Happy Birthday!

The King and the Queen are both celebrating their 75th birthdays this year, and yesterday the festivities started with a performance by the Royal Guard Norwegian Military Drill Team and the singing of the Norwegian birthday song in the Palace Square. Each year on Norwegian Constitution Day on May 17th, schoolchildren march through the Palace Square in the customary children’s parade. Yesterday it was the pre-schoolers’ turn to fill the square, where they were served juice and buns and watched the drill team perform, before they gave a rousing rendition of Norway’s traditional birthday song.

The King and Queen were joined on the Palace Balcony by the Crown Prince and Crown Princess and their family, Princess Märtha Louise and Mr Ari Behn and their daughters, and Princess Astrid, Mrs Ferner and Mr Johan Martin Ferner.

Buns and juice

The City of Oslo treated the children to the customary birthday fare of buns and juice, and the members of the Royal Court had the pleasure of handing them out. They had to return to the Palace several times to replenish their baskets before all of the children had received their goodies.

Drill team performance

The Royal Guard Norwegian Military Drill Team performed in the Palace Square in honour of the King and Queen, impressing many of the onlookers. Mayor of Oslo Fabian Stang talked to some of the children, many of whom made it clear that they wanted to grow up to be members of His Majesty The King’s Guard.

Congratulatory wishes

The King and Queen also received formal birthday greetings from representatives of Norwegian officialdom yesterday. The Mayor of Oslo was the first to offer his congratulations, followed by representatives of the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities (KS), the Church of Norway, the County Governors, the Norwegian Armed Forces, Sametinget (the Sami Parliament), and the diplomatic corps.

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Tore Schei, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and President of the Storting Dag Terje Andersen were also among the well-wishers.

Gala performance on the roof of the Opera House

In the evening the Government invited all of Norway to a free gala performance on the roof of the Opera House in Oslo. The King and Queen arrived on the Royal Barge Stjernen, accompanied by the Crown Prince and Crown Princess and their family, Princess Märtha Louise and Mr Ari Behn and their family, and Princess Astrid, Mrs Ferner.

Norwegian singer and actress Herborg Kråkevik was the emcee for the evening, which featured speeches, readings, video greetings, and musical and dance performances. The Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra performed on its own in addition to accompanying a variety of emerging and well-established performers in a wide range of genres.