New discoveries have been made about the terrain under the North Sea. It would have been a fertile area with an advanced civilisation and dramatic landscapes. It puts a new light on the UK's relationship to the rest of Europe and calls for a reorientation of how we see ancient history. Once part of the landmass, it was cast adrift by a tsunami from the north west. Our ambivalent relationship to continental Europe has a geological substrate. Can a new connection be made?