DAN SNOW AND HISTORY HIT INVESTIGATE THE REAL STORY BEHIND THE COLOSSEUM FOR CHANNEL 5 

LONDON, 16TH OCTOBER 2024: Channel 5 has today announced a brand-new two-part series which will uncover some of the hidden stories behind one of the most recognisable buildings in the world, the Colosseum, hosted by prominent historian Dan Snow. The Colosseum with Dan Snow (w/t) is an illuminating journey around this famous ancient building and the blood-soaked gladiator displays that took place within its walls. The series will be produced by streaming service History Hit and was commissioned by Lucy Willis, Commissioning Editor, Factual for Channel 5.   

Built almost 2,000 years ago at the heart of ancient Rome, the Colosseum is an ancient wonder that still captures our imagination today. Why are we still obsessed with this magnificent ruin?   

In this two-part special (2 x 60’), historian Dan Snow embarks on a journey to investigate the real story of the Colosseum and explore what it reveals about life in ancient Rome. 

During the episodes, Dan will marvel at the spectacular architecture and find out exactly how the Colosseum was built. He will learn the fascinating story of Vespasian, the new Emperor who ordered its construction and shed light on the stories behind those who were forced to bring his vision to life. Dan will also delve in to the Colosseum’s most notorious legacy - the bloody games of the gladiators, and the truth of what really happened when 65000 people were crammed into the building to watch the show of their life. 

Dan Snow, Presenter and Creative Director, History Hit, commented: “The Colosseum is one of the world’s most iconic buildings. Once seen, never forgotten. It is a miracle of engineering. A symbol of Rome’s skill, determination and cruelty. This is the real story of the building and the gladiators, punishments and games that it hosted. It was quite a journey separating fact from fiction!”   

Bill Locke, Executive Producer, History Hit said: “We love making films that get to the truth behind well-known places and there's nowhere more famous than the Colosseum. It's been fascinating busting a few myths, ancient and modern, and discovering the real story of this great building and the people who came here as spectators and fighters - with Dan as the perfect guide to bring it back to life in all its gory glory.”   

Lucy Willis, Commissioning Editor, Factual, Channel 5 added: “Gladiator II promises to be one of the biggest movies of the year and this series will tell the remarkable story of the Colosseum, the arena which housed these giants of ancient Rome, over 2000 years ago. What’s amazing is that the Colosseum is still attracting the crowds as much as it did back then.”   

The Colosseum with Dan Snow (w/t) is a 2 x 60’ series commissioned by Lucy Willis, Commissioning Editor, Factual, Channel 5 from History Hit. The series will be directed by Mark Edger, produced by Annie Woodman with Bill Locke serving as Executive Producer for History Hit.   

ENDS

For further enquiries please contact:

Hannah Allan | hannah.allan@paramount.com

Notes to Editors: 

About Channel 5   

Channel 5 is a multi-award-winning public service broadcaster and the UK’s third largest commercial TV station. Launched in March 1997, Channel 5 has been part of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS) since its acquisition in September 2014. Its portfolio includes digital channels 5STAR, 5USA, 5SELECT, 5ACTION.  

Channel 5 and on-demand platform My5 offer a diverse range of critically acclaimed, original programmes featuring well-known faces and fresh new talent – from issue-led documentaries, popular factual series and accessible history shows to premium drama and agenda-setting news & current affairs. Channel 5 is the only PSB to air children’s content daily through its much-loved programming strand Milkshake!, home to some of the world’s favourite pre-school characters. The free to air channel’s distinctive British programming aims to tell the story of modern Britain by reflecting the lives of people across the UK.   This year Channel 5 has continued to attract industry acclaim for documentary White Nanny Black Child, winning both a BAFTA Television Award (Specialist Factual) and an RTS Award, whilst Endurance Race to the Pole received a BAFTA nomination in the Factual Entertainment category. In 2023, Who Killed Billie Jo? won best documentary series at the inaugural True Crime Awards and home-grown drama All Creatures Great and Small took home the Stress Buster Award at the Radio Times’ Screen Test Awards.   

About History Hit  

History Hit, the podcast, SVOD and content platform founded by historian Dan Snow and acquired by award-winning content studio and digital media network Little Dot Studios, is a premium media network focused on making history more accessible in the digital age.   

History Hit, its SVOD service, was launched in November 2017, focusing on original history programming aimed at an audience that loves real history. The channel covers history across the globe - notable recent expeditions have included Jordan, China and Peru as well as popular British subjects such as Anne Boleyn and Richard III.  New stories are frequently broken on History Hit TV, from the discovery of Thomas Cromwell's long-lost prayerbook, to an Anglo Saxon warriors' cemetery and the forgotten skeletons of the Battle of Waterloo.   

With over 750 documentaries, interviews and hundreds of original films, History Hit TV won the Best Specialist Channel for two consecutive years at the 2023 and 2024 Broadcast Digital Awards. History Hit also works as a production company, in the last 3 years making 15 films presented by Dan Snow for Channel 5.   

The podcast arm of the media network publishes eight hugely successful podcast series, including the chart-topping Dan Snow's History Hit, which publishes three times a week. Other podcasts within their network include bi-weekly shows Betwixt the Sheets with Kate Lister and American History Hit with Don Wildman. The network publishes 16 podcast episodes a week for enthusiasts of all eras, from ancient times to present day and won the silver award for Best Network at the 2023 British Podcast Awards.   

Leveraging Little Dot Studios’ content management, acquisition and distribution expertise, History Hit has grown its social media platforms by more than 2.5 million followers and launched a FAST channel across all major streaming platforms in 2022. Additionally, the History Hit YouTube Channel offers up to three new releases each week that feature prominent figures and significant topics from the history world. The channel boasts a diverse array of original formats, including Who Was The First?, Historical Google Questions, Could You Survive?, and in-house produced historical movie reviews. Garnering an impressive 7 million views per month and over 1.5 million hours of content consumed monthly, History Hit continues to captivate and educate its growing audience.

About Little Dot Studios  

Little Dot Studios is an award-winning content studio and digital media network established in 2013.  

Specialising in creating meaningful connections between premium content and digital audiences, Little Dot Studios engages, grows, and monetises digital audiences on social platforms and connected devices through data-driven, broadcast-quality creative.   

Made up of digital experts, platform specialists and content superfans across the UK, US, Germany and APAC, Little Dot Studios works with the world’s most recognised TV, sports and consumer brands, creating premium digital video, podcast and social content for more than 700 social channels globally and responsible for over ten billion organic views per month.   Little Dot Studios runs its digital broadcast network of more than 80 channel brands across social platforms as well as eight FAST channels across streaming platforms. Licensing over 20,000 hours of hand-picked long-form content, the network is watched by over 45 million subscribers and reaches over 125 million unique viewers every month.   Little Dot Studios incorporates sports-specialist production arm WING and owns broadcaster Dan Snow’s History Hit podcast network and SVOD service, as well as social media reporting and analytics platform Locowise.   

Little Dot Studios is verified carbon neutral since inception (or day dot). It measures and reports on its carbon footprint annually and implements policies to reduce environmental impact. On track to be net-zero by 2025.   Little Dot Studios is an All3Media company.