In the first episode from the brand new RÚV English podcast service, Darren Adam travels to Geysir to meet sound artist Kaśka Paluch, creator of the Noise From Iceland online sound map. The site allows you to virtually travel around Iceland, listening to the sounds of the country. Darren joins Kaśka as she records new sounds at Geysir, and explains the inspiration behind the site, as well as describing some of the difficulties of capturing the nation in sound and choosing her favourite "noises from Iceland". Kaśka's sound map is at noisefromiceland.com Get in touch with RÚV English at english@ruv.is
The RÚV English Podcast also sees the return of The Week In Iceland, which will feature as one of the strands of the new service. Each week we will take a look at some of the most significant news from, and in, the country. These shows will usually appear on Mondays, but we couldn't wait to get today's guest on! Darren is joined by former TWII host and RÚV Englishee Alex Elliott for his take on the week's news, and to have the RÚV English baton officially handed over! Today we look at the shortest meeting in the history of Iceland's state mediator (and the likely consequences of the ongoing stalemate between Efling and SA), last weekend's gale force winds and the many hours stuck on the Keflavík tarmac, the Icelandic PM in Berlin and German chancellor coming here, and we preview the first big Eurovision weekend, as the ten songs battling to represent Iceland are unveiled on Saturday. We play out today with You Complete Me, from Faroese-but-Reykjavík-based Sakaris' new EP Domestik Disko 106.
Today on the RÚV English Podcast, Darren speaks to poet Jakub Stachowiak, who moved to Iceland from his native Poland in 2016. He works, thinks and writes in Icelandic, having utterly mastered the language which he tells Darren has "liberated" him in so many ways. His books of Icelandic poetry are "Næturborgir" and "úti bíður skáldleg veröld". Jakub is the first "new Icelander" to guest on the RÚV English Podcast. If you, or someone you know, has a story to share about moving to Iceland and making the country home, get in touch at english@ruv.is
Last Saturday, the ten songs which will compete for the right to represent Iceland in this year's Eurovision Song Contest were unveiled on Lögin í Söngvakeppnin, here on RÚV. Within a few weeks, and with your help, the winning song will be selected. Siggi Gunnarsson, head of music and host on Rás 2, is also now one of the presenters of the Söngvakeppnin shows, and as a lifelong Eurovision fan who has literally dreamt of doing this job, he is officially Iceland's most excited person, He joins Darren to talk about his love of the show, preview those ten big songs, and tell him how you can get involved by voting and even coming to the shows. Hear all the songs in full at ruv.is/songvakeppnin
Here at the RÚV English Podcast we know how difficult it can be to learn Icelandic. Hearing it often, slowly and simply can be a great help. RÚV's Atli Sigþórsson looks after the Auðskilið ("easy to understand") pages of the RÚV website, writing the news in a simplified form of Icelandic for anyone who might find that useful. We will regularly go through some of those pages with Atli and see what we can pick up. Today, a look back at the simplified form of RÚV's recent coverage of the Heimaey eruptions from fifty years ago. You can read the news in simplified Icelandic any time at ruv.is/audskilid
Iceland Airwaves, the annual festival of live music from here and elsewhere, picked up the Best Indoor Festival award at the recent European Festival Awards in Groningen in the Netherlands. It marks a great start to a year in which the festival should be truly back and better than ever after Covid so utterly - but hopefully only temporarily - changed the landscape for live music. Iceland Airwaves crams the capital's venues full of live music for three days each November. Today on the RÚV English Podcast, Darren catches up with Festival Director Ísleifur Þórhallsson, to find out more about this essential fixture in Iceland's musical calendar, as it approaches its quarter-century. The episode plays out with "Headlights", from Vök's self-titled 2022 album. The band are no stranger to the Airwaves stages.
