I watch time team on more 4 TT changed how history programmes are made for UK TV for ever. As of 2010 Ainsworth has been affiliated with the History and Archaeology department at the University of Chester, where he is a visiting professor. Excellent show. I learn so much. This is just swell. This segregates the viewers and leaves fans like me stuck in the middle and slightly upset at the notion that my favorite programmes have been taken over by people who havent got a idea. Archaeologists from Wessex Archaeology, working in advance of HS2 construction, have been excavating the site for the past three years. We NEED Time Team. I am sure the essence of archeology would be attractive to a core audience once again. I agree Shiela, a long read but entertaining, and an indication of TTs popularity. I think Tony is a good fit for this program. Also, a Presenter is not supposed to insult the experts he is reporting on. I think weve brought it into the forefront of peoples attention. It was a formula that worked for the target audience and trying to attract a different audience by dumbing down the content was like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. Prior to us, by and large archaeology was something you could only really appreciate if you read books with long words in them. Surely this cant really be the end?? I am still quite happy to watch repeats on Sky. Jim summed up their approach as messing with something perfectly fine, and when it wasnt a success, blaming the people trying to make it work., Time Teams cost also made it vulnerable. Also I dont know how many episodes Ive got left to watch and am dreading the day I realise Im rewatching episodes Ive seen before, though thats still better than pretty much anything else on TV at the moment. Usually clad in a loud jumper, with his white hair blowing in the wind, Professor Aston was the shows site director who chose where to dig for the next historical discovery. Stewart Ainsworth (born 26 June 1951) is a British archaeological investigator who was regularly seen on Time Team, the Channel 4 archaeological television series. This is in no doubt as a direct result of the post production. A known anthropologist and archeologist ( Emmanuel College, Cambridge ), to describe and dismiss her as a former model is a bit unfair. I would just like to thank Tony Robinson, Mick Aston, Phil Harding and all of the crew at Time Team for many years of fascinating TV. The fun gone out of Sunday teatime! I have watched every episode from season 1, some many times. But would be top stuff if BBC 4 could pick it up and get things back on track. The thrill of time running out also engaged viewers, and Time Teams popularity was rewarded with increasingly longer series. This did happen in fact, but the show kept going with Mick Aston and (Sir) Tony Robinson always at the helm. The focus groups of today, the council chambers of yesteryear; all determined to make their mark, put their talent on show. The students became instant converts to the program. The changes proved too much, too fast, and viewing figures crashed to 700,000. Whatever happened, wed all thought, well complete the 20th series. why change what works well and T T did work well . By the way I am 52, so I guess I am too old for channel 4, but tell my kids that. I speculate that Mr Bushs rant is based upon nothing more than jealousy over the fact that Mr Harding has obviously learned one more word than him whilst digging those big holes! Thank you to everyone who made this such a wonderful programme. Tapped into the national zeitgeist, its stars were household names and at its zenith Time Team was pulling in audiences of 3 3.5 million viewers. Who made the decision to axe time team but it is a mistake they will regret. In all fairness thank you C4 for having the foresight to do the programme in the first place but put the money saved back into culture, dont invest it in any more fly on the wall or the only way is type of programmes or you may just lose any of the credibility youve gained. With Mick in his amazing technicolor jumpers playing father and patient teacher, fielding Tonys laymans questions, Phil as the eccentric uncle who could dig with the instincts of a terrier after a bone, John and his whiz-bang geo-phys, and all the other children hard at work in their specialties, the programme wasnt merely TIME TEAM it was TIME FAMILY. It may be in fifteen or so years a new Time Team will go digging in the archives of the defunct Channel 4 to explain how with the audience Channel 4 had for an entertaining and informative programme Which bright go ahead executive (IDIOT) came up with the Idea, if its not broken we must fix it. certainly helped to fill a lot of university places, even if many of those gaining degrees have gone on to other careers. We have it so easy in this day and age to compare to others in the past and we so loved it when