The Gift artwork

Documentary · BBC Radio 4

The Gift

by BBC Radio 4

Without us realising, an enormous DNA database has been created online. It holds the secrets of your true identity and promises to reveal untold family connections. But what happens when online ancestry tests reveal more than you had bargained for? Across three series, Jenny Kleeman meets the men and women whose lives changed forever after they opened a box that contained a DNA test. Exposing scandals, upending identities, solving mysteries and delivering life-changing news - Jenny investigates what happens when genealogy, technology and identity collide. Series 3 of The Gift is available on BBC Sounds from 2 May, 2026.

Latest episodes

Showing 20 · updated from the feed

5. Forbidden

It’s a criminal offence to take an at-home DNA test in France – and Audrey and Arthur must break the law if they want to unlock the truths hidden in their genes. In The

May 2
28 min

4. Puzzles

When the mystery of her past is solved, Kathy is confronted by a shocking true crime story that helps explain who she is. In The Gift, Jenny Kleeman has always looked at

May 2
28 min

3. Fathers

Technology catches up with sperm donors in ways they could never have imagined. In The Gift, Jenny Kleeman has always looked at extraordinary truths that unravel when pe

May 2
28 min

2. Twins - Part 2

As they try to come to terms with their discovery, Michelle digs deeper into Lavinia’s test results – but Lavinia doesn’t want to know In The Gift, Jenny Kleeman has alw

May 2
28 min

1. Twins - Part 1

The special bond between twin sisters Michelle and Lavinia is tested in an almost inconceivable way. In The Gift, Jenny Kleeman has always looked at extraordinary truths

May 2
28 min

Trailer

Jenny Kleeman is back with six more remarkable tales of truths that unravel when people take at-home DNA tests. The whole series is available on BBC Sounds from 2 May, 20

Apr 28
2 min

Bonus: Searching

A family's race against time to find the baby they believe DNA testing proves was switched at birth. It’s the perfect gift for the person who already has everything. It

Feb 22 2025
28 min

6. Superdonor

The donor conceived people turning to at-home DNA tests for answers. It’s the perfect gift for the person who already has everything. It promises to tell you who you rea

Nov 4 2024
28 min

5. Donor

When testing your DNA becomes an obsession. It’s the perfect gift for the person who already has everything. It promises to tell you who you really are, and how you’re c

Nov 4 2024
28 min

4. Taboo

One man’s determination to find his mother reveals an unbearable secret. It’s the perfect gift for the person who already has everything. It promises to tell you who you

Nov 4 2024
28 min

3. Sold

A breast cancer survivor investigates her genes and uncovers a black market in human life. It’s the perfect gift for the person who already has everything. It promises t

Nov 4 2024
28 min

2. Switched - Part 2

After discovering who she really is, Claire has decided to tell her side of the story. It’s the perfect gift for the person who already has everything. It promises to te

Nov 2 2024
28 min

1. Switched - Part 1

An at-home DNA test - taken by chance when a game of golf is rained off - forces one man and three women to reassess everything they thought they knew about their familie

Nov 2 2024
28 min

Bonus: Hacked

October 6th, 2023 - the day before Hamas launches its attack on Israel - a data set stolen from at-home DNA testing company 23andMe is posted on the dark web. A hacker un

Feb 8 2024
28 min

6. Secrets

In this last episode, as Jenny's own results land in her inbox, she hears how at home DNA tests have brought family secrets - once thought long buried - out into the ligh

Oct 16 2023
28 min

5. Health

How can life change when a home DNA test reveals you may be predisposed to serious illness? It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything. A

Oct 9 2023
28 min

4. Race

The anxieties of navigating a newfound racial identity. It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything. A gift that promises to tell you who

Oct 2 2023
28 min

3. Mistakes

The family that must turn detective to find the couple who had IVF at the same time as them. It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything.

Sep 25 2023
28 min

2. Justice

A son's quest to learn more about his late father unravels a mystery that's baffled US federal law enforcement for over four decades. It's the go-to Christmas present f

Sep 18 2023
28 min

1. Fraud

In this first episode, a scandal deep in the heart of London's Harley Street is exposed when a man in his eighties receives a DNA test Christmas present from his daughter

Sep 11 2023
28 min

Chart trend

Position in the Documentary chart (US), last 90 days.

#49
all-time peak
1
day in the top 50 since Jan 2025

Chart positions

Where The Gift ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Sep 25, 2026).

#153 ▼ 24 Documentary US

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