Even if you are making a historic-fiction show, you need to include some historical accuracy to give your show a periodic feel. You are bound to see some historic architecture in a show as grand as Vikings: Valhalla. In season one, the most important is The London Bridge. It was not important due to its significance, but also it is essential to the narrative.

Vikings: Valhalla and the London bridge

If you haven’t seen the first season of Vikings Valhalla, well, you should. It has everything you need in a binge-worthy show. And if you have, then you know that Vikings are planning an invasion of England in the newest season. The reason for the attack is to avenge the death of many Vikings at the hands of the English.

In a recent behind the scene video posted by Netflix on YouTube, we understand how this magnificent architecture was built for shooting and its significance for the show.

The master mind behind attacking London Bridge is Leif Erikssons. According to Leif, London Bridge is essential to the England invasion, and if London falls, so will England. However, the plan has its fair share of risks and misfortunes. First of all, they need to know the enemy’s strength at the Bridge. After that, while bringing down the Bridge, the plan will fail if the River Thames tide is not at the correct position.

Even if all goes to plan and they bring down the Bridge, defeating the English armies will not be easy.

Making of the Bridge

According to showrunner and writer Jeb Stuart, shooting a bridge’s battle sequence was more challenging than when soldiers were miles apart on a beach. Shooting two armies, The Vikings and The Saxons, in a narrow corridor was challenging for the crew. However, Tom Conroy, the Production Designer, and his team collaborated with construction coordinator Edward Norton to replicate the same Bridge down to even the same material used. Edward even says that the Bridge has a beginning, a middle, and an end, just like a story.

A brief history of the London Bridge

To give you a short history of the Bridge, when the Danes took control of London in 1014, the Saxons, commanded by King Ethelred The Unready, were joined by a troop of Norwegian Vikings led by King Olaf. They sailed up the Thames together to attack the Bridge and divide the Danes.

On the other hand, men used the thatched roofs from the houses on and over the London Bridge to defend their ships. They rowed up beneath the Bridge, wrapped their cables around the piles that supported it, then rowed away at top speed, bringing the Bridge down with them. The London Bridge had to be reconstructed once more.

Did you like the bridge in Vikings: Valhalla? What is your opinion? Should filmmakers rely more on VFX or build actual sets? Let us know in the comments section.