The Copenhagen Post: August 19 - 25

On ice: India freezes relations

3

Health clinic for illegal immigrants to open

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COPENHAGEN

CO O K I N G

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Copenhagen Cooking

19 - 25 August 2011 | Vol. 14 Issue 33

Festival - 19 - 28

August 2011

Denmark’s only English-language newspaper | cphpost.dk

The Copenhagen Post: New and Improved With a new look and a new focus, Denmark’s only English-language newspaper enters a new era

OPINION | 8

NEWS

A mural vandalised, a black eye: city not very welcoming for US artist

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SPORT

Teenage brothers emerging as stars on the international scene

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‘Reptilicus’ terrorises Copenhagen An ancient beast comes to life in Denmark’s only ever monster movie, which has a backstory as unbelievable as its script

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week in review

The CopenhAgen posT CphposT.dk

19 - 25 August 2011 Scanpix

School in session

The Week’s MosT ReAd sToRIes AT CphposT.dk Controversial street artist assaulted after exhibition opening newspaper challenges right wing leader on multiculturalism secret anti-immigration group exposed disappointed students can take support abroad health clinic for illegal immigrants to open

FRoM oUR ARChIVes Ten YeARs Ago. danish “scroungers” are accused of moving to southern sweden to take advantage of the school and social welfare systems while still paying taxes back home.

FIVe YeARs Ago. The Un Committee on the elimination of Race discrimination accuses denmark of painting a too rosy picture of itself regarding immigration. one YeAR Ago. The Crown prince couple confirms the bulge in Mary’s belly contains twins. nation begins anxious countdown.

FriDAY Princess Mary accompanied Prince Christian on his first day of school at Tranegårdsskolen in Hellerup

PM Lars Løkke rasmussen is promising to abolish the five elected regional councils within two years to further centralise management of the nation’s hospitals. The plan has the support of the right-of-centre Conservative and Liberal alliance parties, who have long advocated turning the hospitals over

No ‘I do’ for you

to the state. But the opposition social Democrats oppose it and question whether the state can run the hospitals more efficiently than the five regions do.

Four of the five elected regional leaders are social Dems while the fifth is from the PM’s own Liberal Party and has openly criticised the plan.

denmark’s only english-language newspaper since 1998, The Copenhagen Post has been Denmark’s leading source for news in english. as the voice of the international community, we provide coverage for the thousands of foreigners making their home in Denmark. additonally, our english language medium helps to bring Denmark’s top stories to a global audience.

In addition to publishing the only regularly printed english-language newspaper in the country, we provide up-to-date news on our website and deliver news to national and international organisations. The Copenhagen Post is also a leading provider of non-news services to the private and public sectors, offering writing, translation, editing, production and delivery services.

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Grrrrrrrrrrr

a ChurCh in kolding is now refusing to wed divorcees. The decision followed the appointment of a new priest who agrees with his two colleagues that divorcees should not be allowed to get married in a church. If any of the 100,000 people in their parish happen to be divorcees looking to wed, their only op-

President and Publisher ejvind sandal Chief executive Jesper nymark editor-in-Chief kevin McGwin Managing editor Ben hamilton news editor Justin Cremer Journalists Jennifer Buley & Peter stanners

left: Scanpix, otherS: colourbox

Centralisation

tion is to head to a neighbouring parish or to the closest city hall. karen storgaard Larsen from the church council said it was a question of conscience. “It’s up to the priest to decide whether to marry people who have already stood before God and people and promised they would stay together until death do them part.”

editorial offices: slagtehusgade 4 – 6 Dk 1715 Copenhagen V telephone: 3336 3300 Fax: 3393 1313 www.cphpost.dk news Desk news@cphpost.dk 3336 4243 The CPh Post welcomes outside articles and letters to the editor.

Letters and comments can be left on our website or at: comments@cphpost.dk

It’s Been a rough summer for the mail carriers. Postmen nationwide reported 65 bites from dogs over the summer months, trade union 3F reports. The summer months usually see an increase in dog bites, with 60 reported during the same period last year. a total of 174 dog bites have been reported so far this year, with 18

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leading to sick leave being taken by the victim. Postmen distribute tons of biscuits each year to distract dogs and are taught how to deal with aggressive animals. The number of bites is expected to decrease when new rules come into effect at the end of the year that require residents to place their postboxes on the street.

Layout and design Justin Cremer aviaja Bebe nielsen Logo by rasmus koch The Copenhagen Post accepts no responsibility for the content of material submitted by advertisers.

The Copenhagen Post is published weekly by CPhPOst.Dk aps Printed by Dagbladet, ringsted. all rights reserved. reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited by law.

3 secret right-wing anti-immigration group exposed news

The CopenhAgen posT CphposT.dk

19 - 25 August 2011

redox

Peter StannerS police officer misused position to compile database of ‘national traitors’

A

SeCreT anti-immigration network called OrG that is seeking to cleanse Denmark of immigrants was exposed last week by newspaper Politiken.

The paper also revealed how a police officer had compiled a database of left-wing political opponents, using information from the crime register, civil registration system (CPr) and the police database of ongoing investigations.

While the police officer was convicted in 2009 of misusing the databases, evidence suggests that the man, known only as PUJ, was also a leading member of OrG. The revelations appear in secret internal documents handed to Politiken by left-wing research group redox, which claimed the information came from a source within OrG. While OrG’s leader, Jesper Nielsen, declined to be interviewed for Politiken’s article, the network did release a statement explaining why they felt the need for secrecy.

“The association/organisation OrG is a closed network established at a time when physical attacks and violent assaults from undemocratic forces, in connection with public meetings about topics critical of immigration, were the

ORG chairman Jesper nielsen burned this doll of a black girl, which he had received from fellow ORG members

political reality in Denmark,” the statement reads.

Photographs released by redox show Nielsen burning the doll of a black baby girl – which fellow OrG members had given him as a gift – on a fire in 2003. according to redox, 26 former members of the racist organisation Danish Front (Dansk Front) are also members of OrG. Danish Front was disbanded in 2007 and replaced with the less controversial – though still openly anti-immigration – organisation Vederfølner. The documents revealed OrG members are running Vederfølner.

The documents included transcripts of the closed internet forum, OrG-int, on which OrG members corresponded between June 2008 and October 2010.

One of the discussions concerned the formation of a new nationalist party and demonstrated the close ties between members of OrG and other right-wing organisations. One released post from OrG-int reads: “it might be the case that we believe that we have the solution, but many of us are part of the problem. all of those who have been members of White Pride or Vederfølner would poison a new party. Our participation, even if it is limited, would

burden a new party if the press catches wind that we are involved, regardless if it is one or many of us.”

The documents also revealed how a member of OrG in 2009 began photographic surveillance of political opponents from the left wing. “a patriot has offered to be available day and night – ready to move out onto the streets to capture those who impede the national work,” wrote Nielsen on the OrG-int forum.

The surveillance of political opponents – which OrG refers to as “national traitors” – was being compiled into a database called The big Memory, which

it intended to share with other antiimmigration groups such as the Danish association (Den Danske Forening), of which Nielsen was a former chairman. its mission statement says that it “will warn against the disintegration of our cultural and popular unity, caused by the excessive influx of people from overpopulated countries.”

Following the conviction of the police officer in 2009 for misusing confidential information, critics believe the severity of the act should have led to the domestic intelligence agency publicising the risk from political extremists.

“Such an evaluation should be made so that society receives a balanced image of the threat from both the left and right wing, but should also assure the public that PeT [Denmark’s domestic intelligence agency] is balanced and not just focusing on terror threats from islamists,” law professor Jens Vedsted hansen from aarhus University told Politiken. hansen’s remarks received support from a range of politicians.

“The threat is just as great whether it comes from militant islamists or from extremists on the Danish right or left wing. PeT should therefore conduct a fair threat evaluation,” Lone Dybkjær of the Social Liberals said.

Despite Politiken and redox’s recent revelations, members of Vederfølner and Den Danske Forening who were contacted by Politiken have denied any knowledge of OrG.

kevin mcgwin

jennifer buley

scanpix

negative campaign backfires on government

diplomatic deep freeze called to pressure danish government into handing over gunrunner for trial

Ad expert calls Liberals’ ‘Behind the facade’ smear campaign “amateurish”

I

T

N a biD to force the handover of admitted gunrunner Niels holck, indian officials announced on Tuesday they were “freezing” ties with the Danish state.

The move, first reported by the indian express citing anonymous sources, has been confirmed by the foreign minister, Lene espsersen. according to diplomats and press reports, the decision probably means that all contact with Denmark will now require prior consultation with india’s Foreign Ministry. india is viewed as one of Denmark’s most important emerging export markets, and it remains unclear how today’s development will affect a number of on-going programmes hailed as mutually beneficial to both countries, particularly in the fields of climate and agriculture.

“This is clearly a negative development,” espersen said. “The indians have indicated they are no longer interested in collaborating with us. They’ve put us on ice and it will be up to them to decide what the consequences will be.” in June, the eastern high Court upheld a lower court decision overturning a Justice Min-

The diplomatic spat concerns admitted gunrunner niels Holck

The Indians have indicated they are no longer interested in collaborating with us istry deal with indian authorities guaranteeing that 49-year-old holck, known in india under the alias Kim Davy, would not be mistreated in that country’s penal system.

The so-called diplomatic assurance also stated that if convicted for his part in the 1995 arms drop, holck would be returned to Denmark within three

weeks to serve his term. human rights activists welcomed the June decision, but indian home minister, P Chidambaram, called the verdict “disappointing”, and labelled the Danish apprehension as unfounded. after Danish prosecutors announced they would not appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, it was reported that the indian government had asked its Central bureau of investigation to take legal action to pressure Copenhagen to extradite holck.

The Cbi was also said to be considering options such as video conferencing in order to allay the Danish concerns about holck’s safety.

he LiberaL party incumbents went on the offensive on Monday with an advertising campaign showing the opposition leaders as plywood figures without any depth – who have no plan for how to safeguard the shaky Danish economy.

The newspaper and television ads used a well-known photograph of helle Thorning-Schmidt of the Social Democrats and Villy Søvndal of the Socialist People’s Party that had long been used in the opposition’s own promotions.

The Liberals’ ads prompted us to “Look behind the facade” of the opposition pair, only to discover that they were no more than plywood placards.

The provocative multi-media campaign pre-empted the campaign season. The election must be held by November 12, but PM Lars Løkke rasmussen has yet to set the date. berlingske newspaper reported that the offensive resembled mud-slinging campaigns from the venerable american tradition of dirty political campaigns. but if the Liberals meant to steal a low-blow play from the US politicians’ playbook, they did not do their homework quite well enough.

venstre.dk

India puts danish relations on ice

The unauthorised photo was first replaced with this composite

The ‘behind the facade’ posters and television spots were up for less than half a day when the Liberals were contacted by a lawyer charging them with copyright breach. The lawyer’s client, the photographer who took the photo of Thorning-Schmidt and Søvndal, said the Liberals never asked permission to use his photo.

Liberal party secretary Jens Skipper rasmussen told ekstra bladet tabloid that “standard usage rules” allow the parties to borrow one another’s photographs without asking permission. he offered ekstra bladet examples of ad campaigns in which PM rasmussen was portrayed as a thief and another in which finance minister Claus hjort Frederiksen was shown in women’s clothes, both using the Liberal party’s own photos. however, ekstra bladet confirmed that the labour unions FOa and 3F were behind those ads, not opposition political parties.

Social Dem party secretary Lars Midtiby challenged the Liberals’ secretary to back up his claim with a legitimate example. “... i quite simply don’t believe he can find one,” Midtiby said.

Political commentator hans engell told Politiken newspaper the situation was an embarrassment for the incumbents. “i think it is a really embarrassing case. i just can’t believe that they didn’t see to it that they had the copyright,” he said. engell said the “aggressive style” of the campaign was effective and in fact contained meaningful content, but he added that the copyright snafu compromised the whole thing – not to mention sinking the Liberals’ claim to being the most responsible and trustworthy party. “i think they have a bad case. it is too weak and too amateurish that they don’t have such a thing under control,” he added.

The Liberals have now swapped the unauthorised photo for black silhouettes.

4

COVER STORY

THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK

19 - 25 August 2011

Does Pride put the party over politics?

CHRISTIAN LILIENDAHL

JENNIFER BULEY Pride has become one of the city’s biggest parties, but some say it has lost its political edge

O

N SATURDAY afternoon when the Copenhagen Pride 2011 parade kicks off at Frederiksberg City Hall it will be the largest in the gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender-queer parade’s 16-year history.

