Rigmor Hvidtfeldt

Matador is a Danish TV series produced and shown between 1978 and 1982. It is set in the fictional Danish town of Korsbæk between 1929 and 1947. It follows the lives of a range of characters from across the social spectrum, focusing specifically on the rivalry between the families of two businessmen: The banker Hans Christian Varnæs, an established local worthy, and social climber Mads Skjern, who arrives in town as the series opens. The name Matador was taken from the localised edition of the boardgame Monopoly, also the series' tentative English title. In addition, in contemporary Danish a "matador" is often used to describe a business tycoon, in the series referring to the character of Mads Skjern and his craftiness as a self-made entrepreneur. Directed by famed Danish film maker Erik Balling, Matador was the idea of author Lise Nørgaard who wrote the bulk of the episodes alongside Karen Smith, Jens Louis Petersen and Paul Hammerich. The series is one of the most well-known and popular examples of Danish television and represents the peak of longtime development of Danish TV drama by the public service channel Danmarks Radio. The series has become part of the modern self-understanding of Danes, partly because of its successful mix of melodrama and a distinct warm Danish humour in the depiction of characters, which were portrayed by a wide range of the most popular Danish actors at the time; but also not least because of its accurate portrayal of a turbulent Denmark from around the start of the Great Depression and through Nazi Germany's occupation of Denmark in World War II.

A young orphan is sent to live in a Danish village where he is cast out because his mother was a West Indian. With nowhere to turn, the ingenious survivor begins devising a new life outside of town.

Summer in the small market town of Stenvig equals life and good earnings for the city's shoppers. Love flourishes side by side with the urge to act, and especially the baker's daughter Susanne makes the young men's hearts beat fast. But when the infatuated Otto gets a little too close, it has major consequences for Susanne.

Senior barrister Cornelius Thorsen is passionate about three things: good food, fine wine and above all else his lovely daughter Else. At a party, up-and-coming businessman Mads Hovborg catches a glimpse of Else, but when Cornelius thinks Mads is a bit of a King Carrot, he has his romance thwarted. But only for a start.

The film deals with a problem that affects us all. Whether you are rich or poor, old or young, you can be attacked by tuberculosis. In many, many cases, you can also be cured and leave the hospital or sanatorium with a certificate stating that you are free of infection and that, provided you attend your check-ups, you pose no danger to other people. This is what happens to Bente, a young office worker.

Every year, more and more Danes turn their backs on the rainy Danish summer and instead vacation in the sunshine of Mallorca. With Anders Christensen as our tour guide, we follow one of the many travel companies—some of the participants are new faces, others are old acquaintances from "Eventyrrejsen" (The Adventure Trip).