Norway's big new reality show has celebrities plan their own funerals
JEFF J. MITCHELL/Getty Images

You may have never heard of the Norwegian television network NRK, but you may be familiar with some of the channel's wacky programs, one of which is National Knitting Evening, a nine-hour show that simply shows people sewing. (It was one of the channel's highest-rated shows last year.) So, capitalizing on the niche popularity of its offbeat programming, NRK execs produced an equally strange reality show called The Coffin, in which celebrities plan their own funerals.
The show's producer describes The Coffin as a "feel-good program about death," since nothing is happier than watching a dramatization of your own funeral. Celebrities lined up to appear on the show include Norwegian rocker Bjarne Brøndbo, who is seen decorating his coffin in the first episode. "It is very strange to see the coffin here," he remarks. "At the age of almost 50 years, you do start to think a little that life has an end."
Sounds... uplifting?
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jordan Valinsky is the lead writer for Speed Reads. Before joining The Week, he wrote for New York Observer's tech blog, Betabeat, and tracked the intersection between popular culture and the internet for The Daily Dot. He graduated with a degree in online journalism from Ohio University.
-
Fed chair Powell in Trump's firing line
Speed Read The president considers removing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell
-
'Singling out crypto for special scrutiny would be misguided'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Nigeria's 'baby factories': a hidden crisis
A secretive network sees women lured, locked upa nd forced to give birth for profit
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditions
Speed Read
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billion
Speed Read
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on record
Speed Read
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homes
Speed Read
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creature
Speed Read