Mini Radio Drama (SFB-Zeitpunkte)

“Radio Privat” was actually an assignment that Tina Stock, an editor at the daily women’s program Zeitpunkte, gave me. It was and remains my favorite radio short feature.

In the mid-1980s there was a heated debate in Germany in respect to “Commercial Radio – Yes or No?” At that time radio stations in Germany were, with very few exceptions, exclusively financed with public funds. Broadcasters and radio journalists were worried that commercial radio would lead to an overdose of advertising and jingles in the air waves. Above all, they were concerned about a possible deterioration in the quality of programming and newscasting. Tina Stock asked me to write a humor piece on the subject: What would women’s programming on private radio possibly sound like?

We recorded the piece some 40 years ago, but I still remember what a dream team we were and the fun we had in the studio with the amazing work of voice artist Almut Eggert and director Ulli Herzog who also voiced all the men’s roles. It was a highlight of my Zeitpunkte work. It’s hard to believe that the piece is forty years old – it feels so contemporary.