The Week In Iceland continues as part of the new RÚV English Podcast service, and Darren's guest today is RÚV Foreign Correspondent Björn Malmquist. Darren and Björn take a look at the storm passing over Iceland as they spoke, the state of play in the long running and ever more complicated Efling-SA dispute, plans to sell the Icelandic Coast Guard's plane TF-SIF, and the difficulty of making a simple mobile phone call in parts of the country. They also look ahead to occasional new programmes coming soon to the RÚV English Podcast, featuring the best of the English-language interviews recorded by the foreign news team. Today's show plays out with "Þú ert aldrei einn" by Marta Kristín Friðriksdóttir. Get in touch with RÚV English any time - english@ruv.is
Every week, the foreign news desk here at RÚV produces a radio program, and a podcast, about foreign affairs and world events. The programme is called Heimskviður, and is broadcast on Rás 1 on Saturday afternoons. Many of the interviews that are recorded happen in English, and here on the RÚV English Podcast, we'll occasionally play some of those interviews, in full, in English. Last weekend - and before the tragic earthquake which has caused such devastation in Turkey and Syria - Björn Malmquist, Foreign Correspondent at RÚV and my The Week In Iceland guest this week (see episode 7), looked at politics in Turkey, focusing on the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections in May, with an interview with Asli Aydintasbas - she is a well known analyst at the Brookings Institute in Washington, she's a former television journalist with CNN Turkey and writes opinion columns for the Washington Post. Asli told Bjorn about what's happening in Turkey, about President Erdogan and his party, the AKP, and their standing in the polls now, three and a half months before the election. Get in touch with RÚV English any time - just email english@ruv.is
Here at the RÚV English Podcast we know how difficult it can be to learn Icelandic. Hearing it often, slowly and simply can be a great help. RÚV's Atli Sigþórsson looks after the Auðskilið ("easy to understand") pages of the RÚV website, writing the news in a simplified form of Icelandic for anyone who might find that useful. We will regularly go through some of those pages with Atli and see what we can pick up. Today, a look at the 49,000 Icelandic citizens who don't live here, and the recent good news for northern felines! You can read the news in simplified Icelandic any time at ruv.is/audskilid
Today on the RÚV English Podcast, Darren looks ahead to an event at the Nordic House on February 23, where four short films on the theme of displacement, home and belonging will be shown as part of "L I M I N A L I T Y" - a seminar and a showcase of the collaborative cross border creative project Moving Classics Sonic Flux. Along with partners in Iceland, UK, Cyprus and Norway it has worked over the last three years on six artistic projects, with several artists from different countries. Ágústa Þórarinsdóttir heads the project and joins Darren from her home in Manchester, UK, to preview the event and discuss the films. The event is in English and after the screenings, which include Q&As with the filmmakers, guests are encouraged to stay, mingle and enjoy! The films you can see are: Steinrunninn (Petrified) by Chris Paul Daniels (UK) and Anton Kaldal (IS) A Green Line by Maria Anastassiou (CY) and Brice Catherin (FR) No Place Like Home by Jez Dolan (UK) and Michael Betteridge (UK) Liminality by Pálínu Jónsdóttir (IS), Ewa Marcinek (PL), Halldór Smárason (IS) and Martyna Daniel (PL) See the films at 5pm on February 23 at the Nordic House in Reykjavík. More details are available at https://nordichouse.is/en/event/l-i-m-i-n-a-l-i-t-y-a-seminar-and-a-screening/
Today on the RÚV English Podcast service, a new episode of The Week In Iceland. Darren is joined by music journalist Lydia Athanasopoulou from her home in Siglufjörður to look back over a week which saw interest rates rise to battle stubborn inflation, the use of some very creative baking techniques to launch sex education week in schools, delays announced to the expansion of Akureyri Airport, and the recall of a certain cooking aid from Icelandic shelves. Lydia also talks about a new strand coming soon to the RÚV English Podcast service, which will trace the histories of various musical genres on this incredibly creative island. Today's show plays out with "Don't Be Sad" by Seabear. Say hello! Get in touch with RÚV English any time - english@ruv.is
Anthony Bacigalupo fell in love with Iceland while visiting from his native California towards the end of the century's first decade. Then he fell in love with, and married, Ýr, from Hafnarfjörður. They've been there ever since. Anthony and Ýr curate The Shed, a welcoming space in the garden of their Hafnarfjörður home, and where every year, they light Iceland's biggest Christmas tree. Darren joined Anthony (and super friendly dog Lúka) in The Shed to hear about his journey from California to Iceland, his life with Ýr and his family since, and what he thinks it takes to move and live here, and become a New Icelander. Despite it being February, and to Darren's delight, everything still looked and felt very festive. If you or someone you know would like to be featured as a New Icelander, or if you just want to get in touch with RÚV English for any reason, email english@ruv.is
