Pyrus (series)

Pyrus is a julekalender (Christmas calendar) TV series broadcast on the Danish television station TV2 during Christmas in Denmark. Originally aired as four semi-independent seasons, the series includes Alletiders Jul (1994), Alletiders Nisse (1995), Alletiders Julemand (1997), and Alletiders Eventyr (2000). It also inspired a spin-off feature film, Pyrus på Pletten, which premiered on Christmas Eve in 2000.

The series follows Pyrus, an elf or nisse (a term cognate with "elf," but in this context specifically referring to a Christmas elf), who lives inside a box in the National Archives of Denmark alongside other elves named Kandis and Gyldengrød. Gyldengrød serves as the elf archivist, while Pyrus and Kandis are his apprentices. The human archivist, Birger Bertramsen, works at the archives with his daughter, Josefine Brahe, who is his trainee. Both the humans and the elves' study national history, though their methods differ. The elves can magically transport themselves into both fiction and history books to gather first-hand information from the characters within, whereas the humans rely on traditional research using the historical documents housed in the archives.

The central plot of the series revolves around Pyrus and his friends exploring the history of Denmark, particularly the history of Danish Christmas and related traditions. The titles of the series are a double entendre, as Alletiders can mean both "Great" and "Of all times."

The first season, aired in 1994, was titled Alletiders Jul (Christmas for the Ages), followed by Alletiders Nisse (Elf for the Ages), Alletiders Julemand (Santa Claus for the Ages), and Alletiders Eventyr (Fairy Tale for the Ages). Each season focuses on a specific theme: the general concept of Christmas, the elf, the figure of Santa Claus, and fairy tales, respectively.