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"No one would have flinched if he had fallen for a broad-assed rock mama with bazooka-tits - but then he turned up with a delicate little bird."

Jan Sonnergaard, The Little Mermaid, February 2005.
 
Hans Christian Andersen called life a travel and his own life a fairytale. This is why the Danish state railway, DSB, quite naturally wishes to join the celebration of the bicentenary of the birth of Hans Christian Andersen in 2005. The partnership between DSB and the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation was publicised at a press conference on 25 January 2005.

The DSB is to provide railway transportation for the many foreign guests and dignitaries during the celebration of the Andersen bicentenary. The DSB thus joins a host of Danish companies in celebrating Denmark's most famous author, most notably on the bicentennial anniversary itself on 2 April when royal dignitaries and international VIP guest are transported from Copenhagen to Odense to attend the award ceremony of the Odense City Hans Christian Andersen Award. The press will also be invited to travel to and from Odense with DSB.

Keld Sengeløv, CEO of DSB, states:
"Hans Christian Andersen has with his many fairytales given the Danes a common bond and offered people across the world amazing experiences. The Andersen bicentenary is therefore an obvious cause for the DSB to support. We see it as a natural undertaking for the DSB to contribute with what we do best, passenger transport, when the many Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors are to be transported from Copenhagen to Odense and back. Throughout the Andersen bicentenary we will work closely with the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation to provide convenient transport to and from the grand events.?

Lars Seeberg, Secretary General of the 2005 Foundation, states:
"The Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation along with the DSB looks forward to the day when Danish and international royal dignitaries and VIP guests board the train in the spirit of Andersen - and we also join DSB in hoping that many more will be inspired to take the train to the wide range of cultural events that are to mark the bicentennial celebrations nationwide. We also take great pleasure in the focus DSB has given to Andersen by publishing 12 new Andersen-inspired fairytales by famous Danish writers in the 2005 editions of their passenger magazine Ud & Se. The fairytales are exciting and personal interpretations of Andersen's famous tales, which ties in well with the commitment by the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation to promote the wider awareness of Andersen as a writer that can be read in many ways."

Following the events in Odense, the special train service will transport the prominent guest to the highlight of the Fairytale Weekend - the grand opening show at the national soccer stadium, PARKEN, where TV viewers across all continents and an audience of more than 42,000 at the venue itself will watch international entertainers pay homage to Hans Christian Andersen.

At the press conference, Danish artist and Professor of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts Bjørn Nørgaard was appointed Hans Christian Andersen Ambassador by Secretary General of the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation, Lars Seeberg.

The DSB also presented their initiative to feature twelve fairytales by Danish authors in the DBS passenger magazine Ud & Se. The fairytales are inspired by famous tales by Andersen, such as The Ugly Duckling and What the Old Man Does is Always Right, and will be featured in each monthly issue of the magazine throughout 2005.  

At the press conference, author Jan Sonnergaard performed a reading of his version of Andersen's The Little Mermaid, which will be published in book form later this year along with the other fairytales from the magazine. Co-publishers are DSB and People?s Press.
 
The 2005 Hans Christian Andersen bicentenary will conclude with a closing ceremony in Odense where DSB once again will transport the many prominent guests, just as DSB and the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation throughout 2005 will encourage the public to take the train to the many Andersen events.

Photo from the press conference (from right): CEO Keld Sengeløw and Secretary General Lars Seeberg in front of "Klods-Harry" (Clumsy Harry). Photographer: Henrik Salling/Have PR.

Facts on the 2005 Andersen bicentenary

Hans Christian Andersen 2005 is to promote the wider appreciation and awareness of the life and work of Hans Christian Andersen in celebration of the bicentenary of his birth in 2005.

This is set to happen through numerous projects within film, TV, literature, theatre, opera, dance, multimedia, rhythmic and classical music, entertainment, visual art, museum exhibitions, education and tourism.

The stated aim is to promote a more variegated image of the poet and storyteller among as many as possible in Denmark and internationally, children and adults alike. In 2005, Hans Christian Andersen will be celebrated with both large and small productions with international impact as well as small, local events. The Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation has been established by the Kingdom of Denmark represented by the Danish Ministry of Culture, the Danish Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs, the Municipality of Odense, the County of Funen and the Bikuben Foundation.

Facts about the Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors

Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors are celebrated artists, politicians, journalists, businesspeople and athletes from around the world, who have been asked by the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation to represent the bicentenary of the birth of Hans Christian Andersen. All are highly respected within their field and are acclaimed and credited for their contributions to the world.

The Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors are to help generate awareness of the bicentenary celebrations in their home countries, either by their presence at different events related to the 2005 bicentenary or by conveying their view of Hans Christian Andersen to the world.

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