"For everything there is a season and for every matter under the sun. A time to be born, and a time to die..."

I have a confession to make...
Hi, my name is Maddie and I haven't seen a single episode of Vikings Season 3 yet :(

I know, this is horrible but it hasn't aired in Ireland yet. And all my great attempts at streaming it online have failed. Even further, despite all my best efforts to ignore all clips and spoilers, I have failed miserably to keep Season 3 a complete surprise for when I do eventually get to watch it. Trying to avoid spoilers on Twitter and Facebook is like trying to dodge the Black Death in the great outbreak in the latter stages of the 1340's...fecking impossible!!

And, in a little bit of a selfish rant, I firmly believe that a new distribution/airing policy should be adopted for situations like this. If you shoot a TV show in a particular country, that's the country it should air in first. Yup, that's my viewpoint and I'm sticking to it. History, sort this out...please...and thank you...if it's not too much hassle...I'm sorry...forget I mentioned it...don't hate me :)

*SPOILER ALERT* (if you just so happen to not know the following, then congratulations, you have way more patience and restraint than I do!)

I know of the passing of Athelstan, to understate the situation completely. This will be a huge loss to the show. It was such a great story line to see him grapple with his beliefs, both his religious struggle and his own personal moral stuggle. And the dynamic of his relationship with Ragnar. This also opens up an interesting new story arc for Travis Fimmel's character as to what he will do without his confidante and, ultimately, his only true friend. After all, Athelstan truely understood and shared Ragnar's curious and worldly nature. What's in store? Only The Seer knows...

Back to my Viking training, I've been busy trying to improve on my Viking-ness. Cast your mind back to Christmas morn(and my first blog post...aw, we've come so far and made so many fond memories already!) and tackling one of the first major hurdles in this journey to becoming a Viking Extra-ordinaire: icy cold water. Getting used to the conditions real Vikings would have had to face in their daily lives when fishing or exploring. You might remember I willingly(but not so gracefully) threw myself into the freezing, December waters of the Barrow along with some other brave souls. To continue on this trend I decided that, since the Vikings would have had to face some crazy and unpredictable situations like storms on the high seas and rough sailing conditions, I would try something that involved choppy water and something scary. So on my travels in New Zealand I got all suited and booted for a rafting adventure. Yes, I clung tight to a inflated piece of rubber that I trusted to get me safely down the Kaituna River through rough rapids and down the highest commercially rafted waterfall in the world...a 7.5 meter drop! I have to say the whole thing was far less scary than I iad imagined and the adrenaline buzz was off the charts, even if we were deliberately flipped over after our descent over the waterfall. (See that arm at the right side of the picture at the front of the boat...that's me meeting the bottom of the waterfull with all its might face first and losing a contact lense in the process!)

Jumping from the raft into the fresh but warm water of the Kaituna, letting the river float you through untouched nature. Bobbing along on my back, recalling the traditional maori blessing for a safe journey and a show of respect for the water and land offered on our behalf before we disembarked, you can't help but be in awe of our great planet. With all the raiding and plundering, I wonder did the Vikings ever stop and just take it all in? For me, the journey through New Zealand was one picture perfect moment after another. So much untouched land that around every bend in the road was another spectacular view. But that moment in the river as I floated along trusting nature(and a fairly serious lifejacket) to keep me safe as I took in the unspoiled scenery, I couldn't help but wonder what amazing sights the Vikings would have come across on their travels that stopped them in their tracks, even just for a split moment.

#LikeAViking

Title Quote: Vikings Season 1 Episode 5: Raid

Athelstan praying for Ragnars recovery.

*Because it's a beautiful piece of writing by Michael Hirst, was brilliantly delivered by George Bladgen and was an important moment in the friendship of Athelstan and Ragnar, and sets out the premise for many of the storylines, here is the quote in its entirety.

"For everything there is a season and for every matter under the sun. A time to be born, and a time to die. A time to plant and to pluck up what is planted. A time to kill and a time to heal. Mary, Mother of God, listen to me. Do not let this man die!"

"I want to raid and fight. It is what I was born to do..."

