Historical series dominate DR’s new drama slate

The Danish pubcaster’s new prime time series unveiled this week are intended to gather Danish viewers around their common history and cultural heritage.

Henrik Bo Nielsen, former CEO at the Danish Film Institute and currently DR’s Director of Culture, Children and Youth, said about the upcoming series: “DR’s most important task is to ensure that Danish cultural content can continue to be strong, not least in a time of increasing global competition from foreign players.”

The multi-season untitled series about the ‘Carmen Curlers’ is inspired by the true story of the famous Carmen heated hair rollers created by Danish entrepreneur Arne Bybjerg who turned his invention into a global sensation, relying on a workforce of more than 3,500 women.

The series will be set in the Carmen curlers’ Danish birthplace of Kalundborg, west Zealand, between 1963 and 1969. “It’s the story of a city completely turned upside down, and it’s a story about women’s entry into the labour market,” said DR’s Head of Drama Christian Rank. The first season is set to premiere in 2022.

DR’s next major drama will feature one of Denmark’s most controversial historical figures-Leonora Christina (1621-1698), favourite daughter of King Christian IV. Accused of high treason, she spent 22 years in prison, where she wrote her autobiography ‘Jammers Minde’, part of Denmark’s cultural canon. The ambitious biopic about war and peace, power, betrayal and love, is set to start filming in 2021, with a delivery in 2023.

The writers and directors for the Carmen Curlers and Leonora Christina series will be unveiled at a later date, according to DR.

DR’s upcoming event drama series come on top of the previously announced major show Borgen season 4, produced by SAM Productions. The political drama created by Adam Price is co-financed by Netflix.

The Danish pubcaster also unveiled on Monday it is working on a historical documentary series about the shared history of Denmark and Greenland, to be narrated by Nikolaj Coster Waldau’s wife Nukâka Coster Waldau - celebrated Greenlandic singer/actress - and Lars Mikkelsen. The prime-time four-part series will be broadcast on DR1 in 2021, to mark 300 years since the Danish/Norwegian priest Hans Egede first set foot in Greenland.