"Geneticist Professor David Goldstein, from University College London, lead the 15-month study that compared mouth swabs from 2,500 male volunteers from 25 different locations across the country with DNA samples from Scandinavian locals to find out how much Viking heritage remains in the UK.

"BBC Two Controller Jane Root described the station's work with UCL as a unique, nationwide project.

"This is the kind of thing that the BBC does so well; pooling our expertise in TV and online, in science and education in an endeavour that will enable all of us to find out more about our genetic origins.

Concentrations of Norwegian genetic heritage were found in part of Cumbria in northwest England, the area around Penrith, the Shetland and Orkney Islands and the far north of the Scottish mainland.

Men who were tested in mainland Scotland had a percentage of Celtic genetic heritage similar to the population of southern England.