So by now you've probably heard the great news, that Season 4 of Vikings is a go! And even more exciting news, that the has put out a call for 8,000 extras. Open casting days are but a few sleeps away. I, myself, will be attending on April 7th in Wicklow(hence, the title above...feeling all enthusiastic yet bricking at the same time). Shooting is commencing at the end of April. And if that didn't get you all excited, what with Season 3 not even finished airing yet, Clive Standen tweets out to stay tuned to "find out who will make it that far!" He certainly does have a knack for generating a sense of foreboding...who will make it? Who will not? Oh the anxious wait to see how it all pans out! Maybe there's a plot twist ahead. Everybody makes it...because it's set in Valhalla and they all rise again each night and feast together...and the show never ends...Or not! Just a theory.

production company

The whole point of this blog is about my little journey to becoming an extra on Vikings and now it is not even two weeks until my fate is decided. Have to admit, I got struck with a little pang of nerves when I read the press release on the Extras Facebook page. A nervous excitement really...all for the sake of being a fuzzy blur in the background. All the learning archery and swordfighting, and brushing up on rowing and horse riding. But I can't wait to go suss it out and hopefully make the cut. Sure what else would you be doing!?! Hopefully, it'll all be worth it.

In farming news, "Sheep Ragnar" has been deemed to have done the business with "Sheep Lagertha" and "Sheep Aslaug", and so, has been sent back to the farm. We now shall await the arrival of a few little lambie lambs just in time for spring.

In other kind-of-related-to-Vikings-kind-of-not-but-you'll-see-where-I'm-going-with-this news, George Blagden is on Irish shores once more! Whilst still playing a priest, he is shooting a movie called Blight. Sure to mess with your mind and provide you with a few sleepless nights, it is the tale of a girl's tortured soul by some sinister enemy and one priest's attempts to save her. Definitely worth checking out. They have quite an active twitter account, with regular #Ask sessions with various people involved. And George himself has tweeted responses. He quite humurously responded to my question about the fear of being typecast as a priest! Ah bless(no pun intended).

For now, #LikeAViking

Title Quote: Vikings Season 1 Episode 5: Raid
Rollo to Earl Haraldson

"I Believe There's A Way...To Go West"

Apologies for the inactivity of the blog over the last month. But I was making like a Viking and going on an adventure to foreign lands to the West(well, I actually travelled East! But if you go far enough in one direction you end up at the other, right?). My journey took me by air to New Zealand. A place not discovered by the Vikings but, nonetheless, I could not stop making parrells to their culture as I walked through the Te Papa museum in Wellington. Reading of the first Maoris to discover the islands just as the Vikings had done to many parts of the world before. Being in aw of the skilled detail of the hand crafted Maori boats that, whilst different, held undeniable similarities to the Viking ship designs. Even down to the detail of the bow masts with intricate carvings. Reading about their beliefs of how the world was made. How they sacrifieced to their "gods." And their core belief that "What is given by the land should return to the land."

It also got me to thinking about what the people of sea and land would have made of air travel...yup, I was getting all philosophical on my travels! When you think about it, what the Vikings did is absolutely incredible. Putting their lives on the line in search of the unknown. Leaving their families behind with little hope they would ever return. No certainty that anything existed to the West. No idea of how long it would take to sail there if there were lands to be found. No planning for rationing food or fresh water because their journey was unspecified. Nothing but their own company and the sounds of the ocean and weather to keep them entertained. Days of rowing, little sustenance, and probable death...well those thoughts got me to stay quiet about any grumbles I had about my economy seat, the in flight meals that were handed to me, the selection of movies/tv shows on the entertainment system(sadly no Vikings!), and the hot, cold or alcoholic beverages that I could readily request at my own convenience.

Never one to miss an opportunity to further my little Viking lifestyle experiences, I embraced my inner farmer and ended up on a large dairy farm in the depths of Taranki milking 278 cows. Not quite the traditional "bucket and squeeze method" of long ago but still managed to get some farming in. I have acquired knowledge on such things as 16 hour milking when the land is too dry to warrant milking twice a day, grass substitutions(and fyi, cow poo normally smells pretty nasty, but nothing will prepare you for the sinsus shattering, stomach curdling, nauseating stench of KALE COW POO!!!! Superfood? I'm alright thanks if that's what it'll do to you!), and recognising when to hook the milking cups to the guard rail so there isn't too much pressure on the udders(obvious jokes could be made here but I'll leave that for an-udder time! #CowHumour)...Quite proud of myself that I sound like I know what I'm talking about. #NotYourAverageHoliday

In other farming news, the herd of sheep(or threep as I've come to refer to them as...because there are three of them...get it? #SheepHumour) are coming along nicely. "Sheep Ragnar" seems to have inherited his namesakes trademark move...the headbutt. This I found out in spectacular fashion upon return from my travels when I went to put out the feed and received a dead leg. For safety, it is now necessary to carry a yard brush with me to shake in his direction when he tries to make any advances.

