River Hunters (2019)
US Youtube sensation Beau Ouimette, a river detectorist with over 30 years’ experience, and presenter and keen swimmer Rick Edwards search the UK’s waterways for archaeological finds. Using state-of-the-art technology, archive maps and contemporaneous accounts from the period, Beau and Rick perform the first underwater archaeological digs in some of the most exciting and iconic historical sites in Britain, often in dangerous and fast-flowing water.
Seasons & Episode
This episode sees Rick and Beau head to the vast River Trent, site of one of the greatest strongholds of the English Civil War – Newark Castle. In the first official search of the waterway, the River Hunters will be searching for lost Civil War relics that reveal the secrets of this brutal battleground. The duo start their search directly next to the castle and find evidence from the key advances in warfare at the time, which eventually helped lead to the King’s demise. They also discover musket balls among other lost items that help picture the harrowing life in this turbulent time.
Episode five sees Rick and Beau head to Britain’s most spectacular and best-preserved Roman frontier – Hadrian’s wall, where they scour the River Eden and River Carlisle which flow along its path looking for lost evidence from the might of 2nd century Rome and the invaders’ brutal occupation of Britain.
In the seventh episode Rick and Beau take on the stunning River Wear – a natural fortress protecting the ancient city of Durham and its sacred Cathedral, where in the 1500s Henry VIII seized power of the Church and the Cathedral’s shrines were plundered. Joined by Archaeologist Gary Bankhead, the team find artefacts spanning Durham’s rich past from the 1200s reign of Edward I, helping to shed light on the history of the city.