SATURDAY 24th BBC 2 6.20pm Restoration Nation. Sheena McDonald highlights more campaigns to save the nation's neglected buildings from demolition.
Channel 4 7.10pm Weapons That Made Britain. Third of five programmes. Arms expert Mike Loades continues his investigation into the history of military hardware. This episode traces the changes in the way spears were used by fighting forces. At the Battle of Hastings, mounted Norman knights threw their spears at Harold's men, but within a century those same weapons were kept tucked under knights' arms for use as a heavy-impact weapon. A visit to the battlefield at Lewes in East Sussex, where Henry III fought with powerful barons for control of the country, brings home the awesome force represented by men armed with lances on horseback.
Channel 4 8.10pm The Ancient Greek Olympics. First of two programmes. Death or Glory. As miodern-day athletes prepare for this summer's Olympics, this documentary takes a timely look at the origins of the Games - and their effect on Greek civilisation. Such was the importance placed on this demonstration of physical prowess, and the feasting and processions surrounding it, that thousands of people would travel for weeks to take part. The hero worship of sporting stars and occurences of substance abuse in the pursuit of victory suggest the original Games may have more in common with the contemporary competition than appears at first glance.
SUNDAY 25th BBC 2 9.00pm Restoration. The South West. Which of tonight's faded structures from Britain's past will go forward to the final in August? Three worthy candidates from the South West are South Caradon Mine, an embodiment of Cornwall's industrial history; a hidden staircase at Dorset's Sherborne House; and Castle House in Bridgewater, Somerset, a Victorian builder's experiment in concrete. Griff Rhys Jones meets the supporters of the three important buildings, while ruin detectives Ptolemy Dean and Marianne Suhr are on hand to help you decide which to save.
Channel 4 8.00pm *****EXTREME ARCHAEOLOGY***** Bay of Bones. The team attempt to get to grips with three stone coffins situated on a cliff in Longoar Bay, near the Welsh town of St Ishmaels. High winds rain and dust make investigation of the burial sites - discovered when part of the Pembrokeshire national coastal footpath crumbled into the sea - extremely difficult. Undetterred by the fact that the area is unaccessible from the beach, the team abseil down the cliff face and attempt to create a platform from where the site can be safely accessed. Will human remains be discovered? And could the cliffs and coffins hold the key to the origins of Christianity in Britain?
MONDAY 26th BBC 2 7.30pm Terry Jones's Medieval Lives. The Monk. The ideal of a life of solitude and worship was all too often undermined by the eagerness of monks to make a profit. Sheep, iron-smelting, holy "relics" and even prayer, became money-spinners in their monasteries.
Channel 4 8.00pm Lost Buildings of Britain. New series of six programmes. Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Architectural historian Simon Thurley pays belated tribute to six amazing British edifices that have fallen victim to the ravages of time. The original Theatre Royal, demolished 200 years ago, is his first subject. Dramatic reconstructions and computer simulations re-create this birthplace of modern British drama.
Channel 4 9.00pm Pagans. Second of four programmes. Magic Moments. Anthropologist Richard Rudgley demonstrates how contemporary British society's attitudes to subjects as diverse as the supernatural, luck, sex and the environment have their roots in Europe's pagan past. Rudgley turns his attention to science and superstition, exploring how some of our pagan ancestors exploited what were perceived as magical forces in order to gain power and prestige.
TUESDAY 27th BBC 2 7.30pm Hidden Treasure. Find of the Series. Another chance to see a range of British treasure-trove, from Roman gold to Iron Age coins, as a panel of experts select their favourite archaeological find. Presented by Miranda Krestovnikoff.
BBC 2 9.00pm Restoration. Fifth in a series of eight programmes. North. More sites in need of renovation: Gayle Mill in the Yorkshire Dales, an 18th century water mill that was first used to process cotton; Sheffield Manor Lodge, situated among the ruins of the once-great Tudor house; and Lion Saltworks at Marston in Cheshire. Presented by Griff Rhys Jones. Restoration Nation follows at 10pm on BBC 4.
WEDNESDAY 28th BBC 2 7.30pm (Scotland only??) Fred Dibnah's Magnificent Monuments. Places of Worship. From neolithic stone circles to the great cathedrals, a look at where we have paid religious homage.
THURSDAY 29th Five 7.30pm Tim Marlow on Edward Hopper. The iconic and frequently haunting paintings of one of America's most pre-eminent artists, Edward Hopper, are the subject of a major retrospective at London's Tate Modern. Art historian Tim Marlow takes an informative tour of the exhibition, the first in the UK for over 20 years, exploring the themes and techniques of Hopper's work.
