The history of a Suffolk coastal village has been uncovered in a recent BBC Four programme.

Walberswick appeared on the channel's Villages by the Sea series on Thursday evening.

The show was hosted by archaeologist Ben Robinson, who delved into the village's past.

During the half-hour programme, Robinson spoke to a number of Walberswick locals to find out about long lost churches, medieval murder plots and how the architecture of the village changed during the industrial revolution.

It was revealed that St Andrew's Church in the village was built in the 1400's so that the villagers could show their wealth thanks to the prosperity of the shipping trade, with ships leaving the medieval port bound for Iceland and the Faroe Islands.

The church was said to have taken "40 years to build" but had suffered "some disaster" at some point in the past, with the remaining ruins still standing today.

Then, having "lurched from prosperity to poverty", the villagers were forced to dig a channel to the sea by land in 1590 in the hopes of reigniting trade in the area.

East Anglian Daily Times: Walking around Walberswick on the hottest day of the year (photo: Barry Pullen, citizenside.com)Walking around Walberswick on the hottest day of the year (photo: Barry Pullen, citizenside.com) (Image: (c) copyright citizenside.com)

By the late 17th century, Walberswick was left with just 20 residents.

Robinson then spoke to more locals about how 19th century architect Frank Jennings had brought the village back to life by building houses in a style that fought back against the industrial revolution.

In the programme, it was also shown how Jennings had rebuilt a home from nearby Lavenham after transporting it from the Suffolk village.

As the programme ended, Robinson remarked how Walberswick was "a favourite coastal retreat for writers, artists and day trppers" due to it being "a place you can forget the modern world".