Family history collided with the present when Mary Kingsbury visited her ancestral home in the Cynon Valley to make a radio programme with her nephew, broadcaster James Stewart.

When she sat in the kitchen of Fforchaman Farm in the village of Cwmaman, she remembered stories her father told of visiting his grandparents there in the 1890s and saw an ancient wooden settle on which her great grandfather used to take his afternoon nap.

Kingsbury family 1890 - Mary's father Evan is the baby in the back row

She told the story of her namesake, Mary Kingsbury, who became embroiled in a battle over coal which forced her to sell the farm to Lord Aberdare and become his tenant.

Research by the modern Mary has revealed that the Kingsburys and their ancestors have lived in the house for at least 200 years.

But her second cousin, Rod Kingsbury, dropped a bombshell when he revealed that the historic building is likely to be demolished and replaced by new housing.

The old farmhouse (pictured above behind James and Mary) is a remarkable building because it stands in a typical street of terraced miners' houses, built when a pit was opened on the family's land in the mid-19th century.

Records of the farm go back as far as 1550, long before the collieries arrived. The house has outlived the half dozen pits which operated in the valley.

Mary Kingsbury, who lives in London, had been researching the family's background for more than 10 years and uncovered the fascinating story of what happened when her Victorian namesake tried to claim royalties on the coal being mined under her land.

According to family tradition she ended up in prison after losing a court case and was forced to sell the farm to Lord Aberdare to meet her costs.

Local historian Leslie Davies says the 19th century Mary Kingsbury became a local heroine because, even though she was a widow, she 'took on the big boys - and lost'.

In the Glamorgan Archive, documents have been discovered which reveal why she may have thought she had a right to the coal - and prove that she was forced to sell to the Bruce family who became the Lords Aberdare.

The archives also contain a letter which provides a strange twist to the story.

It was written by Mary Kingsbury's grandfather, Edward Evan - an outstanding figure in the history of Aberdare.

It shows that he worked as a 'woodward' - looking after the forestry on the Dyffryn Estate, which belonged to the Bruce family who would later dispossess his granddaughter.

Edward Evan was a fascinating man - an acclaimed harpist at the age of 11, who used to play at weddings and parties around Glamorgan.

By the time he was 18 he was recognised as an up-and-coming bard and was later cultivated by Iolo Morganwg, the inventor of the modern Eisteddfod, who viewed him as the last representative of the authentic bardic tradition of Glamorgan.

Stories told by Mary Kingsbury's aunt in the 1930s kept alive a family memory of the dramatic history of Fforchaman farm in the previous century - and told of a blind harpist in the family.

"My mother always told us not to listen to Auntie Maggie, saying these were all fairy stories," Mary says.

"But our researches have proved that she was right."

The blind harpist was Edward Evan's son and the harp apparently remained in the family - and was played - until the Second World War.

For James Stewart, who now lives in Fishguard and who presented the programme, it was an eye-opening experience.

"I have followed my aunt's research with interest for more than 10 years," he said.

"But visiting the family home and seeing the original documents has been a unique experience."