Roman Empire by Train with Alice Roberts

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.

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.

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.

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.