My surname means ‘red pig’, because my ancestors – viking invaders – were red-haired and enjoyed their food a little too much. Makes perfect ancestorial sense to anyone who knows me.

Even so, I don’t have a deep-felt urge to re-enact my forefathers’ battles in period body armour. If you do, however, you should check out Manchester’s own Ydalir Vikings society:

Ydalir is the Manchester group of The Vikings, the UK’s oldest and largest Dark Age re-enactment society.

Ydalir (yoo daal aer) n. In Norse mythology Ydalir (‘Yew Dales’) was the home of Ull the winter god. Ydalir was noted for being eternally damp. As we are based in Manchester, a place also noted for prodigious rainfall, we chose Ydalir Vikings as an approprite name.

They hold about half a dozen events each month, including combat displays, period crafts and, er, society banquets. They also run an educational programme for schools and make voyages to – you guessed it – Norway.

Check out their website, and particularly the gallery, to get a better ideal of what Ydalir Vikings are all about.