The Search for Alfred the Great
Neil Oliver joins a team of historians and scientists investigating the final resting place of Alfred the Great as they exhume the contents of an unmarked grave.
Neil Oliver is given exclusive access to a team of historians and scientists investigating the final resting place of Alfred the Great. Alfred's bones have been moved so many times over the centuries that many people concluded that they were lost forever. Following a trail that goes back over 1,000 years, the team wants to unravel the mystery of Alfred's remains. Travelling from Winchester to Rome, Neil also tells the extraordinary story of Alfred's life - in the 9th century, he became one of England's most important kings by fighting off the Vikings, uniting the Anglo-Saxon people and launching a cultural renaissance. This was the man who forged a united language and identity, and laid the foundations of the English nation.
The film investigates the equally extraordinary story of what happened to Alfred's remains after his death in 899. They have been exhumed and reburied on a number of occasions since his original brief burial in the Anglo-Saxon Old Minster in Winchester. The Saxons, the Normans, Henry VIII's religious reformers, 18th-century convicts, Victorian romantics and 20th-century archaeologists have all played a part in the story of Alfred's grave.
Neil joins the team as they exhume the contents of an unmarked grave, piece the bones together and have them dated. With the discovery of some unexpected new evidence, the film reveals the extraordinary outcome of an important investigation.
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Clips
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Are these the bones of Alfred the Great?
Duration: 05:36
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The assembled bones
Duration: 02:22
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John Mellor
Duration: 04:02
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Introduction to The Search for Alfred the Great
Duration: 03:11
Alfred the Great (849 AD - 899 AD)
Credits
Role | Contributor |
---|---|
Presenter | Neil Oliver |
Producer | Robin Dashwood |
Director | Robin Dashwood |
Executive Producer | Chris Granlund |
Broadcasts
- Tue 21 Jan 2014 21:0091热爆 Two except Scotland
- Tue 21 Jan 2014 23:2091热爆 Two Scotland
- Wed 22 Jan 2014 23:2091热爆 Two except Scotland
- Mon 10 Feb 2014 02:10
- Tue 29 Sep 2015 21:00
- Thu 1 Oct 2015 02:00
- Sat 3 Oct 2015 20:00
- Mon 15 Feb 2016 22:30
- Wed 7 Sep 2016 23:00
- Sat 3 Jun 2017 20:00
- Sun 1 Jul 2018 19:00
- Mon 2 Jul 2018 01:40
- Tue 3 Sep 2019 22:00