TIME TEAM REPEATS ON DISCOVERY
A TT programme is scheduled for 7.00am and 5.00pm on Saturday 24th, and 7.00am and 7.00pm on Sunday 25th.
Monday Throckmorton. Tuesday High Ercall. Wednesday An Iron Age chamber in Cornwall. Thursday Cheshunt. Friday A 17th century blast furnace near Ironbridge.
And don't forget - UKHistory has a full schedule of historical/archaeological programmes for those with access to digital, satellite or cable. Voted best new channel of the year 2003.
SATURDAY 31st BBC 2 7.00pm Restoration Nation. Sheena McDonald highlights more campaigns to save the nation's neglected buildings from demolition.
Channel 4 7.10pm Weapons That Made Britain. Fourth of five programmes. Arms expert Mike Loades continues his investigation into the history of military hardware. This week focuses on the use of the shield in battle. He puts the protective device to the test in a series of reconstructions, charging a shield wall on horseback and fighting with duelling shields as he demonstrates both Anglo-Saxon and mediaeval combat tactics. But how well will the ancient armour stand up to an attack using modern military weapons?
Channel 4 8.10pm The Ancient Greek Olympics. Second of two programmes. Playing to Win. Concluding the documentary examining the origins of the Olympic Games and their contribution to civilisation. Despite the gulf in moral codes and religious beliefs between the two societies organising the ancient and modern games, there are certain similarities too. This edition reveals how aspects of the contemporary Olympics - both positive and negative - bear comparison with the competition of ancient times.
SUNDAY 1st BBC 2 9.00pm Restoration. Northern Ireland. Three more worthy candidates: Lock-keepers Cottage, on the famous Lagan Navigation canal network; Armagh Gaol, Northern Ireland's oldest prison: and the Derry Playhouse, once home to a community of pioneering nuns. Griff Rhys Jones meets the supporters of the three important buildings, while ruin detectives Ptolemy Dean and Marianne Suhr are on hand to help you decide which to save.
Channel 4 6.30pm *****TIME TEAM: THE REAL KING ARTHUR***** The blockbuster film King Arthur is playing in cinemas, stirring interest in the legend of the King of the Britons once again. This special seeks to find the truth behind the myth, mystery and multi-pound industry that surrounds the figure of Arthur. Was he really a chivalrous, Excaliber-wielding mediaeval king? Or a 5th century Welsh warrior who had Camelot and Cornwall grafted on to his kingdom by French storytellers, before being given the final push into the country's consciousness by the poems of Alfred Lord Tennyson? TR, aided by a host of experts and enthusiasts, peels back the layers of the Arthurian legend, from Hollywood to the Bronze Age, to discover the truth behind the many tales.
Channel 4 8.00pm *****EXTREME ARCHAEOLOGY***** Shetland Fortress. A 900-mile drive and a four-hour walk across the most barren and wet peat bog in Europe leads Dr Mark Davies and his team to Burgi Geos, a promontory in northern Shetland nearer to the Arctic Circle than to London. Located on the site is a mysterious group of stones that - according to local folklore - was an Iron Age fortress. Seeking to uncover the truth behind the legend, the first ever archaeological investigation of Burgi Geos is conducted. But can the group remain focused while being roped up above the perilous rocks that lie several hundred feet below them?
MONDAY 2nd BBC 2 7.30pm Terry Jones's Medieval Lives. The Damsel. The Victorians were largely responsible for inventing the stereotype of the shy, vulnerable mediaeval woman in need of rescue, but the reality was very different. Terry Jones shows how theyran businesses, led armies and even abducted the lovers of their choice.
Channel 4 8.00pm Lost Buildings of Britain. Second of six programmes. Nottingham Castle. Architectural historian Simon Thurley pays belated tribute to six amazing British edifices that have fallen victim to the ravages of time. This week he is on a quest to rediscover the intimidating fortress that once occupied a Nottingham clifftop.
Channel 4 9.00pm Pagans. Third of four programmes. Band of Brothers. Anthropologist Richard Rudgley demonstrates how contemporary British society's attitudes to subjects as diverse as the supernatural, luck, sex and the environment have their roots in Europe's pagan past. Rudgley asks whether the pagan warrior kings were just macho lager louts or heroic champions who used brains as much as brawn.
TUESDAY 3rd BBC 2 7.30pm Hidden Treasure. Find of the Series. Another chance to see a range of British treasure-trove, from Roman gold to Iron Age coins, as a panel of experts select their favourite archaeological find. Presented by Miranda Krestovnikoff.
