1.
Randers
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Randers is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmarks sixth-largest city, with a population of 61,163, Randers is the municipalitys main town and the site of its municipal council. The municipality is also a part of the East Jutland metropolitan area, by road it is 38.5 kilometres north of Aarhus,43.8 kilometres east of Viborg, and 224 kilometres northwest of Copenhagen. Randers became a market town in medieval times, and many of its 15th-century half-timbered houses remain today, as does St Martins Church. Trade by sea was facilitated through the Gudenå River, entering Randers Fjord, most of the larger historic industries in Randers are gone today. From 1970, the population saw a decline from a peak of 58.500 citizens, the main tourist attraction is Randers Tropical Zoo thanks to its artificial rainforest, the largest in Northern Europe, its 350 varieties of plant and over 175 species of animals. The citys football team, Randers FC, play their homes games at the AutoC Park Randers, and are in Denmarks first league, the Superligaen. The town is home to Randers rugby union club and Jutland RLFC, a rugby league team, as well as Randers Cimbria. The oldest forms of the name appear on coins minted from the times of King George until those of Svend Grathe. The coins bear the names Ranrosia, Ransias, Radrusia, Rand, ancient written records include the Latin Randrusium, Icelandic Randrosi, and Rondrus, Randrøs. Other early forms provide Randersborg and Randershusen, the name appears to stem from Rand and Aros and probably means town on the hillside by the river mouth. The modern form Randers was first came into use at the end of the 17th century, Randers was formally established around the 12th century, but traces of activity date back to Viking times. Canute IV of Denmark, also known as Canute the Saint and Canute the Holy, the peasants of Randers who rose up against him and his plans to attack England and its ruler, William the Conqueror, assembled in this town. Their uprising led to the death of Canute, a chronicle written at Essenbæk Abbey tells of a fire that ravaged the city. The city was destroyed and rebuilt three times in the 13th century, in 1246, it was burned down by Abel of Denmarks troops during the civil uprising against Eric IV of Denmark. This action led to insurrection against the Germans. Ebbesen died in a battle at Skanderborg Castle in December 1340. A statue to Ebbesen stands in front of Randers Town Hall today, when King Valdemar IV of Denmark tried to assemble a government in 1350 after the mortgaging to the Holsteiners, the town was further reinforced with protection, and was often named as Randershus
2.
Folk music
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Folk music includes both traditional music and the genre that evolved from it during the 20th century folk revival. The term originated in the 19th century, but is applied to music older than that. Some types of music are also called world music. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways, as music transmitted orally, music with unknown composers and it has been contrasted with commercial and classical styles. Starting in the century, a new form of popular folk music evolved from traditional folk music. This process and period is called the revival and reached a zenith in the 1960s. This form of music is called contemporary folk music or folk revival music to distinguish it from earlier folk forms. Smaller, similar revivals have occurred elsewhere in the world at other times and this type of folk music also includes fusion genres such as folk rock, folk metal, electric folk, and others. Even individual songs may be a blend of the two, a consistent definition of traditional folk music is elusive. The terms folk music, folk song, and folk dance are comparatively recent expressions and they are extensions of the term folklore, which was coined in 1846 by the English antiquarian William Thoms to describe the traditions, customs, and superstitions of the uncultured classes. Traditional folk music also includes most indigenous music, however, despite the assembly of an enormous body of work over some two centuries, there is still no certain definition of what folk music is. Some do not even agree that the term Folk Music should be used, Folk music may tend to have certain characteristics but it cannot clearly be differentiated in purely musical terms. One meaning often given is that of old songs, with no known composers, the fashioning and re-fashioning of the music by the community that give it its folk character. Such definitions depend upon processes rather than abstract musical types, one widely used definition is simply Folk music is what the people sing. For Scholes, as well as for Cecil Sharp and Béla Bartók, Folk music was already. seen as the authentic expression of a way of life now past or about to disappear, particularly in a community uninfluenced by art music and by commercial and printed song. In these terms folk music may be seen as part of a schema comprising four types, primitive or tribal, elite or art, folk. Music in this genre is often called traditional music. Although the term is only descriptive, in some cases people use it as the name of a genre
3.
Universal Music Group
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Universal Music Group is an American-French global music corporation that is a subsidiary of the Paris-based French media conglomerate Vivendi. UMGs global corporate headquarters are in Santa Monica, California and it is considered one of the Big Three record labels, along with Sony Music and Warner Music Group. Universal Music was once the music attached to film studio Universal Pictures and its origins go back to the formation of the American branch of Decca Records in September 1934. The Decca Record Co. Ltd. of England spun American Decca off in 1939, MCA Inc. merged with American Decca in 1962. The present organization was formed when its parent company Seagram purchased PolyGram in May 1998, however, the name had first appeared in 1996 when MCA Music Entertainment Group was renamed Universal Music Group. The PolyGram acquisition included Deutsche Grammophon which traces its ancestry to Berliner Gramophone making Deutsche Grammophon UMGs oldest unit, UMGs Canadian unit traces its ancestry to a Berliner Gramophone breakaway firm the Compo Company. With the 2004 acquisition of Universal Studios by General Electric and merging with GEs NBC and this is the second time a music company has done so, the first being the separation of Time Warner and Warner Music Group. On June 25,2007, Vivendi completed its €1.63 billion purchase of BMG Music Publishing, after receiving European Union regulatory approval, doug Morris stepped down from his position as CEO on January 1,2011. Former chairman/CEO of Universal Music International Lucian Grainge was promoted to CEO of the company, Grainge later replaced him as chairman on March 9,2011. Morris became the chairman of Sony Music Entertainment on July 1,2011. With Grainges appointment as CEO at UMG, Max Hole was promoted to COO of UMGI, starting in 2011 UMGs Interscope Geffen A&M Records will be signing contestants from American Idol/Idol series. On January 2011, UMG announced it was donating 200,000 master recordings from the 1920s to 1940s to the Library of Congress for preservation, in March 2011, Barry Weiss became chairman & CEO of The Island Def Jam Music Group & Universal Republic Records. Both companies are restructuring under Weiss, in December 2011, David Foster was named Chairman of Verve Music Group. Among the other companies that had competed for the music business was Warner Music Group which was reported to have made a $2 billion bid. However, IMPALA has said it would fight the merger, coincidentally, UMG sister company StudioCanal has owned the EMI Films library for several years. On September 21,2012, the sale of EMI to UMG was approved in Europe, UMG divested Mute Records, Parlophone, Roxy Recordings, MPS Records, Cooperative Music, Now Thats What I Call Music. Jazzland, Universal Greece, Sanctuary Records, Chrysalis Records, EMI Classics, Virgin Classics, the Beatles recorded music library was allowed to remain with UMG despite being considered part of Parlophone and is now managed by UMGs reorganized Capitol Music Group worldwide. Robbie Williams, who had recorded for Chrysalis, had his transferred to Universals Island Records
4.
Danish people
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Danes are the citizens of Denmark, most of whom speak Danish and consider themselves to be of Danish ethnicity. The first mention of Danes are from the 6th century in Jordanes Getica, by Procopius, the first mention of Danes within the Danish territory is on the Jelling Rune Stone which states how Harald Bluetooth converted the Danes to Christianity in the 10th century. Since the formulation of a Danish national identity in the 19th century, Danish national identity was built on a basis of peasant culture and Lutheran theology, theologian N. F. S. Grundtvig and his popular movement played a prominent part in the process. Today, the criterion for being considered a Dane is having Danish citizenship. Frankish annalists of the 8th century often refer to Danish kings, the Bobbio Orosius from the early 7th century, distinguishes between South Danes inhabiting Jutland and North Danes inhabiting the isles and the province of Scania. The first mention of Danes within the Danish territory is on the Jelling Rune Stone which mentions how Harald Bluetooth converted the Danes to Christianity in the 10th century. Between c.960 and the early 980s, Harald Bluetooth established a kingdom in the lands of the Danes, stretching from Jutland to Scania. Around the same time, he received a visit from a German missionary who, by surviving an ordeal by fire according to legend, the following years saw the Danish Viking expansion, which incorporated Norway and Northern England into the Danish kingdom. After the death of Canute the Great in 1035, England broke away from Danish control, canutes nephew Sweyn Estridson re-established strong royal Danish authority and built a good relationship with the archbishop of Bremen — at that time the Archbishop of all of Scandinavia. The Reformation, which originated in the German lands in the early 16th century from the ideas of Martin Luther, had a impact on Denmark. The Danish Reformation started in the mid-1520s, some Danes wanted access to the Bible in their own language. In 1524, Hans Mikkelsen and Christiern Pedersen translated the New Testament into Danish and those who had traveled to Wittenberg in Saxony and come under the influence of the teachings of Luther and his associates included Hans Tausen, a Danish monk in the Order of St John Hospitallers. The Dano-Norwegian Kingdom grew wealthy during the 16th century, largely because of the traffic through the Øresund. The Crown of Denmark could tax the traffic, because it controlled both sides of the Sound at the time, in the centuries after this loss of territory, the populations of the Scanian lands, who had previously been considered Danish, came to be fully integrated as Swedes. Later, in the early 19th century, Denmark suffered a defeat in the Napoleonic Wars, Denmark lost control over Norway, the political and economic defeat ironically sparked what is known as the Danish Golden Age during which a Danish national identity first came to be fully formed. The Danish liberal and national movements gained momentum in the 1830s, a new constitution emerged, separating the powers and granting the franchise to all adult males, as well as freedom of the press, religion, and association. The king became head of the executive branch, Danishness is the concept on which contemporary Danish national and ethnic identity is based. It is a set of values formed through the historic trajectory of the formation of the Danish nation, importantly, since its formulation, Danish identity has not been linked to a particular racial or biological heritage, as many other ethno-national identities have
5.
