Walking Through History

Tony Robinson heads off for a 45-mile walk across Wiltshire to tell the story of life and death in the last centuries of the Stone Age. His route takes him through the greatest concentration of prehistoric sites in Europe.

It was 30 years after the Romans invaded Britain that they were ready to take on the challenge of conquering the Lake District. Tony Robinson tracks their 50-mile walk from Penrith past Ullswater to Ambleside and on to the Irish Sea at Ravenglass.

In the late 18th century, there was a sure-fire way to earn a living along the Cornish coast: smuggling. The great walking country is home to tiny secretive harbours, beaches and secluded coves which were once ideal for the infamous illicit imports.