It was widely reported this weekend that Kim Jong-un attended a May Day Stadium rally, the Mass Games, a dance performace in in Kim Il-sung square, and military parade in Pyongyang—his first live public appearances in front of “ordinary” North Koreans. See videos of these events here: Mass Games, dance performance, military parade. The military parade was broadcast live on North Korean television. Communist countries rarely allow live television broadcasts (because things like this might happen).
So how rare is a live television broadcasts in the DPRK? The Daily NK published a short list :
The only previous events the North Korean media is known to have broadcast live are the performance of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra in Pyongyang in February, 2008 and two games in this year’s World Cup.
I was only aware of one World Cup 2010 game being shown live on North Korean television (the Portugal grudge match). What was the other game? Are you aware of any other live television broadcasts in the DPRK?
UPDATE: The two live football matches were DPRK v. Portugal (June 2010) and a qualifier between the DPRK and Iran (June 2009). Hat tip to a reader.
The other game was a world cup qualifier between North Korea and Iran that was played in Pyongyang in June 2009. It was shown live on KCTV and ended in a 0-0 draw. I remember reading at the time (possibly on Daily NK) that it was notable for being the first time a football match had been shown live on KCTV. Foreign journalists were also present at the game.