Roman Empire by Train with Alice Roberts (2026)
Synopsis
Alice embarks on her most ambitious journey to date, in search of the Roman Empire, travelling 1300 miles through Italy, France and Spain to discover the origins and secrets of Rome’s success.
First Air Date: 2026-02-07
Last Air Date: 2026-03-21
Number of Seasons: 1
Number of Episodes: 6
Networks: Channel 4
Top Cast
- Alice Roberts as Self - Presenter
Seasons
Miniseries (2026)
No overview available for this season.
Episodes:
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Ep. 1: Pompeii: A City Alive
The anthropologist embarks on a journey by train visiting key sites of the Roman empire. Alice begins her Roman tour at Pompeii, where she explores ingenious Roman engineering, racy artworks, the role of slaves and a surprising tax levied on local laundries. Alice also gets access beyond the tourist trail to a fresh dig that casts new light on one of Ancient Rome's notorious and mysterious cults.
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Ep. 2: I'm Spartacus
Alice heads seven miles south of Naples to Herculaneum, a town that, like Pompeii, was buried in volcanic ash in 79 CE. She also pays a visit to Capua's giant amphitheatre, second in size only to Rome's Colosseum, where gladiators battled wild creatures from the farthest corners of the empire, including lions and tigers. Alice gets a chance to handle the world's most famous sword.
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Ep. 3: What Have the Etruscans Ever Done for Us?
Alice explores Rome, from the ingenuity of ancient Roman aqueducts to the story behind Trajan's Column, and finds the original road that drove the expansion of the empire. She visits two of the city's most spectacular private estates, including one with its own giant mausoleum and private sporting arena. At a live dig in the hills north of Rome, the Etruscan origins of many of Rome's most impressive developments are revealed.
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Ep. 4: The Streets of Turin
In the city of Parma, Alice surveys an underground hotel, a buried Roman bridge and a museum of offerings to the gods. A train takes Alice north to Turin, to find out how the city's grid system helped scientists crack an age-old mystery. She also heads across the Alps to discover how Hannibal dragged his army of elephants through the mountains.
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Ep. 5: The Rome of France
Alice arrives in Nimes after crossing the Alps by train. The image of a crocodile is everywhere, commemorating Emperor Augustus's victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31BCE. In Narbonne, Alice revels in more extraordinary Roman artefacts. The train follows the same route as Rome's Via Domitia, eventually leading Alice all the way to Spain.
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Ep. 6: New Carthage
Alice heads to Tarragona, once the capital of Iberian Rome, which boasts the largest Roman forum in the world and a vast amphitheatre unearthed below a church. In Cartagena, on Spain's south coast, Alice marvels at the area's subterranean riche and takes a skylift above the city to reflect on the many things her 1300-mile Roman odyssey has taught her.
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