Iceland Weekly News Roundup

Are you enjoying this? Are you not? Tell us what to do more of, and what you'd like to hear less of.

The Reykjavík Grapevine's Iceland Roundup brings you the top news with a healthy dash of local views.
In this episode, Grapevine publisher Jón Trausti Sigurðarson is joined by Heimildin journalist Aðalsteinn Kjartansson, and Grapevine friend and contributor Sindri Eldon to roundup the stories making headlines in recent weeks.
On the docket this week are:
✨ Melting asphalt on roads in west Iceland & infrastructure issues in general.
✨ Iceland's first ever Sex Club is opening soon in Reykjavík. Or is it?
✨ NATO has hit a fork in the road. J. D. Vance's speech in Munich confirms arising fears on the future of that organisation. Is the world order of the past 80 years at an end? And as with the rest of Europe, Iceland's security is now uncertain. Is the USA's promise to keep Iceland safe worth anything by now? Should we just invite Trump to join our new Sex Club?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOW SUPPORT
Support the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://steadyhq.com/en/rvkgrapevine/
You can also support the Grapevine by shopping in our online store: https://shop.grapevine.is
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a Reykjavík Grapevine podcast.
The Reykjavík Grapevine is a free alternative magazine in English published 18 times per year, biweekly during the spring and summer, and monthly during the autumn and winter.

The magazine covers everything Iceland-related, with a special focus culture, music, food and travel. The Reykjavík Grapevine’s goal is to serve as a trustworthy and reliable source of information for those living in Iceland, visiting Iceland or interested in Iceland. Thanks to our dedicated readership and excellent distribution network, the Reykjavík Grapevine is Iceland’s most read English-language publication.

You may not agree with what we write or publish, but at least it’s not sponsored content.
www.grapevine.is

Are you enjoying this? Are you not? Tell us what to do more of, and what you'd like to hear less of.

The Reykjavík Grapevine's Iceland Roundup brings you the top news with a healthy dash of local views. In this episode, Grapevine publisher Jón Trausti Sigurðarson is joined by Heimildin editor Aðalsteinn Kjartansson, and Grapevine friend and contributor Sindri Eldon to roundup the stories making headlines in recent weeks. On the docket this week are:

✨We discuss an upcoming storm warning for the whole island. Iceland is expecting strong winds with near freezing temperatures and snow expected in the north and east of the island.

✨ We discuss the parking fees in and around popular tourist locations in Iceland, also known as the habit of charging people for nothing.

✨ From June 1, 2025 swimming pools in Reykjavík will be open until 22:00 in the evenings until August 31, adding a welcome hour to the hot tub soaking of the many pool fans of Reykjavík. The pools had historically been open until 22:00, but those hours were cut by the city in April 2024 in order to save money. Since it is estimated that the extra hour will cost the city just 7 million ISK, keeping the pools open for the extra hour for a whole year would cost 28 million ISK. A puny amount of money in a city of almost 150.000 inhabitants.

✨ On the last day of May a concert was held at Laugardalshöll stadium to commemorate a 14 year anniversary of a popular radio show called FM95BLÖ. The show, which featured numerous popular pop artists including Jóhanna Guðrún of Eurovision fame, Prettyboytjokkó, Birnir and Herra Hnetusmjör, to name a few. Around 10.000 people showed up, and due to a mixture of overcrowding and organisational failures, numerous people had to seek medical help, though nobody is reported to have been badly injured.

✨A protest took place in Austurvöllur in front of Iceland's parliament this Saturday. “We are not racists” said the organizer of the protest, Sigfús Aðalsteinsson. We discuss.

✨An Icelander in his early 40s was stopped by the police in the last week of May while driving in Akureyri. A breathalyser test indicated that the man was under the influence of alcohol, yet the man claimed to have never drunk alcohol in his life. After an argument with the police officer who conducted the breathalyser test, the man was allowed to rinse his mouth of the sourdough sandwich he had been consuming. The subsequent test showed that he had not been drinking and according to the driver this annoyed the police officer somewhat. This is news to most - if not all - lovers of a good sourdough sandwich, who have until now remai

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOW SUPPORT
Support the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://steadyhq.com/en/rvkgrapevine/
You can also support the Grapevine by shopping in our online store: https://shop.grapevine.is
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a Reykjavík Grapevine podcast.
The Reykjavík Grapevine is a free alternative magazine in English published 18 times per year, biweekly during the spring and summer, and monthly during the autumn and winter.

The magazine covers everything Iceland-related, with a special focus culture, music, food and travel. The Reykjavík Grapevine’s goal is to serve as a trustworthy and reliable source of information for those living in Iceland, visiting Iceland or interested in Iceland. Thanks to our dedicated readership and excellent distribution network, the Reykjavík Grapevine is Iceland’s most read English-language publication.

You may not agree with what we write or publish, but at least it’s not sponsored content.
www.grapevine.is

Are you enjoying this? Are you not? Tell us what to do more of, and what you'd like to hear less of.

