[Davina] Over the past four years, we've been reuniting people with their long-lost relatives.

They found her!

[both screaming and laughing] We have found your mum.

Really?

I don't feel like I can breathe.

-Hiya!

-Hello!

I love to see you!

But the reunion is just the beginning.

Once a relative has been found, how easy is it to build a relationship, after a lifetime apart?

I was just hoping and praying that everything would work out.

Suddenly, there was this other person in my life, and that's a whole different relationship-- a sister.

[woman] I feel like I found a part of my life that's been missing, and she is my best friend.

In this series, we catch up with the families we've reunited to find out what happened next.

I think we're reliving our teenage times, because we missed out on them.

In your mind, it's always been the baby, but then you're confronted with the grown man.

And that's different.

Hello, darling.

This week, we catch up with three women who were determined to track down a family member, whatever the risk.

[woman] If I was going to meet my birth mother, it was going to be at the cost of upsetting my parents, who I loved dearly.

But has a reunion been everything they hoped for?

There is that danger that you will just rush and do everything at once, when you do really need to do things gradually.

[woman] You need that connection, and you know about that connection when you meet.

[dramatic music ends] Since Long Lost Family began, we've reunited over 100 people with long-lost relatives.

One of them was Sarah Gale, who came to us three years ago, desperate to find her birth mother.

Sarah lives near Leeds with her husband and three children.

[Sarah] Your hair looks lovely.

She was adopted in 1968.

She grew up in Surrey and had a happy childhood.

I feel so lucky to have been adopted by two parents that desperately wanted a baby.

But despite her loving family, there was always a feeling that Sarah just couldn't shake.

[Sarah] As I got older, I did feel that I wasn't really, really like them.

I've always kind of been short and dumpy, and that isn't my family at all.

We're not really similar personality-wise either.

That doesn't mean I don't get on with them, but we're not really similar.

When we met Sarah, she had been searching for her mother for over 20 years, but she'd got nowhere.

[Sarah] The one massive thing about being adopted is this huge curiosity about the person that you're related to, that you've never seen, you've never even seen a picture.

I've wanted to find her all of my life.

But I just don't dare think that it's a possibility.

Because then I'll have to go through all the disappointment.

When we took on this search, we couldn't find Sarah's mother, Susan, living in the UK.

Eventually, we discovered that Susan had moved to Pretoria, South Africa in the '70s, where she worked for the Red Cross.

She'd gone on to have a son 12 years after Sarah was born.

-[Nicky] Susan.

-Nicky.

-Nicky Campbell.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Please come in and have a seat.

-Thank you very much.

So, how did you feel when you first heard the news that she was looking for you?

Overwhelmed and shocked.

After so long, I didn't think that she would try and find me.

One of Sarah's big fears is that you haven't thought about her, you've just forgotten her.

She's never been forgotten, and I have a photograph of her in my lounge all the time, and she's never been hidden.

My friends know about her, my little church know about her... my son...

There she is.

[Susan gasps] She has my eyes!

Oh my goodness.

What a beautiful smile.

-[Nicky] So, what happened?

-I was 19.

Being pregnant and not being married 42 years ago was... almost like being branded a witch in the Middle Ages.

And I went to this home for unmarried mothers in Putney.

And we had to look after the babies for six weeks to make sure that we had made the right decision.

That was very hard.

After the six weeks, the nurse came and took her away.

And I bought her all nice dresses and a teddy and sent her away with everything.

And then, the next day, I went home to my mum.

And I remember I cried all the way home on the train.

[Nicky] Did you try and find her?

[Susan] No.

It's not that I didn't want to.

I think I was more afraid from upsetting the apple cart with her adoptive parents.

You know, who was I to step in and, you know, say, "Well, here I am," you know?

"I'm your mother, I've come to claim you."

I've always said in my prayers to God that I would either like to meet her in this life or the next one.

And I'm just happy that it's in this one.

[Davina] Back in Yorkshire, I went to see Sarah.

Well, I'm here today because I have got some news about your search.

You look a bit surprised.

Yeah, I'm really surprised.

I'm really surprised.

We have found your mum.

Have you really?

I don't feel like I can breathe.

I just didn't think it was ever a reality.

She's written you a letter.

