Professor Alice Roberts concludes her rail-bound exploration of ancient Greek influence this week, pulling into stations steeped in history and myth in Türkiye. The final leg of “Ancient Greece by Train,” titled “Ephesus to Troy,” sees Roberts tying together the threads of Hellenic culture found far beyond the borders of modern Greece. Starting from the Aegean port of Kusadasi, the journey heads towards sites whose names resonate through millennia.
First stop is the magnificent ruins of Ephesus, one of the best-preserved ancient cities in the Mediterranean. From there, Roberts examines a more enigmatic site – a vandalized rock carving belonging to an empire that predates the Greeks, hinting at the deeper layers of history in the region. A revisit to the acropolis of Pergamon connects back to earlier parts of her trip, before the ultimate destination: Troy.
Here, Roberts confronts the legacy of Homer’s Iliad. Standing on the ground believed to be the site of the legendary Trojan War, she questions an expert, testing the historical veracity of the epic poems. It’s a fitting end to her personal odyssey, using travel and archaeology to investigate the boundaries between myth, literature, and historical fact. The episode aims to bring these ancient stories to life through the tangible remnants left behind.
“Ancient Greece by Train with Alice Roberts” airs its final episode Saturday, April 12, 2025, at 7:30 PM on Channel 4.
