Book presentation and film screening about a war hero and adventurer unknown to most people.
Filmmaker Stian Indrevoll and author Knut Støvne have for several years collaborated on a documentary film and a non-fiction book about the war hero and adventurer Torstein Raaby.
In autumn 2022, the book was published by Gyldendal, and throughout this winter the film has been shown in cinemas across the country.
Torstein Raaby is best known for being one of the crew members on Thor Heyerdahl's Kon-Tiki raft. But he is also one of our foremost war heroes.
It is fair to say that Raaby was a Norwegian war hero of international stature. He was one of the key figures in what was perhaps the most important Allied intelligence operation carried out on Norwegian soil during the Second World War.
The efforts of Raaby and several of the other Norwegian radio agents who worked for the British Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) contributed greatly to the destruction of the German surface fleet, which was crucial to the Allies winning the battle for the Nordic seas.
Raaby was directly involved in the neutralisation of the German battleship "Tirpitz" in April 1944. This ensured the safe transport of war materiel to the Red Army, which contributed significantly to the war being won in 1945.
Torstein Raaby was active as a secret radio agent in German-occupied Norway for more than 700 days. As far as we know, he is the only person who reported to three different governments during the war: the Soviet, the British and the Norwegian.
On 18 April at 18:00, Knut Støvne is coming to Alvdal to show the film and talk about Raaby in Flåklypasalen at Huset Aukrust.
And on 19 April, it is Røros's turn.
The event has attracted people from all over the country, and we strongly believe many will find the author's own presentation and the film screening very interesting, says Huset Aukrust's general manager, Hilde Bergebakken, who is keen to encourage people from Alvdal, Folldal, Rendalen and Tynset to come along that evening.
Several films based on wartime history have been made in recent years, so I believe many will find this story relevant.
We use the hall regularly for our own films, but I think many people have missed having a cinema in Flåklypasalen – so this is an opportunity we hope will appeal.
The screening is taking place in cooperation with Øystein Wangen from the culture department in Alvdal Municipality.
About the author:
Knut J Støvne is a retired Army officer. From 2015, he was affiliated for several years with the weekly magazine Vi Menn as a freelance journalist.
In 2022, Støvne made his debut as a non-fiction author with the biography of Torstein Raaby published by Gyldendal Norsk Forlag.