Episode 2
Neil Oliver, Chris Packham, Andy Torbet and Shini Somara uncover the secrets of Orkney. Andy and some locals cross the Pentland Firth as the ancient Orcadians would have done.
Orkney - seven miles off the coast of Scotland, and cut off by the tumultuous Pentland Firth, the fastest-flowing tidal race in Europe is often viewed as being remote. However it is one of the treasure troves of archaeology in Britain, and recent discoveries there are turning the Stone Age map of Britain upside down. Rather than an outpost at the edge of the world, recent finds suggest an extraordinary theory - that Orkney was the cultural capital of our ancient world and the origin of the stone circle cult which culminated in Stonehenge.
In the second of this three-part series, Neil Oliver, Chris Packham, Andy Torbet and Dr Shini Somara join hundreds of archaeologists from around the world who have gathered there to investigate at one of Europe's biggest digs.
Andy and some local seafaring volunteers build a boat made of just willow and cow hide and set out to cross the dangerous Pentland Firth as the ancient Orcadians would have done. Neil investigates the extraordinary discovery of some human bones, Chris goes in search of whales and Shini uncovers the powers of the tides.
Last on
Clips
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Voyage across the Pentland Firth
Duration: 01:20
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Human remains found on site
Duration: 02:14
Credits
Role | Contributor |
---|---|
Presenter | Neil Oliver |
Presenter | Chris Packham |
Presenter | Shini Somara |
Presenter | Andy Torbet |
Presenter | Doug Allan |
Series Producer | Jamie Simpson |
Executive Producer | Rachel Bell |
Broadcasts
- Mon 9 Jan 2017 21:00
- Sat 14 Jan 2017 19:30Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Two except Northern Ireland
- Sat 14 Jan 2017 20:00Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Two Northern Ireland
- Sat 28 Jan 2017 02:20
- Thu 9 Feb 2017 20:00
- Fri 10 Feb 2017 01:25
- Sun 13 Aug 2017 16:30
- Tue 10 Jul 2018 20:00
- Wed 11 Jul 2018 03:00
- Tue 26 Mar 2019 20:00
- Sun 9 Jun 2019 19:30
- Sat 26 Oct 2019 20:00
- Tue 7 Apr 2020 22:00
- Tue 16 Feb 2021 21:00
- Thu 18 Feb 2021 19:30
- Sat 26 Mar 2022 15:30Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Two Wales HD & Wales only
- Sat 26 Mar 2022 18:30Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Two England & HD only
- Wed 23 Nov 2022 19:00
- Sun 9 Jul 2023 22:45
- Tue 11 Jul 2023 00:30
- Tue 19 Mar 2024 20:00
- Mon 25 Mar 2024 16:00
- Tue 15 Oct 2024 16:15Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Two except Scotland & Wales
Featured in...
Orkney: Britain's Ancient Capital
Neil Oliver, Chris Packham, Andy Torbet and Dr Shini Somara explore the secrets of Orkney.
The Presenters
Find out about our four fantastic presenters.