Its organisers claim this year’s parade will have twice as many participants as last year’s – with even more floats, DJs, dancing, marchers, music, costumes, drinks and food, speeches and street theatre, and even more big corporate names in the ranks.

But while the parade and the parties surrounding it have exploded in size, some people in the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community are questioning whether the focus on the big bash steals attention from the human rights issues still at hand.

“This year, the parade has gladly been referred to by its organisers as ‘Copenhagen’s biggest street party’ and it has zero political relevance,” Miguel Obradors and Louis Flint, two members of Pangea, a network for international and expat LGBTs in Denmark, told The Copenhagen Post. “This is a problem in a country where 44 percent of male teenagers in school believe that being gay is not okay.”

Obradors, who is bisexual and Spanish, and Flint, who is transgender and Danish, referred to the study by the Danish Center for Ungdomsstudier og Religionspædagogik (Centre for Youth Studies and Religious Teaching) released in December that revealed that roughly 15 percent of teenage girls and more than 40 percent of teenage boys did not think it was acceptable to be ‘gay’.

“There is a general tendency in mainstream Danish society to accept norms and the status quo as if we were living in Wonderland, but this lack of critical assessment is unfortunately also widely spread in some LGBT organisations,” the two Pangea members said.

The world’s first ‘gay rights’ parades – the precursors of Pride – were focused on activism and indeed they were called by more provocative names, such as ‘Gay Liberation’ and ‘Gay Freedom’.

As time passed, ‘gay’ was no longer

While Pride’s parade and the parties have exploded in size, some people in the LGBT community question whether the big bash steals attention from the issues

sufficient to describe the broad spectrum of people who consider themselves part of the ‘queer’ community. As political battles were won and tolerance began to take hold in some countries, the more generalised and upbeat name ‘Pride’ was adopted.

In many countries, such as Denmark, where significant strides have been made in terms of legal rights and tolerance, Pride parades in recent years have lost a big portion of their activist edge and come to look more and more like Mardi Gras festivals.

Copenhagen Pride’s theme this year, as in years past, is the appealing and inclusive – yet notably uncontroversial – “Celebrating the right to love.”

“With Pride, we try not to be too political,” Ole Santos, Copenhagen Pride’s chairman, told The Copenhagen Post.

“We just try to give [the participants] the platform or stage to tell their stories, entertain and get their messages out.”

Yet Santos insists that the focus on celebration does not mean that the fight for equal rights is finished.

“There are still a lot of issues we are dealing with – so that same-sex couples can simply hold hands or kiss on the street without people looking at them as odd. Transsexuals have the same problem: people cannot get beyond the fact that they are looking at, say, a man who wants to be a woman and see that there is a person there,” Santos said. “We have some very, very hard battles to fight.”

Sasha Toubro, Copenhagen Pride’s press spokesperson, added that while social, educational and political battles remain to be fought, the political parties are listening now.

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“All the political parties – even the Danish People’s Party – are extremely gay-friendly today,” Toubro said. “Most of them are actually joining the parade and a lot of them are taking part in the debate at Pride Square [the temporarily renamed Copenhagen City Hall square] about having same-sex mar-

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This year, the parade has gladly been referred to by its organisers as ‘Copenhagen’s biggest street party’ and it has zero political relevance

riages in church.”

Denmark was the first country in the world to legalise ‘registered partnership’ for same-sex couples in 1989, but parliament has since rejected legislation to legalise marriage for same-sex couples and allow Church of Denmark same-sex wedding ceremonies.

Santos said he was pleased that so many politicians were participating this year, but was sceptical about their motives.

“A lot of things they are doing with Pride this year are because of the election,” he said.

LGBT Danmark is a national organisation that works politically and socially for LGBT people’s rights. Board member Frederik Hansen offered his outlook on why the Pride parade is still relevant.

COVER STORY

THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK

19 - 25 August 2011

5 TOP AND RIGHT: CHRISTIAN LILIENDAHL, BOTTOM LEFT: MAGNUS ARREVAD, MIDDLE: ANDERS JUNG

The town hall square will become Pride Square, where participants can ‘jump out of the closet’ (right) and show their support from head to toe. Dancing, wine tasting, debates, and the annual ‘Salmon’ award ceremony will also take place there.

“I think that Pride is important in this way: many people participate as spectators. Maybe some of them think it’s too much to make a lot of noise about your strangeness – but more people come each year and the dialogue is very important,” he said.

“In Denmark, we will never have a revolution. People have to go home for the weekend!” Hansen quipped. “But we don’t give up either. We don’t have one big message – we are just us.”

Vivi Jelstrup, LGBT Danmark’s vice-chair, described a few of the organisation’s top political priorities.

“Of course we want a ‘real’ marriage for same-sex partners,” she said.

Other top priorities include a project to make LGBT issues part of school curricula throughout Europe, more legal rights and tolerance for transgender

people, and improving social awareness about how common bisexuality is. Bisexuals “no doubt are the most numerous part of the LGBT community”, Jelstrup added.

LGBT Youth and Rainbow Families are two LGBT Danmark networks that are working specifically with the schools, in effect, to reach out to that high number of teens who still do not believe it’s okay to be ‘gay’.

Kirstine Østergaard Andersen, spokesperson for LGBT Youth, a network for 15 to 25-year-olds, says early contact is crucial.

“We find it important to get information out as early as possible,” she said. “We try to break down barriers and change people’s minds about LGBT people with information. It’s also important for us to be a place where young

We have some very, very hard battles to fight

LGBT people can come and meet others like themselves and make friends,” she added.

Rainbow Families, like LGBT Youth, are also engaged in visiting schools and working to make information about LGBT lifestyles a required part of the sex education curriculum for Danish schools. The network has succeeded in getting some adoption laws changed to give same-sex couples the

same rights that heterosexual couples have. They are also working on broad themes, such as legal definitions.

“We are working to change the definition of ‘family’ to include not only biological parents, but social parents as well – for example, a gay couple and a lesbian couple who have children together – that’s a family too!” Maren Sander Granlien, LGBT Danmark’s spokesperson on family issues, said.

LGBT Youth and Rainbow Families are among the many groups and thousands of people participating in Saturday’s parade – albeit in different ways. LGBT Youth will be dancing and partying on a decorated float, while Rainbow Families will be walking behind a banner and, presumably, a brigade of prams.

As far as her hopes for Pride go,

Granlien says she just wants people to see Pride through a wider lens.

“You always see images of the dancing on the parade floats and the wild costumes, and the next day all the papers call it ‘the gay parade’ and it’s all about half-naked men and drag shows.

But we think it’s important to show that there’s a whole spectrum.”

More online

Once the international leader for gay and lesbian rights, many say the country now lags behind. Read the article ‘Gay activists say Denmark no longer vanguard of equality’ at bit.ly/pEknZT

Ramadan meal in parliament back on after protests Roj TV terror case gets underway Danish People’s Party tried to have Ramadan meal cancelled last year

A

N EVENT celebrating the end of Ramadan to be held in a parliamentary common room in Christiansborg Palace will go ahead after it changed its name from ‘Ramadan Dinner’ to ‘Ramadan Reception and Debate Night’.

The event later this August – organised by Social Democrat MP Hüseyin Arac and the newspaper Zaman Scandinavia – was initially denied because the newspaper sent out the invitations when only people who work at parliament may send invitations.

The Danish People’s Party also claimed the event broke other rules regarding the use of parliament’s com-

mon rooms. This led to the speaker of parliament, Thor Pedersen, requesting that Arac send a new application with additional information.

New rules governing the use of parliamentary common rooms were implemented last year and now require that events should be relevant to political work.

While the event was being formally held to celebrate the end of Ramadan, Arac had invited a range of guests including Mevlüt Cavusoglu, an MP in the European Parliament, who was going to make a presentation on “Zaman Scandinavia’s contribution to multicultural life”.

Whether the purpose of the meal contravened rules was debated last weekend by politicians, with Søren Es-

persen from the Danish People’s Party arguing that “a specific Ramadan dinner should not get permission any more”.

But after resending a new application to use the room – which redefined the event as a debate – Arac was given the go-ahead to proceed.

“I’m very happy that it has been possible to put the event together,” he said. “More than ever at the moment we need to meet and discuss across religious and party lines.”

According to Politiken newspaper, the DF and the Christian Democrats failed last year in an attempt to have the Ramadan meal cancelled.

They tried to argue that the meal contravened the stipulation that states there is freedom of religion, but not equality in religion. (PS)

T

HE LONG-awaited court case against Kurdish satellite TV station Roj TV started on Monday and will determine whether the station can continue broadcasting out of Denmark.

The station is accused of acting as a mouthpiece for the separatist group Kurdish Worker’s Party (PKK) – considered a terrorist organisation by the US, UK and EU – and is being charged under Danish anti-terror legislation of promoting terrorist activities.

But lawyer Bjørn Elmquist, defending Roj TV, claimed that the case is only being raised due to pressure from Turkey.

“The relationship between the Danish and Turkish police is far too close,” Elmquist told Berlingske newspaper.

“The prosecution has asked for 90 percent of my witnesses to be dismissed.”

While Elmquist intended to call upon a range of well-known Kurdish media professionals and politicians, the prosecution believed it has strong evidence linking the station to the PKK. The station’s former television director Manouchehr Zanoozi came forward in 2009 with incriminating photos and documents that demonstrated a strong connection between the PKK and Roj TV, including an approach by the PKK to invest several million kroner into the broadcaster. He is now living under police protection.

Should the station close, it is widely speculated that Sweden-based Newroz TV would take over Roj TV’s broadcasting and funding, though Berlingske wrote that the station denied that this would be the case. (PS)

news

The CopenhAgen posT CphposT.dk

19 - 25 August 2011

government to slash green energy funding

Colourbox

6

l

The new clinic will provide emergency and preventative treatment to undocumented migrants

health clinic for illegal immigrants to open peter stanners Ministers approve clinic, but politicians are split over whether the police should turn a blind eye

A

HeALtH clinic for illegal immigrants is to open in Copenhagen’s Vesterbro district next week.

The privately funded clinic will be run almost exclusively by volunteer staff and doctors to provide treatment to undocumented migrants – from rejected asylum seekers to students and au pairs staying past their visa deadlines.

Such clinics already exist in Gothenburg in Sweden and Oslo in Norway, and now the Red Cross in Denmark, the Danish Refugee Council and the Danish Medical Association have joined forces to open the private clinic on Reventlowsgade beside the central station.

While the idea was first publicly proposed last December, work on the clinic has been underway for almost a year.

“We meet people from this vulnerable group every day –

many of them are too scared to seek help,” Poul Jaszczak from the Danish Medical Association said.

“As doctors we cannot let these people live with untreated illnesses because the Hippocratic oath obliges us to help all people regardless of their legal status. So we’re happy now that we are able to establish the clinic.”

Vibeke Lenskjold from the Red Cross has been charged with managing the new clinic.

She explained that the idea for the clinic came about after the Red Cross was repeatedly contacted by worried doctors.

“We heard from a lot of doctors in hospitals and clinics saying they thought there were issues surrounding the treatment of undocumented migrants, asking if it was legal to treat them,” Lenskjold told The Copenhagen Post.

After consulting with the health minister, Bertel Haarder – who told the Red Cross in Denmark that the Health Act did not forbid the treatment of undocumented migrants – they decided to set up the clinic.

But even with immigration

As doctors we cannot let these people live with untreated illnesses because the hippocratic oath obliges us to help all people regardless of their legal status minister Søren Pind agreeing with Haarder, Lenskjold said the Red Cross in Denmark is still meeting with the police next week to discuss whether they will intervene and deport users after their treatment.

“We need to have a good relationship with the police because we need their cooperation,” Lenskjold said.

Some politicians have expressed concern with the clinic.

According to Politiken newspaper, the Danish People’s Party (DF) called the clinic “a provo-

cation by organisations who don’t agree with Danish immigration policy”.

The DF also claimed the clinic’s staff and doctors will be acting illegally by helping undocumented migrants stay in the country. Such an act is punishable with up to two years in jail.

The Conservatives also disapproved of the plan and believed the police should not turn a blind eye as they do in Gothenburg and Oslo.

“I won’t object if the police ensure they are removed from the country after their treatment has ended,” Conservative MP tom Behnke told Politiken.

“How the police go about their work is something I leave comfortably in their hands.”

But the Social Liberal Party disagreed.

“This clinic is important and it makes no sense if illegal immigrants can’t use it. The alternative would be to set up a health clinic in secret,” Soc-Lib MP Lone Dybkjær told Politiken. “We already treat other people who are on the wrong side of the law, such as people who have shot someone.”

eSS tHAN two years ago prime minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen hinted that the government would soon unveil a grand strategy for making Denmark a 100 percent green-energy country within a matter of years.

