Actor Larry Lamb explores the 3,000-year-old story of the rise of the Roman Empire and how it shaped the way we live today, uncovering the intrigue, conflict, greed and violence that surrounded not only Rome, but Pompeii, Sicily, France and Tunisia as the Romans set out to conquer the world. With the help of historians and CGI representations, Larry begins his journey by focusing on the Italian capital of Rome. He takes a look at the role of legendary characters including the city's mythical Iron Age founders Romulus and Remus, and learns how thousands of labourers turned mud huts into a city of stone.

• Larry Lamb