WEBVTT 00:00:33.869 --> 00:00:35.969 everyone, dear viewers and listeners and watchers 00:00:35.969 --> 00:00:38.810 of my humble channel at Soulchaser Becky, welcome 00:00:38.810 --> 00:00:43.490 to episode 8 of Valhalla Conversations, and the 00:00:43.490 --> 00:00:46.670 rather long title of Every Man Wants to be a 00:00:46.670 --> 00:00:50.210 King but Leif, which is how I'm summarizing the 00:00:50.210 --> 00:00:53.869 entire Valhalla season 3, which is in some ways 00:00:53.869 --> 00:00:55.829 sad that it's the final season because they've 00:00:55.829 --> 00:00:58.969 left a lot of things untied at the end, after 00:00:58.969 --> 00:01:01.030 tangling them all up, marvellous well, and I'm 00:01:01.030 --> 00:01:04.430 delighted to say that, almost like... reuniting 00:01:04.430 --> 00:01:06.349 a coven of witches, I have my three favourite 00:01:06.349 --> 00:01:11.569 guests to discuss this series. Patricia Bracewell 00:01:11.569 --> 00:01:14.290 from America, Sharon Bennett Connolly and of 00:01:14.290 --> 00:01:17.329 course, Justin Hill. They're all historic. All 00:01:17.329 --> 00:01:20.090 authors of wonderful books. I have Patricia's 00:01:20.090 --> 00:01:22.709 there. I have Justin's there. I haven't yet got 00:01:22.709 --> 00:01:25.030 yours, Sharon. Apologies. It is on my Christmas 00:01:25.030 --> 00:01:28.030 list. And I would have had Justin Hill's also 00:01:28.030 --> 00:01:30.650 wonderful. Have Harold Harad a book, Viking Fight, 00:01:30.650 --> 00:01:32.930 on my shelf, but it's on the top shelf where 00:01:32.930 --> 00:01:34.909 all the big spiders are living. So it's just 00:01:34.909 --> 00:01:36.969 he's staying there to guard me from spiders. 00:01:37.510 --> 00:01:39.549 So apologies, Justin. But there's another title 00:01:39.549 --> 00:01:42.450 of Harold Harad. And of course, Canute, because... 00:01:42.280 --> 00:01:44.159 I've got lots of non -fiction books on Canute 00:01:44.159 --> 00:01:46.340 because he is indeed a wonderful character to 00:01:46.340 --> 00:01:48.859 learn about, especially if you've been watching 00:01:48.859 --> 00:01:51.040 the Vikings Valhalla series which hopefully you 00:01:51.040 --> 00:01:52.920 will have done because we are going to be talking 00:01:52.920 --> 00:01:55.939 about season three, the final season, and there 00:01:55.939 --> 00:01:58.739 will be spoilers. Spoilers everyone, have you 00:01:58.739 --> 00:02:01.299 heard? Spoilers? Right, good. You either carry 00:02:01.299 --> 00:02:03.000 on or you go away and watch it and then come 00:02:03.000 --> 00:02:05.400 back, okay? Right, we'll see you either along 00:02:05.400 --> 00:02:12.639 or later. Okay, so... I've given you all the 00:02:12.639 --> 00:02:15.659 title of this episode and we will be leading 00:02:15.659 --> 00:02:17.659 it with Justin. We've given him a summary of 00:02:17.659 --> 00:02:20.620 events to date kind of thing. Giving him snapshots 00:02:20.620 --> 00:02:23.639 of what's been happening because Justin's lucky 00:02:23.639 --> 00:02:26.180 that he hasn't been following it as we have but 00:02:26.180 --> 00:02:28.599 he knows what really happened compared to what 00:02:28.599 --> 00:02:31.319 the series shows which is why Justin is a very 00:02:31.319 --> 00:02:35.259 wise fellow of our group. So ladies, what do 00:02:35.259 --> 00:02:38.659 you think of my title summary of season three 00:02:38.659 --> 00:02:40.810 that every man wants to be a king? or indeed 00:02:40.810 --> 00:02:43.789 woman, with Freydis being a leader of sorts, 00:02:44.069 --> 00:02:46.810 but Leif being the old one out. Do you think 00:02:46.810 --> 00:02:48.930 that's rather accurate, or would you sum it in 00:02:48.930 --> 00:02:53.270 a different way? No, I think that's fairly accurate. 00:02:53.550 --> 00:02:56.750 I think, although man is probably not, because 00:02:56.750 --> 00:02:59.789 even Harthacanute, who appears as a, what, six 00:02:59.789 --> 00:03:02.370 -year -old, has decided he's going to be king 00:03:02.370 --> 00:03:07.939 anyway. I think that's right and it's set up 00:03:07.939 --> 00:03:11.819 in the very first episode when the Pope asks 00:03:11.819 --> 00:03:15.240 Knut who his heir is going to be and Knut doesn't 00:03:15.240 --> 00:03:18.300 have an answer and we don't hear the answer until 00:03:18.300 --> 00:03:22.939 episode seven but people are they're jockeying 00:03:22.939 --> 00:03:27.039 all the way through. Although the annoying thing 00:03:27.039 --> 00:03:30.330 is that Swain Forkbeard wants to be Canute Air 00:03:30.330 --> 00:03:34.150 and yet Forkbeard has been dead for 20 years. 00:03:35.789 --> 00:03:37.550 Yeah, we'll have to talk about the timeline, 00:03:37.770 --> 00:03:39.930 which as far as I'm concerned, they took the 00:03:39.930 --> 00:03:42.409 timeline, scrunched it up into a ball and threw 00:03:42.409 --> 00:03:45.909 it away. Yeah, it's pretty much Doctor Who time, 00:03:46.050 --> 00:03:48.050 Doctor Who time where everything is possible. 00:03:48.289 --> 00:03:50.669 It's not a completely alternative timeline to 00:03:50.669 --> 00:03:53.310 what actually happened. I get the impression 00:03:53.310 --> 00:03:56.020 with Swain that they've forgot to kill him off 00:03:56.020 --> 00:03:59.379 in the first season and so they might as well 00:03:59.379 --> 00:04:02.840 keep him alive. Why do you think they've changed 00:04:02.840 --> 00:04:07.840 the timeline so profoundly? I don't know why 00:04:07.840 --> 00:04:10.319 they did. There was no reason to. That's what 00:04:10.319 --> 00:04:13.520 gets me. Although there was in a way because 00:04:13.520 --> 00:04:18.000 there are certain people who are like William 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:20.699 the Conqueror, although he's only Duke William 00:04:20.699 --> 00:04:24.069 at this point. is seven at the time that Canute 00:04:24.069 --> 00:04:28.970 dies in 1035. And yet he's, what, about 14 or 00:04:28.970 --> 00:04:32.649 15 in the series? Yeah, definite teenager. So 00:04:32.649 --> 00:04:35.550 they've made him a bit older in order to have 00:04:35.550 --> 00:04:39.389 him in the program. They did the same with Harold. 00:04:39.410 --> 00:04:41.610 They did the same with Harold Hadrata. I mean, 00:04:41.850 --> 00:04:45.649 he was much, much younger. So basically, what 00:04:45.649 --> 00:04:50.279 they're trying to do, I think, is have this contention 00:04:50.279 --> 00:04:53.819 for the English throne, the Danish throne, the 00:04:53.819 --> 00:04:57.439 Norse throne. And they're bringing all the players 00:04:57.439 --> 00:05:03.379 over 50 years together at one time. Yeah. I believe 00:05:03.379 --> 00:05:06.240 when it first was first announced, the whole 00:05:06.240 --> 00:05:08.519 gig was that we're going to take everyone all 00:05:08.519 --> 00:05:11.620 the way to 1066 and have an end at that point. 00:05:12.079 --> 00:05:15.029 And they didn't. quite get there, for various 00:05:15.029 --> 00:05:18.189 reasons, because of time and characters being 00:05:18.189 --> 00:05:21.069 in different locations. I mean, we've got no 00:05:21.069 --> 00:05:23.509 idea. I mean, I don't think Leaf went all the 00:05:23.509 --> 00:05:25.730 way to the east and then go all the way west, 00:05:26.610 --> 00:05:30.290 but... No, and isn't it something like 1002 that 00:05:30.290 --> 00:05:33.370 he was supposed to have discovered America? In 00:05:33.370 --> 00:05:36.290 which case, what's he still doing around in 1035 00:05:36.290 --> 00:05:43.110 when commute dies? Yeah, is... There's a lot 00:05:43.110 --> 00:05:47.589 to unpack. But starting off with episode one. 00:05:47.910 --> 00:05:50.069 Sorry, clear. It makes my view look historically 00:05:50.069 --> 00:05:57.470 accurate. Thinking of episode one where Knut 00:05:57.470 --> 00:06:00.889 and Emma are meeting the Pope in Rome, in the 00:06:00.889 --> 00:06:03.990 Vatican, he did genuinely go and meet the Pope. 00:06:04.350 --> 00:06:06.170 We would like to clarify that for all viewers 00:06:06.170 --> 00:06:08.509 watching and listening that he did really meet 00:06:08.509 --> 00:06:12.689 the Pope. He was an English king of Norse descent, 00:06:12.850 --> 00:06:15.329 and he did meet the Pope, which is quite a milestone. 00:06:15.470 --> 00:06:18.009 Not many kings back then could say that. I mean, 00:06:18.129 --> 00:06:20.110 Alfred the Great did meet the Pope, but he was 00:06:20.110 --> 00:06:22.970 very, very young, very young. He never went back 00:06:22.970 --> 00:06:24.889 after he got older and became king, I don't think. 00:06:25.689 --> 00:06:28.470 So I still think that was a nice touch. It was 00:06:28.470 --> 00:06:30.269 something that happened in the 11th century. 00:06:31.149 --> 00:06:35.500 Macbeth also went to Rome. Yes. So it was something 00:06:35.500 --> 00:06:38.639 that they all did in that time and what I found 00:06:38.639 --> 00:06:41.519 interesting or rather annoying was that they 00:06:41.519 --> 00:06:45.199 had him meet the pope but what he did whilst 00:06:45.199 --> 00:06:47.860 he was in Rome was arrange the marriage of his 00:06:47.860 --> 00:06:51.879 daughter to the Holy Roman Emperor and yet they 00:06:51.879 --> 00:06:55.759 didn't include that bit at all. He was there 00:06:55.759 --> 00:06:58.000 for the coronation of the emperor and really 00:06:58.000 --> 00:07:00.939 his negotiations were with the emperor and also 00:07:00.939 --> 00:07:04.810 with the pope realistically. And so, yes, they 00:07:04.810 --> 00:07:06.470 talk about how the Pope was going to give him 00:07:06.470 --> 00:07:08.449 some land. Well, it really wasn't the Pope. It 00:07:08.449 --> 00:07:11.269 was the Emperor, the Holy Roman Emperor, Conrad 00:07:11.269 --> 00:07:16.089 II, who gave him land in Denmark in return for 00:07:16.089 --> 00:07:19.529 his help with the Poles who were attacking Germany 00:07:19.529 --> 00:07:21.670 at the time. So it was very complicated. And 00:07:21.670 --> 00:07:24.350 they just boiled it down to, let's have him talk 00:07:24.350 --> 00:07:28.750 to the Pope. And I don't know, Sharon, what really 00:07:28.750 --> 00:07:31.430 bothered me was the gift that they gave the Pope. 00:07:31.610 --> 00:07:38.149 Oh yes. A head in a box. A head in a box. And 00:07:38.149 --> 00:07:41.529 apparently they're giving Emma the credit for 00:07:41.529 --> 00:07:45.970 suggesting that. They make a very, very creepy 00:07:45.970 --> 00:07:50.110 Emma. And the head in the box was the Pope's 00:07:50.110 --> 00:07:52.550 liaison. He was the Pope's bishop. The Pope would 00:07:52.550 --> 00:07:56.370 not have appreciated his bishop's head being 00:07:56.370 --> 00:07:59.350 cut off, even if he didn't like the bloke. you 00:07:59.350 --> 00:08:01.850 know, there's that tech against the church thing 00:08:01.850 --> 00:08:05.790 that they really don't like. I think they were 00:08:05.790 --> 00:08:11.790 trying to do an interesting setup between Emma's 00:08:11.790 --> 00:08:16.879 more extreme motives of manipulation versus Godwin 00:08:16.879 --> 00:08:19.180 who basically kept dropping him bags of gold 00:08:19.180 --> 00:08:20.920 in his hand saying oh please please let Canute 00:08:20.920 --> 00:08:22.540 come and see the Pope again he didn't mean to 00:08:22.540 --> 00:08:25.100 throw a hissy fit he's just he's just a North 00:08:25.100 --> 00:08:27.300 King he's just a North King just blaming it all 00:08:27.300 --> 00:08:30.639 on his heritage when some people might felt quite 00:08:30.639 --> 00:08:33.519 entitled as a king because of course he wasn't 00:08:33.519 --> 00:08:37.039 a Christian from birth he did have well in the 00:08:37.039 --> 00:08:39.940 series it depicts him having alternative faith 00:08:39.940 --> 00:08:43.820 before becoming the King of England So he probably 00:08:43.820 --> 00:08:46.779 did not, suitable to the character at least in 00:08:46.779 --> 00:08:50.179 this series, have respect for the Pope as Godwin 00:08:50.179 --> 00:08:53.799 and Emma did, coming from a raised up Christian 00:08:53.799 --> 00:08:57.440 background, kind of thing. So Godwin accompanies 00:08:57.440 --> 00:09:01.039 him to Rome, does he? Yeah, Godwin translates 00:09:01.039 --> 00:09:03.700 for them in Latin at points, although Godwin 00:09:03.700 --> 00:09:05.559 didn't know about the head in the casket until 00:09:05.559 --> 00:09:08.620 it was opened. Yeah, because the interesting 00:09:08.620 --> 00:09:12.809 thing is that You know, when Canute goes through 00:09:12.809 --> 00:09:15.690 him, he leaves Godwin in charge as regent, which 00:09:15.690 --> 00:09:18.669 kind of shows two things. One, the trust which 00:09:18.669 --> 00:09:21.570 he parts with Godwin, but also how secure he 00:09:21.570 --> 00:09:25.230 feels in England to leave it behind and go on 00:09:25.230 --> 00:09:29.429 pilgrimage. What he did not do was take both 00:09:29.429 --> 00:09:32.950 Emma and Godwin. I mean, you'd have to leave 00:09:32.950 --> 00:09:36.009 one of them at least behind. And there is the 00:09:36.009 --> 00:09:39.059 question of you know, they're throwing out the 00:09:39.059 --> 00:09:42.399 idea that Emma went with him to Rome. Could she 00:09:42.399 --> 00:09:46.019 have gone to Rome? Nothing in history indicates 00:09:46.019 --> 00:09:49.720 that she did. On the other hand, nothing in history 00:09:49.720 --> 00:09:53.879 really covers what the women were doing. So I 00:09:53.879 --> 00:09:57.840 was, yes, I was okay with her being in Rome with 00:09:57.840 --> 00:10:01.179 him, but not with both of them. Somebody had 00:10:01.179 --> 00:10:03.990 to be holding the fork back. back in England. 00:10:04.190 --> 00:10:05.970 Yeah, what do you think? My hunch would be that 00:10:05.970 --> 00:10:09.669 Emma did go to Rome. Mine would be as well. She's 00:10:09.669 --> 00:10:13.090 going to in my book. Yeah, I can't see Emma letting 00:10:13.090 --> 00:10:16.809 Cnut go without her. Yeah, exactly. Well, it 00:10:16.809 --> 00:10:20.210 was the same with Macbeth. His wife, Lady Macbeth 00:10:20.210 --> 00:10:24.269 Gruach, went with him. Did she? I mean, this 00:10:24.269 --> 00:10:27.590 is such, visiting Rome and visiting the Pope 00:10:27.590 --> 00:10:31.710 and the Emperor is such a big thing. You know, 00:10:32.230 --> 00:10:36.169 you would take your wife. And going as a married 00:10:36.169 --> 00:10:40.730 king would no doubt give you some added respect 00:10:40.730 --> 00:10:44.029 in Rome as well, by doing it for the Christian 00:10:44.029 --> 00:10:46.950 rites, which Canute and Emma, as far as we know, 00:10:47.070 --> 00:10:49.929 did do. Well, that was the other thing, wasn't 00:10:49.929 --> 00:10:54.710 it? Emma was seen as Canute's link to England. 00:10:55.580 --> 00:10:58.720 and as a strength to Canute so he's going to 00:10:58.720 --> 00:11:00.940 show her off especially if you're going to arrange 00:11:00.940 --> 00:11:03.860 the marriage of your daughter by Emma with the 00:11:03.860 --> 00:11:06.940 Emperor while you're there. You want to show 00:11:06.940 --> 00:11:10.059 the Emperor the lineage that your daughter comes 00:11:10.059 --> 00:11:12.399 from on both sides and especially you know Emma 00:11:12.399 --> 00:11:14.539 of Normandy and the links with the Normans as 00:11:14.539 --> 00:11:17.600 well as the English and you know she was such 00:11:17.600 --> 00:11:21.740 an influential character in her own right. We're 00:11:21.740 --> 00:11:24.049 going to show her off. and of course the Normans 00:11:24.049 --> 00:11:26.870 had you know very strong links with the Papacy 00:11:26.870 --> 00:11:30.470 you know going forward and links with the Mediterranean 00:11:30.470 --> 00:11:34.490 as well so yeah I can't imagine her staying behind. 00:11:37.950 --> 00:11:41.149 I'm just saying like the links with Normandy 00:11:41.149 --> 00:11:43.909 because Italy at that time especially southern 00:11:43.909 --> 00:11:47.070 Italy the Normans were down there fighting weren't 00:11:47.070 --> 00:11:49.429 they so they were taking over Sicily and places 00:11:49.429 --> 00:11:52.980 like that so to have that link with Emma, you're 00:11:52.980 --> 00:11:58.340 going to need it. I was also interested in the 00:11:58.340 --> 00:12:03.940 way they gowned Emma and Knut. They looked quite 00:12:03.940 --> 00:12:07.700 Russian. I mean, Knut looked like Ivan the Terrible 00:12:07.700 --> 00:12:11.279 coming in there and Emma was gowned very, very 00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:14.340 Russian, high medieval Russian. I thought that 00:12:14.340 --> 00:12:17.080 was really quite interesting. It kind of is giving 00:12:17.080 --> 00:12:21.519 us that link of the Rus. and the Vikings. I thought 00:12:21.519 --> 00:12:23.200 that was pretty interesting, the way they did 00:12:23.200 --> 00:12:27.399 that. The majority of the Viking world happens 00:12:27.399 --> 00:12:31.600 in the East. We focus on the West, but they kind 00:12:31.600 --> 00:12:33.600 of expanse the Viking travellers and the Rus 00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:37.120 and Kiev and down to Baghdad and Constantinople. 