The ancient world was brought to life when leading university professors visited a sixth form college

Newham Sixth Form College - NewVIc - is now in the third year of an exclusive partnership with King's College London which has been running a series of classical study sessions at its hub in Prince Regent Lane, Plaistow.

Classics lecturer, Professor Edith Hall, said: "Whilst classics is sometimes perceived of as an elitist subject, we wanted to enable our students from NewVIc to understand the richness and relevance of the classical world."

Youngsters acted out scenes from the play Antigone by Greek playwright Sophocles in the session which saw them consider how ancient audiences might have reacted when it was originally performed.

A-level student, Emma Khatun, said: "I really enjoyed the session. It has also widened my thoughts about degree options."

The course is designed just for students on NewVIc's honours programme and is also available to a small number of Newham's Year 11 students.

The course aims to support students with high academic potential from disadvantaged backgrounds by inspiring them in topics often only taught in private schools.