Denmark
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Denmark, officially the Kingdom of Denmark, is a Scandinavian country in Europe and a sovereign state. The southernmost and smallest of the Nordic countries, it is south-west of Sweden and south of Norway, Denmark also comprises two autonomous constituent countries in the North Atlantic Ocean, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Denmark has an area of 42,924 square kilometres. The country consists of a peninsula, Jutland, and an archipelago of 443 named islands, with the largest being Zealand, the islands are characterised by flat, arable land and sandy coasts, low elevation and a temperate climate. The unified kingdom of Denmark emerged in the 10th century as a proficient seafaring nation in the struggle for control of the Baltic Sea, Denmark, Sweden and Norway were ruled together under the Kalmar Union, established in 1397 and ending with Swedish secession in 1523. Denmark and Norway remained under the monarch until outside forces dissolved the union in 1814. The union with Norway made it possible for Denmark to inherit the Faroe Islands, Iceland, beginning in the 17th century, there were several cessions of territory to Sweden. In the 19th century there was a surge of nationalist movements, Denmark remained neutral during World War I. In April 1940, a German invasion saw brief military skirmishes while the Danish resistance movement was active from 1943 until the German surrender in May 1945, the Constitution of Denmark was signed on 5 June 1849, ending the absolute monarchy which had begun in 1660. It establishes a constitutional monarchy organised as a parliamentary democracy, the government and national parliament are seated in Copenhagen, the nations capital, largest city and main commercial centre. Denmark exercises hegemonic influence in the Danish Realm, devolving powers to handle internal affairs, Home rule was established in the Faroe Islands in 1948, in Greenland home rule was established in 1979 and further autonomy in 2009. Denmark became a member of the European Economic Community in 1973, maintaining certain opt-outs, it retains its own currency, the krone. It is among the members of NATO, the Nordic Council, the OECD, OSCE. The etymology of the word Denmark, and especially the relationship between Danes and Denmark and the unifying of Denmark as a kingdom, is a subject which attracts debate. This is centred primarily on the prefix Dan and whether it refers to the Dani or a historical person Dan and the exact meaning of the -mark ending. Most handbooks derive the first part of the word, and the name of the people, from a word meaning land, related to German Tenne threshing floor. The -mark is believed to mean woodland or borderland, with references to the border forests in south Schleswig. The first recorded use of the word Danmark within Denmark itself is found on the two Jelling stones, which are believed to have been erected by Gorm the Old and Harald Bluetooth
6.
Stockholm, Sweden
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The city is spread across 14 islands on the coast in the southeast of Sweden at the mouth of Lake Mälaren, by the Stockholm archipelago and the Baltic Sea. The area has settled since the Stone Age, in the 6th millennium BC. It is also the capital of Stockholm County, Stockholm is the cultural, media, political, and economic centre of Sweden. The Stockholm region alone accounts for over a third of the countrys GDP and it is an important global city, and the main centre for corporate headquarters in the Nordic region. The city is home to some of Europes top ranking universities, such as the Stockholm School of Economics, Karolinska Institute and it hosts the annual Nobel Prize ceremonies and banquet at the Stockholm Concert Hall and Stockholm City Hall. One of the citys most prized museums, the Vasa Museum, is the most visited museum in Scandinavia. The Stockholm metro, opened in 1950, is known for its decoration of the stations. Swedens national football arena is located north of the city centre, Ericsson Globe, the national indoor arena, is in the southern part of the city. The city was the host of the 1912 Summer Olympics, and hosted the equestrian portion of the 1956 Summer Olympics otherwise held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Stockholm is the seat of the Swedish government and most of its agencies, including the highest courts in the judiciary, and the official residencies of the Swedish monarch and the Prime Minister. The government has its seat in the Rosenbad building, the Riksdag is seated in the Parliament House, and the Prime Ministers residence is adjacent at the Sager House. After the Ice Age, around 8,000 BCE, there were already a number of people living in the present-day Stockholm area. Thousands of years later, as the ground thawed, the climate became tolerable, at the intersection of the Baltic Sea and lake Mälaren is an archipelago site where the Old Town of Stockholm was first built from about 1000 CE by Vikings. They had a positive impact on the area because of the trade routes they created. Stockholms location appears in Norse sagas as Agnafit, and in Heimskringla in connection with the legendary king Agne, the earliest written mention of the name Stockholm dates from 1252, by which time the mines in Bergslagen made it an important site in the iron trade. The first part of the name means log in Swedish, although it may also be connected to an old German word meaning fortification, the second part of the name means islet, and is thought to refer to the islet Helgeandsholmen in central Stockholm. Stockholms core, the present Old Town was built on the island next to Helgeandsholmen from the mid 13th century onward. The city originally rose to prominence as a result of the Baltic trade of the Hanseatic League, Stockholm developed strong economic and cultural linkages with Lübeck, Hamburg, Gdańsk, Visby, Reval, and Riga during this time
7.
Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013
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Denmark participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 in Malmö, Sweden. The Danish entry was selected through the national final Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2013, Emmelie de Forest represented Denmark with the song Only Teardrops, which qualified from the first semi-final of the competition and won the contest, placing 1st in the final with 281 points. On 28 May 2012, two days after the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Azerbaijan, DR announced their intention to participate in the 2013 contest, the national selection, Dansk Melodi Grand Prix, remained the same as in previous years. A selection jury selected six songs in open competition among the songs submitted to the broadcaster, additionally, four participants were invited based on editorial considerations. In total, ten songs participated in the national final, jan Lagermand Lundme, DR Head of Entertainment, said that DR focussed on selecting songs that had a strong chorus. When the deadline for submitting entries to Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2013 had passed on 24 September 2012,692 songs had been received - the highest number of submissions since 1988. Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2013 took place on 26 January 2013 at Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning, the show was presented by Lise Rønne, Louise Wolff and Sofie Lassen-Kahlke. The winning song was selected in two rounds of voting, in the first round, the combination of viewer SMS voting and a professional jury selected the top 3 songs which proceeded to the superfinal. The five members of the awarded a total of 30 points. The SMS viewer vote was also translated into 30 points, with each receiving the proportion of those 30 points based on the percentage of the total votes they earned. For example, if a song received 50% of the viewer votes, in both voting rounds, the viewers SMS vote accounted for 50% of the results, while the jury votes accounted for the remaining 50%. After all ten songs were performed, Simone, Emmelie de Forest, Emmelie de Forest won Dansk Melodi Grand Prix with the song Only Teardrops after receiving 11 points from the jury and 15 points from the public. To ensure fair distribution in the semifinals, the Eurovision Reference Group decided on 7 November 2012 that Denmark would compete in the first semi-final on 14 May. In the first semifinal, the producers of the show decided that Denmark would perform 5th, following Croatia and preceding Russia. On stage, Emmelie de Forest was joined by two drummers, Morten Specht Larsen and Jacob Baagøe Thomsen, and by three backing singers, Anne Murillo, Heidi Degn and Anders Øhrstrøm, Denmark qualified from the first semi-final, placing 1st and scoring 167 points. At the first semi-final winners press conference, Denmark was allocated to perform in the half of the final. In the final, the producers of the show decided that Denmark would perform 18th, following Hungary, Denmark won the 2013 Contest placing 1st and scoring 281 points. In Denmark, both the semi-finals and the final were broadcast on DR1, with commentary provided by Ole Tøpholm
8.
Only Teardrops
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Only Teardrops is a song recorded by Danish singer Emmelie de Forest. The song was written by Lise Cabble, Julia Fabrin Jakobsen and Thomas Stengaard and it is best known as Denmarks winning entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 held in Malmö, Sweden. The song competed in the first semi-final on 14 May 2013, the song competed in the final against 25 other songs, and finished in first place with 281 points. The song was an instant hit in de Forests home country of Denmark, following its victory in the Eurovision Song Contest, the song re-entered the singles chart at number one. It has since been certified gold by IFPI Denmark for sales of 15,000 digital copies and it was the fourteenth best-selling digital single in Denmark in 2013. In the United Kingdom, Only Teardrops debuted at number 99, a week later, the single rose to a high of #15 in the UK. In its third week, it dropped to No.84, according to The Official Charts Company, Only Teardrops is the seventh most downloaded Eurovision song to date in the United Kingdom. Emmelie posted several photographs onto her Facebook account from the shooting of the video, the video is directed by Michael Sauer Christensen. It has been filmed in the forest and on the beach and it was released on 13 June 2013, in DRs official website
9.
