So far we've talked a lot about the Norman conquest without talking very much about who the Normans were and why they (and especially one guy) wanted to conquest. Well, that changes today! How did some Vikings become French, why is that our problem over here in England, and what's wrong with being a bastard descended from a long line of bastards? Find out....

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In the third episode of our Norman Conquest series, we look at the life and times of the second of our claimants to the English throne in 1066: Harald Sigurdson, King of Norway. When a teenaged Harald's life is upended by Cnut's invasion of Norway in 1028, he builds a new life for himself as a mercenary in Kyiv, and eventually as an honour guard for the Roman Emperors themselves. Along the way, he'll have to contend with Arab armies, a sexually voracious Empress, and even a giant serpent. It's a pulpy, action-packed adventure story for the whole family!

Assuming any of that is true, anyway. Which... eh. We'll get into it.

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Music used: "Olav Trygvason", recorded by GULDBERGS AKADEMISKE KOR (https://archive.org/details/78_olav-trygvason_guldbergs-akademiske-kor-f-a-reissiger-arild-sandvold_gbia7026768b)

Thanks to the efforts of Alfred the Great and his descendants, England enters the new millennium as united kingdom. However, trouble is brewing: the Vikings have returned, and their leader, Sweyn Forkbeard, has designs on the English throne. What follows is a bloody tale of intrigue, with more mysterious deaths than a series of The Traitors. Expect an unready king, people marrying their dead enemies' wives, and the rise of a newly-minted dynasty that you might have heard of: the Godwinsons.