During this period, which spans the hundreds of thousands of years until 10,000 BC, we have archaeological evidence of the presence of Homo erectus in the costal area in Norfolk as far back as 700,000 BC. At that time, Britain was connected to continental Europe by a land bridge that was readily crossed by humans.

Around 500,000 BC, Homo sapiens heidelbergensis arrived, who worked with flint tools. It is likely that humans were driven out of Britain in the following Anglian glacial period. This was followed by a warmer period, from 420,000 until 360,000 BC.

There appears to have been a depopulation of Britain after another glacial period, lasting until 70,000 BC.

Neanderthal man inhabited Southern Britain after 60,000 BC. Subsequent glaciation drove most of the population out of Britain with repeated waves of return and depopulation, coinciding with warmer and colder periods.

The British culture of the Upper Paleolithic period included more refined flint tools and the use of bone, shell, amber, animal teeth and mammoth ivory, used as tools and made into jewelry.