The beautiful, the rich and the gossip – as the boss of “Bunte”, Patricia Riekel was very powerful here. Now she is 75 and enjoying life. And she has some advice for her younger self.
Who is doing what with whom, who has split up, who is causing a scandal and who made the big appearance? News from the world of the rich and beautiful used to be provided by illustrated magazines and tabloids. Today, stars and starlets inform their fans themselves, via platforms such as Instagram or Tiktok.
For Patricia Riekel, long-time editor-in-chief of the magazine “Bunte”, it’s “a kind of personal court reporting”. “These are image campaigns that should really be labelled as advertising,” the Munich native told the German Press Agency on the occasion of her 75th birthday this Wednesday (June 19).
“Social media have changed tabloid journalism, and print circulation has only one trend: downward,” says Riekel, who was considered the queen of the gossip press. But if you want to look behind the glossy facades of the posts, you can’t avoid well-researched reports, in her opinion.
“It’s about the gap between appearance and reality”
Serious people magazines would have a chance if they described the reality of these celebrities with facts and background information. “It’s about the gap between appearance and reality,” explains the journalist. “Many celebrities are role models that the public looks up to. That’s why it’s so important to show reality.”
However, Riekel no longer has to fight for circulation – she has been retired for around eight years. In April 2016, it was announced that after almost 20 years and more than 1,000 “Bunte” issues, she would no longer be editor-in-chief. Quite a step. “Retirement is always the beginning of the end, because at the end there is not a career waiting, but death,” Riekel said in 2021 on the occasion of the publication of her autobiography “Who am I when I am nothing more?”.
“It’s a melancholy that you always have to reckon with, especially when you observe yourself and suddenly notice that there are a few things that you can’t do so well anymore,” Riekel continued. But she also pointed out the positive aspects: “It’s all balanced out by a great deal of freedom. Free from appointments, from pressure, from obligations. And it’s also an inner independence.”
Time for important things
Three years later, Riekel is enjoying exactly this independence. “The best time of my life is now. No more competition. Freedom in every respect. The knowledge that I no longer have to prove anything to anyone or be accountable,” explains Riekel. “When I work, it doesn’t have to be profitable, it just has to make me happy. I have time for my favorite people, for my friends, and also for my dog and my cats. And I can get involved in things that are important to me and that I previously had little time for.” As examples, she cites the Tribute to Bambi foundation for children in need and local politics for the FDP, of which her husband Helmut Markwort is also a member.
She also wants to celebrate her big birthday with family and friends – “with music, wine, spaghetti and dancing”. Her greatest wish: “Health for all my loved ones and for me”. She sounds satisfied. And yet: if she could give her 25-year-old self one piece of advice from today’s perspective, it would be quite clear: “Hit the table more often”.
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.
