4. The Wild East: Rise of the Rus

4. The Wild East: Rise of the Rus

From Real Vikings by NOISER

March 30, 2026 · 46 min · Season 1 · Episode 4

About this episode

The episode explores the Swedish Vikings' journey eastward, leading to the establishment of the Rus and the influential figure of Olga of Kyiv.

Swedish Vikings turn east. Navigating their way past fearsome local tribes and roaring rapids, they discover new lands and new rivers - ones that can carry longships right to the steppes of Eurasia. A Viking state is established, the Rus. And it comes with a fearsome matriarch… Olga of Kyiv… A Noiser podcast production. Narrated by Iain Glen. Featuring Eleanor Barraclough, Stefan Brink, Ben Raffield, Elizabeth Rowe. Written by Roger Morris | Produced by Jeff Dawson | Executive Producer: Joel Duddell | Research by Emmie Rose Price-Goodfellow | Fact check by Grant Jones | Sound Supervisor: Tom Pink | Sound design by George Tapp | Additional editing by Rob Plummer | Compositions by Oliver Baines, Dorry Macaulay, Tom Pink | Mix & mastering: Cian Ryan-Morgan. Recording Engineer: Tom Rouse at Jungle Studios. Get every episode of Real Vikings two weeks early and ad-free by joining Noiser+. Click the subscription banner at the top of the feed to get started. Or go to  noiser.com/subscriptions Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Host: Iain Glen

Guests: Eleanor Barraclough, Stefan Brink, Ben Raffield, Elizabeth Rowe

Topics covered

  • Vikings
  • Rus
  • Eurasia
  • Olga of Kyiv
  • history
  • exploration

Keywords

  • Vikings
  • Rus
  • Olga of Kyiv
  • Eurasia
  • exploration
  • history
  • tribes

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Noiser, Jungle Studios

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