German soaps: GZSZ, UU & AWZ

[Huntress]

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Lennart Betzgen, Livia Matthes, Frederik Götz, Heinz Hoenig & Stephanie Japp

 

TVNOW has presented the full cast of the "Verbotene Liebe" reboot:

• Heinz Hoenig (a well-known film and television actor with a career spanning 40 years) plays Robert Verhoven, patriarch and owner of the fashion label "Verhoven"
• Stephanie Japp plays Eva Verhoven, Robert's wife
• Frederik Götz plays Alexander Verhoben, Robert and Eva's oldest son, founder of the fashion label "Greenlight"
• Sina Zadra plays Josefin Reinhard, a student and single mom of a daughter
• Anuschka Tochtermann plays Mia Ulrich, Josefin's best friend and owner of the alternative fashion store "Fräulein Grün"
• Livia Matthes plays Livia Verhoven, Robert and Eva's daughter, a fashion designer
• Lennart Betzgen plays Paul Verhoven, Robert and Eva's youngest son
• Asli Melisa Uzun plays Bobbi Atakan, a model and influencer of Turkish origin
• Martin Walde plays Finn Rogel, a carpenter and the father of Josefin's daughter

Returning as their characters from the original series are ...

• Claudia Hiersche as Countess Carla von Lahnstein (contract: 2003-2009, recurring: 2010) – Carla was one of the most popular characters on the original show, mostly due to her powerful relationships with Hanna Novak, Susanne Brandner and Stella Mann. On the reboot, she is now an event organizer.
• Wolfram Grandezka as Count Ansgar von Lahnstein (contract: 2004-2015) – Ansgar, one of Carla's brothers, was the show's male villain. At the end of the original show, he went to prison and will now be released.
• Gabriele Metzger as Charlotte "Charlie" Schneider (contract: 1995-2015) – Charlie was the only character to stay on the original show for its entire run. The kind soul is still running her restaurant "Schneiders".
• Jo Weil as Oliver "Olli" Sabel (contract: 2000-2002; 2007-2014) – Charlie's gay nephew. He still works as a model.
• Isa Jank as Countess Clarissa von Anstetten (contract: 1995-2001; 2011-2013) – The show's original villain.

More returns have been teased. Production will continue until October.

 

 

Wolfram Grandezka, Claudia Hiersche, Gabriele Metzger & Jo Weil

 

Edited September 14, 2020 by Huntress

[wingwalker]

I selfishly hope the oldest child, Alexander is a love interest for Ollie. They'd be hot together. LOL 

[Huntress]

This is the the official promo for "SUNNY – Wer bist du wirklich?", GZSZ's highly promoted spin-off. The show debuts on October 1st, 2020. The first 2 episodes will be shown on RTL right after GZSZ, and the remaining episodes will be released on TVNOW Monday to Thursday.

 

 

For Wolfgang Bahro's 60th birthday, TVNOW produced a documentary. Bahro has played Dr. Jo Gerner on GZSZ since 1993 and is the longest-serving actor on any German soap.

 

 

In October, two new faces will appear in town:

• Jan Kittmann plays Tobias Evers, a handsome construction manager. He is a childhood friend of Nina's and applies for a job in Katrin's company. However, Tobias is said to have a dark secret. Kittmann first airs on October 21st, 2020.
• Birgit Würz joins the cast as Patrizia Araya, an older woman who Philip Höfer has a one-night-stand with. A few days later, it turns out that Patrizia Araya is no less than Patrizia Bachmann, John's mother (John and Philip are half-brothers as both have the same father).
  Swiss actress Christin Baechler played Patrizia Bachmann on contract from July 2001 to March 2003 and returned for a brief guest appearance in 2007. Patrizia is the mother of John, Ben and Lena Bachmann, the older sister of the late Senta Lemke, and the aunt of Sandra Lemke Ergün. After the supposed death of her husband Hannes, Patrizia and John moved to Berlin in 2001 where she was reunited with her sister. A while later, Patrizia's older son Ben also moved in with them. Patrizia fell in love with Jo Gerner and eventually married him, much to John's dismay. Shortly after the wedding, the presumed dead Hannes appeared in Berlin and tried to win his family back. Patrizia stayed with Jo, while Hannes started an affair with Senta which caused a huge rift between all family members. Eventually, Jo cheated on Patrizia with Katrin Flemming. Patrizia left Jo, spent a last night with Hannes, and quietly moved to South Africa. After Hannes and Senta had both died in a plane accident in 2007, Patrizia attended the funeral. She hasn't been mentioned since.
  This is not the first time that Birgit Würz plays a recast: On AWZ, she replaced original cast member Regine Seidler as Nadja Roschinski in 2008. She didn't last long, though, as the writers didn't know what to do with Nadja after the recast and she was gone within a few months. From 2010 to 2011, Würz played a main role on the telenovela "Rote Rosen".