“Before the next election,” we will present a proposal for how and when Denmark will become free of fossil fuels,” he told an audience in esbjerg. today the next election is right around the corner, but the strategy is more ambiguous than ever.

According to information obtained by Politiken newspaper, the Liberal-Conservative government has slashed its funding for green energy and clean-tech research by approximately 90 percent in its proposed 2012 budget.

In 2011 some 500 million kroner in state funds were earmarked for a programme conducting research into energy technology, while more than a billion kroner went to green innovation research.

However, the government had set aside just 50 million kroner for the energy technology programme in 2012.

Lars Aagaard, CeO of the Danish energy Association, called the 2012 budget “an absolute massacre” – at least from the perspective of green technology research and the companies

whose profits rely on it.

Both the Danish energy Association and environmental policy think tank Concito say the budget cuts will end up costing jobs and export profits.

Concito’s chairman Martin Lidegaard stressed that, for the time being, Denmark still has a reputation as a world leader in green technology. But with so many other countries pouring resources into green technology, that reputation is far from secure.

“If the budget really brings on heavy cuts, it will put Denmark in reverse at a time when we should be in fifth gear,” Lidegaard said. “It will be really bizarre if the government decides to scrap the future like that.”

The climate minister, Lykke Friis, told Politiken in a written statement that support for energy research is “necessary so that Danish businesses can take advantage of the opportunities in global markets for green technology”.

But she admitted that the funding had become more problematic.

“When the economy is as tough as it is right now, it is obviously a challenge to continue tripling the support for energy research, as the government has done since 2001. But we will strive to maintain high ambitions,” she added. (JB)

nordea reported to police

T

He DANISH Financial Services Authority (FSA) reported Nordea bank to the police on tuesday for failing to inform the public of the extent of its financial interest in the Danish jewellery company Pandora.

On tuesday the FSA accused Nordea of furnishing customers with glowing analyses of the company’s stock potential while neglecting to make it sufficiently obvious that the bank itself was a part owner.

Nordea was instrumental in setting the initial offering price for Pandora’s shares and it was also among the financiers that earned more than 400 million

kroner from the offering.

On August 2, however, Pandora’s share price dropped 65 percent in a single day and its managing director, Mikkel Vendelin Olesen, was fired.

In a statement, FSA accused Nordea of conflict of interest and insufficient transparency in its analyses for customers of Pandora’s growth potential. The FSA noted that in addition to providing glowing stocks analyses and selling Pandora shares and derivatives to its customers, the bank’s own corporate finance department audited those stocks analyses, knowing well that the bank had investment interests. (JB)

Yarnbombers attack!

school placement system to be based on language, not ethnicity

police: abolish crime age limit

Turbine test centre delayed

LOCAL street artists have been covering signs, lampposts and benches around Copenhagen in fuzzy and wooly hand-knitted and crocheted gear. The phenomenon called ‘yarn bombing’ allegedly began in America, but has since gone global, reaching Copenhagen about a month ago. Authorities have let the granny-style graffiti stay, so far.

AS SCHOOLS began the 2011-2012 school year, a programme called ‘Copenhagener Model 2.0’ was rolled out with a new strategy to voluntarily place students with language difficulties in classes with more fluent classmates.

In the programme’s first incarnation, some 900 children with foreign backgrounds were voluntarily switched from under-performing local schools to better-performing schools in other areas where the majority of children were native Danish speakers and test scores were generally higher.

Now ethnicity will no longer be the deciding factor for which children are offered spots. Instead, the level of the

tHe POLICe Union says the law setting minimum ages for criminal responsibility is outmoded and ineffective. They argue that young criminals are growing up faster than before and exploiting soft laws. “It’s disgusting to see and hear about 12 and 13-year-olds who get put back out on the street after committing crimes. We would rather abolish the age of criminal responsibility totally,” Peter Ibsen, the chairman of the Police Union, told public broadcaster DR.

tHe eNVIRONMeNt ministry and the Danish Nature Agency have decided to postpone the felling of trees in the Østerild dune plantation until after the High Court has decided whether local land-owners can raise a case against the ministry. Local landowners, together with the National Association for a Better environment, are intending to sue the ministry for not having properly assessed the environmental impact of the test centre. The Western High Court is expected to decide by August 29 whether the case may proceed.

Colourbox

Teknik- og MiljøforvalTningen

online This week

child’s language abilities – regardless of ethnic background – will be pivotal.

“Whether you are named Martin or Mohammed will no longer determine whether you can get a Copenhagener Model spot when starting school,” project manager Carsten Dahlerup told Urban newspaper.

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8

OPINION

THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK

19 - 25 August 2011

JASPER CARLBERG

Changes more than More growth, more internationalisation just skin deep

I

N THE 14 years The Copenhagen Post has existed, two things have remained constant: our dedication to reporting the news and the look of our newspaper. While we remain committed to the first, we were long overdue to do something about the second.

For the 35,000 people who read our newspaper each week, the new design will be a refreshing change. But our new look is just the most visible of the developments that have taken place at The Copenhagen Post in recent years.

First and foremost, we have worked hard over the past year to improve our news coverage. This is a process that will continue as we place an increasing emphasis on more in-depth reporting by more writers, insightful opinion and commentary, and more exclusive interviews and articles. Better stories mean more satisfied readers. It also means solidifying our position as the leading source of Danish news in English.

But we know that the news we provide is not simply important to English speakers in Denmark. As an English-language news outlet, The Copenhagen Post brings Danish news to a global audience through our website and by providing news and commentary to news outlets such as the BBC, Xinhau, NPR, France 24 and al-Jazeera.

If reporting the news is our business, then strengthening ties with the international community is something we see as our pleasure – and as our duty.

This spring, The Copenhagen Post helped organise the first Children’s Fair for expat families. This was the most obvious example of our work in the community, but it was far from the only thing we have done.

Playing a part in the lives of our readers – either by participating in community events or helping improve the conditions of foreign residents – will be increasingly important as the number of foreigners living here increases. An additional 100,000 highly skilled workers will be needed by 2020. Many of them will be foreigners, and we would like to help them feel welcome here.

We believe The Copenhagen Post plays a vital role as the voice of the international community. This is a responsibility we have always taken seriously. We still do. Now we just look good doing it.

FRANK JENSEN

C

OPENHAGEN can learn a lot from Stockholm.

Sweden’s capital has a far higher growth rate and it is the preferred choice of foreign companies looking to set up shop in Scandinavia.

That’s good news for Stockholm, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t do something to raise Copenhagen’s growth rate. In order to tell us how we can do this, I have set up the Copenhagen Business Task Force.

The Copenhagen Business Task Force will present its recommendations on Thursday for how the city can increase its annual growth from two to five percent.

The task force will offer proposals for how we can increase our productivity, do things more efficiently and see things from a different perspective. It is the ambition that their advice will help us create 20,000 new jobs in the capital and establish the innovative knowledge clusters that will allow us to

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You are subjected to tragedies like these no matter where you are in the world. It happens in the places deep within our society and is generally led by ‘loners’ who have a very sheltered life style. All of a sudden the real life is thrust on them and these ‘foreign’ people look to be the cause of everything wrong in the society - or that’s how it’s portrayed in the media.

Simtulip By website Fascism is on the rise in Scandinavia and this killing is the result of propaganda against immigrants.

Pera By website Do any of you, that that keep shouting down the so called “right-wing extremists”, think for one second that any of your “despised DF despots” will ever celebrate the despicable acts of Breivik? If so, you need more help than you think. May the victims of Oslo and Utøya rest in peace.

HD1683 By website He just did what a lot of Danish people want to do. I think it’s time Denmark stopped pushing around minorities and mixed families. I am a black American and lived in Denmark, and I kissed the ground like the pope when I got back to the USA. Futureofbass By website

www.cphpost.dk

We are already working to increase the capacity of our international schools. We offer citizen services in English in order to make it easier to take care of the practical details. We provide consultancy for foreign companies and we actively recruit investors.

We do this because we believe that giving Paul and his family a warm welcome and of-

We know that [foreign labour and investment] are decisive for creating growth, just as we know that this is one of the areas where there is plenty of room for improvement fering them a helping hand will make a good impression. But welcoming newcomers isn’t just the city’s responsibility.

The reception Paul and his family get from their fellow Copenhageners is also important, and that’s why we are recruiting volunteers to serve as hosts that can lend a helping hand with practical issues, answer questions and lend them a little language

help. It is our hope that this meeting of cultures will help foster understanding and tolerance among the city’s residents and will help make newly arrived foreigners feel at home in Copenhagen.

Our warm welcome wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t offer new arrivals a vibrant city with plenty of places to explore. Even though we could have used a little more sun and a little less rain this summer, we’ve still had our fair share of days when the weather was right for a swim in the harbour or at Amager Beach.

This summer has also seen the city play host to a cornucopia of festivals and events. This weekend will feature the annual Pride Parade, which is organised by LGBT groups to celebrate diversity. Meanwhile, the Copenhagen Jazz Festival has put the city on the musical map, the Distortion festival is bigger than ever, and the Cultural Harbour Festival emphasises the importance of the waterfront for the city.

These and all the other events that take place reflect Copenhageners’ love for their city and offer unique opportunities for residents and visitors alike.

And this, I believe, is also decisive when it comes to creating growth in Copenhagen.

The author is the lord mayor of Copenhagen

READER COMMENTS Norway attacks

Denmark’s only English-language newspaper

meet tomorrow’s challenges.

The City Council already works to make Copenhagen attractive for foreign labour and investment. We know that they are decisive for creating growth, just as we know that this is one of the areas where there is plenty of room for improvement.

Take Paul, for example. Paul is a highly educated foreigner whose specialised skills and experience helped him land a job with a large company headquartered in Copenhagen. Paul is important for the city. We know that companies with foreign employees are five to seven percent more productive than companies with only Danish employees.

Unfortunately, Paul probably won’t stay here very long. Statistics show that a high percentage of international hires leave Denmark within a year.

Paul isn’t real, but he could just as well be. According to the Confederation of Danish Industry, a lack of qualified labour cost Denmark 32 billion kroner in lost orders between 2005 and 2007. That’s a lot of money, and it is more than we can afford to lose out on.

The City Council wants people like Paul to stay longer and we want them – as well as their families – to be so happy living here that the people they know also come to live and work here for a few years.

Really, you kissed the ground of the US because of their fair treat-

ment of blacks?! Now I know you’re trolling.

Sontaron By website Put it this way, I doubt Futureofbass runs into Little Black Sambo in the schools anymore, or terms such as mulatto or even the Nword being widely used, or partygoers in blackface and huge Afro wigs, for instance - all charming and rather common occurrences in dear old egalitarian Denmark.

MissFuzzy By website DF vs Politiken The DF use offensive language in public discourse, they fudge issues and generalise maliciously, they further prejudice and xenophobia, and they talk over the heads and behind the backs of those directly affected by their projects. Furthermore, they are transforming such hate and condescension into law and official policy. This cannot be ignored. loroferoz By website Everybody agrees with multiculturalism, even Pia K. Question is what type of multiculturalism do we want? Experience shows that some minorities create more problems than others, experience show that in a multicultural country people don´t trust each other. But for Politiken multiculturalism is just about being able to eat in an exotic restaurant. magic1964 By website

I am on vacation and sitting in my house in San Francisco, California, USA while reading this article and discussion. Do any of you have any idea how ridiculous this entire issue looks while viewed from the real world of successful multiculturalism where nobody lost their cultural identity? Celebrate diversity! tomnashdk By website Von Trier vs DF I am really glad that someone is finally willing to speak out and employ their right to express their freedom of speech about the Danish People’s Party. I fully agree with Lars that this extreme right wing party has for years been encouraging hate and racism in Denmark and also in the EU. And that what happened in Oslo is a product of their actions.

David Morrow

By Facebook If a government or wannabe government official can say he is mentally ill and a nazi without prejudice or proof I really think that is taking freedom of speech a bit far.

Simtulip By website Summer house double standards If you are a German or a Swede, why would you invest a couple of million kroner in a summerhouse in Denmark? Why? Why? Why? Nebs By website There are many Germans who

would love to buy an inexpensive Danish summerhouse and pay virtually no taxes in the process. One reason? There is very little coast in Germany compared with the size of the population. This makes it highly desirable because everyone wants what they don’t have. Second reason - at present the prices are very low compared to anything coastal in Germany. Third reason: the limited supply and an increased market would raise the summerhouse prices - very likely taking them out of the range for many middle-class Danes. jwcfrarvc By website I’m still looking for the summer (not the house).