[Sarah] "Dear Sarah Louise, You've been constantly in my thoughts and prayers.

I'm longing to meet you and hear all about your life, which I hope has been and is a very happy one.

I send you lots of love and look forward to seeing you soon."

I never thought this was gonna happen.

I just can't believe I could ever be this lucky.

Three weeks later, Susan flew over from South Africa, and we arranged for Sarah to finally meet her birth mother at a local beauty spot near her home in Yorkshire.

-[Sarah crying] -Oh, hello.

[crying] [Susan] Thank you.

Thank you.

Do you know, I can't tell you how lucky-- how lucky I feel.

You're not lucky.

I'm the lucky one.

-I'm the lucky one.

-No, no, no.

[Susan] Sit down.

[sighs] I just thought you'd forgotten about me.

-No!

Never.

-When I read that letter...

...I can't even tell you how happy I was.

Never!

Never, never, never.

You are so like my mother, it's not true.

-[Sarah] Really?

-Absolutely.

All my life, I've wanted to look like someone.

-I'm so pleased to meet you.

-Oh, and I'm so... Oh, my goodness, so pleased to meet you.

It's like an animal that recognizes its young.

You know, the heart just went out, and... because I don't know her yet, but it was just this... And I knew she was mine.

The maternal feeling just came up.

[Sarah] Someone said to me, "Once you've met her, you will be able to relax, and that nagging, nagging thing that's just been irritating you will be gone."

And it is.

Three years on from their reunion, and Sarah and her birth mother have grown close.

And Sarah's been out to visit Susan in South Africa twice.

[Sarah] Despite her being on the other side of the world, she rings me all the time, I ring her, and we've got a very easy relationship.

For her to be similar to me character-wise, in so many ways, it's just lovely, basically.

But Sarah has had to consider her adoptive parents too.

They didn't know she was looking for her birth mother.

I hadn't mentioned to my mum and dad that I was ever looking for my birth mother, because I knew it would hurt them.

[exclaiming] As much as this has been a happy, wonderful, joyous experience for me, obviously, it hasn't been the same for them, because I was their daughter who they'd brought up all my life, and, so, this was a bit of a bombshell to them.

-Hi, Dad.

-Good to see you.

Mmm.

[Sarah] As happy as I am, I don't want it to be at their cost, really.

-[Sarah] I love those.

-That's my ultra favorite.

Sarah's mum and dad, Rosemary and Keith, adopted her as a 6-week-old baby.

This is my other favorite.

[Keith] How many favorites?

[laughs] [Sarah] They're all a favorite!

[all laugh] They never imagined her birth mother would ever be a part of Sarah's life.

Do you remember that fireplace, sweetheart?

[Sarah] Yeah.

I mean, when we adopted Sarah, the law was such that, um, the mother had to give away the right to look for the child, so we never considered it.

She was ours.

[laughs] That's you learning to swim with your arm bands.

[Rosemary] Since we found that Sarah had found her birth mother, it was a huge shock.

I didn't want to accept it or...

I wanted to pretend it hadn't happened.

[Sarah] Nobody wants to have the role of mother taken away from them, which makes it still a very sensitive situation.

[Rosemary] It's primal.

She's my daughter.

Sarah and I love each other, couldn't love each other more, but there is now somebody else in the picture, and this felt as if it was going to change things.

My emotions were very powerful.

I never thought, to begin with, that I would be willing and able to go and meet this other person who is... part of my daughter's life.

This weekend, Sarah's mothers are meeting for the first time, as Susan and her son, Gareth, are flying in from South Africa.

I've got my mum that brought me up and taught me everything that I know, and then I've got Susan, who gave birth to me.

And, in some ways, it is a difficult path to tread.

But both of them are very, very important to me.

[laughter] -Hello!

-Hello!

Hello, darling.

[Gareth] It's so nice to see you.

It's not an easy thing for the biological mum to meet the adoptive mum.

She is Sarah Louise's mum.

It doesn't matter whether you've given birth or not.

She has been her mother, and... Not has been.

She is her mother.

[Susan] I just want everyone to be happy.

That's all I want.

I think the hardest thing for me tomorrow is going to be seeing the connection between them, that she can love someone that calls herself "Mom"... and I'm... Mum.

