Jonas Gardell
Jonas Gardell | |
|---|---|
 Gardell in 2018 | |
| Born | Lars Jonas Holger Gardell 2 November 1963 Täby, Sweden |
| Occupations | Author, playwright, comedian, artist |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Spouse | Mark Levengood
(m. 2011; div. 2023) |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives |
|
Lars Jonas Holger Gardell (born 2 November 1963) is a Swedish novelist, playwright, screenwriter and comedian. He is the brother of religion scholar Mattias Gardell. He is well known for his books and plays in all of Scandinavia and his books have been translated to around 25 languages.[1]
Early life
Jonas Gardell is the son of Bertil Gardell, professor of social psychology, and Ingegärd Gardell, psychologist, née Rasmussen.[2] He is the brother of Mattias Gardell, a historian and scholar of comparative religion and Stina Gardell, a documentary filmmaker.[3] Gardell grew up in Enebyberg, north of Stockholm, with his parents and three siblings; he was the second youngest. Both parents were psychologists and encouraged their children to let their imaginations run wild. The family was Christian and active in the Baptist Church.[4][5][3][6]
Gardell's parents separated when he was young (they divorced in 1983) and his father left the family for his career and a new woman. Gardell has said on several occasions that his father was the kind of person who was only ever loved but never showed love in return. The divorce hit Gardell hard, and he has said in retrospect that "no safety net could have withstood the crash my family went through then.[6] He turned his grief outward and, at the age of 14, began spending time at Klara Norra Kyrkogata in Stockholm, a well-known hangout for young male prostitutes. What he experienced there made him promise himself that he would never become a victim, someone who could be pitied.[6]
After completing his upper secondary education in social sciences, Jonas Gardell applied to drama school at the age of 18, but when he found out that he was the 500th person to audition for Hamlet, he decided it was impossible. He then decided to become an artist and opened an art gallery with some friends. Gardell lived on welfare and worked as a life model. At the same time, Gardell wrote short stories and poems, and he made his debut as an author in 1981 at the age of 18 with the poetry collection Den tigande talar (The Silent One Speaks).[7][8]
Career
Writing
In 1985, Gardell published his first novel, Passionsspelet (The Passion Play). The novel deals with his homosexuality, about being able to be who you are and being accepted by others and yourself.
Gardell himself has described how, during the early part of his writing career, he mainly wrote relatively thin books that revolved around his upbringing in the 1970s, one example being the trilogy En komikers uppväxt (A Comedian's Upbringing, 1992), which has become both a TV series and a movie. After the novel Jenny (2006), he felt he was done with autobiographical writing, and his writing took on a more documentary focus, with several novels depicting LGBTQ history in Sweden.[8]
The novel trilogy Don't Ever Wipe Tears Without Gloves was published between 2012 and 2013 and received favorable reviews. The trilogy depicts the HIV epidemic in the 1980s and how it spread among young gay men. The books were adapted for television by Simon Kaijser, with Gardell writing the screenplay. Don't Ever Wipe Tears Without Gloves won several awards and had a very broad impact.[8]
Faith and theology are recurring themes in his work. Gardell himself believes that his theological non-fiction books, Om Gud (About God, 2003) and Om Jesus (About Jesus, 2009), are among his best works in terms of style.
The novel Till minne av en villkorslös kärlek (In Memory of Unconditional Love) became one of the best-selling fiction books in Sweden in 2018. In 2021, he published the novel Ett lyckligare år (A Happier Year), which depicts, among other things, the philosopher Pontus Wikner's youth in Uppsala in the 1850s.[1]
In 2022, he made his debut as author of Children's literature with Sagan om den lilla gråsparven (The Tale of the Little House sparrow), illustrated by Martin Jacobson.
Screenplay
The first feature film based on a screenplay by Jonas Gardell, Like It Never Was Before (Pensionat Oskar), premiered in 1995. In the fall of 1995, the film won the Grand Prix at the Festival des Films du Monde in Montréal, and Gardell received a Guldbagge Award for Best Screenplay. Gardell also wrote the screenplay for the film Livet är en schlager (Life is a pop song), from which the theme song Aldrig ska jag sluta älska dig (I Will Never Stop Loving You), with lyrics by Gardell, became a big hit. The song was later recorded by Gardell and reached number two on the Swedish record chart Svensktoppen.[8]
Gardell performed his own play Tillfällig gäst i ditt liv (Temporary guest in your life) (2007) at the Scala Theater in Stockholm.
