Based on true events, the story follows restauranteur Kurt Haijby and his secret relationship with king Gustav V, which eventually got out and led to one of the worst miscarriages of justice that Sweden has ever witnessed.
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«A Royal Secret» (En kunglig affär)
The year is 1933 and cellar master Kurt Haijby and his wife Anna run the restaurant Lido in the heart of Stockholm’s entertainment district. But Kurt has a huge criminal record and is therefore denied his application for a liquor license. He therefore decides to present the his case to the king.
In the meeting with the aged monarch Gustaf V, a spark is lit. An extremely secret and forbidden relationship begins. But at a time when homosexuality is a crime and the monarchy is threatened by politics, there is no room for scandals. Too much is at stake and when the king’s closest understand that the relationship risks coming to an end with horror, they advise the monarch against any contact with Haijby.
The bubble bursts when Kurt’s wife, Anna Haijby, realizes what’s going on. Kurt’s love story with the king takes a brutal turn when Anna requests a divorce. As a reason for the divorce, she states her husband’s infidelity with Gustaf V, King of Sweden. With head of state Torsten Nothin at the helm, a desperate struggle is now beginning to darken the relationship and save the monarchy from disaster.
«The constitution says that one should keep the king holy and reverence and love him. No one has loved the king more than I have. And what have I got for it?» (Kurt Haijby).
At SVT Drama, we continue with our strategy of telling unique stories about Sweden, in all imaginable genres. – The miniseries about Haijby is definitely such a story, and it is difficult not to be fascinated by what happened, or did not happen, in the tours around Kurt Haijby and Gustaf V – and the legal scandal that followed. We are extremely happy for the ensemble of outstanding authors who will now realise Bengt’s superb script – full of intrigue, love and power play, says Anna Croneman, program manager for drama at SVT.
The drama series is filmed in Gothenburg, Trollhättan and Stockholm and had premiere on SVT1, SVT Play, NRK 1 (Norway) and NRK TV during Christmas 2021. Producer is Lena Rehnberg, Stella Nova Film. Project manager at SVT: Marcos Hellberg. Responsible publisher: Anna Croneman, program manager for drama at SVT.
(sorry no English version at this time of the trailer).