Damaged Goods By website Damaged Goods: Finally, something that was actually funny!

JFD By website Cyclists mock footrest idea Bullshit idea. How many Copenhageners actually stop at a red light to begin with? shufflemoomin By website “The city now plans to install 20 more at a cost of 187,000 kroner.” Seriously??? Have you seen them? They are basically two bars in the ground with a flat surface on top to put your foot on. You could buy all the materials from Silvan for 2,000kr so are we to believe that the other 185,000 is for installation?? What a scam.

TOLENTONE By website

OPINION

THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK

19 - 25 August 2011

9

So Says Celia

BY CELIA THAYSEN Celia Thaysen is a British love refugee who landed on these shores six years ago.

With below-par Danish, a tendency to tardiness, and a fondness for Marmite, she spends her time fumbling her way through unfamiliar territory as a working mother-of-two with a house in the ‘burbs.

The long Danish summer

T

IME to say ‘so long’ to the Danish sommerferie. It’s over for another year. Weeks 26 to 32 – the languorously indulgent, at times interminable, holiday period, which rivals the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt.

The French have a name for it: la Rentrée – the official end of summer and the return en masse to school and business.

Chances are you’ve already experienced the traffic queues snaking in and out of Copenhagen from the north as every major thoroughfare is peppered with orange cones and yellow signs detailing roadworks due to last until your newborn starts college.

If you are lamenting the return to ‘business as usual’, look on the bright side. No more retail rage as every shop you approach proclaims “On hols, back in week 33” on hastily-scrawled notes taped to their doors (“I just want a bread roll, bejeezus! When is week 33 anyway?”). No more guilt-ridden selfflagellation as you deliver your reluctant child to the eerily quiet environs of the kindergarten where three other (probably orphaned) toddlers play with their imaginary friends. The welcome return of local medical staff – are all the doctors in Gentofte buddies who holiday together the entire summer?

I can still recall my incredulity, during my first summer in Copenhagen, when I found out the two most senior people in my company took their summer holidays at the same time. I had to sit down when I discovered they would be gone for three consecutive weeks.

“How on earth will anything get done?”

I asked naively. “Have they applied for special dispensation from the board?

Won’t they be fired for such reckless and irresponsible behaviour?”

Is the secret to the Danes’ much-hyped happiness their three consecutive weeks of summer holiday?

According to a recent study by Analyse Danmark for labour union 3F, nearly half the Danish population is on holiday during the last two weeks in July.

You have to hand it to the Scandinavians – when it came to devising holiday laws, those Viking elders didn’t miss a beat. Danish law guarantees workers 30 days annual leave per year worked. Compare this to the United States – the ‘no vacation nation’ – where zero statutory leave days are granted. The Swedes upped the ante, insisting they be entitled to take four consecutive weeks of holiday during the summer and, wait for it, if they are ill during their break, those days don’t

When it came to devising holiday laws, those Viking elders didn’t miss a beat count as holiday. Genius.

Now while I have always considered our Mediterranean friends to be an enviably indolent bunch, what with their siestas, taking August off, and their ‘mañana mañana’ life philosophy,

you can kind of understand it when it’s 30 degrees in the shade. But given the temperate Scandinavian climate, the heat can hardly be a valid excuse for taking such long holidays.

I guess we can scientifically justify the need for a national solar top-up (a 21-day vitamin D injection) to boost those endorphins following the very long, dark winter hibernation.

The return of the ‘industrial holiday’ when factories and businesses shut down for the summer to cut costs and save jobs is also a pragmatic recessionbusting strategy.

The University of Copenhagen’s science faculty seems to have found a

pretty good argument, advising its PhD students: “Stress research indicates that anything shorter than three weeks of continuous holiday may lead to longterm stress symptoms, so try to plan your holiday accordingly.”

Perhaps this is the secret to understanding why Danes are the “happiest people on Earth”. The answer may have less to do with Carlsberg, hygge, appreciating the beauty of design, winning the 1992 European Football Championship (yes, this hypothesis has actually been tested), having a social welfare safety net and modest life expectations, and more about getting one decent stretch of holiday a year.

It is the singular most sensible thing for humankind to do: rest for three consecutive weeks. It’s restorative; it re-energises; it gives families a chance to re-connect; couples a chance to read; singletons a chance to recharge their batteries. Three whole weeks - one week to decompress and unwind, one week to fully relax and enjoy ourselves, and one week to slowly begin the mental preparation for la Rentrée.

And after spending so much quality time with our loved ones, on returning to work we are again grateful for our jobs (if only to help us pay back all that holiday spending money we borrowed), vowing never to complain about the long 8:30am-3:30pm working days ever again. Who wouldn’t be happy?

Unfortunately for me, just as I’d become a firm advocate of the extended summer break, my husband dropped the bombshell.

“This year, I only want to take two weeks off over the summer… I think it’d be nice to save some holiday for the rest of the year.”

Well, I guess there’s always Christmas to look forward to.

CPH POST VOICES

‘PERNICKETY DICKY’

‘STILL ADJUSTING’

‘TO BE PERFECTLY FRANK’

‘MACCARTHY’S WORLD’

English by nature – Danish at heart.

Freelance journalist Richard Steed has lived in Copenhagen for nearly five years now. “I love this city and want Copenhagen to be a shining example to the rest of the world.”

A proud native of the American state of Iowa, Justin Cremer has been living in Copenhagen since June 2010. In addition to working at the CPH Post, he balances fatherhood, the Danish language and the ever-changing immigration rules. Follow him at twitter.com/justincph

Born in 1942 on the Isle of Wight, Englishman Frank Theakston has been in Copenhagen 32 years and is on his second marriage to a Dane. Frank comes from a different time and a different culture – which values are the right ones today?

Clare MacCarthy is Nordic correspondent for The Economist and a frequent contributor to The Financial Times and The Irish Times. She’ll go anywhere from the Gobi Desert to the Arctic in search of a story. The most fascinating thing about Denmark, she says, is its contradictions.

10 news

The CopenhAgen posT CphposT.dk

19 - 25 August 2011

Artist assaulted after exhibition opening dancing show recruits ‘bad boy’ of ballet HaSSe FerrolD

shepard Fairey has nørrebro work vandalised and was punched in the face

Jennifer Buley one month after cocaine scandal, nikolaj hübbe named as new judge on ‘Vild med dans’

s

HeParD Fairey, the american street artist, was assaulted at the after-party of his exhibition opening on Friday, august 5.

The incident happened in the kødboderne 18 nightclub in Vesterbro’s meatpacking district close to the art gallery V1 where his exhibition ‘Your ad Here’ had opened that evening. according to Fairey, two young men twice assaulted him outside the nightclub after the party had finished.

Fairey detailed his version of the attack on his Obey website, www.obeygiant.com.

While the identities of the attackers are unknown, it is believed the assault could be connected to Fairey’s painting of a mural on a building beside the demolished youth house (Un-

d Fairey at his exhibition opening, after which he was attacked

gdomshuset) at Jagtvej 69 in nørrebro.

Bearing the image of a dove, the word ‘peace’ and the number 69 – the symbol for the demolished building and the left-wing anarchist community associated with it – the six-storey mural was vandalised less than two days after it was erected. a compromise was struck later in the week between Fairey and members of the youth house – many of whom were upset that Fairey received mon-

ey from the same city council that did not prevent their eviction from, and the subsequent demolition of, Ungdomshuset – in which artists connected to Ungdomshuset were invited to decorate the lower part of the mural.

The resulting mural has retained Fairey’s dove, but now painted beneath it is a scene with riot police, a helicopter and explosions, accompanied with the text: ‘nothing forgotten, nothing forgiven’.

enmark’s answer to the British dancing show ‘strictly Come Dancing’ – the TV2 programme ’Vild med dans’ – has hired a new judge who is equal parts illustrious and infamous. nikolaj Hübbe, the artistic director of the royal Danish Ballet, will replace ballroom dancer allan Tornsberg as the dance show’s fourth judge on the programme’s upcoming season.

Hübbe has led the royal Ballet since 2008 and was a principal dancer for the new York City Ballet before that.

Despite his elite credentials, and a successful Us tour earlier this summer, Hübbe’s name has more recently been attached to reports of an alleged cocaine problem. an internal workplace study

from the royal Ballet, initiated following the accusations of several anonymous royal Ballet dancers and employees and leaked to the press in early July, reported that Hübbe had a serious cocaine addiction.

Hübbe denied the accusations and offered to take a urine test to prove it. His boss, erik Jacobsen, the leader of the royal Danish Theatre, however, did not take him up on the offer. and only on Tuesday publically released the report.

TV2’s head of entertainment Gitte madsen, for her part, was not worried that Hübbe’s cocaine scandal would hurt ‘Vild med dans’.

“The morning papers wrote that the cocaine scandal lasted all summer. But as far as I know, [it] was only in the media for a single day in July,” she told television news site TVTID.dk.

In fact, the scandal occupied Jyllands-Posten, Politiken, Information, Berlingske and The Copenhagen Post for the best part of a week in July and even

Det Kongelige teater

Peter stanners

nikolaj Hübbe will join the reality show ‘Vild med dans’

pulled politicians and the culture minister into the fray.

Hübbe, who remains artistic director at the royal Ballet, said he was “a little astonished” by the offer to become a judge on the television show.

Hübbe will be one of four judges on the eighth season of the popular television show, in which politicians, actors, singers, athletes and other public personalities are judged on their ballroom dancing prowess.

online This week pirate says deal reached for danish hostages a sOmaLIan pirate on board the captured Greek ship mV Dover, where a Danish family of five and their two deckhands have been held hostage for nearly six months, has told news service somalia report that a deal has been reached for their release. It

Two danish girls found dead in car near Berlin

is reported that $4 million will be paid for the ship and its 23 crew members, while $3 million will be paid for the release of the seven Danes. at the time of going to press, the Foreign ministry had not yet confirmed that the ransom deal was reached.

THe DeaTHs of two Danish girls found in a burnt-out car near Berlin is being investigated by police as a possible crime. The car was discovered 20 kilometres west of Berlin in a forested area on Friday morning after motorists alerted the police about a

disorientated, badly-burnt man staggering about near the motorway. north Jutland Police confirmed that the two girls were aged nine and ten and came from northern Jutland while the burnt man is the girls’ 40-yearold father.

endangered species warning: the local library In reCenT years the number of local libraries in Denmark has been shrinking. Last year alone, 17 libraries were closed, leaving just 482 nationwide. Yet despite the cuts, the number of people paying visits to the libraries that remain has been growing.

statistics for 2010 showed that libraries had 100,000 more visits than the year before.

Danes visited their local libraries more than 36 million times in 2010, or an average of six times per year for every single resident.

Maximise your holiday budget!

The card is no bigger than a credit card, yet it opens the doors to a multitude of sights and experiences. cOPENhagen CARD entitles you to free entry or discounts to almost 100 museums and attractions, as well as free public transport by metro, bus and local S-train throughout the region.

cOPENhagen CARD is available at: • www.copenhagencard.com • Tourist information offices anywhere in Denmark, including the Copenhagen Right Now tourist information office opposite the main entrance to Tivoli Gardens.

• Copenhagen Airport, major railway stations and many hotels, campsites and youth hostels.

cOPENhagen CARD makes it cheaper and easier to explore the Copenhagen area’s many cultural, historical and entertaining attractions. cOPENhagen CARD entitles you to free entry to more than 65 museums and attractions throughout the capital region and discounts on a further range of attractions, as well as on car hire and in selected restaurants – and even includes free public transport to get you from one attraction to the next. Now you can easily visit The Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle in Hillerød and experience 15,000 years of living history at Sagnlandet (Land of Legends) in Lejre – on the same weekend!

Relax in the Workers’ Museum, enjoy modern art at ARKEN in Ishøj, have a hoot in the zoo or a kiss on a carousel in Tivoli Gardens. Whether you are from Kyoto or Chicago or a local, a cOPENhagen Card in your pocket saves you money.

Prices and validity of cOPENhagen CARD • The card is valid for 24 or 72 hours.

• The price of a 24-hour card is 229 kroner for adults and 115 kroner for children (10-15 years).

• The price for a 72-hour card is 459 kroner for adults and 225 kroner for children (10-15 years).

• Two children under 10 years of age may accompany an adult cardholder free of charge.

