Mike Leigh and the "huge, crass mistake" in Topsy-Turvy

Leigh, Ibsen, Gilbert & Sullivan! At the 1999 Venice film festival Norwegian film journalist and former filmmaker Pål Bang-Hansen makes writer/director Mike Leigh aware of a historical blunder in his new film "Topsy-Turvy".

The capital of Norway was known as Christiania/Kristiania from 1624 to 1924 (changing back to Oslo from January 1, 1925). Therefore people living in the 1880's, like those in the film "Topsy-Turvy", would never have referred to the city as "Oslo".

Added fun fact: in Leigh's film "Vera Drake" (2004) the title character lives in 'Oslo street". During a interview at the Tromsø film festival (with Kalle Løchen) Leigh admitted that he gave Vera Drake's address as "Oslo street" to make up for his grave mistake in "Topsy-Turvy"!