Rome Wasn't Built in a Day

[Penners]

I was meaning the Antonine Wall and Hadrian's Wall. The Antonine was much further north but not really very successful at keeping the barbarians at bay.

So I wonder what the purpose of Offa's Dyke was?

 

[chuckey]

To keep Mrs Offa happy?
Frank

 

[Penners]

You're not casting aspersions on Mrs Offa's sexual orientation are you, Frank? :shock:

 

[Gareth Hughes]

45 minutes in, and I think I'm going to give up on this. It makes the presenters staying in a hotel during the filming of Edwardian Farm seem positively authentic.

 

[Penners]

I didn't watch it, but I recorded it. Based on your critique, I'm not confident....

 

[Gervase]

Words failed me. My child bride had to pour me an obscenely large Aberlour and lead me away from the screen. Somehow I don't think I'll be following the all-England pie-eating team in their future travails.

 

[Penners]

Aberlour? You CO's have expensive taste!

But if watching the programme is an excuse for a large single malt, I might just give it a try.

 

[LadyArowana]

I didn't watch it, but I recorded it. Based on your critique, I'm not confident....

Never mind, maybe the revamped "American Idol" will be more entertaining.

 

[Moo]

Phew - that's a relief!
I was unable to watch it last night, or to find it "On Demand" this morning, and was getting quite worried in case I'd missed something really interesting....

 

[essexbearhunter]

As entertainment it wasn't too bad - but I felt that the academic in overall charge going into a strop about the un-Roman use of wheelbarrows was more than a bit rich.
If authenticity is to be the order of the day, the builders should have already had working wagons/carts brought from their last job and 10 years of working knowledge (and observation) on which to base any new versions. The stupidly-thin cart axle and failure to protect the wheel securing pin with a shield/washer would not have occurred.
I also suspect that slaves would have been breaking rocks.

Still, I suppose it is no worse than The Apprentice and has potential for the occasional nugget of information (this week's was the addition of pozzolan to mortar to improve drying time - not exactly News in this forum).

 

[Jill]

but I felt that the academic in overall charge going into a strop about the un-Roman use of wheelbarrows was more than a bit rich.

Yes he was rather OTT, but a bit understandable as he wanted authenticity, what I liked about that scene was the way he shouted at the "gaffer" giving him a bit of his own medicine. He may think shouting at folks is the best way to get a job done but it can be done in other ways. In some scenes even the lads, particularly the londoner, were obviously trying hard not to laugh at what they were expected to do. Not what I was expecting at all, but it would be quite interesting to see if the project is completed as it looks a challenge. I'm not sure whether I could put up with all of the rubbish that has been put in it though to bother.

Not something to watch if you want authenticity.

 

[Carol]

What a wasted opportunity to expound on the fascinating methods we all are becoming familiar with through this forum. Why hadn't they approached a college for local slave labour or even a school. Surely there would have been many more bods on an authentic site?

Best bit for me was watching with grown up son who is totally uninterested in any aspects or our house restoration but always liked the Romans, humphing periodically through the program and then saying "You have a bag of stuff in the cellar that'll make it harden don't you Mum, Whassit called? Something Italian?"

After nearly twenty years something has obviously sneaked into his subconscious. Do you think he will show an interest in wall pointing this year?

 

[Penners]

Why hadn't they approached a college for local slave labour or even a school.

Wow - I didn't know you could do that. And I've been flogging myself to death on all the domestic chores for years. :evil:

I shall contact the school first thing tomorrow.

 

[piper]

I didn't see the very beginning, but I did enjoy it. As I grew up in Shrewsbury - and had an old fashioned Classical education in Latin etc. - I know Viroconium, and also a bit about Romans - though I haven't actually read any Vitruvius (which didn't originally come with illustrations, in spite of what the programme seemed to show). All right, to be authentic, the builders would have to have been trained in Roman techniques from their youth, so they would have been skilled and fast, they would have had a lot of slaves to do the heavy work - in fact they might have been more expensive (because skilled) slaves themselves, though if building roads, bridges, Hadrian's Wall etc. they would probably have been soldiers. And incidentally, one feature of Hadrians Wall is that it is built with standard-sized stones designed to be easy for one man to carry - unlike our friends at Viroconium struggling to transport the very big stones on a cart far rougher than any a professional Roman builder would have on site. They'd also be speaking Latin of course (or something close to Welsh if they were native British labourers)
However - I thought the programme was fascinating in showing the education of a group of modern builders into traditional techniques, and for viewers whose knowledge of the Romans doesn't go much beyond "Gladiator".
But why didn't they consult a lime-mortar specialist earlier?

 

[Alex]

If I am being honest, it was just what I expected from Channel 4. I actually sat there laughing for quite a bit of it. We all knew that Channel 4 would not have used builders who had ever heard of lime mortar as it would not have made entertaining television. It was the narration that got to me, he reminded me of a childrens tv presenter, really annoying. I will carry on watching it because I am interested to see how everything is done and then maybe one day I will get to see 'Middi's' villa at Tivoli.

Alex

edit - Feltwell, you missed your chance there, when they were asking for volunteers :wink:

 

[Moo]

I found it on the On Demand channel and would heartily recommend watching it (or anything from the commercial channels) that way. No advertising breaks, and you can fast-forward through all the silly bits.

 

[middi]

I found it on the On Demand channel and would heartily recommend watching it (or anything from the commercial channels) that way. No advertising breaks, and you can fast-forward through all the silly bits.

How authentic was it Moo (I haven't seen it)
Were they wearing toga's ?

Middi

 

[Moo]

Were they wearing toga's ?

Middi

I rather wish they had been, Middi - none of them had particularly beautiful bodies and their skin-tight t-shirts did nothing to disguise the fact!

There were one or two interesting bits; for example, the trough and implement that they used to mix the lime mortar, and the way they used four plumblines to get the walls at right-angles. But there was an awful lot of really unwatchable stuff that had my finger on the fast-forward button..

But just as you can't build a good house without proper foundations, I think the series was doomed from the start when some idiot decided to use just six men for a job that would have been done by several specialised teams (the idea that the brickies would have quarried and cut their own stone, for example).

 

[middi]

Now, that's interesting Moo. The bit that you found interesting ( the trough and implements) must have been a fake. Tha Romans would have dug a pit in the ground and mixed everything in that hole ( no point waisting time building troughs that can break.
This is how my father, grandfather and uncles mixed their mortar when they decided to build a new pigstay. I remember like it was yesterday, I fell in the pit !!!!. ( I was about 8 yrs old) and my father, after rescuing me, clipped me around the ear and reminded me to keep away from the hole.
( no much progress had been made for two thousand years in my part of the world I will have you know)
Nowdays nothing will get done unless someone can strain themselves to lift an arm to reach a push button.

Middi

 

[Feltwell]

edit - Feltwell, you missed your chance there, when they were asking for volunteers :wink:

No I didn't - I was the chap with the amusing, witty and sophisticated quotes on his t-shirt, couldn't you tell??? :wink:

I've done my bit for television with Victorian Pharmacy. However, others on here have achieved much greater TV "fame".......