Tsk, what a time to get hooked to a TV crime/thriller series; three shows before its last ever episode.

For those of you who have no idea what I’m schizzling on about, ‘The Killing’ is a stylishly gloomy Danish cop series, now into its third and final series. It features constant drizzle, faceless housing developments, windows with no curtains, a surfeit of deserted premises (apparently) without lighting, causing the cops to draw torches  and make lots of pretty patterns in the dark, evil villains with sensitive eyes (see above), top of the range knitwear and a beguiling heroine, Sarah Lund.

Sarah Lund

Just read the pacy, tension-filled dialogue of the penultimate scene of series three as Lund and colleague Borch, in their car discuss her new jumper and where she got it from. If you don’t want to know how it ends, look away now.

Can I borrow your knitting patterns then?

Borsh: Så, Sarah Jeg kan lide din yoomper.
Lund: Min yoomper?
Borsh: Ja det er rart. Jeg kan godt lide rensdyr mønster
Lund: oh tak.
Borsh: hvor har du den yoomper fra?
Lund: Er … Debenhams …

(Lund’s mobile rings, she picks it  up)

Lund: Ja?

(She looks into the middle distance listening to the voice, then suddenly cuts the caller off mid sentence. Still looking into the mid distance, she slowly returns the mobile to her pocket)
Borsh: Er … Debenhams?
Lund:  (Still looking distracted) … Ja.
Borsh: Åh, jeg troede, du altid gik yoomper til Marks and Spencer?
Lund: Marks and Spencer?
Borsh: Ja
Lund: Nej. Mine yoomper? Fra Marks and Spencer? … Nej.
Borsh: Oh
Lund: Ingen altid gå til Debenhams
Borsh: oh. hvor meget var det?
Lund: 30 kroner
Borsh: du sjov?
Lund: de har uld og mønstre så godt.
Borsh: Uld og mønstre?
Lund: Ja, du kan strikke din egen. Yoomper
Borsh: Oh.
Lund: Det regner meget er det ikke?

For those of you who maybe have not seen the series and therefore find your Danish a bit under par, here are some helpful words and phrases to help with the above.

Jeg kan lide din                                                  I like

rensdyr mønster                                                reindeer pattern

hvor har                                                               where did you get

jeg troede                                                             I always thought

du altid gik til                                                      you went to

hvor meget var det?                                           How much was it?

du sjov?                                                                You’re having a laugh?
Uld                                                                         wool

mønstre                                                                pattern

strikke                                                                   knit

Det regner meget er det ikke?                          It’s pissing down isn’t?

That’s better! Actress Sophie Gråbøl

For those of you who may be interested Lund’s ‘yoompers’ are hand knitted from Gudrun & Gudrun at 280 euros a pop.

Apologies to all my Danish readers.

© Andy Daly 2012