Embassy of Iceland - London, UK

A spine chilling suspense and gripping adventure directed by Ari Kristinsson.

Click here for further information.

Reykjavik, Iceland, 30 October 2008 - The Faroe Islands have offered Iceland a loan of DKK 300 million. The offer was presented at a meeting in Helsinki, Finland, where Icelandic, Faroese and other Nordic politicians and officials were attending the Nordic Council Session.

The Icelandic UK-based band, Blindfold, are playing at 93 Feet East in London on Monday, 27 Oct. For details see:

www.myspace.com/theblindfold
www.ampop.co.uk/blindfold

Monday 27 October @ The Holywell Music Room, Holywell Street, Oxford. Coo presents a very special evening welcoming back to Oxford the mesmerising Icelandic musician OLAFUR ARNALDS plus his string quartet with tour support from emerging talent FINN and Oxford's breathtaking talent RICHARD WALTERS.

The Icelandic Government has reached an agreement ad referendum with a mission from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a comprehensive stabilisation program.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has published the following basic facts about the Icelandic economy...

From the Icelandic Tourist Board: While Iceland and most other countries are currently dealing with a serious financial crisis, business in Iceland is being conducted as usual. All services - including banking services – are functioning as on any other day. Hotels, restaurants, airlines, car rentals, currency exchange facilities, offices, shops, etc. are all open for normal business. Visitors can be assured that they will be treated with same friendly hospitality that Icelanders have become known for throughout the travel world.

On the Prime Minister's office information site www.presspodium.com/is you can find photos and videos from the press meetings in Iceland as well as declarations and further information regarding the financial situation in Iceland.

Due to the special circumstances on the Icelandic financial markets the Government of Icelandic has decided to open an information center for the public, businesses and the media, both in Iceland and abroad.

The Icelandic government appreciates that the British authorities are willing to step in and respond to the immediate concerns of depositors of Landsbankinn Icesave accounts.

The governments of the two countries will immediately review the matter in detail through official channels with a view to finding a mutually satisfactory solution.

It should also be highlighted that on Monday evening changes were made to the Act on the Depositors’ and Investors’ Guarantee Fund strengthening the position of depositors by giving them priority when allocating assets.

There is a good probability that the total assets of Landsbankinn will be sufficient to cover the deposits in IceSave.

The Icelandic government reiterates that if needed it will support The Depositors’ and Investors’ Guarantee Fund in raising necessary funds.

The government of Iceland is determined not to let the current financial crisis overshadow the long standing friendship between Iceland and the United Kingdom.

Writers, translators and scholars (not university students) in the field of humanities from outside Iceland, are eligible to apply for this fellowship which enables a stay in Iceland for a period of at least three months in order to improve their knowledge of the Icelandic language, culture and society.

Applications by ordinary mail (no e-mail applications) should be sent no later than 31 October 2008 to the Sigurdur Nordal Institute in Iceland.

For further details see www.arnastofnun.is/english

An unconventional approach to such issues of development and the environment, Dreamland: A Self-Help Manual for a Frightened Nation, powerfully combines personal reflection and investigative exposé in a unique and fascinating look into the conflicted national psyche of contemporary Iceland.

On October 2nd at 5pm the author is giving a lecture in the festival of ideas, in Bristol's Reynolds Theatre - G25
Wills Memorial Building
University of Bristol
www.ideasfestival.co.uk

The renowned Icelandic musician Björk writes an introduction.

Further information: www.citizen-press.co.uk

London, 16th-19th October

Kling & Bang, the artists collective from Iceland, will commemorate Sirkus, a Reykjavik bar, landmark, and hub of the alternative arts scene, which is due for demolition. Kling og Bang will save its facade and interior and re-erect it at the Frieze Art Fair, like a circus moving to another town. A zany nomadic act reflecting the drive of Icelandic art, producing a situation of one circus within another for artists to respond to.

