Woman Reunites with Son She Placed for Adoption as a Teen Decades Later

A 64-year-old woman in England had an emotional reunion with her biological son, decades after placing him for adoption after falling pregnant as a teen.

In a clip shared with PEOPLE from the Thursday, Sept. 25 episode of the U.K. television show Long Lost Family, teaching assistant Paula Cottrell, who grew up in the U.K. city of Liverpool, spoke about not knowing what to do when her son’s father “disappeared” when he learnt she was expecting a baby at age 19.

“I thought, ‘What am I going to do? What am I going to do?'” she said in the video, adding, “I told him [the baby’s father] and he disappeared.”

“So I was left alone,” Cottrell recalled, before visiting the maternity home near Manchester, where she’d spent her pregnancy.

“I didn’t know where to go, but I knew [it wasn’t] gonna be there,” she added of her parents’ home. 

“The only other option was adoption,” Cottrell said.

During the episode, Cottrell explained that although her parents were hardworking, they were also heavy drinkers. 

“In every single way, we were neglected. Rats in the kitchen, dirty dishes and clothes everywhere. There was verbal abuse, physical abuse. You’re supposed to be safe at home. And unfortunately, it was a place where we were frightened,” she said, per a press release obtained by PEOPLE.

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Cottrell gave birth to a baby boy who she called Lee in 1980, tearfully recalling, “He was tiny and his hair was silver-blonde and he stayed with me for two days. He was wrapped up at the side of my bed. I was just looking at him, thinking, ‘I’m so sorry. But, you can’t stay with me.’”

Lee was placed into the foster system at just two days old, and Cottrell was left “heartbroken,” but a couple who wanted to adopt him made sure to call a few weeks later to see if she wanted to meet them. The couple also said they wanted to call the newborn Paul, in honor of his biological mom.

Forty-five years later, Cottrell’s story was told on Long Lost Family, with the team discovering that her biological son, Paul Clarke, a university lecturer, was still living in Liverpool and had been married to his partner, Owen, for 20 years.

Clarke told host Nicky Campbell that meeting his biological mom and telling her, “thank you for everything that you’ve given me,” would make him “happy and content.” He insisted he had a wonderful childhood and was very close to his family.

Cottrell got tearful when host Davina McCall told her that Clarke had been found. “I never ever thought that this would happen,” she said.

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Clarke and Cottrell then had an emotional reunion, with Clarke telling Cottrell, “I’m definitely yours” after noticing similarities between them.

Clarke also introduced Cottrell to his mom, Christine.

Cottrell said on the show that she hopes their reunion wasn’t a one-off. “My hope is for him to continue with his life and for me to be a little part of that. That’s enough for me,” she said.

Long Lost Family is available to view on ITV1 and ITVX from 4 p.m. EST and ITV’s YouTube channel.