Ruins: past and prophecy

From Rome's Colosseum to the Peruvian citadel of Machu Picchu, humankind has always shown a fascination with ruins. They're steeped in history over thousands of years - structures and abandoned places that have become progressively derelict due to natural disasters, war and depopulation. And many ruins have now become UNESCO World Heritage Sites, to identify and preserve them as areas of outstanding value to humanity. Kathryn Ryan speaks with Paul Cooper who discovered his passion for ruins after moving to Sri Lanka to work as an English teacher, using the inspiration of the Polonnaruwa ruins to write his first novel, River of Ink.