See the list of attractions offering free entry and places offering discounts at www.copenhagencard.com

19 - 25 August 2011

COmmunity

The CopenhAgen posT CphposT.dk

11

Icemen cometh back to defend their title in style ben hamilton

Once again the summer gods were kind for Copenhagen Celtic’s annual summer tournament, which this year was contested by ten teams representing countries (the home nations and Scandinavia mainly) or invited companies, including Ad People, Saxo Bank and the Copenhagen Post. The teams play a gruelling 80 minutes just to qualify for the semi-finals, and then after the final hang out to cool down with a few beers, a smashing barbecue, a penalty competition and some entertainment for the kids.

England’s Christopher Pilbeam (in white), one of the co-organisers of the party, reminds the defending champions about the tournament’s´play with a beer’ policy, but (left-right) Hjortur, Villi, Oli, Petur and Thor are having none of it.

A 1983 beano to Dublin, and once taking a wolfhound for a walk, was enough to qualify Dean Beddall for the irish team, seen here sharing a joke with Pete Denham, the organiser of the penalty competition, which this year was won by Jonesy

This year the club asked long-term member Ronnie Wilson to make the presentations. Here he is medalling iceland’s Baldvin, with Enok looking on. Behind Ronnie is Belfast Paul, quite possibly the loudest person you’ll ever meet - woe betide you if your name’s in a famous song because he’ll never stop singing it.

After over 120 minutes of football, the relief on iceland’s players was plain to see after they had come back from a goal down to force penalties against a Rest of the World team almost totally made up of Copenhagen Celtic players. Pictured here seconds after the decisive kick are (left to right) Enok, Thor, Eiki, Dagur, Petur, Oli, Gummi, Villi and Hjortur.

Club members (left to right) Joe Walker, Freddie Petit and Ryan Bate enjoying proceedings.

Another company participating was Saxo Bank, who had a rollercoaster of a day that started with a big dipper when they became the only team to lose to the Copenhagen Post! But then they went loop the loop by becoming the only team in two years to beat iceland, and then took a point off the highly fancied Scandinavian side, before losing to minnows England.

Supporting Scotland, and pretty much anybody playing England, are michael mulholland, Joe mulholland, Ray Leighton, Ronnie Wilson and michael Wilson.

The Copenhagen Post was well represented by (left to right) journalist Peter Stanners, salesman mark millen, Children’s Festival organiser Brandi Lebetsamer and her beau, and winner of the best Sylvester Stallone impression in ‘Escape to Victory’ (although he failed to save the penalty), inOut writer tom Stratton.

Davie mcCurdie takes a time out from refereeing a game to remind us there’s more than one team in Glasgow.

12

COMMUNITY

THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK

19 - 25 August 2011

ABOUT TOWN PHOTOS BY HASSE FERROLD (UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED)

Copenhagen’s deputy mayor for culture, Pia Allerslev, was at hand to congratulate Australian athlete Rebekah Keat, the winner of the KMD Challenge triathlon women’s race on Sunday. The ironman required competitors to swim 3.8km (not too far …), cycle 180km (what, to Jutland?) and run 42km (you have got to be kidding). Only 14 men managed to finish ahead of Keat, who completed the course an amazing 43 minutes ahead of her nearest rival.

More than 200 people turned up for the opening of ‘A Life Fragment’, an exhibition at City Hall featuring the work of two photographers – Pamela Juhl and Leonid Padrul – taken in each other’s countries: Denmark and Israel. Pictured here enjoying the occasion are (left-right) Israeli ambassador Arthur Avnon, Juhl, US ambassador Laurie S Fulton, Padrul and The ‘exchange’ involved the photographers travelling to each other’s country to put a different perspective behind the lens. Tak and shalom!

Copenhagen’s deputy mayor for culture, Pia Allerslev.

Global Networking 2011 took place on Tuesday. It’s a huge networking event attended by the Danish Export Council’s biggest customers, every Danish ambassador from across the world, and four of the five newly-appointed export ambassadors for emerging areas – one for each of the BRIC countries and one to cover the ‘second-wave countries’ South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, Turkey, South Africa and Mexico. Pictured here are (left to right) the second-wave countries’ ambassador Anne Birgitte Lundholt; India’s export ambassador Uffe Ellemann-Jensen, the former foreign minister; and China’s export ambassador Ritt Bjerregaard, the former city mayor. Not pictured are Russia’s export am- The Indian Embassy celebrated the 65th anniversary of the Independence of India on Monday with bassador Mariann Fischer Boel, the former EU commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development (2004-09), who cultural performances, a flag ceremony and traditional food. Pictured here, the Indian ambassador, Ashok Kumar Attri, addresses those gathered. was in attendance, and Brazil’s export ambassador Henning Dyremose, who was not.

AN ACTOR ’S LIFE

A resident here since 1990, Ian Burns is the artistic director at That Theatre Company, and very possibly Copenhagen’s best known English language actor thanks to roles as diverse as Casonava, Oscar Wilde and Tony Hancock.

Getting away from it all Well … I wrote the ideas for this on the balcony of a well-furbished flat on the idyllic Greek island of Antiparos, a stunning part of the myriad that makes up the Cyclades and is worth the journey to get there.

Modern technology enabled me to keep in touch with the incredible goings-on on this planet during my three weeks there, and I couldn’t help myself as the news was so immense. I had to keep in the loop.

The Dirty Digger’s empire is threatened as disturbing reports of phone-hacking into dead people’s mobile phones and the murky web of corruption and criminality, which is going to spin and spin resulting in some newspaper owners, many journalists and some police officers going to prison. I hope.

The Strauss-Kahn sex scandal, corruption at FIFA, Libya and Tunisia ... A obviously eclipsed by the horrific events in Norway that have given me nightmares since the massacre. How can another human being behave like that? I say we find out if the deranged fundamentalist bastard had any accomplices and then throw away

the key. Or let him go into a soundproof room with the parents of the kids he murdered.

He should never have the luxury of doing what I’m doing now and sharing his thoughts with the world. He’s lost that privilege. Fundamentalists should carry a government health warning. Focus if you will on the ‘mental’ part of that five-syllable word dear reader.

I saw three teenage girls from Norway the day afterwards and watched them enjoying the sun and the sea. Life goes on. It has to. But it still made me want to weep.

I confess that I sometimes tried to look cool on the beach, but realised when I saw my shadow that I should do a bit of work on my expanding waistline. The warm turquoise coralfilled waters will hopefully sustain me through the greyness of the next Danish winter. (Or a Danish summer apparently.)

I was able to relax, to lie in the shade listening to the first two test matches between England and India for example.

With ice-cold beers, gin and tonics and a sandy beach within 100 metres to cool me down. Bliss. Idyllic.

I suppose if you really do want to get away from it all you have to make more of an effort. Note to self: “Next year: No laptop, no I-phone, no I-pad.”

Fundamentalists should carry a government health warning

Subeditor – science news Videnskab.dk is seeking an entrepreneurial reporter/editor with web media experience and a love for science to help run our English-language site for updated science news from the Nordic countries.

You will be responsible for content from Denmark, Finland and Iceland – selecting, editing and translating articles from Videnskab.dk and our partners, and occasionally writing your own content.

In collaboration with an Oslo-based colleague and with the support of external translators you will secure a steady flow of cutting-edge Nordic research news. ScienceNordic will launch this autumn.

You will be based at Videnskab.dk in the heart of Copenhagen.

Due to the nature of the project, the job is offered as a 12-month position with the possibility of extension.

See the full job description and contact info here: www.videnskab.dk/subeditor Please send application and CV to vh@videnskab.dk.

Applications close September 5, 2011.

COmmunity

The CopenhAgen posT CphposT.dk

19 - 25 August 2011

13

Midsummer merriment at st Alban’s summer Fair

ClairE ClausEn

hard the park was abandoned and the stalls were set up along the wall of the church. But the bazaar went ahead. InAnglican church’s annual fete is a trepid expats still turned up as helpers city institution, every year attracting or as supporters, and money was raised international families from all over despite the pelting rain. “somehow that oung people say ‘mid- particular fair stands out in my memory summer merriment’, housewives as one of the most challenging events say ‘midsummer marmalade’, and the most fun,” recalls Katie Roband bargain-hunters ‘midsum- son, the churchwarden of st alban’s mer merchandise’. ask the organisers and the leading organiser of the annual of this city’s most popular summer fair fair. “our church receives absolutely (at the end of a very long day) and they would probably say ‘midsummer mad- no funding from the Danish state, the ness’, but as hundreds of happy custom- British government or the anglican ers would agree every year, the effort is Church. Built 124 years ago after a fundraising campaign led by the prince of worth the reward. at Churchillparken, beside the ge- Wales (later King edward VII of engfion fountain (between amalienborg land), the church has relied on the genand the little Mermaid), st alban’s erous support of members of the conChurch is once again holding its annual gregation, and from supporters of our fundraising fair on the third saturday of fundraising events,” explains Robson.

“The summer fair has become a august. It has become a tradition for expatriates of all nations and denomi- real symbol of how not only churchnations to meet at the park, to stock up goers, but the entire expatriate commuon second-hand books for the year, buy nity pulls together to help each other, some homemade marmalade, jams and and it is always good to see members cakes, and pick up a bargain at the gift of other churches and denominations stalls. It’s a little piece of english village along with other charity groups, such as the International Women’s Club, life in the middle of Copenhagen. as true Brits, the weather is never the american Women’s Club and the a problem for the intrepid st alban’s British Club, plus representatives from church-goers. one year it rained so the international schools and the diplomatic communities.

Welcoming them all to our summer fair defines the true spirit of giving and sharing within the whole community.”

The bells of st alban’s will ring the day in at 10.00 when archdeacon Jonathan lloyd opens the fair and will ring the closSt Albans is the city’s only Anglican church

Y

CoMIng Up soon

Knitting Club

Bibliothekshuset, Rodosvej 4, Cph S; Tue 23 August, 15:30-17:00; free adm; www.bibbro@kff.kk.dk at the knitting club you can swap gimmicks and experiences with like-minded people who share your passion for wool and yarn.

When your work is all tangled up, there is always a helping hand to sort out the knots. If you are more into crotchet, you are welcome as well. The next dates for the knitting club are 13 sep, 11 oct, 25 oct, 15 nov, and 29 nov.

Workshop Copenhagen Studiestræde 16, Cph K, MonFri 11:00-18:00, Sat 20 August, 10:00-16:00; Joinworkshop@ gmail.com, www.workshop-cph.dk If you are looking for an opportunity to display your own designs and crafts, you should get in touch with Workshop Copenhagen. The five-year-old collective always welcomes new talents who produce glass, clothes, ceramics, jewellery, lamps or even sculptures.

The only prerequisite is that you

have unique ideas, implemented in a professional way.

Ghana Akan Festival VerdensKulturCentret, Nørre Allé 7, Cph N; Sat 20 August,11:00-16:30; free adm The ghanaian community in Copenhagen, akan Fekuw, invites us to celebrate ghana’s culture and traditions with a festival of arts and crafts, activities for children, traditional storytelling, games and films. at around 1pm a procession is set into motion with a chief and queen and an entourage of colourful costumes, drumming and dance. later on, performances will include gifts and prayers to the ancestors and ritual dance and theatre.

DoCAS Web Basic course Kultur- og Fritidsforvaltning, Nyropsgade 1, Cph V; Sun 21 August, 09:00-17:00; free adm; registration: robert@kff.kk.dk; www.kk.dk This course is addressed to all new leaders and executive committee members at evening schools in

ing at 17.00. ‘early birds’ will be there from the outset to pick up a bargain and to stock up their larders and bookshelves. The Tea Tent will offer a constant supply of refreshments including fresh sandwiches and homemade cakes.

It is here people meet friends, meet new people and take time to rest and chat.

Husbands and sons congregate around the beer and soft drinks stand situated conveniently close to the barbeque where burgers and sausages are available all day long. abigail’s – the suppliers of British food located at peder Hvitfeldts stræde 17 in the city centre – are always present, and this year you will be able to get a copy of this newspaper and subscribe to it if you wish. at intervals throughout the day, there are various events and entertainment. you simply cannot have a truly english summer fair without music, song, dance and races. again this year, the Jane austen dancers will perform their 18th century formal dances. The Trio Madrigales will perform a capella in church, and an organ recital will be given, interspersed - by popular demand - by the bagpipes!

