A NEW BBC documentary will explore the intrigue surrounding Newport's medieval ship.

The Timewatch programme on BBC2 will examine the origins of the 560-year-old ship, discovered in the muddy banks of the Usk in July 2002, and its connections with Richard Neville, the Earl of Warwick.

Last week the Argus revealed how experts now believe the ship may have been built by Vikings, and was crewed by Portuguese sailors and involved in piracy before eventually coming to Newport.

After contractors building Newport's theatre and arts centre uncovered the timbers, experts called in to examine the ship found it contained Portuguese coins and artefacts.

Bob Trett, the former chairman of the Gwent and Glamorgan Archaeological Trust, helped dig up the ship. He will appear in the BBC documentary, which was filmed during the summer.

He told the Argus: "The ship was probably built in around 1440 when it was a time of war and piracy was a way of life.

"The programme investigates various theories about the ship and what it was doing in Newport.

"There is a certain amount of evidence that suggests it was a ship captured by an act of piracy.

"It's a bit of a detective story really and it should be a good programme."

Mr Trett said the documentary enabled further historical research into the ship when local funds were drying up.

The Argus reported last August that the ship was likely to have belonged to the Earl of Warwick.

Some of the documentary was filmed at Warwick Castle, where there is evidence the Earl made payment for work on a ship in Newport.

The Timewatch series begins on Friday and the programme on the ship is expected to be screened later this month.

The full preservation of the Newport Ship is likely to take around 10 years.

The 1,700 pieces of timber are now in a huge council-owned industrial unit in Maesglas as part of the £2.5 million restoration programme funded by the National Assembly.

Open days are being planned to allow the public to see the restoration work being carried out.