Mette Lisby (born 5 April 1968) is a Danish writer, actress, stand-up comedian, and television host.
She currently resides with her husband and business partner, Jesper Baehrenz, in Los Angeles, where she works on creative writing through their company VIVE Productions. Recently, Lisby and Baehrenz created and wrote the Scandinavian adaptation of the popular Disney teen sitcom âÂÂAs the Bell RingsâÂÂ.
Mette Lisby was one of the few women who were part of the birth of the Danish stand-up comedy scene in the early nineties. She made her debut, along with many of the other big names in Danish stand-up comedy, at DinâÂÂs in 1992 In 1994, she became the co-host of the talent show âÂÂOut of the Closetâ / âÂÂUd af skabetâÂÂ, and later, she hosted the game show âÂÂStar Jokerâ / âÂÂStjernejokerâÂÂ.
From 1996 to 1997, she hosted the popular talk show âÂÂWalk the Plankâ / âÂÂLinen UdâÂÂ, making her a popular TV hosts. She then began hosting the Danish version of the British satirical news program Have I Got News for You, called âÂÂUgen Der Gakâ in Danish.
Both âÂÂWalk the Plankâ / âÂÂLinen Udâ and âÂÂHave I Got News for Youâ / âÂÂUgen Der Gakâ were popular shows, which had audiences of over one million viewers â one fifth of the Danish population of five million people.
Mette Lisby won several awards in 1997 and 1998. She was voted âÂÂFavorite TV Hostâ by the Danish television audiences both years, and won major newspaper Ekstra BladetâÂÂs award for best TV personality of 1998.
In 1999, she created the sketch show âÂÂFC LisbyâÂÂ, taking the lead role as both host and head writer. Many of DenmarkâÂÂs leading stand-up comedians contributed to and appeared on the show.
Also, in 1999, Lisby landed her first serious role in motion picture. This was âÂÂThe Two-Penny Danceâ / âÂÂKlinkevalsâ produced by the Academy Award - winning producer Per Holst. The movie was a smash hit with Danish audiences and Mette Lisby was nominated for a Robert award â the Danish equivalent of an Academy Award - in the âÂÂBest Female Performance in a Lead Roleâ category.
In 2000, she repeated her role in the sequel to the movie, âÂÂJulianeâÂÂ, which was nominated for a Robert award for Movie of the Year. She also took the lead in the spin-off TV-series "Juliane", which got the highest TV ratings for a drama on Danish television in 2001.
Also in 2001, Mette Lisby took her gift for comedy on the road with her sold-out âÂÂOne Woman Comedy TourâÂÂ, which not only sold a lot of tickets, but also garnered rave reviews in the Danish press. A DVD recording of the tour went platinum the following year.
In 2004, she was once again put in charge of a popular talk show, this time the Danish version of the British hit show Room 101 which was called âÂÂKnock Outâ in the Danish version.
In 2005, Mette Lisby expanded her career by moving to London together with her husband, popular TV and radio host Jesper Baehrenz, whom she had married in 2001. The couple started the creative production company VIVE Productions, which develops TV concepts, scripts for TV and film, as well as developing and writing material for comedians. The company also has a game division, which creates board games for the Danish and international markets. âÂÂNo Dice Board GamesâÂÂ, as the division is called, has sold over 500.000 games worldwide.
In London, Mette Lisby continued her career as a performing stand-up comedian, with appearances at clubs such as The Comedy Store, Leicester Square Theatre, Tattershall Castle, Storm, Comedy Tree, Brou-Ha-Ha, Comedy Café, Club 99, Electric Mouse, Latchmere Theatre, KingâÂÂs Head Theatre, Comedy Camp, Phil Nicholsâ Old Rope venue, and at the Royal Comedy Gala 2008.
She has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2006 and 2008, as well as the Amsterdam International Comedy Festival, and Brighton Comedy Festival and The Big Joke Festival.
In 2007 and 2008, she appeared on the BBC / Comedy Central show âÂÂThe World Stands UpâÂÂ, as well as the âÂÂLast Comic Standingâ competition on NBC in the US.
Recently, Mette Lisby has focused on the writing part of her career. Since 2005, she has been a regular columnist in the weekly newspaper "Soendagsavisen" in Denmark. A collection of Lisbys columns was published as a book in 2007.
In London Mette Lisby wrote comedy material for Stand Up comedian Stephen K. Amos. Two of Amosâ shows, âÂÂStephen K Amos Gets Next to Youâ and âÂÂStephen K Amos â Find The Funnyâ was co-written by Lisby and Baehrenz. Lisby and Baehrenz also produced and provided material for Amosâ show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, âÂÂStephen K Amosâ Weekend Chat ShowâÂÂ.
In 2009, Mette Lisby and husband Jesper Baehrenz relocated to Los Angeles to further expand their creative writing and conceptual creation endeavors. From here, they created the Scandinavian adaptation of the popular Disney sitcom âÂÂAs the Bell RingsâÂÂ,