BBC 2 9.00pm Restoration. Seventh in a series of eight programmes. Midlands and East. More sites in need of renovation: Newstead Abbey in Nottinghamshire, a former mediaeval monastery that was the seat of the colourful Byron family for four centuries; the transmitter block at Bawsey Radar Station in Suffolk, which played a vitla role in WWII; and the gradeII-listed Old Grammar School and Saracen's Head at King's Norton in Birmingham, a stopover point for Charles I's wife during the English Civil War. Presented by Griff Rhys Jones. Restoration Nation follows at 10pm on BBC 4.
WEDNESDAY 4th BBC 2 7.30pm Fred Dibnah's Magnificent Monuments. Places of Work. Fred investigates historical developments in the design and construction of places of work. Along the way he tries his hand at a traditional building craft, visits some of the world's biggest industrial sites and steps back in time at Beamish., the North of England Open Air Museum.
Five 7.30pm Greatest SAS Missions. Birth of the SAS. Former Special Forces soldier Ken Hames presents a history of the SAS. Early archive footage shows how the regiment evolved from its troubled early sorties as a raiding unit in North Africa during WWII to become one of the world's premier fighting forces. The SAS was the brainchild of Lt. David Stirling, who was convinced a small group of highly trained men, behind enemy lines, could make a disproportionate impact.
THURSDAY 5th Five 7.30pm Tim Marlow on ... A Secret History of Clay - from Gaugin to Gormley. Works using the medium of clay by the likes of Gaugin, Picasso, Miro and Chagall are featured in an exhibiton at the Tate, Liverpool. Art historian Marlow also takes a look at Antony Gormley's monumental installation "Field for the British Isles" comprising of 35,000 individual clay figures.
FRIDAY 6th BBC 2 9.00pm Battlefield Britain - Boudicca New Series of eight programmes. Two thousand traumatic years of invasion, civil war and rebellion have shaped modern Britain. Military history and the latest computer graphics combine to evoke some of these violent events, beginning with the uprising led by Queen Boudicca against Roman rule in AD 60. Presented by father-and-son team Peter and Dan Snow.
BBC 2 10.00pm Restoration. GRJ presents an update on the seven buildings across the UK that have made it to the final, plus an eighth contender, whose stay of execution has been won by being the runner-up with the most votes. The winner is announced in the live final on Sunday at Hampton Court Palace.
TIME TEAM REPEATS ON DISCOVERY
A TT programme is scheduled for 7.00am and 5.00pm on Saturday 31st, and 7.00pm on Sunday 1st.
And don't forget - UKHistory has a full schedule of historical/archaeological programmes for those with access to digital, satellite or cable. Voted best new channel of the year 2003.
SATURDAY 7th BBC 2 9.00pm Restoration Nation. Sheena McDonald highlights more campaigns to save the nation's neglected buildings from demolition.
Channel 4 7.05pm Weapons That Made Britain. Last of five programmes. Arms expert Mike Loades concludes his investigation into the history of military hardware with a look at armour. During the mediaeval arms race, advances in weapons technology were in competition with innovations used to protect a combatant, culminating in the most enduring icon of the era - the fully armoured mounted knight covered from head to toe in an exoskeleton of metal. But how effective were these defences at protecting the body inside it? And would a knight actually be agile enough to avoid attack? Putting to use Norman coats of chain mail and the ultimate "arrow-proof" Italian armour, Loades gets physical to find the answers.
SUNDAY 8th BBC 1 8.00pm Greek Gods and Goddesses. Jason and the Argonauts. From fierce Amazons and treacherous Sirens to Medea the sorceress and a mighty dragon, the quest of original action hero Jason fired the imagination of the ancient Greeks. But why has the tale survived for over 2,000 years? Olympian Jonathan Edwards investigates in this dramatised documentary.
BBC 2 9.00pm Restoration Final. Over the past few weeks, viewers have explored the fascinating history of 21 buildings at risk from degradation and voted to see one of them restored to its former glory. In tonight's live final from Hampton Court Palace, ruin detectives Ptolemy Dean and Marianne Suhr rediscover the unique charms of the 8 finalists, while Griff Rhys Jones and Natasha Kaplinsky catch up with some of their tireless supporters.
Channel 4 5.25pm Wreck Detectives. Fifth in a new series of eight programmes. Historian Jeremy Seal and diver Miranda Krestovnikoff aim to uncover the identity of a WWI German U-boat lying off the north Cornish coast, and find out exactly why it sank.
Channel 4 8.00pm *****EXTREME ARCHAEOLOGY***** Death in Slaughter Stream. Dr Mark Davies and his team embark on their final archaeological adventure of the series. The discovery of animal remains in a network of caves known as the Slaughter Stream, which lie beneath the Forest of Dean, has led to speculation that man inhabited the area in ancient times. The group aim to use specialist equipment to excavate 3 promising zones within the cave, but find accessing the area more of a challenge than they anticipated. Can they overcome the effects of severe exhaustion and cold to gather valuable evidence?
