“Bella Block” creator Doris Gercke
The writer is dead
Doris Gercke is dead. The inventor of the ZDF commissioner “Bella Block” died at the age of 88.
Doris Gercke (1937-2025), the creator of the unconventional commissioner Bella Block, died at the age of 88. .
From the pen onto the screen
The foundation stone for Gercke’s greatest success was laid in 1988 with her novel “Weinschröter, you have to hang”. What started as a literary work developed into one of the most successful German television crime series of all time. The idiosyncratic Hamburg Commissioner Bella Block, who brought Gercke to life in this novel, first conquered the hearts of the readers and later the television viewers.
A total of 38 episodes of the ZDF series “Bella Block” were created on the basis of Gercks’s literary template. The series, which ran from 1994 to 2018, became a trademark of the German television thriller and made the leading actress Hannelore Hoger (1939-2024) one of the best-known crime commissioners of German television.
In 1991 Gercke was awarded the Swedish Crime Prize (International) for the Swedish version of her Bella Block Starting Stroman. In 2000 the Glaus Honorary Award of the “Association of German -speaking crime writers – Syndikat” followed for the “Total of a person in the service of German crime”.
Versatile author with a wide range
But Doris Gercke, who also wrote under the pseudonym Marie-Jo Morell and felt connected to the peace movement, was much more than just the creator of Bella Block. The versatile author confidently moved between different literary genres and always demonstrated a fine feeling for language and atmosphere. In addition to her successful crime novels, she also wrote children and youth books that were very well received by young readers.
Further details on the circumstances of their death or to planned memorial events were initially not communicated.
Spotonnews
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
