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In Con Mum, Netflix unfolds the startling real-life account of Graham Hornigold, a decorated British pastry chef and co-founder of Longboys Doughnuts, whose life was upended in 2020 after an unexpected email. The sender, an 85-year-old woman named Dionne, claimed to be his biological mother, a figure Graham had never known. Initially skeptical, he was gradually convinced by her knowledge of his early life.
As reported by The Guardian, on March 22, 2025, she accurately recounted his birth details and claimed she had only months to live due to terminal illnesses. What followed was a calculated con that drained Graham emotionally and financially.
Over time, Dionne moved in with Graham and his partner, manipulated family dynamics, and persuaded him to fund her luxury lifestyle. According to Time, on March 25, 2025, the scam cost him approximately £300,000. Later investigation revealed Dionne had a history of deception dating back decades.
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Directed by Nick Green, Con Mum examines this complex emotional and financial fraud, blending personal interviews and archival footage to explore how one message shattered the foundations of an entire life.
5 key insights about Netflix’s Con Mum explored
Netflix’s Con Mum offers a detailed account of how a long-lost reunion turned into one of the most emotionally and financially damaging scams in recent years. The documentary focuses on pastry chef Graham Hornigold and his encounter with Dionne, a woman claiming to be his biological mother.
The film, directed by Nick Green, documents the events that followed their meeting and the consequences that reshaped Hornigold’s personal and professional life. Here are five key insights.
1) Graham Hornigold’s background and rise in the culinary world
Before the events captured in Con Mum, Graham Hornigold had established himself as a respected figure in hospitality. According to The Sun, March 24, 2025, he was born on a British Army base in Germany in 1974 and went on to become a renowned pastry chef in London. His résumé includes roles at the Mandarin Oriental and The Lanesborough, and he has been a judge on MasterChef: The Professionals.
In 2019, he co-founded Longboys, a gourmet doughnut company, with pastry chef Heather Kaniuk. Their products were stocked in major retailers like Harrods and Selfridges, and the business had grown into multiple outlets.
2) The email that triggered everything
The story presented in Con Mum began in 2020 when Hornigold received an unexpected email from a woman named Dionne, who claimed she was his biological mother. The message included specific details of his birth, like his birthplace and the circumstances surrounding his adoption. According to The Guardian, March 22, 2025, she wrote,
“Hi Graham, I’m not sure if this is going to reach you as I’ve been searching for a way to contact you and found this email. My name’s Dionne, formerly known as Theresa … Graham was born in Germany before being taken away from me to England.”
Hornigold asked for proof, and when she answered all his questions correctly, he agreed to meet her.
3) Financial entanglements disguised as maternal gestures
Dionne’s claims were soon accompanied by promises of a large inheritance. She said she had only six months to live due to terminal illnesses and was looking to put her financial affairs in order.
As per Elle, on March 25, 2025, Dionne insisted she was an illegitimate child of the former Sultan of Brunei and had amassed wealth through overseas businesses. She showered Hornigold and his partner with lavish gifts, including vehicles and stays in high-end hotels.
However, the documentary reveals these expenses were paid using Hornigold’s funds, eventually pushing him into debts amounting to approximately £300,000.
4) The unraveling of the scam and Dionne’s history
As time progressed, suspicions grew. Heather Kaniuk and a friend named Juan began noticing inconsistencies in Dionne’s stories. According to Time, March 25, 2025, Hornigold eventually discovered red food dye in Dionne’s hotel room, an item she allegedly used to fake symptoms of illness.
Furthermore, research by Kaniuk unearthed Dionne’s prior convictions for shoplifting and deception. Reports referenced in Moviedelic, March 25, 2025, confirm Dionne’s earlier scams in Indonesia, where she collected money under the pretext of arranging Hajj pilgrimages but never delivered on those promises.
5) DNA confirmation and unresolved consequences
One of the most complex revelations in Con Mum on Netflix is that a DNA test ultimately confirmed Dionne as Hornigold’s biological mother. However, despite this, the legal system offered little recourse. As per The Guardian, when Kaniuk approached authorities, she was informed that—
“Dionne’s activities wouldn’t be seen as fraud, because she is his mother.”
Con Mum ends with Hornigold estranged from Dionne and living with the emotional aftermath. According to Moviedelic, the final call between them included Dionne’s admission:
“I done what I done. I can not change, son. I can not change.”
The show closes by documenting how Hornigold has tried to rebuild his life while Dionne remains unreachable and believed to reside somewhere in Asia.
Con Mum is available to watch on Netflix.