Welcome back to The Icelandic Roundup! On this week's episode, Grapevine’s editor-in-chief Valur Grettisson and culture editor Josie Anne Gaitens are joined by investigative journalist Bjartmar Oddur Þeyr Alexandersson from Stundin magazine. They discuss the upcoming municipal elections, the various parties running in Reykjavík (there are 11—don't forget the socialists), and the fact that there is a party of cats running in the north of Iceland. Oh boy.
Find out more about voting in Iceland here.
Looking for more news? Check out our website for the latest coverage: grapevine.is
Please take the time to rate and review the Icelandic Roundup on your podcast app! It helps other people find the show.
Before travelling in Iceland please always check road and weather conditions to ensure a safe journey.
Weather: vedur.is
Roads: road.is
The latest Coronvirus measures can be found at covid.is
This show is brought to you by the Reykjavík Grapevine, a free, alternative magazine in English published in Reykjavík every month. We cover everything Iceland-related, with a special focus on news, human interest stories, music, culture, food, travel and events.

shop | facebook | twitter | instagram
Thank you to Lava Car Rental and The Lava Centre for sponsoring this episode of The Icelandic Roundup.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOW SUPPORT
Support the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://steadyhq.com/en/rvkgrapevine/
You can also support the Grapevine by shopping in our online store: https://shop.grapevine.is
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a Reykjavík Grapevine podcast.
The Reykjavík Grapevine is a free alternative magazine in English published 18 times per year, biweekly during the spring and summer, and monthly during the autumn and winter.

The magazine covers everything Iceland-related, with a special focus culture, music, food and travel. The Reykjavík Grapevine’s goal is to serve as a trustworthy and reliable source of information for those living in Iceland, visiting Iceland or interested in Iceland. Thanks to our dedicated readership and excellent distribution network, the Reykjavík Grapevine is Iceland’s most read English-language publication.

You may not agree with what we write or publish, but at least it’s not sponsored content.
www.grapevine.is

Are you enjoying this? Are you not? Tell us what to do more of, and what you'd like to hear less of.

In this edition of the Icelandic Roundup, editor-in-chief Valur Grettison and news editor Andie Sophia Fontaine talk about the controversy surrounding the deportation of over a dozen people seeking international protection in Iceland, including a family with small children and a man who uses a wheelchair.
They also talk about a recent leadership struggle in the Conservative Party, and recap some of the fun times at Iceland Airwaves.
Looking for more news? Check out our website for the latest coverage: grapevine.is
Please take the time to rate and review the Icelandic Roundup on your podcast app! We really appreciate it, and it helps other people find the show.
Before travelling in Iceland please always check road and weather conditions to ensure a safe journey.
Weather: vedur.is
Roads: road.is or on twitter.com/Vegagerdin
This show is brought to you by the Reykjavík Grapevine, a free, alternative magazine in English published in Reykjavík every month. We cover everything Iceland-related, with a special focus on news, human interest stories, music, culture, food, travel and events.

shop | facebook | twitter | instagram
Thank you to The Lava Centre for sponsoring this episode of The Icelandic Roundup.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOW SUPPORT
Support the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://steadyhq.com/en/rvkgrapevine/
You can also support the Grapevine by shopping in our online store: https://shop.grapevine.is
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a Reykjavík Grapevine podcast.
The Reykjavík Grapevine is a free alternative magazine in English published 18 times per year, biweekly during the spring and summer, and monthly during the autumn and winter.

The magazine covers everything Iceland-related, with a special focus culture, music, food and travel. The Reykjavík Grapevine’s goal is to serve as a trustworthy and reliable source of information for those living in Iceland, visiting Iceland or interested in Iceland. Thanks to our dedicated readership and excellent distribution network, the Reykjavík Grapevine is Iceland’s most read English-language publication.

You may not agree with what we write or publish, but at least it’s not sponsored content.
www.grapevine.is

Are you enjoying this? Are you not? Tell us what to do more of, and what you'd like to hear less of.

The Reykjavík Grapevine's Iceland Roundup brings you the top news with a healthy dash of local views. In this episode, Grapevine publisher Jón Trausti Sigurðarson is joined by Heimildin journalist Aðalsteinn Kjartansson, and Grapevine friend and contributor Sindri Eldon to roundup the stories making headlines in recent weeks. On the docket this week are:

✨ On Wednesday RÚV continued its report regarding covert surveillance by former police officers for Iceland’s richest man, Björgólfur Thor Björgólfsson. The same two police officers also stole surveillance data from the Special Prosecutors office in 2012. We discuss that.

✨ The police found two snakes in someone's home. The snakes were disposed of.

✨ We discuss The Reykjavík Grapevine's recent feature on Eurovision and the debate surrounding Iceland's participation in it this year and last.

✨ A new filibuster record was set in the halls of Iceland's parliament, Althingi, last Friday when the opposition opposed a new proposed law that would increase the revenue the Icelandic state receives from its fisheries.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOW SUPPORT
Support the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://steadyhq.com/en/rvkgrapevine/
You can also support the Grapevine by shopping in our online store: https://shop.grapevine.is
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a Reykjavík Grapevine podcast.
The Reykjavík Grapevine is a free alternative magazine in English published 18 times per year, biweekly during the spring and summer, and monthly during the autumn and winter.

The magazine covers everything Iceland-related, with a special focus culture, music, food and travel. The Reykjavík Grapevine’s goal is to serve as a trustworthy and reliable source of information for those living in Iceland, visiting Iceland or interested in Iceland. Thanks to our dedicated readership and excellent distribution network, the Reykjavík Grapevine is Iceland’s most read English-language publication.

You may not agree with what we write or publish, but at least it’s not sponsored content.
www.grapevine.is