In part one of The Thames, the listener learns about the river as fact and as metaphor, the birth of the river, its sacred history from baptisms to the saints of the river and much more. THE THAMES is about the river from source to sea. It covers history from prehistoric times to the present, the flora and fauna of the river, paintings and photographs inspired by the Thames, its geology, smells and colours, its literature, laws and landscape, its magic and myths, its architecture, trade and weather. The listener learns about the fishes that swim in the river and the boats that ply on its surface; about floods and tides; hauntings and suicides; miasmas and sewers; locks, weirs and embankments. The most recent bridge opened in 2002 (the Millennium walking bridge); the oldest in 1250 (appropriately called New Bridge, it is in Oxfordshire). Peter Ackroyd has a genius for digging out the most surprising and entertaining details, and for writing about them in the most magisterial prose.