In 2013, Gardell was elected "Homo Bi Trans Person of the Year" at the Swedish Gaygalan Awards, for the book Torka aldrig tårar utan handskar (Don't Ever Wipe Tears Without Gloves).[9] His prize was presented to him by the Swedish Crown Princess Victoria.[10]
He participated in Melodifestivalen 2018.
Personal life
Gardell married Mark Levengood in 2011. They had been in a relationship for 16 years at the time of their wedding.[11] They had two children together.[12]
In January 2023, Gardell and Levengood announced their separation.[13] They were granted a divorce in June.[14]
Bibliography
- 1979 – Den tigande talar
- 1985 – Passionsspelet
- 1986 – Odjurets tid
- 1987 – Präriehundarna
- 1988 – Vill gå hem
- 1990 – Fru Björks öden och äventyr
- 1992 – En komikers uppväxt
- 1993 – Mormor gråter och andra texter
- 1995 – Frestelsernas berg
- 1997 – Isbjörnarna. Cheek to cheek. Människor i solen (tre pjäser)
- 1998 – Så går en dag ifrån vårt liv och kommer aldrig åter
- 1998 – Oskuld och andra texter
- 2001 – Ett ufo gör entré
- 2003 – Om Gud
- 2006 – Jenny
- 2009 – Om Jesus
- 2011 – Har man inget liv får man köpa ett som alla andra: Samlade visdomsord 2010–2011
- 2012 – Torka aldrig tårar utan handskar: 1, Kärleken
- 2013 – Torka aldrig tårar utan handskar: 2, Sjukdomen
- 2013 – Torka aldrig tårar utan handskar: 3, Döden
Singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| SWE | |||
| "Aldrig ska jag sluta älska dig" | 2000 | — | Non-album singles |
| "Det finns en väg" | 2018 | — |
References
- ^ a b "Jonas Gardell". www.norstedts.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2026-02-21.
- ^ Gafvelin, Elisabeth (1998). Vem är det : Svensk biografisk handbok 1999 (in Swedish). Stockholm: Kunskapsförlaget P. A. Norstedt & Söners Förlag. p. 361. ISBN 91-1-300536-7.
- ^ a b Lindqvist, Inga-Lina (2018-09-14). "Konstnärligt haveri som ändå berör". Aftonbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 2025-08-26.
- ^ Bohlin, Rebecka (2018-09-28). "Jonas Gardell: "Det här är ett feministiskt kvinnoporträtt"". Dagens ETC (in Swedish). Retrieved 2025-08-26.
- ^ Nyhuus-Wirén, UllaMi (2015-05-30). "Alltid med kärleken i fokus". Hallands Posten (in Swedish). Retrieved 2025-08-26.
- ^ a b c Vorne, Anna. "Jonas Gardell:Jag utgår ifrån att ingen tycker om mig". Hemmets Journal (in Swedish). Story House Egmont AB. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ Samuelsson, Tony. "Gardell, Jonas". Alex.se. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ a b c d Liljestrand, Jens. "Jonas Gardell »Det enda sättet att fortsätta«". Vi Läser (in Swedish). Vi Media. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ "The Crown Princess attends the QX Gay Gala". Swedish Royal Court. Archived from the original on 2021-10-07. Retrieved 2021-10-07.
- ^ "Swedish crown princess presents 'Gay of the Year' award". The Telegraph. 2013-02-05. Archived from the original on 2022-01-23. Retrieved 2025-05-18.
- ^ "Jonas och Mark har gift sig". Göteborgs-Posten (in Swedish). 2011-09-02. Retrieved 2025-08-28.
- ^ "Jonas Gardell har blitt pappa". Aftenposten. 2002-09-15. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-01.
- ^ Thorén, Matilda (2023-01-20). "Jonas och Mark separerar – "sorg och stark overklighetskänsla"". QX (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-09-03.
- ^ Nord, Daniel (2023-07-13). "Levengood om exmaken: "Underbar människa"". Hufvudstadsbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 2025-08-28.