Cozy TV: Norway to broadcast 'slow but noble' primetime fireplace TV show

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Published time: February 18, 2013 10:42
Edited time: February 18, 2013 14:42

Apparently a Norwegian’s idea of a perfect Friday evening is by the fireplace. No matter if it is a real or virtual. A local public television plans to broadcast a burning fireplace for 12 straight hours so viewers can cuddle up.

The ‘show’ will not just feature a burning fire, but will also be accompanied by “firewood specialists’ commentary, expert advice and a bit of cultural tutoring,” Reuters reports.

"We'll talk about the very nerdy subjects like burning, slicing and stacking the wood, but we'll also have cultural segments with music and poems," producer Rune Moeklebust says. "It will be very slow but noble television."

The idea of making a fireplace TV show was prompted by the striking success of a firewood book by Lars Mytting. The firewood book has sold around 130,000 copies since publication last year. An impressive number, considering Norway’s population totals 5 million people.

The book’s publisher claimed that only "Fifty Shades of Grey" sold more copies during the recent holiday season, Reuters says.

The broadcaster NRK has already come up with other weird programs. It seems like showing long calming sequences of pictures has become their trademark and Norwegians like it.

Two years ago NRK set a world record for the broadcast of the longest continuous TV program. It showed 134 hours of a cruise ship going up the Norwegian coast towards the Arctic. At one point 60 percent of the population was watching the show.

The network also broadcast another hit show, an eight-hour train journey across Norway. The show was so popular NRK repeated it.