A Byzantine brass bucket was found during a 3-day live dig in a Saxon cemetery a year ago. Time Team returns to find out more about the people who lived and died here. Metal detectorists are called in to find non-ferrous metals, to complement Geophysics' magnetometer survey. They are joined by Anglo-Saxon specialist Andrew Reynolds, paleopathologist Alice Roberts and celebrity Sandi Toksvig. Sandi's ancestors were from Jutland, and Robin Bush argues that this whole area of Hampshire was actually occupied by Jutes before they were defeated by the Saxons under King Cadwalla in 686 AD. Ray Walton replicates a brass bucket, complete with inscriptions and silvering, from scratch. Osteoarchaeologist Margaret Cox tries to make sense of the burials including rare double burials – one of which uniquely has a child placed between two men. Finds include weapons and an exquisite enamelled belt buckle; and three more of the mysterious buckets, which all fit one inside the other.

Time Team investigates a back garden in Raunds, where a skeleton – aptly named Henry by his discoverer – has been found along with his Anglo-Saxon grave goods. The burial probably fits in with a number of other Saxon sites in the town and is seen in light of these. The team also look carefully at Henry himself, his attributes, anatomy and ailments, and have to tackle several logistical problems in association with excavating in such a constrained area as a garden. However, they also find the opportunity to extend the investigation across the fence to an allotment area behind the gardens. The experimental part of the program looks at various objects and medical remedies found in Anglo-Saxon society, presented by historical reenactors, while Victor recreates the appearance of Henry. In the end the archaeologists do confirm the presence of an Anglo-Saxon cemetery with various pieces of grave goods at the site, probably placed in relation to older Bronze Age burial mounds.

Time Team examines a mysterious cave in Derbyshire where cavers have found several skeletons, some of them newborn babies and the earliest dated to the Stone Age. Finds from the cave have also provided dates from the Iron Age and the Roman period. The excavation proves potentially quite hazardous, as the chambers and tunnels are filled with precariously heaped stones which threaten to scree if the safety shoring moves or breaks, and some areas are considered just too unstable to work in at all. The archaeologists also investigate a nearby Bronze Age barrow, which previously has been subject to illicit excavation. In the cave they find more human and animal remains, although how these got there remains subject to some debate. The mound gets confirmed as a barrow and undisturbed secondary burials are discovered as part of the structure.

Time Team investigates a Shetland back garden for remains of Viking occupation after the discovery of a number of soapstone objects there. They also open a mound feature nearby called The Giant's Grave to see whether or not in fact it may be a Scandinavian boat burial. In the garden they find more soapstone objects, slabs with crossmarks, small souterrains, and wall lines, indicating the presence of a Viking Age farmstead. Phil tries to carve a soapstone lamp as the experimental part of the program. The mound turns indeed out to be a looted Scandinavian boat burial, as the team finds patterns of iron rivets showing the imprint of the vessel and a small piece of its keel – and by excavating carefully, the archaeologists also locate a Viking tortoise brooch not taken by the looters.

Time Team visit Bath to investigate parch marks seen in the park lawn of the Royal Crescent, indicating the presence of a large Roman road, possibly local remains of the Fosse Way. They also look behind the Crescent for Roman sarcophagi and wall lines found by builders of the now-gone St. Andrew's Church in the 1870s and noted by an antiquarian at the time. While the road ditches eventually yield Roman burials, the team does not locate any sarcophagi said to have been found there. Whether or not the large road, in fact, is the Fosse Way remains in the end uncertain, with arguments for both sides.

Time Team visits Kew Gardens to find the White House, part of the second Kew Palace complex and favourite home of mad king George III. While Carenza is shown how decorated wine glasses of the period are made, Stewart induced a lot of confusion regarding the exact placement of the building due to inaccuracies in the original 18th-century map of the area. However, in the end, both the archaeology and the architectural plan match each other. The archaeologists also locate a tunnel for sheltered transport of meals from the kitchen block to the palace dining halls by combining geophysical survey with keyhole test pits.

The team investigate a possible fifth century cemetery in a ploughed field, where they find a metal shield boss. One male skeleton is holding a drinking vessel. There are hints of much earlier activity as well, including a Bronze Age barrow. Using authentic tools, they fashion a Saxon shield. Conservator Dana Goodburn-Brown examines the details in the x-rays of the shield boss; while Phil and members of Regia Anglorum demonstrate how the shields are used in battle. They are joined by bone specialists Alice Roberts and Margaret Cox, who unearth some coloured beads among the remains.