TWO Vikings have laid down their swords to become witnesses at a history-loving couple’s wedding in York.

Leanne Malpas, 25, and 31-year-old Alan Johnson, from Southport, asked the Jorvik Viking Centre if it could provide a couple of warriors when they tied the knot at the city’s Register Office.

Sigwulf and Bruni, aka Neil Tattersal and Emma Boast, who took part in a wedding re-enactment during the Viking Festival earlier this year, were happy to oblige. They wore full regalia as they presented the wedding rings and read a traditional Viking verse during the ceremony.

Leanne said she and Alan had come to York for their first holiday together two years ago, during which they had visited the Viking Centre, and so the city was a natural choice of location for their wedding.

“Having just the two of us and our Viking witnesses will make it extra special, unique and personal to us,” she said, adding that they would spend their honeymoon in the city, during which they would visit more museums.