Full steam ahead

Alice Roberts explores the Roman Empire by rail in her new series

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Professor Alice Roberts was just 15 when she first visited the ancient city of Pompeii - now she’s returned and she’s taken a camera crew with her.

When Mount Vesuvius violently erupted in 79 CE (Common Era), the town of Pompeii and its people were entombed under more than four metres of volcanic ash and the city was lost until it was rediscovered 1600 years later with the very first excavations beginning in 1748 and continuing until this day.

“Going to Pompeii as a teenager was utterly mind-blowing,” says Alice, 52. “Going back all these years later, still utterly mind-blowing! It’s just unbelievable. It’s really hard to describe it - I think we've captured a bit of it for people that haven’t seen it in the flesh.”