WDR talk show
Bettina Böttinger’s last “Cologne meeting”
The presenter Bettina Böttinger says goodbye to the “Kölner Treff”. photo
© Henning Kaiser/dpa
She is one of the most famous TV talkers in Germany – Bettina Böttinger is now quitting at “Kölner Treff”. The journalist already has many plans for the time after that.
This Friday the journalist can be seen for the last time on the WDR talk show after 17 years (WDR television, 10 p.m.).
In total, Böttinger spoke on Friday evenings on WDR for 30 years, initially on the show “B.treff…”. “It’s been a great 30 years, but you also have to be able to let go,” she said. “I’m not going to retire, I’m not going to stop working and I’m not going to stop watching TV.”
She will continue to produce “Kölner Treff” with her production company – the presenter duo Susan Link and Micky Beisenherz will remain on board. Böttinger has just finished a season of her new show “Böttinger. Wohnung 17” and is also planning a new podcast. “But I don’t want to do everything at once. I’ve had a very tight schedule over the last few years, and I want to break out of that.”
The presenter also has concrete plans in her private life: “I really want to learn how to do the front crawl because I can only swim breaststroke,” she said. “I also want to learn Italian because I like being in Italy and can only order food there in a hurry.”
In the 30 years of talks, Böttinger has had almost 5,000 conversations with guests. “It wasn’t a job for me, but an activity that filled me with happiness,” said the Düsseldorf native. “This is a great treasure that I am taking with me.” Connections were also created that went far beyond the professional.
Guests in the farewell broadcast on Friday include the singer Herbert Grönemeyer and the fashion designer Guido Maria Kretschmer.
What she will miss most is “the thunderous applause from the audience,” said Böttinger. “Friday evening was always a highlight of the week for me.” Nevertheless, she will not suffer from withdrawal. She was looking forward to the weekends off because on Saturdays she was often still a little under the weather from the show the night before.
And there’s something else she’ll miss, Böttinger added with a wink: “So far I’ve been lucky enough to have my hair done really well once a week – I’ll have to take care of that myself now.”