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The Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation and the HCA-abc Foundation enter partnership with the LEGO Corporation.

As part of the partnership agreement, LEGO has designed a Hans Christian Andersen bicentennial mascot. The LEGO-brick Ugly Duckling is to highlight the bicentennial celebrations next year. Following the bicentenary, the HCA-abc Foundation will adopt the mascot for their public charity appeals.

The Ugly Duckling mascot will only be produced in limited edition for the charity appeals benefiting the cause of countering illiteracy worldwide.

The Ugly Duckling mascot will also be given to Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors, who are all invited to take part in the grand opening weekend of the Hans Christian Andersen bicentenary, 1-3 April 2005.
 
Owner of the LEGO Corporation, Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, comments on the partnership agreement and the design of the mascot:
"We are pleased that the duckling was chosen for the mascot since The Ugly Duckling is one of Andersen's most popular fairytales. The duckling represents diversity and a future of opportunity. Furthermore, it is an outgoing and charming character. The mascot is designed using a grey and white palette since cygnets are, after all, not yellow. Hans Christian Andersen's fairytales are magical. They inspire children's imagination; and we of all hold the imagination of children close at heart, so it was only natural for us to enter into partnership with the Hans Christian Andersen Foundation."

Secretary General of the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation, Lars Seeberg, comments on the partnership agreement: 
"With his narrative ingenuity and imagination, Hans Christian Andersen spent a lifetime creating an enchanted world of fairytale for children and adults alike. Hans Christian Andersen has delighted the world with his tales and brought inspiration to all. We take great pleasure in the partnership with the LEGO Corporation, which in the true spirit of Andersen invites all ages and all nations to engage in imaginative and creative play and magical worlds."

Mette Holst, director of the HCA-abc Foundation, comments on the partnership agreement:
"We are very pleased to have entered partnership with the LEGO Corporation. The product information on LEGO products offers a unique opportunity to promote the awareness of the Foundation and the importance of addressing illiteracy as well as allowing LEGO customers to lend their support to this worthy cause. We look forward to a fruitful and positive partnership with the LEGO Corporation."

LEGOLAND in the Danish town of Billund will start their Andersen bicentennial celebrations on 3 April 2005 with a grand firework display. LEGOLAND Billund will host celebrations throughout September featuring a fairytale weekend where visitors are granted exciting insight into Andersen's world of the 19th century. Children will be able to meet several famous Hans Christian Andersen characters in real life.

There will be entertainment for the whole family, including a special concert held at the LEGOLAND Garden as well as the opportunity to explore the new LEGO BELVILLE fairytale and Princess Castle products. Proceeds from the sales will go to support the HCA-abc Foundation thus granting LEGO customers the opportunity to support the humanitarian cause.

Facts about The Ugly Duckling mascot
The Ugly Duckling has been brought to life at the LEGO Corporation production plant in The Czech Republic. It takes a professional LEGO brick builder 3.5 hours to construct and glue the duckling mascot using 514 individual bricks. The duckling will only be produced in limited edition and will be given to Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors among others.

Facts about the Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors
Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors are celebrated artists, politicians, journalists, businesspeople and athletes from around the world, who have been asked by the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation to represent the bicentenary of the birth of Hans Christian Andersen. All are highly respected within their field and are acclaimed and credited for their contributions to the world. The Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors are to help generate awareness of the bicentenary celebrations in their home countries, either by their presence at different events related to the 2005 bicentenary or by conveying their personal view of Hans Christian Andersen to the world.

Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors are also to represent the HCA-abc Foundation and to support its efforts in combating illiteracy worldwide.

Facts about the HCA-abc Foundation
The HCA-abc Foundation was established in April 2004 by the Bikuben Foundation. The aim of the HCA-abc Foundation is to support current and new initiatives and projects that aid children and the young in developing countries to learn to read and write.

A partnership has been forged with the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation ensuring that all commercial enterprises which seek to brand the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 logo on bicentenary merchandise must pay a royalty to the HCA-abc Foundation. The Hans Christian Andersen Ambassadors are to promote the awareness of the Foundation and to help generate public support and funding for the humanitarian cause of combating illiteracy worldwide.

Facts about the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation
Hans Christian Andersen 2005 is to promote a wider appreciation and awareness of the life and work of Hans Christian Andersen in celebration of the bicentenary of his birth in 2005. This is to take place through numerous projects within film, TV, literature, theatre, opera, dance, multimedia, rhythmic and classical music, entertainment, visual art, museum exhibitions, education and tourism.

The stated aim is to promote a more variegated image of the poet and storyteller among as many as possible in Denmark and internationally, children and adults alike. In 2005, Hans Christian Andersen will be celebrated with both large and small productions with international impact as well as small, local events.

The Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation has been established by the Kingdom of Denmark represented by the Danish Ministry of Culture, the Danish Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs, the Municipality of Odense, the County of Funen and the Bikuben Foundation. Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark is patron of the activities of the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Foundation.

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