1 9 7 7 (UK)
6 x 30 minute episodes
In Britannia in 130 AD, a young ambitious Roman officer named Marcus Flavius Aquila (Anthony Higgins) and his freed slave Esca (Christian Rodska) searched for the gold eagle standard of the Ninth Legion (his father’s legion), which vanished 13 years earlier when four thousand men disappeared without a trace while travelling to battle the rising Caledonian tribes in northern England.
Disguising himself as a Greek doctor, Marcus travelled beyond Hadrian’s Wall to unravel the mystery surrounding his father’s last stand and find out what really happened to the Ninth.
This BBC Scotland production was based on a 1954 novel by Rosemary Sutcliff.
Marcus Flavius Aquila
Anthony Higgins
Esca
Christian Rodska
Marcus’ father
Peter Whitbread
Aquila
Patrick Holt
Cottia
Gillian Bailey
Liathan
David Hayman
Stephanos
Willie Joss
Guern
Victor Carin
Cradoc
Patrick Malahide
