Catch up TV

This episode is currently not available.

Series 3: Cley next the Sea



Archaeologist Ben Robinson visits the Norfolk village of Cley next the Sea and discovers that due to Dutch settlers in the Elizabethan era, it's not as ‘next the sea’ as it once was. Ben finds a village green that was once a thriving port with big ships and surrounded by a thriving village. He visits the church and meets Matt Champion, an expert in medieval graffiti who has found some incredible links to past villagers. \n\nA fire in the 1600s destroyed most of the original village, and Ben uses some detective work to try and date a house believed to be one of the only survivors. An exploration of the village reveals architecture that shows the influence of Flemish immigrants, but it's not only the buildings that were influenced by the so called ‘Elizabethan strangers’.\n\nBen talks to historian Onyeka Nubia who reveals that the village was part of a cosmopolitan community that introduced Britain to the canary and even the beer we drink today. But possibly the biggest influence these strangers brought to the village were their skills in land reclamation. Local historian Jonathan Hooton takes Ben to the site of the embankments that turned the waterways in to farmland, and later, Ben meets the one of the villagers who are fighting to reverse the effects and reclaim Cley’s waterways.

Source: BBC 2

Most recent episodes of Villages by the Sea

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 2: 3. Thorpeness

Series 2: 3. Thorpeness

Archaeologist Ben Robinson uncovers the secrets of the Edwardian village of Thorpeness in Suffolk, the first purpose-built seaside village in the UK.

25-03-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 2: 2. Staithes

Series 2: 2. Staithes

Archaeologist Ben Robinson visits the village of Staithes in North Yorkshire and unearths its role in kickstarting the chemical industry in the north east of England.

18-03-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 10. Johnshaven

Series 4: 10. Johnshaven

Ben Robinson travels to Johnshaven, a once-important Scottish fishing village. When its skilled sailors were press-ganged into the Royal Navy in the late 18th century, it had to ...

11-03-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 9. Greyabbey

Series 4: 9. Greyabbey

Ben Robinson unearths the ancient past of Greyabbey, a small village on Northern Ireland’s beautiful Strangford Lough. The village name comes from Grey Abbey, its Cisterci ...

04-03-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 8. Porthgain

Series 4: 8. Porthgain

Ben Robinson unearths the unique past of Porthgain, a small Pembrokeshire village built for its industry, first as a slate quarry, then exporting brickwork and finally producing ...

25-02-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 7. Seaton Sluice

Series 4: 7. Seaton Sluice

Ben Robinson travels to Seaton Sluice in Northumberland, home to the notorious Delaval family. These wealthy bottle makers were some of the greatest players on the Georgian part ...

18-02-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 6. Beer

Series 4: 6. Beer

Ben Robinson heads to Beer, Devon, home to beer stone, which has been quarried since Roman times and used in many of the nation's cathedrals and landmark buildings, including We ...

11-02-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 5. Solva

Series 4: 5. Solva

Ben Robinson discovers the impressive lime kilns in Solva, Wales. This picturesque 19th-century port is famous for producing quicklime, a vital ingredient in both agriculture an ...

04-02-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 4. Holkham

Series 4: 4. Holkham

Ben Robinson makes an amazing discovery at Norfolk’s impressive Holkham estate - its lost medieval village, seen for the first time since its disappearance some 200 years ...

28-01-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 3. Cushendall

Series 4: 3. Cushendall

Ben Robinson travels to Cushendall, one of the finest planned Georgian villages in Northern Ireland. It was owned and shaped by a series of owners but most notably its 19th-cent ...

21-01-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Most popular episodes of Villages by the Sea

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 2: 3. Thorpeness

Series 2: 3. Thorpeness

Archaeologist Ben Robinson uncovers the secrets of the Edwardian village of Thorpeness in Suffolk, the first purpose-built seaside village in the UK.

25-03-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 5: 6. St Bees

Series 5: 6. St Bees

In Cumbria, on the edge of the Lake District, Ben Robinson finds evidence of early pilgrimage at a remarkable Norman priory. In a 500-year-old house in the village, the archaeol ...

10-01-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 5: 3. St Margaret's

Series 5: 3. St Margaret's

On a visit to the Kent coast, Ben Robinson learns how an exclusive retreat for the rich and famous suddenly became 'Hellfire Corner' during World War II. Ben examines graffiti i ...

13-12-2024

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 2: 4. Charlestown

Series 2: 4. Charlestown

Archaeologist Ben Robinson visits the picturesque Georgian village of Charlestown on the south west coast of Cornwall and learns how it was\nshaped by the vision of one man.

20-06-2024

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 3: Craster

Series 3: Craster

Archaeologist Ben Robinson visits a small village in Northumberland to find out how the family and village who both share the name Craster have had their lives and fortunes inte ...

14-06-2023

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Holy Island

Holy Island

Archaeologist Ben Robinson discovers the story of the monks and villagers of the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, off the Northumberland coast.\n\nOur coastal villages are often seen ...

24-09-2024

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 3: Botallack

Series 3: Botallack

The small hamlet of Botallack was once at the centre of the Cornish tin and copper mining industry as archaeologist Ben Robinson discovers. By 1861, Botallack’s mine was o ...

09-05-2024

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 1. Culross

Series 4: 1. Culross

Ben Robinson visits Culross, a stunning example of a 17th-century Scottish royal burgh village. Culross was a major centre for Scottish coal mining and boasts the very first pla ...

07-01-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 7. Seaton Sluice

Series 4: 7. Seaton Sluice

Ben Robinson travels to Seaton Sluice in Northumberland, home to the notorious Delaval family. These wealthy bottle makers were some of the greatest players on the Georgian part ...

18-02-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

Villages By The Sea

Villages By The Sea - Series 4: 2. Port Carlisle

Series 4: 2. Port Carlisle

Ben Robinson examines the remains of a lost harbour in Port Carlisle, Cumbria, a small village near Carlisle which grew as a consequence of the canal building surge that swept t ...

14-01-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

BBC 2

© 2025 - Catchupplayer.co.uk