That's gonna be the hardest bit, and I can only deal with it as I... know, do the best I can tomorrow.

Three years ago, we reunited Sarah Gale with her birth mother, Susan, after more than 40 years apart.

Now, Susan is meeting Sarah's adoptive mum, Rosemary, for the very first time.

[Rosemary] I can't say I'm not anxious about meeting Susan.

I should be glad the other side of it, once we've met.

[Susan] I'm feeling very nervous, because it was me that gave Sarah Louise away.

And I want Rosemary to like me, and I want her to be happy with me.

I want to make everything right.

[sentimental music playing] [chatter, laughter] Hello.

Oh!

[both crying] -I'm so happy to meet you.

-Oh!

Oh, you're so lovely.

-You're beautiful!

-So are you!

And thank you, thank you.

-Thank you so much.

-Oh, thank you.

[Rosemary crying] [Susan exclaiming] [Rosemary] Dear, oh, dear.

Well, what a moment then.

[Susan] Incredible, isn't it?

I couldn't believe I would feel this good.

Why to be so nervous and frightened, almost, isn't it?

And I was.

And I was even afraid.

Yes, same here, same here.

Looking at you both, it's your eyes.

I'm mean, everybody must say that.

I mean, you've just got exactly the same eyes.

It's one of the things that I thought I might have minded.

This thing that I was a bit scared of, maybe.

It's such a relief to find that I don't have that.

[Susan] No.

[Rosemary] I just couldn't have believed a couple of years ago I would feel like this.

[Sarah] I feel happy.

[Susan] You're happy, and I'm happy.

[all laugh] We all could burst into a song.

[all laughing] [Sarah] When I saw them hug for the first time, my heart literally just leapt for joy, because, really, I was so, so happy.

Happy to see them happy.

[Susan] I have something in my bag that's over 40 years old.

Do you remember sending me this?

Yes.

Yeah.

And this has been my lifeline, knowing... that she came to such a good home.

And I've kept this-- I've kept this for 45 years.

[Rosemary] "Dear Susannah's mum, We thought you would like to know how Susannah is settling down in our family.

But, first of all, let us say how grateful we are to you.

We assure you that she will have all our love.

She weighed 10 lbs.

15 ounces with clothes on at the clinic last week and is now getting very active and smiles a lot.

She really is a gorgeous baby.

We hope 1969 will be kind to you, and that you will find much happiness in the future.

Yours sincerely, two very grateful parents."

Oh, golly.

[laughs] I can remember sitting down with Keith and writing that.

And you know how happy that made me?

[Rosemary] The thing that I think that I may have worried about was seeing the connection with Sarah and Susan, and that's a lovely connection to see, actually, um, two peas in a pod, and that's fine.

I know we both cried, and all that emotion came out after all these years.

Thank god we finally met.

Thank god everything is okay for all of us.

[Sarah] To really have the circle finished off, it is a fantastic conclusion, and I never, ever dreamt that I'd ever come this far with it, and it would work out so amazingly well.

I feel incredibly lucky to have these two amazing women that I can both really regard as my mum.

Our next story features Jeannie Elgar, who came to us four years ago looking for her younger brother, Geoffrey.

When Jeannie approached us, she hadn't seen Geoffrey for over 60 years, since she was 8 years old, and he was 4.

Geoffrey was a really lovely-looking boy.

He had fair, curly hair and blue eyes.

He was quite funny, and I think he was very loving, and I loved him.

Jeannie and Geoffrey were brought up by their single mother in Pimlico, London, in the late 1940s.

Times were tough, and one day, a mysterious Mr. and Mrs. Smith came to visit.

[Jeannie] I can still see in my mind's eye the couple.

And I remember Mrs. Smith asked me if I would ever leave my mother, and I sort of shrank back towards my mother and said no, I wouldn't.

And I don't remember exactly Geoffrey going out of the door.

I don't know if I kissed him goodbye, even.

Eight-year-old Jeannie didn't realize that Geoffrey was being adopted by Mr. and Mrs. Smith.

Several months later, they sent a letter to her mother from HMS Orion, which was bound for the Pacific island of Fiji.

[Jeannie] I don't remember what they said, except I think that they indicated that Geoffrey was fine during the day, but that at night, he was calling for his Jeannie.