Today from the RÚV English Podcast service, another episode of the always popular Auðskilið. Atli, writer of the "easy to understand" section of ruv.is, takes a look at the recent floods and the damage they've caused to many of Iceland's roads - in simple, easy to understand Icelandic. Read along with this story with Atli and Darren at https://www.ruv.is/audskilid/2023-02-14-flod-a-vesturhluta-landsins-i-gaer And say hi any time to RÚV English - email english@ruv.is
Mid-February marks the end of the month of Þorri, the fourth winter month in the old Icelandic calendar. In (relatively) modern times, "Þorrablót" parties and celebrations of the month were introduced in the 19th century and have been popular ever since, accompanied by lots of traditional foods called Þorramatur. Liver sausage, fermented shark, sour ram's testicles and boiled sheep head are just some of the delicacies enjoyed during Þorri - although not exclusively at this time. But how did we get here? How did such unusual foods become part of the Icelandic diet, and why are they still so popular today that you can pick them up in any halfway decently sized Icelandic supermarket? Iceland's cheese queen and all round culinary goddess Eirný Sigurðardóttir joins Darren as the fourth winter month draws to a close, and explains that actually, Þorramatur isn't necessarily just for Þorri. Get in touch with RÚV English any time - english@ruv.is
Today on the RÚV English Podcast, a new episode of The Week In Iceland. Darren is joined by journalist Kolbeinn Dalrymple, making a return guest appearance on The Week In Iceland. We (try to) keep up with the dizzying pace of events in the Efling/SA dispute, look at some of the projects in rural parts of Iceland receiving grants from the government, revisit the controversy over the English language appearing before Icelandic on signs, and yes, review the first Söngvakeppnin semi-final. The show plays out with two songs today - both were selected on Saturday to advance to the Söngvakeppnin final. Hear Lifandi inni í mér by Diljá, and Stundum snýst heimurinn gegn þér by BRAGI. Say hi to RÚV English any time - english@ruv.is
Today on the RÚV English Podcast service, an attempt to go back to first principles and explain a story which seems more complex every day. The wage dispute between union Efling and business body SA is never far from the headlines, with court battles seemingly always raging over the legality of various actions and plans. But how did this start? What exactly is SA - who does it represent? And what of Efling, the union at the heart of the dispute? With no question too daft to ask, Darren is joined by his RÚV colleague Pétur Magnússon to go right back to the start and explain what's going on. Our conversation was recorded just after 4pm on Wednesday 22 February, so here's the situation as it was right at that moment. Catch up before it all changes again. Say hi to RÚV English at english@ruv.is
Reykjavík city centre has played host to an airport for over 100 years, predating the international facility at Keflavík by a couple of decades. Its past and beginnings are fascinating, its present and future sometimes controversial. Today on the RÚV English Podcast, Darren is joined by aviation journalist Andrei Menshenin, who details the history of Reykjavík's city centre airport, and offers his own personal views as to its possible future. Say hello to RÚV English any time - english@ruv.is
Today from the RÚV English Podcast service, another episode of Auðskilið - the news read in simple and slow Icelandic, as written by Atli Sigþórsson for the RÚV website. In today's edition, the fate of the "little auks" - small seabirds that got blown far off course and inland by the recent strong winds - and the difficulties of translating phrases such as the name of the birds' actual species. Read along with every word here - https://www.ruv.is/audskilid/2023-02-08-sjofuglar-langt-inni-i-landi We start just after the photo on that page. Say hi to RÚV English any time - english@ruv.is
Today sees a new episode of The Week In Iceland from The RÚV English Podcast service. Darren's guest today is journalist Andie Sophia Fontaine. Andie is a familiar and much-loved face to those with an interest in Iceland, and has been reporting in and on the country for two decades. Under the spotlight today: the ongoing Efling/SA dispute and imminent "work ban", or lockout, the fire at the Arctic Fish buildings in Tálknafjörður, high prices and taxes on food and fuel in Iceland, the announcement of the first acts for this year's Iceland Airwaves, and - staying with music - the second Söngvakeppnin semi-final. All five remaining finalists can be heard here - https://www.ruv.is/songvakeppnin - and today's episode plays out with the three songs revealed on Saturday to have progressed to the final. Sat hi to RÚV English anytime - english@ruv.is
The RÚV English Podcast service reaches its twentieth episode today, in the company of Shilpa Khatri Babbar. Shilpa is the ICCR Chair of Indian Studies at Háskóli Íslands (University of Iceland), and last year at home in Delhi, got an offer to come to Iceland to live and work. The chance came out of the blue, and she took it! Shilpa tells Darren Adam about her impressions of Iceland, and how she's been struck by similarities between Iceland and her home country of India. Say hi to RÚV English any time - english@ruv.is