00:12:38.179 --> 00:12:43.320 It's an incredible story. That's interesting. 00:12:44.679 --> 00:12:47.120 It makes me think now of course, because in episode 00:12:47.120 --> 00:12:50.659 one we don't just see Knut and Emma and Godwin 00:12:50.659 --> 00:12:52.980 all vying for the favour of the Pope, but we 00:12:52.980 --> 00:12:55.639 also get a glimpse about what Harald Hardrada, 00:12:56.259 --> 00:12:58.379 or Hardrada to be, because he's not yet given 00:12:58.379 --> 00:13:02.899 himself a nickname, and Leif Erikson are getting 00:13:02.899 --> 00:13:07.179 up to in what is Istanbul, but then Constantinople, 00:13:07.500 --> 00:13:10.440 and otherwise known as Miklagard, down under 00:13:10.440 --> 00:13:13.340 the kind of like the Emperor there, with Empress 00:13:13.340 --> 00:13:16.490 Zoe. And of course, Harold is leading the Varangians. 00:13:16.970 --> 00:13:20.169 He is leading battles. They show him leading 00:13:20.169 --> 00:13:24.789 a siege of Syracuse. So I'm not sure if that's 00:13:24.789 --> 00:13:28.019 accurate or not, Justin. Yeah, I think it is. 00:13:28.580 --> 00:13:33.340 I mean, he wasn't well, was he leading? There's 00:13:33.340 --> 00:13:35.379 a Byzantine general who's leading the expedition. 00:13:36.080 --> 00:13:39.960 But as far as we know, the the Varangian Guard 00:13:39.960 --> 00:13:45.360 are kind of the shock elite troops. And of course, 00:13:45.720 --> 00:13:50.620 in in in the sagas. Harold and the Byzantine 00:13:50.620 --> 00:13:52.679 general have, you know, a tiff and arguments 00:13:52.679 --> 00:13:55.480 of all kinds of things. And I think they spit 00:13:55.480 --> 00:13:58.279 away from the main body and kind of go and do 00:13:58.279 --> 00:14:01.600 some of their own campaigning. Yeah, but I was 00:14:01.600 --> 00:14:04.639 in Syracuse three years ago and I was certainly 00:14:04.639 --> 00:14:06.620 poking around, you know, imagining Harold being 00:14:06.620 --> 00:14:10.240 on the hills and following the Athenians, you 00:14:10.240 --> 00:14:15.200 know, a thousand years later. Well, interestingly, 00:14:15.559 --> 00:14:22.480 Harold does have a bit of a And a monity, a nemosity, 00:14:22.580 --> 00:14:25.799 I can't think of the right word. Well, not quite 00:14:25.799 --> 00:14:28.860 a tiff, but definitely there's some conflict 00:14:28.860 --> 00:14:34.120 emerging between a Byzantine general called Maniakes. 00:14:34.600 --> 00:14:41.620 Yeah, that's it. Who is cast very stereotypically 00:14:41.620 --> 00:14:45.320 as a large, herculean -sized brute of a guy with 00:14:45.320 --> 00:14:48.840 short hair. real butch looking face huge muscles 00:14:48.840 --> 00:14:51.879 and he literally in one scene he's literally 00:14:51.879 --> 00:14:54.860 bare chest wrestling all the other generals because 00:14:54.860 --> 00:14:57.980 he's got no one else to fight and he goes Harada 00:14:57.980 --> 00:15:00.100 Harada come on come on come and face me and I 00:15:00.100 --> 00:15:02.220 was like no if I want to fight you I will when 00:15:02.220 --> 00:15:06.360 I want to kind of thing I think that's a fairly 00:15:06.360 --> 00:15:09.460 good representation of him really interesting 00:15:09.460 --> 00:15:11.659 yeah I thought are they just going for like the 00:15:11.659 --> 00:15:16.990 bully stereotype to have someone that looks physically 00:15:16.990 --> 00:15:21.990 more dominating than Harold, who's still real 00:15:21.990 --> 00:15:24.750 well -muscled. The guy who plays him, I forgot 00:15:24.750 --> 00:15:27.269 his actual name, has definitely been in the gym 00:15:27.269 --> 00:15:31.870 for the role. But yeah, there's a scene where 00:15:31.870 --> 00:15:34.750 Harold has to save the emperor from being lopped 00:15:34.750 --> 00:15:41.200 off by the Syracusians' rulers. horse -riding 00:15:41.200 --> 00:15:43.659 assassin type things and because then of course 00:15:43.659 --> 00:15:45.539 many echoes get falls out of favor because he 00:15:45.539 --> 00:15:48.139 didn't do it, Harold did and they still can't 00:15:48.139 --> 00:15:50.700 break the siege and but Harold says his Ferengians 00:15:50.700 --> 00:15:52.919 have got a plan and it turns out to be Leif who's 00:15:52.919 --> 00:15:56.490 become somewhat of a Norse scholar slash scientist 00:15:56.490 --> 00:15:59.470 and he's worked out how to use sulfur and fire 00:15:59.470 --> 00:16:02.549 to make explosives and they dig a secret tunnel 00:16:02.549 --> 00:16:04.789 under the wall and blow it up and then the Varangians 00:16:04.789 --> 00:16:07.549 charge through and the leader doesn't expect 00:16:07.549 --> 00:16:09.710 it at all in Syracuse's fort and that's how they 00:16:09.710 --> 00:16:15.389 do it. But yeah I thought that was an interesting 00:16:15.389 --> 00:16:19.110 way of shoehorning Leaf into the action in Syracuse 00:16:19.110 --> 00:16:21.269 even though I couldn't quite see it happening. 00:16:22.860 --> 00:16:25.679 person, because I don't know if that kind of 00:16:25.679 --> 00:16:28.639 science and explosive technology was around for 00:16:28.639 --> 00:16:32.379 anyone to use, at least on the emperor of Constantinople 00:16:32.379 --> 00:16:37.460 side of things. I think they have Greek fire 00:16:37.460 --> 00:16:40.700 at this point. Yeah, I was expecting to see Greek 00:16:40.700 --> 00:16:44.340 fire, but they didn't show us any. Yeah, they 00:16:44.340 --> 00:16:48.019 did. Did they? Yeah, Leif used Greek, well, Leif 00:16:48.019 --> 00:16:51.730 didn't use Greek fire, Maniacus stole it. and 00:16:51.730 --> 00:16:56.190 used it against the inhabitants. Oh, is that 00:16:56.190 --> 00:16:57.649 what he threw in? I thought it was just more 00:16:57.649 --> 00:17:00.769 sulfuric explosives that he was firing in. The 00:17:00.769 --> 00:17:02.750 way they did it, the way they suggested it was 00:17:02.750 --> 00:17:06.509 that they blew sulfur, dropped sulfur on all 00:17:06.509 --> 00:17:09.450 the inhabitants and then lit it. That's Greek 00:17:09.450 --> 00:17:11.589 fire. But that's what they were supposed to be 00:17:11.589 --> 00:17:13.190 doing. That isn't Greek fire. Unfortunately, 00:17:13.190 --> 00:17:15.349 we don't actually know the ingredients of Greek 00:17:15.349 --> 00:17:19.380 fire. They've been trying to recreate it for 00:17:19.380 --> 00:17:22.900 centuries and they can't do it so it was just 00:17:22.900 --> 00:17:25.740 this one theory that you light sulfur and that 00:17:25.740 --> 00:17:29.480 makes Greek fire and pretty sure it's not that 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:31.759 simple because they'd have been able to do it 00:17:31.759 --> 00:17:34.519 you know they would have done that. And I think 00:17:34.519 --> 00:17:36.660 it's always described as being shot out so I 00:17:36.660 --> 00:17:38.599 always have the image of my head for the the 00:17:38.599 --> 00:17:41.059 Vikings almost being like a dragon you know a 00:17:41.059 --> 00:17:43.880 ship with kind of a spout that shoots fire it 00:17:43.880 --> 00:17:46.519 must have just been so resonant for them. yeah 00:17:46.519 --> 00:17:50.059 some kind of cannonball equivalent set on fire 00:17:50.059 --> 00:17:52.000 and then launched from a trebuchet or something 00:17:52.000 --> 00:17:59.279 like that yeah so yeah they did include Greek 00:17:59.279 --> 00:18:04.700 fire not as it would have been sounds like a 00:18:04.700 --> 00:18:08.099 kind of latter -day Archimedes yeah the whole 00:18:08.099 --> 00:18:11.539 idea of Greek fire i think is that it stays a 00:18:11.539 --> 00:18:16.319 fire even in water It doesn't go out. It's got 00:18:16.319 --> 00:18:19.799 to have some sort of oil, I think, accompaniment 00:18:19.799 --> 00:18:29.920 to it. The nearest equivalent is napalm. We still 00:18:29.920 --> 00:18:32.640 don't know. We've lost the ingredients. there's 00:18:32.640 --> 00:18:34.579 probably a book out there with all the ingredients 00:18:34.579 --> 00:18:38.019 of how to make things like that that he wrote 00:18:38.019 --> 00:18:40.299 and probably took it to America with him so he's 00:18:40.299 --> 00:18:43.740 probably under a stone in America. It's on a 00:18:43.740 --> 00:18:47.900 dark web somewhere. Well I did want to say about 00:18:47.900 --> 00:18:50.000 those battle scenes and all the fight scenes 00:18:50.000 --> 00:18:52.799 I thought were really well choreographed. Yes. 00:18:53.039 --> 00:18:55.220 Oh good. In the show I thought they were they 00:18:55.220 --> 00:18:57.839 were done quite well. I was really impressed 00:18:57.839 --> 00:19:03.490 by it. both the big battles and the smaller one 00:19:03.490 --> 00:19:06.990 -on -one sort of thing we see between Harold, 00:19:07.150 --> 00:19:12.769 Hadrada and Maniacus. So I thought that was really 00:19:12.769 --> 00:19:16.150 quite good. Because what Maniacus does to the 00:19:16.150 --> 00:19:20.329 people in Syracuse, I mean, the Constantinople 00:19:20.329 --> 00:19:22.930 emperor tells the leader that they can either 00:19:22.930 --> 00:19:25.490 surrender or not and then leaf points out that 00:19:25.490 --> 00:19:27.450 he's actually sealed up five of their wells so 00:19:27.450 --> 00:19:29.289 they're all going to die of dehydration before 00:19:29.289 --> 00:19:32.089 food etc so you might as well just give in and 00:19:32.089 --> 00:19:34.410 then noble lead says i will fight your champion 00:19:34.410 --> 00:19:37.789 and if i win we go free and if not then we will 00:19:37.789 --> 00:19:40.930 submit to you how old hadrana is picked over 00:19:40.930 --> 00:19:44.190 maniacas to be the emperor's champion And it 00:19:44.190 --> 00:19:46.990 is quite a tough combat. He actually gets surprised 00:19:46.990 --> 00:19:50.089 by one slash across his arm, I think, before 00:19:50.089 --> 00:19:53.130 he manages to get a dagger in the side in what 00:19:53.130 --> 00:19:55.390 appeared to be a fumble and kill the leader. 00:19:56.210 --> 00:19:58.309 And then the emperor says, I will stick to my 00:19:58.309 --> 00:20:00.069 vow. I will not harm your people. Your people 00:20:00.069 --> 00:20:02.109 are safe. And of course, the emperor goes back 00:20:02.109 --> 00:20:04.769 to Constantinople to celebrate and proclaim great 00:20:04.769 --> 00:20:07.670 victory. Maniacus discovers what Leif has been 00:20:07.670 --> 00:20:10.440 doing. and decides to commandeer it, as Sharon 00:20:10.440 --> 00:20:13.980 said, and thus put all the people in Syracuse 00:20:13.980 --> 00:20:17.039 to fire, effectively. And thus, Leaf has his 00:20:17.039 --> 00:20:20.039 kind of Einstein, or is it Einstein? Or is it 00:20:20.039 --> 00:20:21.079 someone else? No, it wasn't someone else. It 00:20:21.079 --> 00:20:24.619 wasn't Einstein. It was Oppenheimer. Oppenheimer 00:20:24.619 --> 00:20:28.960 moment. He has some great regret for this discovery 00:20:28.960 --> 00:20:31.160 and it being used to do the wrong thing. And 00:20:31.160 --> 00:20:33.980 Mappieck just says, well, they were heathens. 00:20:34.349 --> 00:20:36.230 they don't believe in god they're all because 00:20:36.230 --> 00:20:38.430 they're all muslim of course so he just wants 00:20:38.430 --> 00:20:40.470 to wipe out all muslims off the face of the earth 00:20:40.470 --> 00:20:42.250 regardless of what his emperor says and does 00:20:42.250 --> 00:20:44.509 and remarkably he doesn't suffer any punishment 00:20:44.509 --> 00:20:46.549 for that which i thought well that cannot have 00:20:46.549 --> 00:20:49.369 gone unnoticed but maniakas probably has more 00:20:49.369 --> 00:20:52.230 people agreeing with him or fighting with him 00:20:52.230 --> 00:20:55.690 than defending against harald harada kind of 00:20:55.690 --> 00:20:59.069 thing they both returned to constantinople and 00:20:59.069 --> 00:21:01.990 both are given a great title that i don't even 00:21:01.990 --> 00:21:09.950 know if i've written it down correctly um there's 00:21:09.950 --> 00:21:12.309 this long title which apparently makes them second 00:21:12.309 --> 00:21:18.490 to the emperor which was interesting um and of 00:21:18.490 --> 00:21:22.329 course they both get it um although Maniacos 00:21:22.329 --> 00:21:25.049 completely does repeatedly refer to the Varangians 00:21:25.049 --> 00:21:29.029 as the emperor's bodyguards which in historical 00:21:29.029 --> 00:21:32.089 terms they were but it was nice that the series 00:21:32.089 --> 00:21:35.839 showed them being used in the campaign world 00:21:35.839 --> 00:21:38.740 as well as just being standing around the castle 00:21:38.740 --> 00:21:42.339 keeping an eye on the emperor and whatnot. I 00:21:42.339 --> 00:21:44.920 think there were two grades of uh Ferangian guard. 00:21:45.319 --> 00:21:47.400 When you started you kind of I think it was the 00:21:47.400 --> 00:21:49.700 Ferangians outside the walls was the full title 00:21:49.700 --> 00:21:52.400 um that was essentially the kind of the mercenary 00:21:52.400 --> 00:21:55.180 shock troop and then once you've you know you've 00:21:55.180 --> 00:21:57.880 proven your loyalty and ability then you could 00:21:57.950 --> 00:22:00.349 you kind of graduate to the Varangian Guard in 00:22:00.349 --> 00:22:05.910 the palace. I think that's how it worked. Harold 00:22:05.910 --> 00:22:10.309 gets, he has a quite odd title. He's not second 00:22:10.309 --> 00:22:12.329 in charge of the emperor, but he does get a title. 00:22:13.569 --> 00:22:15.970 The Greek word means something like he's allowed 00:22:15.970 --> 00:22:18.250 to have silver band on his cloak, something like 00:22:18.250 --> 00:22:22.130 this. So clearly it was a very kind of regimented 00:22:22.130 --> 00:22:26.980 or Byzantine system of honours. In the show they 00:22:26.980 --> 00:22:32.039 do give him a new cloak, a new suit of armour. 00:22:32.119 --> 00:22:35.819 It looks very Roman, but I don't know much about 00:22:35.819 --> 00:22:42.220 Roman military armour. I suppose they thought 00:22:42.220 --> 00:22:47.039 that Constantinople at that time was the centre 00:22:47.039 --> 00:22:49.539 of the Eastern Roman Empire. It was still the 00:22:49.539 --> 00:22:53.240 Roman Empire. They called themselves Romanus, 00:22:53.240 --> 00:22:56.200 didn't they? Yeah, that was probably the link 00:22:56.200 --> 00:22:58.640 with the Roman uniforms because I thought that 00:22:58.640 --> 00:23:01.400 they were all wearing Roman gear that you hadn't 00:23:01.400 --> 00:23:04.240 seen for a thousand years by that point. I love 00:23:04.240 --> 00:23:17.220 those red cloaks. They say it so well in the 00:23:17.220 --> 00:23:19.380 show. They really practice that word. I salute 00:23:19.380 --> 00:23:24.220 them for it because I can't pronounce it. I guess 00:23:24.220 --> 00:23:26.400 the only other slight introduction that we see 00:23:26.400 --> 00:23:32.140 in episode one is of course Freydis back in the 00:23:32.140 --> 00:23:35.740 now fairly settled and peaceful pagan settlement 00:23:35.740 --> 00:23:39.680 of Johnsburg. And she oversees a marriage and 00:23:39.680 --> 00:23:41.839 then this intriguing carriage of Steger walks 00:23:41.839 --> 00:23:44.440 on who just seems to be a wanderer. He seems 00:23:44.440 --> 00:23:47.039 to have come from further east than even Leif 00:23:47.039 --> 00:23:50.170 and Hadrad have been. because he mentions about 00:23:50.170 --> 00:23:53.109 kind of like meditation and does defensive defensive 00:23:53.109 --> 00:23:55.369 combat, not aggressive combat, defensive. He 00:23:55.369 --> 00:23:57.130 seems to be very much like a monk, an awesome 00:23:57.130 --> 00:24:02.869 monk, but without following any faith. And I 00:24:02.869 --> 00:24:05.950 think that explores Fradis's role as a leader 00:24:05.950 --> 00:24:08.190 until, of course, things go a bit wrong there 00:24:08.190 --> 00:24:11.150 when Jomsberg gets poisoned because they all 00:24:11.150 --> 00:24:13.690 have eaten flour with poisoned mushrooms in. 00:24:15.450 --> 00:24:20.099 Which is unfortunate. That's basically a lot 00:24:20.099 --> 00:24:27.440 of what happens in episode one. Episode two is 00:24:27.440 --> 00:24:30.880 covering Syracuse and the Maniachis betraying 00:24:30.880 --> 00:24:33.279 the Emperor's vow of protecting the people. That's 00:24:33.279 --> 00:24:35.420 when Emma talks to the Pope and identifies the 00:24:35.420 --> 00:24:38.000 Cardinal on her hit list and arranges that somehow 00:24:38.000 --> 00:24:40.599 miraculously in the heavily guarded Vatican capital 00:24:40.599 --> 00:24:47.910 of Vatican City. She knows people. Ah, that's 00:24:47.910 --> 00:24:53.130 it. And then we get a bit of a glimpse in Norway, 00:24:53.349 --> 00:24:56.430 because that's where, after Canute and Emma have 00:24:56.430 --> 00:24:58.869 appeased the Pope and got their blessing, albeit 00:24:58.869 --> 00:25:02.029 have to build more churches in order to hold 00:25:02.029 --> 00:25:06.210 the Pope, Canute sends Godwin to Norway to reunite 00:25:06.210 --> 00:25:11.329 with, of course, his wife, which is Canute's 00:25:11.329 --> 00:25:16.180 niece? No, it's his sister, is it? Gitta is actually 00:25:16.180 --> 00:25:21.740 Cnut's sister's sister -in -law. Sister -in -law, 00:25:21.779 --> 00:25:24.359 that was it. And you were somewhere along the 00:25:24.359 --> 00:25:25.859 family tree. Her brother is married to Cnut's 00:25:25.859 --> 00:25:28.400 sister. Yeah, her brother's married to Cnut's 00:25:28.400 --> 00:25:33.180 sister. And we get a glimpse of pagan life in 00:25:33.180 --> 00:25:36.019 Norway, where apparently Svein Falkbeard is also 00:25:36.019 --> 00:25:38.299 visiting. with his wife, although we never see 00:25:38.299 --> 00:25:40.700 her either. We hear her mentioned. We know she's 00:25:40.700 --> 00:25:43.940 around, but we never see her. And that's where 00:25:43.940 --> 00:25:49.059 we meet Harold Harefoot in quite the stark fashion 00:25:49.059 --> 00:25:52.480 of being completely naked, because of course 00:25:52.480 --> 00:25:54.799 he was happily doing things with certain ladies 00:25:54.799 --> 00:25:57.119 at the time, because it's that kind of a festival. 