Deep North: Stories from Iceland

What a Riot

On March 30, 1949, a large crowd convened behind a school in central Reykjavík. They were protesting the government’s decision to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organi­sation, then in its infancy. Once a sizeable throng had formed, the group marched on Alþingi, Iceland’s parliament. They were met by a group of NATO supporters who had surrounded the parliament building, in­tending to defend it. A riot erupted between the two groups, who only dispersed after police deployed tear gas. Five days later, NATO was officially formed, with Iceland among its founding members.

Of Mountains and Men

Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, the Icelander who portrayed Gregor Clegane, a.k.a. “the Mountain,” in HBO series Game of Thrones, owns and operates a gym in Kópavogur, Iceland. It’s called Thor’s Power Gym, which, admittedly, has an ever-so-slightly masculine ring to it. It’s there where Hafþór and other might-minded individuals convene to train for, among other things, the sport of strongman. Called aflraunir in Icelandic, the competition involves a potpourri of premodern feats of strength (with a few modern twists) often named for mythological heroes: the Atlas Stones, the Hercules Hold, Conan’s Wheel, Fingal’s Finger. In strongman, there are no points for subtlety.
 
In Episode 15 of Deep North, we take a look inside the like of strong men in Iceland, and ask: is there something in the water?
 

Man of the Year

Haraldur Þorleifsson, known more often as Halli, is famous for something most of us do every year: paying our taxes. After the sale of his company Ueno to Twitter, Halli became one of Iceland's so-called "Tax Kings." Now, he's working to make Iceland more accessible.

Cream of the Crop

The Westfjords have always been isolated, but after World War II, when the rest of Iceland experienced a period of sped-up industrialisation, the Westfjords were left behind. Once-thriving communities were slowly drained of life when the young people moved south, and a series of economic setbacks made life difficult for the ones that remained. A look at daily life in this remote region of Iceland.

In Focus: Strætó

In the spring of last year, Strætó announced an operational deficit of 750 million ISK. Shortly after that, it doubled this estimate. Coming out of the economic disruptions of COVID-19, is Strætó in a position to lead Iceland's energy transition?

One Night in Gufunes

Birnir's latest album, Bushido, represents an omnibus of contemporary Icelandic rap music. We talk about hip-hop, family, and what makes Birnir tick.

First Among Equals

Pools, hot-tubs, and saunas are an often-flaunted feature of Iceland in the tourism industry. But Iceland's pool culture serves as much more, forming the very stuff of social life for many Icelanders and perhaps even the basis of our democratic ideals.

The Right to Bear Arms

In 1998, Guðmundur Felix was working as an electronics engineer. One day in January, he set out to do some work on a high-voltage transmission line. The line he was supposed to be working on was powered off, but on that fateful day, Felix reached out and touched a line that was very much powered on. Shocked by 11,000 volts, he fell 8 metres. When he woke up, both his arms had been amputated at the shoulder.

In Focus: Wage Negotiations

With the dust from this fall's leadership turmoil still unsettled, one-third of wage contracts need to be re-negotiated between their trade union and SA, the employers' union. High interest rates and inflation have made this a particularly tricky negotiation round, and we briefly outline why it matters.

Mad World

Is it just the phones? We take a look at the state of mental health for Iceland's youth.