Time Team archaeologist Helen Geake is answering questions from Time Team members. Where did people who lived on Iron Age hill forts get their water? Did Anglo-Saxons live in buildings vacated by the Romans and which member of Time Team is most keen to get to the pub? Helen brings you her thoughts on the things you want to know.

There's also a surprise guest in the form of Dr Michael Olsson from Uppsala University in Sweden. He's got in touch after hearing Helen and Martyn discuss a topic he knows a fair bit about!

Everything we do on Time Team is made possible by the generosity of Time Team members. To join us, and get access to so much more from Time Team including ad-free and bonus episodes of this podcast, masterclasses, 3D models and a chance to join us on site, head to patreon.com/timeteamofficial.

Dr Helen Geake and Martyn Williams are back with another edition of the Time Team podcast on YouTube. In this episode Lawrence Shaw and Stewart Ainsworth make the tricky journey to a remote part of Northumberland. Might they have come across the site of a lost medieval village, or perhaps an ancient 'shieling' site? The pair debate how suitable the site might be for a larger Time Team investigation.

Also, Time Team's Carenza Lewis gives an update on work following our dig in the village of Norton Disney and Time Team's graphics whizz, Matt 'Bear' Clark, shows us behind the scenes on some of the works of art he's creating for the programme.

In Time Team News this month you'll learn about the discovery of a site for producing illicit whiskey, the medieval notebook lost in a toilet and the doomed 19th Century expedition to discover new trade routes. Links below.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx219pg5lpxo https://www.heritagedaily.com/2026/05/medieval-notebook-found-preserved-in-latrine/158064 https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/more-doomed-franklin-expedition-sailors-identified-revealing-clues-about-how-they-tried-to-find-safety

All of the work we do unearthing the past and making programmes, including this podcast, is funded by the public. Becoming a Time Team member and supporting us on Patreon directly funds excavations and the programmes we make. Head to patreon.com/timeteamofficial to discover the benefits you'll receive when you join us.

It's a question and answer edition of the Time Team podcast. Dr Helen Geake puts on her thinking cap as Time Team members grill her on subjects such as the prevalence of ants on a dig, the relationship between archaeology and other fields, and the way to determine what an ancient roof might have been constructed from.

Helen's Find also makes a comeback. This time Helen's looking at a stylus. You can see the item for yourself here:
https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/900647

Time Team members get to ask Helen a question. Just head to the 'chat' section on Patreon at patreon.com/timeteamofficial
Becoming a member is a great way of supporting the archaeology we do and the programmes we make. All our digs are funded by you! In return we bring you ad-free and bonus episodes of the podcast as well as behind the scenes films, 3D models, masterclasses and the chance to join us on site. Consider becoming a Time Team member today and thank you for supporting what we do.