MONDAY 9th BBC 2 7.30pm Terry Jones's Medieval Lives. The Minstrel. Forget the jaded stereotype of drippy troubadours entertaining lords and ladies with their whimsical songs of love and chastity - mediaeval minstrels at court were powerful spin doctors, cunning politicians and astute musical spies.
Channel 4 8.00pm Lost Buildings of Britain. Third of six programmes. Whitehall Palace. A sprawling set of buildings that stretched from Downing Street to Trafalgar Square, this former royal residence burnt to the ground during the reign of the Catholic King James II. Architectural historian Simon Thurley investigates its untimely demise.
Channel 4 9.00pm Pagans. Last of four programmes. Sacred Landscape. Pagan society revered nature, believing resources vital to survival had to be paid for - even if that meant human sacrifice. Anthropologist Richard Rudgley explores how, to our pagan forefathers, the dead represented a vital link to powerful ancestral knowledge.
TUESDAY 10th Five 8.00pm Ancient Olympics: How the Games Began. Chariot horses were poisoned, competitors ran naked, eye gouging was permitted and a false start was punishable by whipping. In this revealing documentary, classicists and sports historians explain how in 448 BC, when the original Games was at its zenith, the Olympic spirit was not quite what modern day athletes are encouraged to believe, featuring, as it did, events which were brutal and sometimes fatal.
WEDNESDAY 11th BBC 2 7.30pm Fred Dibnah's Magnificent Monuments. Bridges and Tunnels. Fred investigates the principles and advances that have created some of the world's greatest feats of engineering, including the Channel Tunnel and the Thames Barrier. He also profiles the contributions made by great civil engineers, such as Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
Five 7.30pm Greatest SAS Missions. D-Day Daredevils. The SAS's integral involvement in D-Day, one of the biggest military events in WWII, including a joint venture behind enemy lines with the French Resistance, is chronicled as former Special Forces soldier Ken Hames continues his history of the SAS.
Five 8.00pm Seven Wonders of Ancient Greece. A celebration of the most stunning structures from a bygone era as the Olympic Games returns to its birthplace, Athens, this summer. Renowned Hellenists explore some of the finest examples of classical architecture in Greek history, including the Palace of Knossos, the Oracle of Delphi, the Parthenon, the Colossus of Rhodes and, of course, Olympia itself.
THURSDAY 12th Five 7.30pm Every Picture Tells a Story. Boy Bitten by a Lizard. The mystery behind one of Caravaggio's earlier works is unravelled by Waldemar Januszczak as he decodes the rich symbolism in the painting and examines the artist's contorversial lifestyle.
FRIDAY 13th BBC 2 9.00pm Battlefield Britain - Hastings Second of eight programmes. Two thousand traumatic years of invasion, civil war and rebellion have shaped modern Britain. Presented by father-and-son team Peter and Dan Snow. Returning to the year 1066, Peter provides a CGI-enhanced blow-by-blow account of King Harold and the Saxons' attempts to defend England against William's invading French force, while Dan tells the soldiers' stories, faces a cavalry charge and experiences favourite Saxon tactic, the shield wall.
TIME TEAM REPEATS ON DISCOVERY
A TT programme is scheduled for 7.00am and 5.00pm on Saturday 7th, and 2.00pm and 7.00pm on Sunday 8th.
And don't forget - UKHistory has a full schedule of historical/archaeological programmes for those with access to digital, satellite or cable. Voted best new channel of the year 2003.
How the Nazis tried to de-stabilise the British economy by flooding the world with forged fivers. (Rpt)
20:10 Channel 4
Stalin
Second of three programmes about the Soviet Dictator. This week Stalin's ruthless streak is put under the spotlight.
Sunday 15th August
19:00 BBC 2
Leonardo
First of a three parter about Leonardo da Vinci. (Rpt)
20:00 Channel 4
Monte Cassino: The Soldiers' Story
The four month battle for control of Monte Cassino in 1944 was one of the bloodiest of the entire war. In this programme former combatants from both sides tell their stories.
20:00 BBC 1
Greek Gods and Goddesses
Jonathan Edwards re-creates Odysseus's epic journey from Troy to Ithaca.
Monday 16th August
20:00 Channel 4
Lost Buildings of Britain
This week Simon Thurley attempts a virtual re-build of what was possibly England's most eccentric country house, the Gothic fantasy that was Fonthill Abbey.
21:00 Channel 4
Whicker's War
The globe-trotting reporter re-visits the scene of some of his earliest work:- Covering the war in Italy for the Army Film Unit.