00:25:57.940 --> 00:26:00.220 And he just comes out to Godwin and says, Godwin, 00:26:00.240 --> 00:26:01.940 I want you to make me the next King of England. 00:26:02.140 --> 00:26:05.519 And I'm like, what? Say that again? Put some 00:26:05.519 --> 00:26:12.000 clothes on first. Because of course, Harold Harefoot, 00:26:12.240 --> 00:26:14.720 not to be confused with Harold Godwin or Harold 00:26:14.720 --> 00:26:18.799 Hadrada to be, Harold Harefoot is one of, I think 00:26:18.799 --> 00:26:21.859 it's the oldest son of Elgie Foo, who is now 00:26:21.859 --> 00:26:26.740 ruling Denmark with fame. Is that right? Yeah, 00:26:26.740 --> 00:26:30.380 I think Harefoot's the youngest son, I think. 00:26:32.809 --> 00:26:36.930 There's the oldest. Oh yes, that's it, Spain, 00:26:37.009 --> 00:26:39.769 because Spain's on the throne, albeit with his 00:26:39.769 --> 00:26:44.529 mother El Gifu at his side. And her mother's, 00:26:44.609 --> 00:26:48.210 his mother's from the five boroughs, I think. 00:26:48.930 --> 00:26:51.950 Yeah, yeah, Mercia is where they depict her being 00:26:51.950 --> 00:26:55.150 from in the series. She's actually the theory 00:26:55.150 --> 00:26:59.210 issue's El Gifu of York, isn't she? Oh no, what 00:26:59.210 --> 00:27:09.650 is that? Northampton yeah that's right yeah and 00:27:09.650 --> 00:27:12.490 um the theory is about is it the anglo -saxon 00:27:12.490 --> 00:27:15.789 chronicle actually says that um swain and harold 00:27:15.789 --> 00:27:20.170 hairfoot are the sons of a priest and a cobbler 00:27:20.170 --> 00:27:26.950 one priest one a cobbler yeah so yeah somebody 00:27:26.950 --> 00:27:29.490 was telling tales yeah physical assassination 00:27:29.490 --> 00:27:34.839 there Trying to discredit them. Yes, and towards 00:27:34.839 --> 00:27:37.299 the end, I'm sort of jumping ahead here, but 00:27:37.299 --> 00:27:41.920 Emma and Askefu have this kind of nicey -nicey 00:27:41.920 --> 00:27:46.259 moment towards the end of the series, where they're 00:27:46.259 --> 00:27:49.140 friendly. And I thought, yeah, that never happened. 00:27:49.900 --> 00:27:53.740 They were never friendly. Well, I like to think 00:27:53.740 --> 00:27:55.940 that particular scene, and we will. skip ahead 00:27:55.940 --> 00:27:58.920 to it. To give a summary to Justin, this is when 00:27:58.920 --> 00:28:00.680 Canute decides to go to the fictional settlement 00:28:00.680 --> 00:28:03.799 of Catigot and summon all his sons and Emma's 00:28:03.799 --> 00:28:06.619 sons, and Elgith's sons are also around. So he's 00:28:06.619 --> 00:28:09.700 got all his heirs apparent to be there, including 00:28:09.700 --> 00:28:12.279 Godwin, who also wants the throne. At this point 00:28:12.279 --> 00:28:16.259 Svane Fortbeard has died. He doesn't die as quickly 00:28:16.259 --> 00:28:18.759 as he should have done, but they do eventually 00:28:18.759 --> 00:28:22.380 kill him off. Canute, obviously, he shows a lot 00:28:22.380 --> 00:28:26.140 of symptoms throughout this final series of possibly 00:28:26.140 --> 00:28:28.799 Parkinson's. He gets a bit of a tremor, a bit 00:28:28.799 --> 00:28:32.700 of a weak hand. Yeah. So he can't even hold papers. 00:28:33.180 --> 00:28:35.400 He's always holding onto his sword or his belt. 00:28:35.579 --> 00:28:39.160 That's how he keeps his hands still. And Emma 00:28:39.160 --> 00:28:41.200 kind of goes ahead of the procession whilst Canute 00:28:41.200 --> 00:28:43.200 goes and takes the sons off, including Arthur 00:28:43.200 --> 00:28:45.279 Canute, who is very young and tells him about 00:28:45.279 --> 00:28:48.559 a North Witch. living category, and Emma says, 00:28:48.859 --> 00:28:52.200 oh, just so you know, he's dying, and obviously, 00:28:52.420 --> 00:28:55.200 if you ask, well, has he named an heir? And Emma 00:28:55.200 --> 00:28:57.339 goes, no, but of course, I want my sons to win 00:28:57.339 --> 00:29:00.019 as much as your sons. And they both sit on the 00:29:00.019 --> 00:29:02.059 thrones, and they both have a contemplative moment, 00:29:02.099 --> 00:29:04.319 not looking at each other, not even holding hands. 00:29:04.900 --> 00:29:06.740 But I like to think that even though we don't 00:29:06.740 --> 00:29:09.819 see the drama, Visibly, there's a lot of turning 00:29:09.819 --> 00:29:12.480 cogs going on in their heads thinking, oh, gosh, 00:29:12.619 --> 00:29:14.940 what do I need to do now? Who do I need to manipulate? 00:29:15.039 --> 00:29:17.119 Who do I need to get on my side? And I quite 00:29:17.119 --> 00:29:20.500 liked that. Although, of course, the writers 00:29:20.500 --> 00:29:24.660 then take the horse by the reins and let it go 00:29:24.660 --> 00:29:28.400 free after that point, because after a great 00:29:28.400 --> 00:29:34.670 set up by Canute of having Edward by Emma. fight 00:29:34.670 --> 00:29:37.750 Harold Herefoot to see whether intelligence can 00:29:37.750 --> 00:29:39.650 beat strength, because that's what Leif says 00:29:39.650 --> 00:29:42.789 is the greatest value of being a king. Harold 00:29:42.789 --> 00:29:45.109 Herefoot quite swiftly nearly beats Edward until 00:29:45.109 --> 00:29:48.170 Emma steps in and calls the fight off. And then 00:29:48.170 --> 00:29:51.490 he says, right, none of you will be king. You 00:29:51.490 --> 00:29:53.890 can go that way. You can go that way. Emma sends 00:29:53.890 --> 00:29:56.329 you back to Norway. Herefoot, you're taking Harth 00:29:56.329 --> 00:30:02.279 Canute to Norway. No. Denmark. Spain's still 00:30:02.279 --> 00:30:05.259 in Norway. England won't have a king, England 00:30:05.259 --> 00:30:07.720 will have a queen. And then he hands the airship 00:30:07.720 --> 00:30:12.039 over to Emma, which causes a bit of a stir. There's 00:30:12.039 --> 00:30:14.299 a part in there that I thought was really interesting 00:30:14.299 --> 00:30:20.259 and it was when he, well two things. Number one, 00:30:20.359 --> 00:30:21.940 I thought it was interesting that he asked Leif, 00:30:21.960 --> 00:30:23.660 who's the one person who doesn't want to be king, 00:30:24.140 --> 00:30:28.660 what does it take to be a king? And so Leif says, 00:30:28.900 --> 00:30:32.640 there's two things. You have to be strong, intelligent, 00:30:32.700 --> 00:30:35.460 and you have to be strong physically. And then 00:30:35.460 --> 00:30:38.440 immediately when Knut sets up this battle between 00:30:38.440 --> 00:30:43.640 his two sons, Emma says, stop this. And he says, 00:30:43.920 --> 00:30:47.599 who's going to stop it when I'm gone? And she 00:30:47.599 --> 00:30:49.900 immediately steps in, then she's the one that 00:30:49.900 --> 00:30:52.619 stops it. So there's this whole thing that's 00:30:52.619 --> 00:30:56.079 building Emma up as being the moving force here. 00:30:56.200 --> 00:30:59.299 And it goes all the way through the very last 00:30:59.299 --> 00:31:03.940 episode. Equally, Godwin is stirring in the shadows. 00:31:04.839 --> 00:31:07.339 He is aptly in the shadows at the point of Sven 00:31:07.339 --> 00:31:10.579 Fortbeard's death, which is, spoilers, committed 00:31:10.579 --> 00:31:13.319 by Harold Harefoot, egged on by Godwin. And he 00:31:13.319 --> 00:31:15.460 does it with the pillow when Sven Fortbeard's 00:31:15.460 --> 00:31:17.779 dead. Because Sven Fortbeard hears about Godwin 00:31:17.779 --> 00:31:20.200 and Harold Harefoot wanting to get the other 00:31:20.200 --> 00:31:22.869 one thrown. And he goes, well, you know what 00:31:22.869 --> 00:31:24.650 I do when I was a lad and I wanted a throne and 00:31:24.650 --> 00:31:26.950 my father was a rubbish king, I killed him and 00:31:26.950 --> 00:31:29.490 then I took the throne. And I'm like, OK, well, 00:31:29.509 --> 00:31:31.569 that's not a set up for what's going to happen 00:31:31.569 --> 00:31:35.269 next. I don't know what is. But I think that 00:31:35.269 --> 00:31:37.869 did that actually happen, though? Did Spain actually 00:31:37.869 --> 00:31:41.549 kill his father to then take throne? Yes, yes. 00:31:41.890 --> 00:31:45.589 Although it's possible he's not his. It wasn't 00:31:45.589 --> 00:31:47.970 his father. It's possible he was his nephew. 00:31:48.430 --> 00:31:50.960 I think there's a lady. Is it Adam of Bremen, 00:31:51.039 --> 00:31:54.039 I think? There's a later chronicle who describes 00:31:54.039 --> 00:31:57.759 him as his nephew. So we don't really know. It's 00:31:57.759 --> 00:32:01.460 quite possible it could be either. But yeah, 00:32:01.500 --> 00:32:04.319 he drives his father out into exile, doesn't 00:32:04.319 --> 00:32:10.400 he? They went to war. There was a battle. And 00:32:10.400 --> 00:32:13.319 Sven was killed in the battle, but he was battling 00:32:13.319 --> 00:32:16.980 his son's troops, or Knut's troops. So that's 00:32:16.980 --> 00:32:21.680 how he died. and Knut stepped in after that. 00:32:22.500 --> 00:32:25.119 No, Swain thought we had. No, he fell off his 00:32:25.119 --> 00:32:29.059 horse in Gainsborough. No, I'm sorry. It was 00:32:29.059 --> 00:32:33.920 Swain's dad and his father, Gorm. There's so 00:32:33.920 --> 00:32:38.619 many kings. Yeah, I'm sorry. I got my kings mixed 00:32:38.619 --> 00:32:41.240 up. Don't worry. Blame Netflix. Its muddle timeline 00:32:41.240 --> 00:32:44.099 makes us confused about what we see is true. 00:32:44.099 --> 00:32:46.079 And that's why I'm hoping, dear viewers, that 00:32:46.079 --> 00:32:48.279 you're learning as much as I am. from these three 00:32:48.279 --> 00:32:52.740 wonderful guests of mine. Yeah, I did Spain folkbeard 00:32:52.740 --> 00:32:56.119 in Ian Dale's Kings and Queens of England. Either 00:32:56.119 --> 00:32:58.839 he died falling off his horse or he was killed 00:32:58.839 --> 00:33:05.420 by the ghost of St Edward. And we got it wrong, 00:33:05.599 --> 00:33:11.539 it's not Gorm, it's Harold. Of course, whose 00:33:11.539 --> 00:33:14.559 father is Gorm. I'm trying to get all these things. 00:33:15.130 --> 00:33:18.829 organized so yeah it's the guy who intended who 00:33:18.829 --> 00:33:23.789 invented the wireless connection between mobile 00:33:23.789 --> 00:33:34.029 phones yep the runic symbol dad yeah well talking 00:33:34.029 --> 00:33:37.269 about kings and death they did something of course 00:33:37.269 --> 00:33:40.529 very controversial with elguifu in spain in norway 00:33:40.529 --> 00:33:43.599 because they didn't both died in Norway, dear 00:33:43.599 --> 00:33:46.599 readers and listeners, from reading wonderful 00:33:46.599 --> 00:33:49.839 works like Patricia's and some other non -fiction, 00:33:50.019 --> 00:33:53.299 I believe. They got basically shooed out of Norway. 00:33:53.500 --> 00:33:56.160 None of them liked them. None of the Yarls liked 00:33:56.160 --> 00:33:58.940 them. Yeah, they got chased out and Swain got 00:33:58.940 --> 00:34:02.700 chased out of Norway because Elfifu was acting 00:34:02.700 --> 00:34:05.220 as a regent and nobody liked the way she was 00:34:05.220 --> 00:34:07.779 acting as regent. So they both got kicked out 00:34:07.779 --> 00:34:11.179 of Norway. And Sveen died the same year he started 00:34:11.179 --> 00:34:15.320 in 1035. Really? Oh, yeah. He was with the Kansans. 00:34:18.280 --> 00:34:21.199 Supposedly, they went to Denmark. They went to 00:34:21.199 --> 00:34:25.480 Hartha Knudskort. And Sveen died in Denmark. 00:34:26.579 --> 00:34:28.780 We don't know how, you know, I mean, they could 00:34:28.780 --> 00:34:30.880 have been in Denmark and nowhere near Sveen. 00:34:30.880 --> 00:34:34.320 Yeah. But that led to the, oh, I don't even want 00:34:34.320 --> 00:34:36.530 to go there, the whole... you know, who's going 00:34:36.530 --> 00:34:40.289 to be king after Knut? Yeah, exactly. When England 00:34:40.289 --> 00:34:42.969 was divided between the three sons, essentially. 00:34:43.389 --> 00:34:46.869 Yeah, you do have to wonder, Arthur Knute suddenly 00:34:46.869 --> 00:34:50.289 sees his older half -brother arriving in Denmark. 00:34:51.650 --> 00:34:54.030 Arthur Knute's still only a teenager, isn't he? 00:34:54.130 --> 00:34:59.690 He's not, you know, he's there as acting, learning 00:34:59.690 --> 00:35:05.920 to be a ruler. Canute dies in 1035. So, to have 00:35:05.920 --> 00:35:09.139 his older half -brother turn up in Denmark, who 00:35:09.139 --> 00:35:12.400 has also got a claim to the Danish throne, you 00:35:12.400 --> 00:35:15.039 can understand why Swain didn't live long after 00:35:15.039 --> 00:35:17.619 that. Well, but there's lots of other things 00:35:17.619 --> 00:35:20.679 going on that Swain was running from the Norse, 00:35:21.619 --> 00:35:23.639 the Norse people who were driving him out, and 00:35:23.639 --> 00:35:26.639 the Norse at the same time were attacking Denmark, 00:35:26.860 --> 00:35:30.099 and that's why, so basically he had this army 00:35:30.099 --> 00:35:32.980 following him and that's what kept Arthur Knute 00:35:32.980 --> 00:35:35.579 from going back to England to take the throne 00:35:35.579 --> 00:35:37.639 there. He had to fight off the Norse because 00:35:37.639 --> 00:35:40.059 they were trying to take over because there was 00:35:40.059 --> 00:35:44.920 this power vacuum. Knute was gone. Sven and his 00:35:44.920 --> 00:35:48.840 mom had not really done anything that anybody 00:35:48.840 --> 00:35:51.380 liked. The nobles were going up against them 00:35:51.380 --> 00:35:54.440 and so they were trying to see what can we get 00:35:54.440 --> 00:35:57.809 now? Who's strong enough to hold us off? Well 00:35:57.809 --> 00:35:59.929 there was a thing and that's Magnus turned up 00:35:59.929 --> 00:36:06.570 as well. Magnus Olafsson. Because they do use 00:36:06.570 --> 00:36:11.119 him as the main murderer. effectively of Spain 00:36:11.119 --> 00:36:13.559 and El Guifu and I didn't like the way they murdered 00:36:13.559 --> 00:36:15.760 Spain I thought I mean I saluted the guy for 00:36:15.760 --> 00:36:18.500 the acting of it but I don't like the way they 00:36:18.500 --> 00:36:21.780 basically all impaled him on 12 dozen spears 00:36:21.780 --> 00:36:24.519 and then lowered him but then beat him to bits 00:36:24.519 --> 00:36:26.159 and like guys he's already dead you don't need 00:36:26.159 --> 00:36:30.340 to keep beating him but no I think I wonder if 00:36:30.340 --> 00:36:32.920 they were trying to do that with the um to follow 00:36:32.920 --> 00:36:36.420 the Roman idea that everybody had a hand in his 00:36:36.420 --> 00:36:41.289 death so Nobody could be blamed for it. Nobody 00:36:41.289 --> 00:36:44.809 could be innocent for it. Yeah. You were all 00:36:44.809 --> 00:36:47.170 in it together, so you couldn't turn on each 00:36:47.170 --> 00:36:50.630 other because each of you had done it. Yeah. 00:36:50.730 --> 00:36:53.429 And that's how the Romans did it, isn't it? That's 00:36:53.429 --> 00:36:57.869 very interesting. Yeah. And it's interesting 00:36:57.869 --> 00:37:02.320 that they make Canute appear ill because um from 00:37:02.320 --> 00:37:04.420 the state of his empire and the location of his 00:37:04.420 --> 00:37:07.119 sons it seems that his death was quite sudden 00:37:07.119 --> 00:37:11.739 um and not expected um because he's still quite 00:37:11.739 --> 00:37:14.400 young isn't he he's i think he's in in his early 00:37:14.400 --> 00:37:22.440 40s um and yeah he was only 1035 uh yeah he would 00:37:22.440 --> 00:37:29.789 have been yeah middle approaching 50 but he died 00:37:29.789 --> 00:37:35.650 at Shaftesbury and Shaftesbury is a convent where 00:37:35.650 --> 00:37:38.489 they had you know they had an infirmary there 00:37:38.489 --> 00:37:42.110 so I think probably he came down with something 00:37:42.110 --> 00:37:44.849 at the very last minute and went to Shaftesbury 00:37:44.849 --> 00:37:50.389 perhaps to pray to be cured and turned himself 00:37:50.389 --> 00:37:53.969 over to the sisters so I don't think it was a 00:37:53.969 --> 00:37:57.260 long -term thing and they seemed that all of 00:37:57.260 --> 00:38:01.519 his sons had some sort of genetic issue because 00:38:01.519 --> 00:38:06.320 they all died young. Now you're right, he wasn't 00:38:06.320 --> 00:38:09.420 yet 40. I think it was 1097 he was born, wasn't 00:38:09.420 --> 00:38:11.920 he? Something like that. So he was about 18 when 00:38:11.920 --> 00:38:16.820 his dad died. 1090. Well, in my books, it's 1090. 