#LikeAViking

*Title Quote: Vikings Season 1, Episode 1: Rites Of Passage, Ragnar to Rollo

Raiding season is nearly upon us...

It is but a week until I begin raiding/holidaying in new lands. The expedition is being a little overshadowed by my injury. Still not able to walk right(or left for that matter!) which has majorly impeded on all my plans for training. However, with alot of down time on my hands(and unexpected time off work) there have been some other developments...

Meet Ragnar, Lagertha and Aslaug! (Also known to my nephew as Ram-one, Ewe-nice and Bahahaharbara...for a five year old, you have to admit that is some serious pun-age!! I have taught him well) Yes, that is right, I have made like my Viking ancestors and become a farmer. Well, kinda. There was the slight matter of a field with overgrowing grass. Rather than make like regular people and invest in a ride on lawn mower, we thought we'd get all agricultural and get these living, breathing, four legged, bleeting lawn mowers for the shear hell of it(get it? Shear? #SheepHumour). So far they've shown more interest in eating the hedges than the grass. I may reiterate the terms of their contracts and bring their attentions to their main job description. Otherwise, I'll have to bring them bahahahahack(too much sheep humour??). But everyone knows the Vikings were farmers, so now I feel a little more authentic with my herd...of three. Hopefully, that won't be for long and "sheep Ragnar" will do the business and we can welcome Bjorn, Ivar, Sigurd and Hvitserk.

With large amounts of time to fill, I can pretty much tell you everything you could possibly need to know about what constitutes a good training sword. Oh yes, I got all researchy about sword fighting and purchasing training swords and other equipment. Let's just say there is a parcel on the way from the Czech Republic as we speak that may or may not pass customs. There is another on the way from Wicklow with various bits of archery equipment. There may also have been an order put in with the saw mill up the road for wood required to make a shield...can't neglect my carpentry skills! At least there is plenty to get stuck into after raiding/holiday season!

In other news, to help with my recovery I have befriended a golf ball. This little thing is apparently aiding my recovery. It doesn't feel like it most of the time. In fact, it feels worse after rolling it under my foot for prolonged periods of time to help break up the scar tissue. But roll it I shall until I am better and can recommence my training! #LikeAViking

The Vikings Are Coming...

It is but a few short days until Season 3 of Vikings drops. And it is such a credit to the fans of this show that the History Channel are putting everything into creating engaging content for the shows following. Up first is the premiere installment of, what will hopefully be, a long series of video journals from Athelstan(George Blagden). Serves as both an insight into how the actors get inside the heads of their characters to convincingly portray them, as well as a handy little recap on everything leading up to the new season!

And if that doesn't get you all excited for new raiding and the escapades of our slightly cleaner than their stereotype warriors of the sea, for good measure, the people of the History Channel have spoiled us all rotten with a quick taster and behind the scenes look at what is in store in the next 10 episodes. Grab your drinking horn, fill it with meade, and enjoy this little teaser...
#LikeAViking
(If you're confused about where to view this video, the hashtag is the link...click it...click it! Or if you are one of those people who are motivated by mischief and act out the exact opposite of what you are instructed then DON'T CLICK THE LINK ON THE HASHTAG! A little bit of reverse psychology for you there :) )

Viking Injury #1 and Imminent Viking Rockstardom...

I think had I been around during the Viking Age I would have had the absolute craic with them! They seem to have been a fun, easy going peoples with all their singing, and dancing, and games, and story telling. Yes I know, that pretty much made them sound like Carebears or Smurfs when they are largely known for great acts of brutality(Blood Eagle, anyone?). But I'm talking about in their down time! When raiding and pillaging is done for the day and it's time to celebrate. Vikings are the sort of people most of us would like to hang around with. The ones that know how to have a good time. Get the party started. Kick back with a few jugs of meade and have a bit of a sing song.

Full of the Viking spirit of merriment, when I was offered the chance to lend my vocal talents to a friend who was recording some new material I got involved. As involved as Bjorn rowing a longboat across the seas to new lands in Northumbria...VERY!

