diff --git a/guile/examples/org2mu4e b/guile/examples/org2mu4e
index 3556b9a28..e7f10ad36 100755
--- a/guile/examples/org2mu4e
+++ b/guile/examples/org2mu4e
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ exec guile -e main -s $0 $@
     (org-mu4e-link msg)
     (if tag (string-concatenate `(":" ,tag "::")) "")
     (or (mu:from msg) "?")
-    (let ((body (mu:body-txt msg)))
+    (let ((body (mu:body msg)))
       (if (not body) ;; get a 'summary' of the body text
 	"<no plain-text body>"
 	(string-map
diff --git a/guile/mu-guile.texi b/guile/mu-guile.texi
index 9eae2feee..a5c24b9e8 100644
--- a/guile/mu-guile.texi
+++ b/guile/mu-guile.texi
@@ -391,8 +391,7 @@ properties, please refer to the @t{mu-find} man-page.
 
 @itemize
 @item @code{(mu:bcc msg)}: the @t{Bcc} field of the message, or @t{#f} if there is none
-@item @code{(mu:body-html msg)}: : the html body of the message, or @t{#f} if there is none
-@item @code{(mu:body-txt msg)}: the plain-text body of the message, or @t{#f} if there is none
+@item @code{(mu:body msg)}: the body of the message, or @t{#f} if there is none
 @item @code{(mu:cc msg)}: the @t{Bcc} field of the message, or @t{#f} if there is none
 @item @code{(mu:date msg)}: the @t{Date} field of the message, or 0 if there is none
 @item @code{(mu:flags msg)}: list of message-flags for this message
diff --git a/guile/mu.scm b/guile/mu.scm
index 08eae1fa4..31eca41ae 100644
--- a/guile/mu.scm
+++ b/guile/mu.scm
@@ -38,8 +38,7 @@
     mu:header
     ;; message accessors
     mu:field:bcc
-    mu:field:body-html
-    mu:field:body-txt
+    mu:field:body
     mu:field:cc
     mu:field:date
     mu:field:flags
@@ -54,6 +53,9 @@
     mu:field:tags
     mu:field:timestamp
     mu:field:to
+    ;; deprecated message accessors
+    mu:body-html
+    mu:body-txt
     ;; contact funcs
     mu:name
     mu:email
@@ -125,8 +127,7 @@
 	(export method-name)))))
 
 (define-getter mu:bcc	     mu:field:bcc)
-(define-getter mu:body-html  mu:field:body-html)
-(define-getter mu:body-txt   mu:field:body-txt)
+(define-getter mu:body	     mu:field:body)
 (define-getter mu:cc	     mu:field:cc)
 (define-getter mu:date	     mu:field:date)
 (define-getter mu:flags	     mu:field:flags)
@@ -142,6 +143,16 @@
 (define-getter mu:timestamp  mu:field:timestamp)
 (define-getter mu:to	     mu:field:to)
 
+(define-method (mu:body-html (msg <mu:message>))
+  "The HTML body isn't stored separately anymore, so this method can't return
+anything useful. We keep it for backwards compatibility."
+  #f)
+
+(define-method (mu:body-txt (msg <mu:message>))
+  "The text body isn't stored separately anymore. This method is now a synonym
+for mu:body."
+  (mu:body msg))
+
 (define-method (mu:header (msg <mu:message>) (hdr <string>))
   "Get an arbitrary header HDR from message MSG; return #f if it does
 not exist."
diff --git a/guile/tests/test-mu-guile.scm b/guile/tests/test-mu-guile.scm
index afa4f48c6..ed00f1e3b 100755
--- a/guile/tests/test-mu-guile.scm
+++ b/guile/tests/test-mu-guile.scm
@@ -83,7 +83,23 @@ exec guile -e main -s $0 $@
     (str-equal-or-exit (mu:subject msg) "atoms")
     (str-equal-or-exit (mu:to      msg) "Democritus <demo@example.com>")
     (str-equal-or-exit (mu:from    msg) "Richard P. Feynman <rpf@example.com>")
-    ;;(str-equal-or-exit (mu:header msg "Content-transfer-encoding") "7BIT")
+    ;;(str-equal-or-exit (mu:header msg "Content-Transfer-Encoding") "8bit")
+    (str-equal-or-exit (mu:body msg)
+                       (string-join
+                        '("If, in some cataclysm, all scientific knowledge were to be destroyed,"
+                          "and only one sentence passed on to the next generation of creatures,"
+                          "what statement would contain the most information in the fewest words?"
+                          "I believe it is the atomic hypothesis (or atomic fact, or whatever you"
+                          "wish to call it) that all things are made of atoms — little particles"
+                          "that move around in perpetual motion, attracting each other when they"
+                          "are a little distance apart, but repelling upon being squeezed into"
+                          "one another. In that one sentence you will see an enormous amount of"
+                          "information about the world, if just a little imagination and thinking"
+                          "are applied.\n") "\n"))
+    (str-equal-or-exit (mu:body-txt msg) (mu:body msg))
+    (let ((got (mu:body-html msg)))
+      (if got
+          (error-exit "Expected #f, got ~a" got)))
 