00:38:18.460 --> 00:38:20.800 So I can't do the math. I'm an English major. 00:38:23.239 --> 00:38:26.519 So, but yeah, I mean all the others Arthur can 00:38:26.519 --> 00:38:34.920 you and was about His 20s, yeah, definitely young 00:38:34.920 --> 00:38:40.920 adult was about in his 30s. Yeah, so it was very 00:38:40.920 --> 00:38:46.940 And no No, but I mean healthy it's all about 00:38:46.940 --> 00:38:50.539 choking or sudden illnesses, isn't it is hmm 00:38:50.539 --> 00:38:54.889 and it's interesting because Sven I think was 00:38:54.889 --> 00:38:57.070 pretty old. He was pretty long in that tooth 00:38:57.070 --> 00:39:00.250 when he died Sven Forkbeard But we don't know 00:39:00.250 --> 00:39:02.269 how he died. You were talking, you know, was 00:39:02.269 --> 00:39:04.650 he? It sounded like it might have been a heart 00:39:04.650 --> 00:39:10.750 attack Something like that But well Hartha Knute 00:39:10.750 --> 00:39:14.230 died at a party, you know at a wedding Yeah, 00:39:14.349 --> 00:39:18.530 he fell. Yeah, and he he didn't get consciousness. 00:39:18.789 --> 00:39:23.760 He was for two days He never he died A stroke 00:39:23.760 --> 00:39:33.159 almost. Yeah. Well of course with Magnus killing 00:39:33.159 --> 00:39:37.559 off Elgifu and Svein and half the Canute and 00:39:37.559 --> 00:39:39.960 Harold Hereford already be sent to Denmark by 00:39:39.960 --> 00:39:42.860 that point, interesting enough. So I don't think 00:39:42.860 --> 00:39:44.960 Harold Hereford ever went to Denmark, I always 00:39:44.960 --> 00:39:46.739 thought he was more or less based in England 00:39:46.739 --> 00:39:50.340 the whole time, just waiting for his chance because 00:39:50.340 --> 00:39:53.159 I remember kind of like once Canute dies it does 00:39:53.159 --> 00:39:55.500 then go to Harold Harefoot because Arthur Canute 00:39:55.500 --> 00:39:57.420 isn't there to claim and of course Edward is 00:39:57.420 --> 00:40:00.619 still in Normandy. England actually when he dies 00:40:00.619 --> 00:40:04.320 England is split between Harefoot and Arthur 00:40:04.320 --> 00:40:10.739 Canute. That was the arrangement. And Emma looks 00:40:10.739 --> 00:40:13.719 after Arthur Cnut's interests and takes hold 00:40:13.719 --> 00:40:17.480 of the Treasury of Winchester and sends a message 00:40:17.480 --> 00:40:21.260 to Arthur Cnut to come and claim his share of 00:40:21.260 --> 00:40:23.940 the throne. But Arthur Cnut is busy in Denmark 00:40:23.940 --> 00:40:26.679 that he doesn't come. And it takes a couple of 00:40:26.679 --> 00:40:29.039 years before Hereford actually takes the whole 00:40:29.039 --> 00:40:31.940 of England. And it's because Arthur Cnut isn't 00:40:31.940 --> 00:40:35.980 there to fight his corner and Emma doesn't have 00:40:35.980 --> 00:40:39.070 enough influence on her own. because he needs 00:40:39.070 --> 00:40:41.750 Harthacanew to take his half of the throne and 00:40:41.750 --> 00:40:46.230 he's basically, he's supposed to have the south 00:40:46.230 --> 00:40:48.269 and Harefoot's supposed to have the north, which 00:40:48.269 --> 00:40:51.829 I think is technically the north of the Thames 00:40:51.829 --> 00:40:55.530 rather than, you know, a rather larger portion 00:40:55.530 --> 00:40:58.969 of England than Harthacanew was supposed to get. 00:40:59.309 --> 00:41:02.130 But because he doesn't come over, Harefoot takes 00:41:02.130 --> 00:41:05.880 the whole lot. Yeah, but the best part of England, 00:41:06.079 --> 00:41:08.019 I mean the wealthiest part of England was the 00:41:08.019 --> 00:41:13.280 South. The North was less, and of course that's 00:41:13.280 --> 00:41:17.159 where Alfifi's family was. Well, that's where 00:41:17.159 --> 00:41:20.059 Hereford's influence is. Hereford's influence 00:41:20.059 --> 00:41:24.380 is the North and Mersey and the Midlands. So 00:41:24.380 --> 00:41:27.019 he's got all that support and that's the support 00:41:27.019 --> 00:41:30.920 he uses to take over the South when Arthur Canute 00:41:30.920 --> 00:41:34.099 doesn't come. to about his own corner. Yeah. 00:41:34.599 --> 00:41:37.360 And there's one story that I saw somewhere I 00:41:37.360 --> 00:41:40.980 read that the North and the South of England 00:41:40.980 --> 00:41:45.239 were both being held for Harthacnut that Harefoot 00:41:45.239 --> 00:41:48.460 was actually a regent for Harthacnut and Emma 00:41:48.460 --> 00:41:54.780 was the regent for him in the South. Interesting. 00:41:56.260 --> 00:42:03.150 They were waiting for him to come. Well, as we 00:42:03.150 --> 00:42:05.510 know, the writers completely bypassed that with 00:42:05.510 --> 00:42:08.070 having sending both of them to Denmark. Right. 00:42:08.809 --> 00:42:10.969 Right. It's too complicated. Just send them to 00:42:10.969 --> 00:42:14.170 Denmark. Well, interestingly, looking back to 00:42:14.170 --> 00:42:16.909 that, there's that scene at the end of The Big 00:42:16.909 --> 00:42:18.929 Feast where Knut declares that Emma is going 00:42:18.929 --> 00:42:21.730 to rule England his dead and Harold Hearthwood 00:42:21.730 --> 00:42:24.250 is having a very toddler -esque, and I recognise 00:42:24.250 --> 00:42:27.179 it because I have one, tantrum. in the great 00:42:27.179 --> 00:42:29.440 hall and Godwin comes and he goes where were 00:42:29.440 --> 00:42:31.360 you Godwin? I knew you were my advisor and Godwin 00:42:31.360 --> 00:42:33.619 said I wasn't invited which is probably Elgie 00:42:33.619 --> 00:42:36.019 Few of Northampton's doing because she doesn't 00:42:36.019 --> 00:42:39.440 like him either and because of the way they would 00:42:39.440 --> 00:42:42.360 betray each other in season two if not season 00:42:42.360 --> 00:42:45.980 one and going that far back and Godwin says well 00:42:45.980 --> 00:42:47.900 just think of the positives always always find 00:42:47.900 --> 00:42:50.300 the bright side in things kind of like what's 00:42:50.300 --> 00:42:52.400 what when the canoe is dense what do you do and 00:42:52.400 --> 00:42:55.489 how if it goes when my father's dead, his wishes 00:42:55.489 --> 00:42:57.809 don't matter anymore. So I don't have to look 00:42:57.809 --> 00:43:00.489 after the brat. I can lop him off. And I found 00:43:00.489 --> 00:43:03.070 it really comedic that Godwin was playing his 00:43:03.070 --> 00:43:05.650 part Godwin whilst holding the puppet of Godwin. 00:43:06.090 --> 00:43:09.730 And the likeness was spot on. I really like how 00:43:09.730 --> 00:43:11.469 they got the puppets to be like each other because 00:43:11.469 --> 00:43:13.769 they did a really nice puppet show, like a medieval 00:43:13.769 --> 00:43:17.920 puppet show. And I really quite like that. But 00:43:17.920 --> 00:43:20.280 of course when Canute dies and that scene I thought 00:43:20.280 --> 00:43:22.340 they did the Canute's death scene rather well. 00:43:22.460 --> 00:43:25.780 It was very emotive, very powerful, not full 00:43:25.780 --> 00:43:28.539 of tears and love but just just simple sweet 00:43:28.539 --> 00:43:30.059 things that they say to each other and he does 00:43:30.059 --> 00:43:32.800 say Emma you need to go to Winchester to be near 00:43:32.800 --> 00:43:35.380 the treasury. And of course the one thing I always 00:43:35.380 --> 00:43:37.239 remember about learning from talking about you 00:43:37.239 --> 00:43:39.360 guys and this is kind of like that Emma is still 00:43:39.360 --> 00:43:42.019 with the treasury even when her next son from 00:43:42.599 --> 00:43:44.380 Normandy, Edward takes the throne and he has 00:43:44.380 --> 00:43:47.380 to basically prize the treasury offer because 00:43:47.380 --> 00:43:51.219 she's still guarding it. She's trying to keep 00:43:51.219 --> 00:43:53.940 clean to the power. You control England, so you 00:43:53.940 --> 00:43:57.059 control the money first. I don't think it was 00:43:57.059 --> 00:43:59.019 interesting at the end where Harefoot arrives 00:43:59.019 --> 00:44:02.699 in England and she's sent for Edward, not Arthur 00:44:02.699 --> 00:44:05.800 Camus. They've had her sent for Edward and it's 00:44:05.800 --> 00:44:07.800 like she didn't send for Edward at that point, 00:44:07.820 --> 00:44:10.739 she sent for Arthur Camus. As far as she was 00:44:10.739 --> 00:44:13.199 concerned, Edward was Arthur Canute's heir, not 00:44:13.199 --> 00:44:17.280 the other way around. That's Godwin all over, 00:44:17.420 --> 00:44:20.260 especially in this particular depiction of Godwin. 00:44:23.699 --> 00:44:29.480 The theory is, later on 1037 I think it was, 00:44:30.480 --> 00:44:34.639 either Godwin or Emma or somebody sent Alfred 00:44:34.639 --> 00:44:37.420 and Edward a letter telling them to come to England. 00:44:40.140 --> 00:44:45.699 Emma usually gets the blame for it. I can't see 00:44:45.699 --> 00:44:48.599 it personally because it just wasn't the right 00:44:48.599 --> 00:44:51.480 time. There wasn't enough support in England 00:44:51.480 --> 00:44:55.800 for either of her sons. But Alfred gets captured 00:44:55.800 --> 00:45:02.079 whilst in the company of Earl Godwin and handed 00:45:02.079 --> 00:45:05.699 over to Harefoot or taken by Harefoot from Earl 00:45:05.699 --> 00:45:10.239 Godwin. and blinded and dyes of his wounds. I 00:45:10.239 --> 00:45:14.139 think that's where the Godwin telling Emma to 00:45:14.139 --> 00:45:16.199 send for Edward comes from. It's just it didn't 00:45:16.199 --> 00:45:22.239 happen in 1035. It was a few years later. I like 00:45:22.239 --> 00:45:24.440 to think with that scene Godwin was trying to 00:45:24.440 --> 00:45:27.159 work out if Emma had done this thing or not. 00:45:27.599 --> 00:45:29.599 If she was going to stay true to Canute and try 00:45:29.599 --> 00:45:31.960 and do it solo. Because of course he's trying 00:45:31.960 --> 00:45:34.659 to kind of like cause her anxiety and doubt by 00:45:34.659 --> 00:45:37.079 saying oh but the the Wytan won't support you 00:45:37.079 --> 00:45:38.940 and I think there'll be civil war and you need 00:45:38.940 --> 00:45:41.400 to stop all this before it gets worse. And she 00:45:41.400 --> 00:45:43.340 goes I already have done. I've sent for my son 00:45:43.340 --> 00:45:46.039 Godwin. I'm that bit clever, but then of course 00:45:46.039 --> 00:45:47.960 Godwin goes aha, I'm just going to Harold Harefoot 00:45:47.960 --> 00:45:51.340 immediately to the speedy mail, speedy messengers 00:45:51.340 --> 00:45:54.159 and speedy boats and somehow Harefoot beats all 00:45:54.159 --> 00:45:56.360 of them and of course that's what he steps Emma, 00:45:56.400 --> 00:45:58.900 but then Emma at the end, and this is the one 00:45:58.900 --> 00:46:02.500 bit I did not like, decides to use her wily, 00:46:02.579 --> 00:46:05.400 womanly, beautiful, I'm still kind of in my prime, 00:46:05.920 --> 00:46:07.860 Harold Harefoot darling, I know you're my stepson, 00:46:07.880 --> 00:46:09.699 but would you like to hold my hand whilst I sit 00:46:09.699 --> 00:46:12.400 really close to you on this throne? And I'm like 00:46:12.400 --> 00:46:17.900 no! No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:17.900 --> 00:46:17.960 no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:17.960 --> 00:46:18.440 no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:18.440 --> 00:46:18.440 no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:18.440 --> 00:46:18.480 no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:19.400 --> 00:46:19.440 no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:19.440 --> 00:46:21.199 no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:21.199 --> 00:46:34.059 no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:34.059 --> 00:46:34.059 no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 00:46:34.059 --> 00:46:47.269 no, no, no, no, no, backdrop to it, but I didn't, 00:46:47.349 --> 00:46:51.610 I really felt like it was more a power play than 00:46:51.610 --> 00:46:55.550 a sexual thing. I mean, it is quite aptly both. 00:46:55.750 --> 00:46:58.730 She was trying to regain power from Godwin pulling 00:46:58.730 --> 00:47:00.570 that hoodwink of her getting harrowed hair from 00:47:00.570 --> 00:47:03.750 there. by thinking okay well i've dated one king 00:47:03.750 --> 00:47:05.929 maybe i can date the next king kind of thing 00:47:05.929 --> 00:47:09.150 um but it's because when harold hereford meets 00:47:09.150 --> 00:47:11.849 her in category he goes oh you're just as beautiful 00:47:11.849 --> 00:47:14.170 as i remember oh he's he's putting on the charm 00:47:14.170 --> 00:47:17.289 on her that's yeah he well plus he was kind of 00:47:17.289 --> 00:47:20.289 like naked and what the what's the word fornicating 00:47:20.289 --> 00:47:22.389 when we first see him so i think he's just after 00:47:22.389 --> 00:47:25.699 anything And if it happens to be the Queen of 00:47:25.699 --> 00:47:28.519 England, so be it. So he says like, Godwin, go 00:47:28.519 --> 00:47:30.539 do the planning. Me and the Queen need to talk. 00:47:30.780 --> 00:47:32.320 And I'm like, hmm. And that's the rabbit connection 00:47:32.320 --> 00:47:38.329 to his name. Yeah. That's why it's called Harefoot, 00:47:38.550 --> 00:47:43.570 is it? It's not because he was run fast. The 00:47:43.570 --> 00:47:46.389 thing is, there's so much intrigue that went 00:47:46.389 --> 00:47:49.329 on at that time that they don't use. They made 00:47:49.329 --> 00:47:52.210 up their own intrigues for this story. I mean, 00:47:52.469 --> 00:47:54.989 I really think that that letter that brought 00:47:54.989 --> 00:47:57.590 Edward and Alfred to England, I think that was 00:47:57.590 --> 00:48:03.269 sent by Harefoot and Elf Keefoo. And they were 00:48:03.269 --> 00:48:05.670 waiting for them when they came to England. They 00:48:05.670 --> 00:48:11.289 were immediately captured. So even if you look 00:48:11.289 --> 00:48:13.309 at the letter, it says something like, follow 00:48:13.309 --> 00:48:15.610 the instructions given by this person who gives 00:48:15.610 --> 00:48:20.510 you this paper. And it's like, wait, what? So 00:48:20.510 --> 00:48:26.510 I think it was a real set up by Harefoot. Well, 00:48:26.570 --> 00:48:29.110 maybe they were nodding towards that with Godwin 00:48:29.110 --> 00:48:33.550 getting hair thin so quickly. Of course we mustn't 00:48:33.550 --> 00:48:37.710 forget Hardrada in all this, of course we've 00:48:37.710 --> 00:48:40.449 come more or less summarized how him and Makinaka 00:48:40.449 --> 00:48:43.750 start hating each other and of course they do 00:48:43.750 --> 00:48:46.590 portray Harald having an affair with Empress 00:48:46.590 --> 00:48:50.750 Zoe and the reasoning for this is unusual in 00:48:50.750 --> 00:48:53.969 that it emerges through a complicated series 00:48:53.969 --> 00:48:57.750 of secret meetings and liaisons and then a masked 00:48:57.750 --> 00:49:01.300 event where Hardrada is presumably following 00:49:01.300 --> 00:49:04.659 what he thinks is Zoe and finds the emperor indulging 00:49:04.659 --> 00:49:07.619 in some ladies and then because oh yes yes you're 00:49:07.619 --> 00:49:09.639 wondering why I've sent Zoe to find you it's 00:49:09.639 --> 00:49:12.019 because I cannot have a son and we thought you'd 00:49:12.019 --> 00:49:14.179 make it better further than me in producing one 00:49:14.179 --> 00:49:17.659 kind of thing I thought okay right yeah sure 00:49:17.659 --> 00:49:20.360 we'll roll with that problem one big problem 00:49:20.360 --> 00:49:23.659 with this by this point and pursue what Zoe was 00:49:23.949 --> 00:49:31.250 Actually, she's well past it. She couldn't have 00:49:31.250 --> 00:49:33.989 kids full stop. You know, she only became Empress 00:49:33.989 --> 00:49:37.789 when she was about 50, I think it was. So every 00:49:37.789 --> 00:49:40.349 husband, every man who married her did it for 00:49:40.349 --> 00:49:44.550 the power not to have children with her. She 00:49:44.550 --> 00:49:48.789 has a habit of taking younger lovers. Yeah. And 00:49:48.789 --> 00:49:53.159 I think in Hamish Kriegler saga, um it talks 00:49:53.159 --> 00:49:55.920 about a lady of the court um sets harold free 00:49:55.920 --> 00:49:59.699 when he's been imprisoned yeah um and kind of 00:49:59.699 --> 00:50:02.500 looking through the sources it's very probable 00:50:02.500 --> 00:50:08.579 that he leads the verangian um escort of i think 00:50:08.579 --> 00:50:12.780 uh empress zoe's sister probably goes to um jerusalem 00:50:12.780 --> 00:50:17.099 um and he's taking the um stonemasons who'll 00:50:17.099 --> 00:50:21.460 build the uh church the holy sepulchre Um, so 00:50:21.460 --> 00:50:24.780 Harold, I think, um, is possibly Zoe's lover. 