Eurovision Song Contest 2013
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The Eurovision Song Contest 2013 was the 58th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Malmö, Sweden, following Loreens win at the 2012 contest in Baku and it was the fifth time that Sweden had hosted the contest, the last time being in 2000. Sveriges Television chose Malmö Arena as the following the consideration of several venues in Sweden. The host for the contest was Petra Mede, thirty-nine countries participated, including Armenia, which was last represented in 2011. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Portugal, Slovakia and Turkey announced their withdrawal from the 2013 Contest, compared to many of the previous contests in the history of Eurovision, rather than focusing on promoting its own country, Sweden chose to lay focus on the artists and their respective countries. The winner for 2013 was Denmark with the song Only Teardrops sung by Emmelie de Forest and this makes it the second time that Denmark won on Swedish soil. Ukraine finished in place and Norway in fourth, while Russia finished in fifth place. Out of the countries with the Big Five status, only Italy managed to finish in the top ten, third in a row since its return, coming seventh with 126 points, the Netherlands finished ninth in their first participation in a final since 2004. 170 million viewers watched the semifinals and final of the 2013 edition, for the first time since 1985, no country of the former Yugoslav federation participated in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest. The concept sees all countries performing in the Grand Final present themselves with their flags before the contest begins. This year, the contestants entered the stage by walking across a bridge over the audience. The idea was continued the following years by Denmark and Austria, on 8 July 2012, the Swedish broadcaster Sveriges Television announced that Malmö Arena in Malmö would be the host venue for the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest. This was the time after 1975,1985,1992 and 2000 that the competition was held in Sweden and the second time, after 1992. This were factors in the choice of Malmö Arena as the host venue, and Malmö as Swedens third-largest city by population after Stockholm and Gothenburg, Øresund bridge was eventually also used as the main artistic medium for the theme of the contest, as an expression of binding cultures. One alternative put forward in the Expressen, was to hold the competition at three different venues – the semi-finals in Gothenburg and Malmö, and the final in Stockholm. This proposal was dismissed as unfeasible by SVT, which declared that the contest would be hosted in one city. On 20 June 2012, it was announced that Gothenburg had withdrawn from the process due to the city being the host of the Göteborg Horse Show in late April 2013. There were also concerns about the availability of hotel rooms due to a variety of events taking place in the same time frame as the Eurovision Song Contest
10.
Only Teardrops (album)
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Only Teardrops is the debut album of the Danish singer-songwriter Emmelie de Forest. The album was released on May 6,2013 on Universal Music, in late March she signed a contract with Universal Music. The song of the name won the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 for Denmark. Only Teardrops was released as the single of the album in Denmark on 22 January 2013. The song was a success in Denmark and reached No 1 in the charts. The song also charted elsewhere in Europe following its Eurovision performance and it reached a new chart position of 15 in the UK Singles Chart on the 26th May. Hunter & Prey was released as the single of the album in Denmark on 19 August 2013. Owing to her status as Eurovision winner, the albums release attracted a number of reviews from Eurovision fan sites. James Sayer of ESC Views gave it a review, saying that there is nothing wrong with any of the individual songs. Angus Quinn of Wiwi Bloggs was of the opinion that Only Teardrops gets it right most of the time and seems to respect the authenticity of the artist
11.
Dansk Melodi Grand Prix
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Dansk Melodi Grand Prix is an annual music competition organised by Danish public broadcaster Danmarks Radio, which determines the countrys representative for the Eurovision Song Contest. The festival has produced three Eurovision winners and thirteen top-five placings, with the introduction of a semi-final at the 2004 contest, and due to Denmarks absence from the 2003 contest, Denmarks 2004 representative, Thomas Thordarsson, had to take part in the semi-final. His song, Shame on You did not reach the final, in 2005, DR made a bold step for Dansk Melodi Grand Prix. Artists were allowed, for the first time ever, to sing in a other than Danish. Many of the entries that year were sung in English, however, against the odds, jakob Sveistrup won Dansk Melodi Grand Prix with his song Tænder på dig. It was later re-written for the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 to English as Talking to You, unlike the year before, Denmark secured a place in the final, finishing third in the semifinal. In the final he came 9th, guaranteeing Denmark a place in the final of the 2006 contest, a year later, Sidsel Ben Semmane sang Twist of Love in the final, but managed to finish 18th of 24 songs. In 2007, after poor results, Dansk Melodi Grand Prix adopted a semi-final format that had served well for the Swedish preselection. Two semi-finals with 8 songs each were introduced, with the top 4 songs qualifying for the final, the 4 losing songs of each semi-final then took part in one of two wildcard rounds where the listeners of Danish radio stations P3 and P4 chose another two finalists. The winner under this new format, DQ with the song Drama Queen, finished 18th in the semifinal, DR continued to use this format in the 2008 edition which was won by Simon Mathew and the song All Night Long. At the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 in Belgrade, Serbia, Denmark as in 2005, finished 3rd in the semifinals, in the final, Mathew got 60 points, finishing 15th in a field of 25 songs. For the 2009 of Dansk Melodi Grand Prix, DR reverted to their one-night final, the final of 10 songs consisted of 6 songs from an open call of songs from the public, with 4 songs being invited by DR to compete. Denmark has won Eurovision three times, in 1963,2000 and 2013
12.
Farid Mammadov
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Farid Mammadov is an Azerbaijani singer. He represented Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 in Malmö with the song Hold Me, Mammadov was born in Baku, to Asif Mammadov, a professional judoka and amateur rock musician, and Maya Mammadova, a silver-winning Soviet gymnast. Farid Mammadov is currently a student of the Azerbaijan State University of Culture, since childhood, Mammadov sang in the Bulbul ensemble managed by Aybaniz Hashimova. For a long time he was a soloist of this ensemble and he has been interested in soul and jazz since age 8 and cites Stevie Wonder as a major influence. Mammadov is the author of Gal yanima, one of the songs which he performed during the Azerbaijani Eurovision selection tour, besides music, he also practices Greco-Roman wrestling and capoeira. Mammadov was the first male singer to represent Azerbaijan in the contest. His performance was staged by Fokas Evangelinos, a Greek choreographer who directed the Eurovision performances of Sakis Rouvas, Azerbaijan placed 2nd in the 2013 competition, receiving ten 12-point scores and 234 points. For the first time in the history of Azerbaijans participation in the Eurovision Song Contest was awarded the Marcel Bezençon Artist Awards
13.
Azerbaijan
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Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a country in the South Caucasus region, situated at the crossroads of Southwest Asia and Southeastern Europe. It is bound by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west and Iran to the south. The exclave of Nakhchivan is bound by Armenia to the north and east, Iran to the south and west, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic proclaimed its independence in 1918 and became the first democratic state in the Muslim orient world. The country was incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1920 as the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, the modern Republic of Azerbaijan proclaimed its independence on 30 August 1991, prior to the official dissolution of the USSR in December 1991. In September 1991, the Armenian majority of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region seceded to form the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, the region and seven adjacent districts outside it became de facto independent with the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1994. These regions are recognized as part of Azerbaijan pending a solution to the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan is a unitary semi-presidential republic, the country is a member state of the Council of Europe, the OSCE and the NATO Partnership for Peace program. It is one of six independent Turkic states, a member of the Turkic Council. Azerbaijan has diplomatic relations with 158 countries and holds membership in 38 international organizations and it is one of the founding members of GUAM, the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Its term of office began on 19 June 2006, Azerbaijan is also a member state of the Non-Aligned Movement, holds observer status in World Trade Organization and is a correspondent at the International Telecommunication Union. The Constitution of Azerbaijan does not declare an official religion and all political forces in the country are secularist. However, the majority of the population are of a Shiite Muslim background, Azerbaijan has a high level of human development which ranks on par with most Eastern European countries. It has a rate of economic development and literacy, as well as a low rate of unemployment. According to the Davos World Economic Forum, Azerbaijans economy has scored 37th place within 138 countries in 2016, Global Competitiveness Index 2015 indicates that Azerbaijan scores highest in its region. ASAN services, established with Presidential Decree, are known for eliminating bribery. ASAN Service has been awarded with United Nations Public Service Award 2015, the ruling party, the New Azerbaijan Party, has been accused of authoritarianism and human rights abuses. The original etymology of name is thought to have its roots in the once-dominant Zoroastrianism. In the Avesta, Frawardin Yasht, there is a mention of âterepâtahe ashaonô fravashîm ýazamaide, the name Atropates itself is the Greek transliteration of an Old Iranian, probably Median, compounded name with the meaning Protected by the Fire or The Land of the Fire
14.
Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2013
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The Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2013 was the 11th annual Junior Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Kiev, Ukraine on 30 November 2013, the venue for the contest was announced on 10 April 2013, as the Palace Ukraine. Ukrainian broadcaster National Television Company of Ukraine was the host broadcaster for the event and it was the second time the contest was held in Kiev, the first being the 2009 contest. A total of countries participated, with Macedonia and Malta making a return. San Marino made their debut in the contest, Cyprus was originally the thirteenth country to take part but pulled out the last minute. On the evening of the contest Ruslana withdrew from appearing in the contest because of sickness, gaia Cauchi representing Malta won the contest with the song The Start. This was Maltas first Junior Eurovision victory as well as their first victory in any Eurovision Contest and it also marked the first time in the history of the contest that a winning entry was sung entirely in English. This was also the first contest to introduce a new system, The winning country along with the second. Sofia Tarasova, representing the host nation Ukraine, took second place, on 17 April 2013, the Ukrainian national broadcaster NTU and the European Broadcasting Union announced that the venue for the 2013 contest will take place in the Palace Ukraine, in Kiev. It was opened in 1970 as the biggest center of culture, the building was designed by a group of architects P. Zhylytskyi, I. Vayner, under the directorship of the author the distinguished architect of Ukrainian SSR Yevhenia Marychenko. All of the architects were awarded Shevchenko National Prize for its design, the building is trapezoidal, twenty eight meters tall and consists of over 300 rooms. The executive supervisor of the Junior Eurovision steering group, Vladislav Yakovlev, the contest would no longer focus on just the winning entry, but would also award prizes to the top three entries in acknowledgement of the talents of the young performers. It was also announced that the winner of Junior Eurovision 2013 would be at the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, on 7 October 2013, it was announced that the executive supervisor managed to maintain the participation of thirteen countries for the contest in Kiev, Ukraine. The name of the country was expected to be announced by the European Broadcasting Union on 29 October 2013. It was later confirmed on 1 November 2013 that Cyprus were going to be the thirteenth country, the running order draw took place on 25 November 2013 during the contests opening party. On 21 November 2013, it was revealed that 98.8 Castle FM in Scotland would be the radio station broadcasting the ceremony in the United Kingdom. Radio Ukraine International would also be broadcasting the contest live, awards were given to the top three countries, after all the votes were cast
15.
Ukraine
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Ukraine is currently in territorial dispute with Russia over the Crimean Peninsula which Russia annexed in 2014 but which Ukraine and most of the international community recognise as Ukrainian. Including Crimea, Ukraine has an area of 603,628 km2, making it the largest country entirely within Europe and it has a population of about 42.5 million, making it the 32nd most populous country in the world. The territory of modern Ukraine has been inhabited since 32,000 BC, during the Middle Ages, the area was a key centre of East Slavic culture, with the powerful state of Kievan Rus forming the basis of Ukrainian identity. Following its fragmentation in the 13th century, the territory was contested, ruled and divided by a variety of powers, including Lithuania, Poland, the Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary, and Russia. A Cossack republic emerged and prospered during the 17th and 18th centuries, two brief periods of independence occurred during the 20th century, once near the end of World War I and another during World War II. Before its independence, Ukraine was typically referred to in English as The Ukraine, following independence, Ukraine declared itself a neutral state. Nonetheless it formed a limited partnership with the Russian Federation and other CIS countries. In the 2000s, the government began leaning towards NATO, and it was later agreed that the question of joining NATO should be answered by a national referendum at some point in the future. Former President Viktor Yanukovych considered the current level of co-operation between Ukraine and NATO sufficient, and was against Ukraine joining NATO and these events formed the background for the annexation of Crimea by Russia in March 2014, and the War in Donbass in April 2014. On 1 January 2016, Ukraine applied the economic part of the Deep, Ukraine has long been a global breadbasket because of its extensive, fertile farmlands and is one of the worlds largest grain exporters. The diversified economy of Ukraine includes a heavy industry sector, particularly in aerospace. Ukraine is a republic under a semi-presidential system with separate powers, legislative, executive. Its capital and largest city is Kiev, taking into account reserves and paramilitary personnel, Ukraine maintains the second-largest military in Europe after that of Russia. Ukrainian is the language and its alphabet is Cyrillic. The dominant religion in the country is Eastern Orthodoxy, which has strongly influenced Ukrainian architecture, literature, there are different hypotheses as to the etymology of the name Ukraine. According to the older and most widespread hypothesis, it means borderland, while more recently some studies claim a different meaning, homeland or region. The Ukraine now implies disregard for the sovereignty, according to U. S. ambassador William Taylor. Neanderthal settlement in Ukraine is seen in the Molodova archaeological sites include a mammoth bone dwelling
16.
Rainmaker (Emmelie de Forest song)
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Rainmaker is a single by Danish singer-songwriter Emmelie de Forest. The song was released in Denmark on 21 February 2014 and it is the official song for the Eurovision Song Contest 2014. The song was written by Emmelie de Forest, Jakob Schack Glæsner, the song has peaked at number 1 on the Danish Singles Chart becoming her second number one hit, as well as becoming her second top 75 single on the UK Singles Chart. Talking about the song Emmelie said, It is about a tribe joining together to call upon the rainmaker to make their land blossom again, but on a more general level the rainmaker can be anything or anyone – it is about coming together and helping each other out. Emmelie sang the song live during the Maltese national final, the German national final, on 10 May 2014 Emmelie performed the song with the 26 finalists live during the final of Eurovision Song Contest 2014, at the B&W Hallerne, in Copenhagen, Denmark
17.
Eurovision Song Contest 2014
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The Eurovision Song Contest 2014 was the 59th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Copenhagen, Denmark, following Emmelie de Forests win at the 2013 contest in Malmö and this was the third time that Denmark hosted the contest, the most recent previous occasion being in 2001. The two semi-finals took place on 6 May and 8 May 2014, and the final on 10 May 2014, the shows were presented by Lise Rønne, Nikolaj Koppel and Pilou Asbæk. The host broadcaster, DR, chose the B&W Hallerne as the host venue after considering several bids from cities and venues across Denmark, thirty-seven countries participated, this includes the return of Poland after a two-year absence and Portugal after a one-year absence. Overall, there were two countries competing compared to the previous year, making thirty-seven participants, the smallest number since 2006. Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Serbia announced their withdrawal from the 2014 Contest, San Marino and Montenegro both qualified for the final for the first time. The winner was Conchita Wurst with the song Rise Like a Phoenix, written by Charley Mason, Joey Patulka, Ali Zuckowski and this was Austrias first win in the competition since 1966. Jokes made about Wurst had sparked controversy, whilst Russia were booed several times during the contest, the Netherlands and Sweden finished second and third respectively with the former achieving their best result since their victory in the 1975 Contest. Armenia finished fourth, which equals their best result to date, while Hungary finished fifth, of the Big Five, only Ruth Lorenzo of Spain achieved a place in the top ten. A new record of 195 million viewers for the Eurovision Song Contest was reported, the host broadcaster, DR, and the EBU won the International TV Award at the Ondas Awards for their production of the contest. On 2 September 2013, Danish public broadcaster DR announced that it had chosen Copenhagen as the host city for the 2014 contest, the contest was held at the former shipyard Refshaleøen, in the B&W Hallerne, with the social networking hashtag #JoinUs as the motto. The mayor of Copenhagen, Frank Jensen, declared in late August that the city would contribute to the budget with 40 million. He also announced that the aim was to make the Eurovision 2014 into the greenest contest to date since Copenhagen had been elected European Green Capital for 2014. Five cities had been considered as host city of the contest, including Herning and Copenhagen, later, Fredericia and Aalborg entered the phase with the Messe C and Gigantium venues, respectively. The fifth city to join the phase was Horsens, with the venue being the courtyard of the former Horsens State Prison, in the event that Horsens had been chosen to host the contest, the courtyard would have been covered by a permanent glass roof. The contest was set to take place on 13,15 and 17 May 2014, however. On 17 June 2013, the municipality executive of Aalborg decided not to bid for hosting the contest due to the lack of sufficient hotel capacity. On 25 June 2013, the Municipality of Fredericia announced that the Triangle Region had withdrawn its bid on hosting the contest, DR required the hosting venue to have no pillars blocking any views and an interior height of at least 16 metres
18.
B&W Hallerne
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B&W Hallerne is a former industrial complex located on the island of Refshaleøen in Copenhagen, Denmark. Built in the early 1960s by Burmeister & Wain, the complex consists of two halls which were used to build ships until 1996. Currently, the facilities are used for culture and entertainment activities, on 2 September 2013, Danish public broadcaster DR announced that it had chosen B&W Hallerne as the host venue for the Eurovision Song Contest 2014. The contest was held at the Section Hall 2, which was converted into a venue with a capacity for 10,000 spectators. The surrounding buildings and areas were transformed into Eurovision Island which was used for services related to the contest
19.
Copenhagen
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Copenhagen, Danish, København, Latin, Hafnia) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark. Copenhagen has an population of 1,280,371. The Copenhagen metropolitan area has just over 2 million inhabitants, the city is situated on the eastern coast of the island of Zealand, another small portion of the city is located on Amager, and is separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the strait of Øresund. The Øresund Bridge connects the two cities by rail and road, originally a Viking fishing village founded in the 10th century, Copenhagen became the capital of Denmark in the early 15th century. Beginning in the 17th century it consolidated its position as a centre of power with its institutions, defences. After suffering from the effects of plague and fire in the 18th century and this included construction of the prestigious district of Frederiksstaden and founding of such cultural institutions as the Royal Theatre and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. Later, following the Second World War, the Finger Plan fostered the development of housing, since the turn of the 21st century, Copenhagen has seen strong urban and cultural development, facilitated by investment in its institutions and infrastructure. The city is the cultural, economic and governmental centre of Denmark, Copenhagens economy has seen rapid developments in the service sector, especially through initiatives in information technology, pharmaceuticals and clean technology. Since the completion of the Øresund Bridge, Copenhagen has become integrated with the Swedish province of Scania and its largest city, Malmö. With a number of connecting the various districts, the cityscape is characterized by parks, promenades. Copenhagen is home to the University of Copenhagen, the Technical University of Denmark, the University of Copenhagen, founded in 1479, is the oldest university in Denmark. Copenhagen is home to the FC København and Brøndby football clubs, the annual Copenhagen Marathon was established in 1980. Copenhagen is one of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the world, the Copenhagen Metro serves central Copenhagen while the Copenhagen S-train network connects central Copenhagen to its outlying boroughs. Serving roughly 2 million passengers a month, Copenhagen Airport, Kastrup, is the largest airport in the Nordic countries, the name of the city reflects its origin as a harbour and a place of commerce. The original designation, from which the contemporary Danish name derives, was Køpmannæhafn, meaning merchants harbour, the literal English translation would be Chapmans haven. The English name for the city was adapted from its Low German name, the abbreviations Kbh. or Kbhvn are often used in Danish for København, and kbh. for københavnsk. The chemical element hafnium is named for Copenhagen, where it was discovered, the bacterium Hafnia is also named after Copenhagen, Vagn Møller of the State Serum Institute in Copenhagen named it in 1954. Excavations in Pilestræde have also led to the discovery of a well from the late 12th century, the remains of an ancient church, with graves dating to the 11th century, have been unearthed near where Strøget meets Rådhuspladsen
20.
