Marieke Elsinga does not understand that Wietze de Jager has given up the prestigious morning show on Radio 538 because of fatherhood. “The combination is just perfect!”
It has rarely been shown in Dutch radio history: Wietze de Jager has been removed from the morning show of Radio 538 after more than a year because he on air was complaining that it is all so difficult to combine with fatherhood. Incomprehensible, Marieke Elsinga thinks. At least, that’s what she shows in conversation with The parole.
Perfect combination
Marieke herself is also older and she does the morning show on Qmusic. It is just fine to combine with each other, says the presenter, who does not refer to Wietze herself. “The combination of a small child and the morning show turned out to be perfect. Jip is now nine months old, goes to bed at seven and, of course, wakes up early as well.”
She continues: “After our broadcast, I am often home within an hour and I still have plenty of time with him. And you are tired anyway. A child or a morning show, it makes no difference in that respect.”
4:41 am
What do Marieke’s days look like when she does the morning show on Q? “The alarm clock rings at exactly 4:41 am. Then I snooze once until 4:50. Then I read the news apps and get out of bed at five o’clock. I shower, eat a kiwi and am in the car at 5.20.”
It is an eight minute drive to the Qmusic studio. “So at half past five I’m in the studio. There I eat a bowl of oatmeal during the first song. I try to go to bed at 8:30 pm in the evenings. At 21.30 I have to lie in it at the latest.”
Four days
Incidentally, Marieke works four days a week. Wietze wanted that too, but he came in for a lot of criticism. “In the months leading up to my maternity leave, I felt I had to slam on the brakes. Burnout is too strong a word, but I really needed some rest. I haven’t worked for almost two months.”
She continues: “When I came back after giving birth, I started with four days just to be on the safe side. It feels sensible to keep it that way for now. For me, my life is number one, not the morning show, no matter how much fun it is to make.”
Luke agree
Earlier Luuk Ikink also said that he does not understand Wietze. He is also a father with a daily program. “You can pick up your children from school and then you are with your children, you can put them to bed, you can eat with them, you can go to bed at the same time as the children,” he said earlier.
“I can’t imagine then saying: ‘No, I don’t want that anymore.’”