00:50:25.059 --> 00:50:27.820 Um, but he's, he's possibly, he's, he definitely 00:50:27.820 --> 00:50:31.739 has a connection with the royal court. Um, and, 00:50:31.880 --> 00:50:35.380 uh, you know, it, it wouldn't be unlike, um, 00:50:35.460 --> 00:50:37.099 Empress Zoe to take a younger, you know, kind 00:50:37.099 --> 00:50:39.699 of a butch, young, uh, Varangian as a lover. 00:50:41.239 --> 00:50:46.170 Um. Well, they have their nice times, is what 00:50:46.170 --> 00:50:49.210 we shall say. They have their nice times. And 00:50:49.210 --> 00:50:51.550 unfortunately that scene following the mass ball 00:50:51.550 --> 00:50:53.869 with the Emperor divulging the real reason why 00:50:53.869 --> 00:50:56.869 he's perfectly happy for Zoe to dilly -dally 00:50:56.869 --> 00:50:59.489 with Harold. Turns out that it's not Zoe and 00:50:59.489 --> 00:51:01.510 it was just a redhead in disguise. And she then 00:51:01.510 --> 00:51:04.730 promptly slices the emperor's neck. That's the 00:51:04.730 --> 00:51:07.170 blood. Harold's there saying, help, help someone 00:51:07.170 --> 00:51:09.190 catch that woman. She's already escaped. And 00:51:09.190 --> 00:51:12.030 then, of course, Maniakos strides in saying, 00:51:12.250 --> 00:51:15.190 arrest that man. He's murdered the emperor. And 00:51:15.190 --> 00:51:19.050 thus Maniakos claims more power and has a royal, 00:51:19.369 --> 00:51:23.030 not quite royal, a Christian trial of Harold 00:51:23.030 --> 00:51:28.829 for kind of like murder and adultery. I'm not 00:51:28.829 --> 00:51:32.070 sure if Harold faced any trial, did he? Or was 00:51:32.070 --> 00:51:34.670 he just straight put into prison? That emperor, 00:51:34.670 --> 00:51:38.210 I think, was drowned in his bath, I seem to remember. 00:51:39.730 --> 00:51:42.909 I'm pretty sure he was drowned in his bath rather 00:51:42.909 --> 00:51:46.530 than having his throat slit. Michael V was the 00:51:46.530 --> 00:51:51.449 one who was blinded at a monastery. Yeah, I don't 00:51:51.449 --> 00:51:52.829 think he was drowned in his bath. He's certainly 00:51:52.829 --> 00:51:56.735 very ill. I think he has dropsy because after... 00:51:58.190 --> 00:52:01.829 After Sicily, he and Harold are on a campaign, 00:52:01.829 --> 00:52:07.690 I think, against the Bulgars and in the victory, 00:52:08.809 --> 00:52:14.909 sort of triumph parade, he is so bloated that 00:52:14.909 --> 00:52:17.630 he can barely sit on his horse and he goes not 00:52:17.630 --> 00:52:22.349 long after. And then I think Harold is accused 00:52:22.349 --> 00:52:28.320 by the next emperor who is neither he's the nephew, 00:52:28.380 --> 00:52:32.280 he's a good -looking nephew of Chief Eunuch who's 00:52:32.280 --> 00:52:34.480 brought into the palace as a kind of, you know, 00:52:34.780 --> 00:52:39.559 allure for Zoe and he accuses Harold, or Maniaki 00:52:39.559 --> 00:52:43.519 accuses Harold of not giving his due share of 00:52:43.519 --> 00:52:48.139 booty to the Byzantine court. So he's basically 00:52:48.139 --> 00:52:51.920 accused of kind of embezzling, stolen, you know, 00:52:52.219 --> 00:52:55.019 war booty, war plunder, and he's imprisoned. 00:52:55.550 --> 00:52:59.309 I mean, imprisoned is a very modern term. He's 00:52:59.309 --> 00:53:06.710 locked in a cellar of a house. I'm trying to 00:53:06.710 --> 00:53:10.989 think of the name of the game in the saga. I 00:53:10.989 --> 00:53:15.070 think it's... Is it the barracks of a cavalry 00:53:15.070 --> 00:53:19.690 unit? No. Something like that. And at the same 00:53:19.690 --> 00:53:22.630 time... The Varangians being the palace guard, 00:53:22.889 --> 00:53:27.809 they're replaced by a palace guard of Peschenegs. 00:53:29.670 --> 00:53:32.070 So there's a real kind of, essentially there's 00:53:32.070 --> 00:53:34.010 a power struggle and the Varangians get kicked 00:53:34.010 --> 00:53:38.190 out of the palace. They're very despondent and 00:53:38.190 --> 00:53:44.909 when the emperor puts Zoe in a monastery and 00:53:44.909 --> 00:53:48.230 tries to claim power himself. Then one of the 00:53:48.230 --> 00:53:52.010 palace ladies comes and releases Harold and he 00:53:52.010 --> 00:53:54.050 joins up with the Varangians who are very despondent 00:53:54.050 --> 00:53:55.650 and unhappy about being kicked out of the palace 00:53:55.650 --> 00:53:57.909 and he leads the kind of the counter -attack. 00:53:59.019 --> 00:54:01.159 I mean, just as far as we know from the slag 00:54:01.159 --> 00:54:03.699 is all true, which is the most extraordinary 00:54:03.699 --> 00:54:06.539 kind of story. Netflix missed a lot there. We 00:54:06.539 --> 00:54:09.800 just get him being in Constantinople for seven 00:54:09.800 --> 00:54:13.420 years under the same emperor, not having any 00:54:13.420 --> 00:54:14.780 of these other kind of things. We don't even 00:54:14.780 --> 00:54:16.619 see him go to Jerusalem. We see him in Syracuse 00:54:16.619 --> 00:54:18.199 and then he's in Constantinople for the rest 00:54:18.199 --> 00:54:22.639 of it. He does have his uncle from Rus. or the 00:54:22.639 --> 00:54:24.440 ruse kind of with him saying Harold why are you 00:54:24.440 --> 00:54:26.420 still here I've got your gold back at home and 00:54:26.420 --> 00:54:29.239 it's enough to buy five armies and it all feeds 00:54:29.239 --> 00:54:31.820 into of course Harold's ambition which I do kind 00:54:31.820 --> 00:54:34.900 of think was a nice touch towards him as a historical 00:54:34.900 --> 00:54:38.260 figure because he's done so much in that life 00:54:38.260 --> 00:54:42.909 all to eventually get the throne of Norway. But 00:54:42.909 --> 00:54:46.070 when Maniacus puts him on trial, Maniacus manipulates 00:54:46.070 --> 00:54:49.010 him emotionally by having his favourite three 00:54:49.010 --> 00:54:52.010 Varangians turn up. One's asked, do you know, 00:54:52.030 --> 00:54:54.389 did this man have sex with Empress Zoe? And he 00:54:54.389 --> 00:54:57.289 goes, no. And Maniacus goes, are you sure? And 00:54:57.289 --> 00:54:59.809 then he presents his beaten up girlfriend. And 00:54:59.809 --> 00:55:02.250 so Harald had rounds like, oh crumbs, my friend's 00:55:02.250 --> 00:55:04.170 either going to betray me or he's going to hate 00:55:04.170 --> 00:55:05.869 me for the rest of my life because his girlfriend 00:55:05.869 --> 00:55:08.280 gets killed effectively after this point. So 00:55:08.280 --> 00:55:11.179 Harold Hadrad and Nobly says, oh yes I did it, 00:55:11.320 --> 00:55:13.699 I raped her though so she is completely innocent, 00:55:14.360 --> 00:55:16.619 completely innocent and she should be annulled 00:55:16.619 --> 00:55:20.699 of all sin and then of course gets taken off 00:55:20.699 --> 00:55:23.500 and it doesn't go to a house, it's some kind 00:55:23.500 --> 00:55:27.710 of fortress island, goes on a boat. and he thinks 00:55:27.710 --> 00:55:30.030 he saved his friends but then Maniakis has left 00:55:30.030 --> 00:55:32.309 him an unfortunate welcoming party of his three 00:55:32.309 --> 00:55:35.590 friends all on a pole, all badly beaten up and 00:55:35.590 --> 00:55:37.949 being pennied up by crows and he's then thrown 00:55:37.949 --> 00:55:42.329 into this deep almost like hole cavern under 00:55:42.329 --> 00:55:45.670 the fortress, lower down on a net, and he finds 00:55:45.670 --> 00:55:48.889 a raven friend and some bone and decides to chisel 00:55:48.889 --> 00:55:51.329 the bone to make a bone pick and chisel his one 00:55:51.329 --> 00:55:53.769 remaining torch to make splinters, and then he 00:55:53.769 --> 00:55:56.449 uses the wine and the bread he gets to get the 00:55:56.449 --> 00:55:59.840 ravens drunk, I believe? drunk enough that they 00:55:59.840 --> 00:56:03.239 lay flat tie some tethered rope around them with 00:56:03.239 --> 00:56:05.039 the shavings he's got and then he sets them alight 00:56:05.039 --> 00:56:07.360 and he goes when all is lost what do we do we 00:56:07.360 --> 00:56:09.739 go home and then the ravens fly free with their 00:56:09.739 --> 00:56:13.159 flaming tethers and set fire to constantinople 00:56:13.159 --> 00:56:16.019 remarkably at the same time he's coming out for 00:56:16.019 --> 00:56:18.539 to face his death penalty and then he picks a 00:56:18.539 --> 00:56:21.059 fight with maniacs and maniacs gets it quite 00:56:21.059 --> 00:56:24.460 justifiably i think um because he's not a nice 00:56:24.460 --> 00:56:28.059 man from the word go really and then he just 00:56:28.059 --> 00:56:32.199 leaves then he just leaves actually when he was 00:56:32.199 --> 00:56:35.199 like justin said he was freed from his prison 00:56:35.199 --> 00:56:38.159 he fought to put empress zoe back on the throne 00:56:38.159 --> 00:56:43.659 and then he does ask to leave and the empress 00:56:43.659 --> 00:56:46.760 refuses so he has to escape and i think they 00:56:46.760 --> 00:56:49.539 missed the best bit because they didn't he escapes 00:56:49.539 --> 00:56:54.969 with two ships out of constantinople And he actually 00:56:54.969 --> 00:56:58.710 jumps, one ship gets caught, but he jumps over 00:56:58.710 --> 00:57:01.949 the chain in the harbour, jumps the ship over 00:57:01.949 --> 00:57:04.449 the chain, and I thought, I was waiting for that 00:57:04.449 --> 00:57:09.949 bit. They don't even do it. If you go to Constantinople 00:57:09.949 --> 00:57:12.690 now, there's pieces of that chain in the museum. 00:57:15.079 --> 00:57:19.360 museum. The saga has it that they row very hard 00:57:19.360 --> 00:57:21.980 towards the chain and he tells them all to run 00:57:21.980 --> 00:57:24.920 to the back of the boat and the front rears up 00:57:24.920 --> 00:57:27.639 and they stop on the chain and they all run to 00:57:27.639 --> 00:57:30.440 the front of the boat and then slip over. And 00:57:30.440 --> 00:57:33.519 the second boat, its spine or its keel breaks 00:57:33.519 --> 00:57:37.099 on the chain and it sinks with a fair portion 00:57:37.099 --> 00:57:43.840 of his treasure. The emperor who is now running 00:57:43.840 --> 00:57:46.900 Constantinople now, the kind of the nobles have 00:57:46.900 --> 00:57:50.840 taken control of Zoe and she's she's she kind 00:57:50.840 --> 00:57:54.300 of has been emasculated really she's not given 00:57:54.489 --> 00:57:57.610 they decide which of them will marry her. And 00:57:57.610 --> 00:58:00.210 she doesn't get the choice anymore. And clearly, 00:58:00.530 --> 00:58:03.329 because of course, Harold probably blinds the 00:58:03.329 --> 00:58:06.650 emperor who the previous emperor, so the emperor 00:58:06.650 --> 00:58:09.570 who puts him in prison and put Zoe in a convent 00:58:09.570 --> 00:58:12.510 is blinded. And that's probably Harold who does 00:58:12.510 --> 00:58:15.090 it. Or certainly he can have one under his command. 00:58:15.949 --> 00:58:19.110 And so I always think of the next emperor, you 00:58:19.110 --> 00:58:21.670 have this, you know, big, you know, burly foreigner 00:58:21.670 --> 00:58:25.300 who um effectively you know kind of blinded your 00:58:25.300 --> 00:58:28.280 predecessor um and again he's kind of he's too 00:58:28.280 --> 00:58:30.440 powerful and too dangerous to have hanging around 00:58:30.440 --> 00:58:34.079 um and so harold in a sense i think he's he knows 00:58:34.079 --> 00:58:37.400 his time is up there and he needs to escape um 00:58:37.400 --> 00:58:41.579 and so yeah he flees up back to kiev doesn't 00:58:41.579 --> 00:58:45.880 he but can i ask is the kind of like because 00:58:45.880 --> 00:58:48.719 i believe i've read in one of the books possibly 00:58:48.719 --> 00:58:52.420 this one how old hadrada the warrior's way um 00:58:52.809 --> 00:58:56.469 because is it an urban myth or not about him 00:58:56.469 --> 00:58:59.429 or some other viking using birds and tethers 00:58:59.429 --> 00:59:02.030 of fire to set fire to some settlement that they're 00:59:02.030 --> 00:59:06.409 trying to get into? I think it's a story in the 00:59:06.409 --> 00:59:08.929 Sicily campaign but it's a story that is repeated 00:59:08.929 --> 00:59:12.900 I mean you know I mean there's another viking 00:59:12.900 --> 00:59:15.599 story where they have the same you know um the 00:59:15.599 --> 00:59:18.019 same kind of ruse and it's a ruse that gets repeated 00:59:18.019 --> 00:59:20.400 and essentially one of those kind of medieval 00:59:20.400 --> 00:59:24.139 tropes that they like to kind of trot out um 00:59:24.139 --> 00:59:29.900 okay uh it may have happened um probably not 00:59:29.900 --> 00:59:34.219 but you know yeah I mean, I'll salute the cast 00:59:34.219 --> 00:59:36.000 for doing it because they looked like very real 00:59:36.000 --> 00:59:38.300 ravens to me. They didn't use kind of like animatronics 00:59:38.300 --> 00:59:40.699 or CGI. They were remarkably good ravens at lying 00:59:40.699 --> 00:59:43.199 still. I don't know how they talk to like a group 00:59:43.199 --> 00:59:46.659 of six ravens all to play dead effectively. You're 00:59:46.659 --> 00:59:50.760 talking about the prison because the saga has 00:59:50.760 --> 00:59:52.639 Harold in prison with two of his men and one 00:59:52.639 --> 00:59:57.519 of them is the Iceland. I think Aldor. Anyway, 00:59:57.880 --> 01:00:00.019 that the Icelander is the is the is probably 01:00:00.019 --> 01:00:04.440 the the oral source for most of the Hamis Creek, 01:00:04.440 --> 01:00:08.760 the saga about Harold because he goes after Harold 01:00:08.760 --> 01:00:12.179 returns to Norway, he goes back to Iceland and, 01:00:12.400 --> 01:00:15.860 you know, kind of these tales of, you know, birds 01:00:15.860 --> 01:00:18.719 setting fire to buildings. That's the kind of 01:00:18.719 --> 01:00:21.000 thing, you know, you would entertain, you know, 01:00:21.260 --> 01:00:24.059 other people with during the long Icelandic winters. 01:00:24.340 --> 01:00:27.219 And so. The guy who's in prison with Harold is 01:00:27.219 --> 01:00:30.199 probably the source of the oral tradition that, 01:00:30.679 --> 01:00:34.400 what, 200 years later, Snorri Sturluson writes 01:00:34.400 --> 01:00:36.119 down. Is it Snorri? I'm not sure if it is Snorri, 01:00:36.119 --> 01:00:39.500 actually. Anyway, yeah. So that's very interesting. 01:00:39.719 --> 01:00:43.579 So there's a kind of Icelandic slant to the star 01:00:43.579 --> 01:00:46.599 goes about Harold. Interesting. Yeah, and you 01:00:46.599 --> 01:00:48.639 can you can pick a bit of tension between the 01:00:48.639 --> 01:00:51.559 two characters, where Haldor's kind of, you know, 01:00:51.739 --> 01:00:56.480 holding a grudge a bit against Harold. I really 01:00:56.480 --> 01:00:59.159 should get that book and read it. I keep hearing 01:00:59.159 --> 01:01:01.579 about it but never actually read the actual original 01:01:01.579 --> 01:01:04.340 source text which is interesting. But of course 01:01:04.340 --> 01:01:06.260 in that pivotal scene where he sets the ravens 01:01:06.260 --> 01:01:08.940 free that's when he's just before he takes taken 01:01:08.940 --> 01:01:12.539 up for his supposed execution he then carves 01:01:12.539 --> 01:01:15.440 in runes and I'm not a runic expert so I can't 01:01:15.440 --> 01:01:18.230 call them or not, whether those runes are accurate, 01:01:18.349 --> 01:01:21.170 but you just write in the name Hardrada into 01:01:21.170 --> 01:01:22.829 the wall, then of course it's like sandwashed 01:01:22.829 --> 01:01:24.809 with magic into English so we know what we're 01:01:24.809 --> 01:01:27.989 looking at. And that's the first time we see 01:01:27.989 --> 01:01:29.789 it in the series, and of course this is near 01:01:29.789 --> 01:01:32.329 the end now, because then it radically skips 01:01:32.329 --> 01:01:34.710 forward to finding him in Norway. We don't see 01:01:34.710 --> 01:01:36.550 the entire trip, just like we didn't see him 01:01:36.550 --> 01:01:39.610 take the trip from Rus down to Constantinople, 01:01:39.610 --> 01:01:41.730 they just dug it. time switcheroo and getting 01:01:41.730 --> 01:01:44.570 back in into Norway just as Magnus is roaming 01:01:44.570 --> 01:01:47.510 around having offed Spain and El Gifu claiming 01:01:47.510 --> 01:01:51.599 power and interestingly enough they They show 01:01:51.599 --> 01:01:54.260 it being quite a short -lived conflict between 01:01:54.260 --> 01:01:57.340 Magnus and Harold in that the Jarls can't make 01:01:57.340 --> 01:01:59.960 up their mind. It's a 50 -50 split. So, okay, 01:02:00.239 --> 01:02:02.239 Jarls, let's... Well, the Jarls say, can you 01:02:02.239 --> 01:02:04.920 not just rule together for us? Because we want 01:02:04.920 --> 01:02:07.219 to have faith with the Pope, which Magnus apparently 01:02:07.219 --> 01:02:11.000 brings, because Harold's fling with Freydis earlier 01:02:11.000 --> 01:02:12.980 is what angered the Pope, and so he's gonna be 01:02:12.980 --> 01:02:15.519 extra communicated if he doesn't burn Freydis, 01:02:15.719 --> 01:02:18.340 because if Freydis turns up and gets captured... 