Gill Thompson, 73, a retired PE teacher from Llandudno, met her half-brother Michael Bardsley, 64, for the first time on June 8 at Colwyn Bay railway station after her daughter Sammy located him on LinkedIn. The reunion was made possible by Sammy's recognition of Michael's 'family nose', which matched her mother's.
Discovery of a father
Gill was unaware of her father Colin Bardsley until she received a Christmas card from her paternal grandfather at age 25. She learned that Colin had moved to Cape Town, South Africa, remarried, and had a son named Michael. Initial searches in the late 1990s failed to locate him.
Gill's parents, Joyce Priestley and Colin Bardsley, married in 1952 after Joyce became pregnant but separated before Gill's birth and later divorced. Gill said: 'I just never knew anything about him. I never asked and mum never said. I was just happy and I never thought about it.'
Renewed search
In August last year, Gill encountered someone with the same name at a bowls tournament, reigniting her search. Her daughter Sammy, 31, took up the challenge and found a LinkedIn profile for a sports film producer named Michael Bardsley in Cape Town. Sammy sent a direct message with her phone number, convinced by the resemblance: 'She said we have the same nose. It's the same nose my dad had and my son has it too.'
Michael called Sammy in September, and he and Gill spoke via FaceTime for half an hour. Michael had known his father had another child but lacked information to find her. Gill said: 'I was so excited and nervous. He said "this is the most wonderful thing ever", and it was.'
Emotional meeting
Michael traveled to north Wales, staying with Gill for two weeks in June. The pair embraced at Colwyn Bay station. Gill said: 'I felt very emotional as I watched Mike's train coming in. We embraced as only long-lost brother and sister could do.' Michael added: 'I saw the joy on my sister's face and a flood of emotion and memories of my dad kicked in. As we hugged the reality sank in - after a lifetime apart I was now holding on to my closest living relative.'
During his stay, they played golf and met three cousins: Jacqueline from Great Yarmouth, Nicola from Northwich, and Alison from London. Gill also discovered a wedding photo of her parents after her mother's death in 1986, seeing her father's face for the first time. She said: 'It felt as though mum wanted me to find it eventually. He looks quite like me.'
Ongoing connection
Gill and Michael now exchange texts weekly and FaceTime every fortnight. Gill, who shared her story with Sell Us Your Story, said: 'We're both delighted. This wouldn't have been possible at all without the Internet.'
