Israel Active

The British Broadcasting Corporation has appointed Israel’s Omer Meir Wellber as the new chief conductor to the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, from Sept 2019 for an initial four years. Wellber is also a Good Will Ambassador for Israeli charity Save a Child’s Heart.

Israeli television drama “When Heroes Fly” has been sold to Netflix, joining several other Hebrew-language series already featured on the popular streaming platform. The show’s 10 episodes will be available to millions of viewers starting in early 2019, along with English subtitles.

The Israeli soccer team beat Scotland and Albania in its last two matches to go top of its Nation League soccer group. Israel now has six points – three ahead of both Scotland and Albania.

The best of Klezmer with Jazz interpretations will be celebrated on Oct 24 at Beit Avi Chai in Jerusalem. Award-winning master pianist Orit Wolf hosts the Di Gasn Trio and other musicians.

Legendary folk/rock band Jethro Tull, led by Ian Anderson, is scheduled to perform in Israel on 27 October. The concert begins after Shabbat at the Culture Palace Tel Aviv and is part of the band’s world tour to mark its 50th anniversary.

The exciting documentary “Operation Wedding” about Jews trying to escape the Soviet Union, has new Israel screening dates.  Oct 28 in Tel Aviv; Nov 10 in Beit Shemesh.

A new book brings the Aliya experience home. “Becoming Israeli: The Hysterical, Inspiring and Challenging Sides of Making Aliyah.” edited by Akiva Gersh, describes the experiences of 51 new immigrant bloggers who describe life (warts and all) in modern-day Israel.

Aalam-Warqe Davidian won the “Best Female Director” award at the Toronto Film Festival. Her debut “Fig Tree”, in Amharic with Hebrew and English subtitles, takes place in Ethiopia at the end of the Ethiopian Civil War. Davidian, 38, made Aliya from Ethiopia at the age of 11.

Israeli rhythmic gymnast Linoy Ashram has just won her 26th medal of the year. She won a silver medal in the Hoop discipline at the World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. She then went on to win a bronze in the Rope discipline followed by another silver in the individual all-around final.

Israeli soccer striker Tomer Hemed made a late appearance on Wednesday night for his English 1st Division soccer team QPR. He spent the first half fasting until Yom Kippur ended. Then, after a quick meal of pasta and fruit, he came on as substitute in the 72nd minute to help his side to a 2-0 victory over Millwall.