Vi på Saltkråkan facts for kids

Vi på Saltkråkan (which means We on Salt-Crow Island) is a popular Swedish TV show. It first aired in 1964 and has 13 episodes, each about 25 minutes long. The story was created by the famous Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. She wrote the TV show script first. Later, she turned it into a book called Vi på Saltkråkan, which you might know as Seacrow Island in English. Astrid Lindgren helped a lot with making the show. It was filmed on a real island called Norröra in the beautiful Stockholm archipelago. Olle Hellbom was the director and producer of the series.

Meet the Characters and Story

The show is about the Melkersson family from Stockholm. They spend their summer holidays, and sometimes even winters, on a lovely island called Saltkråkan. The family includes Melker Melkersson, a writer played by Torsten Lilliecrona. He is a dad with four children.

His children are:

• Malin (played by Louise Edlind), who is 19 years old. She often takes on a motherly role for the family.
• Johan, who is 13 years old and very imaginative.
• Niklas, who is 12 years old. He is calm and sensible.
• Pelle, who is 7 years old. He absolutely loves all kinds of animals.

Saltkråkan is a peaceful island. It shows what the unspoiled Swedish archipelago is like. The people who live on the island all year round sometimes find the city family a bit clumsy. But they quickly become good friends. When the family's summer house is almost sold, the islanders help them keep their special summer home.

Island Friends and Adventures

The Melkersson children make friends with the local kids on Saltkråkan.

• There's Tjorven (whose real name is Maria) Grankvist. She is the same age as Pelle. Tjorven has a huge St. Bernard dog named Båtsman, which means Boatswain.
• Tjorven's older sisters are Teddy and Freddy. They teach Johan and Niklas how to row and sail boats.
• Stina is another friend. She is a girl from Stockholm who visits her grandfather for the summer. Stina loves to tell endless stories to the grown-ups, who sometimes get a bit tired of them! Astrid Lindgren added Stina to the story after the director, Olle Hellbom, met Kristina Jämtmark. He thought Kristina would be perfect for the group of children.

The original TV series has been shown many times on Swedish television. Some of the actors are still very well-known for their roles in the show. The series was also translated into German. It was so popular there that it was broadcast over 20 times. In 1968, the 13 TV episodes were also made into a movie.

Movies from the Series

The TV series was so popular that four full-length movies were made based on the characters and stories:

• Tjorven, Båtsman och Moses (1964)
• Tjorven och Skrållan (1965)
• Tjorven och Mysak (1966)
• Skrållan, Ruskprick och Knorrhane (1967)

Main Actors in the Show

Here are some of the main actors who brought the characters of Saltkråkan to life:

• Torsten Lilliecrona as Melker Melkersson
• Louise Edlind as Malin Melkersson
• Stephen Lindholm as Pelle Melkersson
• Björn Söderbäck as Johan Melkersson
• Urban Strand as Niklas Melkersson
• Bengt Eklund as Nisse Grankvist
• Eva Stiberg as Märta Grankvist
• Maria Johansson as Maria "Tjorven" Grankvist
• Lillemor Österlund as Teddy Grankvist
• Bitte Ulvskog as Freddy Grankvist
• Sigge Fischer as Söderman
• Kristina Jämtmark as Stina, Söderman's granddaughter
• Tommy Johnson as Björn
• Märta Arbin as Mrs Sjöblom
• Alf Östlund as Mr Carlberg
• Vivianne Westman as Lotta, Carlberg's daughter
• Birger Lensander as Mr Mattson
• Stig Hallgren as Farmer Jansson
• Eddie Axberg as Kalle
• Lars Göran Carlson as Krister
• Sven Almgren as Berra