This year, a midday high point will be the arrival of three young men on bicycles. normally in this country of cycling this would be of little interest, but these three will have completed a charity bike-ride from Cambridge to Copenhagen raising money to buy a child a specially-adapted motorised wheelchair. one of them is a former st alban’s sunday-school kid and pupil of Copenhagen International school, and he is going to make the entire congregation very proud and thoroughly

deserve a huge burger and a large glass of beer when he and his friends arrive. no fair would be complete without a three-legged race for the children (and adults) and an egg-and-spoon race with fresh eggs! perhaps the only thing missing is a stall for garden produce, where prizes for the biggest marrow and best

roses are awarded – but we leave that to Inspector Barnaby and Miss Marple to organise! so remember! saturday 20 august outside st alban’s Church is the place to be come rain or shine. Further details can be found at www.st-albans.dk

Welcome Reception and

Copenhagen Expat Fair

Copenhagen who want to learn about DoCas Web, the new administration programme used at all the evening schools. It helps to set up a course, receive applications and payments, connect to other course instructors, and administer the budget. The full-time course is free and held in Danish

by Thomas Christensen and Robert Dines Rasch.

13 September 2011 Copenhagen City Hall 3:30 pm – 6:30 pm ~ Copenhagen Expat Fair Joining a sports club or any leisure activities is a great way to meet Danes and fellow expats.

Denmark is a country with many clubs and associations.

At the Copenhagen Expat Fair, you have the chance to talk to members from various clubs and associations from the Greater Copenhagen Area about what they can offer you and your family and how to sign up.

4:00 pm ~ Official welcome by Anna Mee Allerslev, Mayor of Employment and Integration.

The City of Copenhagen and Mayor, Anna Mee Allerslev, would like to welcome you officially to Copenhagen.

Also, we are happy to announce The President of The National Olympic Committee and Sports Confederation of Denmark, Niels Nygaard as our guest speaker.

After the two presentations, the world famous "City Hall Pancakes" will be served.

Global Cross match Tba, Copenhagen; Wed 24 August, 18:00 The global Cross Match is an event for everybody who wants to expand their cross-cultural network on a social as well as professional level. share your knowledge and experience about living in Denmark or just get to know new people from all over the world plus Danes interested in connecting to the expat community here in Copenhagen.

Dances from the Jane Austen era always entertain the crowds

Many kind regards, City of Copenhagen, Copenhagen Post and Spousecare Please enter through the Main Entrance facing Rådhuspladsen (City Hall Square) Please register at: http://www.kk.dk/cphinternational

We look forward to seeing you!

Supported by:

By Eva KortE Denmark’s only English-language newspaper

14 sport english genes fuelling brothers’ bid for the big time The CopenhAgen posT CphposT.dk

19 - 25 August 2011

Ben Hamilton marc rochester sørensen (left)

The peckham-born father of Marc and Lee Rochester is “absolutely stunned” by their meteoric rise this year

age: 18 height: 180cm preferred position: attacking midfielder favourite team: manchester united favourite player: cristiano ronaldo international caps: 3 (under-20s) superliga debut: 17 July 2011 against horsens

e

lee rochester sørensen (right) age: 17 height: 178cm preferred position: attacking midfielder favourite team: arsenal favourite player: Thierry henry international caps: 4 (under-17s) superliga debut: 25 July 2011 against fcm The rochester brothers have both secured professional contracts and are emerging as stars thanks to some standout perfomances

all thanks to a combination of hard work, commitment, self-discipline, will-power to succeed, and two extremely supportive parents.

“Growing up with a danish mum and english dad, the boys have benefited from our different mentalities and perspectives,” their father Ian rochester, a long-time player with community club Copenhagen Celtic who moved here in the 1980s, told The Copenhagen Post. “We’re a highly competitive family in general. Janteloven can be a bit of a dampener, and I’ve always encouraged them to believe in themselves, and to be positive and confident but not arrogant.”

Ian, originally from Peckham in south London, trained with Arsenal as a youngster and regularly played with the late david rocastle. When he first came over to denmark, it wasn’t for a girl – shock, horror – it was for a trial with Kjøbenhavns boldklub, the top flight club that merged to form FCK in 1992. Later he met the boys’ mother, dorte, who played handball at a competitive level. but neither parent, despite their sporting background, was prepared for the events of the last year. “We are still shell-shocked,” says Ian. “Absolutely stunned! Neither of us were prepared or saw it coming. It has all happened so quickly. The last year has been one achievement after another – a real rollercoaster. There’s been no time for it to settle in.”

Ian is still learning how to enjoy his new role as a father of two professional

golfer’s final round of 66 just one shot shy of play-off

d

ANIsH golf fans stayed up past midnight on sunday evening to watch the challenge of their countryman Anders Hansen in the Us PGA, the final major tournament of the season, and he came within a

whisker of making a play-off, shooting a magnificent 66 to force his way into contention. starting the day four shots adrift of leader Jason dufner on -3, he matched the pace-setter shot for shot, but then dropped back a shot with a bogey at the 16th to trail the American by five.

However, dufner started to duff

I’ve always encouraged them to believe in themselves, and to be positive and confident but not arrogant football players. “I’m horrendous company before the games - sometimes for the whole week beforehand,” he confesses. “I only realised after friends started referring to my ‘pre-match grumpy mood’. I guess it’s all part of my learning process.”

Ian has also been educating himself about the business aspects of the game as he looks out for the interests of his sons. “you walk into a room with your son and you’re obviously very proud, but they’ll use that emotion against you,” he says. “It’s a really slippery slope.

There’s no structure for getting advice. you need to get yourself educated and remember it’s a business. but there’s no specific way of doing it.”

Part of that load has been lessened now that the boys have an agent, the former Tottenham player Alan Nielsen of scandic Managers. It leaves Ian more time to focus on his area of expertise – namely as the boys’ mentor.

“We don’t set goals or anything like that. I don’t want to overburden them with pressure. I simply encourage them to concentrate in training and if I’ve got

any observations about a game, I’ll first of all watch it back again and then put them in an email, so they can read them back if they need to. It could be like telling them to be more assertive - if they’re not getting the ball from the older pros they need to demand it more. They’re in the team on their merits.” so far, five games into the new season, Hb Køge are bottom with no points, but Ian is confident his sons, who are already regular starters, are at the right club and in the right county. “denmark’s ahead of england in terms of facilities, infrastructure, coaching

– they know how to produce a good technical player. The distractions are the same – be it alcohol or girls – but they’re committed.”

Nevertheless, the brothers will remain eligible for the english national team until they earn their first international cap. And given the quality of some of their contemporaries – like Ajax’s 17-year-old wonderkid viktor Fischer – they might be better off staying put. speculating about a couple of teenagers playing for their country might be far-fetched, but if that’s true, what does that make real Madrid?

his shots, while Hansen picked up a birdie at the 17th to eventually finish his round as the clubhouse leader on -7.

It was an anxious wait as he watched dufner put together a string of bogeys to slip to -8 by the 17th, and another American, bradley Keegan, hole a massive putt on the 17th to also reach -8. In the end both players parred the last to finish one shot ahead.

Hansen’s final round of 66 was his best of the week and will help him for-

get the horrendous 76 he carded on the fourth day in July’s british open after starting the final round in contention.

The new world rankings came out on Monday and Hansen – previously the world number 44, who is clearly enjoying the best year of his golfing life in 2011 – shot up to number 23.

Following on from Thomas bjørn’s fourth place finish in the british open, danish golf is enjoying its best ever year. (bH)

after hansen’s pga performance, the dane shot up to world number 23

proud papa: ian rochester is adjusting to his role as father of two star players

scanpix

hansen third in Us pgA

peter staneers

verybody’s talking about Leo. No, not diCaprio, Leonel Angel Coira, the Argentine seven-year-old signed by real Madrid. It’s not like we should be surprised – Leo’s a veteran compared to baerke van der Meij, whose skills on youTube were enough for dutch eredivisie club vvv venlo to sign him in April, aged just 18 months old. “The toddler’s favourite position has not yet been determined,” the club said in a statement. but what ever happens to the superkids? Where’s Freddy Adu, the Ghananian-born Us midfielder who made his MLs debut aged just 14. The Turkish second division if you asked that question back in February, although his career is back on track now. still, he’s one of many who’s been courted by the elite at an early age and then not lived up to the hype. because the stone-cold reality is that very few promising youngsters make it. There are numerous factors involved, and sunday league football is awash with child prodigies who failed to make it as pros.

The opposite is true in the case of teenagers Marc and Lee rochester, the sons of an english expat who have appeared out of nowhere this year to prove they have got what it takes to go all the way. The attacking midfielders – so more in the Laudrup mould than the Nevilles – started the year as promising ‘boys’ at the academy of southern Zealand club Hb Køge, but are now both on professional contracts, emerging as ‘men’ thanks to some standout international performances.

Marc, 18, is explosively quick over 10 metres and a fearsome dribbler, as his opponents found out to their cost at the prestigious youth tournament, the Milk Cup, which is held every July in Northern Ireland. denmark won the elite competition (for under-19 national sides) this year, and Marc was man of the match in the final, and player of the tournament.

Lee, 17, is a match-winner. Fearless and blessed with an indomitable spirit, he has qualities you can’t teach. Lee, who actually won his place at the Hb Køge academy before his older brother, became an integral part of the danish side at the Under-17s World Cup in Mexico this June, scoring a goal in their final group game that took them to within a whisker of the knockout stage.

And they achieved all that on their own, because together they are formidable. As brothers they have a special understanding developed over a lifetime playing together, and they are both very proud and supportive of one another. This season they have made their superliga debuts and are rapidly becoming the talk of the whole league,

GREETINGS FROM AMAGER BEACH 8 MIN. FROM KGS. NYTORV

Take the Metro to the beach It only takes 8 minutes to reach the beach from the Kgs. Nytorv Metro Station. And with our ‘Metroen’ app, you can plan your trip down to the half minute or buy your ticket using your smartphone. The next Metro leaves in under 4 minutes, so hurry up and find your beach ball. Want to go for a swim?

Kgs. Nytorv

Amager Strand 8 min.

Let’s go

THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK

19 - 25 August 2011 www.indiansindenmark.com , Tlf. 5272 7282

CELEBRATE INDIA Celebrate Freedom Rygaards International School

On the occassion of India's Independence day With music, dance & food portraying the diversity in Indian populace & culture. ENTRY FREE. Plenty of car parking space. 3 mnts from enghave station, 3A & 1A stops.

Invites experienced, enthusiastic and well-qualified teachers, familiar with and experienced in British-style education, to apply for the following teaching position. Applicants should be lively, energetic and committed professional teachers. They must also be native English speakers. The job will be for October 2011.

Show Highlight

Rygaards School has a Danish and an International English-speaking school each teaching its own separate curriculum. Rygaards International School consists of Key Stages 1 – 4 (Years 1 – 11).

Sarod-Vocal jugalbandi Song in various Indian languages ● Veena & Bharatnatyam < ● Dance by a Danish group to Indian song ● AR Rehman's Gurus of Peace (By children of various nationalities) Nukkad Natak (Street Play)..& much more ●

●

Rygaards is a Catholic school founded in 1909 by the Assumption sisters.

The school has strong ecumenical traditions and welcomes applicants who are interested in actively supporting Christian values. It would be an advantage but not a requirement that the applicant be willing to teach in the Catholic Religion Programme.

The teaching position is as follows:

Sat. 20th August, 15:00-18:00 “Frizone”, Carlsberg,Pasteursvej 14, Valby

DADRA

Pa ste ur sv ej

Applications should be addressed to The Board of Governors and sent by e-mail to: The principal of Rygaards International School, Charles Dalton, charles.dalton@rygaards.com. Information about the school can be obtained from our website www.rygaards.com

Enghave St.

Indian Grocery Store

Authentic Indian Gastronomy

vej

Terms of employment in accordance with contract between The Ministry of Finance and LC (Teaching Unions)

En gh ave

• Junior trained Year 4 class teacher for a position in the Primary School.

Ve s te r fæ lled vej

16

EMPLOYMENT

Indian Fast-food

Vigersle v Alle Media Partner

Closing date for applications: Thursday the 1st of September 2011

Denmark’s only English-language newspaper

BRITISH CHAMBER OF OF BRITISH CHAMBER COMMERCE INDENMARK DENMARK COMMERCE

Learn Danish

Cloud Computing

in a Quick and Effective Way

This “on the way home” event features presentations from two Danish-founded companies, Tradeshift and e-conomic, that have embraced “cloud technologies” and are offering their Software as a Service (SaaS).

This event will give you the chance to learn: • •

How e-conomic’s strategy has put them on a strong course to become the biggest accounting system for small businesses in Denmark.

How the emergence of Cloud technologies allowed the founders of Tradeshift to start a high growth company in the middle of the financial crisis and how their new disruptive business model lets them offer their services at a fraction of the price of traditional e-invoicing & supply chain management software.

is a social network for business that allows anyone to exchange invoices for free. Tradeshift was founded 18 months ago and now employs nearly 50 people with 18 different nationalities. The company has been funded by PayPal and Notion Capital and offers large enterprises the ability to connect to their entire supply chain with electronic invoicing. Customers include TDC, COOP, Stark, DSV and the National Health Service in England.