[man] Well, the question is, Cava or Bucks Fizz.

Oh, Bucks Fizz, please.

Jeannie had never stopped wondering what had happened to Geoffrey.

She even named her youngest son after him.

It's a constant reminder of her lost brother and the uncle I never knew.

[Geoffrey] Being in the dark and not knowing what has happened to Geoffrey is the worst part for her.

All Jeannie had of Geoffrey were her memories and a handful of photographs.

I imagine him to be tall... and I still see the fair hair, but I suppose now it must be grey.

[Jeannie] Sixty years has gone by since he went, and he could be anywhere.

He could be in the next street, and I wouldn't know.

And I don't know what he looks like.

When Jeannie approached us, she had already managed to track down the passenger list of the ocean liner the Smiths had sent their letter from, which revealed more... [Jeannie] They also had adopted another baby boy, who was six months old.

His name was Welch, and it says "Master R." [Nicky] When we took on this search, we traced the Smith Family not to the UK, or even Fiji, but to Bermuda.

Eventually, we tracked down the same R. Welch that Jeannie had found on the ship's passenger list.

[Nicky] I flew to Bermuda to find out about Geoffrey from the brother he grew up with.

Hello, Robert.

Nicky Campbell.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Thank you for seeing us.

You're quite welcome.

[Nicky] When Jeannie was 8 years old, she has this traumatic memory of her 4-year-old little brother being taken for adoption, and she just wants to know what happened.

Um, Geoffrey passed away in 1979.

Power boat racing.

He would have been 34.

That's going to be devastating news for Jeannie.

Yeah.

Did he speak about her?

He spoke about her all the time.

He told me that he had a sister that was four years older than him, and he actually used to go looking for his sister, and he swore he would recognize what she looked like.

Even though you've been adopted by a wonderful family that's taken care of you, you still have that desire to go and find your biological sister.

[Robert] That's Geoffrey.

That's the way I remember him, laid back and very happy.

Now, that's my mother and father, myself, and Geoffrey in London.

Well, let's have a look at the little curly-headed boy in these photographs, 'cause he looks to be just about the same age.

My goodness me, he's holding your father's hand in the same way that he's holding Jeannie's hand.

[Robert] Left hand.

[Nicky] That picture there is not that long after that picture there with Jeannie, so, very, very shortly after the adoption.

Two walks in the park, two different families, and one incredible story.

Now, she can put the questions aside... and be happy for him.

I can't wait to meet Jeannie.

[Davina] Back in London, we told Jeannie her brother Geoffrey had passed away, without the cameras being there.

I then went to see her, to tell her about Geoffrey's adoptive brother, Robert.

-[Davina] Are you alright?

-Yes, thank you.

How have you been feeling since we told you?

I was quite devastated to think that he'd been dead all those years, but now I know what happened, and I won't go to my grave wondering if he was alright.

-Well, he did have a good life.

-Thank you.

Would you like to see some photos, and I can kind of explain a bit more?

Well, this is Geoffrey and Robert.

Oh, so, he's still got his curly hair.

[Davina] Yes.

And I see an enormous resemblance to you, actually, in that picture.

[Jeannie] Oh, they look very sweet.

[Davina] Well, this photograph must have been about the time that Geoffrey...

Yes.

It is.

[crying] [Davina] She does look like a nice lady, doesn't she?

[Jeannie] Yes, yes.

And he's holding his hand.

[Davina] Does that mean a lot to you?

Yes... it means the world to me.

I don't expect he remembered me.

Well, Robert... told us that he never forgot you.

Really?

Honestly?

[sobs] Sorry.

Now, I've got a letter from Robert.

[Jeannie] Alright.

"Dear Jeannie...

I hope that this letter finds you well.

Geoff spoke of you often, and I also felt that my sister was missing.

I look forward to meeting you soon.

Sincerely, Robert."

I would like him to be my brother, because he was so close to Geoffrey, so... Six weeks later, Jeannie traveled to Bermuda to meet Geoffrey's adoptive brother, Robert, and find out more about Geoffrey's life.

[Jeannie] Robert...

Thank you.

-[Robert] Jeannie.

-Thank you.

