Presenter Mark Wright is the next celebrity to trace his family history for BBC One’s Who Do You Think You Are? And guess what? He has Jewish roots.

In next Wednesday’s episode, Mr Wright, known for his appearance on ITV’s reality programme The Only Way Is Essex, discovers that his ancestors were not only Jewish, but tortured and burnt at the stake during the Spanish Inquisition.

The programme tracks his lineage back more than 300 years and takes him from the East End to Spain and Amsterdam.

Mr Wright says he has always wondered where his family are from, believing they could have originated from somewhere other than the UK.

But the programmes revelations are “life changing” for the celebrity who had no idea about his Jewish heritage.

Mr Wright starts the show by looking into the ancestry of his paternal great-grandmother, Annie Simons.

Looking at a census, he discovers that his three-times-great grandfather, Henry Simons, was a “Passover baker.”

Records show that Henry’s wife, Rebecca, was born in 1845 at the Portuguese Jewish Hospital in Stepney.

Mr Wright says: “It looks like my family could be Jewish – but I’m sure there’s going to be a story to this.”

His search takes him to Bevis Marks Synagogue, where records reveal that Rebecca Simons’ father, Solomon Elboz, was helped by wealthier members of the synagogue to get a license to become a hawker, or street seller.

While investigating the synagogue records, Mr Wright discovers records tracing his family to 1660 with documents showing they originated from Andalucia.

According to records David Antonio de Mendoza, Mr Wright’s nine-times-great grandfather, was born in 1660 and listed as a master swordsman.

The presenter traced his Jewish roots through his paternal great-grandmother, Ann, who viewers see pictured with Mark’s great aunt, Rita Wright, and his paternal great-grandfather, George Henry Wright.

“I never had a clue about this. We’re Jewish, Spanish and Andalucía is where Marbella is – a place I know very well. When I sit on the beach there now, I can say I’m home,” Mr Wright says upon finding out new information about his family history.

Mr Wright travelled to Jaen in Andalucía to find out more about his ancestors and even takes up a lesson in swordsmanship - the skill mastered by his nine-times-great grandfather.

On discovering he is a natural sword fighter, he wonders whether his good coordination - which he shares with his grandfather Eddie, who was a British champion boxer - might come from his Jewish predecessor.

He visits Sephardi family historian David Mendoza inside the city’s 17th century cathedral to find out more about his nine-times-great grandfather.

Standing in the church he discovers that David Antonio de Mendoza was baptised there as a “New Christian,” dropping his Jewish name David and his Jewish identity.

The family historian explains Catholicism had been declared as the state religion by the Spanish monarchy and the country’s Jewish and Muslim communities were given the choice of converting or leaving.

 “They were public Catholics – but we don’t know necessarily what they privately believed,” the historian explains.

The Spanish Inquisition had the power to arrest and punish people suspected of secretly practising Judaism.

Further investigation revealed that his nine-times-great grandfather was arrested on suspicion of not being true to the Catholic faith.

He was sent to Castle of St George in Seville, which was one of the most feared prisons of the Inquisition, and when he refused to confess he was tortured.

Upon hearing what happened to his relative, Mr Wright says: “How is it possible for human beings to do this to other human beings because of a religion? To know that my nine-times great-grandfather was tortured and probably scared for his life, with the chance that he could be burned at the stake, is hard. I would not want to be in this country. I would want to get out.”

David Antonio de Mendoza spent years in prison before leaving Spain for Amsterdam, where paperwork reveals he retained his Jewish identity with his wife and four children.

However his nephew, Miguel, was not as lucky and Spanish Inquisition documents revealed he was burned at the stake.

Mr Wright says: “I can’t help but feel angry for my ancestors that had to go through the Spanish Inquisition because of their religion. They weren’t hurting anybody, they were just living life. It’s been a real eye-opener.”