'I've got some Viking': surprising results of DNA test on English village Bledington

None of the inhabitants of Bledington in the Cotswolds are 100% Anglo-Saxon, with ancestors coming from all over the world

The residents of the Cotswold village of Bledington were entitled to see themselves as the quintessential English villagers, blessed with a village green, stream, medieval church, Kings Head pub, mention in the Domesday Book, even a Victorian maypole. However, a DNA survey, one of the most comprehensive attempts to capture an entire village, has revealed their surprisingly diverse origins.

The village was classified as white British in ethnic origin from census data, but the saliva samples contributed by almost 120 of the residents - including the pub landlord, a farmer, an artist, a marketing director and the village historian - told another story: not a single individual of those tested was 100% English.