Episodes

  • Melkorka the Silent

    Melkorka the Silent
    May 25 2026

    Melkorka was an Irish woman who was enslaved by Vikings in the ninth century AD. She was brought to Scandinavia, where she was bought by an Icelandic farmer named Hoskuld, who made her his concubine. But Melkorka was mute, and so Hoskuld knew nothing of her origins, until he caught her talking by a stream one day.

    Special guest Lisa Bennett, author of Viking Women: Life & Lore.
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    44 mins
  • Ingolf the Icelander

    Ingolf the Icelander
    May 19 2026
    In this episode, Kári tells the story of the foundation of Iceland as a new kind of Viking society on the rim of the Arctic Circle, and of Ingolf, the man who led a party of settlers to the smoky bay he named Reykjavik.
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    42 mins
  • Harald Finehair

    Harald Finehair
    May 12 2026
    In the first episode of series 2 of Viking Lives, Richard has the story of Harald Finehair, the Norwegian chieftain who swore he would not cut his hair or beard until he became king of all of Norway. But his heavy-handed rule goaded people to board their longships and establish new Viking colonies elsewhere.
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    44 mins
  • Sol the Charioteer

    Sol the Charioteer
    Apr 14 2026
    To conclude our first series of Viking Lives, Richard & Kári are bringing you a special episode: we’re tracking the strange ride of the goddess Sól across the skies of the Norse world. The Vikings of Scandinavia lived through unimaginably harsh and dark winters, confined to their cramped longhouses for weeks at a time while blizzards raged outside. Then, when the world warmed up and the sea ice broke, they could sail out once more into the wider world. Kári also recounts here some of the rituals he remembers from his boyhood in Iceland that marked the shift from the long winter dark into the eternal light of summer.
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    45 mins
  • Bjorn Ironside

    Bjorn Ironside
    Apr 7 2026
    In this episode we follow the fleets of the Viking raiders as they break into Muslim Spain, North Africa and Italy for the first time. Richard and Kári present the story of Bjorn Ironside, famed for his brutal skill as a warrior that made him virtually invulnerable to the weapons of his enemies. In 859 AD, Bjorn led a Viking fleet on an extraordinary voyage into the Mediterranean. They seized loot and slaves wherever they went. And then, when they landed in Italy, they hatched a mad scheme to make Bjorn the emperor of Rome.
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    51 mins
  • Lagertha the Shield Maiden

    Lagertha the Shield Maiden
    Mar 31 2026
    Lagertha the Shield Maiden appears only briefly in the medieval Viking stories, but she retains a powerful hold on the modern imagination. In this episode, Richard and Kári are joined by Dr. Lisa Bennett, author of Viking Women, to explore the concept of the Norse shield maiden, and to examine the evidence for the existence of these fierce Viking warrior-women.
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    40 mins
  • Ragnar the Raider

    Ragnar the Raider
    Mar 24 2026
    Last time we brought you the mythic tale of Ragnar Lodbrok. In this episode, Richard and Kari go on the trail of the real-life, flesh-and-blood Ragnar, whose life is recorded in the chronicles of medieval Europe. This Ragnar is remembered as a ruthless chieftain, hated by the kings of Christendom, who led a Viking invasion of France, and then put the city of Paris to siege.
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    36 mins
  • Ragnar the Legend

    Ragnar the Legend
    Mar 17 2026
    This is the first of two episodes on the life of Ragnar Lodbrok. Richard and Kári begin with the story of the legendary Ragnar taken from the mythic saga that bears his name. In this telling, Ragnar is an impossibly strong Viking warrior who kills a dragon, marries the princess Aslaug, and becomes a king. Ragnar’s adventures make him famous, but when his sons' reputations threaten to overshadow him, he embarks on a final disastrous invasion of Britain.
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    54 mins