Matador (Danish TV Series)

''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: banker Hans Christian Varnæs, an established local worthy, and Mads (Andersen-)Skjern, who arrives in town as a travelling salesman as the series opens, and builds up a large business. 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 Danish film-maker Erik Balling, ''Matador'' was the idea of author Lise Nørgaard, who wrote the bulk of the episodes, along with 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 a then 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.

The distinctive and in Denmark celebrated theme tune of the series was composed by Bent Fabricius-Bjerre.

''Matador'' originally aired on DR between November 1978 and January 1982 and has enjoyed repeated successful reruns in 1984-85, 1989–90, 1997–98, 2006–07, 2012–13, 2017-2018 and most recently 2020, for the latter newly restored to High Definition. Individual episodes figure prominently in Denmark's top TV viewing figures of all time, led by episode 9's showing during the series' first rerun on 10 February 1985 with estimated 3,641,000 viewers, followed closely by 3,516,000 viewers watching the series finale during its original run on 2 January 1982; this in a country of some 5 million people at the time.

Additionally, the series has been released on VHS and in 2001 on region 2 DVD. This first edition of 12 separate DVDs with two episodes each has been one of the most sold in the country's history and surpassed a total of 1 million sold copies in 2005. A second 2006 13-DVD box set included English subtitles for a wider audience, with various DVD editions surpassing 3.6 million copies sold by 2013. The series was widely popular in neighbouring Norway, Sweden, and Germany, and it has been broadcast in more than 20 countries worldwide, one of which was Australia, here also widely popular when broadcast on Australian SBS TV in Danish with English subtitles. Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark, born in Tasmania, stated in a TV interview on Australian TV in 2004, that she watched ''Matador'' whilst learning Danish.

List and synopsis of Matador episodes

''(The English episode titles are taken from the English subtitle track on the 2006 Region 0 DVD collection. Many of the original episode titles are based on Danish puns and expressions.)''

Season 1 (1978)

Season 2 (1979)

Season 3 (1980–1981)

Season 4 (1981–1982)

List of characters

Characters alphabetically:

Important characters

The Skjern dynasty

* Mads (Andersen)-Skjern — (1:24) Jørgen Buckhøj- (born 1897) Scion of the Skjern dynasty.
Mads is a stranger who arrives in Korsbæk with his motherless son Daniel as a traveling salesman in 1929. Seeing that the local clothing shop caters only to the interests of the well-to-do, he decides to start his own business, Skjern's Magasin, to provide clothing for the common people.
Personality: Industrious; almost ruthless businessman who does not "forgive and forget"; a stern and overbearing father who expects much of his son Daniel. As time goes by he becomes increasingly sterner to his son, as he slowly realizes that he will never be ready to take over the family business. Instead he favors his adoptive daughter Ellen, who is doing good in school, unlike Daniel. Because of this, she can get away with almost everything.
When he accidentally finds out about his sons homosexuality, he banishes him from his home. This action almost cost him his marriage to Ingeborg.

As his business grows, Mads, who's originally honest and well-meaning, is corrupted by his growing power and occasionally engages in questionable business practices. Despite his religious upbringing he eventually assimilates into a more moderate lifestyle. His political views are conservative, particularly concerning morals, as he is a firm opponent of abortion, then illegal in Denmark.

* Ingeborg (Andersen)-Skjern — (1:24) Ghita Nørby - (born c. 1901)
Wife of Mads Andersen-Skjern and daughter of Oluf and Katrine Larsen. She is also the mother of Ellen from a previous marriage. She and Mads eventually have a child named Erik. Despite loving to work, Mads insists she tends the house in the style of a proper upper class wife.
Personality: Kind, loving, modern, intelligent; unlike Mads, she is far kinder to Daniel; still, she too turns a blind eye on Ellen's choices as she grows older.
* Kristen (Andersen)-Skjern — (4:24) Jesper Langberg - (born c.1899)
He is the younger brother of Mads Skjern and Anna Skjern. Kristen arrives in Korsbæk about a year after Mads, and eventually becomes director of Omegns Bank, a bank for the lower-class denizens of Korsbæk. When the Nazis occupy Denmark, he becomes active in the Danish resistance movement along with Dr. Louis Hansen.
Personality: An honest man; unlike his brother, he is more willing to overlook class differences and has few social ambitions. He has an on-and-off relationship with Elisabeth Friis, sister-in-law of Hans Christian Varnæs, but after a particularly grim falling-out between them, he marries Iben Skjold-Hansen, which turned out disastrous and they divorce. In episode 23 he finally marries Elisabeth Friis (Skjern).
* Daniel Skjern — (1-6) Kristian Steen Rem; (8-12) Jacob Dalgård, (15) Jim Erichsen; (17-19,21,22,24) Niels Martin Carlsen (born c. 1924)
He is the son of Mads Skjern and his first wife. His father wants him to join the family business, but he displays poor business skills and can't live up to his father's expectations. Instead he shows talent for design and fashion; a field where he later enjoys a certain success and becomes marginally involved in his father's business. Daniel is a homosexual, which is near impossible for his father to accept though Ingeborg and Katrine readily accepts it.
* Ellen (Andersen)-Skjern — (1-6) Helle Nielsen; (8-12) Nynne Ubbe; (15) Christine Hermansen; (17-19,21-23) Benedikte Dahl (born c. 1924)
The daughter of Ingeborg Skjern and her former husband Holger Jørgensen. She is adopted by Mads Skjern. As a talented student, she is soon her father's favourite (Mads), whom he loves more than his own son Daniel. Under pressure from her father, she marries a wealthy businessman's son, because it is a good alliance.
Ulrik Varnæs is deeply in love with her, but due to unfortunate circumstances their relationship never develop. Eventually she divorces her husband, rejects her father's offer to take over the business and goes off to study dentistry.

