A deeply moving episode of ITV’s Long Lost Family has seen two sisters reunite for the first time, both describing the moment as overwhelming and joyous.
Naomi, 58, who grew up as an only child well aware she was adopted, embarked on an emotional journey after discovering unexpected details in her adoption documents. When she obtained her records, they revealed she had two elder sisters-twins born to her birth mother prior to Naomi’s arrival. Determined to find them, Naomi featured on the programme to seek out her birth family.
Living in Gloucestershire with her husband of 30 years, Naomi was adopted as an infant and enjoyed a happy childhood in Plymouth with her adoptive parents. Despite this, she had always wondered about her birth family and, during her teenage years, her adoptive parents shared a letter with her from the time of her adoption. The letter disclosed that her birth mother was 19 when Naomi was born and that she had given up twin girls for adoption through a society in Cheshire.
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Naomi says, “I was obviously very surprised when I found out that I had sisters. It was shocking.”
After the loss of her adoptive parents in her twenties, Naomi’s desire to connect with her birth family grew stronger. She revisited the mother and baby home in Plymouth where she had spent her first six weeks, reflecting on the bond with the woman who cared for her during that time.
“I spent my first 6 weeks here and my birth mother looked after me all that time. The attachment must have been there. And the idea of one minute the baby’s there and the next they’re gone, you just can’t imagine,” she explained.
Naomi was keen to find her birth mother and twin sisters, posing questions about whether the twins had been raised together, how they felt about being adopted, and their happiness.
The Long Lost Family team discovered that Naomi’s birth mother is still alive but wished to take things slowly and was not ready for a face-to-face meeting yet.
Turning their attention to her sisters, the team identified them as Gail and Elaine. Sadly, Gail has since passed away, but Elaine, 63, was located living in Manchester.
Elaine shared with co-host Nicky that she and Gail had a wonderful upbringing with devoted adoptive parents. She revealed that Gail was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease in the 1990s and passed away in 2020. Having lost both her adoptive mother and husband recently, Elaine describes meeting Naomi as a timely and hopeful moment.
She said, “The fact that she’s gone to so much effort to find us, she must really want to meet us.”
Co-presenter Davina McCall visited Naomi to share the news about her birth mother’s cautious approach and Elaine’s eagerness to meet.
Naomi was informed privately about the sad passing of her sister Gail. Although initially feeling rejected by her birth mother’s hesitation, Davina reassured her, saying, “This is her reaching out to you in the best way she can at the moment.”
Naomi was delighted to receive a photograph and letter from Elaine, describing them as “very warm, very welcoming. She looks happy. She does look lovely.”
When Naomi and Elaine finally met, they shared a heartfelt embrace that neither wanted to end.
Elaine expressed, “I’m so glad you found me. You’ve looked for so long and I didn’t even know you existed.”
The sisters exchanged photographs and reminisced about their childhoods. Naomi reflected, “I have known about my two sisters since I was a teenager but have only just found her after so many years. I am overwhelmed with happiness. She was as warm and welcoming as her photo looked. It is all I could have hoped for and the shared connection I was looking for definitely.”
Elaine added, “I was blown away at how much we looked alike, and that I’ve now got a baby sister. So happy! I feel fantastic.”
The episode concluded by sharing that Naomi and Elaine are now in regular contact and have plans for their families to meet soon.
Long Lost Family airs Thursdays at 9pm on ITV.