Wildfire TV takes a walk through history with Landmark

Television production company, Wildfire Television has selected Landmark Information Group to source and supply a range of data terrain images for a series commissioned by Channel 4.

‘WalkingThrough History’ is the third series of six history documentaries that are presented by Sir Tony Robinson.   The programmes start broadcasting  on Saturday 25^th October at 20:00hrs on Channel 4 and will focus on locations across the UK, including the Cairngorms, Sherwood Forest, Pembrokeshire, the Yorkshire Moors, and the Channel Islands.

Landmark has worked closely with the production team to produce a series of images showing stylised terrain data overlaid with reference features including key road networks and coastlines.  This has been produced using a combination of Ordnance Survey open data and OS Terrain® 50 datasets.

Marisa Verazzo, Production Manager of Walking Through History for Wildfire Television said: “We are pleased to be working with the team at Landmark Information Group to provide us with a host of contoured terrain maps for Walking Through History.  The maps really put the areas that we will be focusing on in the series into context, and by working with Landmark we have been able to access exactly what we need.”

Matt Wills, Senior GIS Analyst at Landmark Information Group said: “We are pleased to be able to deliver a host of hill-shaded and coloured OS Terrain 50 maps to Wildfire Television for use in the new Channel 4 documentary.  It just goes to show another great way that our extensive range of datasets and maps are being put to use in the commercial world – so, as well as supporting the environmental, land and property industries, our data and mapping tools are also here to support media, marketing and other similar industries in piecing together the history of a given location.”

www.promap.co.uk 

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/walking-through-history

Uncovering the Past: Stonehenge

It’s been interesting to watch recent reports regarding Stonehenge and, in particular, the discovery of 17 more significant sites that are linked to the ancient plot.

Over recent years, scientists from Birmingham University have been using technology to map the area and it is from this that the new shrines and burial mounds have been discovered.

Stonehenge is believed to be over 5,000 years old. While Landmark’s comprehensive collection of historical mapping does not reach back quite that far, our interest has been piqued by the use of LiDAR and laser scanning techniques to produce detailed terrain models, in addition to the way GIS has been used to overlay archaeological finds to analyse the site. All of which are very similar to the processes used today by our customers in the surveying, planning, environmental and construction industries.

Simply substitute burial mounds, solstice markers and druid procession routes with planning applications, contaminated land and environmental consultants, and hey presto!

From watching the developments at Stonehenge, it’s clear that today we are fortunate to have access to highly advanced mapping data and technologies that enable us to learn far more about our past than ever before.  And, from our customer’s point of view, having access to information regarding a piece of land’s former use can ultimately help shape the way the very same piece of land is used in the future.

Piers Edgell, Senior Account Manager and Matt Wills, Senior GIS Analyst, Landmark Information Group

Appendix:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2750005/The-hidden-empire-Stonehenge-Radar-scanners-17-sites-near-ancient-stones.html

Identifying the 'Sacred Wonders of Britain'

We were delighted to be contacted by the BBC and production company Carbon Digital at the end of last year to help them in their pursuit to access 14 aerial maps of ancient British landmarks.  The imagery was to be used as part of a television series called 'Sacred Wonders of Britain', which is fronted by archaeologist, historian and broadcaster Neil Oliver.

The original aim was for us to not only access the mapping data, but to create digital aerial terrain images that could be used to illustrate some of most ancient landscapes and ritual sites that lie hidden below our land's surface.    

The locations include Anglesey Bryn Celli Ddu, Avebury Stone Circle, Grimes Graves flint mines near Thetford, Creswell Crags, Flag Fen archaeology park near Peterborough and Lindisfarne Holy Island to name just a few.  

With input from our friends at Ordnance Survey, we were able to access, create and contribute all 14 digital map images and have been delighted to see them being used in the three-part series, which aired on BBC2 during January.

Why not take a step back into history and learn exactly what these historic sites were used for? Sacred Wonders of Britain is available to download via the BBC iPlayer:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03nprt8/episodes/guide

Also see:
http://www.creativetimes.co.uk/news/bbc-two-series-%E2%80%98sacred-wonders-of-britain%E2%80%99-brought-to-life-by-carbon-digital