Quite the enjoyable day being in Sonic Studios in Dublin. Worked with a sound engineer who has worked with the likes of Van Morrison, Tom Jones, Don Baker and Sinead O'Connor. The mixing desk in the studio was a restored one previously owned by Def Lepeord...fun fact! With that in mind, you can imagine the horror when we had just walked into the studio not even two minutes and one of the session musicians knocks over a travel mug full of water on this expensive piece of rock'n'roll history/equipment. All I can say is, thank all the Viking gods it wasn't me!!!!!! Guess he learned the hard way the most important rule of recording studios everywhere: NO LIQUIDS IN THE MIXING ROOM, ESPECIALLY ON THE MIXING DESK. After calling in an engineer to assess the damage, recording began after a fan, a heater and a hair dryer worked their magic for around an hour on the console. And to top it off, I can call myself a real session musician now because I got my very first per diem! Being paid = professional! I should have a clip of the track to share in the coming days. It's a bit of jazz funk for Valentine's...sounds weird but it works! The rough mix sounded pretty good when I was leaving so here's hoping the finished product will be awesome.

It also gave me a taste for recording. So there might be a few more projects in the pipeline that I can share with you in the near future. Oh, the suspense!

On a bad note(see how I kept the musical theme going there!?!), I have suffered a little setback. During some sprinting earlier, I have torn my Achilles' Tendon. Major ouchies! Unfortunately this means training has to cease for a little while. I'm hoping it's not too bad and can be back to it in a week or so. Worst case scenario, I've been told it could be six to 10 weeks...let's hope I heal as quickly as Rollo did in Season 2. Remember? When he looked like he could double as Two Face from Batman one minute, and was all Leonardo Di Caprio 'Man in the Iron Mask' post shave two seconds later?? That's the speedy recovery I'm hoping for! #LikeAViking

It's Only One Month Away...

Who said Vikings can't read?

Very excited to have taken delivery of a couple of books today. One in particular was recommended to fans of the show by the one and only, Clive Standen, himself. The Hammer and the Cross A New History of the Vikings by Robert fergusson shall be my main source of historical guidance on this little adventure. Looking forward to having a bit more insight into the entire Viking Age to put the show into some sort of perspective. If it weren't for the fact I have to go to work for the evening I'd be happily curled up on the couch with a large cuppa speed reading it from cover to cover...

However, I'm not going to lie, I'm eagerly anticipating the new series like everyone else so I might have, slightly, kinda, maybe, possibly checked out the index of the book seeking out the bits that relate to Ragnar Lodbrok and some of the other figures that are being depicted in the series...After seeing a clip on Youtube with the cast talking about the upcoming third season and that there is going to be a few deaths...I'm a little concerned that the new king of Sweden is going to meet his end in season 3 :( Let's hope the producers don't take any notice of Game Of Thrones and don't kill off half the cast just yet!

Also, in a bid to aid the training to become more badass Viking, a little less couch potato, I'll be trying to eat a bit more like our hairy northern friends. So I'm reading up on the Paleo plan which would be quite similiar to what the vikings would have eaten...no recipe yet for meade though! Bye bye enjoyable food and hello salad...And yes, i'm quite aware that no great story ever began with "this one time I had a salad..." but we'll see what happens.

Archery classes have not commenced yet but I've been looking into how I'm going to learn sword fighting with a complete lack of any sort of class or course in the area. I have come to the conclusion that I'll be taking an online tutorial course for the foreseeable future. Hopefully I'll be able to pick up the basics quite quickly and maybe take a weekend course over in England for stage and screen combat to help me a little more. Right now I'm looking into getting the right equipment and sourcing a training partner...who would have thought getting the equipment was the easy part? Turns out family members and friends are a little dubious about the whole idea. I'm actually shocked at the amount of times people have questioned the motive for learning the skills of the longsword as being merely a means of a legitimate excuse for any possible injuries/fatalities that may occur. And further still, there is concern that they themselves have too much aggression that might spill out in any high tension sparring...and yet i'm not deterred...

How hard can it be? Someone, somewhere, made a sword for the first time with no fancy training and just got on with it...simples! #LikeAViking

Torstein as Techno Viking in Vikings/Dirty Dancing crossover...

A little bit of humour for you on this blustery night in Ireland.

I came across this little clip on Youtube. I reckon that it's possible he's grown a bit of hair since it was filmed but it could totally be Torstein(Jefferson Hall)...starring in his very own Viking/Dirty Dancing crossover as Techno Viking!

After the night when I wake up, I'll see what tomorrow brings...

Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one! Unfortunately, due to my Christmas morning dip in the River Barrow and having accidentally swallowed some of the river water(tasty...NOT!), I have been struck down by a case of THE BLACK LUNG. So while all of you lovely people are out celebrating like you successfully raided Lindisfarne, I'm stuck at home like Rollo left off the most recent raid on England! However, it does give me some time to let you know what is instore in the coming year. Silver lining and all that jazz.
First up in January, I'll be commencing Archery classes. You're not a Viking without some serious bow and arrow skillage. This should be fun for a number of reasons. Mostly because I'm about as coordinated as a baby giraffe trying to stand for the first time. Seriously, I trip over myself when I'm standing still. Probably should take out an insurance policy...just to be safe!
February brings me to foreign shores. My very first raid...awww. Not very Viking as I will be arriving by plane but plenty of outdoorsy, Viking things planned. On the agenda will be: setting up camp in a National Forrest Park by a lake, spear fishing, various types of boating activities(apparently I'll be rafting off a waterfall...not sure how I feel about that...well, I do. I'm just in denial), and there's been talk of boar hunting.
I'll be taking a few little trips around Ireland visiting places that have some significant links to Viking culture. Then there's the training. Trying to get into peak physical fitness to be able to convincingly perform everyday Viking chores like weilding axes, climbing ropes, etc. So I'm currently scoping out some form of bootcamp classes that can help me in this endeavour. Stuff like beating up a tyre with a lump hammer and other graceful, lady like activities...Why be a lady, when you could be a shieldmaiden!?!
Not to mention some hobbies I'll be brushing up on. Having rowed for years, I'll be taking a boat down to Blessington Lake where they actually shoot the series. You never know, I may end up captain of one of Floki's amazing creations yet. Then there's horse riding. Haven't been in the saddle for a few years but you got to be able to gallop around the place if you're to raid far and wide. Let's just hope it's like that saying about learning to cycle a bicycle...just with lots of hair and a mind of its own.
I'm also currently looking into taking some sword fighting lessons. Strangely enough, these aren't readily available. And, it's kind of weird when you have to Google search these things. Just in case my internet activities were being monitored for national security purposes, I've become very strict at putting "for film/tv" at the end of each search subject, just to be sure to be sure.
There'll also be some creative stuff. Thinking about booking a Viking themed photoshoot. So there'll be all manner of props and things to prepare.
And of course, when the time comes when they put out their call for extras for the new series, I'll be bringing you through that process with me. Hopefully I'll be successful and might be able to post a blog or two from the set...
So, hoping when you wake in the morning your head isn't too sore and everything you have wished for on the final night of 2014 comes to you in 2015.
Happy New Year #LikeAViking

And so it begins...

Well it actually began on Christmas Day with my first task of proving how Viking I can really be.
The thought process behind this entire blog is to "train" to become a Viking. A somewhat modern, coming of age series of tasks or skills that I'll undertake or learn in a bid to be fully capable of anything that might be expected or requested of me in a Viking extra capacity.
So first on the list was acclimatising to the temperatures and environment that they would have been used to. As they are/were seafaring people from way up North where their climate can only be described as "open plan icebox", I felt it was important to demonstrate that I am comfortable in such temperatures, and hopping in and out of water. This would be useful for invading territories. For example, ship sails in and Vikings disembark into frosty water and onto land to raid and plunder. Being a little princess about getting cold and wet would not fly with your fellow Vikings. That would probably lead to certain death...only the strong survive, etc.
So as the tradition now goes, people across the world come together on beaches and river banks on Christmas morning and partake in charity swims in freezing cold temperatures. Let's just say, mass doesn't seem so bad after all when faced with the River Barrow on a frosty morn in late Decemeber in Ireland!!!
You may have heard the cast and crew talk about the various challenges of shooting a show in Ireland. Predominatly, they will talk about the changeable weather conditions and, in particular, the cold. Well, they shoot in the summer and autumn months...that would have been a luxury to go swim anywhere in Ireland at that time(really only this year actually, with that unusually sizzling summer we enjoyed...good times!). I would challenge each and everyone of them to brave a river in Ireland on Christmas Day to prove their Viking-ness.
I can't even put into words how unbareably cold it was. A bath of ice cubes would have been warmer than the water myself and my other fellow brave souls endured. I could have done with a few of those snazzy bear furs they parade around in on the show to warm up after instead of my ridiculously summery beach towel(the hot whiskeys that were provided once we made land again did help greatly, to be fair). But let's not forget it was all for a good cause too. Much needed funds were raised for Crumlin Children's Hospital, Dublin. In the coming days I will hopefully be able to report on the amount that was raised and have a photo or two of the event...because you know, of course there was papparazzi!
Task one: Wet and wild(and not in a good way) Status: Completed successfully #LikeAViking