Our success is based on five fundamental things: - Modern methods - Professional teachers - Teaching that is effective, entertaining and relevant to the student - Newest technology and learning tools - Focus on oral communication - conversational skills

Try IA´s Intensive Course NOW! Enrollment at: 3888 3233 Classes start every month

IA SPROG Hejrevej 26, 2nd floor 2400 Copenhagen NV Phone: 3888 3233 Mail: info@iasprog.dk web: www.iasprog.dk

is one of the fastest growing online accounting systems and was one of the first companies to succeed with Software as a Service. e-conomic is a web-based innovative accounting system that exploits the opportunities of the Internet for easy-to-use, flexible and secure accounting solutions. e-conomic constantly endeavours to develop, improve and adapt the application to match technological development as well as the individual client’s needs – regardless of the size and industry of the business.

Programme – Wednesday September 7 16:00 Registration 16:30 Cloud technologies and social media – changing the way we do business 16:50 Building the world’s largest business network – e-invoicing and more with Tradeshift 17:10 From e-invoicing to online accounting – lowering barriers for SMEs with e-conomic 17.30 Panel Discussion Location: Tradeshift, Nørregade 36B, 3rd floor, 1165 Copenhagen K Directions: 50 meters from Nørreport Station on the left side of Nørregade. Look for the neon sign for Sømods Bolcher (famous Candy factory appointed by the Royal Court) Parking: Use the parking garage at Israels Plads You can sign up via the website, send an email to event@bccd.dk or phone 31 18 75 58.

This event is free of charge for members / 125 DKK inc MOMS for Nonmembers.

• official media partner

THE COPENHAGEN POST 19 - 25 August 2011 SPOUSE EMPLOYMENT PAGE SPOUSE: Kamali Ganesan SEEKING WORK IN: Jylland, Denmark QUALIFICATION: IT engineer EXPERIENCE: LEGO systems LOOKING FOR: IT and Multimedia jobs LANGUAGE SKILLS: Tamil, English and Danish IT EXPERIENCE: 3 Years in LEGO systems.

CONTACT: anbukamali@gmail.com

FROM: India

SPOUSE: Kaewkarn Kanchanavipu FROM: Thailand SEEKING WORK IN: Sales, marketing, project management, business processes, supply chain, HR and general management functions QUALIFICATION: M.Sc. International Business and Trade , School of Business Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg, Sweden; Bachelor of Economics, Chulalongkorn University, Thailand; Certificate of Exchange Studies in Business Administration Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration, Austria; Certificate of Completion in STEPS, Saitama University, Japan EXPERIENCE: Three-year professional experience in sales, marketing, business development and project management. Proven record of achieving high performance in multiple markets: Norway, Sweden, Japan and Thailand in various industries. Able to devise and implement coherent organization strategies whilst improving internal process and procedures within a demanding environment, project deadlines and budgets. Area of expertise & experience: Operational management, sales, marketing, business development, project management, recruitment, customer service and administration.

LOOKING FOR: A challenging position that will utilize my skills and offer opportunities for future development as well as wish to make a significant contribution to the organization.

LANGUAGE SKILLS: English, Japanese, Thai and novice Danish IT EXPERIENCE: MS Office CONTACT: Tel: +45 50 398 555 Email: kaew.crystal@gmail.com SPOUSE: Isabel Douglass FROM: San Francisco-USA SEEKING WORK IN: Music Education QUALIFICATION: BA in Music EXPERIENCE: 10 years of internationally touring performances and 7 years of accordion teaching experience.

LOOKING FOR: I offer piano accordion lessons to individuals and small groups. In the courses students will learn a repertoire of songs ranging in styles including French musette, Argentine Tango, and Klezmer while strengthening there technique and understanding of music theory.

Please visit www.myspace.com/isabeldouglass to learn more about me.

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Native English Speaker CONTACT: isabeldouglass@gmail.com Phone: 60653401 SPOUSE: Laxmi Chawan FROM: India SEEKING WORK IN: Sjælland, as an architect/ interior designer or as a logistic co-ordinator.

QUALIFICATION: Masters in Design Sciences and Sustainable Design, University of Sydney, Australia; Bachelors in Architecture, University of Mumbai, India EXPERIENCE: Design development, Drafting, Working drawings, Planning and scheduling of projects, Report compilation, Invoicing and Administrative works.

LOOKING FOR: Part time /Fulltime work in Architecture/Construction /Interior Designing Firm or Supply chain management field.

IT EXPERIENCE:AutoCAD 2009, Adobe In Design, Photoshop, Microsoft Office, Project management softwares LANGUAGE SKILLS: English,Hindi CONTACT: lchawan@gmail.com Mobile : +45 5253 2498 SPOUSE: Mohammad Ahli- Gharamaleki FROM: Iran SEEKING WORK IN: Copenhagen QUALIFICATION: Master degree in chemical engineering EXPERIENCE: 5+ years as a chemical engineer in R&D oil/gas projects as a team leader or member in Iran.

LOOKING FOR: A position in an Intrnational company to expand my experience and expertise.

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Azeri (native), English (fluent), Farsi (fluent), Arabic (good), Turkish (good), Danish(beginner) IT EXPERIENCE: Professional (MATLAB, Hysys, Aspen plus, Auto Cad, others (Office, Minitab).

CONTACT: mohammad_ahli@yahoo.com, (+45) 71 63 12 85 SPOUSE: Christina Koch FROM: Australia SEEKING WORK IN: Copenhagen QUALIFICATION: Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics and Drama, 1997 University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. Experienced actor and voice coach for speakers, with parallel high level experience in written communications.

LOOKING FOR: Voice coaching for corporate presenters and speakers, Writing and Communications work, work in theatre organisations.

IT EXPERIENCE:Microsoft Office, Office for Mac. LANGUAGE SKILLS: English - Native speaker, excellent written and oral expression. German – good reading and listening skills. Spanish – fluent oral communication, good reading and listening skills. Danish – beginners level speaking and writing skills.

CONTACT: Tel: +45 52 77 30 93 Christina@hermionesvoice.com, www.hermionesvoice.com.

SPOUSE: Rita Paulo FROM: Portugal SEEKING WORK IN: Great Copenhagen QUALIFICATION: Architect EXPERIENCE: I am an architect and I have experience in Project and in Construction Supervision.

In the past 7 years, I have worked mainly in housing, masterplanning and social facilities buildings.

My last employer was a Project and Construction company where I had the opportunity to complement my experience in projects together with construction related tasks, developing myself as a professional.

LOOKING FOR: Job in Architecture or Construction Company LANGUAGE SKILLS: Native Portuguese, Proficiency in English, Basic user of Spanish and Danish IT EXPERIENCE: Strong knowledge of AutoCad and ArchiCad. Experience in Studio Max, CorelDraw, Photoshop, Office tools.

CONTACT: rita.vaz.paulo@gmail.com +45 2961 9694

Make the most of your foreign employees – help their spouses find jobs Companies that hire foreign employees often find that it can be difficult for them to settle in if their family doesn’t feel at home here. A job for an accompanying spouse can be a decisive factor in whether that happens.

Workindenmark partners with companies ranging in size from major global companies to small companies hiring their first foreign employee.

We try to make it easier for public and private sector employers to find the right candidate for the job – and to make sure that they make the most of their new employees.

We offer new employees a welcome packet that includes information relating to their stay. We can often provide assistance in the employee’s native language.

We also invite companies to participate in Partner Link, our nationwide job bank for spouses.

Partner Link’s goal is to help companies retain foreign employees by helping their spouses find career opportunities here.

EMPLOYMENT

PARTNERS:

THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK SPOUSE: Pooja Nirwal FROM: New Delhi, India SEEKING WORK IN: Copenhagen and Capital region QUALIFICATION: Masters (M. Sc) in Environmental Science, +2 yrs of Exp. as Env. Consultant in the field of Environmental Impact Assessment LOOKING FOR: Positions in Consultancies/Organizations/NGOs working in the field of Environmental Science (Climate Change, EIA, Env. Compliance Audits, Solid Waste Management etc.)

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Fluent in English, Hindi and Sanskrit, Started learning Danish IT EXPERIENCE: MS Office (PowerPoint, Word, Excel) CONTACT: poojadahiya1@gmail.com, +45 503 904 60 SPOUSE: Himani Kanwarpal FROM: India SEEKING WORK IN: Århus/ Copenhagen QUALIFICATION: Completed Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics and communication in the 2005 EXPERIENCE: Worked with DELL International Services as a Technical Support associate.

LOOKING FOR: Full Time, part time, intern etc.

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17

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EXPERIENCE: I worked 4 years in a rehabilitationclinic LANGUAGE SKILLS: Italian (native), English, Danish (currently learning) IT EXPERIENCE: MS Office CONTACT: menafra1@yahoo.it SPOUSE: Attila Simon FROM: Romania SEEKING WORK IN: Greater Copenhagen QUALIFICATION: International Welding Engineer (IWE/EWE), MSc in Welding Engineering, MSc in Flexible Manufacturing Systems, MSc in Quality Assurance of Metallic Structures EXPERIENCE: 10+ years experience in designing and manufacturing railway wagons, buses, trolleybuses and their subsystems. More than 7 years international project management experience in these areas. More than 2 years experience in industrial trading and investments LOOKING FOR: Transport, railway or welding related engineering job, also project management positions LANGUAGE SKILLS: English (fluent speaking and writing), Danish (intermediate), Hungarian (mother tongue), Romanian (native speaker) IT EXPERIENCE: Several years experience working with SolidWorks, AutoCAD, ProgeCAD and VariCAD. User level of Microsoft Office CONTACT: attilon2@gmail.com; tel.: 28316752 SPOUSE: Lorenzo Albano FROM: Venezuela (with CPR number) SEEKING WORK IN: Greater København and Hovedstaden QUALIFICATION: PhD in Physics EXPERIENCE: I have wide experience as an university lecturer in physics, physics laboratory, mathematics and informatics. I have done research in theoretical quantum optics and quantum information. I have done research and development / programming of numerical methods applied to geophysical problems, such as tomographic inversion and wave propagation, independently and as part of multidisciplinary teams. I have participated in gravimetric and magnetometric geophysical surveys LOOKING FOR: Short and long term work in education in science and mathematics / research / scientific computing / oil exploration or other geophysical applications LANGUAGE SKILLS: Fluent in Spanish (native), English and Italian. Basic Danish IT EXPERIENCE: OS: MSDOS, Windows, Linux (Ubuntu), Solaris, incl. shell scripting. Programming Languages: BASIC, ANSI C, C++, FORTRAN. Web: HTML, CSS, Joomla!. Typography: LaTeX2E. Software: Mathematica 7, MS Office and OpenOffice suites, several Windows utilities CONTACT: lorenzoalbanof@gmail.com. Tel: +45 50 81 40 73 SPOUSE: Andrea Heilmann FROM: Germany (Marburg) SEEKING WORK IN: Greater Copenhagen QUALIFICATION: Communications Manager & PR Consultant EXPERIENCE: I successfully work as Communications Consultant for a global company and have more than 10 years of experience with company communication and public relations as well as event management, executive assistance and project coordination. I also have a strong crosscultural understanding since I always worked with different cultures from all over the world.

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THE COPENHAGEN POST SPOUSE EMPLOYMENT PAGE WHY: The Copenhagen Post wishes to help spouses looking for jobs in Denmark. We have on our own initiative started a weekly spouse job page in The Copenhagen Post, with the aim to show that there are already within Denmark many highly educated international candidates looking for jobs.

If you are a spouse to an international employee in Denmark looking for new career opportunities, you are welcome to send a profile to The Copenhagen Post at aviaja@cphpost.dk and we will post your profile on the spouse job page when possible.

18 culture

The CopenhAgen posT CphposT.dk

19 - 25 August 2011

prince of Light outshone by the class of 1592 rolf konow

Ian burns Theatre review: ‘Comedy of errors’ ‘Richard III’ ‘hamlet’

T

he courtyard at Kronborg castle in helsingør provides the perfect setting for performances of any Shakespeare play. The joy on the faces of the actors and audience just to be there was clear to see. It surely must be a fantastic experience to perform in the open air in that historical space, and even the squawking of the occasional swooping seagull and the subtle chimes of the courtyard clock seemed perfectly timed to support the action. all three productions – ‘The comedy of errors’, ‘richard III’, and ‘hamlet’ – had elements in common: great ensemble playing, musicality and the ability to indeed speak Shakespeare ‘trippingly on the tongue’. every word uttered was crystal clear and delivered at a high tempo. all the actors on display here thought fast but spoke clearly, and every one of Shakespeare’s delicious words weaved their magic spell over us.