So good to see you.

-My little big sister.

-Yes.

You do remind me of Geoffrey, because the smile is the same.

[Jeannie] Really?

He was telling me about you when I was 4 years old.

There wasn't a year that went by he didn't talk about you.

Always on his mind.

But we had a-- we had a wonderful life.

That's good to hear, because I was worried.

As far as I was concerned, his sister was my sister, so... he had to find you.

[Jeannie] Yes.

[Jeannie] I feel I have lost Geoffrey, but I feel that I've gained another brother.

In my mind, she always has been my sister.

It's just that I'd never seen her.

When Jeannie got back to the UK four years ago, she and Robert continued getting to know each other by phone and email.

[Jeannie] It was wonderful to meet Robert.

Robert was very kind to me and told me lots of little incidents about Geoffrey's childhood, so, that was lovely.

I quickly became a little attached to Robert.

I saw him as almost a substitute for Geoffrey.

In a way, he was like a brother, because he was adopted with Geoffrey, and they grew up as brothers.

After years of searching for a brother, Jeannie was eager to be involved in Robert's life.

[Jeannie] I felt so indebted to Robert, and I wanted to do something to pay him back for all his kindness.

So, he had been interested in his birth mother and father.

And so, I started researching for him.

And I think I sort of got too enthusiastic, and probably a bit pushy, and because I wanted to do so much, I probably bombarded him with birth certificates and death certificates, and what have you.

And I think, probably, it was too much, too soon, and I should have... trodden more warily.

Four years on from their first meeting, Jeannie and Robert are no longer in contact.

I felt with Robert that I had known him longer than I had, because I saw pictures of him when he was young-- well, he was a baby, and thought of him growing up with Geoffrey.

It is a regret, but there is that danger that you'll just rush and do everything at once, when you do really need to do things gradually.

Without Robert, Jeannie's one link to her brother Geoffrey disappeared.

But what she discovered next would change everything.

Four years ago, Jeannie Elgar approached us looking for her brother, Geoffrey.

Sadly, we discovered Geoffrey had passed away.

Jeannie was heartbroken, but she remained determined to find a link to her past.

So, she continued to research her family history.

[Jeannie] I was just messing about on the computer.

Almost for a joke, I put my mother's maiden name into the index, and it came up with a boy, who was Arthur L., who looked as if he could be another brother for me, and I thought, "No, it can't really be.

It's just a fluke."

If there was a chance that I had a brother out there, then I just knew that I had to find him.

Determined to find more evidence, Jeannie applied for a birth certificate from the General Records office.

[Jeannie] A few days later, and the post came, and I saw the special envelope, and I thought, "Ah, well, this is where I've wasted my money."

But as I slid it out of the envelope, it said Glamorgan Street.

And that, I knew then, straight away, that he was my brother two years younger, in between Geoffrey and I. I was shocked, to say the least.

With the help of a specialist intermediary, Jeannie discovered that her brother had also been given up for adoption, and his adoptive parents had re-named him John.

I had no idea that John existed.

Nobody in my family, none of my cousins, had any idea.

Messing about on the computer was how I found him.

[laughs] Having spent their whole lives unaware of each other's existence, Jeannie and John finally met three years ago.

[Jeannie] John... [both laugh] -Nice to see you.

-Cold?

[John] It was a shock, of course.

I mean, I knew I was adopted.

Coming back from shopping and opening this letter saying, "Are you the John Beswarick who was born on the 11th of May 1944?"...

Now, getting a letter like that is quite a shock.

When you were 67, and then discovered you had an elder sister... [laughing] Not so much about the "elder," please.

The other thing is, we hit it off so easily.

-[Jeannie] Yes.

Mmm.

-No problems.

Yeah?

But I don't know if I've shown you all of these.

I've got one of me as a little boy.

[Jeannie] Oh, yes.

[John] And it looks like Geoffrey.

[Jeannie] Oh, isn't that amazing?

Look at the coats!

[Jeannie] You know, having lost Geoffrey, and then to find that I had another brother that I didn't even know about, it was like a small miracle.

And I felt incredibly lucky and that I got a second chance at being an elder sister again, so that was lovely.

After meeting, the siblings soon discovered that despite being raised separately, they could have bumped into each other at any time.

