Daily news summary
Hundreds of people gather in Číhošť to honour murdered priest Josef Toufar
Hundreds of people from the Czech Republic and abroad have gathered in Čihošť near Havlíčkův Brod, to remember the priest Josef Toufar who was murdered by the communist secret police in the 1950s. Toufar died following injuries sustained during his interrogation at the beginning of 1950. Police wanted to force him to admit that he had staged a ‘miracle' at his parish church in Čihošť. His remains, which were found at a mass grave in Prague's Ďáblice last year, will be buried there on Sunday. Various events, including film screenings, public readings of Toufar's texts and concerts are scheduled to take place in Čihošť over the weekend.
Bailiffs seize assests of Prague casino owners
Bailiffs on Saturday seized assets, including cash and cars, worth over one million crowns belonging to Prague casino owners. According to the Financial Administration Office, they own the state dozens of millions of crowns in taxes, the spokeswoman for the Genral Financial Directorate, Petra Petlachová, told the Czech News Agency on Saturday. According to Petlachová, the casino owners operate across the whole of the Czech Republic.
First half of 2015 sees 263 road fatalities
The first six months of this year saw 263 road fatalities – two less than in the same period in 2014, according to statistics released by the Police Presidium. Some 1,111 people were seriously injured during road accidents, which is a drop by 219 compared to the previous year. According to experts, most of the accidents were caused by speeding and inattentive driving. The Czech Republic ranks among the EU countries with the highest number of road fatalities.
Anna Netrebko received standing ovation in Prague
The world-famous Russian soprano Anna Netrebko, along with her colleagues Ekaterina Gubanova, Aleksandrs Antonenko and Ildar Abdrazakov, charmed Prague opera lovers on Friday night with a concert in the Smetana hall in Obecní dům. The singers, accompanied by the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, performed selection of arias, duets, and quartets by Italian composers, and received several standing ovations. The concert, which was part of the Prague Proms series, was billed as one of the highlights of this year’s music scene and was sold out months in advance.
Non-statutory awards announced in Karlovy Vary
The awards by non-statutory juries were announced at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival on Saturday. The award of international film critics FIPRESCI went to Romanian film Box by Florian by Florin Şerban. The Ecumenical Jury awarded Bob and the Trees by US director Diego Ongara. The jury's special mention went to Ukrainian film Song of Songs. The FEDEORA Jury Award went to Heavenly Nomadic by Mirlan Abdykalykov and The Wednesday Child by Lili Horváth. Visar Morina's Babai collected the Europa Cinemas Label Award.
Digitally restored version of Karel Zeman's legendary film premiered at Karlovy Vary
World premiere of the digitally restored copy of the legendary Czech film by Karel Zeman, 'Vynález zkázy' ('Invention for Destruction'), was held at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival on Friday night. The 1958 loose adaptation of Jules Verne's novel 'Facing the Flag' remains one of the most succesfull films in the country's history. It evokes the original illustrations for Verne's works by combining live actors with various forms of animation. The digital restoration of the film is part of a joint project of the Karel Zeman Museum, The Czech Film Foundation and Czech Television.
Over thirty films from Karlovy Vary to be screened in Prague and Brno
Cinemas in Prague and Brno will screen films presented at the 50th Karlovy Vary International Festival. The festival's annual Official Echoes get underway this Saturday in the Aero and Světozor cinemas in Prague and in la Scala cinema in Brno. People who missed the festival will have a chance to see 31 films, including five from the main competition, until July19. The festival in Karlovy Vary, which celebrates 50th anniversary this year, comes to a close on Saturday night.
Temperatures dropped below zero in some places in Czech Republic
Morning temperatures dropped below zero on Saturday in some parts of the Czech Republic. The lowest temperature, minus four degrees Celsius, was recorded at the measuring station in Kvilda in the Šumava mountains in the south west of the country. Freezing temperatures were also recorded in Jizerské hory in north Bohemia. According to meteorologists, the coming days should see warmer weather again.
