Time Team film special 1066 show at Battle Abbey

The team, led by presenter Sir Tony Robinson, spent several days at Battle Abbey digging and exploring three trenches on the battlefield.

The programme will focus on events surrounding the 1066 Battle of Hastings and will be one of six Time Team specials to screen next year.

The programme will explore the history and archaeology of the battle, taking an unbiased look at the evidence and aiming to further the research into battlefield archaeology.

As part of the same episode, the Time Team also visited a site in Caldbec Hill, where some historians claim the battle was really fought.

Jo Stewart, property manager at Battle Abbey, said the filming had generated quite a bit of excitement amongst visitors to the site.

She told the Observer: “We had quite a few people coming in to see what was going on.

“Customers were able to go down there and watch them working.

“At the end of the day, members of the team went and chatted with customers.”

Jo said English Heritage, which owns the site, had to seek permission from various authorities before the dig was allowed to take place.

Jo said: “We had people from Wessex Archeology and the British Museum on the team, so there were top-end experts looking at it.

“It was really interesting and I’m looking forward to the programme going out.”

The Time Team is believed to have made a number of finds on the battlefield - but Jo is remaining tight-lipped.

She said: “We found some nice finds, but I can’t say anything more than that for now.”