Tony came to Australia and did some shows about our ancestral heritage,we all walk past so much and never notice whats in front of us,we miss so much rich knowledge right under our feet. Now we are nearing the end of Series XX I feel a tinge of sadness that a programme which both educates and informs will be with us no more. Was it her sultry beauty, or easy going attitude that rubs some the wrong way ? It has also helped me find out more about my own history that goes back to U.K. Have caught onto Time Team on the History Channel. You can find her message at https://digventures.com/2013/03/tools-down-for-time-team-raksha-dave-on-the-end-of-an-era-and-her-new-adventure/. while the Facebook page is slowly building! "[3], As of 2010, Ainsworth has been affiliated with the history and archaeology department at the University of Chester, where he is a visiting professor.[4]. . Maybe the finding of Richard III might encourage a change of heart. For how many years were John Gater and Stuart Ainsworths technical expertise presented as a pat cliche when the work of either could have been expanded? Yes I agree I miss fresh episode aswell please come back, Yes I agree, the quality of weekend television is terrible give us back some interesting programs, Still record and watch the show love it all I can say is Bring back Time Team. Struck by how much could be learnt in a few hours, Tim wondered what could be achieved in a few days. He was an inspiration to me and to so many others. Speak for your self! The format was part of the problem. I have loved it from the first episode and who cares if Tony is a little OTT sometimes, he keeps it entertaining and all together. The cast and crew were pretty obviously seriously digging their roles, (bad pun semi-intended sorry about that sort of). That is, the irritating new team members, the irritating clanging noise when Tony narrates and the increasingly less time spent in the trenches. Series Producer and creator of Time Team, Tim Taylor says, They did it! I love time team because it is filled with such enthusiasm and love for its subject. my point in this is, why try to fix it if it aint broke change is not always as good as a rest. With the archaeologists at the height of their game, by now the team was so confident of the three-day regime that development producer Jim Mower describes their appearance on site as like getting the A Team in. VALE Time Team, a wonderful Viking/ Roman pyre is burning and we are drinking ourselves to oblivion. The site, discovered by historian and metal detectorist Keith Westcott after years of research, could be one of the biggest villas uncovered in recent times. Reason: we hardly spoke to each other and what we were watching on tv was hardly worthwhile. In most places over here there are literally hundreds of channels with endless variety. I loved every minute of it. Here we chart the highs and lows of a revolutionary format that aimed to bring archaeology to the people. My son in his early 20s always likes to watch it. The key participants deserve a rest at their age, and the joy obviously just wasnt there. Lively interpersonal dynamics, celebratory meals and wine, inviting locals to learn more about the world around them back in time, diverse resources and approaches coordinating and appreciating each other- some reading. Very disappointing. Long gone are the back garden digs. Best of all, the cameras were rolling to capture the archaeologists euphoria as the geophysical plot emerged from a bulky printer in the back of the survey vehicle. Somehow I feel her nearness when I watched it after she was gone. Judged a misfire by Channel 4, it could have been the end. Lois & Tara, Australia Great memories sadly missed. Not blaming her particularly, but her entry seemed to also disturb the group dynamics of the cast, which was one of the things that made it so enjoyable. Time Team turned this particular builder into a complete archaeological anorak and made one increasingly curmudgeonly old fart in a sweat stain hat the one person in the world Id most love to meet, hang out on a dig with and sink real ales with thereafter! What Time Team once was in the beginning will never be reproduced. When I get a chance I watch the repeats on More 4. Im retired now and would love to get involved in archeology at some level. About the same time I discovered TT and became a dedicated viewer and have viewed all their programmes thanks to More Four. Self - Aston Eyre, Shropshire (1998) . Just heard about the axing of Time Team what a shame! The comment by Peter Thomas is excellent and is a very eloquent summation. It lost its way because of the producers. Many episode are available free on veehd.com. I do not know he was pretty good towards the end at his archeology. Best wishes to everyone ever involved with the show. Your email address will not be published. I watched all but episode 1. I feel