[Huntress]

TVNOW will release the first episode of the "Verbotene Liebe" reboot on November 23rd, 2020.

 

Meanwhile, "Unter uns" will now also be using mannequins for love scenes ...

 

 

[DRW50]

Thanks for all these updates and photos. Jo Weil is as handsome as ever. 

 

It's interesting to hear more about the precautions taken. I was watching some clips from a non-German soap, Rantabaari, and they still seem to have graphic sex scenes. I guess maybe that was pre-COVID, unless their country was never hit hard.

[Huntress]

 

I've never heard of "Rantabaari" before and apparently it's a soap from Finland. According to its wikipedia page, the show has had 3 seasons so far. The first 2 seasons were filmed in 2019 and the third season, which was filmed in early 2020, premiered last month.

 

In terms of coronavirus infections, Finland has come off best of all European countries. I think they, Norway and Estonia (all 3 are nordic countries) have had the lowest numbers in relation to their population. But remember, Finland only has a population of 5.5 million and isn't densely populated while Germany has 83 million residents and has the same size as Finland

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Edited October 23, 2020 by Huntress

[Huntress]

AWZ updated both version of its opening.
This is the opening to feature Lisandra Bárdel (Malu Santos), Matthias Brüggenolte (Justus Albrecht), Dominik Flade (Yannick Ziegler) and Jasmin Minz (Kim Brenner).
Ania Niedieck (Isabelle Reichenbach) and Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen (Jenny Steinkamp) received new footage.
Birte Glang (Lena Öztürk), Amrei Haardt (Nathalie Reichenbach) and Bela Klentze (Ronny Bergmann) were removed. Francisco Medina (Maximilian von Altenburg), who left the show a few weeks ago, is still included, as well as André Dietz (Ingo Zadek), who's departing soon.

 

Version A

Tatjana Clasing as Simone Steinkamp – Sam Eisenstein as Marian Öztürk – Cheyenne Pahde as Marie Schmidt – Jörg Rohde as Ben Steinkamp – Franziska van der Heide as Ina Ziegler – Lisandra Bárdel as Malu Santos – Francisco Medina as Maximilian von Altenburg – Dominik Flade as Yannick Ziegler – Kaja Schmidt-Tychsen as Jenny Steinkamp – Silvan-Pierre Leirich as Richard Steinkamp – Igor Dolgatschew as Deniz Öztürk – Alles was zählt

 

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Version B

Julia Augustin as Vanessa Steinkamp – Lars Korten as Christoph Lukowski – Ania Niedieck as Isabelle Reichenbach – Christopher Kohn as Finn Albrecht – Matthias Brüggenolte as Justus Albrecht – Jasmin Minz as Kim Brenner – Tijan Njie as Moritz Brunner – Julia Wiedemann as Lucie Ziegler – Alexandra Fonsatti as Chiara Nadolny – André Dietz as Ingo Zadek – Alles was zählt

 

[Huntress]

You can now read very detailed summaries of the first 1000 episodes (1992 to 1996, also called the "classic era") of GZSZ here (translated via Google Translate):

 

Episodes 1 to 100
Episodes 101 to 200
Episodes 201 to 300
Episodes 301 to 400
Episodes 401 to 500
Episodes 501 to 600

Episodes 601 to 700

Episodes 701 to 800
Episodes 801 to 900

Episodes 901 to 1000

[Huntress]

 Here are the opening credits of "Verbotene Liebe: Next Generation":

 

 

The current AWZ openings:

 

 

GZSZ updated its openings 2 months ago, but they only removed some characters and abandoned one of the three version altogether.

 

 

And these are all the intros the telenovela "Sturm der Liebe" has had so far in its 16 season run:

 

 

[Huntress]

Haha, this is so cool... just in time for the reboot, Olli (Jo Weil), Charlie (Gabriele Metzger) and Ansgar (Wolfram Grandezka) talk about what happened to themselves and other former VL characters during the past 5 years. We learn that Charlie has been through a divorce, that her best friend Elisabeth von Lahnstein died (just like her portrayer), that all the other members of the von Lahnstein family are scattered to the four winds, and that Olli hasn't had a boyfriend in years. Poor him.