01:02:18.400 --> 01:02:21.880 She's a whole other story, guys, a whole other 01:02:21.880 --> 01:02:26.199 story. The story between Magnus and Harold actually 01:02:26.199 --> 01:02:29.440 seems to be more financial. Harold had come back 01:02:29.440 --> 01:02:35.380 from Constantinople rather rich and Magnus was 01:02:35.380 --> 01:02:38.500 a king but without any money so he agreed to 01:02:38.500 --> 01:02:42.280 share the throne with Harold as I think Harold 01:02:42.280 --> 01:02:46.440 as sub -king rather than whole king. um you know 01:02:46.440 --> 01:02:49.679 under magnus um so long as harold shared his 01:02:49.679 --> 01:02:53.980 fortune with magnus really i never knew i don't 01:02:53.980 --> 01:02:56.679 know why but i thought they had a few wars or 01:02:56.679 --> 01:02:58.800 battles between them over who was going to eventually 01:02:58.800 --> 01:03:01.400 be in the neither than once then they both agree 01:03:01.400 --> 01:03:05.760 to okay we'll wait until this time did die the 01:03:05.760 --> 01:03:10.139 following year It was a very short agreement 01:03:10.139 --> 01:03:13.639 and nobody seems to know exactly how Magnus died 01:03:13.639 --> 01:03:17.000 but I'm suspecting it wasn't of natural causes. 01:03:18.440 --> 01:03:22.280 Yeah and it's interesting about Harold and the 01:03:22.280 --> 01:03:25.559 church as well because I mean as far as we know 01:03:25.559 --> 01:03:29.219 he has almost no contact with the western church 01:03:29.219 --> 01:03:33.159 but clearly a very deep contact with the eastern 01:03:33.159 --> 01:03:37.309 orthodox church. My guess is probably that he 01:03:37.309 --> 01:03:42.489 brings back, because he founds quite a few churches 01:03:42.489 --> 01:03:46.269 and cathedrals when he goes back to Norway. My 01:03:46.269 --> 01:03:48.969 hunch is that he's bringing orthodox priests 01:03:48.969 --> 01:03:53.510 or monks back with him. And he builds a cathedral 01:03:53.510 --> 01:04:00.750 in Oslo. And it's of wood. And it has a kind 01:04:00.750 --> 01:04:04.940 of double nave. It's the most extraordinary kind 01:04:04.940 --> 01:04:07.940 of church. And I do kind of think, you know, 01:04:08.000 --> 01:04:11.380 this guy has seen Hagia Sophia, which is the 01:04:11.380 --> 01:04:14.760 most sort of sublime and I think it's the largest 01:04:14.760 --> 01:04:18.699 church in Christendom until St. Paul's was built. 01:04:20.820 --> 01:04:23.639 And he must have been so impressed by that and 01:04:23.639 --> 01:04:26.090 kind of wants to, you know. wants to build something 01:04:26.090 --> 01:04:28.510 equally impressive when he gets back to Norway. 01:04:29.449 --> 01:04:30.929 Obviously he doesn't have stonemasons, but he 01:04:30.929 --> 01:04:33.690 does have, you know, woods craftsmen. And so 01:04:33.690 --> 01:04:38.269 he builds an extraordinary church, excuse me, 01:04:38.289 --> 01:04:42.250 with a double nave. And so kind of Christianizing 01:04:42.250 --> 01:04:45.670 Norway, and Christianizing in a sense of kind 01:04:45.670 --> 01:04:49.070 of, you know, impressing the locals with, you 01:04:49.070 --> 01:04:53.510 know, learning and big buildings as opposed to 01:04:53.510 --> 01:04:57.260 necessarily uh book learning um seems part of 01:04:57.260 --> 01:05:01.000 part of his kind of king king um kingly strategy 01:05:01.000 --> 01:05:07.440 i have a question one of the characters that 01:05:07.440 --> 01:05:12.059 we meet in this Valhalla is um herald hadrata's 01:05:12.059 --> 01:05:18.400 son bifritus did herald have a son he had two 01:05:18.400 --> 01:05:27.230 i think yeah He had two sons by, what was her 01:05:27.230 --> 01:05:32.429 name, Byra Arneson or something. He supposedly 01:05:32.429 --> 01:05:35.789 had two wives at the same time, Elisif and Kev. 01:05:38.630 --> 01:05:45.849 Thora, who was a Dane. And Elisif only had daughters 01:05:45.849 --> 01:05:49.909 and Thora only had sons. One of them was called 01:05:49.909 --> 01:05:54.440 Magnus. and he was the one who became King of 01:05:54.440 --> 01:06:00.219 Norway after Harold died. Interesting. He'd invaded 01:06:00.219 --> 01:06:07.360 Wales when he was about 13. As you do. I can't 01:06:07.360 --> 01:06:10.239 remember the name of the other son. I think it's 01:06:10.239 --> 01:06:12.820 Swain, but I could be wrong. He's at the Battle 01:06:12.820 --> 01:06:16.340 of Stamford Bridge, I think. And he survives, 01:06:16.500 --> 01:06:21.099 doesn't he? Yeah, I think he left Magnus in Norway. 01:06:21.420 --> 01:06:24.500 to rule whilst he came over to Stamford Bridge, 01:06:24.780 --> 01:06:28.239 well to England and yeah the other one was at 01:06:28.239 --> 01:06:32.320 Stamford Bridge. Well at last they don't show 01:06:32.320 --> 01:06:36.300 him marrying anyone but even Freydis and he's 01:06:36.300 --> 01:06:38.139 very glad he went Freydis to reunite. He survived 01:06:38.139 --> 01:06:40.239 Stamford Bridge and he was the one who was allowed 01:06:40.239 --> 01:06:46.079 to take the Norwegian and Danish warriors home. 01:06:46.380 --> 01:06:49.639 You know, he was allowed to leave in his ships 01:06:49.639 --> 01:06:53.679 even though they'd been defeated. So wasn't there 01:06:53.679 --> 01:06:57.960 a Magnus who had a deal with Harthacnut that 01:06:57.960 --> 01:07:01.800 if either of them died, they would take over, 01:07:02.619 --> 01:07:05.059 Magnus, if Harthacnut died, Magnus would take 01:07:05.059 --> 01:07:11.139 over Denmark and England. Yes, Magnus Olufsen. 01:07:13.000 --> 01:07:17.110 Yeah, they shared the throne for a year. That 01:07:17.110 --> 01:07:20.070 was Harold Hardrada's claim to England, that 01:07:20.070 --> 01:07:24.230 he was Magnus' heir, and Magnus had had this 01:07:24.230 --> 01:07:27.550 deal with Arthur Canute, whichever one lived 01:07:27.550 --> 01:07:32.510 longest, whichever one died first, the other 01:07:32.510 --> 01:07:35.309 would be his heir. So Hardrada's argument was 01:07:35.309 --> 01:07:39.309 that he was entitled to England, because he was 01:07:39.309 --> 01:07:43.579 Arthur Canute's heir as the heir of Magnus. Which 01:07:43.579 --> 01:07:47.199 always seems to be the most factuous argument. 01:07:48.880 --> 01:07:52.480 It was kind of a legalese argument that made 01:07:52.480 --> 01:07:56.820 no sense. But the only sense I can make of it 01:07:56.820 --> 01:08:02.980 is, in a sense, Harold Hardrada, his early life 01:08:02.980 --> 01:08:07.730 is dominated by Canute the Great. it kills his 01:08:07.730 --> 01:08:11.030 brother, drives him into exile, and he spends 01:08:11.030 --> 01:08:14.110 all his time in the Mediterranean. And in a sense, 01:08:14.309 --> 01:08:16.149 I kind of, anyway, I can make sense of it. He's 01:08:16.149 --> 01:08:18.649 really, he's competing with Canute's ghost, in 01:08:18.649 --> 01:08:20.829 that he wants, if Canute could conquer England, 01:08:21.369 --> 01:08:25.170 then damn it, Harold Hardrada can. Because he 01:08:25.170 --> 01:08:27.289 thinks, I mean, I think he is a much more impressive 01:08:27.289 --> 01:08:30.729 character, but he's achieved an extraordinary 01:08:30.729 --> 01:08:33.689 amount. So that's the only way that can make 01:08:33.689 --> 01:08:37.590 sense to me, you know. But I guess medieval chroniclers 01:08:37.590 --> 01:08:39.630 weren't into kind of personal psychology in the 01:08:39.630 --> 01:08:42.829 same way. They preferred these other kind of 01:08:42.829 --> 01:08:46.510 more obtuse arguments. So would he have been 01:08:46.510 --> 01:08:49.949 very amenable when Tostig turns up after having 01:08:49.949 --> 01:08:53.069 his tiff with Harold Godwinson saying, oh, can 01:08:53.069 --> 01:08:55.069 you come and save England for my brother, please? 01:08:55.210 --> 01:08:58.170 We'll make you king effectively. I think so. 01:08:58.189 --> 01:09:01.140 I think he's a bit bored. I mean, he. He comes 01:09:01.140 --> 01:09:05.079 back to Norway. He becomes king. And then he, 01:09:05.079 --> 01:09:07.239 you know, he fights some wars against the Danes. 01:09:08.359 --> 01:09:10.699 But I think he's just, you know, he's turned, 01:09:10.800 --> 01:09:13.119 I think he just turned 50. He's probably a little 01:09:13.119 --> 01:09:14.859 bit bored and just kind of like, you know, one 01:09:14.859 --> 01:09:18.859 last throw of the dice. And Tossig turns up and 01:09:18.859 --> 01:09:20.800 he thinks, you know, if Knut can do it, God damn 01:09:20.800 --> 01:09:23.939 it, I can do it. And actually, you know, his, 01:09:23.939 --> 01:09:28.720 the warriors who are with him are, you know, 01:09:28.760 --> 01:09:32.119 he's, he's you know for 1066 I always kind of 01:09:32.119 --> 01:09:33.539 say if you were a betting man you had your money 01:09:33.539 --> 01:09:37.140 on Harold Hardrada because neither William or 01:09:37.140 --> 01:09:39.260 Godwin they're both successful warriors but neither 01:09:39.260 --> 01:09:42.180 of them are kind of professional soldiers. Harold 01:09:42.180 --> 01:09:46.800 Hardrada has been part of Europe's most professional 01:09:46.800 --> 01:09:49.000 military organization which is the Byzantine 01:09:49.000 --> 01:09:53.939 Empire succeeded in it and brought back with 01:09:53.939 --> 01:09:57.880 him a kind of an elite um troop of of warriors 01:09:57.880 --> 01:10:01.140 who are with him um or within the Varangian Guard 01:10:01.140 --> 01:10:04.500 um who are battle hardened in a way that no one 01:10:04.500 --> 01:10:08.500 in western you know Christianity is yeah um and 01:10:08.500 --> 01:10:12.000 it's interesting uh there's the excavations at 01:10:12.000 --> 01:10:15.000 Fulford which is um the first battle of 1066 01:10:15.000 --> 01:10:20.739 uh there's um a scabbard, which is Byzantine 01:10:20.739 --> 01:10:23.420 scabbard, essentially. It's been found in the 01:10:23.420 --> 01:10:25.979 fort there, which has to be one of, you know, 01:10:26.100 --> 01:10:28.560 Harald Hardrada's Varangian kind of followers. 01:10:30.180 --> 01:10:33.880 Yeah, so I think, yeah, he just thinks he can 01:10:33.880 --> 01:10:40.939 do it, I can do it. Well, thinking back a few 01:10:40.939 --> 01:10:44.119 episodes, there is a nice scene where Godwin's 01:10:44.119 --> 01:10:46.239 gone to Norway to do his Norwegian thing with 01:10:46.239 --> 01:10:48.699 Harald Hefup. And Canute and Emma pay a visit 01:10:48.699 --> 01:10:51.800 to Normandy to see her sons. And of course, there 01:10:51.800 --> 01:10:54.659 we meet the slightly older than historically 01:10:54.659 --> 01:10:58.840 accurate young Duke William to be of Normandy. 01:10:59.659 --> 01:11:04.199 And he himself is quite closely pushed underfoot 01:11:04.199 --> 01:11:08.300 by, I believe, his uncle, because his father 01:11:08.300 --> 01:11:12.380 was offed or murdered in some way. On his mother's 01:11:12.380 --> 01:11:18.640 side. His father had died returning from Jerusalem. 01:11:18.859 --> 01:11:23.880 Yes, they've got Richard II there. Emma's brother 01:11:23.880 --> 01:11:26.579 is there. That's what I was going to ask you 01:11:26.579 --> 01:11:31.479 about. I was getting very confused. He's not 01:11:31.479 --> 01:11:39.130 actually in charge of anything. William Moore's 01:11:39.130 --> 01:11:44.010 brother, who's an absolute nobody, ruled England, 01:11:44.189 --> 01:11:46.909 Normandy for William. And it's like, actually 01:11:46.909 --> 01:11:49.710 there was a great big power struggle when William 01:11:49.710 --> 01:11:52.489 was young. There was one of his advisors was 01:11:52.489 --> 01:11:56.750 killed in William's bedroom while William was 01:11:56.750 --> 01:11:59.470 in bed, you know, while William was actually 01:11:59.470 --> 01:12:02.289 present. Yeah, that's what's alluded to, isn't 01:12:02.289 --> 01:12:05.729 it? He was kidnapped several occasions with people. 01:12:06.170 --> 01:12:09.609 knowing that having hold of the Duke means you're 01:12:09.609 --> 01:12:14.390 in charge. So, it was funny that Emma's brother's 01:12:14.390 --> 01:12:18.829 there and he's like, he's nobody as far as ruling 01:12:18.829 --> 01:12:21.369 is concerned. He's like, shouldn't he be dead 01:12:21.369 --> 01:12:27.850 by now? Yeah, it's an interesting family tree 01:12:27.850 --> 01:12:32.409 that needs to detangle or untangle. Well, I thought 01:12:32.409 --> 01:12:36.819 it was interesting that They had Canute and Emma. 01:12:37.000 --> 01:12:40.180 They're actually traveling home from Rome and 01:12:40.180 --> 01:12:44.180 they divert to Normandy to see Edward and Alfred. 01:12:45.260 --> 01:12:48.960 And you have this dynamic between the boys and 01:12:48.960 --> 01:12:51.899 their mother where Edward hates his, resents 01:12:51.899 --> 01:12:54.479 his mother for abandoning him, which we know 01:12:54.479 --> 01:12:59.159 he did. He did. And Alfred's the more compliant 01:12:59.159 --> 01:13:02.430 son. I'm glad to see his. Whether or not Edward 01:13:02.430 --> 01:13:05.310 resented his mother that early, I don't know. 01:13:06.609 --> 01:13:08.770 He certainly makes it clear that kind of like 01:13:08.770 --> 01:13:12.689 he sees his father's throne being given away 01:13:12.689 --> 01:13:16.609 by someone else who isn't him and so on. And 01:13:16.609 --> 01:13:18.590 I think that that I think that all happens in 01:13:18.590 --> 01:13:21.529 the same episode where Godwin and Hef are having 01:13:21.529 --> 01:13:24.829 that lovely chat with. So he thought a bit about 01:13:24.829 --> 01:13:27.590 all being wanting to be king and I quite liked 01:13:27.590 --> 01:13:30.850 the scene where they have Canute have that fatherly 01:13:31.000 --> 01:13:33.000 man -to -man conversation with Edward saying 01:13:33.000 --> 01:13:36.039 you're not ready yet throw to inherited but being 01:13:36.039 --> 01:13:38.699 a king is made and I thought that was a beautiful 01:13:38.699 --> 01:13:41.939 line I thought that was really powerful um because 01:13:41.939 --> 01:13:44.899 of course Wayne Fortbeard made his kingship by 01:13:44.899 --> 01:13:48.359 offering his dad um and so it's always the alternative 01:13:48.359 --> 01:13:50.920 approaches to gaining power again the throne 01:13:50.920 --> 01:13:54.069 and kind of like the nice the nice route that's 01:13:54.069 --> 01:13:55.890 nice for everyone or the kind of like they're 01:13:55.890 --> 01:13:58.829 just off everyone as you go kind of thing and 01:13:58.829 --> 01:14:01.409 of course at the end of that scene well that 01:14:01.409 --> 01:14:06.770 episode there's Alfred, Edward and Duke William 01:14:06.770 --> 01:14:10.710 to be and they're all saying oh why are we why 01:14:10.710 --> 01:14:12.550 when are we going to have our moment when do 01:14:12.550 --> 01:14:15.689 we want our time and and it's the young William 01:14:15.689 --> 01:14:18.760 that says I am waiting for my time let them forget 01:14:18.760 --> 01:14:21.180 that you were there and then when you are old 01:14:21.180 --> 01:14:24.079 enough to technically be a man and not need shepherding 01:14:24.079 --> 01:14:27.140 around you can just trample them all over basically 01:14:27.140 --> 01:14:30.140 and I thought oh that's a nice little streak 01:14:30.140 --> 01:14:32.600 coming through because again that's another kind 01:14:32.600 --> 01:14:35.199 of that's what Godwin is effectively doing with 01:14:35.199 --> 01:14:37.600 everyone else he's and he says that it's like 01:14:37.600 --> 01:14:39.619 a figuring category he goes I always back a winner 01:14:39.619 --> 01:14:44.270 I know where to place my bets kind of thing And 01:14:44.270 --> 01:14:46.949 so I thought that I just liked the way they show 01:14:46.949 --> 01:14:50.930 these definitive political strategies, dynamics, 01:14:51.149 --> 01:14:52.949 both kind of like even with these young boys 01:14:52.949 --> 01:14:55.609 who eventually make a blood oath to that we will 01:14:55.609 --> 01:14:57.850 have our moment, we will become kings and dukes 01:14:57.850 --> 01:15:00.409 and rule the world and that kind of thing. We 01:15:00.409 --> 01:15:03.789 will wait till all these adults drop dead effectively. 