widget/exchange-29
widget/exchange-30widget/exchange-33
widget/exchange-31

Arts / Riddoch to explore Denmark and Faroe with film screenings and Q&As

JOURNALIST and broadcaster Lesley Riddoch is heading north to Shetland again to host screenings of two films exploring Denmark and Faroe.

She will host her film Denmark: The State Of Happiness at the Shetland Museum on Tuesday (28 May) before heading to Yell for a screening of Faroes – The Connected Nation the night after.

Both events will include a Q&A with Riddoch, with the Lerwick screening ticketed and the Yell one free entry.

The films – part of a wider series of documentaries about Nordic nations – see Riddoch visit Denmark and Faroe to find out more about what makes them tick.

For Denmark the angle is how its residents are judged to be the happiest people on earth, with the world’s best energy system and a GDP per capita almost a third higher than Britain.

Lesley Riddoch.

The Faroe film looks at how the isles, with a population of just 55,000, “don’t think small” and have a devolved parliament in a nation where there are high levels of transport and internet connectivity – including tunnels.

offset-carousel/post-mobile/0

Riddoch acknowledges there is a constitutional backdrop at play, but it is not a “ranting” piece about how Scotland should be Denmark.

“There’s plenty in our society that stops us being Denmark even if we were independent,” she explained.

“This is really not a film about Scotland, it’s a film about Denmark.”

Riddoch said a big theme of the Denmark film is “cooperation” – something highlighted in the country’s voluntary residential school scheme efterskole.

She said this is year where teenagers can spend a year away from home focusing on a particular interest in addition to the usual academic subjects, living together and “taking responsibility for each other”.

“As a teacher explains it they’re learning what it is to be a fellowship,” Riddoch said. “Which sounds quite sort of religious almost, but it’s not – it’s civic fellowship that society is.”

Become a member of Shetland News

 

She said a lot of the problems we have closer to home stem from not designing in this “learning to cooperate” from the beginning.

Over to Faroe, a self governing part of Denmark, and its envied system of subsea tunnels crops up in the film.

“It has a lot on what the tunnels do socially for the islands,” Riddoch explained. “That film is called Faroes – The Connected Nation – the connectedness that it provides is quite staggering.”

Yell, where the screening will be hosted, is one of a handful of Shetland islands where tunnels are being spoken about a possible long-term replacement to ferries.

But Riddoch said Faroe has its own challenges, highlighting that there are in effect 30 councils there – if applied to Shetland this would mean a place like Unst would have its own council, she added.

The ticketed Lerwick screening of Denmark: The State Of Happiness will take place at 7pm on Tuesday 28 May at the Shetland Museum auditorium.

The Yell screening of Faroes: The Connected Nation is being held at Wednesday 29 May at 7pm, with entry free.

Become a member of Shetland News

Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -

  • Remove non-local ads;
  • Bookmark posts to read later;
  • Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
  • Hide membership messages;
  • Comments open for discussion.

If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.

 
widget/pd_widget-6widget/pd_widget-7widget/exchange-53widget/exchange-54widget/pd_widget-8widget/exchange-55widget/pd_widget-9widget/exchange-56

Newsletters

Subscribe to a selection of different newsletters from Shetland News, varying from breaking news delivered on the minute, to a weekly round-up of the opinion posts. All delivered straight to your inbox.

Daily Briefing Newsletter Weekly Highlights Newsletter Opinion Newsletter Life in Shetland Newsletter

JavaScript Required

We're sorry, but Shetland News isn't fully functional without JavaScript enabled.
Head over to the help page for instructions on how to enable JavaScript on your browser.

Your Privacy

We use cookies on our site to improve your experience.
By using our service, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy.

Browser is out-of-date

Shetland News isn't fully functional with this version of .
Head over to the help page for instructions on updating your browser for more security, improved speed and the best overall experience on this site.

Interested in Notifications?

Get notifications from Shetland News for important and breaking news.
You can unsubscribe at any time.

Have you considered becoming a member of Shetland News?

If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please consider paying for membership and get the following features and services: -

  • Remove non-local ads;
  • Bookmark posts to read later;
  • Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
  • Hide membership messages;
  • Comments open for discussion.