 

Olli also mentions Andi, Lara, Emilio, Kim, and Jessi. Tanja and Sebastian are reportedly divorced as well.
"Clarissa... Düsseldorf was rocked liked an earthquake when she became entangled with the now mighty Verhoven clan."
"Tanja? No one knows where she is... she's probably watching us all right now. If you find her, I'd love to talk to her..."

 

 

Edited November 17, 2020 by Huntress

[Skylover]

I've just found out a way to stream GZSZ on my TV and I'm so happy!! I was using my chromecast before but I couldn't download the TV Now app. I've figured out a way to do it and I'm catching up on episodes I've missed since September! So happy!

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[Huntress]

Yeah, it's a bit tricky to stream TVNOW on a TV – glad to hear that you found a way 

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Not only did the show bring back John's mother Patrizia Araya, née Bachmann, after 17 years (the character is now being played by Birgit Würz), we were also treated with a guest appearance by John's sister Lena via video chat. Lena was again played by Uta Kargel who was on contract between 2004 and 2006, but hadn't been seen since.

 

GZSZ Episode Counts: November 2020
Total episodes: 21

 

01. Chryssanthi Kavazi (Laura Lehmann) : 19

02. Thaddäus Meilinger (Felix Lehmann) : 17

03. Anne Menden (Emily Wiedmann) : 15

*** Maria Wedig (Nina Klee) : 15

*** Gisa Zach (Yvonne Bode) : 15

06. Lennart Borchert (Moritz Bode) : 14

*** Ulrike Frank (Katrin Flemming) : 14

08. Wolfgang Bahro (Dr. Jo Gerner) : 13

*** Jörn Schlönvoigt (Dr. Philip Höfer) : 13

10. Vildan Cirpan (Dr. Nazan Akinci) : 12

*** Birgit Würz (Patrizia Araya) : 12

12. Daniel Fehlow (Leon Moreno) : 11

13. Patrick Heinrich (Erik Fritsche) : 10

*** Ronja Herberich (Merle Kramer) : 10

*** Felix von Jascheroff (John Bachmann) : 10

*** Olivia Marei (Toni Ahrens) : 10

*** Timur Ülker (Nihat Güney) : 10

18. Tobias Evers (Jan Kittmann) : 9

*** Felix van Deventer (Jonas Seefeld) : 9

20. Thomas Drechsel (Max "Tuner" Krüger) : 8

*** Joana Schümer (Rosa Lehmann) : 8

22. Eva Mona Rodekirchen (Maren Seefeld) : 6 

23. Niklas Osterloh (Paul Wiedmann) : 4 
24. Uta Kargel (Lena Bachmann) : 2

*** Iris Mareike Steen (Lilly Seefeld) : 2

26. Valentina Pahde (Sunny Richter) : 0

 

GZSZ Episode Counts: 2020

 

01. Maria Wedig (Nina Klee) : 151

02. Anne Menden (Emily Wiedmann) : 140

03. Gisa Zach (Yvonne Bode) : 134

04. Olivia Marei (Toni Ahrens) : 133

05. Wolfgang Bahro (Dr. Jo Gerner) : 126

06. Daniel Fehlow (Leon Moreno) : 124

07. Felix van Deventer (Jonas Seefeld) : 120

08. Patrick Heinrich (Erik Fritsche) : 119

09. Timur Ülker (Nihat Güney) : 117

10. Felix von Jascheroff (John Bachmann) : 116

11. Thaddäus Meilinger (Felix Lehmann) : 115

12. Eva Mona Rodekirchen (Maren Seefeld) : 114

13. Niklas Osterloh (Paul Wiedmann) : 113

14. Ulrike Frank (Katrin Flemming) : 111

15. Jörn Schlönvoigt (Dr. Philip Höfer) : 108

16. Iris Mareike Steen (Lilly Seefeld) : 103

17. Ronja Herberich (Merle Kramer) : 98

18. Valentina Pahde (Sunny Richter) : 96

19. Thomas Drechsel (Max "Tuner" Krüger) : 91

29. Gamze Senol (Shirin Akinci) : 83

21. Clemens Löhr (Alexander Cöster) : 77

22. Vildan Cirpan (Dr. Nazan Akinci) : 66

23. Lennart Borchert (Moritz Bode) : 63

24. Nils Schulz (Robert Klee) : 60

25. Chryssanthi Kavazi (Laura Lehmann) : 57

26. Annabella Zetsch (Brenda Schubert) : 50

27. Livia Geyser (Leyla Akinci) : 37

28. Joana Schümer (Rosa Lehmann) : 28

29. Frederik Funke (Aaron Thiel) : 27

30. Birgit Würz (Patrizia Araya) : 19

31. Senta-Sofia Delliponti (Tanja Seefeld) : 17

32. Jan Kittmann (Tobias Evers) : 15

[skebujebu]

Yes, Rantabaari is a spin off actually of our one and only daytime soap, Secret Lives including same characters as Secret Lives. 

