Pernilla Nina Elisabeth Wahlgren (born 24 December 1967) is a Swedish singer and actress. She has sung in

Melodifestivalen Melodifestivalen (; literally "the Melody Festival") is an annual song competition organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television (SVT) and Sveriges Radio (SR). It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song ...

several times; her 1985 entry titled " Piccadilly Circus" became popular and successful. She has acted in several plays and films, playing roles including Esmeralda in the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-winning ''

Fanny and Alexander ''Fanny and Alexander'' ( sv, Fanny och Alexander) is a 1982 period drama film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. The plot focuses on two siblings and their large family in Uppsala, Sweden during the first decade of the twentieth century. ...

''. She has twice received the

Guldmasken Guldmasken (English: '' Golden Mask'') was awarded annually for private theatre productions in Swedish theatres. The award was the Swedish equivalent of the Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more common ...

award for her work in theater.

Career

Acting

Wahlgren's first acting job, at the age of four, was alongside her mother in the television play ''Den längsta dagen'' (). She attended

Adolf Fredrik's Music School Adolf Fredrik's Music School ( sv, Adolf Fredriks Musikklasser) is a general municipal junior high school ( sv, grundskola) in Stockholm, Sweden with a focus on choral music, and highly competitive admission based on audition in singing and mu ...

and was also part of the Saltsjöbaden theater. After playing a small role in ''Lilla prinsen'' () at

Saltsjöbaden Saltsjöbaden is a locality in Nacka Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 9,491 inhabitants in 2010. It is on the Baltic Sea coast, deep in the Stockholm Archipelago. History Saltsjöbaden () was developed as a resort by Knut Agathon Wa ...

's theater, and in the face of stiff competition, Wahlgren got the title role in the musical ''

Annie Annie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Annie (actress) (born 1975), Indian actress * Annie (singer) (born 1977), Norwegian singer The ...

'' at Folkan, Stockholm. She then played Esmeralda in

Ingmar Bergman Ernst Ingmar Bergman (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007) was a Swedish film director, screenwriter, Film producer, producer and playwright. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time, his films are known ...

's film ''

''. In 1982, she joined the cast of the Swedish production of ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. Se ...

'', in which she played Louise. At Folkan, she also had parts in '' Karlsson på taket'' (''Karlsson-on-the-Roof''), '' Mio, min Mio'' (''Mio in the Land of Faraway''), '' Snövit'' (''Snow White'') and ''Ringens hemlighet'' (). Wahlgren played Annika in the musical version of ''

Pippi Longstocking Pippi Longstocking ( sv, Pippi Långstrump) is the fictional main character in an eponymous series of children's books by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. Pippi was named by Lindgren's daughter Karin, who asked her mother for a get-well story wh ...

'' at Folket in Stockholm; for the two final performances she replaced

Siw Malmkvist Siw Gunnel Margareta Malmkvist (born 31 December 1936) is a Swedish schlager singer and actress popular in Scandinavia and West Germany. She had a number one hit in West Germany in 1964 with "''Liebeskummer lohnt sich nicht''" (''"Lovesickness ...

in the role of Pippi, for which she received positive reviews. In her youth and as an adult Wahlgren portrayed Pippi Longstocking several times. Wahlgren appeared in an episode of ''Nygammalt'' in 1983 and an episode of ''Razzel'' in October 1984, where she performed her debut single, "Nu har det tänt". She has also appeared in film and television productions including

Bo Widerberg Bo Gunnar Widerberg (; 8 June 1930 – 1 May 1997) was a Sweden, Swedish film director, screenwriter, writer, film editing, editor and actor. Biography Early life Widerberg was born in Malmö, Malmöhus County, Sweden. Career Widerberg was th ...

's 1986 production of '' Ormens väg på hälleberget'' (''The Serpent's Way'') and ''Snoken'' in 1995. Wahlgren has appeared in theatrical comedies in Stockholm, including ''Parneviks cirkusparty'' (), ''Spanska flugan'' () and ''Bubbel trubbel'' (). She has twice been nominated for the

theater award; first for her role in ''Charleys tant'' () at the Intiman Theater, and then for her part in ''Kärlek & lavemang'' () at Fredriksdalsteatern in

Helsingborg Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...

. She has also appeared in musical roles in '' Annie Get Your Gun'', '' Grease'', '' The Wizard of Oz'', ''

Cats The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of t ...

