Woman left at Dublin church as baby meets English cousin who was also abandoned

Thomas Yeo (59), from Nottingham was found in the waiting room of Reading railway station on October 15, 1965.

Thanks to ITV programme Long Lost Family: Born Without A Trace, Thomas was able to track down for the first time a blood relative, who turned out to be a first cousin called Martina Evenden who had been abandoned in Dublin.

TV presenters Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell helped unite the pair in emotional scenes, as they swapped stories of their remarkable connection.

And thanks to the show Martina got to discover for the first time the identity of her birth mother – and astonishingly meet for the first time an older sister.

Viewers heard how Thomas was left fully dressed and placed under a bench with a baby milk bottle and spare nappy.

Thomas always knew when growing up that he was adopted and had a happy childhood.

But when he himself became a father he decided to find out more about his origins, and discovered to his shock he had been abandoned as a two year-old baby.

He reached out to ITV’s Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace and with the help of their team they discovered his first cousin, Martina Evenden.

Martina told a startled Thomas how she too had been abandoned as a baby.

She had been left on a church in Dublin in 1967 when she was only a few hours old, two years after Thomas’s abandonment.

“Even if we don’t find anything, we’ve found each other at least,” an emotional Thomas told Martina as they both hugged.

Thomas began his search with a description of the woman thought to be his mother, with a police report from back in 1965 saying witnesses saw a woman carrying a baby around 3pm that day.

Her description was of being ’25-years, five foot eight or nine and wearing a full-length brown coat and a brown hat.’

She had reportedly bought a ticket to Bristol, but when police searched the train they came up empty handed.

That was all the information Thomas had to hand over to the TV show’s researchers.

He was never aware he was a foundling and it was only when he had children himself he decided to trace his roots.

“A social worker came to see me, and she gave me a sort of sucker-punch that said, ‘actually, you’re a foundling.”

“It was just a total shock because, I knew I was adopted, but it almost meant, that’s full stop. I have a birth certificate that says, ‘mother unknown and father unknown.’ I don’t have anything at all.’

Researchers amazingly tracked down Martina in Dublin, who also knew nothing about any of her blood relatives.

“I was wrapped in a black mac coat, blood still on my body. Abandoned. There was nothing else, nothing else with me,” recalled Martina’s abandonment when she was only a few hours old.

At the time she was taken inside the church and baptised.

Martina returned to the church as an adult and remarks: “I’m actually proud of my birth mother. She left me in a safe place to be found. And that means an awful lot to me. Because I’m here and I’m still alive. Thanks to her.”

She was adopted and grew up in Dublin, not far from where she was abandoned.

When she was aged 16 she tried to look for her birth parents, and learned there was no information about them.

Martina and Thomas met in Dublin recently.

“I never thought this day would come. This is the closest thing I’ve ever had,”’ said an emotional Martina.

“I’ve never met anybody who has been in the same boat as me or who is biologically related to me.”

The newly united first cousins continued after their meeting their to find out how their parents were related and seek new information.

“Even if we don’t find anything, we’ve found each other at least,’ stressed a joyful Thomas.

The TV team discovered that Martina’s birth father, Joseph, was the brother of Thomas’ birth mother, Margaret (Peggy).

It emerged that Peggy – who never had any other children and moved to Australia – has sadly died while there is no record of Joseph since the early 80s. The family believe that he has also died.

A cousin called Maria was vital in giving the team information about Thomas and Martina, explaining the siblings came from a conservative family ruled by strict values of the Catholic church.

Researchers also discovered Thomas’ birth father, Stephen, who has sadly died, and so has Martina’s birth mother, who was, remarkably, also called Peggy.

But both Stephen and Peggy had more children, giving Thomas and Martina half siblings. All of them are keen to meet the pair.

Thomas’ father was married to another woman at the time of his birth, which maybe explains why his birth mother felt she couldn’t keep him.

Martina’s birth mother had three other children before her, all born in mother and baby homes in Ireland.

“Maybe she thought that by leaving me she thought she was saving me. She didn’t want me to go into one of those homes,”’ Martina sadly noted.

Martina was given a photo of her mother and the revelation that her eldest sister was going to meet her, off camera.

“Mother at last, rest in peace, at least I have a photo of you now. God I’ve just wanted this for so long, I can’t believe it,” exclaimed Martina.

Meanwhile, Thomas was told how his birth mother was a nanny and was given photos of his birth parents before heading to Dublin, where he met three of his paternal half siblings.

‘It must have been terrible for her if she loved children and not to be able to keep her own child. It’s only sadness that I’d like to have told her that I’ve had a really brilliant life,’ he said.

When he met his his siblings and cousin, he beamed ‘It’s amazing, really, to have all this family that I never knew about.’

Martina added: “I’ve been through so many brick walls, but the brick wall got knocked down, found what I’ve been looking for. I can actually go and tell people now who I am.

“I need to thank Thomas for this because until he started his search, that’s where the link got to me, and I wouldn’t be here finding out all I’ve found but because of him, I have.”

Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace continues tonight and tomorrow at 9pm on UTV, ITV1 and ITVX