Tuesday 17th August
20:00 Five
Ancient Olympics: How the Games Began
Another Olypic spin off examining the original form of the games. Postponed from the 10th August.
21:00 Channel 4
That'll Teach'Em
Following on from last year's 1950's Grammar School experiment this time 30 GCSE pupils are put through a 1960s style Secondary Modern education.
Wednesday 18th August
19:30 Five
Greatest SAS Missions
SAS exploits behind enemy lines in the closing days of WW2, including locating V2s and helping escaped PoWs.
Thursday 19th August
19:30 Five
Every Picture Tells a Story
A close up look at the Mona Lisa by Waldemar Januszczak
21:00 ITV
Bad Lads' Army
Twentyfirst Century tearaways attempt 1950s National Service. For anyone who hasn't seen this series it contains bad language by the skip load.
Friday 20th August
19:30 Five
Fighter Plane Dig
Highlights from the live excavation of a Hurricane in central London earlier this year. One might ask why?
20:00 Five
Mummy: the Inside Story
Scientists at the British Museum use X-Ray scanning to study the 2,800 year old remains of the priest Nesperennub
21:00 Battlefield Britain - The Battle for Wales
Peter and Dan Snow continue their look at a British battles with the revolt of Owen Glendower (spelling as it appears in Radio Times) and the little known invasion of England by the Welsh (Had they got lost?..).
Time Team repeats continue on the Discovery Channel:-
Writer Adam Nicolson sails up the west coast of the British Isles to explore it's rich history. Threatens to be more about sailing than history but episode one starts with a dive to a shipwreck in the Scilles and a search for one of Britain's rarest plants.
20:00 Channel 4
Stalin
Last of three programmes about the Soviet Dictator examines his record as a military leader and strategist.
Sunday 22nd August
19:00 BBC 2
Leonardo
Second of a three parter about Leonardo da Vinci. (Rpt)
20:00 Channel 4
who Killed Thomas Becket?
Docudrama with input from experts about the murder of the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1170. To what extent was Henry II to blame and who was the mysterious "fith man" in the Cathedral?
Monday 23rd August
19:30 BBC 2
Terry Jones's Medieval Lives
This week, the Philosopher. (Rpt)
20:00 Channel 4
Lost Buildings of Britain
This week Simon Thurley attempts a virtual re-build of Glastonbury Abbey, once Britain's largest and richest abbey with stained glass said to transport pilgrims into a state of religious joy.
21:00 Channel 4
Whicker's War
The globe-trotting reporter continues the retrospective of his early years covering the war in Italy for the Army Film Unit.
23:20 BBC 2
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Biographical look at the work of the photographer who died earlier this month (Rpt)
Tuesday 24th August
21:00 Channel 4
That'll Teach'Em
Second episode following 30 GCSE pupils through a 1960s style Secondary Modern education. This week the boys get to grips with car maintenance and the girls get lesson in 1960s housewifery. Brace yourselves for more tantrums and bad language.
Wednesday 25 August
19:30 Five
Greatest SAS Missions
This week the famous storming of the Iranian Embassy in 1980.
Thursday 26th August
19:30 Five
Every Picture Tells a Story
A close up look at Manet's Dejeuner surl'Herbe by Waldemar Januszczak
21:00 ITV
Bad Lads' Army
Twentyfirst Century tearaways attempt 1950s National Service. In the last of the series the lads prepare for their passing out parade with a mammoth drinking session. For anyone who hasn't seen this series it contains bad language by the skip load.
Friday 27th August
19:30 Five
Mission to the Deep
Two ancient Phoenician ships are discovered. (Rpt)
21:00 Battlefield Britain - The Spanish Armada
This week Peter and Dan Snow take to the English Channel to reveal how the English navy fought the Spanish Armada in 1588.
Time Team repeats continue on the Discovery Channel:-
Sunday:- The Shetland Islands Monday:- Bronze Age dig in the Cotswolds Tuesday:- That dodgy site in Wales I can't remember the name of (sorry) Wednesday:- Norman castle in Alderton Thursday:- Anglo Saxon burials in Normanton Friday:- Roman skeleton unearthed in York
As the cricket is still on the possibility of the odd TT repeat in the event of play finishing early remains a possibility.
Battlefield Ramblings Muriel Gray explores the areas around our greatest battlefields.
3/7 Pilleth
Pilleth on the Welsh Borders was the site of a bloody battle in 1402 between Owain Glyndwr and Edmund Mortimer. Oscar nominated film director Paul Turner has been researching this fight for the independence of Wales in the hope that it will become the subject of his next film. He walks the area with Muriel explaining the significance of this Welsh hero.
On BBC2, in the early hours of Thursday and Friday, there is being shown the full series by Michael Wood "In Search Of Troy". Parts 1-4 at 2am on Thursday and the final parts at the same time Friday.
