Holy Marvels with Dennis Quaid

Lost Sites is a documentary‑style episode that follows a Hollywood actor – think Tom Hiddleston with a cheeky grin – as he jets from the deserts of Egypt to the jungles of Peru, hunting down the myths behind forgotten sacred places. It’s essentially a one‑off special in the “Lost Sites” series, produced by the same crew that gave us the gritty archaeology bits in the 2015 original, but with a bigger budget and a more recognisable face to draw in the casual viewer. The episode rolls out a tidy mix of on‑location footage and interviews with the archaeologists who spend years digging in the mud for a fragment of a temple wall or a stone altar. We get a quick history of each site – the Sun Temple of Tiahuanaco, the submerged city of Thonis‑Heracleion, even a lost Celtic shrine tucked in the Welsh hills – and then watch the team wrestle with modern obstacles like political red tape and the occasional snake bite. No major spoilers, just enough intrigue to keep you guessing whether the next shot will reveal a hidden chamber or a dead‑end trench. Honestly, it’s not a masterpiece, but it’s surprisingly good for a TV slot. The pacing drags a bit when the host waxes lyrical about “energy vortexes,” and some of the CGI reconstructions look a touch ropy compared with the slicker Netflix docu‑series “Ancient Worlds.” Still, the on‑the‑ground footage feels proper, and the passion of the archaeologists is contagious – think “National Geographic’s Lost Cities” but with a dash of Hollywood charm. Rated PG – there’s some mild violence when tools break or a dig site collapses, and a few tense moments with wildlife, but nothing too graphic. First terrestrial showing this Thursday on Channel 5, it slots neatly between the usual reality fare and the more high‑budget streaming documentaries. If you can overlook the occasional cheesy narration, it’s a decent, bite‑sized dive into history’s hidden corners.