Submitted by Sean Williams on Mon, 03/15/2010 - 19:17
What's 84 miles long, 1,888 years old and marked the edge of Roman rule in Britain? Hadrian's Wall of course - and the landmark got a spectacular makeover this weekend with a line of beacons stretching its entirety. The event, named 'Illuminating Hadrian's Wall', marked the 1,600th anniversary of the end of the Roman occupation in Britain, and needed no fewer than 1,100 hardy volunteers to brave the harsh winds of northern England to make it happen.
Submitted by Sean Williams on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 16:39
I'm sitting on the 15.49 to London Euston from Carlisle. It's boiling hot, the Cumbrian countryside is disappearing behind me and my jumper smells like yesterday's paper. But I'm happy, because we've just hah a hell of a week at the Hadrian's Wall illuminations. I've seen it on the news from my hotel, but I guarantee you it was even better in the flesh: and that's what we'll be recreating in our next Ancient World in London video.
This weekend Hadrian's Wall will be put in the spotlight - quite literally - when approximately 500 beacons will illuminate the 84 mile wall in its entirety. It will surely be a memorable sight (and one to capture on video, in pixels, and in Tweets)! As we're all anxiously awaiting the weekend, let's have a look at how Hadrian's Wall, and the bridge and fort complex nearby called the Pons Aelius, might have looked in 200AD!
The history of Newcastle begins about AD120, when Roman engineers constructed the first bridge across the River Tyne. The bridge was called 'Pons Aelius' - meaning 'Bridge of Aelius' - a reference to Emperor Hadrian's family name.
The Wall is the title of the book and it’s backed by a very fine cover shot of Housesteads Crag taken from the popular viewpoint at Cuddys Crag; the back cover of the book records that "Hadrian’s Wall is the longest, most spectacular and one of the most enigmatic historical monuments in Britain", and goes on to tell us it was built using 24 million stones. The photographs inside are all of Hadrian’s Wall or of a similar, but more intact Roman constructions in Syria and Georgia. So anyone picking up this book would be led to believe it is a book about Hadrian’s Wall – I certainly did, but I was wrong.
The book is in fact a history of Roman Britain. It is packed with information, supplemented with parcels of text in boxes throughout the book that contain snippets of historical information. They don’t actually have anything to do with the narrative and Moffat suggests “They can be read as asides, skipped and read later, or ignored.”
At first I was entertained by these snippets, dipping into them as one would a box of chocolates, but eventually they became tiresome, less interesting and very difficult to ignore.
Submitted by Bija Knowles on Sat, 02/13/2010 - 20:04
Venice, with its grumpy gondoliers, and Verona, home to Romeo, Juliet and a pink Roman arena, both have formidable reputations as romantic destinations. But Rome too can more than hold its own when it comes to providing entertainment for lovers of all kinds (whether part of a couple or not).
Submitted by Nick Gilbert on Wed, 02/10/2010 - 20:07
Valentine's day is approaching and those of us who are still single are being bombarded from all sides with pressure to find a soulmate in time for the weekend. I thought I'd pile the misery on a bit more with a list of some of the great romantic couples of ancient history. Some are known to us all, others are little known stories with sometimes touching and sometimes sordid details. Over the years these relationships have been dramatised and become legendary. They are the templates for modern fictional romance, and stories that will live forever in their own right.
In a joint partnership with the Open University, the BBC broadcast the first of a seven-part series which is looking at the History of Britain through art and artefacts over the past 2,000 years in a TV series called "Seven Ages of Britain". Shot in high definition, the programme is written and presented by the respected veteran broadcaster David Dimbleby who recounts the ancient-era story of the nation in the first episode.
On March 13, Hadrian's Wall – all of it – will be lit by gas beacons, a once-in-a-lifetime event called Illuminating Hadrian's Wall. From Wallsend in the east, to Bowness on Solway, approximately 500 beacons spaced every 250 metres will cover the 84 miles of the Hadrian's Wall.
The first beacon will be lit at Wallsend at approximately 5.35pm (sunset is at 6.11pm), and lighting will progress in sequence east to west with a six-second delay between each beacon firing up; 50 minutes later, the last beacon in Bowness should be lit.
I'm sitting on the 15.49 to London Euston from Carlisle. It's boiling hot, the Cumbrian countryside is disappearing behind me and my jumper smells like yesterday's paper. But I'm happy, because we've just hah a hell of a week at the 
This weekend Hadrian's Wall will be put in the spotlight - quite literally - when approximately 500 beacons will illuminate the 84 mile wall in its entirety. It will surely be a memorable sight (
In a joint partnership with the Open University, the BBC broadcast the first of a seven-part series which is looking at the History of Britain through art and artefacts over the past 2,000 years in a TV series called "
