VIDEO : Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Benedict Cumberbatch Related

As you may guess, the root of this strange connection is Ancestry.com, whose researchers looked into Cumberbatch's history and found the connection with Doyle. As CBS News details, Cumberbatch and the Sherlock Holmes creator are 16th cousins, twice removed; their shared ancestor was found in the 14th century: John of Gaunt, first Duke of Lancaster (born 1340), fourth son of King Edward III, and noted friend of the poet Geoffrey Chaucer.