Gerard Joling’s successful soap gets a new broadcast evening on RTL 4, but is that wise? “No, I don’t think it’s very wise, I have to be very honest,” says Tina Nijkamp.
The first season of the Gerard Joling soap was a Friday filler on RTL 4. Because The Voice of Holland was still on the punishment bench, the channel had to find another way to spend this broadcast evening. That eventually became Geer’s soap opera. It turned out to be an unexpectedly great success and that is why the singer is returning for a second season.
Not wise
One problem: The Voice is back, so the Friday spot is taken. We will therefore see Geer again on Saturday evening, but is RTL doing the right thing? “No, I don’t think it’s very wise, I have to say very honestly, but on the other hand: where is there room for Only Joling?”, says TV authority Tina Nijkamp.
The former channel boss of SBS 6 continues Tina’s TV Update: “Fridays are of course full with The Voice until May 8, so there is no room for Only Joling. Quite honestly, I think it would have been better for RTL to postpone it for a while and broadcast it on a Friday when The Voice or a talent show is not there.”
Never change
Tina would have opted for a postponement. “It scored well at that location on Friday and it is: never change a winning team. The same applies never change a winning timeslot.”
She continues: “It will be a bit of a risk, although I must say that Gerard Joling also scored well last season. Now we are up against Wie is de Mol, a really strong competitor.”
Lower numbers
The figures will be lower anyway, says Tina. “I think it will score less than the previous season, but I don’t think it will be a flop. It will certainly score well, but I don’t think it will score as well as last season.”
She concludes: “It could hardly be otherwise, because the competition on Fridays was much less then. Back then there was no Wie is de Mol or Flikken Maastricht or The Voice or something like that…”