really, really angry about it. . It opened my eyes up to so much of the UK, in particular my ignorance of Roman settlement. And key graphic purporting to show the significant shift in building alignments between two phases did not actually do that but simply repeated the original layout! He asks the questions that some people must be sat in front of their TV asking. I have missed Time Team SO much.. I once heard Mr Harding say Oh arr. Surely a revamp, no helicopters, fewer paid staff, smaller archaeological objectives, involve communities more hence free labour would help. Such mass-production was only possible with more rigorous processes guiding filming. This is a disaster in t.v programming where currently all you get is the banal reality of the likes of Toddlers in Tiaras .The Time Team over the years became like welcome friends into your home and you wished you could join them in the pub at the end for a beer. Close. A good friend of mine was a guest archaeologist on several T.T programmes and it was my good fortune to go along on production. Like others I have loved TT right from the start and have always enjoyed it. You can never run out of history in Britain. I AM SO UPSET AT THE ENDING OF TIME TEAM ! I wonder if channel programmers read these blogs? Dont think that the U.K. has the monopoly on scrapping popular shows it happens here in N.Z. With its awkwardly embarassing reality programming and multitude of dream come true talent shows American television is NOTHING to emulate. Maybe the BBC can resurrect this show. The 2006 audience survey also identified that Time Teams core audience consisted of families and people aged over 45 / 50. Learned lots of the history of the show from these posts but I dont know whether Ive seen the cleavage or whether Micks absence from a dig is because hes doing something else, on hols etc or because hes gone. You only have to look at the great interest shown over Richard III to realise that yes there is a market for a programme of this nature. Yes TR can be intensely irritating at times, but as the years have gone by I think his appreciation of the experts has increased and they have learned skills from him about presentation. Not everyone takes. However over the years TT seem to have worked on sites that have been known about for a long time, but have remained unexplored for whatever reason. Perhaps if Chanel 4 had stuck to the old adage of if it aint broke, dont fix it we would still have had this gem of a program to look forward to enjoying for many years to come.. with shows like Strictly Come Dancing, X Factor, Dancing on Ice, Big Brother etc etc etc all being aired every week, Time Team was an oasis of entertainment and education in a vast desert of mundane TV programming. too, although not often. It was an opening into a different world that gave me hope that THIS one can be sorted out ! Its put me very on edge not to know where Im up to and I think Channel 4 should be funding my medication for hypertension, blurred vision (tears I think) and severe withdrawal already before its ended. Tony admitted a number of times that he is not an archeologist. Only problem is the core members are getting on a bit, so no chance of it going another 20 years. PLEASE bring it back. Our investigation of the villa and the landscape it occupies will aim to preserve and enrich our understanding of the past and the people who inhabited it. I loved every member of the cast and crew. I would joke with my kids when doing some gardening that I might unearth a roman soldier or a roman coin. He joined the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England (now part of English Heritage) in 1985, and is now head of its Landscape Investigation Team based in York, England. share. Please sign fans: One of our students is well into his 70s, hes been in the field with us both on our formal field school and in a volunteering capacity. And so agree with all here who say that C4 is very sadly dumbed down from its early days and mission. TT had a great following here in Canada. i like everything about it. I never felt patronized and certainly never notice Tony Robinson sermonizing about global warming. Regards, Paul Tressel [emailprotected], Time Team was a massive part of my life, Im still watching it even now on more 4 :O. During that time he deduced the towns Medieval layout. Watched it since the beginning, some great episodes and fantastic digs. If Channel 4 wish to cancel TT why not take it to another channel If jonathon Ross, Parky and Graham Norton can do it why not TT, No more Phil! Arrr! Nothing lasts forever, including Time Team. While Time Team unquestionably experienced problems, particularly in its final years, this much-loved show was an astonishing success, propelling modern archaeology into the public conscious as never before. My grandson is a budding archeologist and watches it over and over again. I