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In the first episode from the brand new RÚV English podcast service, Darren Adam travels to Geysir to meet sound artist Kaśka Paluch, creator of the Noise From Iceland online sound map. The site allows you to virtually travel around Iceland, listening to the sounds of the country. Darren joins Kaśka as she records new sounds at Geysir, and explains the inspiration behind the site, as well as describing some of the difficulties of capturing the nation in sound and choosing her favourite "noises from Iceland".

Kaśka's sound map is at noisefromiceland.com

Get in touch with RÚV English at english@ruv.is

The RÚV English Podcast also sees the return of The Week In Iceland, which will feature as one of the strands of the new service. Each week we will take a look at some of the most significant news from, and in, the country. These shows will usually appear on Mondays, but we couldn't wait to get today's guest on! Darren is joined by former TWII host and RÚV Englishee Alex Elliott for his take on the week's news, and to have the RÚV English baton officially handed over!

Today we look at the shortest meeting in the history of Iceland's state mediator (and the likely consequences of the ongoing stalemate between Efling and SA), last weekend's gale force winds and the many hours stuck on the Keflavík tarmac, the Icelandic PM in Berlin and German chancellor coming here, and we preview the first big Eurovision weekend, as the ten songs battling to represent Iceland are unveiled on Saturday.

We play out today with You Complete Me, from Faroese-but-Reykjavík-based Sakaris' new EP Domestik Disko 106.

Today on the RÚV English Podcast, Darren speaks to poet Jakub Stachowiak, who moved to Iceland from his native Poland in 2016. He works, thinks and writes in Icelandic, having utterly mastered the language which he tells Darren has "liberated" him in so many ways. His books of Icelandic poetry are "Næturborgir" and "úti bíður skáldleg veröld".

Jakub is the first "new Icelander" to guest on the RÚV English Podcast. If you, or someone you know, has a story to share about moving to Iceland and making the country home, get in touch at english@ruv.is

Last Saturday, the ten songs which will compete for the right to represent Iceland in this year's Eurovision Song Contest were unveiled on Lögin í Söngvakeppnin, here on RÚV. Within a few weeks, and with your help, the winning song will be selected.

Siggi Gunnarsson, head of music and host on Rás 2, is also now one of the presenters of the Söngvakeppnin shows, and as a lifelong Eurovision fan who has literally dreamt of doing this job, he is officially Iceland's most excited person, He joins Darren to talk about his love of the show, preview those ten big songs, and tell him how you can get involved by voting and even coming to the shows.

Hear all the songs in full at ruv.is/songvakeppnin

Here at the RÚV English Podcast we know how difficult it can be to learn Icelandic. Hearing it often, slowly and simply can be a great help. RÚV's Atli Sigþórsson looks after the Auðskilið ("easy to understand") pages of the RÚV website, writing the news in a simplified form of Icelandic for anyone who might find that useful.

We will regularly go through some of those pages with Atli and see what we can pick up.

Today, a look back at the simplified form of RÚV's recent coverage of the Heimaey eruptions from fifty years ago.

You can read the news in simplified Icelandic any time at ruv.is/audskilid

Iceland Airwaves, the annual festival of live music from here and elsewhere, picked up the Best Indoor Festival award at the recent European Festival Awards in Groningen in the Netherlands. It marks a great start to a year in which the festival should be truly back and better than ever after Covid so utterly - but hopefully only temporarily - changed the landscape for live music.

Iceland Airwaves crams the capital's venues full of live music for three days each November. Today on the RÚV English Podcast, Darren catches up with Festival Director Ísleifur Þórhallsson, to find out more about this essential fixture in Iceland's musical calendar, as it approaches its quarter-century.

The episode plays out with "Headlights", from Vök's self-titled 2022 album. The band are no stranger to the Airwaves stages.