Instagram
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In August 2015, version 7.5 was released for mobile devices, allowing users to upload media captured in any aspect ratio, but not at full size. Users can also apply various digital filters to their images, the service rapidly gained popularity, with over 100 million active users as of April 2012 and over 300 million as of December 2014. Support for the app is available for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Windows 10 devices and Android handsets, while third-party Instagram apps are available for BlackBerry 10, the service was acquired by Facebook in April 2012 for approximately US$1 billion in cash and stock. In 2013, Instagram grew by 23%, while Facebook, as the parent company, Instagram began development in San Francisco, when Systrom and Brazilian Krieger chose to focus their multi-featured HTML5 check-in project, Burbn, on mobile photography. As Krieger reasoned, Burbn became too similar to Foursquare, and for that, Burbn pivoted to become more focused. The word Instagram is a portmanteau of instant camera and telegram, on March 5,2010, Systrom closed a $500,000 seed funding round with Baseline Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz while working on Burbn. Josh Riedel then joined the company as Community Manager, shayne Sweeney joined in November 2010 as an engineer and Jessica Zollman was hired as a Community Evangelist in August 2011. In January 2011, Instagram added hashtags to help users discover both photographs and each other, Instagram encourages users to make tags both specific and relevant, rather than tagging generic words like photo, to make photographs stand out and to attract like-minded Instagram users. In September, version 2.0 went live in the App Store and included new and live filters, instant tilt–shift, high resolution photographs, optional borders, one-click rotation, the deal valued Instagram at around $25 million. On April 3,2012, Instagram was released for Android phones running the 2.2 Froyo version of the OS and that same week, Instagram raised $50 million from venture capitalists for a share of the company, the process valued Instagram at $500 million. Facebook made an offer to purchase Instagram, along with its 13 employees, for approximately $1 billion in cash and stock in April 2012, with a plan to keep the company independently managed. Britains Office of Fair Trading approved the deal on August 14,2012, and on August 22,2012, on September 6,2012, the deal between Instagram and Facebook was officially closed. On April 12,2012, Facebook acquired Instagram for approximately $1 billion in cash, the deal, which was made just prior to Facebooks scheduled IPO, cost about a quarter of Facebooks cash-on-hand, according to figures documented at the end of 2011. Mark Zuckerberg noted that Facebook was committed to building and growing Instagram independently, according to multiple reports, the deal netted Systrom $400 million based on his ownership stake in the business. The exact purchase price was $300 million in cash and 23 million shares of stock, on December 17,2012, Instagram updated its Terms of Service, granting itself the right—starting on January 16, 2013—to sell users photos to third parties without notification or compensation. In January 2013, it was confirmed that Instagram had asked for identification as a form of verification due to unspecified violations. In September 2013, Instagram reaffirmed its commitment to free and open access to its app for users. On October 3,2013, Instagram announced that it would be adding advertising to its platform
21.
Lucie Jones
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Lucie Bethan Jones is a British singer, actress, and model. Jones first came to prominence while competing on series 6 of The X Factor UK in 2009 and she will represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017, with the song Never Give Up on You. Jones was born in Pentyrch, a village outside of Cardiff. In 2007, she attended the World Scout Jamboree as a Scout, and was the performer singing Jambo. Lucie was also apart of Cardiffs own Scout and Guide Gang Show, Jones auditioned for series 6 of The X Factor UK with the song I Will Always Love You. She advanced to the shows, and in week one. She was eliminated in five, in a final showdown against Jedward. After her elimination,1,113 viewers complained to ITV about the vote being rigged in Jedwards favour, after being eliminated from The X Factor, Jones was signed to Select Model Management, and began a modeling career. In May 2010, Jones was signed by Cameron Mackintosh to play Cosette in the West End production of Les Misérables, in September 2010, she was revealed to be the face of Wonderbras Full Effects campaign. In 2010, she appeared in The Sarah Jane Adventures episode, Lost in Time, Jones also played the role of Victoria in the musical American Psycho at the Almeida Theatre in December 2013. In February 2015, Jones appeared as Melody Carver in ITVs Midsomer Murders, in April 2015, Jones played the role of Emma in the showcase performance of Like Me, at The Waterloo East Theatre. In March 2015, she was cast as Molly in the Chinese tour of Ghost the Musical, in April 2016, she played the lead role of Elle Woods in the Legally Blonde UK tour which started at Curve Leicester. In 2016, she was cast as Maureen Johnson in the UK tour of Rent, in January 2017, Jones was confirmed to be competing in Eurovision, You Decide, the United Kingdoms national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. Her song, Never Give Up on You, was cowritten by Eurovision Song Contest 2013 winner Emmelie de Forest, on 27 January 2017, Jones won the show, and will now represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017, in Kiev. Lucie Jones at the Internet Movie Database Lucie Jones on Twitter Lucie Jones on Instagram Lucie Jones on the UK Theater Web
22.
Danmarks Radio
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DR, officially rendered into English as the Danish Broadcasting Corporation, is the Danish government-owned radio and television public broadcasting company. Founded in 1925 as an organization, it is Denmarks oldest and largest electronic media enterprise. DR is a member of the European Broadcasting Union. DR is funded by a licence which is charged to all Danish households with television sets, computers, smartphones. Today, DR operates six television channels, all of which are distributed free-to-air via a nationwide DVB-T network, DR also operates eight radio channels, of which all are available nationally on DAB radio and online. On FM radio only the original 4 stations are available, DR was founded on April 1,1925 under the name of Radioordningen, changed to Statsradiofonien in 1926, and Danmarks Radio in 1959. Which was changed to DR in 1996, statsradiofoniens second FM radio station, Program 2, was added in 1951, followed by P3 in 1963. Experimental television broadcasts started in 1949, with regular programming beginning on October 2,1951 with the launch of Denmarks first television channel, colour television test broadcasts were started in March 1967, with the first large-scale colour broadcasting occurring for the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. Danmarks Radio officially ended test transmissions of television on April 1,1970. On exactly 16 May 1983 at 14,00 CEST, DR launched its first teletext information service, Danmarks Radios monopoly on national television lasted until 1988, when TV2 started broadcasting. 8 years later DR launched their second channel, DR2 on August 30,1996. It was sometimes called den hemmelige kanal in its early years because it could not be seen nationwide at its launch, the first trials of DAB were carried out in 1995, with eight channels officially launching in October 2002. On June 7,2007, DR launched a news channel DR Update. It was later added as a traditional channel, at the Danish changeover to over-the-air digital signals on November 1,2009, DR added three new channels to their lineup DR K - an intercultural, documentary and odd-film channel. DR HD – Denmarks first free-to-air high-definition channel intended to air shows from the other DR channels in true HD only. In 2013 the line-up of television channels was changed once again, a new channel targeting young people, DR3 replaced DR HD. Another channel for children, DR Ultra replaced DR Update, the closure of DR Update was the start of a revamping of DR2 as a channel for news and society. Also in 2013, DR introduced a new logo in which the words DR featured in a white sans-serif font on a black background
23.
