GRAND HOTEL, OSLO (Nettavisen): Wenche Foss’ Honor Award was presented Wednesday afternoon. The honorary award goes annually to an individual, organization or institution that can be strongly associated with Wenche’s joie de vivre, communication skills and commitment, both within and outside the art arena.
Previous years have the price gone to big names such as Robert Stoltenberg (57), Ane Dahl Torp (47) and Herman Flesvig (30). This year it was the actor Linn Skåber (52) who received the award, as well as the organization Skeiv Ungdom.
The famous comedian and actress has been a familiar face to the Norwegian people for several years after starting her career in 1993, and then made her debut at the Oslo Nye Theater in 1997.
“This year’s winner of the Wenche Foss Honorary Award is a very rare multi-talent. To show the breadth of the winner’s work, the judging panel will especially highlight the excellent children’s book ‘Til ungdommen’, illustrated by Lisa Aisato”writes the jury in its justification of why Linn Skåber is this year’s award winner in a press release.
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Nettavisen was present in the Rococo Hall of the Grand Hotel in Oslo, where the award was presented on Wednesday afternoon.
– What a pleasure. What an honour, said Linn Skåber from the stage as she received the award.
She will spend the money on it
Skåber tells Nettavisen that he was looking forward to this day and that it is very special that he received the honorary award together with Skeiv Ungdom.
– Is fantastic. I was really looking forward to this day. Especially when I can celebrate with Keiv Ungdom, who does a great job with just this phone that young people can call and chat with people who look and feel like themselves, says Skåber and continues:
– It is in the spirit of Wenche, because it has more closely intertwined life and us humans in it. So I hope we will continue to do that.
The prize has a cash prize of NOK 100,000, and Skåber reveals that he has a very special plan for what he will use it for.
– Now this is going to be a very unglamorous answer from me, but I know what I want to use them for. I want, for the first time in my life, to live in another city for a month, where I won’t meet so many people, reveals Skåber.
– I have a friend in Berlin so I will go there to get refills and new thoughts in my head. So it’s the first time I’ve said this, but I’m leaving in January.
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– He would be extremely proud
The prize money for the second recipient, Skeiv Ungdom, is intended for Ungdomstelefonen and the volunteers who work there. The queer youth helpline offers all young people someone to talk or chat with about sexuality, gender and identity.
“Wenche Foss himself would have been immensely proud of the important work you do. Today we color the Honorary Award in the colors of the rainbow and pay tribute to queer youth” writes the jury.
Jane-Victorius Bonsaksen in Skeiv Ungdom tells Nettavisen that it’s great to receive an honorary award.
– It means an incredible amount to be recognized for the work we do through the youth telephone. After all, it’s run by about 30 volunteers who work to be there for other queer youth and people who aren’t, too.
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The judging panel consists of leader Ellen Horn, Foss’ son Fabian Stang and Se og Hør editor Ulf André Andersen. The prize is NOK 100,000 and, since the beginning of 2009, has been split between two recipients each time.
