A VIKING village complete with cookhouse, a working blacksmith’s forge and a clutch of Icelandic chicks has been recreated as part of a live outdoor theatre production in County Durham.

The village was made for this year's Kynren show, which takes place on a 7.5acre stage on the outskirts of Bishop Auckland.

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The working blacksmith's forge at Kynren's Viking village

As part of the new production, which celebrates the Year of the Viking, audience-goers will be able to wander through an authentic recreation of a traditional 9th century village as part of a pre-show experience.

Anna Warnecke, director of cavalry and estates, said: “We wanted to create a whole new aspect to the Kynren experience and the village provides a really immersive way for audiences to travel back in time and prepare themselves for the adventure to come.”

“There will be the chance to watch the villagers go about their daily lives, visit the cookhouse, see them tend to the animals, prepare meals and chat to the blacksmith at work in his forge.”

Younger visitors will also have the opportunity to have their photos taken with Viking warriors as they return from battle.

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In a bid to make the village as authentic as possible, Kynren has even brought in a clutch of rare Icelandic chicks, which were bred by Vikings and can trace their origins back to the 9th century.

They are part of a menagerie of animals featured in the show including 33 performance horses, donkeys, sheep, geese, goats and cows.

This year, the show takes place every Saturday between June 29 and September14, apart from on August 3.

It aims to take audiences on a journey through 2,000 years of English history, from Boudicca and King Arthur to Queen Elizabeth I and the English Civil War on to Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee and the First and Second World Wars.

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