Who Do You Think You Are? (BBC1, 8pm)

USUALLY, the 13th series of this genealogy documentary would have saved hard-case actor Danny Dyer's links to royalty until the final instalment, but here is the man who plays ducking and diving EastEnders publican Mick Carter discovering that he's related to Thomas Cromwell and Edward III in episode one.

"The furthest back my family knew about was the 1850s, so to get right back to the 1300s was ridiculous. It took the production team a year to research it, but they seemed excited so I knew it would be good. Ray Winstone – Danny's friend and co-star in 2006 drama All In the Game – was asked to do it once too, but they told him, 'Sorry Ray, what we found is a bit boring'. He'll be fuming," Dyer tells TV Times.

Dyer got to visit Helmingham Hall, in Suffolk, and meet top-notch relative Lord Tollemache. "It was weird because we're from totally different worlds and yet we're relatives. He didn't have a clue who I was. It was interesting to see that there's still some money in the family because he even had a drawbridge at the hall. I've got my crest and my scroll of the family tree and now I want a ruff. My wife is over the moon (Dyer married Joanne Mas in September) and my eldest daughter (actress Dani, 20) is really excited. To leave this show as a legacy for other generations is beautiful."

Dyer, who lives in Debden, Epping Forest, was raised in Canning Town and began his acting career as a 16-year-old after being spotted at school and landing a role in Prime Suspect 3. The actor then found fame in films including Football Factory and Human Traffic before presenting The Real Football Factories and Danny Dyer's Deadliest Men.

In 2013, he signed up for a long-term role in EastEnders and went on to win the Serial Drama Performance award at the National Television Awards in 2015 and 2016.

And the 39-year-old got his wish when he said he hoped his family history would "freak a few people out" and now can add: "I'm directly descended from Thomas Cromwell, who also came from nothing and has this amazing rise."

Britain's Got Talent judge Amanda Holden, X Factor judge Cheryl, film and stage star Sir Ian McKellen, news presenter Sophie Raworth, The Royle Family actor Ricky Tomlinson, Star Wars and Harry Potter actor Warwick Davis, Countrywise presenter Liz Bonnin, The Inbetweeners actor and comedian Greg Davies and Casualty actress Sunetra Sarker make up the other nine celebs featured in the series.

Grand Designs: House of the Year (C4, 9pm)

THIS new series was originally scheduled to begin on November 17, but has been bumped back a week. It sees Kevin McCloud joining forces with architects Damion Burrows and Zac Monro to explore some of Britain's most cutting-edge homes, all of which are in the running for the RIBA House of the Year Award. They begin by looking at five country homes on the long-list for the prize, including a large house camouflaged within a hill, a loving restoration of a prototype modernist retreat in Wiltshire, a Scottish home that blends an agricultural exterior with a sleek modern interior and a slice of California modernism in Cornwall. Kevin then reveals which will make it onto the shortlist.

Black Nurses: The Women Who Saved the NHS (BBC4, 9pm)

AS part of the BBC's Black and British season, this eye-opening documentary tells the story of the thousands of Caribbean and African women who answered the call 70 years ago to come to the UK and help build the National Health Service. Told by the women themselves, the programme reveals the price they paid in leaving behind their families, and examines their struggle to overcome racism and their fight for career progression, as well as their cultural impact both in Britain and abroad.

Viv Hardwick