ARCHAEOLOGISTS from the popular TV show Time Team are set to carry out an excavation in Dunwich next week.

They will undertake three days of archeological work and filming for a one-hour programme, focusing of the monastic areas of the village.

Up to 50 crew members will be involved in the production, using six vehicles – but producers have moved to reassure local people that work will be carried out as sensitively and as safely as possible.

Jim Mower, development producer of the Channel 4 show, said the work would centre on the Maison Dieu Hospital, thought to be under the Flora Tea Rooms car park, and the Greyfriars site.

'Dunwich offers us the opportunity to tell the fascinating story of the history of the village and make new discoveries that will enhance our current knowledge of the archaeological remains and help inform their management in the future,' he said.

A small team will arrive in Dunwich on Monday to set up an incident room in the Reading Room, behind the museum, and will prepare the two sites.

From Tuesday to Thursday, filmed excavation work will take place from 8am to 6pm. By Friday, most of the team will have left the site, leaving a small crew to finish archaeological recording work and reinstate any trenches.

Crews will be moving about the village but producers are keen to minimise the number of vehicles on the road and they will be parked in a field opposite the church.

They are also in talks with landowners, tenants and national agencies about the sites and have said they will not excavate close to the cliff edges and will protect open trenches from the rain.

Overnight security will be provided for both sites during the project.