Kronors

“Kronors? Are they German?”, the bloke behind the counter of the shop asked me tonight.

As I took my cash out of my wallet, he’d obviously taken a peak inside and noticed the 50 kronor note (about $9) which I’ve kept in my wallet from my trip to Sweden earlier this year.

Speaking of Sweden, I woke early this morning, and knowing my friend’s Sam and Patrick were in Sweden, and were at Skansen, the open air museum in Stockholm, I went to the SVT website to watch “Allsång på Skansen” which I knew they were attending.

For my money, “Allsång” is a great concept for a television variety program, and even though it’s “very Swedish” (there’s a Norwegian version too). I think it has great potential as a television program in Australia too.

Each week, only during summer, they have an outdoor sing-a-long program, where the public comes to the park and watches a range of Swedish favourites sing either a) their latest hit or b) a well-known Swedish song which the audience can sing-a-long with, as they all have copies of the latest book with the words. And if you can’t make it to the park, the words appear on the screen, so you can sing-a-long at home too.

It’s classic “family television”. In an Australian context, it’s “Carols by Candlelight” meets “Countdown” meets “Young Talent Time”. It’s secular hymn-singing, in some ways. There’s a degree of public humiliation thrown in too. It fills the market “Hey Hey” seeks to.

I can just see the program filmed around Australia over summer. Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Kings Park in Perth. Southbank in Brissie. Barnesy. Farnesy. Vanessa Amorosi. Money raised through SMS goes to charity. Hosted by David Campbell. I can just see it, though clearly I’ve spent too much time thinking through the format and discussing it with friends.

During the show, I didn’t spot Pam or Sam, but I was blown away by the performance of the Australian group, Ten Tenors. Among the band members, one gentleman showcased incredible Swedish language skills, which left the audience in awe.

The day started early for me, but despite that, it turned out to be both interesting and productive at work. As Wednesday rolled around, I made my way to the pub to unwind. There, we were entertained by The Best Judge, who regaled us with entertaining tales of moving house.

Interestingly, my friend Grant and two colleagues from work are soon heading to Sweden, along with another colleague’s mother-in-law. With Slussen, the main transport interchange in Stockholm, undergoing rebuilding, I couldn’t help but wonder if they should consider a direct tunnel to Sydney as well. Count me in—I’m more than happy to contribute 50 kronor to get that idea rolling!”