'' and ''Nils Karlsson Pyssling''. On 29 September 2007, ''The Sound of Music'' premièred at the

Göta Lejon Göta Lejon is a theatre located at 55 Götgatan in the district of Södermalm in Stockholm, Sweden. History Göta Lejon was built in the years 1926–1928 according to drawings by architect Birger Borgström. (1890–1964). Architecturally, the ...

theater in Stockholm, where Wahlgren played in a cast that included

Tommy Nilsson Erik Tommy Nilsson (born 11 March 1960) is a Swedish singer, songwriter and actor. Career In the late 1970s, Nilsson was the singer of Swedish heavy metal band Horizont. The group released two albums but a French producer, Yves Accary, cont ...

. In 2013, she had a role in the musical '' Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' at

. Between 2018 and 2019, Wahlgren acted in her own stage show celebrating 40-years as a singer and actress, called ''Kort, glad och tacksam'' (). Her second stage show, a continuation of ''Kort, glad och tacksam'', called ''Pernilla Wahlgren har Hybris'' (), wrote and directed by

Edward af Sillén Edward af Sillén (born 1982 in Blumenau, Santa Catarina, Brazil) is a Swedish screenwriter and director for stage, film and TV. He has translated and directed many highly successful theatre shows including ''Twelfth Night'' by William Shakespea ...

, premiered in 2020.

Music

In the mid-to-late 1980s, Wahlgren developed a

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describe ...

career, touring several times and releasing studio albums. Her songs include: " Svindlande affärer", "I Need Your Love", "Every Time When We're Together" and "Running for Cover". In August 2006, she released the album ''Beautiful Day''; the debut single from the album, " Talking to an Angel", was certified gold and the track "Come Inside My World" became the theme to

TV4 TV4 or TV 4 may refer to: *TV4 (Poland), a private Polish television station *TV4 (Sweden), a Swedish television network **TV4 Group, owners of the Swedish television station *South African Broadcasting Corporation TV4, a channel operated by the st ...

's entertainment program ''

Förkväll ''Förkväll'' (2006–2007, 2009–2011) was a Swedish daily talk show that started airing in 2006 on TV4. The show lasted until January 2011 before it was cancelled. Förkväll focused on life style and popular culture and is an attempt to compe ...

''.

Melodifestivalen

Wahlgren's musical breakthrough came when she participated in Melodifestivalen 1985. Her song " Piccadilly Circus" became a public favorite, but she was placed fourth in the competition. Wahlgren participated in

Melodifestivalen 1991 Sweden entered and won the Eurovision Song Contest 1991, held in Rome, Italy. Swedish broadcaster Sveriges Television continued using their successful Melodifestivalen contest to select their entry for the Eurovision Song Contest. Melodifestiv ...

with the song "Tvillingsjäl", which did not make it to the second round of voting. In 2003, she again took part in

, this time with Jan Johansen; they achieved second place with the song " Let Your Spirit Fly". In 2010, Wahlgren again participated in

, with the song " Jag vill om du vågar". Her 2013 entry was with

Jenny Silver Jenny Maria Öhlund, better known as Jenny Silver (born January 22, 1974), is a Swedish singer. Career Jenny Silver started her career in the dance band Candela, which was signed to Bert Karlsson's label, Mariann Grammofon, from 1991 to 1997. ...

and

Hanna Hedlund Hanna Kristina Hedlund (born 24 January 1975, Kilafors, Bollnäs Municipality, Sweden) is a Swedish singer. Her sister Lina is also a singer. She has a son and a daughter with Martin Stenmarck. Career Hedlund competed in Melodifestivalen 200 ...

as part of the band Swedish House Wives performing the song "On Top of the World".

Television

Wahlgren has been a television presenter for several shows, including ''Scenen är din'', ''

Söndagsöppet Söndagsöppet was a television show broadcast on SVT on Sundays. The first broadcast was on 7 October 1990 and the last episode was broadcast on 21 December 2003 after 27 seasons. References Sveriges Television original programming {{S ...

'' (both on SVT), '' Småstjärnorna'' and ''Baby Boom'' (both on

). She and her brother Niclas also presented the children's show ''Nicke & Nilla'' on TV4. Wahlgren had a role in the 1995 series ''Snoken'' on SVT. She also dubbed several children's films, such as ''

The Lego Movie ''The Lego Movie'' is a 2014 computer-animated adventure comedy film written and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller from a story by Lord, Miller, and Dan and Kevin Hageman. Based on the Lego line of construction toys, its story focu ...