     (if (not (equal? (mu:priority msg) mu:prio:high))
       (error-exit "Expected ~a, got ~a"  (mu:priority msg) mu:prio:high))))
@@ -97,7 +113,7 @@ exec guile -e main -s $0 $@
 (define (test-stats)
   "Test statistical functions."
   ;; average
-  (num-equal-or-exit (mu:average mu:size) 82601/14)
+  (num-equal-or-exit (mu:average mu:size) 41299/7)
   (num-equal-or-exit (floor (mu:stddev mu:size)) 12637.0)
   (num-equal-or-exit (mu:max mu:size) 46308)
   (num-equal-or-exit (mu:min mu:size) 111))
diff --git a/mu4e/mu4e-message.el b/mu4e/mu4e-message.el
index e42ed4557..80ab1ba6b 100644
--- a/mu4e/mu4e-message.el
+++ b/mu4e/mu4e-message.el
@@ -71,8 +71,8 @@ Some notes on the format:
   the MIME-part), :name (the file name, if any), :mime-type (the
   MIME-type, if any) and :size (the size in bytes, if any).
 - Messages in the Headers view come from the database and do not have
-  :attachments, :body-txt or :body-html fields. Message in the
-  Message view use the actual message file, and do include these fields."
+  :attachments or :body fields. Message in the Message view use the
+  actual message file, and do include these fields."
   ;; after all this documentation, the spectacular implementation
   (if msg
       (plist-get msg field)
@@ -81,18 +81,17 @@ Some notes on the format:
 (defsubst mu4e-message-field (msg field)
   "Retrieve FIELD from message plist MSG.
 Like `mu4e-message-field-nil', but will sanitize nil values:
-- all string field except body-txt/body-html: nil -> \"\"
-- numeric fields + dates                    : nil -> 0
-- all others                                : return the value
-Thus, function will return nil for empty lists, non-existing body-txt
-or body-html."
+- all string field except body: nil -> \"\"
+- numeric fields + dates      : nil -> 0
+- all others                  : return the value
+Thus, function will return nil for empty lists, or non-existing body."
   (let ((val (mu4e-message-field-raw msg field)))
     (cond
      (val
       val)   ;; non-nil -> just return it
      ((member field '(:subject :message-id :path :maildir :in-reply-to))
-      "")    ;; string fields except body-txt, body-html: nil -> ""
-     ((member field '(:body-html :body-txt))
+      "")    ;; string fields except body: nil -> ""
+     ((member field '(:body))
       val)
      ((member field '(:docid :size))
       0)     ;; numeric type: nil -> 0
diff --git a/mu4e/mu4e-server.el b/mu4e/mu4e-server.el
index b62a4ab6e..31b2dcba0 100644
--- a/mu4e/mu4e-server.el
+++ b/mu4e/mu4e-server.el
@@ -323,7 +323,7 @@ The server output is as follows:
   3. a view looks like:
   (:view <msg-sexp>)
   => the <msg-sexp> (see 2.) will be passed to `mu4e-view-func'.
-     the <msg-sexp> also contains :body-txt and/or :body-html
+     the <msg-sexp> also contains :body
 
   4. a database update looks like:
   (:update <msg-sexp> :move <nil-or-t>)
diff --git a/testdata/testdir2/wom_bat/cur/atomic b/testdata/testdir2/wom_bat/cur/atomic
index c3c679200..44eac88da 100644
--- a/testdata/testdir2/wom_bat/cur/atomic
+++ b/testdata/testdir2/wom_bat/cur/atomic
@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@ Subject: atoms
 To: "Democritus" <demo@example.com>
 Message-id: <3BE9E6535E302944823E7A1A20D852173@msg.id>
 MIME-version: 1.0
-Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
-Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT
+Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
+Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
 Precedence: high
 
 If, in some cataclysm, all scientific knowledge were to be destroyed,