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:

The Icelandic Annual End-Of-Year Skit Show

The last joint cultural event all of Iceland collectively enjoy, to various degrees, takes place on New Years’s Eve. We try to explain what it is.

Greenland and Venezuela

Last night Iceland’s PM Kristrún Frostadóttir wrote on her Facebook “Greenland is a part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Nothing about Greenland without Greenland. Iceland stands in full solidarity behind our friends.”

This morning, Iceland’s Foreign Minister, Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, wrote an Op-Ed on visir.is saying, opening with “It is clear that the international system we have lived with since the end of the Second World War is shaking at its foundations. At work are what can rightly be called the threatening forces of history, generating uncertainty far beyond what we have been accustomed to and creating dangers that would have seemed implausible only a few years ago.”

Both of these statements are responses the USA’s seizure of Venezuela’s president, and Trump’s subsequent comments about taking over Greenland.

Gas Prices Drop By A Third

The price of gas dropped by a third on the first day of the year, subsequent to changes in how the Icelandic state collects tax from automobiles.

An Icelander Dies On The Front Lines In Ukraine

A 51 year old Icelander, Kjartan Sævar Óttarsson, died on the front lines in Ukraine in and around the 20th of December, according to the man’s brother. Kjartan had travelled to Ukraine on December 7th from Gothenburg Sweden, and neither what he was tasked with on the front lines, nor what lead to his death, has been reported on as of yet.

What’s Coming Up In 2026?

The show’s host ponder what this new year will bring us.

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Support the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://grapevine.is/high-five-club/

Or donate to the Grapevine here:
https://support.grapevine.is

You can also support the Grapevine by shopping in our online store:
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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 Iceland. In this episode we ponder the main stories of the year so far, answer reader's questions and explain some of the Yule Lads.

Top Stories Of 2025

We discuss 2025 top political scandal, top political event, top ecological and geological events, top cultural event, we nominate the "Mess of the Year", the bankruptcy of the year, the rise of right wing politics in Iceland and our favorite tourism related stories of the year.

Audience Questions

We answer questions from our audience on subjects such as Christmas gifts, the Icelandic language, traditional Christmas dinners, hikes and forestry.

Yule Lads Explained

We try our best to explain how having 13 Yule lads works in practice, and how there are actually records of a total of 80 different yule lads and ladies from various parts of Iceland. Then we discuss our favorite Yule lad names.

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SHOW SUPPORT

Support the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://grapevine.is/high-five-club/

Or donate to the Grapevine here:
https://support.grapevine.is

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:

Sigur Rós Join Björk in “No Music For Genocide”, Boycotting Israel

“No Music For Genocide” was launched in September this year, and news of Iceland’s Björk joining the boycott made headlines. This means that Sigur Rós music will not be available on streaming platforms in Israel, just like the music of Björk, Lorde, My Bloody Valentine and more.

Björk Supports Calls For Iceland Boycotting Eurovision

Over the weekend, Björk shared an interview with another local music legend and Eurovision fanboy no. 1, Páll Óskar, where he urged the National Broadcaster RÚV to not participate in Eurovision this year, after news broke that Israel would be allowed to participate in the competition next year, leading countries such as Spain, Netherlands, Ireland and Slovenia to announce they would not participate in the competition in 2026.

Politics Gearing Up For Municipality Elections Next Spring

A new poll shows that only 2% of the people of Reykjavík want the current mayor, Heiða Björk Hilmarsdóttir, to continue as mayor. Some names have been tossed around for the upcoming elections in Reykjavík, such as Aðalsteinn Leifsson, the former state negotiator, regional Chief-of-Police Úlfar Lúðvíksson, and Gísli Marteinn Baldursson, a veteran of city policies who has been hosting a popular TV show on the National Broadcaster RÚV for years now. Parties like the Center Party, are looking to gain seats in upcoming elections around all of Iceland, cashing in on their good poll numbers recently.

Government’s New Transportation Infrastructure Plan Announced To Little Fanfare

Last week Iceland’s government announced a new plan for transportation infrastructure in Iceland. The minister responsible for the new transportation plan, Eyjólfur Ármannsson, got a lot of flack for not having read the report the plan is based on. People in the Eastfjords were unhappy, because the next road tunnel project is not planned for that region, an the city of Reykjavík complained that there are now plans to build up infrastructure around the City Airport, which

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SHOW SUPPORT

Support the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://grapevine.is/high-five-club/

Or donate to the Grapevine here:
https://support.grapevine.is

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