Rupert Callender identifies as a radical undertaker. He’s changing funeral services, one personal experience at a time. Rupert was moved to become an undertaker through his experience of bereavement and its aftermath. He spent much of his childhood in the hospice where his mother worked, and the caring humanistic philosophy of the hospice movement is central to his work. He opened The Green Funeral Company with Claire in 2000 and the company is now among the country’s best-known eco-friendly funeral directors. In 2012, they won Joint Best Funeral Director at the first Good Funeral Awards and were described as ‘The best undertakers of all time, by a country mile’ by Good Funeral Guide author, Charles Cowling. Ru and Claire spoke at TEDx Totnes on death, grief, ritual and radical funerals. In 2021, Claire left the company and Ru continues with a new colleague.

Callender, Phillips, Cauty & Drummond: Undertakers to the Underworld was established as a partnership between The Green Funeral Company and The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu (KLF) in 2017. Find out more at: www.thegreenfuneralcompany.co.uk and follow Ru on Twitter @wayswithweirds and RuCallender.com

You can watch Rupert's TEDx Totness talk here. 

Buy your copy of What Remains: Life, Death, Ritual and the Human Art of Undertaking here:

Chelsea Green Publishing  Amazon    

Find more information about hospice philosophy, end-of-life care, and self-care for both personal and professional caregivers here.  

Connect with The Heart of Hospice podcast on The Whole Care Network and other caregiver podcasts by clicking here.