A 19th-century Danish farmer starts a school revolution while his daughter Sofie learns life’s harder lessons.
TV drama about Christen Kold and his ideas for independent schools, by Bent Grasten and Kirsten Stenbæk. The story is set in the village of Roemark in the latter half of the 19th century and recounts the events surrounding farmer Valdemar's establishment of the first independent school in Denmark, based on an idea conceived by Christen Kold.
Acting
Preben Lerdorff Rye embodies Christen Kold's gentle radicalism.
Production
Authentic 1870s village reconstruction with painstaking detail.
Director
Kirsten Stenbæk
Preben Lerdorff Rye
Christian Kold
Jesper Langberg
Valdemar
Otto Brandenburg
Skomager
Judy Gringer
Thea
Birger Jensen
Niels
Olaf Nielsen
En mand
Baard Owe
Lærer Sorøe
Karl Stegger
Lillemark
Susanne Heinrich
Tove
Peter Steen
Pastor
Chili Turèll
Esmeralda
Jess Ingerslev
Thøger Ivar Strøm
Anna-Louise Lefèvre
Fru Hansen
Jesper Klein
Skumleren Jonas
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Christen Kold was a real figure whose 'free schools' (friskoler) remain foundational to Danish education, making this essentially national heritage television.
Director Kirsten Stenbæk was among few women directing Danish TV drama in the 1970s; her patient, observational style here was deliberately unfashionable against the era's grittier realism.
DK
