A recluse who was living without electricity or gas has left a surprise windfall of £250,000 to 31 "unknown" relatives.
Richard Ticehurst, 70, was sadly found dead in his dilapidated terraced house in Eastbourne, East Sussex, last February.
He didn't have a will and little was known about his family.
The local authority was tasked to arrange his funeral which is when genealogist firm Finders International and stars of BBC's Heir Hunters were brought in to research his background.
It was found that Richard had an estate worth £250,000 and a staggering 31 relatives across five countries and three continents who are set to inherit this surprise fortune.
Distant relative Yvonne Fraser, who emigrated to Australia from Manchester in 1974, was one of the beneficiaries traced.
Speaking about the surprise money, the mum-of-two said: "It came out of the blue. I never knew anything about Richard; however, when Finders explained the connections it made sense.
"I now understand that my mother, Muriel Ticehurst, who died in 2019, was a first cousin of Richard.
"So my maternal grandfather, Ernest Ticehurst and Richard's father, Alfred Ticehurst, were brothers. It's just amazing."
Tragically Richard died unlikely to have known about any of his distant relatives.
Emergency services were called to his house on February 3, 2021, although it was days before anyone had noticed he had not been seen.
He was pronounced dead in the house he had lived in since birth after his mother, Gladys, had left it to him after her death in 2000.
Danny Curran, from Finders International: said: "Part of our research often brings us to the property where the deceased lived to source key documents, such as a Will. The search for Richard's house provided a glimpse into how he lived.
"It was quite shocking and incredibly sad to see."
Richard's house showed clear signs of self-neglect there was no electricity or gas and the ceilings on the top floor had collapsed.
He was known to use a torch on his head in the evenings when it got dark.
Neighbours described Richard as a "sort of recluse" and "didn't have any visitors".
Richard was quickly established by Finders International that he was an only child and had never married or had children.
His mother, Gladys, had also been an only child so the research team focused on his father, Alfred's side of the family and found a total of 31 residents in England, Scotland, Canada, Australia and America.
And, while Richard was never able to meet his long-lost family, Yvonne is thrilled to have been reconnected with hers because of Richard's estate.
She said: "I am totally in awe of how Finders traced me and indeed found us all, scattered throughout the world. "Not only have I lived in Australia for almost 50 years but I have also divorced and remarried so I go by a different surname too.
"We've been lucky enough to reunite with some of the extended family. Some relatives have come out to visit us in Australia.
"The gaps in our family tree have been filled in too so it would seem that Richard 'a recluse' has managed in death to reconnect the next generation of his family.
"It's just a shame that we didn't know Richard when he was alive, particularly as it seems he struggled to live by himself."
If no relatives had been discovered, the money would have gone to the Crown.
Finders International also revealed there is a staggering £3.3million waiting to be claimed with 6,7000 cases still languishing on the government's unclaimed estates list.
Danny Curran said: "Being a beneficiary to an estate of someone you didn't know, or barely knew of, is more common than people expect.
"Every year we reunite money with hundreds of surprised relatives.
"If the estate isn't claimed within 12 years it reverts to the Treasury. As of today, we estimate a minimum of £3.3million is waiting to be claimed. This is an astonishing amount of money."
