Viking Travels

What if one of the most famous stories in English history never happened? What if King Harold did not march his exhausted troops 200 miles before the Battle of Hastings?Matt Lewis is joined by Professor Tom Licence whose explosive research argues that King Harold’s legendary marc ...  Show more

What happens when Vikings stop raiding and start laying siege to a mighty rock fortress on the Clyde?Matt Lewis is joined by Todd Ferguson to uncover the four-month Viking siege of Dumbarton in 870, exploring why this Brittonic stronghold mattered so much, how its fall reshaped S ...  Show more

Were the Vikings the original trendsetters?

Even when they were raiding the poor monks in Lindsfarne in 793, they were passing on hairstyles that annoyed some of the local elders.

Why did they file their teeth? How often did they bathe? And what influence d ...

We know the Vikings best as brutal, seafaring, pagan raiders – and that’s an important part of their lives and histories. But it’s only one aspect: what about their love lives, experiences of travels, and attitudes to religion? Speaking with James Osborne, Eleanor Barraclough unp ...  Show more

How did the Vikings and the Inuit interact in Greenland? When was the last record of Norse settlers in the region? How did climate change affect the decline of Viking settlers in Greenland, and why is their disappearance shrouded in mystery? William and Anita are joined once agai ...  Show more

Epic heroes, sacred rivers & ancient gods – this is Irish mythology as you’ve never heard it. From Newgrange to the Hill of Tara, Ireland’s myths are rooted firmly in its prehistoric past.In today's episode of The Ancients, Tristan Hughes is joined by Anthony Murphy to explore th ...  Show more