What to Know About Peacock's Reality Show 'The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning'

If a spring cleaning checklist isn't helping you cut through the clutter and neither is that TikTok-famous under-sink organizer, perhaps it's time to try Swedish death cleaning. Don't worry, it's not as morbid as it sounds — it can actually be pretty uplifting. And now you can get a birds'-eye view of how this method can transform your home thanks to a new show, The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, on Peacock.

Based on the best-selling book by Margareta Magnusson, and hilariously narrated by executive producer Amy Poehler, each episode transforms the home and life of one of eight Kansas City residents, ranging from a young man grieving his parents to a woman with a terminal diagnosis, and every stage of life in between.

In the first episode, we meet Suzi, a vibrant 75-year-old former lounge singer looking for her second act… who you will quickly discover has some very adult things in her house. (Parents, you've been warned.) But that's kind of the point—there's no judgment in death cleaning and no matter who you are, you can probably see yourself reflected in at least one of the episodes.

View full post on Youtube

Döstädning, the Swedish word for death cleaning, is the process of decluttering and organizing your possessions before you die — clearing out the things that have no place in your home, deciding what to pass on to family members, and making room to surround yourself with the objects that mean the most to you. And it can take place during any stage of life.

"As Americans, we know that we hoard and collect," said executive producer David Collins, who also created the Queer Eye for the Straight Guy reality series. "The specialness of this show is that it’s about a way of living. It's not only a shift in how you look at things but also how you buy things going forward. The beauty of this is that through the lens of death, we get to experience life to the fullest."

$11 at Amazon

When translating the book into a show for American television audiences, producers of The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning took a three-pronged approach, casting experts Johan Svenson, Ella Engström, and Katarina Blom, all of whom hail from Sweden.

Heading up the decluttering process is Ella, an organizer and interior designer with a lot of experience in death cleaning who is described as "a mama bear of love and strength" (this is a gentle art after all). Then, psychologist Katarina, an expert in happiness, helps people process their emotions about letting things go. Finally, Johan, a fun-loving designer whose uncluttered spaces allow the most sentimental objects in one's life to really shine, steps in for the surprise reveal.

Of course, you can't transport this dream team to your home, but the show complements the book by providing real-life examples of the Swedish death cleaning method in action, complete with powerful before and after visuals.

All eight episodes of The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning are available to stream on Peacock beginning on April 27, 2023.

..

Terri Robertson

Terri Robertson is the Senior Editor, Digital, at Country Living, where she shares her lifelong love of homes, gardens, down-home cooking, and antiques.