* Erik Skjern — (8-10) Kenneth Schmidt; (14) Nikolaj Harris; (21) Lari Hørsted; (24) Jens Christian Milbart (born 1933)
Mads and Ingeborg's youngest child. He is a talented student but despite (or because of) his skills in mathematics, a subject Mads values above anything else as it is a prerequisite for running a business, he also rejects his father's offer to take over the business, as his two elder siblings. Instead he expresses a desire to go on to study nuclear physics.

* Aunt Anna (Skjern) — (15) Kirsten Rolffes
Mads' and Kristen's older sister. She arrives in Korsbæk to attend Daniel's conformation. She is a member of the Inner Mission (a Danish pietist movement), like Mads was. She heavily disapproves Mads's new lifestyle, and his choice of wife. This leads to a confrontation with Mads, where he banishes her from his house.

* Oluf Larsen — (1-24) Buster Larsen
Father of Ingeborg. He is a pig's merchant and very good-natured. He helped finance Mads' business after Hans Christian Varnæs refused to lend him money, alongside the backing Mads got from relatives at home in Jutland. Oluf Larsen and his wife Katrine are certainly wealthy, perhaps richer than anyone else in town, yet they still belong to the "working class" and is looked down upon by the bourgeoisie. He is friends with Røde, Fede and waiter Bolt.

* Kathrine Larsen — (1-4,6-13,15-20,22,24) Lily Broberg
She is Oluf's wife and is both kind and wise. She manages the majority of the money that Oluf brings home. She invests it in various lands and property, but is very distrustful towards investing in stocks. When Mads ask her to invest in his new bank she refuses but instead offers to give 10’000 kr. to him, his wife and each of his children. (In present prices this will probably be around 400’000 $.)

When Agnes is planning to buy the building in which she has created her home and business from Katrine, she tricks Mads into betting 200 kr. that Katrine will never sell. When Agnes ask, Kathrine predictably refuses to sell; but when Agnes says that she made a bet with Mads, who didn't think she would sell, and in fact was "dead certain" of that, she is persuaded. Thus Mads loses his first and only bet.

The Varnæs dynasty

* Hans Christian Varnæs — Holger Juul Hansen - The wife of Hans Christian Varnæs. Spoiled by her husband. She uses her time as hostess of visits from other high society persona in Korsbæk. It is hinted that she tricked Hans Christian Varnæs into marrying her by getting pregnant with their first child Ulrik. During the war, and especially while rescuing the Jewish banker Mr. Stein, who works in her husband's bank, from the Nazi Jew-hunt, her character changes into a brave woman of action that starts seeing people for who they are instead of through upper class eyes.
* Jørgen Varnæs — Bent Mejding Younger brother of Hans Christian Varnæs. He is a slick lawyer and would-be MP living in the fast lane. His wife leaves him when she learns about his affair with Gitte Graa and eventually his life takes a turn for the worse not least due to his alcoholism and utter inability to live within his means.
* Elisabeth Friis — Helle Virkner - Sister of Maude Varnæs - (born c.1894). Lives with (and in the shadow of) Maude and Hans Christian and tends to their two children Ulrik and Regitze as well as looking after the house. Falls in love with Mads Skjern's brother Kristen when he arrives in Korsbæk. The relationship is broken due to the bad relationship between the Skjern and Varnæs families. During the war she enters the Danish resistance movement together with Doctor Louis Hansen and Kristen Skjern and through that re-enters the relationship with Kristen. Eventually marries Kristen and moves away from Korsbæk and their respective families.
* Ulrik Varnæs — Søren Bruun (child), Jens Arentzen (adult) - (born c.1923) A spoiled child. In love with Ellen Skjern. Impregnates a servant girl while studying at the university and eventually marries her, much to his mother's regret. Is destined to take over the bank from his father.
* Regitze Varnæs — Camilla Hammerich A spoiled child that's well behaved in her younger years, and becomes an independent freedom-seeking woman. While in her tweens she all but rejects her mother due to being denied a puppy because of Maudes pregnancy with Helle. This creates a permanent rift between Regitze and her mother than never fully heals. Becomes rebellious and is said to be involved with a married man in Germany where she moves to work as a censor of German letters.
* Helle Varnæs — Ditte Maria Norup - (born c.1938) A "late arrival" of Maude and Hans Christian Varnæs. Little is known of her fate. She becomes the primary reason for a permanent rift between Regitze Varnæs and her mother.
* Minna Varnæs — Ellen Winther Lembourn - Wife to Jørgen Varnes. Divorces him and destroys his political career, as her father is highly placed in the conservative party.
* Gustav Friis — Finn Storgaard - Elizabeth and Maudes younger brother. Infrequent occurrences in the series. He has political ambitions and takes an interest in Vicki Hackel.