Berlingske Tidende
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Berlingske, previously known as Berlingske Tidende, is a Danish national daily newspaper based in Copenhagen. First published on 3 January 1749, Berlingske is the oldest Danish newspaper still published, Berlingske was founded by Denmarks Royal Book Printer Ernst Henrich Berling and originally titled Kjøbenhavnske Danske Post-Tidender, then the Berlingskes Politiske og Avertissements Tidende. The paper was supported by the Conservative Party, until 1903 it had the official right to publish news about the government. In 1936, the title was shortened to Berlingske Tidende. Mendel Levin Nathanson twice served as the editor-in-chief of the paper, the publisher is Det Berlingske Officin. The paper has a conservative stance and has no political affiliation, the paper is also one of the big three broadsheet-quality newspapers in Denmark along with Jyllands-Posten and Politiken. Traditionally itself a broadsheet, Berlingske has been published in the format since 28 August 2006. It is the newspaper in the world to have won the World Press Photo Award four times. It also won the most prestigious award in Denmark, the Cavling prize. In addition, it was awarded the European Newspaper of the Year in the category of national newspaper by the European Newspapers Congress in 2012. P and this takeover saved the group from an impending bankruptcy caused by a long strike period as well as dwindling circulation and advertising revenues. In 2000, Det Berlingske Officin was acquired by the Norwegian industrial conglomerate Orkla Group, in 2006 Orkla Media was sold to the British Mecom Group. In January 2011, the title was abbreviated to Berlingske following a large-scale redesign of the newspapers web. In February 2015, Berlingske was acquired by the family-owned Belgian media company De Persgroep together with the rest of Mecom Group, in 1910 Berlingske Tidende had a circulation of 8,500 copies. During the last six months of 1957 the paper had a circulation of 157,932 copies on weekdays and it was the second best-selling newspaper in Denmark with a circulation of 149,000 copies in 2002. The circulation of the paper was 142,000 copies in 2003, in 2004 the paper had a circulation of 129,000 copies. The circulation of Berlingske was 103,685 copies in 2008 and 103,221 copies in 2009 and it was 101,121 copies in 2010 and fell to 96,897 copies in 2011. List of newspapers in Denmark List of oldest companies Merrill, John C, the Worlds Great Dailies, Profiles of Fifty Newspapers. Berlingskes home website Berlingskes business news site
24.
The Spectator
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The Spectator is a weekly British conservative magazine. It was first published on 6 July 1828 and it is currently owned by David and Frederick Barclay who also own The Daily Telegraph newspaper, via Press Holdings. Its principal subject areas are politics and culture and its editorial outlook is generally supportive of the Conservative Party, although regular contributors include some outside that fold, such as Frank Field, Rod Liddle and Martin Bright. The magazine also contains arts pages on books, music, opera, in late 2008, Spectator Australia was launched. This offers 12 pages of Unique Australian Content in addition to the full UK contents, the Spectator’s founding editor, the Dundonian reformer Robert Stephen Rintoul, launched the paper on 5 December 1828. Almost certainly he revived the title from the 1711 publication by Addison & Steele, the Spectator’s political outlook in its first thirty years reflected Rintoul’s liberal-radical agenda. Despite its political stance it was regarded and respected for its non-partisanship. Under Rintoul The Spectator came out strongly for the Great Reform Act of 1832, coining the phrase, The Bill. And There does not appear to be much glory gained in a contest so unequal that hundreds are killed on one side, what honour is there in going to shoot men, certain that they cannot hurt you. The cause of the war, be it remembered, is as disreputable as the strength of the parties is unequal, the war is undertaken in support of a co-partnery of opium-smugglers, in which the Anglo-Indian Government may be considered as the principal partner. Rintoul died in April 1858 and the magazine, whose circulation was falling, was sold, thereafter, it went into an accelerated period of decline. Records are scarce but it appears that it was owned by a Mr Scott. McHenry was a businessman and Moran was an Assistant Secretary to the ambassador, George M. Dallas, the editor was Thornton Hunt, a friend of Moran who had also worked for Rintoul. Hunt was also nominally the purchaser, having given the necessary monies in an attempt by McHenry. Circulation declined with this loss of independence and inspirational leadership, and the views of James Buchanan, within weeks, the editorial line followed Buchanans pronouncements in being. neither pro-slavery nor pro-abolitionist. The Spectator now would publicly support that policy and this set it at odds with most of the British press but gained it the sympathy of ex-patriate Americans in the country. Richard Fulton notes that from then until 1861, the Spectators commentary on American affairs read like a Buchanan administration propaganda sheet. And that this represented a volte-face, on 19 January 1861, The Spectator was bought by a journalist, Meredith Townsend, for £2000
25.
Soluna Samay
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Soluna Samay Kettel is a Guatemalan-Danish-Swiss singer. Samay represented Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Soluna Samay Kettel was born in Guatemala City, Guatemala to a German father, musician Gerd G. Kettel and a Swiss mother, artist Annelis Ziegler. She grew up on the shores of Lago de Atitlán, Guatemala, Soluna moved to Denmark in 2000 when her parents purchased a small farm on Bornholm, a Danish island in the Baltic Sea. Soluna is multilingual speaking fluent English, Danish, Spanish and German and her name is derived from the Spanish words sol and luna, meaning Sun and Moon. Soluna has a Swiss passport, so, officially she is Swiss, solunas music career began at age of 5 when she joined her father on drums and soon after began singing along. At the age of 10 she switched to bass, at 16 to upright bass. With her parents she spent her summers touring and playing music on the streets of Europe, Soluna started to learn guitar around the age of 12, when she also wrote her first songs. Soluna was chosen as an entry by DR1 for the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix, singing a song called Shouldve Known Better written by Remee, Isam B and A Sulaiman. She won the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2012 on 21 January over Jesper Nohrstedt and Christian Brøns & Patrik Isaksson, and won the right to represent Denmark at the Eurovision Song Contest 2012. Results from the voting of the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2012 The song performed 13th in the first semi-final, Soluna recorded her debut album Sing Out Loud over a two-year period, produced by Jesper Mejlvang and Michael Friis. It was released by Baltic Records on 23 September 2011, the Beat Goes On Thinking Of You Movin’ On Lucky Seven Just Passing Through Streetwise The Best & the Rest Official website Soluna Samay at the Internet Movie Database
26.
Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest
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Denmark has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 45 times since its debut in 1957. Having competed in ten consecutive contests until 1966, Denmark was absent for eleven consecutive contests from 1967-1977, since 1978, they have been absent from only four contests. Denmark has won the contest three times, the Danish qualifying competition for the contest is the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix. Birthe Wilke and Gustav Winckler placed third at the countrys first attempt in 1957, Denmark then won the contest for the first time in 1963 with the song Dansevise performed by Grethe & Jørgen Ingmann. The country would not return to the top five for over twenty years, Hot Eyes then finished third in 1988, as did Birthe Kjær in 1989. In the 1990s, due to performances in the previous years. They did make the top ten three times, with Aud Wilkens fifth place in 1995 being Denmarks only top five result of the decade, the second Danish victory came in 2000, with the Olsen Brothers defying the odds to win with Fly on the Wings of Love. In 2001, as hosts, Denmark finished second with Never Ever Let You Go performed by Rollo & King, in 2002, Malene Mortensen became the first Danish entry to finish last. Denmark were absent from the 2003 contest, in 2005, Copenhagen hosted Congratulations,50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest, an event to commemorate the 50th anniversary. Denmark achieved its best result for nine years at the 2010 contest, a Friend in London then finished fifth in 2011. Denmark won the contest for the time in 2013, with Only Teardrops performed by Emmelie de Forest receiving Denmarks highest ever score with 281 points. Denmark has placed in the top five a total of 14 times and has a score of 65.261 points. Denmark first participated at the Eurovision Song Contest 1957, held in Frankfurt, the country had intended to compete at the first contest in 1956, but had submitted its application past the deadline and was, therefore, not allowed to compete. Denmark was the first Nordic country to take part in the contest, with Sweden, Norway, iceland, however, did not take part until 1986. Denmarks first participants were Birthe Wilke and Gustav Winckler, who sang the song Skibet skal sejle i nat and their performance was controversial as, at the end of the song, the couple performed an 11-second kiss, which caused outcry in some countries. Nevertheless, the performance achieved a respectable 3rd place, Denmark won the contest for the first time in 1963, when Grethe and Jørgen Ingmann sang Dansevise. When Norway announced its votes, the presenter Katie Boyle could not hear the spokesperson, the final result was valid and the victory went to Denmark. Accordingly, in 1964, the contest was held in Denmark for the first time, after the 1966 contest and a record low 14th place, Denmark withdrew from the contest, as DR´s new head of entertainment Niels Jørgen Kaiser did not view the contest as being quality entertainment
27.
Basim (singer)
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Anis Basim Moujahid, better known as Basim, is a Danish pop singer and songwriter. He is of Moroccan origin, but lives in Høje Gladsaxe and he has released two albums, Alt det jeg ville have sagt in 2008 and Befri dig selv in 2009. Basim presented Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 on home ground in Copenhagen, the following year he was the Danish spokesperson, giving twelve points to Swedens Mans Zelmerlow, who went on to win the contest with his song Heroes. At age of 15, he took part in the 2008 edition of the talent program The X Factor, after X Factor, Basim released his debut album in 2008 entitled Alt det jeg ville have sagt. For the album, he collaborated with Danish X Factor judge Remee, the album reached #8 in the Danish Albums Chart going gold. There were three singles from the album, Alt det jeg ville have sagt, Jeg vil and Baby, in October 2009, he released his second album Befri dig selv. The album reached #21 on the Danish Albums Chart and saw release of two singles Lad ikke solen gå ned and title track Befri dig selv. Basim has also participated in the 2009 edition of Vild med dans, the Danish edition of Dancing with the Stars, on March 8,2014, Basim won the Danish Melodi Grand Prix with Cliche Love Song. Basim represented Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, EBU announced on 17 March Basim would perform 23rd in the running order of the final. He placed 9th in the final, scoring 74 points and it was also confirmed that Basim would be the Danish spokesperson at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 in Vienna. Basim is the son of Abdel Moujahid and his wife Zohra and his father, Abdel, suffered from cancer. Basims rendition on the album Alt Det Jeg Ville Have Sagt entitled Himlen Har Alt For Mange Engle was dedicated to his father who died in 2012, basims older brother Nabil Moujahid took part in the 2010 edition of the Danish X Factor as part of the group formation In-Joy. The four-member formation also including Essi, Jannick and Kevin was one of the nine finalists during the show, however In-Joy was eliminated at the end of the second week of the live shows of the competition finishing eighth overall. Basim page on Facebook Basim blog on Tumblr Basim page on LastFM
28.
