Under the mournful eye of Edvard Munch, Tore Hattrem, Norwegian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, is distracted by the commotion caused by Kensington’s amorous foxes. “I’m not the only one who’s been woken up in the night when the foxes are trying to find their respective partners,” he says. “It’s fox heaven.”
We’re sitting in the Munch Room of the ambassadorial residence, Amesbury House on Palace Green, the billionaire’s row running alongside Kensington Palace. The artist’s self-portrait peers down from the wall. The house is a symbol of the close ties between Britain and Norway, which are particularly evident every December when the Norwegian Christmas tree — the annual gift from the city of Oslo, a token of thanks for Britain’s support during the second world war — is erected in Trafalgar Square.
Hattrem is a diplomat straight out of central casting: tall, lean, distinguished but approachable, smart but not flashy, with lightly greying hair. He is keen to stress that the imposing Edwardian red-brick mansion where he has resided since August 2023 with his wife, Marit Gjelten, director for the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is not his. He is simply its temporary custodian. “This is a tool for the Norwegian government, I’m an instrument. I’m not rich. I’m not Ecclestone. I’m not Mittal,” he says, referring to Tamara Ecclestone (daughter of former Formula One boss Bernie) and the Indian steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, who also live on the street.