Thomas Gottschalk puts an end to "Wetten, dass...?"
Thomas Gottschalk said an emotional farewell to the ZDF show "Wetten, dass...?" on Saturday evening. It was not a sad event, said the 73-year-old. "I'm not in despair, my life goes on and I'm looking forward to everything that's coming," he added before being driven out of the hall in Offenburg in an excavator. The audience in the hall celebrated the presenter, who called out to them: "We had a good time together."
Gottschalk said that there were two main reasons why he decided to end "Wetten, dass...?" for good. Firstly, he didn't want "people to have to explain my guests to me". For another, he always said on television what he said at home. He now speaks differently on television than he does at home - because he fears that he could create a "shitstorm".
Show creator Frank Elstner hugged Gottschalk at the end. "I am grateful that you have held out for so long," he said. Gottschalk had once succeeded him as presenter of "Wetten, dass...?". At the beginning, Elstner had announced him as a "legend".
It was Gottschalk's 154th show - which he ended unusually punctually. The broadcaster has not yet announced how "Wetten, dass...?" will continue.
People tuned in to the ZDF media to witness Thomas Gottschalk's final episode of "Wetten, dass...?." Despite saying goodbye, Gottschachk expressed hope for the future, stating, "I'm not in despair, my life goes on and I'm looking forward to everything that's coming." spite of retiring from the show, Gottschalk mentioned the challenge of keeping up with guests' backgrounds on television, which was a factor in his decision to quit.
Source: www.dpa.com
