KRISTIANSTAD - The Swedish tabloid newspaper Expressen has published a couple of articles about how some potential guests have come forward to say they were requested to lie on TV3's "Ricki Lake"-inspired show "Hannah".

  The last one to make such an accusation is Michael Garderud, 30, an IT professional from Kristianstad.

  "I was contacted by one of Hannah's researchers through the 'net. Since I look like Per Gessle, and in the late 90s I did an imitation of Per on ZTV, playing the song "Joyride," they wanted to have me on a program with the title "I am obsessed with my idol", he explains.


  "When I said that I wasn't obsessed with Per Gessle at all, they asked me if I couldn't pretend that I was. Furthermore, they wanted me to ask my friends to play along as well, and pretend that I was a crazed fan that liked Roxette… the purpose was to show me as being strange."

  The program's host, Hannah Widell, denies that guests are encouraged to lie, as does TV3's spokesperson.

• TV3's website
• Expressen's article (with a photo of the 'look-alike')