Hagia Sophia, Istanbul at dusk (photo: David Spender, flickr.com)
2010 will be the first time for three European Capitals of Culture:
- Istanbul, as the representative of a country outside the EU,
- the Hungarian Pecs, as ambassador of a new EU member state, and
- Essen, which represents the entire Ruhr area due to the special occasion through the program Ruhr2010 .
2010 is also the year to combat social exclusion and poverty – and on the websites 2010againstpoverty.eu you can inform yourself on pan-European cooperation and action. From 1 January to 30 June the EU presidency will be transferred from Sweden to Spain. From 1 July to 31 December, Belgium takes over the mandate.
Cultural Highlights
The 60th aniversary of the Berlinale will be celebrated from 11 till 21 February, where the latest scandal strips of film director Roman Polanski undMartin Scorsese will have their world premiere. In Polanski’s Franco-German-British co-production “The Ghost Writer”, after the bestseller of the British Robert Harris, Pierce Brosnan, Kim Cattrall and Ewan McGregor, play the main characters. The film tells the story of the ghost writer of a former British prime minister, who while he writes his political memoirs, reveals dark machinations. To be regarded beyond competition is Scorsese’s 1950s thriller “Shutter Iceland” with Leonardo di Caprio, Ben Kingsley and Max von Sydow. And who makes the race for the major film award? On 7 March, the Academy Awards will – as always – take place at the Kodak Theater, LA, for the 82nd time.
And remember what celebrities and cultural icons we are approaching the new year? Right at the start of the new year, on 8 January, we celebrate the King of Rock ‘n’ roll, Elvis Presley’s 75th birthday. 2010 is also the birth year of Robert Schumann (200.) and Gustav Mahler (150.). Also the 100th birthday of Konrad Zuse, the father of the first computer marks, as well as that of Mother Teresa – or the 100th aniversary of death of Red Cross founder and Nobel Peace Prize winner Henri Dunant. And don’t forget Leo Tolstoy, whose 100th aniversary of death on 20 November will probably bring us one or another encounter with one of his masterpieces such as “War and Peace”, “Anna Karenina”, or “The Kreutzer Sonata”.
Sport Highlights
Our sporty minds will be dominated by – whether we like it or not – the Football World Cup of 11 June to 11 July in Johannesburg (South Africa). Previously, however, 19 to 31 January, the Danish Handball Gents defend their European Championship in Vienna (Austria), and the 21st Olympic Winter Games 12 to 28 February in Vancouver (Canada) will bring us exciting moments on television – or on-site.
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