Siblings reunite with their late mother’s younger sister on Long Lost Family: What Happened Next

Siblings who recently discovered one another after 50 years apart are left tearful when reuniting with their late mother’s younger sister on Long Lost Family: What Happened Next.

Ann Jordan, 56, from Hampshire, was adopted aged seven and began looking for her birth mother Jean after her adoptive parents died within months of each other when she was just 22.

She initially learned on Long Lost Family in 2019 that her birth mother had died aged 31 – however, she also discovered she has a half-sister, Florence Banfield, 54, who lives in Northern Ireland.

Following their emotional reunion on the show, the two launched a search for family members on their late mother’s side, and in tonight’s episode, the siblings met their aunt Maureen, Jean’s younger sister.

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Florence had last met Maureen when she was aged seven but the two lost touch after she returned to Northern Ireland with her father following her mother’s death. 

The three reunited in emotional scenes on tonight’s programme as the siblings explored their mother’s hometown in the North of England.

‘After mum died, I lost all contact with this side of her family. We moved away, went to Ireland, and that was it. I never saw them again,’ explained Florence, who last saw her aunt when she was just seven-years-old. 

Maureen had actually been trying to find Florence, but she had no idea about Ann.

‘Ann and Flo are my nieces. And they always will be my nieces, no matter where they are born. They are family,’ Maureen said, before sharing some of their mother’s favourite places with the sisters.

‘What Florence and Anne want is for their mother to be here, and she won’t be here. She never will be again. 

‘She can’t hold them, she can’t kiss them, can’t say she loves them. That won’t happen. The best thing you can do is learn about her and all anybody can tell her and take that to heart,’ added Maureen.

Ann and Florence were shown where their late mother grew up, with Maureen explaining that it was cramped conditions.  

‘At least I’m standing outside the house where she grew up,’ said Ann. ‘It’s a huge step. I’m walking in her shoes, that’s a comfort to me. 

‘… At least I know more about my mum, her history and my past where I came from, which is really important. And I think any adoptive person will resonate with that. You need to know where you come from.’

Later in the programme, Ann and Florence also met two of their cousins, Andrew and Louise.

In 2019, when first meeting Florence, Ann said: ‘When I got the news [about my mum] I was really devastated. But then to be told I had a sister and I could not believe it.’

Ann, who was engaged at the time of their reunion, even decided to ask Florence to walk her down the aisle in place of her parents.

Speaking on the show, Ann told how she was adopted by Barbara and Ronald Jordan, of Surrey, at the age of 7.

‘I never gave it a second thought to be honest with you,’ she says. ‘I just felt loved and wanted.’

But she was left feeling ‘cheated’ when her parents both died within six months of one another when she was 22. 

Her mother died from a sudden heart attack and, six months on, she found her father dead in bed.  

Ann said: ‘It was a really difficult time, I did go off the rails. They were my rock, my stability really.’ 

Armed with her birth mother’s name and birth date, Ann tried to find her with the help of private investigators and the Salvation Army. 

She also phoned most of the people in the phone book with her mother’s name, but nobody knew her. She was determined to find her mother before her wedding as she hoped the birth parent would walk her down the aisle. 

‘Everyone has their mums at their wedding don’t they?,’ she said. ‘And I wouldn’t.  I can imagine my wedding, but I want to look behind me and see my mum in the front of the church looking proud.’

Producers on Long Lost Family were able to use the few details Ann provided to hunt down her mother – but tragically, they discovered she had died at the age of 31. 

Just a year after giving Ann up for adoption, Jean had married and given birth to a daughter called Florence, who lived in Northern Ireland.

And Flo reveals she had had a ‘very lonely’ childhood, saying: ‘My mum died when I was a child so I presumed it was just me so I was just shocked. She died of cancer when I was seven and a half. It changes you when you don’t have a mum. It’s not the same.’

She explained: ‘It makes you grow up instantly. And you have to look after yourself. I did feel very lonely. The world stopped.’

Florence revealed she had no idea Ann existed, saying: ‘If I ever knew I would have wanted to find her. You wouldn’t just leave her out all that time. You’d have brought her back to the family.’ 

Florence was stunned when she was shown a photo of Ann. ‘Oh my goodness,’ she said. ‘She reminds me of me.’ 

Emotionally, she continued: ‘I just wish I could have met her years ago. We could have looked out for each other.’

Ann was devastated to learn of her mother’s death but was thrilled about the news of her sister and travelled to London to meet her.  

And as the women met, they fell into an embrace with Ann bursting into tears.  Flo said: ‘I wish I had known you years ago, it would have been amazing.’

Ann responded: ‘It would have been because it sounds like you had things quite tough. You were so young when she died, it must be so hard.’