Blood of the Vikings
Blood of the Vikings was a five-part 2001 BBC Television documentary series that traced the legacy of the Vikings in the British Isles through a genetics survey. Production The series was presented by Julian Richards who has a long-held fascination with the Vikings. Geneticist Professor David Goldstein, from University College London, lead the 15-month study that compared mouth swabs from 2,500 male volunteers from 25 different locations across the country with DNA samples from Scandinavian locals to find out how much Viking heritage remains in the UK. The study traced the past movements of peoples to discover how many Vikings stayed after the raids. The study of history and archaeology alone could not answer this question. BBC Two Controller Jane Root described the station's work with UCL as a unique, nationwide project. The research confirmed that the Vikings did not just raid and retreat to Scandinavia, but settled in Britain for years. They left their genetic pattern in some parts of the UK population. Concentrations of Norwegian genetic heritage were found in part of Cumbria in northwest England, the area around Penrith, the Shetland and Orkney Islands and the far north of the Scottish mainland. In addition the research revealed