The fire and the fury: Eight pictures from the Jorvik Viking Festival finale 2018

Fireworks explode from Clifford’s Tower after an epic battle – and another Jorvik Viking Festival comes to a spectacular close.

Earlier hundreds of Vikings marched through the city streets as organisers hailed the annual celebration of York’s Norse heritage a success.

“This year’s festival has enabled us to tell a story of war and peace – the festival events have been focused on the Viking invasion of York in AD866, whilst the newly reimagined Jorvik Viking Centre shows how these mighty warriors settled here, living a comparatively peaceful existence for the next 200 years,” said marketing manager Paul Whiting.

He said many events had sold out and visitors had flocked to the city centre encampment.

“We will not know the full visitor figures for a little while, but it certainly felt busier than ever before for today’s march through the city.”

Whilst the main public events ended on Saturday night, many of the country’s leading Viking academics experts gathered today February 18 for the Richard Hall Symposium, which this year looks at Viking beliefs and rituals.