Welcome to Egersund - Norway and to the 194th edition of the Forum Song Contest (FSC).
Theme: ‘House of the Dragon: A Journey into Imagination’
Winner FSC March 2025
Congratulations! ^^
The Host city for this FSC #194-edition is : Egersund - Norway . It is a town, situated in Rogaland
county located along the south-western coast of Norway about 75 kilometres south of the city of
Stavanger. The town is situated along a strait which separates the mainland from the island of Ei
gerøya (called Eigerøy or Øyne). From 1838 until 1964 the town was an independent municipality
The town has a population of around 11.500 and has one of the best natural harbours in Norway.
It used to be the largest harbour in Norway, when measured in quantity of fish brought in each ye
ar , but was surpassed by Ålesund in 2006 . Several internationally known companies have divisi
ons here , like Navico (earlier Robertson) & Jeppesen Norway (producer of electronic sea-maps).
The town Egersund is named after the Eigersundet strait (in Old Norse : Eikundarsund). The word
“eik” means “oak” while “sund” means “strait”. The name is among the oldest place names in Nor
way. It can already be found in the form Eikundarsund in the Norse saga of Olav the Holy , written
by Snorri Sturlasson (13th century) . We find the name in texts & scaldic poems from Olav's saga.
People have lived around Egersund since the Stone Age . There are several places , in this region
where one can find ruins of settlements dating back to the age of migrations in Norway (400-600
BC). There used to be an old church where present Egersund Church stand , the Church of St. Ma
ry , mentioned in Rome in 1292 by Pope Nicholas IV as ‘Ecclesia beatæ Mariæ de Eikundarsund’.
There was also a chapel, the chapel of St. Laurenti, mentioned in letter in 1308 as ‘Ecclesia beati
Laurentii de Eikundarsund’, where Pope Clement V gives King Håkon V Magnusson extensive pri
vileges concerning the King's 14 chapels (including the chapel of St. Laurenti), which was found
ed by himself or his father , King Magnus Lagabøte , and his grandfather, King Håkon Håkonson.
In 1623 the old church ( likely the Church of St. Mary ) was demolished & a new Egersund Church
was erected. This building still stands today. On 18 July 1798, the village of Egersund was establi
shed as a ladested (a market town , a small seaport with monopoly to import and export goods &
materials in both the port -and- a surrounding outlying district) with its own customs ("toll") office
The ladested of Egersund was established as a municipality, on 1 January 1838. This effectively
gave Egersund the municipal self-government that was now uniformly given to all areas and regi
ons of Norway . In 1843 a fire destroyed two thirds of the town, allowing a major redesign of stre
ets. On 7 July 1859, there was another major town fire, & another one again on 20 October 1862.
The fire in 1862 was the last major town fire, since town planners finally understood wooden stru
ctures' vulnerability and reconstructed buildings, using extra wide streets to prevent fires from sp
reading across the town . In 1878 the Jærensbanen railway line between Egersund and the much
larger city of Stavanger to the north, opened with Egersund Station in the very center of the town.
‘House of the Dragon: A Journey into Imagination’’
‘The Dance of the Dragons’
House of the Dragon is a popular American fantasy drama tv series, a prequel to Game of Thron
es (2011–2019). Based on Martin's 2018 book Fire & Blood (the Targaryen words) , the series be
gins about 100 years after the Seven Kingdoms are united by the Targaryen conquest nearly 200
years before the events of Game of Thrones . This series tells the story of House Targaryen , the
House of the Dragon , who have reigned as strong Rulers of Westeros, for around 5 generations.
At the end of the reign of King Jaehaerys I Targaryen, grandson of Aegon the Conqueror, a succ
ession dispute arises between two of his grandchildren, which is resolved when the lords of We
steros assembled at the Great Council at Harrenhal select Viserys I Targaryen to be the royal he
ir ahead of his cousin Rhaenys, even though she had a superior claim, largely due to her gender
The story begins when old King Jaehaerys passes , and King Viserys I ascends the Iron Throne.
Outwardly, the realm has enjoyed a golden age of peace and prosperity for seventy years , & the
Targaryen dynasty is at the height of its power . Yet factions are starting to form within Viserys'
court that threaten the stability & the security of his reign. Thus begins the strife leading to war.