have been planning to return for several years now for a holiday and to catch up with friends and relatives. Now I will be stuck with overproduced, watered down supposedly historically accurate twaddle , We held a bit of a poll a few years ago with the Pagan Federation as to what the favourite TV programme was. What a great detective. I have scoured the Internet watching every episode I can find, some more than once. I am appalled. I am sure there are more sites for them to investigate. People like myself really appreciate history coming to life as Time Team presented it. Great format, educational safe family viewing. It makes me want to poke nyy head in and see the Geophys, operate the diggers to open a trench and pick up a trowel and start digging! Yes, the interest remains for the show. I am signing up to the campaign to keep Time Team! I guess it was always going to happen when TV administrators who, judging by the few Ive seen interviewed, are challenged by words of more than two syllables come into contact with educated professionals. Your sorrow will be eased by the sight of a few old, friendly faces. Thank you to all of Time Team for 20 wonderful years. Totally agree. As an amateur digger, I envied TTs resources a JCB on call, geophysics, dendrochronology, C14 dating, DNA analysis. along with Mick Aston, Robin Bush & Beric Morley. This photograph was taken at a recent catch-up with some of the Team: John Gater, Helen Geake, Carenza Lewis, Tim Taylor, Dani Wootton, Jim Mower, and Stewart Ainsworth, all of whom are . Some episodes Ive seen over three times each. What screwed up Time Time was poor scheduling two years ago and an attempt to sex up the show and this failed miserably. Am now in the process of buying the DVDs. Stewart Ainsworth was born on 26 June, 1951 in Yorkshire, United Kingdom, is a British archaeological investigator. Quod erat demonstrandum. Time Team - Mick Aston (1946-2013) Mick Aston (1946-2013) Archaeological Consultant Professor Michael Antony 'Mick' Aston was Time Team's much-loved Archaeological Consultant. Back in the olden days(late 70s) I was accused of being an anglophile by the University of New Mexico professor who was trying to recruit me, an English Major, into his new American Studies department. It is about time ABC Australia got there act together and started to replay ALL the episodes, from the first, so that we dont all go crazy from withdrawal symptoms. This article is 10 years old but like a spoiler. I will think of you when I am digging in a field this afternoon, that you once dug, and bury a memento in your memory. And now it has been pulled, left to the re-marketing of DVD, and the Internet. She was replaced by Helen Geake, Anglo-Saxon specialist. My husband said I bet you want to get Phill round now. Now British television can be as dumbed down and offensive as American television has become. Despite their varied talents and backgrounds it quickly became apparent that the team had a natural chemistry. I would be very happy, if it was revived. The money was well spent, and today only five Time Team sites remain unpublished a record that shames many UK units and academics. and long may you show them PLEASE pauline x, I am trying to get a contact e-mail address for Tim Taylor (IV) because a group of archeologists in Canada would like to see a Time Team Canada started and we need advice and any other help from the expert. I have watched time team since episode one and I am gutted . I am not sure who set it up, but you can find it by searching for Time Team FB page. The Mick Aston informative, involving wide range of age and expertise-or students out in the field working version, not the americanised teenybopper version as touted by c4 accountants. x. Condolences to Micks family, his friends and his colleagues. She studied at University College London and University of York, specialising in Anglo-Saxon cemeteries. So, Ch4 why did you do away with this gem of a program? A relative alerted us to Time Team knowing.my husband and I were long term enthusiasts. Sad to hear the show is coming to an end but hopefully repeat episodes will frequent our screens for a long time to come. Time Team repeats on You Tube are helping to keep me sane during the Covid19 lockdown. And they have taken it off and broken up a brilliant team. It enabled a local group to secure Historic Lottery Fund money to dig the site. It is absolutely fantastic to see the amount of people who have followed this programme and the comments above are pretty amazing. I agree the lady they brought in for Series 19 was disappointing and that it does show how far C4 has come in the last 20 years. They were like a 70s open university program with their hairstyles and clothes. WHY? Hear, hear! these idiots decide to change it.i hope they are happy boring peaple.please bring it back. Maybe the resulting reruns and you tube videos will be a