Nan had red hair, but father Tom's hair was jet black. Tom's brother (who also went to sea) had red hair. Tom thought that Catherine was not his daughter but his brother's. Consequently, Catherine was brought up by her maternal grandparents, in a different household. Margaret ("Peggy") and Thomas ("Tommy") were brought up in the Britten household. Later, Tom grew a beard, it came out red, and he changed his mind about Catherine's parentage.