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As everybody waited the excitement started to build. Onsite cornered Phil Harding for a few minutes as he twisted, bent and struggled into his dry suit.
‘Don’t think I’m going to get this thing off after this!’ he said laughing. ‘I hear your internet lark is going well. I’m going to be wading out into the river in a minute to try and feel for more timbers under the low tide level. It’s quite strange being in the middle of modern London and having this cracking Bronze Age archaeology right here to look at. Anyway, here I go, wish me luck.’
Moving out into the Thames Phil located another couple of timbers until he reached chest height.
‘That was quite an enlightening experience,’ he said as he emerged from the dark sediment filled water.
The tough process of removing the Bronze Age fill of the post hole required changing diggers on a rotation system so that the work was continuous and fast paced to beat the time restriction. Some well preserved wood chips were evident in the fill indicating that the post was probably worked on site before being placed.
Was anything else found in the posthole fill? You’re going to have to watch the programme to find out.
During this time the digging continued apace. Getting close to a metre deep there was still no sign of the post moving. The team were quickly running out of time.
Series producer Tim Taylor summed up the situation for us.
‘We’re now faced with what’s called a slack tide. That means we’ve got about 20 minutes until we have to get out of here. The question is will we get enough of the fill out to clear the post and lift it. This really is a race against time, and at a crucial moment too.’
Pushing the digging to the limit it came to decision time. The team needed enough of a window to backfill the trench properly. Finally the order was given to leave the post for another night and secure the trench.
‘Well, we didn’t get the post out in the limited time we had. I guess that’s just Time Team,’ said Tony Robinson.
After securing the trench it was time to withdraw from the foreshore for lunch and effectively an end to the excavating side of the programme for another day. As usual a wide choice was on the menu and the fantastic food soon refuelled the team.
‘With these tides we need somebody to come in here and part the water,’ said Phil. ‘It’s a bit strange working for just a few hours at a time.’ Especially for a workaholic like Phil? ‘Oh I wouldn’t say that!’ he laughs.
