This Thursday, UK channel 4 debuts Rome Wasn't Built in a Day, a series that chronicles six craftsmen as they build a Roman villa using only those materials that were available in AD 320. They're to do this in Wroxeter, Shropshire, site of ancient Roman city of Viroconium, spending six months "chopping down trees to make the frame of the villa, creating their own mortar and creating intricate mosaic floors... as well inspecting sheep entrails to see if the gods would approve," reports the Daily Mail. What they'll learn: how to install under-floor heating without power tools, how to hand-apply complex mosaics, how to quarry sandstone, and how to make ancient lime mortar. All while laughing their arsses off about Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.
· A very grand design: New Channel 4 series challenges builders to construct a huge Roman villa using only ancient methods [Daily Mail]
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