Henry Cole’s Great British Treasure Hunt

Many of you will know Henry Cole from his various TV shows such as Shed & Buried and The Motorbike Show or from his entertaining appearances at a number of classic motorcycle shows. But now he’s swapping a spanner for a shovel with his new TV series, Henry Cole’s Great British Treasure Hunt.

Joining him will be five dedicated teams of the UK’s top metal detectorists who have been given a unique opportunity to investigate some of the country’s finest historical sites, getting 48 hours to go where no detectorist has gone before in the hope of unearthing ancient artefacts.

Their finds will be assessed and scored by expert judges. Archaeologist Dr Susheela Burford (the show’s finds liaison officer) will evaluate the historical interest and significance of each item, then award a number of points, from five for the most interesting down to one for the least. To add some extra excitement, auctioneer and independent valuer Adam Partridge then takes a look and hands out a bonus point for the find with the highest monetary value. Adam is probably one of the country’s best-known auctioneers, thanks to his regular appearances on Flog It!, Bargain Hunt, Dickinson’s Real Deal and Cash In the Attic.

Scores accumulate across five episodes and whichever duo has the highest at the end of the week wins the prestigious GBTH trophy – and the satisfaction of being judged the best among their detectorist peers! Henry says: “I’m used to unearthing motoring ‘treasure’ in sheds and barns, but literally digging deeper into UK history has opened up a whole new world to me and I’ve met some really amazing people along the way.”

Locations will include Ardington House in Oxfordshire, the building rumoured to be the Greene Knight’s Castle in the Arthurian story of Sir Gawain and the Greene Knight and one of the world’s most prestigious schools. The first episode airs on ITV4 on Monday, March 7 at 9pm and will be shown on successive evenings until Friday, March 11.