After 10 years and more than 2000 shows together, choosing one standout moment is hard for Nova’s Ryan “Fitzy” Fitzgerald and Michael “Wippa” Wipfli, however one in particular springs to mind.
“We nearly killed Ed Sheeran,” Wippa, 42, tells Woman’s Day.
“We did an interview with him in the studio and our sound guy tripped over a light and smashed it on the back of his head. We nearly killed him.”
It’s through this candid and downright hilarious delivery of a story that has allowed the Fitzy & Wippa show to reach dizzying heights of success in a business that constantly sees line-up changes at other networks – and it’s something the boys themselves can’t even comprehend.
“It’s been the biggest 10 years of our lives,” says Fitzy, reflecting on a decade on air with Wippa.
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“It’s been the biggest 10 years of our lives,” says Fitzy, who turns 45 this week.
“Never in a million years did we think we’d be here,” Wippa adds.
“But it comes down to the fact we have a great team, and we have a similar sense of humour and adventure for the job.”
“We’re just two pretty basic blokes. Fathers who’ve all had kids in the car and I think people have become familiar with our voice,” says Fitzy.
“The hardest part of finding the right radio duo is that click when the mics come on.
“Wippa and I are totally different people, but when the mics come on, it just works.”
The pair came to be in 2011 after Fitzy, who was working the drivetime slot in Adelaide, was asked to make the move to Sydney to take over the breakfast slot at Nova.
Wippa, who was wrapping up Ryan, Monty & Wippa at Nova, was hand-picked by Fitzy himself to join him, and since then the pair have travelled all over the world, hosted shows on top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and have even been suspended from hot air balloons – for reasons none other than their desire to push themselves to the absolute limits.
“I remember we did three trips around the world in six weeks.
“We did the royal wedding in London, then we went to LA for the Twilight press junket and then we ended up in Bangkok where we took some of our listeners to promote The Hangover movie,” he says.
“And let me tell you, our listeners partied like the movie. I remember there were three that I couldn’t get on the plane because they were partying in their hotel room.”
“Two of them got tattoos. It was out of control,” Wippa adds.
When it comes to celebrity interviews, Fitzy and Wippa have trumped their rivals in spades.
“We swore on the red carpet with Brad Pitt for a bit, Lionel Richie was so generous and Denzel Washington was amazing,” says Wippa.
He adds “but one of my favourite interviews was when Russell Crowe rode his bicycle into our studio, brought it up the lift and then sat for over an hour telling stories. There’s no better storyteller than Russell Crowe.”
“I had a real moment with John Travolta,” Fitzy says, “But my favourite was Ryan Gosling, I was so nervous for that one.”
Unfortunately, not all interviews can go well, with Fitzy noting a particularly spiky interview with UK singer Taio Cruz as one of his most awkward.
While irate celebrities and unimaginably early working hours may be some people’s idea of hell, Fitzy and Wippa say they couldn’t be happier.
(Credit: Getty)“He came in with his sunglasses on, refused to take them off and just gave one-word answers. We wound up the interview pretty quickly.
“His publicist then asked if we could get a photo with Taio, and we said no.”
While irate celebrities and unimaginably early working hours may be some people’s idea of hell, Fitzy and Wippa say they couldn’t be happier.
“It’s a tough job – it takes over your life, but it’s also the best job in the world.
“And I love nothing more than coming home in the afternoon and having a bit of time with the kids,” Fitzy enthuses.
“And one of the most pleasing things we get out of this job is you get to put a smile on people’s faces in the morning,” he continues.
“And we’re only just warming up,” Wippa adds. “Here’s to the next 10 years!”
