Olly Murs' origins in Latvia

The British music star Olly Murs, while taking part in the UK's popular Who Do You Think You Are? BBC broadcast discovers that his ancestors came from Latvia.

The artist researched documents in the State Archives of Latvia, the Riga Circus and the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia at its main building and also the Corner House. 

The information obtained reveals colourful but sad events about the extramarital love story of his great-grandfather Eduards, a circus artist, with his colleague from the circus Veronika, which led to the coming into the world of Olly's grandfather Edijs.
Eduards stayed with his family and his wife, but the young mother raised Edijs with the help of her parents. 
Even more tragically, the fate of these people is affected by the Second World War, when in 1944 Eduards and his family (including his illegitimate son Edijs) flee to Germany, but Veronika chooses to stay in Latvia, where in 1951 she is tried for "anti-Soviet statements" and sentenced to eight years in a labour camp.

You can find out more about Olly's story in the Who Do You Think You Are? 21st season’s sixth broadcast (currently available only to UK residents). The show was first aired by BBC on 19 September this year.

We also invite other history enthusiasts to visit the exposition of the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia to find out the dramatic events in Latvia during the Second World War and the subsequent Soviet occupation.

The Museum is included in the Tripadvisor Latvian Top 10 places and offers an interesting way – through exhibits, video and audio testimonies, interactive displays in walk-through labyrinth – to experience the environment in which Latvians spent their days during the tragic last century.

You may also learn more about your own family's story...

Original photo from the Olly Mur's Facebook profile
https://www.facebook.com/ollymurs/photos

Material from the BBC website has been used to prepare this publication (accessed on 23.09.2024).
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m00232nh/who-do-you-think-you-are-series-21-6-olly-murs