the most regal and noble stuff emerged from this emotional French return. Seeing Davina’s eyes widen around Paris and seeing her chatting away in what sounded like very impressive French to me, was pretty thrilling television. Then, the goods. The more she delved, the more she found out about Celestin Hennion.

Hennion is something of a forgotten French hero who defended the French Republic from dissidents and Royalists. Not as some foot soldier mind you. He was the chief of everything. He was also involved in a hugely important bit of French history known as The Dreyfus Trial. I’d tell you more, but for those who missed it, go to iPlayer the first chance you get and tune in.

All in all, this show works best when there’s a lot to uncover. I wonder if celebrities are screened first, to see if their back story is interesting enough to warrant a show. Whatever the answer to that is, picking Davina McCall as the series opener was an inspired choice.

She was warm, inviting and open as well as inquisitive and not afraid to be a complete emotional wreck on camera. It made for exquisite television which was moving and invigorating. I enjoyed every second of it. A wonderful show.