The ceremony, which saw performances from some of Norway’s most prominent artists including a-ha, Ane Brun, Susanne Sundfør, Sissel Kyrkjebø and Ingrid Olava, was attended by 6000 guests in the Spektrum Arena.
The King and Queen attended together with the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, Princess Märtha Louise, Ari Behn and Princess Astrid. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden and Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark also attend together with the presidents of Finland and Iceland and the prime ministers of all the Nordic countries. In his speech during the ceremony, the King said: “As a father, grandfather and husband, I can only imagine your pain. As this country's King, I feel with each and every one of you.”
The decision to hold a national memorial ceremony for those who were killed or injured in the attacks on the government offices and Utøya on 22 July was taken together with the political parties represented in the Norwegian Parliament, the Storting. In at the ceremony, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said “Today we are stopping the clock to remember the dead. We are doing so as one nation. Together we lost what we could not, and should not, lose. 77 lives. Together we defeated hatred. Together we are embracing openness, tolerance and fellowship.”
More than 6 000 guests attended the ceremony. Bereaved families and survivors and their relatives had been invited, along with rescue workers from the health service, the police, the fire and rescue services, the armed forces, the civil defence and voluntary organisations, as well as individuals who took part in the rescue effort and those who have been involved in the follow-up work in the ministries. Representatives of the Labour Youth League and the Labour Party were also invited along with representatives of the Norwegian authorities. The ceremony was broadcast live on the three major networks in Norway; NRK, TV2 and TVNorge, and online. The ceremony can be watched in its entirety on NRK`s website.