Danish drama Trom reveals a web of secrets

Despite being relatively close to the UK – about halfway between Scotland and Iceland – it’s fair to say that most Brits won’t know a great deal about the Faroe Islands.

However, that could all be about to change, as the rugged and rocky North Atlantic archipelago, which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark and has a population of just over 50,000, is starring in BBC Four’s newest Nordic noir series.

Based on writer Jógvan Isaksen’s bestselling crime novels, six-part Danish-Faroese drama Trom follows journalist Hannis Martinsson (played by Banshee actor Ulrich Thomsen), who initially risks his own skin on the trail of a spectacular story.

After he unexpectedly receives an ominous message from his estranged daughter, activist Sonja (Helena Heðinsdóttir), claiming her life is in danger, Hannis reluctantly returns to the Faroes and revisits the darkened waters of his past to investigate.

However, he receives an almighty shock when Sonja’s body is discovered in the bloody waters of a whale hunt. Not only does his desperate search for answers bring him into conflict with the local police, Hannis also uncovers a web of secrets within the close-knit community.

As well as looking for answers as to who killed Sonja and why, Crime Commissioner Karla Mohr (Maria Rich) has her hands full attempting to reassure the locals.

Meanwhile, Hannis soon becomes frustrated with a lack of progress on the case and decides launches his own investigation.

The BBC has a rich history in broadcasting the best shows produced in the Nordic countries, from Stieg Larsson’s bestselling Millennium trilogy to Henning Mankell’s brooding Wallander series. And, as with its predecessors, the setting and scenery of Trom is, to a certain extent, the show’s main character.

Viewers are bound to fall in love with the Faroe Islands’s dramatic waterfalls, moss-covered cliffs, secluded villages, small cabins and pristine lakes. The archipelago’s remote location also means that it is among the most unexplored and, by definition, safest places in the world.

The story within Trom reflects that – asking whether that’s for better or worse.

Sue Deeks, Head of Programme Acquisition for the BBC, says: “The Faroe Islands are a fascinating setting for a crime drama and we are truly delighted to be the UK home of the first ever Faroese original drama series – it will be a totally unique experience for BBC viewers.”

As well as benefitting from a stunning location, Trom also has an environmental angle that touches on some of the themes that affect us all.

When screenwriter Tórfinnur Jákupsson was three, he almost drowned, and ever since then, he has been fascinated by the ocean and the idea that although it keeps us alive, the water can just as quickly become our biggest threat.

The people in the Faroe Islands are very closely connected to nature as well as each other, and that works as a framework for the series.

As Jákupsson explains, the landscape and nature affects and moulds the characters, as well as the other way around.

“I’ve always liked those stories that have a very strong sense of place, and the Faroes are a big character in both the books and the series,” he says. “This is a mysterious, beautiful but also brutal place, isolated from the rest of the world. The small town community and the culture comes with that. The culture of silence is both a survival mechanism but also something that can slowly kill you.”