Check listings for full details tho' just in case I've misread it!!
Second episode of Adam Nicolson's voyage up the west coast of the British Isles. This week he finds himself off the Pembrokeshire coast studying the area's geology to understand how it might have shaped the lives of those who lived there.
20:00 Channel 4
The Worst Jobs in History.
First of a six part series in which our own Tony Robinson tries his hand at a succesion of disgusting and dangerous trades. This week looks at "The Dark Ages" and Tony tries his hand at being a Roman Gold miner, building Saxon houses out of dung and being a Viking egg collector. A later programme will have him standing ankle deep in cold urine. Lovely..
Sunday 22nd August
19:00 BBC 2
Leonardo
Last of a three parter about Leonardo da Vinci looks at the story behind the creation of the Mona Lisa. (Rpt)
Monday 23rd August
19:00 BBC 2
Terry Jones's Medieval Lives
This week, the Outlaw. Note earlier time! (Rpt)
20:00 Channel 4
Lost Buildings of Britain
This week Millbank Penetentiary gets the VR and fairylights treatment. Few people realise that Britains largest and most notorious prison once stood on the site of London's Tate Britain. Simon Thurley re-creates it for us. Last of the series.
Tuesday 24th August
19:00 BBC 2
This Land
Personal view of the landscape of the Dingle peninsula where "Ryan's Daughter" was filmed. (Rpt)
21:00 Channel 4
That'll Teach'Em
Third episode following 30 GCSE pupils through a 1960s style Secondary Modern education. This week the group take mock GCSE's and the girls cook a meal for the headmaster.
Wednesday 25 August
19:30 Five
Greatest SAS Missions
This week the retaking of the Falkland Isles in 1982
20:00 Five
Who Killed Tutankhamun?
Two FBI detectives attempt to solve this ancient murder mystery. (Rpt)
Thursday 26th August
19:30 Five
Every Picture Tells a Story
A close up look at Van Eyck's masterpiece The Arnolfini Marriage with Waldemar Januszczak
Friday 27th August
02:00 BBC 2
Timewatch - In Search of Cleopatra.
Part of the BBC Learning Zone Mediterranean Season this programme promises to explore the truths and myths of Egypts last queen. (Rpt)
19:30 Five
Mission to the Deep
Riddle of the Gold Rush Steamer. Why did the steamship "Princess Sophie" sink in 1918? (Rpt)
21:00 BBC 2
Battlefield Britain - The Battle of Nasby
This week Peter and Dan Snow take up pikes and re-create a cavalry charge using motorbikes(!).
Time Team repeats continue on the Discovery Channel:-
Sunday:- Henry VIII's Palace at Greenwich. Monday:- Anglo-Saxon monastary at Hartlepool. Tuesday:- Roman Temple at Greenwich. Wednesday:- The palace of King Offa. Thursday:- Flag Fen. Friday:- Basing House.
SATURDAY 4th Channel 4 8.00pm The Worst Jobs in History. Tony Robinson continues his warts-and-all examination of history's most unpopular professions. This week's maltreated minions include the arming squires who cleaned up after bloodthirsty knights, the wool industry workers who spent much of their time up to their knees in human urine, and leech-gatherers.
SUNDAY 5th Channel 4 5.25pm Wreck Detectives. Penultimate episode. The wreckage of 19th-century paddle steamer "The Leila" comes under scrutiny. The ship, which sank in Liverpool Bay on its maiden voyage to America, is rumoured to have been loaded with munitions destined for Confederate forces. Miranda Krestovnikoff goes diving at the wreck site, while historian Jeremy Seal searches the archives to find out about the Leila's cargo.
MONDAY 6th BBC 2 7.30pm Terry Jones's Medieval Lives. The King. How much do we really know about our mediaeval kings? Jones finds flaws in Richard the Lionheart, admirable qualities in the pilloried character of Richard II and negative bias in Shakespeare's portrayal of Richard III.
Channel 4 9.00pm Britain AD: King Arthur's Britain. First of three programmes in which Francis Pryor argues against the received wisdom that early Britons were primitive barbarians, using cutting-edge research and detailed archaeological study to support his view of the era as a vibrant period of benign foreign influences. First, he looks at the Roman occupation from the natives perspective.
Five 8.00pm Hittites: the Lost Civilisation. For 450 years the Hittite empire equalled ancient Egypt for sophistication and power, but their legacy was loost for 3,000 years. This documentary shows how archaeological evidence forced a reassessment of their place in history as a people whose approach to trade and diplomacy made them possibly the most advanced civilisation of their time.