[Huntress]

Since the soap year 2020 is almost over and previews are available until December 31st, it's time for a little retrospective.

 

Current soap schedule:

2.10 pm Rote Rosen (ARD)

3.10 pm Sturm der Liebe (ARD)

5.30 pm Unter uns (RTL)

7.05 pm Alles was zählt (RTL)

7.40 pm Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten (RTL)

Streaming only: Verbotene Liebe: Next Generation (TVNOW)

 

Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten (1992-present, RTL)
Total episodes in 2020: 246 (#6919 to #7165 [#7000, #7001 and #7002 were shown as a 90 minute episode on the same day]) + 5 coronavirus specials
Current cast: https://www.rtl.de/cms/sendungen/gzsz/stars.html

 

Contract arrivals:
Ronja Herberich as Merle Kramer (January 2020-present)

Vildan Cirpan as Dr. Nazan Akinci (March 2020-present)
Lennart Borchert as Moritz Bode (June 2020-present)

Jan Kittmann as Tobias Evers (October 2020-present)

 

Contract departures:

Nils Schulz as Robert Klee (March 2019-June 2020)
Annabella Zetsch as Brenda Schubert (September 2019-June 2020)

Clemens Löhr as Alexander Cöster (June 2009-July 2020)

Gamze Senol as Shirin Akinci (March 2018-July 2020; recurring previously)

 

Unter uns (1994-present, RTL)
Total episodes in 2020: 252 (#6266 to #6518)
Current cast: https://www.rtl.de/cms/sendungen/unter-uns/unter-uns-stars.html

 

Contract arrivals:
Constantin Lücke as Till Weigel #3 (Recast; September 2020-present)

Isabel Vollmer as Monika Huber (November 2020-present)

 

Contract departures:

Alica Hubiak as Jana Schäfer (January 2020-August 2020)

Ben Ruedinger as Till Weigel #2 (October 2000-September 2020)
Kai Noll as Rufus Sturm (March 2003-September 2020)

 

Alles was zählt (2006-present, RTL)
Total episodes in 2020: 250 (#3344 to #3594) + 1 extra episode (billed as #3495.1)
Current cast: https://www.rtl.de/cms/sendungen/alles-was-zaehlt/awz-stars.html

 

Contract arrivals:

Julia Wiedemann as Lucie Ziegler (January 2020-present)
Franziska van der Heide as Ina Ziegler (January 2020-present)

Jasmin Minz as Kim Bremer (May 2020-present; recurring previously)

Matthias Brüggenolte as Justus Albrecht (June 2020-present)
Lisandra Bardél as Malu Santos (August 2020-present)

Dominik Flade as Yannick Ziegler (September 2020-present)

 

Contract departures:

Bela Klentze as Ronny Bergmann (January 2017-May 2020; recurring previously)

Birte Glang as Lena Bergmann von Altenburg Öztürk #4 (January 2019-August 2020)

Amrei Haardt as Nathalie Reichenbach (May 2019-September 2020)

Francisco Medina as Maximilian von Altenburg (...-September 2020 [he has come and gone so often I lost track of his contract status – this was his 6th or 7th stint)]

André Dietz as Ingo Zadek (December 2006-November 2020; recurring previously)

 

Herz über Kopf (2019-2020, RTL)

Total episodes in 2020: 26 (#87 to #113)

The final episode (#113) aired on 

 

Rote Rosen (2006-present, ARD)
Total episodes in 2020: 210 (#3042 to #3252)
Current cast: http://www.daserste.de/unterhaltung/soaps-telenovelas/rote-rosen/darsteller/index.html

 

Sturm der Liebe (2005-present, ARD)
Total episodes in 2020: 220 (#3299 to #3519)
Current cast: http://www.daserste.de/unterhaltung/soaps-telenovelas/sturm-der-liebe/darsteller/index.html

 

Lindenstraße (1985-2020, ARD)
Total episodes in 2020: 12 (#1746 to #1758)

The final episode (#1758) aired on March 29th, 2020.

Edited December 9, 2020 by Huntress

[gyroscope]

Thanks for all the updates, Huntress. 

Don't seem to have had any time for watching GZSZ at all over the past few months, hopefully will catch the latest episodes over Christmas and catch up with what's going on. 

I wish the GZSZ team were better at keeping the openings more up to date with the current characters!