Christmas Arrives with Jóli Hólm

Christmas in Hafnarfjörður

“I’m sleeping in the teenager’s room. Everything depends on it,” says Sóli Hólm in the Hafnarfjörður Christmas magazine. He says he is always “recharging” between shows and shuffling around the house like a zombie to avoid catching any virus.

Again and again, year after year? “Yes, but always with a new program, of course. That’s how it has to be,” says Sóli, describing how he and Halldór Smárason put everything into creating the experience.

“I’m not just making fun of Christmas year after year. That would dry up quickly,” he says about how each year is reviewed. Different things happen in society each year, which simply call for more creativity. “It’s a challenge I welcome. It activates the brain. And Jóli Hólm isn’t exactly some annual review. I just do what I find funny and entertaining,” he says.

There’s a lot in the pipeline for Sóli. He has written five TV series since 2023 and says there will always be interesting characters to write about. He’s confident he has a solid 20 years ahead of him in screenwriting.

“We’re waiting to hear whether we’ll make another season of Brjánn, which aired on Sýn. There won’t be more episodes of Iceguys, but maybe a movie,” he says with a grin. He performs less throughout the year than he used to.

“That’s out of consideration for people. They need to be able to look forward to Christmas. You don’t eat glazed ham every day, but it’s fantastic in moderation. I think it’s the same with me,” he says, laughing, and admits that it’s a privilege to perform in Bæjarbíó year after year in front of a full house.

“There’s a special feeling when Halldór and I are finishing the run and I know that year’s show will never be performed again. Then a sadness comes over me that it’s ending, and I start to miss Halldór and our December companionship. We’re like twins in the womb during the run.”

ChatGPT said: Sóli has never performed more often in Bæjarbíó than this Christmas. There will be 41 shows in total, with the last one on Þorláksmessa. It has been a busy time for Sóli, and he has produced a number of television series.