Introducing... 'Doctor' Åsa Vilbäck
Published: 11 Jun 12 16:12 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/41376/20120611/
Introducing... is The Local's guide to the Swedish celebrity. In this installment Oliver Gee finds out more about Åsa Vilbäck - the doctor turned celebrity turned unwilling sex-symbol whose boyfriend is on trial for allegedly burning down his own mansion…
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Åsa Vilbäck is a 37-year-old doctor and hails from Skellefteå in northern Sweden. She’s famous because she ticks all the boxes – TV show host, celebrity doctor, posed nude a few times, was on the original Survivor TV show…
Sorry, posed nude?
Sigh. Yes, nude. This is Sweden, is it really such a big deal?
Yes it’s a big deal; tell the whole story
Seriously? OK, let’s get this out of the way early then. She was a pin-up on the cover of “Café” magazine in 1999, and raised readers’ eyebrows by wearing nothing more than a thin layer of paint in the Veckorevyn paper afterwards.
In 2009, her racy pin up pics were re-published by the magazine and Vilbäck told the Aftonbladet newspaper how much she regretted her decision to do the shoot – and that she wanted to be taken seriously as a doctor despite her blonde-bombshell looks and bamboozling bikini body.
What about Survivor, isn’t that an American show?
How dare you! Survivor was inspired by a Swedish television show, called “Expedition Robinson” and was on TV much earler! Dr. Åsa was on the very first season back in 1997. This is when she shot to fame.
So why are you writing about her today?
Well, glad you asked actually. Her boyfriend, Magnus Lundberg, has been all over the Swedish tabloids recently after allegedly burning down his own Stockholm mansion (that previously belonged to the late Harry Schein who founded the Swedish Film Institute).
Overwhelming evidence, including GPS trackers and surveillance of Lundberg buying lighter fluid, has made prosecutors sure that he lit the fire, however Lundberg vehemently claims that he didn’t start the fire. He was arrested three months ago and his trial began on Monday. It’s expected to last three days.
Why would he burn his own mansion?
This is about Åsa, not Lundberg. Next question.
Um, will she stand by her man?
How can we say? Early signs look good, but we’re just sticking with the facts today. Next?
OK, tell me more about her TV show - where can I find it?
Her show was called “Dr Åsa” and was featured on Sveriges Television (SVT). Vilbäck answered people’s medical questions for two seasons between 2008 and 2009.
What is she up to now, besides the whole court case?
She is writing a health column for the Dagens Medicin newspaper and it’s unlikely that she’ll do any more work as a pin up model.
Oliver Gee
Follow Oliver on Twitter here
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
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Worst article ever.
have you just started with the local? this site is about tits, muslims, and killings, with bonus points to the authors if they can get all three into the headline.
In gerneral the worst reporting in the news space.
However they are expanding, why you ask? becuase tits sell, muslims in sweden sell, and killings, death torture, all that, sell. it would be easy to make a competing newsworthy organization however what sweden has been missing in the news space is the rag that you wipe your a$$ with...the local fills this space.
You forgot the essential aspect of every opinion piece originated by The Local, namely that it be written by a home-sick USian. At least Vilbäck is herself Swedish. That's a huge step forward in the editorial values of the news coverage. Her articles won't be the usual "it's better in the US but I have to put up with the Swedish way of doing things for a while because my Swedish partner wants us to live here" style of pap that we usually see being promoted on here.
@Tarc the Mexan
I agree with Canuk's suggestion that you're not au fait with the content here. This is definitely NOT the worst article The Local has published, not by a long way. It was at least written in something approaching English --- namely Strine --- rather than the usual automated Google translation of a piece copied from a Swedish language paper that passes for editorial around here.
You really think Olly talked to her! At best this is cut-and-pasted from other interviews, articles, and web pages. It doesn't read like an interview in any shape or form. A bunch of pseudo-questions badly copy-edited to give the appearance of an interview.
What did we learn from the text? Other than the announcement Åsa is going to be writing regular pieces for The Local? Well she posed nude for Cafe magazine (actually we didn't learn all that from the interview). Her current boyfriend is suspected of arson, which makes up the bulk of the text.
Where's the real human interest stuff such as her miscarriages? Her Swedish experience of Swedish maternity hospitals?
Oh and what's Åsa going to write about? Celebrities! Would be more interesting for England's unregretful nude poser Katie Price ("Jordan") to write insightful pieces about the Eurozone crisis and the up-coming US presidential election than to have yet more column inches given to vacuous celebrities.
The only thing to be said in Olly's defense is it was written in a dialect of English.