Filip Hammar & Fredrik Wikingsson
| Filip and Fredrik | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Occupation | Writers, television hosts and journalists |
| Years active | 2000- |
| Employer | Metronome, Kanal 5, Aftonbladet |
Lars Filip Hammar (born March 26, 1975) and (born August 16, 1973), commonly known as Filip and Fredrik, are two Swedish writers, television hosts and journalists both known for their youthful, though intellectual, humour and unconventional journalism. The duo has been celebrated for their relaxed and spontaneous style in front of the camera. As Filip explains: "We just turn on the camera and go". Since 2002, Filip and Fredrik have together produced eleven different TV shows and, in the aftermath of the shows' successes in Sweden, written books. The duo owns, and works within, the company "Framgångsfabriken" (The Success Factory), started in 2001, which takes credit for their media appearances.
The pair has had their sexuality questioned repeatedly by the people they interact with on camera. Although they are heterosexual, jokes about their would-be gay relationship has become a running gag.
The first TV-appearance with Filip and Fredrik together was in 2000 as Christer Ulfbåges sidekicks in Hello Sydney, Sweden's TV-coverage of the Olympics games in Sydney. In each program the TV-viewers could chat with Filip and Fredrik who then, in short segments, presented the viewers opinions about different topics and events. The duo was heavily criticized for their efforts, and did not get along well with the shows host Christer Ulfbåge. Anders Björkman, famous Swedish TV-critic, disliked Filip and Fredriks appearance in the show to the extent that he wrote the line "give me a gun and two shells and the problem will be over" as a comment on the show. Also according to Filip and Fredrik themselves, the show was considered a flop. But this was the first time the viewer could watch them as a duo.
The first breakthrough came in 2002 with their hidden camera-program Ursäkta röran (vi bygger om) (Pardon the mess (we're redecorating)) broadcast by TV4. The program created viewer storms, debates and was reported to Swedish Broadcasting Commission several times. Six episodes were made but only four aired. The concept involved Filip and Fredrik making fun of both famous and unknown people using a hidden camera and similar setups. The show was largely influenced by shows like "Pyjamas", a similar show that aired the year before on youth channel ZTV. The jokes were of a rather unusual, sometimes experimental, nature and some viewers took offense, feeling that the pair were humiliating innocent people. Often the "jokes" were taken far beyond what in most people produced a laugh. The show made headlines due to a segment called "the Swedish Nazi-reference championship" where they fooled singer and former Expedition Robinson-star Emma Andersson into an interview where they made as many Nazi-references as possible and observed her reactions. Due to that segment, TV4 was fined by the Swedish Broadcasting Commission who argued that, since Emma was not a political person, the segment was intrusive to her privacy and integrity. Fredrik has later said that Ursäkta röran (vi bygger om) was an order from TV4 because they wanted a show that 90% hated and 10% liked.
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Wikipedia