Roman Mysteries

BBC One, 4.35pm

Roman Mysteries is a tremendous way for younger viewers to learn about ancient history. Set in the Roman Empire in AD79, it is based on a series of novels by Caroline Lawrence that have sold more than a million copies worldwide. It isn't hard to see why - they graft child-friendly adventure on to careful research, and the same care has been taken to transfer them faithfully to the screen with the help of a strong cast and a healthy-looking budget. The first episode this afternoon gives a vivid sense of gladiatorial combat, without the risk of children waking up in the middle of the night screaming.

Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage

BBC Two, 8.30pm

Count Francesco Da Mosto, the handsome Italian aristocrat whose lifestyle is the stuff of romantic novels, is back on our screens with a new and even more romantic enterprise. For three months he will sail - in a beautiful old wooden sailing boat, needless to say - along the trade routes that bankrolled the Venetian empire. Setting out from Venice, the journey will take him south along the coast of the Adriatic, over the Greek mainland, down through the Greek islands and along the Turkish coast to Istanbul. Tonight's episode, though, is given over to preparations for the journey: finding the maps, buying biscuits for presents, getting his hair cut and bidding his tearful family farewell. It's another world entirely - and a gorgeous one at that.

Bonekickers

BBC One, 9pm

Bonekickers is the BBC's big new drama of the summer, and while I've sat through some rubbish in my time, this is in a league of its own. And this from the guys behind Life on Mars. Here, a team of improbable archaeologists (played by well-known actors who it would be rude to name) excavate a site in Somerset, where they think they might have found a relic of the True Cross brought back from the Holy Land. Their discovery prompts a latter-day Christian sect leader and his followers to declare a modern crusade and go around chopping off the heads of Muslims with swords. Last week, the BBC broadcast the most accomplished drama series of the year with Criminal Justice. With Bonekickers, it has produced the tackiest.

Imagine ...

BBC One, 10.35pm

News of the death of the film director Anthony Minghella at the age of 54 was met with an outpouring of grief, and the reason becomes abundantly clear in this celebration of his life. Throughout the programme, he is described variously as warm, enveloping, wise, kind, funny, encouraging, intelligent and, more simply, just plain old good. Everyone - actors especially - adored him, and here a host of famous names queue up to pay tribute to his memory.

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