01:15:06.390 --> 01:15:09.920 Excuse me. I thought that was an interesting 01:15:09.920 --> 01:15:12.159 touch, but I really liked the chat that Canute 01:15:12.159 --> 01:15:16.819 had with Edward. I really liked it. And of course, 01:15:17.020 --> 01:15:20.420 Emma says to Canute earlier before then, kind 01:15:20.420 --> 01:15:23.779 of like that Edward hates me because I married 01:15:23.779 --> 01:15:26.140 you not for the kingdom, not for him, but for 01:15:26.140 --> 01:15:30.119 me. I wanted you. And I thought, oh. That's the 01:15:30.119 --> 01:15:31.640 thing with being a woman. We can't be selfish 01:15:31.640 --> 01:15:33.199 all the time. We've got to think of everybody 01:15:33.199 --> 01:15:38.220 else. Lady Ron, she's talking to Edward as they're 01:15:38.220 --> 01:15:40.399 all saying goodbye. They've all been in Kattegat, 01:15:40.479 --> 01:15:42.279 and everyone's been assigned their role. And 01:15:42.279 --> 01:15:46.979 she says to Edward, you have to wait. I know 01:15:46.979 --> 01:15:50.180 you're going to be king, but it's not time yet. 01:15:51.020 --> 01:15:56.420 When Ethelred had several sons and... that there 01:15:56.420 --> 01:15:59.380 was no guarantee who was going to be king. So 01:15:59.380 --> 01:16:02.960 you have to wait. And yeah, I think that was 01:16:02.960 --> 01:16:07.140 very astute reference to Emma. I think that's 01:16:07.140 --> 01:16:09.420 exactly what she thought. Because she always 01:16:09.420 --> 01:16:12.000 said that she tried to promote all of her children. 01:16:12.600 --> 01:16:15.880 She tried to do whatever she could for their 01:16:15.880 --> 01:16:18.760 best interests. And we see that in that scene. 01:16:19.560 --> 01:16:21.739 Well, the other thing is, I think the... When 01:16:21.739 --> 01:16:24.399 you look at history, you know, you know, Harthacnew 01:16:24.399 --> 01:16:27.779 invites Edward, when he's king, he invites Edward 01:16:27.779 --> 01:16:31.899 to come to England and be there. And there's 01:16:31.899 --> 01:16:35.119 no way that wasn't at the instigation of Emma. 01:16:35.399 --> 01:16:39.159 Exactly. You know, you need to settle the succession 01:16:39.159 --> 01:16:42.880 now, let everybody know who's going to succeed 01:16:42.880 --> 01:16:45.439 you. And Edward is the prime candidate, you know, 01:16:45.579 --> 01:16:50.119 he's the affling. It was hard because he was 01:16:50.119 --> 01:16:52.579 too young or he didn't get married in time did 01:16:52.579 --> 01:16:59.119 he and therefore he had no hairs anyway. So yeah 01:16:59.119 --> 01:17:02.920 I think Emma must have had a hand in inviting 01:17:02.920 --> 01:17:08.439 Edward to England when he came and in guaranteeing 01:17:08.439 --> 01:17:18.739 his safety as well. On the whole I think They 01:17:18.739 --> 01:17:25.220 did paint a better picture of Emmering Cnut as 01:17:25.220 --> 01:17:27.180 the series went on, whereas Harold had rather 01:17:27.180 --> 01:17:30.039 they just had him... overly ambitious chasing 01:17:30.039 --> 01:17:31.699 all the pretty things all the wealth and then 01:17:31.699 --> 01:17:34.199 oh no you've lost it all now please go back to 01:17:34.199 --> 01:17:36.020 Norway and resume your throne and that kind of 01:17:36.020 --> 01:17:38.279 thing and he's just very kind of like gruff and 01:17:38.279 --> 01:17:40.439 butch with anyone and he says I don't recognize 01:17:40.439 --> 01:17:42.600 this Harold I see before me he goes no that Harold 01:17:42.600 --> 01:17:45.479 died back in Constantinople when all my friends 01:17:45.479 --> 01:17:47.939 died and I lost to Maniakes and that kind of 01:17:47.939 --> 01:17:51.600 thing that's almost sulking in a way I thought 01:17:51.600 --> 01:17:53.680 but you're just sulking that you lost in Constantinople 01:17:53.680 --> 01:17:56.380 and now you're being deliberately harsh on everybody 01:17:56.380 --> 01:18:01.289 else Because he does imprison Magnus within one 01:18:01.289 --> 01:18:04.489 day of them co -ruling in this series. He goes, 01:18:04.649 --> 01:18:06.729 I'm sorry, nephew, but you don't deserve that 01:18:06.729 --> 01:18:08.829 throne, you're off to prison. And then the gals 01:18:08.829 --> 01:18:10.310 are like, yes, but we asked you to co -rule. 01:18:10.369 --> 01:18:12.670 He goes, well, tough. You can either join him. 01:18:12.779 --> 01:18:15.180 or you follow me and he gets a helmet with a 01:18:15.180 --> 01:18:17.899 crown on and that's when he says his name is 01:18:17.899 --> 01:18:19.960 I am Harald Hadrada and I will make this the 01:18:19.960 --> 01:18:22.319 greatest nation in the world and then they're 01:18:22.319 --> 01:18:26.039 all shouting Hadrada, Hadrada, Hadrada which 01:18:26.039 --> 01:18:30.460 again is possibly peaking a bit too soon in his 01:18:30.460 --> 01:18:33.600 kind of kingship I think because he's not done 01:18:33.600 --> 01:18:36.020 much in the way of being a king yet apart from 01:18:36.020 --> 01:18:41.020 take a throne off his nephew. No, I think they 01:18:41.020 --> 01:18:42.960 were a bit unfair to Hard Rider in the series, 01:18:43.319 --> 01:18:46.020 actually. They didn't make him out. I mean, I'm 01:18:46.020 --> 01:18:48.340 a bit of a fan of him, though, so I, you know, 01:18:48.520 --> 01:18:52.340 I always like to see the best in him. Yeah. Yeah, 01:18:52.520 --> 01:18:54.960 I mean, I mean, as I think we've said this in 01:18:54.960 --> 01:18:57.859 nearly every, well, in all three episodes, even 01:18:57.859 --> 01:19:00.439 this one, that there was so much history both 01:19:00.439 --> 01:19:04.800 behind Leif Erikson as well as Hard Rider as 01:19:04.800 --> 01:19:06.420 well as Kanute and Emma, that they could have 01:19:06.420 --> 01:19:08.920 made them individual series just on those characters 01:19:08.920 --> 01:19:12.079 alone. They didn't need to merge them all together 01:19:12.079 --> 01:19:15.020 and have their cake and eat it. There was so 01:19:15.020 --> 01:19:17.560 much to explore and in a way I actually felt 01:19:17.560 --> 01:19:19.760 sad when at the end you thought oh because now 01:19:19.760 --> 01:19:21.399 we've got all these characters here and there 01:19:21.399 --> 01:19:23.520 is that void as we've all been saying that void 01:19:23.520 --> 01:19:25.399 in England. That would have been interesting 01:19:25.399 --> 01:19:28.039 to see how they then work it all out as chess 01:19:28.039 --> 01:19:30.920 pieces being scattered the way they were but 01:19:31.490 --> 01:19:34.010 It is what it is, Netflix have decided that was 01:19:34.010 --> 01:19:36.270 enough. So that was enough. So you do wonder 01:19:36.270 --> 01:19:40.949 if they didn't get to the end of the final episode 01:19:40.949 --> 01:19:43.810 and go, actually, if they don't renew this for 01:19:43.810 --> 01:19:48.310 another season, phew, because we have got everything 01:19:48.310 --> 01:19:51.289 so mixed up and muddled up. I'm not quite sure 01:19:51.289 --> 01:19:56.649 how we can get to 1066, honestly. Don't you think 01:19:56.649 --> 01:19:58.949 that they probably knew by the time they wrote 01:19:58.949 --> 01:20:02.310 that final episode they knew it was was not going 01:20:02.310 --> 01:20:04.670 to be continued Yeah, so they had to figure out 01:20:04.670 --> 01:20:09.310 a way to tie up What the loose ends that they 01:20:09.310 --> 01:20:12.649 had I think I think that was probably what was 01:20:12.649 --> 01:20:16.210 going on, but I wanted to say Sharon I really 01:20:16.210 --> 01:20:20.599 thought that Harold all through the whole show 01:20:20.599 --> 01:20:24.439 was the manliest. I mean, so many horrible things 01:20:24.439 --> 01:20:27.619 happened to him. He was constantly fighting and, 01:20:27.619 --> 01:20:31.479 you know, he was just, and constantly winning, 01:20:31.840 --> 01:20:33.960 constantly winning, you know, building up towards 01:20:33.960 --> 01:20:36.920 this Harold Hadrada when he finally sits on the 01:20:36.920 --> 01:20:42.260 throne and boom, I'm it. He was quite a good 01:20:42.260 --> 01:20:45.800 looking guy. He is, and I will say this, I was 01:20:45.800 --> 01:20:48.159 actually before, a few days before this recording, 01:20:48.819 --> 01:20:51.640 I watched a clip and you can find it on the BAFTA's 01:20:51.640 --> 01:20:53.960 YouTube channel of the actor, I can't remember 01:20:53.960 --> 01:20:56.939 his name, sorry, Harold Harad, I'll just call 01:20:56.939 --> 01:20:59.420 you a character's name, but he was talking about 01:20:59.420 --> 01:21:01.640 going into that role and he was given a script 01:21:01.640 --> 01:21:03.640 and he thought, oh gums, how am I gonna do the 01:21:03.640 --> 01:21:05.340 accent? Because of course he's actually English, 01:21:05.399 --> 01:21:08.840 he's not. of any Scandinavian descent, like some 01:21:08.840 --> 01:21:12.640 of the cast are. Because Freydis is, and Leif, 01:21:12.819 --> 01:21:16.619 I think, is, I think. Or did he have a nosy accent? 01:21:18.300 --> 01:21:20.380 But he was, then he started thinking, oh, I quite 01:21:20.380 --> 01:21:22.739 like the character of Godwin. He seems quite 01:21:22.739 --> 01:21:25.260 kind of like... cool and manipulative and shadowy 01:21:25.260 --> 01:21:27.079 but then everyone could say no don't pass up 01:21:27.079 --> 01:21:29.500 Harada it's the chance of a lifetime go for Harada 01:21:29.500 --> 01:21:32.199 so he went for it and then they were doing their 01:21:32.199 --> 01:21:34.220 filming and they were meant to film some kind 01:21:34.220 --> 01:21:36.079 of battle encampment scene but there'd been a 01:21:36.079 --> 01:21:38.880 storm the tents had been ruined it was mudlogged 01:21:38.880 --> 01:21:41.899 and this was also during the era just after Covid 01:21:41.899 --> 01:21:44.220 lift -outs were just starting to pull up a bit 01:21:44.220 --> 01:21:46.380 so they had to find a small space and a small 01:21:46.380 --> 01:21:48.359 number of cast members to do a scene and the 01:21:48.359 --> 01:21:50.880 first scene he got to do in his role was when 01:21:50.880 --> 01:21:53.300 him and Freydis coupled together that first night 01:21:53.300 --> 01:21:56.960 in Kattegat. And I thought, wow, what a way to 01:21:56.960 --> 01:22:01.319 start your journey as Harold Hadrod is bedding 01:22:01.319 --> 01:22:06.979 a beautiful woman. But yes, I think he did it 01:22:06.979 --> 01:22:11.619 really well. And considering it's his big first 01:22:11.619 --> 01:22:15.380 role, I thought he did wonderfully. just like 01:22:15.380 --> 01:22:17.460 you could go through clips of him just contradicting, 01:22:17.500 --> 01:22:19.779 I'm Harold Sigurdsson, I'm Harold Sigurdsson, 01:22:19.840 --> 01:22:21.699 I'm Harold Sigurdsson. He just says it with such 01:22:21.699 --> 01:22:24.100 relish and you kind of like get the sense of 01:22:24.100 --> 01:22:26.260 the character just through those words. Relief, 01:22:26.380 --> 01:22:29.140 I was like, you're just a man who has no real 01:22:29.140 --> 01:22:31.079 goal in life, you're having a mid -life crisis 01:22:31.079 --> 01:22:33.699 that's lasting three seasons, you need to find 01:22:33.699 --> 01:22:37.380 a reason to go west and go west. Freydis, we 01:22:37.380 --> 01:22:39.020 haven't really talked much about her, partly 01:22:39.020 --> 01:22:42.060 because I don't know much about her story or 01:22:42.060 --> 01:22:44.859 Greenland. apart from the Vikings were in Greenland 01:22:44.859 --> 01:22:47.300 and her father was Eric the Red. Eric the Red 01:22:47.300 --> 01:22:51.579 turns out to be a bit of a dominating guy. He 01:22:51.579 --> 01:22:53.500 doesn't want anyone to leave Greenland. He wants 01:22:53.500 --> 01:22:56.439 everyone to come to Greenland, even though it's 01:22:56.439 --> 01:23:00.319 a SHIT place to live. He was exiled to Greenland, 01:23:00.439 --> 01:23:03.119 wasn't he? He didn't go there by choice. He was 01:23:03.119 --> 01:23:07.399 exiled. He had to leave. And he couldn't go back. 01:23:08.390 --> 01:23:10.710 He eludes that because he says, oh, welcome people 01:23:10.710 --> 01:23:12.729 of Jonsberg. I know what it's like to lose your 01:23:12.729 --> 01:23:14.970 home and your things, but welcome to my home. 01:23:15.470 --> 01:23:17.189 But of course, Freydis wants to keep going to 01:23:17.189 --> 01:23:19.010 find the land in the West because that's what 01:23:19.010 --> 01:23:21.390 she was told by the CRS and Stig has convinced 01:23:21.390 --> 01:23:23.850 her that that's where they're meant to be. But 01:23:23.850 --> 01:23:25.470 Eric's like, no, there is no place in the West. 01:23:25.569 --> 01:23:27.390 You must keep your boats and your supplies here 01:23:27.390 --> 01:23:28.989 and your people here. We need people for the 01:23:28.989 --> 01:23:33.689 settlement and everything else. So she gets in 01:23:33.689 --> 01:23:37.680 quite a... family dilemma of wills against her 01:23:37.680 --> 01:23:39.960 father and he eventually kidnaps her son and 01:23:39.960 --> 01:23:43.319 sends him to live with some Inuit -type folk 01:23:43.319 --> 01:23:48.300 further up north. So yeah, but that was never 01:23:48.300 --> 01:23:49.680 resolved either by the end of the season. She's 01:23:49.680 --> 01:23:52.920 a very interesting character. I think there's 01:23:52.920 --> 01:23:56.199 two sagas that she appears in and one she's kind 01:23:56.199 --> 01:23:58.880 of the baddie and one she's the goodie. So it's 01:23:58.880 --> 01:24:03.090 really interesting. There's yeah they're called 01:24:03.090 --> 01:24:04.789 now but there's there's two kind of versions 01:24:04.789 --> 01:24:11.989 of her and I think she's the one who when they're 01:24:11.989 --> 01:24:17.970 in Vinland or what is now North America the story 01:24:17.970 --> 01:24:21.119 goes that one of the the locals tries to take 01:24:21.119 --> 01:24:24.760 some beads or something and a fight breaks out 01:24:24.760 --> 01:24:28.180 and the Vikings are on the run but she she bears 01:24:28.180 --> 01:24:30.920 her breasts and slaps her breasts with a sword 01:24:30.920 --> 01:24:34.859 and that terrifies the locals and they run off 01:24:34.859 --> 01:24:38.939 so so she seems like she seems like kind of the 01:24:38.939 --> 01:24:41.819 person you want to sit down and have a have a 01:24:41.819 --> 01:24:44.279 kind of you know a drink with because of course 01:24:44.279 --> 01:24:46.560 in the saga where she's a baddie i think she 01:24:46.560 --> 01:24:49.640 kills she kills kind of four vikings with an 01:24:49.640 --> 01:24:55.579 axe yeah so uh yeah we don't get any of that 01:24:55.579 --> 01:24:58.539 unfortunately we get a strong woman protagonist 01:24:58.539 --> 01:25:02.039 get woman leading a whole flock of people um 01:25:02.039 --> 01:25:04.119 but then she comes against her father and there's 01:25:04.119 --> 01:25:07.300 just the whole issue of conflict and she flees 01:25:07.550 --> 01:25:11.149 Greenland go to Kattegat to find a new boat because 01:25:11.149 --> 01:25:14.430 Eric's got their boat and the new captain because 01:25:14.430 --> 01:25:17.670 Eric killed their captain so she's got no physical 01:25:17.670 --> 01:25:21.289 means of getting to beyond Greenland. So she 01:25:21.289 --> 01:25:23.130 goes to Kattegat and that's where she gets captured. 01:25:23.430 --> 01:25:26.569 Magnus Olufsson's there. He's a real piece of 01:25:26.569 --> 01:25:29.350 work. He's probably more, I think he's more evil 01:25:29.350 --> 01:25:31.470 than Maniacus to be honest because he's the one 01:25:31.470 --> 01:25:34.750 that off Sol Gifu off Spain and he's this on 01:25:34.750 --> 01:25:37.869 this big vendetta to make his dad, of course, 01:25:37.970 --> 01:25:42.109 Harold's brother, Olaf, a saint. He claims he's 01:25:42.109 --> 01:25:45.069 going to go to Jomsberg and find the sanctified 01:25:45.069 --> 01:25:47.390 remains of his father. He doesn't. Freydis actually 01:25:47.390 --> 01:25:49.689 traps him there and remarkably he gets his way 01:25:49.689 --> 01:25:52.909 off because he has to, because they can't leave 01:25:52.909 --> 01:25:54.750 him in Jomsberg. That's not what happened in 01:25:54.750 --> 01:25:57.029 history in Jomsberg. I don't know if it existed 01:25:57.029 --> 01:26:02.229 or not. Olaf was killed... I was going to say 01:26:02.229 --> 01:26:06.189 Olaf was killed when... Harold left, so they 01:26:06.189 --> 01:26:10.010 get the whole Olaf becoming a saint bit really 01:26:10.010 --> 01:26:15.609 very mixed up, or very unoriginal, I should say, 01:26:15.689 --> 01:26:21.670 unoriginal. There's a story that when Saint Olaf's 01:26:21.670 --> 01:26:25.390 body was dug up, Elfgyd, who was there, and she 01:26:25.390 --> 01:26:28.609 took a look at it, and supposedly it was not. 01:26:29.289 --> 01:26:33.369 brought it and she said something like he's no 01:26:33.369 --> 01:26:36.970 saint and that you have that image you have that 01:26:36.970 --> 01:26:39.489 idea there in the story where you know he comes 01:26:39.489 --> 01:26:43.850 and he says I have my father's body and he's 01:26:43.850 --> 01:26:46.329 going to be a saint she says that would be a 01:26:46.329 --> 01:26:51.890 miracle so you get that little thing going on. 01:26:52.029 --> 01:26:54.670 And of course, she and in the show in the previous 01:26:54.670 --> 01:26:57.649 episode of the previous season, she and Olaf 01:26:57.649 --> 01:27:02.789 were lovers. Yes. So one thing I wanted to say 01:27:02.789 --> 01:27:05.989 about Freitas was they really made her a warrior. 