Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace: who is ‘ice baby’, what happened to them and when is new series on TV?

Long Lost Family returned to ITV this week, with three episodes airing from 23 May to 25 May.

This series called Born Without a Trace, follows foundlings who were abandoned as babies, as they try to uncover what happened to them and discover their identity.

Presented by Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell, tonight’s episode (24 May), will focus on the story of Matt Butt, who became known as the ice bay, after he was discovered abandoned in London on the coldest night of the year.

Here’s everything you need to know about his story and what happened to him

What are foundlings?

Foundlings are people that were abandoned as babies shortly after their birth.

They often are left with no clues as to who their parents are and where they came from.

This can lead to a lifetime of unanswered questions and trying to discover their true identity.

There have been calls for the UK to adopt the baby box system, which allows parents to drop off their children securely and anonymously.

According to a BBC article in 2013, 50 babies a year are still abandoned by their parents in the UK.

Who is the ice baby?

Matt Butt, was abandoned as a baby in a London phone box, on the coldest night of the year.

This led to the press at the time giving him the nickname the ice baby.

Butt, who is now 35-years-old was left with a touching note that he thinks was written by his birth mother.

It reads: “Born 6th January. Please look after me.”

He believes that his mother left him to be discovered, despite the freezing temperatures.

What happens in the ice baby episode?

Episode two of Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace, follows Butt as he tries to track down the woman who found him in the phone box.

His main aim will always be to find his birth mother and discover what led to her leaving him.

Butt decides to put his DNA in a database to try and see if he will get a hit, which leads to shocking consequences.

The episode also features the story of Paul Garner, who was abandoned 30 years ago in a public toilet in Abergavenny, Wales.

Garner always knew he was adopted, but only discovered he had been abandoned four years ago.

He has been desperate for answers about his birth family ever since and has launched a newspaper and radio appeal.

The episode will follow his journey as he tries to find the policeman who discovered him and where he came from.

When can I watch Long Lost Family: Born Without Trace?

The three-part series is airing on ITV1 this week from 23 May to 25 May at 9pm.

Presented by Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell, each episode focuses on two people who were abandoned as babies and are now desperately trying to find out what happened.

In a recent interview with OK Magazine, McCall opened up about how challenging she found it filming the show.

She said: “To be honest, something I have found very hard but I have tried to learn over time is that I have to let people feel all the feelings that they feel and not try and make them happy or make it feel better.”

Co-presenter Campbell added: “People are always incredibly compassionate about the circumstances and why their parents were in those circumstances.

“We know as human beings that it takes a heck of a lot for that to happen and there must have been a lot of pressure.

“We’re not just changing people’s lives, we’re changing their entire world. The world they live in and every single perspective in their life changes if we manage to make a breakthrough.”