Siblings Reunited After 50 Years Seek Fourth Brother

Three people who were abandoned as babies in different parts of Ireland in the 1960s – and later discovered they were siblings – believe there is a fourth sibling and that a new documentary could encourage them to make contact.

The remarkable story, which captured media attention on both sides of the border, will be explored in a new documentary called The Phone Box Babies. It will air next week, on Wednesday 2 July at 9.35pm, on RTÉ One. It promises to reveal new insights into the lives of three people who were abandoned as babies and discovered that they were siblings over five decades later.

The three babies were discovered by random passersby in phone boxes, and in a car, without any identifying information. David McBride, born in 1962, was found in a duffle bag in the front seat of a car in Dunmurry on the outskirts of Belfast. John Dowling, born in 1965, was found in a Drogheda phone box. Helen Ward, born in 1968, was discovered in a tartan duffel bag in a Dundalk phone box. Each was adopted and raised in different parts of Ireland.

In 2020, David and Helen discovered they were brother and sister through DNA technology and were reunited on the ITV series Long Lost Family. John Dowling's daughter in Australia noticed a resemblance between her father and David, leading to the discovery that John was another full blood sibling to David and Helen.

The three siblings now believe there is a fourth sibling and hope the new RTÉ documentary will encourage that person to get in touch. Helen believes the fourth sibling could be a baby boy found in a phone box in Newry, Co Down, in May 1963. The documentary follows the siblings as they uncover untold stories that reflect the Ireland of the past.

Their mother was a young Catholic woman from the Republic of Ireland who had an affair with a married Protestant man from Northern Ireland. David, John, and Helen were born and abandoned as a result of this affair. The documentary aims to foster understanding and empathy about questioning one's roots and encourage people to help others with similar experiences.

Both biological parents are deceased, and the siblings confront painful truths about their parents' complex relationship and the impact of abandonment on their lives. They receive support from newly discovered half-siblings and family friends, including snooker legend Ken Doherty, in their quest to unearth buried family secrets.