Friends of Varnæs

* Doctor Hansen (Louis Hansen), MD — Ove Sprogøe - Doctor of medicine, moved to Korsbæk from Funen (speaks a dialect). Is, like Laura, a person that evolves only a little, and is also a de facto centre of the series. He attends all walks of life (being a doctor) and is anything but a snob. Among the conservative upper class in town he is an odd figure because of his political sympathies for the Radikale Venstre. He is in love with Elizabeth Friis, which is made obvious later in the series, and once it is mentioned that he may have been divorced and has a child.
* Mrs. Fernando Møhge (born 1843) — Karen Berg - A 100-year-old lady (really just 90) that's the town original. Despite having no money (is actually rather wealthy but extremely cheap) she's counted among the leading citizens of Korsbæk (because the family hasn't moved away from the area in 200 years or so, according to Laura). Is deaf (at times), greedy and borderline senile.
* Misse Møhge (born 1869) — Karin Nellemose - The chaste, spinster daughter of Mrs. Fernando Møhge. Is tyrannized by her mother whom she pushes around town in a wheelchair, despite her mother's ability to walk (which Misse claims is a miraculous act of will). Eventually marries Teacher Andersen.
* Colonel Ditlev Hackel — Bjørn Watt-Boolsen Pompous, gruff army officer and garrison commandant i Korsbæk. He is rarely seen out of uniform. He belongs to local high society and is the father of Vicki Hackel.
* Consul Emmanuel Holm — Karl Stegger Background character. President of the board at Korsbæk Bank and, along with his wife, a frequent guest at the Varnæs family. Along with Skjold-Hansen he campaigns against Mads Skjern.
* Mrs. Consul Holm — Else Marie Juul Hansen - Wife of the Consul. Conservative to the bone.
*Master Jessen (Bricklayer) — Poul Reichhardt - Upper middle class eventual chairman of Korsbæk Banks board.
* Mrs. Jessen — Bodil Udsen - the very direct wife of Master Bricklayer Jessen. A horrible person who has it in for Jørgen Varnæs and provides, through her husband, Jørgens downfall.

Servants at Varnæs

* Laura Sørensen — Elin Reimer Faithful servant of the Varnæs family through many years. Laura is the de facto centre of the series, as all things somehow passes through her kitchen, the only real place where high and low both appear. She is also the only character that doesn't evolve throughout the series, insisting on maintaining a divide between the classes (born 1890) (she refuses to sit at the table in the last episode, where the Varnæs couple celebrate their 25th anniversary).
* Agnes Jensen — Kirsten Olesen Becomes the matriarch of "the third family". Originally she was a mere housemaid at the Varnæs house. She marries Røde (Red) and settles for a traditional family, but keeps working odd jobs. She eventually becomes an entrepreneur, starts her own business with great success. Towards the end of the series she starts working for Mads Skjern, and it's hinted at that she might one day take over that business, as Skjern's own children want nothing to do with it, and she has insisted on obtaining stocks in the company as part of her promotion. (born 1911)
* Miss Hollenberg — Christiane Rohde - A troublesome maid at Varnæs' house at some point during the war.
* Esther — Birgitte Bruun - A maid at the Varnæs' house. Finds employment at the Skjern's much to Laura's dismay.
* Mr. Stein — John Hahn-Petersen - Accountant in "Korsbæk Bank" and Hans Christian's right-hand man. Very competent yet subtle. He is Jewish and the catalyst of Maude's most significant development, as she is a vital factor in his escape to neutral Sweden during 1943's rescue of the Danish Jews