01:27:06.510 --> 01:27:10.430 And that's picking up on how we see her in Vinland 01:27:10.430 --> 01:27:13.750 as being a warrior woman. She's kind of a Lagertha 01:27:13.750 --> 01:27:16.310 character, you know, a real warrior woman. And 01:27:16.310 --> 01:27:19.300 they really picked that up that she's quite which 01:27:19.300 --> 01:27:21.399 is quite something when it comes to holding a 01:27:21.399 --> 01:27:26.960 sword. Yeah. Of course, Magnus doesn't find his 01:27:26.960 --> 01:27:30.359 dad's body because he gets a bit stuck in Jomsberg. 01:27:30.720 --> 01:27:33.199 So he decides to off one of his men and then 01:27:33.199 --> 01:27:36.760 absolutely butcher the face and the head. So 01:27:36.760 --> 01:27:38.819 you couldn't really tell if it was Olaf or not. 01:27:39.220 --> 01:27:41.739 He just happens to have his cross, which was 01:27:41.739 --> 01:27:43.460 a remarkable find. I don't know why they kept 01:27:43.460 --> 01:27:45.380 the cross, but they did apparently in Jomsberg. 01:27:45.420 --> 01:27:51.100 And that's what they left behind. So of course 01:27:51.100 --> 01:27:53.260 he's there going on about this. And as you say, 01:27:53.319 --> 01:27:56.119 Yom Gifu says, well, he was no saint anyway, 01:27:56.760 --> 01:28:01.119 kind of thing. So yes, I think, I know I think 01:28:01.119 --> 01:28:02.979 I've covered all the things that I liked or didn't 01:28:02.979 --> 01:28:04.619 like. Has anyone else got any last pointers? 01:28:05.640 --> 01:28:09.880 I just want to say, I think Jomsberg did exist. 01:28:10.720 --> 01:28:16.020 And we know that Knut was sent his son Sven there. 01:28:16.729 --> 01:28:19.449 at some point and possibly else keep you with 01:28:19.449 --> 01:28:25.770 him at some point in, you know, in, in that period 01:28:25.770 --> 01:28:29.130 in the, in the 10 thirties, early 10 thirties 01:28:29.130 --> 01:28:33.670 or late 10 twenties. That that was that he, he 01:28:33.670 --> 01:28:36.350 had stuff going on in the Baltic and that's where 01:28:36.350 --> 01:28:40.510 Jomsburg is at the top of Germany, Poland area. 01:28:40.829 --> 01:28:45.029 So yeah, it existed. I did wonder if it was them 01:28:45.029 --> 01:28:47.909 alluding to the Joms Vikings, which I believe 01:28:47.909 --> 01:28:51.630 were actual people. That's where they were, was 01:28:51.630 --> 01:28:54.649 in Jomsburg, yeah. My brain was putting two and 01:28:54.649 --> 01:29:00.539 two together and getting four, that's good. I 01:29:00.539 --> 01:29:03.119 did like the way they referred to Cnut as Cnut 01:29:03.119 --> 01:29:05.380 the Great because there are not many people in 01:29:05.380 --> 01:29:08.359 Britain who actually know that he has the epithet 01:29:08.359 --> 01:29:11.220 the Great and that there are two kings of England 01:29:11.220 --> 01:29:15.329 known as the Great, Alfred and Cnut. Because 01:29:15.329 --> 01:29:17.590 Emma also calls him like Emperor of the North, 01:29:17.729 --> 01:29:20.630 doesn't she? And I play my book, but not mine. 01:29:20.689 --> 01:29:23.130 I didn't write it, I'd ask. But the one I've 01:29:23.130 --> 01:29:25.210 read about Canute is called Canute Emperor of 01:29:25.210 --> 01:29:28.630 the North. So there are good books out there, 01:29:28.689 --> 01:29:29.909 dear viewers and listeners, and watch as that 01:29:29.909 --> 01:29:31.569 if you want to find out the truth behind these 01:29:31.569 --> 01:29:33.609 remarkable cast of characters, I implore you 01:29:33.609 --> 01:29:35.090 to go read them, as well as the wonderful fiction 01:29:35.090 --> 01:29:37.430 written by our friends, Patricia and Justin. 01:29:37.550 --> 01:29:40.609 Because Justin has written Sheenal Wool about 01:29:40.609 --> 01:29:43.189 Godwin. And he's also written Viking Fire, which 01:29:43.189 --> 01:29:45.869 I do have. It's just living up with the big spiders. 01:29:46.170 --> 01:29:48.250 So it's it's doing a job of protecting me from 01:29:48.250 --> 01:29:50.170 the big spiders at the minute. Yeah, it's totally 01:29:50.170 --> 01:29:53.210 gone. Viking Fire. The end of Reddy and Reddy's 01:29:53.210 --> 01:29:57.109 reign. And if you might need something to kind 01:29:57.109 --> 01:29:59.989 of scratch your itch for Vikings after this. 01:30:00.350 --> 01:30:02.079 And if you haven't, you know. gone through the 01:30:02.079 --> 01:30:05.199 sagas, and any of your viewers or listeners, 01:30:05.739 --> 01:30:08.100 I heartily recommend it. You know, they're surprisingly 01:30:08.100 --> 01:30:10.439 readable. Usually you get past the first couple 01:30:10.439 --> 01:30:14.159 of chapters, which is long lists of things. And 01:30:14.159 --> 01:30:16.659 they're surprisingly like a modern novel and, 01:30:16.659 --> 01:30:19.560 you know, kind of great characters, tons of female 01:30:19.560 --> 01:30:22.460 characters in a way that we just don't see them 01:30:22.460 --> 01:30:25.159 until, I don't know, until kind of, you know, 01:30:25.520 --> 01:30:29.060 the 17th century. You know, rounded, interesting, 01:30:29.319 --> 01:30:31.979 fascinating characters. kinds of stories from 01:30:31.979 --> 01:30:36.260 the Viking world. So what title would you recommend 01:30:36.260 --> 01:30:38.560 then for us to go to? Is it the Home -Scrangler 01:30:38.560 --> 01:30:41.859 or the Book of Kings, whatever it's called? I 01:30:41.859 --> 01:30:43.680 wouldn't go with that. I'd go with Nyarl's Saga 01:30:43.680 --> 01:30:48.619 or the Saga of Burnt Nyarl, which is my favourite 01:30:48.619 --> 01:30:52.899 of the sagas. Then if Patricia or Sharon have 01:30:52.899 --> 01:30:55.840 one you recommend. Thank you very much. I will 01:30:55.840 --> 01:30:58.810 indeed add that to my blog list. specific names, 01:30:58.810 --> 01:31:01.529 unfortunately, but I just went for, I just Googled 01:31:01.529 --> 01:31:06.569 Snorri Sturluson and I got a few of them and 01:31:06.569 --> 01:31:10.090 they're actually available online. It's like, 01:31:10.210 --> 01:31:12.430 they're great to go through. They're brilliant 01:31:12.430 --> 01:31:16.649 to read. Yeah. And there's Lacthyla Saga, which 01:31:16.649 --> 01:31:18.710 is, that's a shorter one, which is maybe a nice 01:31:18.710 --> 01:31:23.409 place to start. The people of the Valley of the 01:31:23.409 --> 01:31:29.579 Lacks, I think. If you go to Iceland, a lot of 01:31:29.579 --> 01:31:32.180 these places, I mean, you can visit them because 01:31:32.180 --> 01:31:36.020 they're all, I mean, they haven't moved. They're 01:31:36.020 --> 01:31:41.880 still there. I mean, I know, Patricia, you've 01:31:41.880 --> 01:31:43.979 been recently in the UK visiting and touring 01:31:43.979 --> 01:31:46.500 some sites that Emma and Canute have been to. 01:31:46.659 --> 01:31:48.840 You went to Winchester, which of course is real, 01:31:49.359 --> 01:31:51.619 and the cathedral has a lot of connections to 01:31:51.619 --> 01:31:54.710 Emma and Canute, does it not? It does, it does. 01:31:54.949 --> 01:31:58.250 I found out something recently that when I was 01:31:58.250 --> 01:32:00.670 in, I was in Shaftesbury and when I got home, 01:32:00.949 --> 01:32:03.829 which is where Knut died, when I got home I discovered 01:32:03.829 --> 01:32:06.649 that there's a glass bowl and it's the only glass 01:32:06.649 --> 01:32:10.229 bowl intact from that period and it was in Shaftesbury. 01:32:10.390 --> 01:32:12.609 They discovered it and they think that Knut's 01:32:12.609 --> 01:32:16.869 heart was in there and the people from Winchester 01:32:16.869 --> 01:32:19.989 said thanks we'll have that and they They took 01:32:19.989 --> 01:32:22.510 it to Winchester, but I didn't see it in Winchester 01:32:22.510 --> 01:32:24.789 when I was there. They had this thing on the 01:32:24.789 --> 01:32:27.350 Anglo -Saxons and I didn't see that. So I don't 01:32:27.350 --> 01:32:29.590 know where it is, but I'm sure it's somewhere 01:32:29.590 --> 01:32:34.409 in the cathedral. That was the one last thing 01:32:34.409 --> 01:32:40.250 about the series. They gave you a Viking funeral. 01:32:41.210 --> 01:32:50.689 Oh gosh, yes, we forgot that bit. Yes, with treasure, 01:32:50.909 --> 01:32:52.649 there was actual treasure on that ship and I'm 01:32:52.649 --> 01:32:54.569 like, she would not have said that to the bottom 01:32:54.569 --> 01:32:58.710 of the sea, she would have kept it surely. But 01:32:58.710 --> 01:33:01.750 yes, I wasn't sure if we were seeing a vision 01:33:01.750 --> 01:33:03.970 of Emma's mind or if she really had kind of like. 01:33:04.420 --> 01:33:06.399 put someone else in the coffin and just told 01:33:06.399 --> 01:33:09.520 no one to open up the coffin. Don't look at the 01:33:09.520 --> 01:33:11.859 coffin. Your father is dead. He's happier as 01:33:11.859 --> 01:33:13.340 he is. Don't look at him. Don't look at him, 01:33:13.760 --> 01:33:18.199 children. Kind of thing. But yes, that was an 01:33:18.199 --> 01:33:20.779 interesting one because of course the burning 01:33:20.779 --> 01:33:24.159 arrow just makes me think of Robin Hood because 01:33:24.159 --> 01:33:27.340 that's the legend of him firing an arrow off 01:33:27.340 --> 01:33:31.560 and saying bury me there. But yes, that was an 01:33:31.560 --> 01:33:34.010 interesting one, but he didn't. in a ship. He 01:33:34.010 --> 01:33:37.010 was genuinely buried in a Christian burial. His 01:33:37.010 --> 01:33:39.369 bones, along with Emma's and Hathkenut's, were 01:33:39.369 --> 01:33:42.529 in caskets in Winchester Cathedral, all happily 01:33:42.529 --> 01:33:44.369 resting in their rightful place until the Civil 01:33:44.369 --> 01:33:47.949 War in England, and I think it was the parliamentarians 01:33:47.949 --> 01:33:50.489 that raided the cathedral. and started throwing 01:33:50.489 --> 01:33:52.369 all the bones about, and then people picked them 01:33:52.369 --> 01:33:54.210 up and cut them all mixed up. But then only just 01:33:54.210 --> 01:33:57.949 now started being put together. I believe you 01:33:57.949 --> 01:34:01.670 saw a woman's bones laid out in Winchester Cathedral. 01:34:01.789 --> 01:34:04.750 Did you not, Patricia? Yes, I did. And they still 01:34:04.750 --> 01:34:07.890 are not willing until they get actual DNA confirmation 01:34:07.890 --> 01:34:12.649 to say that it's Emma's bones. And of course, 01:34:12.850 --> 01:34:15.090 Sharon, I'm sure will agree with me that. their 01:34:15.090 --> 01:34:18.069 Emma's bones, because there's only one woman 01:34:18.069 --> 01:34:23.770 buried among those royals and bishops. And I'm 01:34:23.770 --> 01:34:25.510 hoping that they can figure out, because they 01:34:25.510 --> 01:34:28.050 have Hartha Knute's, Emma's and Knute's, that 01:34:28.050 --> 01:34:31.689 they can do some DNA research and connect the 01:34:31.689 --> 01:34:35.770 dots, essentially, and verify that those are 01:34:35.770 --> 01:34:40.939 Emma's bones. I believe you very kindly showed 01:34:40.939 --> 01:34:43.159 photos of it in your newsletters, which people 01:34:43.159 --> 01:34:45.060 do subscribe to. She's always showing wonderful 01:34:45.060 --> 01:34:47.319 tales and adventures. It's interesting to see 01:34:47.319 --> 01:34:50.439 how it's not a complete skeleton by any means. 01:34:50.579 --> 01:34:53.859 I think even her lower jaw is missing. Yes, well, 01:34:54.159 --> 01:34:56.479 they probably picked up the skull and threw it, 01:34:56.760 --> 01:34:59.819 but there is a real mystery because there's a 01:34:59.819 --> 01:35:02.659 hole in the top of her head. in the top of the 01:35:02.659 --> 01:35:05.159 skull and I have yet to be able to find anyone 01:35:05.159 --> 01:35:07.920 who can explain that to me. I've written to the 01:35:07.920 --> 01:35:10.260 woman who was in charge of it she's at University 01:35:10.260 --> 01:35:12.640 Dublin now and she hasn't gotten back to me and 01:35:12.640 --> 01:35:14.939 I'm still trying to figure I'm going to be talking 01:35:14.939 --> 01:35:17.479 to a pathologist about showing him the picture 01:35:17.479 --> 01:35:21.699 and saying what is that? So we'll find out or 01:35:21.699 --> 01:35:23.619 maybe we won't find out who knows it may just 01:35:23.619 --> 01:35:26.199 be a forever mystery. Yeah I guess it depends 01:35:26.199 --> 01:35:28.100 on the funding and the people willing to do the 01:35:28.100 --> 01:35:31.430 research and whether there's the the demand for 01:35:31.430 --> 01:35:32.890 such knowledge because of course this all takes 01:35:32.890 --> 01:35:35.609 money and time and resources and that kind of 01:35:35.609 --> 01:35:37.289 thing but I for one if it was on Kickstarter 01:35:37.289 --> 01:35:39.909 I'd throw money at it just saying let's get Kickstarter 01:35:39.909 --> 01:35:43.069 going to identify the bones Kickstarter for DNA 01:35:43.069 --> 01:35:47.130 testing of the royal family um well uh gosh we 01:35:47.130 --> 01:35:49.659 time has flown Time has really flown and again, 01:35:49.760 --> 01:35:52.279 I've really enjoyed talking to all three of you 01:35:52.279 --> 01:35:55.380 about this series, the good, the bad, the in 01:35:55.380 --> 01:35:58.399 -between, the ugly, the nice, the powerful, the 01:35:58.399 --> 01:36:00.840 evocative, and of course, learning about the 01:36:00.840 --> 01:36:04.020 genuine history behind all that inspired this 01:36:04.020 --> 01:36:07.479 interpretation. Very strong word, interpretation. 01:36:07.710 --> 01:36:09.670 of history, ladies and gentlemen. Do not go to 01:36:09.670 --> 01:36:11.569 that series and believe you're learning everything 01:36:11.569 --> 01:36:13.590 you need to know to do GCSE history because you're 01:36:13.590 --> 01:36:17.069 not. By any means not. Do not quote from it. 01:36:17.430 --> 01:36:21.069 You will confuse your teacher immensely. But 01:36:21.069 --> 01:36:23.770 yes, they are wonderful books. I will have links 01:36:23.770 --> 01:36:25.829 to these wonderful people down in the description 01:36:25.829 --> 01:36:29.069 below. And of course, if you haven't seen season 01:36:29.069 --> 01:36:31.689 three yet and have watched it till now, well... 01:36:32.170 --> 01:36:35.069 Spoilers! We did warn you! But either way I hope 01:36:35.069 --> 01:36:36.810 you then come back to this after watching it 01:36:36.810 --> 01:36:39.729 and find it more illuminating. But hopefully 01:36:39.729 --> 01:36:42.489 maybe another Viking thing will come up soon 01:36:42.489 --> 01:36:45.050 and we will get together and talk and I'm sure 01:36:45.050 --> 01:36:47.930 I for one am of course much awaiting Patricia's 01:36:47.930 --> 01:36:50.170 upcoming fourth book. She is beavering away at 01:36:50.170 --> 01:36:52.409 it and then for a fact that was why she was doing 01:36:52.409 --> 01:36:54.789 all her lovely research visits when she was over 01:36:54.789 --> 01:36:56.810 in England and of course Sharon's got another 01:36:56.810 --> 01:37:00.840 new book out this year. on women in royal history. 01:37:01.739 --> 01:37:04.760 Is it the ones in Scotland, the Scottish? Scotland's 01:37:04.760 --> 01:37:07.979 medieval queens, it's out in January. Out in 01:37:07.979 --> 01:37:11.720 January, there you go. Lady Macbeth opens it, 01:37:11.859 --> 01:37:13.699 so which is why I knew about that best visit 01:37:13.699 --> 01:37:17.239 to Rome. See, that's something I've already learnt 01:37:17.239 --> 01:37:19.020 in later life, that the Macbeth character from 01:37:19.020 --> 01:37:21.739 Shakespeare was a real figure. I had no idea 01:37:21.739 --> 01:37:25.880 at all. And totally not. and totally not the 01:37:25.880 --> 01:37:30.140 character in Shakespeare. 17 years of peaceful 01:37:30.140 --> 01:37:34.479 rule was actually Macbeth. See they don't tell 01:37:34.479 --> 01:37:36.460 you that when you study it in English UTSC. They 01:37:36.460 --> 01:37:37.880 don't tell you that at all, they just make you 01:37:37.880 --> 01:37:39.619 read all the lines and study the ins and outs 01:37:39.619 --> 01:37:41.939 of the words but not the character's background. 01:37:42.560 --> 01:37:44.520 And Lady Macbeth, she doesn't even get her name 01:37:44.520 --> 01:37:48.479 in Shakespeare. She's just called Lady Macbeth, 01:37:48.560 --> 01:37:51.739 her name's Gruul. Well she doesn't even get named. 01:37:54.720 --> 01:37:57.859 Well, I would like to, of course, offer a great 01:37:57.859 --> 01:38:00.119 big thank you to Patricia Bracewell, to Sian 01:38:00.119 --> 01:38:02.460 Bennett Connolly, and the always majestic Justin 01:38:02.460 --> 01:38:06.260 Hill for joining me in this wonderful escapade 01:38:06.260 --> 01:38:10.760 of fiction versus fact, so to speak. And I thank 01:38:10.760 --> 01:38:12.800 you all for your time again, and we hope you, 01:38:12.920 --> 01:38:14.680 dear viewers, have enjoyed it as well. Thank 01:38:14.680 --> 01:38:16.699 you very much for watching and listening wherever 01:38:16.699 --> 01:38:19.560 you are. Thank you. Thank you. Good to see you 01:38:19.560 --> 01:38:19.760 all.