Click here for more information

Project: Iceland is the first showcase of contemporary Icelandic art, fashion and musical talent and gives significant insight into this outstanding creative community through photography and interviews with key figures - a fantastic publication and intimate portrait of the vibrant scene in Iceland.

11th November

"Punk" club Soho Street, Soho Square, London W1

Click here for more information

NICE08 is the first Nordic Art and Culture Festival to take place in the UK. It sets the scene for long-term collaborations, exchanges, cultural and economic developments between the UK’s Northwest and the Nordic Countries.

Icelandic participants are Katrín Fridriks, Laufey Johansen and Hrafnkell Sigurðsson.

20th September - 30th November

Click here for more information

An exhibition of photography, felt pieces, oil, acrylics, egg tempera, printmaking and stained/fused glass influenced by Icelandic landscape will be on display at the following locations in Kent throughout September and October.

Deal Library, Kent: 31st August - 25th September
Ashford Library, Kent: 10th October - 30th October

A collection of short stories, elsewhere – stories from small town europe, has recently been published in the UK. It contains a story by the Icelandic author Gyrðir Elíasson among stories from other countries.

Publisher: Comma Press

The Icelandic comedian Snorri Kristjansson, freshly back from his Edinburgh Fringe Festival debut, is among the Nordic comedians performing in Leicester Square Theatre 5th-8th October, 7.30pm, as part of The Big Joke comedy festival (featuring household names such as Joan Rivers and Roseanne Barr).

Booking details are available on: www.leicestersquaretheatre.com and at www.smorgasbord.kaylascomedy.co.uk.

Sigur Rós released their fifth album "Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust" ("With a buzz in our ears we play endlessly"), on June 23rd.

They will be following the release up with various shows in the UK and the Netherlands, among other countries, in November:

Nov 4th Tue - Wolverhampton, Wolves Civic SOLD OUT
Nov 5th Wed - Blackpool, Empress Ballroom
Nov 6th Thu - Glasgow, Academy

Nov 7th Fri - Bristol, Colston Hall SOLD OUT

Nov 8th Sat - Bournemouth, Solent Hall SOLD OUT

Nov 17th Mon - Amsterdam, Heineken Music Hall

Nov 20th Thu - London, Alexandra Palace

Nov 21th Fri - London, Alexandra Palace

For tickets and furter info, visit http://www.sigurros.com

ÓLAFUR ARNALDS
Saturday 25 October, 8pm
Union Chapel

Ólafur Arnalds returns to London after his stunning headline concert at the Barbican in June and a summer of touring in the UK and America.

Every August, Charlotte Square in the heart of historic Edinburgh, the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature, becomes the home to the Edinburgh International Book Festival. This year, from 9 – 25 August, the Book Festival will play host to authors, playwrights, poets, politicians, journalists and thinkers from around the world.

Upcoming Icelandic Londoners' Blindfold, whos' music has been likened to RadioHead and Sigur Ros, play an exclusive show featuring their upcoming album featuring singles 'Sad Face' & 'Faking Dreams' as well as tracks from their critically acclaimed debut album.

July 11th 2008 7.30pm
The Roundhouse. Camden. NW1
www.blindfoldmusic.co.uk

‘SEYDISFJ R U ’ is a site specific installation produced by artists Mhari Baxter and Melissa MacRobert as a result of their joint residency at Skaftfell Cultural Centre in Iceland last year.

Expanding from their previous exhibition in Edinburgh’s Old Town in March this year, the artists will present a series of light boxes in The Arches, Glasgow.

(http://www.thearches.co.uk/Seydisfj-r-u.htm)

The Embassy has published a newsletter for June 2008.

Ólafur Arnalds is a young Icelandic musician whose music has been described as “beautiful in the same way the arctic is”.

Mixing strings with loops, ambiance, electronics and beats Arnalds combines classical instrumentation with an indierock aesthetic that draws comparison to Sigur Ros.

