 Wheeler became famous in Britain as " the embodiment of popular archaeology through the medium of television " . In 1952 , Wheeler was invited to be a <unk> on the new BBC television series , Animal , <unk> , Mineral ? . Based on the American quiz programme What in the World ? , the show was hosted by Glyn Daniel and featured three experts in archaeology , anthropology , and natural history being asked to identify artefacts which had been selected from various museums . However , Wheeler is alleged to have prepared for the show by checking beforehand which objects had been temporarily removed from display . The show proved popular with British audiences , and would air for six more years . It brought Wheeler to public attention , resulting in a Television Personality of the Year award for him in 1954 . He also appeared in an episode of Buried Treasure , an archaeology show also hosted by Daniel , in which the pair travelled to Denmark to discuss <unk> Man . In 1957 , he appeared in a second episode of Buried Treasure , for which he travelled to Pakistan to discuss that nation 's archaeology , and in 1958 again appeared in an episode , this time on the site of Great Zimbabwe in Southern Rhodesia . In 1959 he presented his own three @-@ part series on The <unk> That Was Rome , for which he travelled to <unk> 's Wall , Pompeii , and <unk> Magna ; the show failed to secure high ratings , and was Wheeler 's last major foray into television . Meanwhile , he also made appearances on BBC radio , initially featuring on the John Irving series The Archaeologist , but later presenting his own eight @-@ part series on Roman Britain and also appearing on the series Asian Club , which was aimed primarily at newly arrived migrants from the Indian subcontinent . 
