An introduction to our next few episodes, all about shields. Jason gives some hints of things to come over the next few weeks and tells how shields were absolutely pivotal in the battle that shaped Britain's future.

Shields have taken many shapes and sizes over the thousands of years of their use. Their design isn?t just random or aesthetic. What can the evolution of the shield during the Middle Ages tell us about how warfare itself changed in this turbulent period?

Jason is joined by shieldmaker Luke Woods, who talks about the materials and construction of shields. Shields weren't just painted pieces of wood but cleverly engineered pieces of technology, with all the materials working together to make a tough defensive item.

In 2017, Jason's team put shieldmaker Luke's handiwork to the test with a group of twenty brave volunteers, who clashed together in various formations of shield wall. In doing so, we explore some of the events recounted in ancient sagas to determine whether they were flights of narrative fancy or...