In his new three-part series Scandinavia with Simon Reeve, the ever-curious broadcaster swaps equators for icy edges, venturing across a region many Brits think they already understand – flat-pack furniture, Nordic noir, and exceptional child-rearing practices. But as Reeve explores the sweeping tundra of Svalbard, the striking fjords of Norway, and the windswept isolation of Iceland’s volcanic plains, he discovers that the truth is far more layered. Scandinavia, it turns out, is a place of vast extremes – where societal harmony and stunning natural beauty sit side by side with geopolitical tension and unexpected unrest.
Reeve’s route is nothing short of a Nordic odyssey. It kicks off in Sweden with a wild scooter ride alongside a tattooed Professor of Happiness – a scene that encapsulates the Scandi duality of eccentric intellect and civic pride. But not long after, he’s donning bomb squad gear and hearing first-hand how Sweden, contrary to its peaceful image, is now wrestling with a wave of gang violence involving children and homemade explosives. From there, it’s on to Denmark, where trust in politicians is unusually high, and Norway, home to a wealth fund the size of a continent’s fortune and landscapes that seem carved from myth.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Simon Reeve series without a proper plunge into the deep end – quite literally in Finland, where he ends up night-swimming with the army in a frozen lake. These aren’t just travel moments; they’re gateways into understanding what makes the Nordic model tick. Whether it’s toddlers braving the snow in forest schools until it hits -30°C, or meeting an Icelandic scientist warning of a supervolcano ready to wake, Reeve goes beyond the tourist brochure and asks the bigger questions. What really lies beneath the happiness rankings? And is it all as idyllic as we like to imagine?
Yet despite the challenges – climate change, immigration policy tensions, and rising crime – there’s a shared thread throughout: trust. Not the naïve kind, but a deeply embedded belief in fairness, governance, and each other. It’s something Reeve finds everywhere, from honesty florists in Norway to the sense of safety that allows Danish parents to leave prams outside cafés. While the UK faces its own crises of confidence, these moments provide a quiet provocation: what might we gain if we rebuilt that trust at home?
Scandinavia with Simon Reeve isn’t just about glacier vistas and windswept panoramas – though you’ll get plenty of those. It’s about diving into the contradictions and complexities of countries often held up as global ideals. As Reeve puts it, these societies aren’t utopias, but they are trying something different. And in a world so full of division and distrust, that’s something worth paying attention to. Catch the series on BBC Two or stream all three episodes on iPlayer from Sunday 18 May.