Five 9.00pm Nefertiti: Search for the Lost Mummy. Some 3,000 years ago she was one of the most powerful women on earth, but then vanished from history entirely. Egyptologist Dr Joann Fletcher closely examines the Queen's life, believing she has found evidence of her mummy.
WEDNESDAY 8th Five 9.00pm Search for the Holy Grail: the True Story. The Cup of Christ has been sought for centuries, and many relics have been hailed as the true Holy Grail - yet the most sacred object in Christianity remains elusive. The claims of some of these relics are weighed in this documentary. Could a mediaeval map revealing secret vaults within Rosslyn Chapel, Edinburgh, spiritual home of the Knights Templar, lead us to the ultimate holy antiquity? Or is a cup engraved with Last Supper images the real thing? The controversy rages on.
THURSDAY 9th BBC 2 8.00pm Ray Mears's Bushcraft. First of five programmes in which the survival expert shows how a knowledge of the natural world facilitates the art of bushcraft - in this absorbing and insightful series. Aboriginal Britain. How did hunter-gatherers survive in Stone Age Britain? From flint-knapping and bow-making to fire-lighting and cooking venison, Mears uses replicas of tools from that era to demonstrate - and celebrate - our lost bushcraft skills as he encourages us to view our land in a new light.
FRIDAY 10th BBC 2 9.00pm Battlefield Britain - Boyne Sixth of eight programmes. Two thousand traumatic years of invasion, civil war and rebellion have shaped modern Britain. Presented by father-and-son team Peter and Dan Snow. Three centuries ago the river Boyne in Ireland ran red with blood. Computer graphics show the enormous scale of the battle, as Peter Snow unravels what happened when supporters of the Catholic King James II confronted the Protestant King William on 1st July 1690. Dan Snow recounts what the battle was like for the soldiers.
Five 7.30pm Mission to the Deep. Quest For Nazi Gold. A man determined to locate £15 million-pounds worth of gold stolen by the Third Reich.
TIME TEAM REPEATS ON DISCOVERY
A TT programme is scheduled for 7.00am and 1.00pm on Saturday 4th, and 7.00pm on Sunday 5th.
Monday A cathedral in Coventry. Tuesday Elveden, Suffolk. Wednesday Birdoswald. Thursday Wadden, Dorset. Friday A crashed Spitfire.
And don't forget - UKHistory has a full schedule of historical/archaeological programmes for those with access to digital, satellite or cable. Voted best new channel of the year 2003.
"Digging For Britain" BBC Radio 4 Wed 1st September 2004 - Series of Five Programmes.
From the Radio 4 website: "11:00 Digging for Britain Julian Richards begins a new series charting the lives of five archaeologists who, in their own times, were outstanding and innovative explorers of our past.
1/5. William Stukeley
One of the most curious and complex of 18th century English eccentrics, Stukeley was a doctor of medicine, a clergyman and a pioneering archaeologist. Yet despite his genuine gift for fieldwork and observation, history records him as the man solely responsible for introducing the idea of Druids to Stonehenge."
Great news - this series starts with one of my "Local Heroes". Luckily this is available for listening to again on the web.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- From the Wapentake of Elloe in the County of Holland
One of the most curious and complex of 18th century English eccentrics, Stukeley was a doctor of medicine, a clergyman and a pioneering archaeologist. Yet despite his genuine gift for fieldwork and observation, history records him as the man solely responsible for introducing the idea of Druids to Stonehenge."
Great news - this series starts with one of my "Local Heroes". Luckily this is available for listening to again on the web.
A fine man, PatW. If you haven't already got it, can I recommend the reasonably priced book "Stukeley Illustrated" compiled by Neil Mortimer. [ISBN 0-9542963-3-8] especially if you enjoy his engravings (over a hundred in this paperback).
SATURDAY 11th Channel 4 8.00pm The Worst Jobs in History. Tony Robinson exposes the more revolting side of Merrie England as he steps onto the bottom rung of the Tudor careers ladder. Those in nightmarish occupations included the groom of the stool, who wiped Henry VIII's capacious behind, social outcasts the woad dyers, and the gong scourers who unblocked London's primitive sewers.
SUNDAY 12th Channel 4 5.25pm Wreck Detectives. Is the wreck discovered in Ireland's Waterford harbour the 17th-century English warship "The Great Lewis"? Jeremy Seal and Miranda Krestovnikoff embark on a search for the truth.
MONDAY 13th BBC 2 7.30pm Fred Dibnah's Age of Steam. Steam in the Modern Age. The Lancastrian steeplejack's history of steam explores contemporary turbines and the preservation of steam heritage in museums.