Click here for more information.

Icelandic singers Gardar Thor Cortes and Olafur Sigurdarson will perform in the opera Carmen as part of the Hampton Court Festival, Thursday 5th June 2008.

www.hamptoncourtfestival.com

Following the spine-tingling, sell-out Metamorphosis, Iceland’s coolest theatre company return with a heart-warming love story. Set in an old people’s home – think Romeo and Juliet in reverse – Love is a romantic musical with a professional cast and a chorus of local senior citizens singing songs by popular artists. Who says romance has an age limit?

For further details and tickets, visit http://offwestend.com/index.php/plays/view/1702

May 15-June 5, 2008

REYKJAVÍK ARTS FESTIVAL Announces New Visual and Performing Arts Programs for 2008 Including Experiment Marathon Reykjavík at the Reykjavík Art Museum curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist in collaboration with Ólafur Elíasson

Further information:

www.cia.is

www.artnews.is

The biggest ever Eurovision Song Contest party will take place at London's Scala nightclub on Friday 25th April. Paul Oscar, who previously represented Iceland at the competition will perform live and Iceland's current entry Euroband will also be there. www.ukeurovision.com

Britain’s first IceTölt competition (Icelandic Horses competing on ice) is to be held at Basingstoke’s Planet Ice on Saturday 19^th April 2008 at 6pm. Tickets are now on sale (Tel: 01256 355 266).  www.icetolt.co.uk

Icelandic author and poet Sjón will be speaking at the Royal Festival Hall in London's Southbank Centre on Saturday 12 April, as part of International PEN's celebration of world literature - Free the Word!

The Egill Skallagrimsson Fund is a registered charity in Britain under the auspices of the Embassy of Iceland, providing grants for artistic endeavours which promote the culture and art of Iceland in the UK. Click here for further details and application info.

Icelandic tenor Gardar Thor Cortes has been nominated for Album of the Year in the Classical BRIT Awards 2008. Click here to vote online for his album Cortes.

Icelandic singer-songwriter Eliza's new single Change my name / Return to me is out now on digital download and is available to buy from all major download stores. www.myspace.com/elizanewman

The well-known Icelandic troubadour KK and his sister Ellen Kristjánsdóttir will hold a concert at the Swedish Church in London on Sunday 9th of March.

The Icelandic Society in the Netherlands hosts its annual Þorrablót (Icelandic midwinter feast) on Saturday 8th March 2008, at De Amstelzaal in Amsterdam. For further information click here.

The Nordic Translation Conference will take place 6th-8th March 2008 at the Institute of Germanic and Romance Studies in London. The first conference of its kind, it will focus solely on the Nordic languages and their translation.

The Icelandic Society in London hosts its annual Þorrablót (Icelandic midwinter feast) on Saturday 1st March 2008, at the Millennium Hotel London Mayfair. Please see www.ifelag.co.uk for further information.

The Icelandic mezzo soprano Sigridur Osk Kristjansdottir will be giving a recital at St. Martin in the Fields, Trafalgar Square London, on Friday 15th of February at 1pm. Entry is free of charge.

Icelandic Band Dýrðin plays at the Spice of Life Club in Soho on 1st February and at the Grosvenor on the 2nd of February 2008. www.myspace.com/dyrdin

Icelandic gold and silversmith Pétur Tryggvi exhibits his work at the Collect art fair at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, 25-29 January 2008.

Icelandic tenor Jónas Guðmundsson, with young artists from the Georg Solti Accademia di Bel Canto, celebrates Sir Georg Solti, Music for the Maestro, Sunday 20th January 2008, 7.30pm at Wigmore-Hall. www.wigmore-hall.org.uk

Renowned Icelandic tenor Finnur Bjarnason performs the role of Castor in the opera Castor and Pollux, a De Nederlandse Opera production, from Friday 18th January 2008 at the Het Muziektheater in Amsterdam.

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