A ROMAN eagle found in Silchester is the inspiration behind a new blockbuster movie starring Channing Tatum and Donald Sutherland.

And to mark the film’s release, Universal Pictures ferried a band of critics to the ancient Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum where the eagle was discovered.

They were given a tour, along with producer Duncan Kenworthy – whose producer credits include Love Actually and Four Weddings and a Funeral. They were also taken to the amphitheatre and instructed in Roman combat by the film’s experts in sword fighting.

The journalists were also taught a legionary display march, much to the surprise of visitors.

And afterwards they enjoyed a Roman feast and were given a screening of the new film at Reading Museum.

The film, much of which was shot in Hungary, tells the story of a young Roman soldier as he attempts to honour his father’s memory by finding his legion’s lost golden emblem.

It is based on The Eagle of the Ninth, a book written by Rosemary Sutcliff in 1954 – whose story, although largely set in Scotland – was born from the Hampshire find almost a century before.

The spectacular bronze eagle was discovered by the Revd James Joyce while excavating Silchester’s Roman ruins in 1866. He believed the eagle had once been part of a legion’s standard that was hidden when the legion was attacked.

In recent times the Silchester site has been the subject of numerous excavations by the University of Reading.

Scholars at first thought the eagle had been part of a statue that was burned down in the third century.

However Professor Michael Fulford, who leads the annual dig in Silchester and gave the critics a tour, said while that may not be the case, it is an important find.

He said: “A combination of accumulated knowledge and close study have shown the eagle was almost certainly part of a statue of the Roman god Jupiter and not part of a legionary standard. It’s likely that the Romans gave the statue to the local ruler who ruled this part of southern Britain on behalf of Rome.

“The probable donor was Nero himself as it was he who ordered the construction of the palace for his tribal ally.”

The eagle itself now resides at Reading Museum. The Eagle, released by Universal Pictures, will be in cinemas from March 25.