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3 days ago | 
theguardian.com | Reged Ahmad |Helen Russell |Karishma Luthria |Miles Martignoni |Miles Herbert
Are you looking for the secret to happiness? Journalist Helen Russell thinks she found the answer after embracing hygge (the Danish art of cosiness), friluftsliv (the joy of the open air), and janteloven (realising you’re no better than others) while living in Denmark. But are these life lessons, from one of the happiest places on earth, all they’re cracked up to be? Helen Russell talks to Reged Ahmad about her decade living like a Dane
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Oct 18, 2024 | 
mshelenrussell.substack.com | Helen Russell
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Aug 16, 2024 | 
mshelenrussell.substack.com | Helen Russell
Hej there, it’s your friendly living Danishly Scandi-convert-who’s-really-just-a-husk at present. There’s a lot going on, with changes afoot and a sense of unrest in the air. I’ll write more about what’s happening soon, but for now I will share that I’m tired. Not the ‘I stayed up too late reading a lovely book’ type of tired. Nor the ‘just one more episode on Netflix!’ kind. Not even the ‘blimey that was a big night…where am I and why is there a Space Hopper in my bed?’ kind of tired.
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Jan 12, 2024 | 
mshelenrussell.substack.com | Helen Russell
There’s change in the air as on Sunday, Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik takes over the throne from his mother, Queen Margrethe who announced her surprise abdication on New Year’s Eve. The Australian-born Mary Donaldson will become Queen of Denmark - a hugely popular figure who brought in Denmark’s anti-bullying campaign, now in all Danish schools.
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Dec 15, 2023 | 
mshelenrussell.substack.com | Helen Russell
A million fairy lights twinkle against the black night sky and a heady aroma of cinnamon, roasted almonds and gløgg wafts for miles. Red hearts hang from the trees of a fairy-tale kingdom and candlelight flickers from a pagoda, all reflected in the mirror of a vast lake. Plumes of water are lit up as they leap and soaring overhead is a 100-year-old wooden roller-coaster. This is Tivoli Gardens - an institution in Denmark and the place that’s synonymous with Christmas for many Danes.
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Dec 8, 2023 | 
mshelenrussell.substack.com | Helen Russell
We’ve got a tree! No small feat after a week’s worth of snow. Salt and grit braved a mighty battle with icy roads and pavements, but only the most fearless Vikings managed to pass the more rural realms round my way. To get this tree took guts, blood, sweat, tears and winter tyres (a thing in Denmark). As well as digging out a hatchback from a two-foot snowdrift.
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Nov 7, 2023 | 
mshelenrussell.substack.com | Helen Russell
One of my oldest friends is having a baby. Deck the halls! She’s currently grappling with the dilemma of ‘what on earth to call a miniature human so they can be a CEO or a professional clown should they choose?’ With infinite options, making a decision can be tough. In the US, there’s even a baby name ‘consultant’ who can find you a name that fits your family’s personal brand for a mere $30,000.
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Oct 31, 2023 | 
mshelenrussell.substack.com | Helen Russell
Hello, my name is Helen and I hate Halloween. You too? Or do you think I’m a huge pumpkin-shaped-Grinch? Don’t worry - I get that. A lot. I’ve tried various options over the years to cope with my lack of love for the 31st October. I’ve tried going dark and ignoring it (‘Hallowhat?’). I’ve tried going Grinch (‘What do we want? No basic-witch outfits! When do we want them? Never!’). I’ve tried the far more compelling ethical argument (‘the costume landfill! The pumpkin foodwaste!’).
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Oct 17, 2023 | 
mshelenrussell.substack.com | Helen Russell
Happy ‘potato holiday’ aka ‘week 42’ aka ‘kartoffelferie’ in Denmark. In 1899, the official potato school holiday was placed in mid-October, in week 42, so the children of farmers all over Denmark could help with the potato harvest. Nowadays, the tradition seems to be the same as half-term all over Northern Europe: exhausted kids get sick (I was ill every half term growing up…just me?!). All the hot water bottles this end. And potatoes. Obviously.
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Sep 20, 2023 | 
sciencefocus.com | Helen Russell
Back in 1930, the economist John Maynard Keynes predicted that with technological change and improvements in productivity, we’d only be working 15 hours a week by now. But while working hours have declined by 26 per cent, most of us still average 42.5 hours a week, according to Eurostat figures. One of the things Keynes underestimated is the human desire to compete with our peers – a drive that makes most of us work more than we need to.