Sweden
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Sweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and Finland to the east, at 450,295 square kilometres, Sweden is the third-largest country in the European Union by area, with a total population of 10.0 million. Sweden consequently has a low density of 22 inhabitants per square kilometre. Approximately 85% of the lives in urban areas. Germanic peoples have inhabited Sweden since prehistoric times, emerging into history as the Geats/Götar and Swedes/Svear, Southern Sweden is predominantly agricultural, while the north is heavily forested. Sweden is part of the area of Fennoscandia. The climate is in very mild for its northerly latitude due to significant maritime influence. Today, Sweden is a monarchy and parliamentary democracy, with a monarch as head of state. The capital city is Stockholm, which is also the most populous city in the country, legislative power is vested in the 349-member unicameral Riksdag. Executive power is exercised by the government chaired by the prime minister, Sweden is a unitary state, currently divided into 21 counties and 290 municipalities. Sweden emerged as an independent and unified country during the Middle Ages, in the 17th century, it expanded its territories to form the Swedish Empire, which became one of the great powers of Europe until the early 18th century. Swedish territories outside the Scandinavian Peninsula were gradually lost during the 18th and 19th centuries, the last war in which Sweden was directly involved was in 1814, when Norway was militarily forced into personal union. Since then, Sweden has been at peace, maintaining a policy of neutrality in foreign affairs. The union with Norway was peacefully dissolved in 1905, leading to Swedens current borders, though Sweden was formally neutral through both world wars, Sweden engaged in humanitarian efforts, such as taking in refugees from German-occupied Europe. After the end of the Cold War, Sweden joined the European Union on 1 January 1995 and it is also a member of the United Nations, the Nordic Council, Council of Europe, the World Trade Organization and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Sweden maintains a Nordic social welfare system that provides health care. The modern name Sweden is derived through back-formation from Old English Swēoþēod and this word is derived from Sweon/Sweonas. The Swedish name Sverige literally means Realm of the Swedes, excluding the Geats in Götaland, the etymology of Swedes, and thus Sweden, is generally not agreed upon but may derive from Proto-Germanic Swihoniz meaning ones own, referring to ones own Germanic tribe
29.
Loreen (singer)
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Lorine Zineb Nora Talhaoui, known professionally Loreen, is a Swedish pop singer and music producer. Loreen represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan, with her entry Euphoria, in Eurovision Song Contest 2013 in the Swedish city Malmö, Loreen sang both in the semi-final and the grand final. Interested in becoming a musician, she took part in the Idol 2004 television competition, the following year she released her first single, The Snake, with the band RobnRaz and became a television presenter on TV400. While working as a segment producer and director for several Swedish reality TV shows in 2011, Loreen was born in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1983 to Moroccan Berber immigrant parents. She was raised in a liberal Muslim household, but is non-practising as an adult, early in her life, Loreen moved to Västerås. She grew up there, and calls Västerås her hometown and she spent most of her teenage years in Gryta, a residential area in Västerås. Loreen became known to Swedish audiences after taking part in the Swedish Idol 2004 competing as Lorén Talhaoui, during the qualification round, she placed third by the public vote. She would have been eliminated, but received a wildcard from the judges and she finished fourth overall, and was eliminated during the eighth week. After Idol, in 2005, she released a single, The Snake. That same year, she presented the TV show Lyssna. After a year, she took a hiatus from more visible roles, Loreen returned to the public eye when she took part in Melodifestivalen 2011 with the song My Heart Is Refusing Me, which she co-wrote with Moh Denebi and Björn Djupström. After placing fourth in the second semi-final in Gothenburg on 12 February 2011, she competed in the Second Chance round, the song was released on 11 March 2011 and became a hit on the Swedish Singles Chart, debuting and peaking at number 9. Following Loreens success a year later, the song re-entered the chart, in the first semi-final of Melodifestivalen 2012 on 4 February, Loreen advanced directly to the final round with her entry Euphoria, written by Thomas G, son and Peter Boström. She won the final on 10 March with a combined total of 268 points and represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku. The song won the competition with a total of 372 points from 40 voting countries out of 42, according to online betting companies, she was the favourite to win the contest. The single sold 62,148 copies in its first week in the United Kingdom and she is also noted for having an ongoing chart presence in the United Kingdom, remaining in the top twenty for weeks after the competition, rare for a Eurovision song. On 21 June 2012, Loreen made an appearance at the MTV World Stage in Gothenburg, the title of her debut album, Heal, was confirmed in late August 2012. Released on 24 October 2012, Heal debuted atop the Sverigetopplistan Albums Top 60, IT was certified platinum in Sweden during its second week, denoting domestic shipments exceeding 40,000 units
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Euphoria (Loreen song)
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Euphoria is a song performed by Swedish recording artist and songwriter Loreen. It was released as the single from her debut studio album Heal. The song was written by Thomas G, son, Peter Boström and produced by Boström and it is best known as Swedens winning entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 held in Baku, Azerbaijan. The song won the competition with a total of 372 points, the song received the highest number of maximum points of any entry in the contests history with eighteen countries giving the song their top marks. Euphoria received critical acclaim from most music critics, commercially, the song was an instant success both in Sweden and in the rest of Europe. It debuted at twelve in Loreens home country Sweden, until reaching number one. The song has been certified 10 times Platinum, selling 400,000 copies there, the song was written by Thomas G, son, Peter Boström and produced by Boström and SeventyEight. Prior to the song contest, it was ranked highly on many prediction polls to win most notably by the OGAE members, the song also received positive reviews. SameSame praised the song The heavy bangs, the gaze. Higher Plain Music wrote the most straightforward dance track on the album and is still a killer track, Music journalist Deban Aderemi of wiwibloggs noted that. Loreen’s performance transcends borders. It is conceptual, yet so relatable, “Euphoria” provides the perfect template for a thousand remixes. Aderemi then goes on to award Loreen a score of 9/10, escXtra considered that the string intro from the album version was the best part of the song while calling the song brilliant. Erika Brooks Adickman from Idolator had described the song as infectious, the Reflective Inklings had labelled the song as Song of the Week. They gave it a review saying, Euphoria is undoubtedly the best song of the pack that I have heard so far. It has Swedish elements sprinkled all over it, the synths offer that aesthetic gloss that only makes the track go higher in terms of approval ratings. Upbeat would be a way of describing Euphoria. Just like its predecessor, it can evoke feelings of positivity onto its listener. Loreen shows tremendous composure in delivering those high notes, hearing Loreen start slowly in terms of building that excitement in terms of her soon-to-be-sang high notes really got me pumped up
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List of Eurovision Song Contest winners
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Sixty-four songs have won the Eurovision Song Contest, an annual competition organised by member countries of the European Broadcasting Union. The contest, which has been broadcast every year since its debut in 1956, is one of the television programmes in the world. The contests winner has been determined using numerous voting techniques throughout its history, the country awarded the most points is declared the winner. The first Eurovision Song Contest was not won on points, but by votes, there have been 60 contests, with one winner each year except the tied 1969 contest, which had four. Twenty-six different countries have won the contest, switzerland won the first contest in 1956. The country with the highest number of wins is Ireland, with seven, portugal is the country with the longest history in the contest without a win, it made its forty-eighth appearance at the 2015 contest. The only person to have won more than once as performer is Irelands Johnny Logan, Logan is also one of only five songwriters to have written more than one winning entry. This unique distinction makes Logan the only person to have three Eurovision victories to his/her credit, as singer, songwriter or both. The other four songwriters with more than one winning entry to their credit are, Willy van Hemert, Yves Dessca, Rolf Løvland, however, throughout the history of the contest, relatively few of these artists have gone on to be huge international stars. ABBA went on to be one of the most successful bands of its time, three countries have won twice in a row, Spain, Luxembourg and Israel. Along with Switzerlands win in the first contest, Serbia is the other country to win with its debut entry, though Serbia had competed prior as part of Yugoslavia and Serbia. Under the voting system used between 1975 and 2015, the winner of the contest was decided by the final voting nation on eleven occasions. Changes to the system, including a steady growth in the number of countries participating/voting. Ukraines Jamala holds the record of the highest number of points in the contests history, Norways Alexander Rybak holds the largest margin of victory in absolute points, a 169-point cushion over second place in 2009. Italys Gigliola Cinquetti holds the record for largest victory by percentage, under the voting system used from 1975 until 2015, the lowest winning score was Norways Bobbysocks. 123 points earned when winning Eurovision 1985, while the lowest winning total ever is the 18 points scored by each of the four winning countries in 1969. 2011 winner Azerbaijan Eldar & Nigar, hold the lowest average score for a song under that system. The United Kingdom has finished second fifteen times at Eurovision, more than any other country, the most successful country never to have won the Contest is Malta, having finished second in 2002 and 2005 and third in 1992 and 1998
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Austria
