AGAINST all the odds, descendants of the Pearce family met for a grand reunion last week to recreate their Isle of Wight ancestors’ steps.

Back in 2006, Fred Pearce, of Oxfordshire, checked the Isle of Wight County Press website for tide timetables to see if it was worth heading to the Isle of Wight, specifically Ryde Beach, for a paddle.

“I was browsing the website when I saw an extraordinary article about people trying to trace members of the Pearce family,” he said.

“It specified four people — a woman named Constance and her three brothers. One of the brothers was my father.”

Fred got in touch with Dianne, who had prompted the search in 2003, who turned out to be Fred’s cousin’s daughter.

“The County Press was really a catalyst to the reunion. It was a million-to-one chance we would be connected.”

Diane, who is from New Zealand, travelled to the Isle of Wight with her daughter, Bridget, to see where her great grandmother, Alice Pearce, had lived and to meet Fred.

Fred said: “It was wonderful to meet them after so long. We’ve kept in touch regularly since 2003 and I just can’t believe they came all this way.”

Dianne’s great grandmother and Fred’s grandmother, Alice, had been based on the Island all her life.

The trio managed to find Alice’s house in Harding Road, Ryde, by looking at old photographs Fred’s family had kept for more than 60 years.

Some of the photos even featured Dianne and her brother as a young child, which Fred’s parents had kept safe despite not knowing who the young children were in the photo.

“We will definitely stay in touch,” said Fred.

“It was a really great experience and it’s amazing it even happened at all.”