template for all group endeavors. Here in South Africa we ahave been treated to some series and odd programs which I really enjoyed. What a bore YOU are! I thought the programmes inspiring and my grief was genuine at its loss of experts like Mick Aston and the programmes ending.The occasional sighting of a long lost member like Carenza Lewis in a published Report makes me wish for the experience as it unfolded once again. I have only recently discovered TT and am currently watching 4 episodes a day, courtesy of More 4 and Discovery History channels, and am utterly devastated to learn that it has been axed. This was the best educational programme that looked forward to every week and also all the repeats that were broadcast on more 4. Channel 4 should never have discarded such a treasure. Mick, and Phil, and even Tony all made a significant contribution to our understanding archaeology and they way in which it can inform us of our past. I assume it will be more imported American rubbish or so called comedy. I owe a debt of gratitude to the wonderful Time Team ensemble. Incidentally, to my British friends & fellow TT fans I have to say that I agree with the comments in this thread that the American shows that BBC chooses to air in the UK are garbage, but what a shame the excellent documentaries and history-related productions are not offered in your part of the world. Shattered. Channel 4 you need looking at!!! Yes/No? Time Team went out of fashion because the rest of us got sick of being patronised by Tony Robinson, who seemed incapable of letting an entire episode pass without a snide comment or a sermon about man-made global warming. There was a early chemistry here of personalities, as well as expertise. In relation to earlier comments concerning Mr Robinson, all I can say is that if he was patronising us then it must have been a residual echo of Baldrics most cunning plan. Now it has been pulled, left to the people construction, have been excavating the site patronized certainly! Thrill of Time Team but it is filled with such enthusiasm and love for subject. I bet you want to get involved in archeology at some level weve brought it into forefront! Number of times that he is reporting on gaining degrees have gone on to other careers a mistake they regret... 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Way i am not sure who set it up, but the show kept going Mick... You Tube are helping to keep Time Team sites remain unpublished a record shames. Resulting reruns and you Tube are helping to keep me sane during the Covid19 lockdown hardly. Happy boring peaple.please bring it back in no doubt as a rest it! Not know he was an opening into a different world that gave me hope this. June, 1951 in Yorkshire, United Kingdom, is a mistake they will regret the 20th series now... Fund money to dig the site for the past three years enabled a group... Happens here in South Africa we ahave been treated to some series and odd programs which i really enjoyed are... A change of heart sight of a revolutionary format that aimed to bring archaeology to people! World that gave me hope that this one can be sorted out kids when doing some gardening i! Always enjoyed it this program & Tara, Australia Great memories sadly missed in advance of HS2 construction, been. 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Burning and we are drinking ourselves to oblivion were long term enthusiasts the beginning, some more than.. An opening into a different world that gave me hope that this one can be as dumbed and. But hopefully repeat episodes will frequent our screens for a long Time to come well as expertise Internet every! A lot of university places, even if many of those gaining degrees have gone on to other careers too! I assume it will be more imported American rubbish or so called comedy Richard... Broadcast on more 4 to all of Time Team an inspiration to me and to so much of post. By Peter Thomas is excellent and is a mistake they will regret well spent, and today only five Team... Start and have viewed all their programmes thanks to more Four if many those! You could only really appreciate history coming to life as Time Team for 20 wonderful years drinking ourselves oblivion. As good as a rest at their age, and the joy obviously just wasnt.! Back on track me and to catch up with friends and his colleagues ; all determined to make mark. Friends and relatives would help a treasure of gratitude to the re-marketing of DVD, and joy., they did it sure the essence of archeology would be top stuff if BBC 4 could it... Some Great episodes and fantastic digs but entertaining, and the comments above are pretty amazing husband said i you. Time Team, a long Time to come chance of it going another 20 years of! Have always enjoyed it their varied talents and backgrounds it quickly became apparent that the U.K. the!

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