Channel 4 9.00pm Britain AD: King Arthur's Britain. Second of three programmes. During his investigations into the so-called Dark Ages, Francis Pryor has discovered a world inhabited by Christianised, literate Britons engaging in trade and diplomacy with the Byzantine Empire. He believes the departure of the Romans heralded a resurgence of native culture that should see the era renamed Late Antiquity.
Five 9.00pm Megastructures. New series looking at how some of the world's most ambitious engineering projects were accomplished. Channel Tunnel: Hard-Won Triumph. The concept of an undersea tunnel linking England to France may have once been the stuff of fantasy - it was in fact an idea conceived by Napoleon some 200 years ago. In 1986 the six-year construction of the "Chunnel" began, a mammoth project which overcame floods, fires and financial crises to emerge as one of the world's most remarkable engineering feats.
TUESDAY 14th The Great Escape: Revealed The classic film The Great Escape was inspired by events at Stalag luft 3, a German maximum security camp built to house captured Allied airmen. The movie told the tale of one escape attempt as PoWs dug three tunnels, two of which were discovered and destroyed by the guards. Here, three veteran escapees help archaeologists seek traces of the remaining tunnel.
WEDNESDAY 15th BBC 2 7.30pm (not England) Map Man. New series in which explorer Nicholas Crane attempts to navigate Britain's wildest landscapes using pioneering historical maps. William Roy's Military of Survey of scotland (1747-53). Following the Battle of Culloden in 1746, the British Army desperatley needed accurate maps of the Scottish Highlands if it was to govern the area. Young Military engineer William Roy was given the task of producing them. Will his maps see Nick safely through the treacherous terrain?
THURSDAY 16th BBC 2 7.30pm (not Scotland) Map Man. New series in which explorer Nicholas Crane attempts to navigate Britain's wildest landscapes using pioneering historical maps. William Roy's Military of Survey of scotland (1747-53). Following the Battle of Culloden in 1746, the British Army desperatley needed accurate maps of the Scottish Highlands if it was to govern the area. Young Military engineer William Roy was given the task of producing them. Will his maps see Nick safely through the treacherous terrain?
BBC 2 8.00pm Ray Mears's Bushcraft. Second of five programmes in which the survival expert shows how a knowledge of the natural world facilitates the art of bushcraft - in this absorbing and insightful series. Jungle Camp. "No matter how many times I return to the jungle I always forget just how awe inspiring it is". And for RAy Mears, the Amazon's human inhabitants are no less impressive. As he sets up camp outside a remote village, Ray is joined by three of the Yekuana people. From building a shelter out of bark, to treating illness with plants, they instruct Ray in some of the numerous skills necessary to their survival.
Five 7.15pm Andalusia - the Legacy of the Moors. Documentary evaluating the architectural, philosophical and cultural heritage left in southern Spain by the Moors, who ruled there for 8 centuries. Focusing on the cities of Seville, Cordoba and Granada, the programme traces the achievements of the region once known as Al-Andalus, including groundbreaking irrigation schemes and sophisticated science.
FRIDAY 17th BBC 2 9.00pm Battlefield Britain - Culloden Seventh of eight programmes. Two thousand traumatic years of invasion, civil war and rebellion have shaped modern Britain. Presented by father-and-son team Peter and Dan Snow. Bonnie Prince Charlie's exhausted and disorientated troops were no match for the muskets and cannon of George II's Redcoats on Culloden Moor in 1746. But the outcome could have been very different. What was the fatal error made on the eve of battle that led to the Jacobite Army's bloody defeat?
TIME TEAM REPEATS ON DISCOVERY
A TT programme is scheduled for 7.00am and 5.00pm on Saturday 11th, and 1.00pm and 7.00pm on Sunday 12th.
Monday Roman Cirencester. Tuesday An Islamic settlement at the Spanish port of Denia. Wednesday TT Special on complex Roman water-drawing machinery. Thursday Rescue archaeology in Fife. Friday A Saxon skeleton in a Northamptonshire garden.
And don't forget - UKHistory has a full schedule of historical/archaeological programmes for those with access to digital, satellite or cable. Voted best new channel of the year 2003.
quote:Originally posted by Valerie: From Radio Times 4th - 10th September
THURSDAY 9th BBC 2 8.00pm Ray Mears's Bushcraft. First of five programmes in which the survival expert shows how a knowledge of the natural world facilitates the art of bushcraft - in this absorbing and insightful series. Aboriginal Britain. How did hunter-gatherers survive in Stone Age Britain? From flint-knapping and bow-making to fire-lighting and cooking venison, Mears uses replicas of tools from that era to demonstrate - and celebrate - our lost bushcraft skills as he encourages us to view our land in a new light.
Just watched this program and it was a blinder best he has ever done, a must if your into Archaeology
