New Year Resolution: Don’t be a Hoarder

Try to avoid becoming like Mr Trebus

Some of my piles © Susie Kearley

I don’t normally make new year resolutions. I think they’re unnecessary. I mean, if you want to do something, you should do it. Why wait for new year?

However, in 2024 I do want to make a concerted effort to sort out our house. The piles on the floor are starting to remind me of a classic television documentary we watched years ago, about Mr Trebus.

Mr Trebus was an infamous British hoarder who was so bad that they made a television series about him. His house was so full of crap that you couldn’t get into some of the rooms, the garden was full of rubbish, and the neighbours were complaining about rats and smells.

Here’s one of the documentaries they made when the council went to sort out his house. It was labelled as unsafe and a health hazard, so they had to intervene. The first few minutes offer a sign of what’s to come.

We don’t want to become like Mr Trebus and end up on BBC1 in a few years time, with our house and garden full to the brim with…