The amazing thing is, we now know that we grew up about two streets away from each other and didn't know each other.

Amazing.

-I do remember Dolphin Square... -[Jeannie] Of course.

...and I do remember that archway there.

Do you see the white bit?

That was the limit where we were allowed to play.

So, I must have seen you playing out when I could play.

[John] I was probably there.

We may have played together and not known.

-You never know.

-No.

No.

[John] You never know.

The fact that he was here so long, just down the road, and I didn't know.

I find that quite hard to get over.

And it's very sad.

-[John] Yes.

-No.

[John] I thought that was so close to that one.

Yes, it is, isn't it?

How old are you there?

[Jeannie] I often think about how different my life would have been if I'd grown up with my brothers.

Part of me understands why my mother decided to do what she did, and the other half, the half where you're a mother yourself, I could never have done it.

[John] That's right.

[Jeannie] Having met John is like a bonus.

He now seems, in a way, as if he has been there for a while, always just sort of waiting in the wings.

And it's wonderful to have him as a brother, and I'm very grateful.

I have never regretted looking for Geoffrey, and if I'd never searched for him, I would never have known that he remembered me and loved me, because he looked for me, and I would never have known that otherwise, so, I'm just really, really glad that I found him in the end, even if it was at the gravestone.

Our final story features Stella Stanley, who came to us three years ago looking for her daughter Maxine.

When Stella approached us, she had been living with the heartache of having to give Maxine up as a toddler.

[Stella] Well, obviously, she was my life, when she was born up until she went from me.

Her little cuddles, the arms always went around the neck, and you just-- there's no feeling like it.

There isn't.

She was my life.

With the baby's father unable to care for them because of ill health, Stella decided to bring up Maxine alone.

There was no help anywhere.

There was no organization that could talk to you...

I just had to grin and bear it.

To make ends meet, Stella took on two jobs.

When her mother became ill, she also had to look after her father and two younger brothers.

By the time Maxine was 18 months old, Stella was close to collapse.

[Stella] I was just wearing myself out.

I went to see my GP.

He suggested-- as much as I loved her-- would it not be fairer to have her adopted?

You keep thinking, "Am I doing the right thing?"

And it was for her sake, really.

You've got to think of the child's future.

Despite having spent a year and a half bonding with her daughter, Stella made the difficult decision to have her adopted.

On their last day together, Stella took Maxine to nursery as usual.

She was standing at the window with her little arm waving, and... as I walked up the path to go out of the gate, I couldn't look back.

I didn't want to let her see me crying.

I walked to work, sat down at my machine that I used to work on, and just cried... and cried.

Stella went on to have two more daughters, Clare and Alison.

They knew how important it was for Stella to find Maxine.

[Clare] It wouldn't have been an easy decision for Mum, because she's just so full of love.

I think Mum would like the chance to explain to Maxine why she had to do it.

[Nicky] When we started the search for Stella's daughter, we discovered that she was still called Maxine.

We tracked her down to Hertfordshire, where she was living with her husband and two children.

-Hello.

-Maxine.

-How are you?

-Very well.

Thank you very much for having me.

[Maxine] You're very welcome.

What do you know about your adoption?

I've always known that I was a bit older than most children who are adopted.

What actually happened is that she looked after you and was with you for 18 months, and then her mother was ill. She had to look after her father, and she had to work as well.

It just all got too much for her.

I mean, she was edging towards a breakdown.

But she remembers the last time that she took you to nursery was just the most painful day of her life, just walking away as you waved to her.

It's kind of what I always-- kind of what I always hoped would be the case... because I've watched my own children, my own daughters and my granddaughter grow up.

I've often looked and thought, "How could somebody give somebody away?"

I thought it was that she didn't want to be found.

Oh, she wanted to be found.

It's heartbreaking.

Absolutely heartbreaking.

[Davina] I went to tell Stella that we had found Maxine.

[dog barking] -Hi.

-Hello, Stella, how are you?

[Stella] I'm fine.

Yes.

Would you like a cup of tea?

[Davina] Oh, I'd love one, please.

[Stella] Okay.

Obviously, it was a task that you gave us.

Yes.

They've found your daughter.

No... No!

Forgive me!

And does she want to see me?