'' (as the voice for

Princess Unikitty This is a list of characters from ''The Lego Movie'' franchise produced by Warner Animation Group and The Lego Group, which consists of the animated films (and LEGO sets from that film), 4D film and TV series: ''The Lego Movie'' (2014), '' The ...

), and voiced Misty, Melody and Delia Ketchum in several Pokémon films). From 2016, she has participated in the reality series ''

Wahlgrens värld ''Wahlgrens värld'' (in en, "Wahlgren's World") is a Swedish reality series following the daily lives of actress and singer Pernilla Wahlgren and her daughter, Bianca Ingrosso, alongside their other family members. The show was first broadcast ...

'' (''Wahlgren's World'') which is broadcast on Kanal 5 and documents her life. The series was continued with a third and fourth season in 2018; a fifth and sixth season were broadcast in 2019. In 2019, Wahlgren had a leading role as Santa's wife in Sveriges Television's Christmas calendar, Panik i tomteverkstan, opposite Per Andersson.

Personal life

Wahlgren was born to actors Christina Schollin and

Hans Wahlgren Hans Carl Gustav Wahlgren (born 26 June 1937) is a Swedish actor. Career Wahlgren grew up in Smedslätten, and debuted in a film in 1945 in Ragnar Falcks shortfilm ''Indianer och blekansikten''. His breakthrough came in the film ''Raggare'' in 1 ...

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...

. She has three brothers: actor and singer Niclas, actor

Linus Linus, a male given name, is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Linos''. It's a common given name in Sweden. The origin of the name is unknown although the name appears in antiquity both as a musician who taught Apollo and as a son of Apollo who di ...

, and broker and firefighter Peter. She was married to dancer and composer Emilio Ingrosso from 1993 to 2002; they have three children—

Oliver Ingrosso Oliver Salvatore Gustavo Wahlgren Ingrosso (born 30 December 1989) is a Swedish DJ, music producer and actor. Career He debuted with a major role in the 2007 Swedish film '' Ciao Bella'' directed by Iranian-Swedish director Mani Maserrat-Agah ...

(born 1989), a DJ, music producer and actor;

Bianca Ingrosso Bianca Melina Elisabeth Wahlgren Ingrosso (born 30 December 1994) is a Swedish blogger, social influencer, entrepreneur, and singer. Career Performances Ingrosso participated in the Swedish national selection for the Junior Eurovision Song ...

(born 1994), a blogger and singer; and

Benjamin Ingrosso Benjamin Daniele Wahlgren Ingrosso (born 14 September 1997) is a Swedish singer, songwriter and record producer. As a child, he appeared in the leading role in several musicals, and in 2006 he won Lilla Melodifestivalen with the song "Hej Sofia ...

(born 1997), a singer, artist and songwriter. Pernilla also has a son, Theo (born 2007), with Joachim Lennholm. In an episode of ''Vem tror du att du är?'' (''Who do you think You Are?'') broadcast on SVT in 2011 it was revealed to Wahlgren that she was of Italian descent on her father's side of the family. Since 2021, Wahlgren has been a relationship with Christian Bauer.

Discography

Studio albums

Source: *''Pernilla Wahlgren (album)'' (1985) *'' Attractive'' (1986) *'' Pure Dynamite'' (1987) *'' Flashback'' (1989) *'' I Myself and Me'' (1992) *'' Flashback Number Four'' (1995) (Best of) *''

Pernilla Wahlgren Pernilla Nina Elisabeth Wahlgren (born 24 December 1967) is a Swedish singer and actress. She has sung in Melodifestivalen several times; her 1985 entry titled " Piccadilly Circus" became popular and successful. She has acted in several plays an ...

'' (1995) (Re-issue) *''Beautiful Day'' (2006) *'' Holiday with You'' (2012)

Singles

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wahlgren, Pernilla 1967 births Living people People from Värmdö Municipality Melodifestivalen contestants Swedish musical theatre actresses English-language singers from Sweden 20th-century Swedish actresses 21st-century Swedish actresses 20th-century Swedish women singers Swedish people of Italian descent 21st-century Swedish women singers