Digging Up Britain's Past

Helen Skelton and Alex Langlands head to Lindisfarne and the Isle of Man to uncover the secrets of Viking burial grounds. Presenters Helen Skelton and Alex Langlands, along with a team of archeologists, explore fascinating periods in British history through a current archaeological dig. In the first episode, Helen and Alex head for the island of Lindisfarne, where archaeologists are trying to locate the site of an eighth-century monastery. Among their finds is a graveyard and a number of skeletons, which may be those of both monks and pilgrims.

Helen Skelton and Alex Langlands join a new dig at Elsyng Palace, one of nearly 60 royal residences owned by Henry Vlll and one of his favourite homes during his last decade. The dig unearths more clues to the palace's architecture and splendour, and of Henry's life and times, with finds including the remnants of a working oven and a 16th-century groat - worth about four pence in Tudor times - featuring a portrait of Henry's face.

Helen Skelton and Alex Langlands explore the history of Stonehenge, examining the stones that make up the structure, their acoustic properties, and how they were transported 120 miles from their origins in Salisbury Plain to form the circle. Helen also visits a village where builders were believed to have lived during the site's construction and meets scientists who have analysed the bodies buried beneath the monument.

Helen Skelton and Alex Langlands head to the village of Poulton in Cheshire to see a location where archaeologists have dug up nearly 1,000 human skeletons. The remains have revealed secrets about life during the Black Death, including signs of backbreaking agricultural work, poor nutrition and battles.

A recent dig found evidence of the King's lavish lifestyle.

Can a site on the Lancashire-Yorkshire border shed more light on the Pendle Witch trials of 1612? Helen Skelton and Alex Langlands investigate the Pendle Witch trials of 1612. The presenters visit Lancaster Castle, where the suspects were held, read James I's infamous book on demons, and talk to archaeologists who claim to have found the site of the supposed coven's meeting place. Plus, a look at the role a nine-year-old girl played in sealing the fates of the accused women and how the trial influenced British legal history.