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Austria, officially the Republic of Austria, is a federal republic and a landlocked country of over 8.7 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Hungary and Slovakia to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, the territory of Austria covers 83,879 km2. The terrain is mountainous, lying within the Alps, only 32% of the country is below 500 m. The majority of the population speaks local Bavarian dialects of German as their native language, other local official languages are Hungarian, Burgenland Croatian, and Slovene. The origins of modern-day Austria date back to the time of the Habsburg dynasty, from the time of the Reformation, many northern German princes, resenting the authority of the Emperor, used Protestantism as a flag of rebellion. Following Napoleons defeat, Prussia emerged as Austrias chief competitor for rule of a greater Germany, Austrias defeat by Prussia at the Battle of Königgrätz, during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, cleared the way for Prussia to assert control over the rest of Germany. In 1867, the empire was reformed into Austria-Hungary, Austria was thus the first to go to war in the July Crisis, which would ultimately escalate into World War I. The First Austrian Republic was established in 1919, in 1938 Nazi Germany annexed Austria in the Anschluss. This lasted until the end of World War II in 1945, after which Germany was occupied by the Allies, in 1955, the Austrian State Treaty re-established Austria as a sovereign state, ending the occupation. In the same year, the Austrian Parliament created the Declaration of Neutrality which declared that the Second Austrian Republic would become permanently neutral, today, Austria is a parliamentary representative democracy comprising nine federal states. The capital and largest city, with a population exceeding 1.7 million, is Vienna, other major urban areas of Austria include Graz, Linz, Salzburg and Innsbruck. Austria is one of the richest countries in the world, with a nominal per capita GDP of $43,724, the country has developed a high standard of living and in 2014 was ranked 21st in the world for its Human Development Index. Austria has been a member of the United Nations since 1955, joined the European Union in 1995, Austria also signed the Schengen Agreement in 1995, and adopted the euro currency in 1999. The German name for Austria, Österreich, meant eastern realm in Old High German, and is cognate with the word Ostarrîchi and this word is probably a translation of Medieval Latin Marchia orientalis into a local dialect. Austria was a prefecture of Bavaria created in 976, the word Austria is a Latinisation of the German name and was first recorded in the 12th century. Accordingly, Norig would essentially mean the same as Ostarrîchi and Österreich, the Celtic name was eventually Latinised to Noricum after the Romans conquered the area that encloses most of modern-day Austria, around 15 BC. Noricum later became a Roman province in the mid-first century AD, heers hypothesis is not accepted by linguists. Settled in ancient times, the Central European land that is now Austria was occupied in pre-Roman times by various Celtic tribes, the Celtic kingdom of Noricum was later claimed by the Roman Empire and made a province
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Conchita Wurst
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Conchita Wurst is an Austrian pop recording artist and drag queen portrayed by Thomas Tom Neuwirth. Wurst came to attention after winning the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 as Austrias entrant with the song Rise Like a Phoenix. Neuwirth uses masculine pronouns referring to himself but feminine pronouns to describe Wurst. Following her coronation in Eurovision, international media dubbed Conchita as the Queen of Austria, born in Gmunden, Austria, Neuwirth moved to Graz to do his matura exam with a focus on fashion, before embarking on a singing career through the 2007 casting show Starmania. He subsequently became a member of the short-lived boy band Jetzt Anders. In 2011, Neuwirth began appearing as Wurst – a female character noted for her beard –, Wurst was selected to represent Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, where her performance received the most points from voting. Tom Neuwirth was born on 6 November 1988 in Gmunden but raised in the town of Bad Mitterndorf. I am part of the gay community and most gays have a story to mine. From an early age he recognised that he was different from other children and he occasionally wore a skirt to kindergarten and then school, although subsequently felt that he could only be happy doing so in the attic of his home. Aged 14, Neuwirth moved to Graz to be educated, with a focus on fashion and his fashion icon was Victoria Beckham. In 2006, Neuwirth took part in the edition of the Austrian TV show Starmania. One year later, Neuwirth founded the boyband Jetzt Anders, but the group disbanded during the same year. It was after this that Neuwirth developed the persona of Conchita Wurst, the name Conchita meanwhile had been adopted from a Cuban friend of his. In an interview he explained that conchita is Spanish slang for vagina. Neuwirth asserted that the inclusion of the beard as part of the Wurst character was a statement to say that you can achieve anything, no matter who you are or how you look. The inclusion of a beard as part of the look was not unique, having been pioneered in the 1970s by The Cockettes in San Francisco. Wursts first appearance was on ORFs show Die große Chance in 2011, in 2012, she competed in the Austrian National Final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 and came second. On 10 September 2013, Austrian national broadcaster ORF announced that it had selected Wurst to represent Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, to be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in May 2014
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Rise Like a Phoenix
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Rise Like a Phoenix is a pop song performed by Austrian singer Conchita Wurst, and the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2014. Rise Like a Phoenix was Austrias second winning entry in the competition, composer Ali Zuckowski had originally composed the song for another project. Every major record label in Austria had refused to produce Rise Like a Phoenix, a request came from the Austrian Eurovision team about possible contributions, and he immediately thought of this song, reasoning I knew that with this song still something great was going to happen. The song was entered into the ORF internal selection process and was chosen to represent the country. A music video to accompany the release of Rise Like a Phoenix was first released onto YouTube on 18 March 2014 at a length of three minutes and five seconds. The song was released by the ORF on 18 March 2014, the accompanying music video was premiered on YouTube on the same day, while the song was offered on the ORF website for download. Stern gave the song a rating of 4 out of 5,1966 Austrian winner Udo Jürgens said the song was a well-composed song with a beautiful musical bow, and as the lyrics suggest, rises from the ashes. Austria in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 Text and translation of the song Rise Like a Phoenix Official music video on YouTube
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Germany
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Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres, with about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. After the United States, it is the second most popular destination in the world. Germanys capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Leipzig. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity, a region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period the Germanic tribes expanded southward, beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation, in 1871, Germany became a nation state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic, the establishment of the national socialist dictatorship in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After a period of Allied occupation, two German states were founded, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, in 1990, the country was reunified. In the 21st century, Germany is a power and has the worlds fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP. As a global leader in industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds third-largest exporter and importer of goods. Germany is a country with a very high standard of living sustained by a skilled. It upholds a social security and universal health system, environmental protection. Germany was a member of the European Economic Community in 1957. It is part of the Schengen Area, and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999, Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, and the OECD. The national military expenditure is the 9th highest in the world, the English word Germany derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz popular, derived from *þeudō, descended from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂- people, the discovery of the Mauer 1 mandible shows that ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons found anywhere in the world were discovered in a mine in Schöningen where three 380, 000-year-old wooden javelins were unearthed
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Connie Hedegaard
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Connie Hedegaard Koksbang is a Danish politician and public intellectual who was European Commissioner for Climate Action in the European Commission from 10 February 2010 through 31 October 2014. On behalf of Denmark, she hosted the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen 2009, in Denmark, she was a member of the Conservative Peoples Party, and was a member of parliament from 10 January 1984 to 3 October 1990. She was also elected a member of the Folketing in the 2005 Danish parliamentary election, prior to becoming a minister, she worked as a journalist at DR, the Danish national broadcaster. Connie Hedegaard holds an MA in Literature and History, in 1990, she left politics to pursue a career in journalism. Over the next 14 years, she worked as a journalist at the newspaper Berlingske Tidende, took the post of Director of DR Radio News, and was the anchor for Deadline, diving back into politics in 2004, she became Minister of the Environment. A year later, she became Minister for Nordic Cooperation, after the November 2007 general election, she was chosen as Minister for Climate and Energy. In May 2008, she told Denmark, “Sustainable economic growth is an attainable objective. ”Hedegaard was also in charge of preparing and hosting the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009 in Copenhagen, from 2007, Hedegaard was behind Denmark’s energy policies. In April, she signed a plan with India on renewable energy. One notable achievement was her role in introducing Denmark’s Energy Policy 2008–2011, the policy made her country the first in the world to commit to an overall energy reduction, not just a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Energy Savings, A target of 2% reduction of energy use from 2006 levels by 2011. Renewable Energy, Increased biomass/waste and wind energy and provide large, annual subsidies for solar, regarding wind power, plans include support for two 200 MW offshore wind farms that are scheduled to begin energy production in 2012. Additionally, money has been set aside for informational and labeling campaigns aimed at replacing oil-fired furnaces with heat pumps, Energy taxes, Higher taxes on CO2 emitters, as well as a new tax on emitters of nitrogen oxide. Energy technology, Doubled funding for energy technology R&D. Transport, Extended the electric vehicle tax exemption to 2012, planned a tests scheme for electric vehicles. Set the goal to use 5. 75% biofuels for all transit by 2010 and 10% by 2020. Taking up her new position at the European Commission on 10 February 2010 and she hoped that by the end of her five-year term, Europe would be the most climate friendly region in the world. Her priorities would be to implement the European Climate and Energy package, connie Hedegaard talking at The Barbara Ward Lecture in 2010 in London
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Media related to Emmelie de Forest at Wikimedia Commons
Loreen
Conchita Wurst
Günter Grass
Connie Hedegaard