That for me was the overriding pleasure of seeing these three plays.

Propellor Theatre, with a company of 14 male players at their disposal, gave us ‘comedy of errors’ and ‘richard III’, both penned in the early days of Shakespeare’s career and performed in 1592.

The first is a romp based on the mistaken identity of two sets of identical twins

The British troupe Globe Theatre had been touring for seven months before staging the play at Kronborg

accidentally separated at birth. It was all great fun and with a cast that were brilliant and believable throughout. The star turn was tony Bell, who as Pinch the conjurer – portrayed in this production as a faith healer – reduced the audience to tears of laughter when he appeared totally naked through a cloud of smoke, having been blown up, with his hair standing on end, clutching his privates with both hands and with a lit roman candle lodged in his rear end! It was inspired and it was hilarious. Seeing him exit at speed we could still see him

in the darkness some distance offstage being assisted by a helpful stage-manager who removed the aforementioned flaming object. I have not laughed as much as that at any theatre. ‘richard III’ was presented on a bare stage in the strict black and white allowed by edwardian costume. There’s more than a whiff of the abattoir and gangster about the design. Many people get massacred in this play in extremely nasty ways that includes the use of drills, handsaws, gardening tools, hooks, hammers, lethal injections, poison and

pistols. It was very funny at times, but behind all the asides from our charming villain, played with ease by richard clothier, lurked a message for all times.

Beware of megalomaniacs who are willing to kill to achieve their ambition.

The Globe Theatre’s ‘hamlet’ had been touring for seven months before it found its way to helsingør. a smaller troupe of just eight played all the characters and the changing of one to the other was done without distraction. Their collective entrance introduced how they intended to approach the production.

Who is ... Bruno? vIctorIa steffensen

They were relaxed and talked to the audience as they placed costumes and props before the play began in earnest. “do you come here every year to see hamlet” asked John Bett as he took a rueful glance at the foreboding heavens. “yes!” came a loud and enthusiastic reply from a large section of the audience, hoping in cricket terms that rain would not stop play. “oh. you’ll probably know the words as well, if not better than we do then!” his list of characters included First Gravedigger, Priest, Polonius, Francisco and Player. a friendly demonstration then that they were only going to play the parts of the dramatis personae in this play called ‘hamlet’.

Joshua McGuire’s hamlet was a young and likeable teenager tackling the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. The choice of sharing all his private thoughts directly with the audience diluted the chaos of his addled revengeridden but impotent being. however, “Prince of Light” was a comment I heard at the interval. Someone obviously missed hamlet’s inner torment and angst. heavy and persistent rain at the premiere meant that for safety’s sake they decided to stop performing just before the final fight scene.

It transpires that next year there might be even more action on the battlements, as Lars romann engel, the artistic director of hamletScenen, has recently revealed that he wants to present high-quality productions other than ‘hamlet’ at Kronborg. We should applaud and support that endeavour whole-heartedly.

text 21

The Copenhagen Post Quick Crossword

No 358

Bruno is a human-sized cuddly bear who appears on children’s shows on dr1.

Pernille Fischer christensen’s drama ‘en familie’

oscar shortlist down to three eva korte drama about a comedian and comedy about a football agent among the nominees

T

hree films have been shortlisted by the danish Film Institute (dFI) ahead of the expected confirmation on September 20 of its Best Foreign Language Film entry for the oscars.

The films are: Martin Zandvliet’s drama ‘dirch’ about danish comedian dirch Passer, which premieres on 25 august in danish cinemas; Pernille Fischer christensen’s drama ‘en familie’, the winner of the critic-choice award at the 2010 Berlin Film Festival; and ole christian Madsen’s comedy ‘Superclásico’, which stars Paprika Steen as a football agent based in Buenos aires.

“We have combed through

a long list of films and picked three qualified bids in a fairly unanimous decision,” henrik Bo Nielsen, the chief executive of the dFI and chairman of its selection committee, said in a press release.

“We will compare those three films to each other, before we meet up again to announce the final candidate.”

The selection committee is following the same process as last year, which led to the selection of Susanne Bier’s ‘hævnen’ (In a Better World), the eventual winner of the academy award.

The chosen film will be bidding to follow in hævnen’s footsteps and be buoyed by the knowledge that the last time denmark won the oscar after a long wait, it defended the title, winning back-to-back best foreign language film oscars in the late 1980s with ‘Babettes gæstebud’ (Babette’s Feast) and ‘Pelle erobreren’ (Pelle the conqueror).

I thought he was called Bamse.

Nope, that would be the other human-sized cuddly bear appearing on children’s shows on dr1.

Do they need two? one might well ask that question, but it seems that dr1 was trying to compete with tV2 in the ‘how many of our actors can we force to wear silly costumes’ competition. tV2 is still in the lead with the four truly awful dog costumes they have put their employees in, in that one show that’s so awful I can’t even remember its name. okay, to be fair I should also state that Bruno is designed to appeal to a slightly older audience than Bamse.

How can I tell them apart?

Quite easily: Bruno is brown and Bamse is yellow. oh, and Bamse is the one that is usually to be found cavorting with a rather large chicken named Kylling.

Where did he come from? he was ‘born’ in 2005, having been developed by, amongst others, ‘wacky’ talk-show host anders Lund Madsen.

Has he been successful?

It would seem so. after starting as the lead-in to ‘Bamse’s christmas trip’ in 2005, he has gone on to make frequent appearances on dr, and has most recently had in his own tV show, ‘Brunos Kloshow’. and you might not believe this, but he has over 100,000 fans on Facebook!

I think he sounds cute! could I buy a copy of him for one of my loved ones? you’re in luck as you can actually buy one from dr’s very own online shop for the price of 599kr.

That’s a bit pricey, isn’t it? yes, but you get a lot for your money. copy-cat Bruno is almost as large as the real thing, at 70cm. But don’t buy him for a very young child or an elderly relative, because he is sure to scare the pants off them.

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Making (11) Prepare for war (3) Precursor (9) One who makes an effort (5) Clumsy (7) Awning (6) Courageous (6) Upstart (7) Squeeze (5) Strain (9) Fuss (3) Echo (11)

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Post Quick Crossword No 357 Across: 1 Baby; 3 Question; 9 Respond; 10 Impel; 11 Accumulation; 13 Insist; 15 Reveal; 17 Apprehension; 20 Event; 21 Vertigo; 22 Pressure; 23 Char.

Down: 1 Barbaric; 2 Basic; 4 Unduly; 5 Saint Bernard; 6 Implore; 7 Null; 8 Commiserates; 12 Clangour; 14 Supreme; 16 Shiver; 18 Irish; 19 Deep.

19 - 25 August 2011

Denmark through the looking glass The Copenhagen Post cphpost.dk

19

In ‘Reptilicus’, an ancient beast comes to life at Denmark’s Aquarium and goes on to terrorise the city

While Tokyo had Godzilla, Copenhagen had Reptilicus Mark walker Denmark’s only ever monster movie has a backstory as unbelievable as its script

I

n 1961, Copenhagen was held in an icy grip of terror as a recentlythawed, 90-foot monster, found frozen in the Arctic Circle, wrought havoc throughout the city. Known only as Reptilicus, the beast had an insatiable appetite for Danish farmers and an uncanny knack for avoiding bullets, grenades and rocket launchers …

Born in 1917 in Copenhagen, the screenwriter, director and novelist Ib Jørgen Melchior lives in his adopted hometown of Los Angeles with his wife Cleo Baldon. He has a life story that is in itself worthy of a movie: the son of a Wagnerian tenor, Melchior saw the classic American horror ‘The Man Who Laughs’ (by Paul Leni) in 1928 and became enamoured with motion pictures.

After graduating from Copenhagen University, Melchior began travelling as a theatre actor and this eventually took him to Broadway. In 1941, Melchior joined the war. He became decorated for his services within the ‘Office of Strategic Services’, which would eventually become known as the CIA. Later in New York, Melchior worked as a director in live television before heading to Hollywood to realise

his dream of directing for the cinema.

Upon his arrival he soon discovered that despite having worked as a director in New York, one needed to be a union member in Hollywood in order to direct a film there. However, without a Hollywood directing credit, it was impossible to join the union. Producer Sid Pink, well-known for his frugality, agreed that if Melchior could deliver a script at minimum cost, he’d allow him to direct it - for minimum payment. That film was ‘The Angry Red Planet’. It was a box-office success and AIP (American International Pictures) commissioned two more films from Melchior and Pink.

Their next film was to be ‘Reptilicus’. Melchior recycled many elements from his abandoned script called ‘Volcano Monsters’ and, thanks to contacts in Denmark, he enabled Pink to generate Danish finance for what would be a rare Danish-American co-production.

It would be shot at key locations around Copenhagen with both Danish and English language versions made simultaneously.

The narrative follows the discovery by miners of an ancient reptile frozen underground. The beast’s tail is returned to Denmark’s Aquarium, which serves as the central location for most of the film’s narrative. Under closer inspection, scientists learn of the creature’s ability to ‘regenerate’. Like a starfish or a worm, Reptilicus can grow a whole new

self from any severed part. Before long, the tail has grown a body and Copenhagen is host to a pre-historic monster.

In fact, the city is very well served by ‘Reptilicus’, with one central sequence acting as a travelogue of sorts: two American characters go for a drive and as we’re treated to a montage of all

‘Reptilicus’ is kind of a classic, because it is both good and very bad.

Somehow the very bad augments the good and it becomes fun. the sights, we hear enthusiastic commentary from the actors: “Look, the Little Mermaid, how lovely - it is a beautiful city.”

Despite the understanding that this would be Melchior’s next film as writer-director, Pink made the surprise declaration that he was to act as both producer and director of the picture.

Pink had never directed a single frame of dramatic fiction before, nor did he understand a word of Danish. Understandably Melchior was concerned. “It takes more than just wanting to direct a

film, you have to have some knowledge of it, but unfortunately Mr Pink had none,” he recalled.

Pink also credited himself as cowriter, but as Melchior recalls, Pink’s only contribution to the writing was the removal of anything he feared he couldn’t handle directing. Melchior recounts (undoubtedly with some amusement) one anecdote that clearly illustrates the extent of Pink’s inexperience.

During the filming of a set-piece involving hundreds of extras and the raising of the Langebro Bridge, supposedly as a means of preventing Reptilicus crossing it, the nation’s press were gathered.

Many athletes were poised to hurtle themselves off the end of the bridge in this huge scene, which one could really only shoot once.

“Wisely enough, Pink had six cameras in different positions, shooting this scene. However, not being used to directing, Pink forgot to call ‘ROLL’ for his cameras. He just yelled ‘ACTION’ and everybody ran but he never rolled his cameras. Fortunately one camera man was smart enough to see something was wrong and rolled. We got one shot and everything else was gone.”

Pink’s finished cut was rejected by the studio and Melchior was called in by producer Sam Arkoff to see if he could save the picture: “It was so bad that American International refused to release it. So I doctored up ‘Reptilicus’. I did

some re-editing, putting in extra scenes and cutaways that we made without actors, and the end result was that AIP accepted the film and distributed it.”

Pink and Melchior rarely spoke following their commitment to AIP. Melchior was awarded the Golden Scroll (now Saturn Award) in 1976 from the Academy of Science Fiction for his body of work. By that time Pink had become an exhibitor, running cinemas in Puerto Rica and Florida, before passing away in 2002.

Today Melchior reflects knowingly on the film’s cult status: “‘Reptilicus’ is kind of a classic, because it is both good and very bad. Somehow the very bad augments the good and it becomes fun.

It cannot be designated as a great film by any stretch of the imagination, but it is probably in some instances much more fun than many so called ‘great films’.”

The closing line of dialogue in ‘Reptilicus’ refers to the monster: “It’s a good thing that there’s no more like him.” Ironically the credit ‘Produced and Directed by Sidney Pink’ follows shortly after.

Ib Melchior’s 2009 book ‘Six Films From The Sixties’ chronicles the production of ‘Reptilicus’ in great depth. A special thanks to Brett Homenick and his excellent blog sidelongglancesofapigeonkicker. blogspot.com for kind access to his interview material.

THE COPENHAGEN POST CPHPOST.DK

N OPE AY RD TH U T 7 SA 2 T US 0 G 0 .

U 5 A 0–1 YS 0 .

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