Does she?

Oh... Oh, my god!

She is so happy that we got in touch.

Really?!

She's been looking for you for years.

She hasn't.

Oh, god!

Oh, god!

Oh!

-She's had a wonderful life.

-Has she?

And she wanted you to know that.

Oh, gosh, that's so wonderful!

Oh!

[kiss] Bless her.

Isn't she lovely?

What do I say to her?

Two days later, we arranged a meeting between mother and daughter at Maxine's favorite local landmark, Down Hall.

Stella's other daughters, Clare and Alison, came to give their mother emotional support and to meet their sister for the first time.

[Stella] I never, ever dreamt this day would come.

-You alright?

-Yeah.

Oh!

Hello, darling.

Hello.

The last time I cuddled you, you were 18 months old.

[Maxine] I know.

[Stella] When I hugged her, I could feel that she was mine, and... ahhh, she's so lovely.

[Maxine] Just looking into her eyes, I knew-- I knew that she was my mum.

[Stella] These are your two sisters.

[Maxine] Oh, my god.

Hello.

[all crying] Three years ago, we reunited Stella Stanley and her daughter Maxine.

And despite 50 years apart, they've become close.

They see each other as much as possible and speak every week.

[Stella] A lovely name, isn't it, for a café?

[Maxine] Yeah.

[Stella] Every Sunday, she either phones me or I phone her.

"Hello, Mum."

[laughs] It's such a long time since... she said it, really.

And, of course, hearing it again, I love that.

[Maxine] Because we just get on so well, it's as though it's always been.

Yeah.

I just felt as though you'd never been away from me.

And I've got my girl back.

[Maxine] I started feeling like I was a daughter again, I suppose, within the first six months after the reunion.

The more I went down to her house, and we chatted.

Then, as the time progressed, I was able to talk to her maybe more honestly.

I was able to open up about other things.

I think our relationship is deepening constantly.

I think I could tell her anything.

[doorbell rings] -[Maxine] Hi!

Hello.

- How are you?

Maxine has also enjoyed getting to know her sisters, Clare and Alison.

[Stella] The way the three of them get on together now, you'd think that they'd always been together.

[all] Cheers!

[Stella] Obviously, with Alison and Clare, they've known me for a lot longer than Maxine has, but the love is no different.

The love is no different.

[Alison] It's been life-changing for everybody involved.

But it's certainly changed Mum for the better.

She's so much happier now that she's got all her daughters together, and that's all she's ever wanted.

This afternoon, Stella's three daughters have planned a big family party for Stella's birthday.

The party is taking place at the hall where Maxine and her mother were reunited.

[Maxine] Preparing for my mum's birthday is one of those things that I never thought that I would get to do.

To organize something for her is exciting, really.

This year is the first time Stella will celebrate her birthday with all of her daughters.

-Do you remember the room?

-Yeah.

[Maxine] Looks wonderful, doesn't it?

Big kiss then.

[Stella] How can you describe anything as wonderful as this?

I've got the three loveliest girls in the world.

I think, anyway.

[Clare] Hopefully, not this Christmas but next, we'll spend our first Christmas all of us.

-[Stella] Yeah, together.

-[Clare] Together.

You'll have all of us round the tree.

[laughter] You've got a lot of stockings to make up.

[laughter] [Stella] Oh, look!

Oh, that's lovely!

Reuniting with Stella has been especially significant for Maxine, who has been without a mother for many years.

[Maxine] My adoptive mum died when I was 24, so I'd had almost the same time again without a mum before we were reunited.

"Dear Mum, have a very, very happy birthday.

All my love, Maxine."

[Stella] When her mother got cancer, she needed a parent.

Thank you, darling.

[laughter] [Maxine] When I was reunited with Mum, I could breathe a sigh of relief in the fact that there was now somebody older and wiser that I could turn to.

And that's really nice.

[laughter and cheering] I just realized that mother/ daughter bond is so precious.

[Stella] You need that connection, and you know about that connection when you meet.

We knew that we were going to be mother and daughter again, and I hope for a long time.

Thank you for coming.

[Stella] It's lovely that she's back in my life.

I won't lose her again.

Definitely not.

Thank you.

[all clapping] [peaceful music playing]