Villages By The Sea
Villages By The Sea is a TV show on BBC2. Archaeologist Ben Robinson uncovers the history and heritage of beautiful coastal villages from across the UK, showcasing their often unsung role in the nation's story. The program has been available since 2025. A total of 46 episodes have been broadcast, most recently in August 2025.
Last episode
Villages By The Sea
Ben Robinson visits Culross, a stunning 17th-century village that was a major centre for Scottish coal mining and the first underwater sea coal shaft in the world.
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30:00Archaeologist Ben Robinson uncovers how the health and fortune of the village was shaped by those in charge of Bamburgh’s famous castle.
Series 5
Archaeologist Ben Robinson casts his eye over the village of Seahouses in Northumberland, where he discovers how the lethal rocks offshore have been both a blessing and a curse.
Archaeologist Ben Robinson is in North Yorkshire, exploring how idyllic Runswick Bay was once a place of great danger, despite attracting tourists and inspiring artists.
In Cumbria, on the edge of the Lake District, Ben Robinson finds signs of early Christian pilgrims, while a 500-year-old house turns out to be the birthplace of an Elizabethan VIP.
Archaeologist Ben Robinson visits the tiny Hampshire village that had a huge role in building ships for Nelson's victorious fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar.
Ben Robinson visits Laxey on the Isle of Man to discover what drew Victorians to the tourist destination.
Ben Robinson explores Parkgate on the estuary of the River Dee in Cheshire. The village is landlocked due to the estuary’s shifting silt. But 250 years ago, it was a bustling harbour.
Archaeologist Ben Robinson unearths the Suffolk village of Orford’s history of defending the British Isles.
Ben Robinson visits Northumberland’s Craster to find out how a family who shares the name have had their lives and fortunes intertwined with the village for over 800 years
Archaeologist Ben Robinson uncovers the secrets of Cornwall’s Tintagel, famed as the legendary birthplace of King Arthur.
Series 5
Archaeologist Ben Robinson investigates how a Cornish gem of a village became a world-famous centre of tin mining where people made and lost huge fortunes.
Archaeologist Ben Robinson discovers how Dutch settlers in the 1500s transformed the Norfolk village of Cley next the Sea.
Archaeologist, Ben Robinson visits the Yorkshire coastal village of Flamborough and discovers its historic chalk buildings.
Archaeologist Ben Robinson uncovers evidence of the German occupation of the Jersey village of Gorey and the role it played in defending the UK.
The quiet village of Ravenglass in the Lake District’s National Park played a strategic role in the Roman empire, as archaeologist Ben Robinson finds out.
Series 3
30:00
30:00Ben Robinson visits the Norfolk village of Cley next the Sea and finds due to Dutch settlers in the Elizabethan era, it's not as 'next the sea' as it once was.
30:00Archaeologist Ben Robinson visits the Yorkshire coastal village of Flamborough and discovers its historic chalk buildings.
30:00Ben Robinson discovers more about the quiet village of Ravenglass in the Lake District's National Park, which played a strategic role in the Roman empire.
35:00Ben Robinson visits Laxey on the Isle of Man to discover the unusual attraction that drew Victorians to the tourist destination - the biggest waterwheel in the world.