The Dance of the Dragons ( or the Dance of Dragons ), is a Royal War of succession and Civil war
in the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros fought between two rival factions of House Targaryen, the Bl
acks and the Greens . This is at the centre of this quality fantasy tv series . Those who supported
Viserys' eldest daughter, Rhaenyra Targaryen, as the rightful heir were known as the Blacks, while
those who instead backed her rival, the younger half-brother, Aegon II Targaryen, were the Greens
As the years passed the animosity between the two factions grew, with shifting allegiances brutal
displays of violence and deadly webs of lies complicating matters even further. Despite all this an
ailing Viserys remained steadfast in his choice of Rhaenyra, his daughter as heir up until the mom
ent of his death . Succession still in doubt , it led to a scramble for power which ended in civil war
So far , 2 seasons have been released of this fascinating, quality, prequel-series to award-winning
Game of Thrones and production has commenced on season 3. A 4th season is planned to finish
this tvseries in a few years. Enjoying fantasy series like these (both on tv and in book form) is cer
tainly a Journey into Imagination and one cannot but be impressed by the high quality work done
In 1905, Egersund became the first town in Rogaland county to get electrical lighting . On 9 April
1940 the German Nazi military invaded Norway, and they occupied Egersund during World War II
Egersund had strategic importance because of its harbour, as well as because the telegraph line
between Norway and England was situated there. The occupation lasted until the end of the war
In 1947, after World War II, the town was growing rapidly, and an area of the neighbouring munic
ipality of Eigersund was transferred into the town of Egersund During the 1960s it was politically
decided to decrease the number of municipalities in Norway , & so in 1965, the town of Egersund
was included in the larger municipality of Eigersund , with Egersund - as its administrative centre
Today , Egersund is a thriving small coastal town with history & charm in abundance. It has good
connections by road to the cities of Stavanger and Kristiansand, via the European route E39 high
way. There is also a more scenic coastal highway Norwegian County Road 44. There is an hourly
train connection north to Stavanger, while express/regional trains run south toward Kristiansand.
The town is filled with wooden houses and a beautiful centre with restaurants , cafes & niche sho
ps beside hotels and other modern amenities . It has a rich cultural life and much to offer visitors
They can experience the varied & diverse nature of this region on enjoyable trips to forests, fields
hills and mountains. The beautiful coast is a wonderful experience both by boat and also on foot
Also , every visitor should try the new cultural trail with city history signs - a route with 14 signs in
the middle of the old wooden houses . End the trip by going up to the mountain , Varberg, and the
rock carvings there. After a city walk, you can visit the Faience Museum, a museum of the glazed
earthenware and porcelain , made by Egersund Fayancefabrik , from 1847 all the way up to 1979.
Central Egersund houses some of the best preserved wood buildings in Norway. They are built in
late Empire style and most are protected by law . There is also an eye-catching rock formation in
the region . Also the Magma UNESCO Global Geopark (an open air geological park provided with
facilities for outdoor activities, to discover the highly interesting geological heritage of the area).
The town has several other attractions. Dalane Folkemuseum (a museum of antiquities and histo
ry of Egersund), Eigerøy Fyr (local lighthouse erected 1853 with one of Europe’s strongest lights),
the local chocolate factory , MotorCenter Norway , Coastal Safari, guided boat trip to Lysefjorden
and the famous mountain-formation Preikestolen, Skadbergsanden, and the Migaren Via Ferrata.
The Host venue for FSC #194 April 2025 is: the Egersund B&G Parken Stadion , in Egersund, Nor
way. Locally also known as Idrettsparken it is a football stadium which is home arena for the loc
al team Egersunds IK . It is a small stadium with a capacity for 2000 spectators (including a VIP-
section for about 60 people), but can house many more when music concerts are held at the sta
dium. The stadium opened around 100 years ago but was primarily used for sports after WW2 &
has been modernized to some extent since the 1990s. It's not the most used venue for music co
ncerts in Egersund , but is used on occasion and thereby functions as a good, & popular outdoor
concert venue / arena . They are proud to host this evening’s edition of the Forum Song Contest.
Our wonderful Hosts this evening are:
Susanne Sundfør, Thomas Bergersen and Hanne Sørvaag
Susanne Sundfør is a famous Norwegian singer - and songwriter, who comes from Haugesund in
south-western Norway . She has released many albums over the years, which have been critically
acclaimed, as well as collaborating with Norwegian Electro-pop greats Röyksopp on many songs.
She has received Norwegian Music Awards (Sp P). She is proud to co-host this edition of the FSC
Thomas Bergersen is a famous Norwegian composer and multi-instrumentalist who comes from
Trondheim. He is among the world's most streamed artists in the classical crossover genre & his
compositions have been featured in many famous Hollywood films . He was also part of the Two
Steps From Hell duo music project for many years . He is proud to co-host this edition of the FSC
Hanne Sørvaag is a famous Norwegian singer , songwriter & composer , who comes from Stavan
ger in south-western Norway. Internationally she is best known for her songwriting & she has writ
ten songs which have near 5 million copies in 70 countries. In Norway she is best known as a sin
ger , and has released several albums since 2002 . She is proud to co-host this edition of the FSC
And we are now pleased to announce
The Opening Acts
Exclusive International Guest Appearances
Paulina Wagner (Germany)
Stas Mikhailov (Russia)
-
’Liebe Liebe’
’Who if not you’
