Recommendations of the Editorial team
Last curtain for Thomas Gottschalk: On Saturday (November 6th) the presenter was seen on the big TV stage for the last time. He had announced this weeks ago. Now that he made his serious cancer public a few days ago, a lot of “Because they don’t know what’s happening” turned out differently than planned.
After just under two hours, Gottschalk left his own farewell show (which was also the last number of the evening for his colleagues) to thunderous applause and shouts of “Tommy”. Not entirely voluntarily, but out of caution, as the 75-year-old admitted in the (emotional) interview with Günther Jauch.
The friend and life companion Jauch later explained on RTL why there was no other way: “We didn’t want to say goodbye to him in the midnight ghetto, but rather as Thomas was, at the moment when most people are watching him and that’s exactly the time it should be.”
Painkillers take full effect late at night
Gottschalk also indicated why there are also physical reasons for this. Accordingly, the strong painkillers he has to take result in the moderator having difficulty concentrating. This is how he recently explained the sometimes confusing appearances at the Bambi and Romy awards a few days ago.
Barbara Schöneberger says: “He also said in the interview himself that things were getting more and more difficult for him towards the evening and then it was the perfect moment for him, which was also agreed upon with him.”
In other words: the later the hour, the more difficult it would have been for Gottschalk to stay calm and not get confused. In a show that lasts up to four hours, that would certainly have been a challenge.
Contrary to what was announced, the show was not recorded live, but rather some distance from the broadcast date. A purely precautionary measure, because replacement presenter Mike Krüger’s mischief (he dedicated a song to the super-nose buddy, but forgot the lyrics) and other more or less planned chaos were not edited out.
Most viewers and critics agreed after the broadcast of “For They Don’t Know What’s Happening” that it was a dignified farewell for the emperor of Saturday night entertainment. Just a little later, Gottschalk himself indicated that after a six-month break he would at least remain with his audience on Instagram: “But I’m NOT closing the shop here completely… And don’t forget that I’m planning like my friend, the Terminator: I’ll be back!”