TV4 in trouble for vagina dialogues
"I never got the Vagina Monologues. Everyone knows that if vaginas could talk, they'd sound exactly like Enya," comedian Dylan Moran once said.
Television presenter Carina Berg begs to differ. She has just fallen foul of the Swedish Broadcasting Commission for a comedy sketch involving a vagina dialogue.
As part of a very convoluted sketch, Berg knocked on a woman's door and asked her to comment on a coming segment on TV4 in which the voice of actress Claire Wikholm would be use as part of a dialogue between two vaginas. The woman in question shares a first name with the actress.
The broadcasting body found in favour of the woman, who reported Berg's comedy show, 'Lilla vi (tar stor plats)', for invasion of privacy.
Berg had explained to the woman that she would not receive any payment for the talkative genitalia as the voice would be supplied by Claire the actress, not Claire the random member of the public.
Baffled, the woman replied that she had never had any reason to believe she would gain financially from the vocal vaginas.
"My client was caught unawares. And she felt used in a way that she found insulting," lawyer Percy Bratt told Aftonbladet.
On several occasions the woman contacted TV4 to say that she did not wish to appear on the comedy show. But the channel went ahead and aired the sketch. Twice.
"Since there was no justification on public interest grounds, [the decision to air] ran contrary to regulations surrounding respect for people's private lives," said the Swedish Broadcasting Commission in a statement.
As it happens, Claire Wikholm's voice was not used for either of the vaginas. Instead, popular talk show hosts Fredrik Wikingsson and Filip Hammar unwittingly lent their voices to the bearded and bespectacled female genitalia.
Though the pair took it in good spirits, they did not miss an opportunity to get in a dig at the programme's editor, Olle Palmlöf, who had been in trouble with the law shortly beforehand.
"I'd rather be a c**t than a drunk driver," Hammar told Aftonbladet.
Comments
See Also
Television presenter Carina Berg begs to differ. She has just fallen foul of the Swedish Broadcasting Commission for a comedy sketch involving a vagina dialogue.
As part of a very convoluted sketch, Berg knocked on a woman's door and asked her to comment on a coming segment on TV4 in which the voice of actress Claire Wikholm would be use as part of a dialogue between two vaginas. The woman in question shares a first name with the actress.
The broadcasting body found in favour of the woman, who reported Berg's comedy show, 'Lilla vi (tar stor plats)', for invasion of privacy.
Berg had explained to the woman that she would not receive any payment for the talkative genitalia as the voice would be supplied by Claire the actress, not Claire the random member of the public.
Baffled, the woman replied that she had never had any reason to believe she would gain financially from the vocal vaginas.
"My client was caught unawares. And she felt used in a way that she found insulting," lawyer Percy Bratt told Aftonbladet.
On several occasions the woman contacted TV4 to say that she did not wish to appear on the comedy show. But the channel went ahead and aired the sketch. Twice.
"Since there was no justification on public interest grounds, [the decision to air] ran contrary to regulations surrounding respect for people's private lives," said the Swedish Broadcasting Commission in a statement.
As it happens, Claire Wikholm's voice was not used for either of the vaginas. Instead, popular talk show hosts Fredrik Wikingsson and Filip Hammar unwittingly lent their voices to the bearded and bespectacled female genitalia.
Though the pair took it in good spirits, they did not miss an opportunity to get in a dig at the programme's editor, Olle Palmlöf, who had been in trouble with the law shortly beforehand.
"I'd rather be a c**t than a drunk driver," Hammar told Aftonbladet.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.