Viking Lives

Viking Lives
  • 5.0 (2)
  • History
  • Updated Weekly

The great arc of Viking history told through a chain of life stories, presented by broadcaster Richard Fidler and author Kári Gíslason. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 2d ago

    Erik the Red

    This is the first in a series of episodes following the Viking explorers and settlers who sailed west into the unknown and formed settlements in the New World. We begin with Erik the Red, who was sent into exile from Iceland for his crimes, and sailed all the way to the island of Greenland, where he founded two Viking colonies in the tenth century. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  2. Sep 8

    Thorgeir the Lawspeaker

    At the turn of the first millennium, the Viking kingdoms of Scandinavia were abandoning the old Norse religion and officially adopting Christianity. Norway sent missionaries into Iceland and in the year 1000 AD, a meeting was held at Iceland’s open-air parliament, the Althing, to decide whether they too would become baptised Christians. But tensions were running high between the converts and those loyal to the old gods. And so the decision fell to one man: the lawspeaker Thorgeir Thorkelsson… who had to find a way to avert civil war. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  3. Sep 1

    Hallgerd Longlegs: Part 2

    This is the second part of the story of Hallgerd Hoskuldsdottir, known as Hallgerd Longlegs. Hallgerd, already widowed twice, went to the annual assembly at Thingvellir, where she met the handsome and charismatic Gunnar of Hlidarendi, who had just returned to Iceland after finding great success in Norway. The two were considered the most attractive people on the island, and they were instantly and powerfully attracted to each other. They settled on Gunnar’s farm in the south of Iceland, but Hallgerd’s arrival upset the settled friendships in the area, and her fierce temper brought both of them into a deadly feud. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  4. Aug 25

    Hallgerd Longlegs: Part 1

    This is the first of two episodes on the life of Hallgerd Hoskuldsdottir: the most dangerous woman in tenth century Iceland. Hallgerd was a striking figure; she was tall, with hair so long it could cloak her whole body. She was married three times, and was both a victim and an instigator of violence. This episode follows her childhood and her first two arranged marriages, in which she’s both formed and deformed by her pride, and the Viking honour culture that surrounds her. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  5. Aug 18

    Hrafnkel the Priest of Frey

    This episode tells the story of a Viking named Hrafnkel, a powerful chieftan who lived in an isolated part of Iceland. Hrafnkel was rich and arrogant. One day he killed a shepherd for mishandling his most prized horse, which he associated with a Norse god. The result was a bitter feud between clans that Hrafnkel lost...but then won in murderous circumstances. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  6. Aug 11

    The Lost Brother

    The first episode of series three of Viking Lives comes to you from Oxford in the UK. Our Viking is an unknown man, killed in the St. Brice’s Day massacre that took place there in the year 1002 AD. This was a murderous attack on a community of Norse settlers in Oxfordshire, incited by the English king Aethelred the Unready. The bones of the slaughtered victims were tipped into a pit on the grounds of St. John’s College, where they lay for a thousand years until discovered by chance in 2008. Richard & Kári came to see Angie Bolton, Curator of Archaeology at Oxfordshire County, who is custodian and caretaker of these bones, including one individual identified as SK1756, the man we call the Lost Brother.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  7. Jul 14

    Snorri the Priest

    For the final episode of series 2, Kári has the story of an Icelandic chieftain who came to be known as Snorri Goði - Snorri the Priest of Thor: a manipulative and shrewd leader who devised a cunning plan to lure two extremely violent Swedish berserker warriors to their death.  Viking Lives will return with series 3 on Tuesday 11 August. In the meantime, Richard and Kári will be presenting 'Viking Lives: Ghost Stories' live on stage at this year’s Byron Writers’ Festival in NSW on 14 August.  Tickets available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  8. Jul 7

    Thordis the Wronged

    This episode features the life of Thordis Sursdottir, a Viking woman from the tenth century. Thordis’s family was forced to escape Norway after her brother Gisli killed two men who wanted to marry her. The family set up a farm in the northwest fjords of Iceland, where she married her husband Thorgrim. But when Thorgrim was murdered in the middle of the night – again by Gisli – Thordis took her revenge against her brother, forcing him to become a fugitive. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

The great arc of Viking history told through a chain of life stories, presented by broadcaster Richard Fidler and author Kári Gíslason. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    Viking Lives
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    27
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Viking Lives