It Ain’t Necessarily So (Season 1)

"Joshua fought the battle of Jericho" - but no one lived there. The Israelites left Egypt for the Promised Land of Canaan - but it was an Egyptian province. John McCarthy investigates startling new archaeological discoveries which challenge the whole story of Biblical Israel.

If the Israelites believed in one invisible God why did their homes contain idols of a goddess? John McCarthy investigates the new evidence that Israelites believed for centuries that God had a consort - Mrs. God - and the Bible was altered to conceal her.

Archaeologists now say that the Israelites did not come to Canaan as slaves from Egypt. Where did they come from? In the third part of this startling series John McCarthy looks at the new evidence of Israelite settlement and the real reason why there are said to be "no human remains".

Jerusalem is at the heart of the Middle Eastern struggle yet archaeologists have been unable to find any traces of people living there at the time of King David. In the fourth part of this startling series John McCarthy looks at what that means - and also uncovers the truth about Goliath.

Solomon built the Temple but did he exist at all? In the fifth part of this startling series John visits sites that were supposedly built by Solomon but which some archaeologists say were built by quite different rulers. Perhaps the tiny community of Samaritans has a more accurate history.

The Old Testament description of the ancient Israelites is quite different from the story now being revealed. John McCarthy concludes this startling series by investigating when and why the Old Testament was written. Was it connected with events that led to the destruction of Jerusalem?