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Record number of celebrities at this year’s Gay Gala

Oslo.Finance Minister Siv Jensen named this year's gay best friend during GayGalla 2018 at Chateau Neuf in Oslo on Saturday night.Photo: Terje Bendiksby / NTB scanpix

A record-breaking host of famous guests met when the LHBT milieu celebrated itself, and its vast throng of supporters, with a prize giving ceremony, and party at Chateau Neuf on Saturday.

 

During this year’s Gay Gala (Gaygalla), prizes are awarded in total nine categories, including the year’s hetero, the year’s influences, the TV series of the year, and Gaygalla’s honourary award.

Newest among the year’s prizes was that ’this year’s top gay male and lesbian class’ were combined into one gender neutral category, this year’s LHBT person. This won by Runar Myrnes Balto, and Mikkel Eskil Mikkelsen, the first openly gay politician elected to the Sami Parliament.

Among the guests during Saturday’s event were the country’s new ‘homoministers’, Minister for Children and Equality, Linda Hofstad Helleland of Høyre (H), who was awarded the honourary award this year.

‘Gay Best Friend’

This year’s compères were Janne Formoe, and Niklas Baarli, while the Minister of Culture, Trine Skei Grande of Venstre (V) opened the award ceremony, and also shared a prize. Also, the Minister of Finance, Siv Jensen of Fremskrittsparti (Frp) stood up, and was even named ‘gay’ best friend of the year’, or ‘fag hag’.

‘This is cool! I have many good friends with different stories, I’m just as fond of everyone. I think it’s very good that we live in a society where people can live their love towards each other regardless of the situation,’ says Jensen to VG newspaper via State Secretary, Petter Kringe Tvedt.

The TV series of the year went to the big success story, ‘SKAM’, and Oslo’s bishop, Kari Veiteberg,received an award for his commitment to a more liberal church.

Since 2010

Gaygalla was an initiative by TV and film directors, Mads Rogde and Fredrik Havstein. This year’s show is the fourth in the series.

The first prize ceremony was held at Chat Noir in January 2010. At that time, Jonas Gahr Støre was named the ‘hetero of the year’, while Erna Solberg became ‘Fag Hag’ of the year, an honourary prize to a woman who had shown personal dedication, and solidarity with the LHBT community.

 

© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today