Paralympic gold medal winner Jonnie Peacock was named for his maternal grandad, who died the year before he was born. Like Jonnie, his grandad was a sportsman - an excellent amateur footballer scouted by a professional team, only to be thwarted by parental pressure to take a 'proper job' as a painter/decorator. Pushing back down the generations, Jonnie uncovers the legacy of poverty and unexpected disease that led the family to value job security over the beautiful game.

On his father's side, Jonnie is captivated by his four-times-great-grandmother, branded a 'bad character' in 1841 by a local village policeman. But Jonnie's further research reveals a strong woman prepared to stand up in court and testify against the men who had wronged her.