When does Verbotene Liebe air?
2639433#31
After seven years on the air, the soap opera started slowly to lose viewers. Still a ratings success several cast changes seemed to hurt the show in the process. When Das Erste decided to change the airtime of both soaps, "Verbotene Liebe" (5:50 pm) and "Marienhof" (6:20 pm), particularly "VL" had now to challenge RTL's soap opera "Unter uns", which ended at 6:00 pm. After two years, Das Erste changed the airtime again. "Verbotene Liebe" started around 6:00 pm and still provided the lead-in for "Marienhof", which started around 6:25 pm again. In the meanwhile, the Pay-TV channel Passion started airing repeats in late 2006. However, the original airings of "Verbotene Liebe" and "Marienhof" continued to lose viewers and in late 2010 cancellation rumors started to surround fan bases. Das Erste eventually canceled "Marienhof" after over 18 years on the air and continued "Verbotene Liebe", extending their episodes to 50 minutes with commercial breaks. The glamor soap served as the lead-in for various new crime dramedy series'. With the extension, "VL" now aired repeats on several ARD stations.
Verbotene Liebe
2639433#24
On 4 September 2014, official word broke that "Verbotene Liebe" would return as a weekly series in 2015 as soon as airing on the daily format has stopped. The network ordered 15 episodes and will air the weekly series Fridays at 6:50 PM. The show will introduce a new central character, Mila von Draskow (who has yet to be cast), and still feature members of the Lahnstein family - namely Elisabeth, Ansgar, Sebastian, Tanja, Tristan and Rebecca, original character Charlie Schneider, the Helmke brothers and the younger set around Charlie's nephew Olli who are sharing a flat. Sets like the bistro Schneiders and the bar No Limits will also still be a part of the show. "There will be a new "Verbotene Liebe" with more shooting time, more opulent images and a dense plot. And yet the new look will still deliver intrigue, passion and great feelings - like many fans of "Verbotene Liebe" wished", said ARD coordinator of access primetime Frank Beckmann about the renewal.
Verbotene Liebe
2639433#30
In the beginning, "Verbotene Liebe" aired weekdays at around 5:55 pm on Das Erste and was followed by fellow soap opera "Marienhof", creating a soap line-up for the network. The line-up proved successful in its early years and showed a lot of contrast. "VL" was labeled as glamor soap, while "Marienhof" showed the working-class of fictional district in Cologne. Becoming a huge success, Das Erste decided to show reruns in the early morning. With a break from about nine months, the network aired the first 250 episodes, who later were labeled as the show's first season.
Verbotene Liebe
2639433#39
One year later, "Verbotene Liebe" faced rumors of cancellation, when Das Erste announced intended changes to the lineup. The show was revamped, and eventually it was lead-out soap "Marienhof" that went off the air in mid-2011. "Verbotene Liebe" was extended to an hour and took over "Marienhof"'s problematic time-slot, resulting in a dip in ratings. The ratings got much worse in 2012, which again led to rumors that the soap opera might get canceled. Overall, "Verbotene Liebe" halved its ratings in the last five years.
Verbotene Liebe
2639433#32
The line-up however was changed when the network signed Thomas Gottschalk and developed a new evening talk show for him. "Gottschalk Live" premiered in January 2012, causing "Verbotene Liebe" to lose about six minutes per episode and being a rival to "Unter uns" again. The talk show failed miserably and was canceled in June 2012. That led to the network changing the air time of "Verbotene Liebe" yet again. It was announced that the soap opera would return to its old time slot at 6:00pm. However, "VL" actually airs now around 6:10pm. Fans complained about the several air time changes, indicating that the glamor soap and former glory of the Das Erste evening program has become the ugly step-child.
Verbotene Liebe
2639433#19
An official statement by Das Erste was made on 18 July 2014; confirming the cancellation. Director of Program Volker Herres said: "20 years ago, the siblings Jan and Julia made "Verbotene Liebe" a German series hit. Who could have guessed back then that VL, as the glamor soap was soon only be called, would have such a long breath? But eventually all shades of the forbidden and glamorous are told. It is then necessary to stop at the right time. And in our opinion this is now. As painful as it may be for the loyal fans of the series. But one thing is sure: "Verbotene Liebe" wrote television history." ARD coordinator of access primetime Frank Beckmann added: "With great dedication and impressive creativity, the team of "Verbotene Liebe" has shaped the access primetime for years. We know the strength of the brand and the importance of their loyal fans. Therefore, we consider whether we can offer "Verbotene Liebe" in another form at a later date." The statement also confirmed that the soap opera will be replaced by the game show Quizduell, which was tested for four weeks in May 2014, and that "Verbotene Liebe" will air its series finale most likely in the beginning of 2015.
Verbotene Liebe
2639433#18
On 17 July 2014 the Bild newspaper was first to report that the show has been canceled. Online magazine DWDL later confirmed the report, saying they were able to name several more sources about the cancellation. The reports suggest that "Verbotene Liebe" is finishing its last year and airing into January 2015; long enough to let the show live through its 20th anniversary.
Verbotene Liebe
2639433#7
German television channel Das Erste ("The First") began airing "Verbotene Liebe" in January 1995 after many months of planning and production. The project was initially planned for RTL Television, another German channel, but executives there were skeptical that the concept of a love story between a brother and a sister could prove successful. Das Erste took on the project and told the memorable story of Jan Brandner and Julia von Anstetten, two young people who find themselves immediately drawn to each other, although they have just met. The affecting story of the two siblings is told in the first 600 episodes, and is identified today with the series title. In addition to Jan and Julia and their love story, the complex scheming of the other characters made the show popular with audiences. Clarissa von Anstetten becomes popular as Jan and Julia's conniving mother, earning her an unofficial title as the German Alexis Colby. (The "real" Alexis Colby, Joan Collins, had a brief recurring role as Lady Joan on "Verbotene Liebe" in 2010.) Tanja von Anstetten, too, soon rises to fame for being a murderous vixen. This classic formula brought "Verbotene Liebe" attention in the press and, with it, a large fan base resulting in three million viewers tuning in on a daily basis.
Verbotene Liebe
2639433#17
Rumors about a cancellation of the soap opera were first made back in the fall of 2010 after "Verbotene Liebe" and fellow soap opera "Marienhof" performed not well and "Verbotene Liebe" lost viewers a third year in a row. However, in February 2011, a decision was made about Das Erste's access primetime. "Marienhof" was canceled and "Verbotene Liebe" extended from 20 to 45 minutes. The ARD hoped that "Verbotene Liebe" could gain viewers again, brought back fan favorite - and original cast member - Isa Jank (Clarissa von Anstetten) and reintroduced the original story about siblings Jan and Julia; although the roles were recast. However the return of Jank's character was reviewed by most fans as underwhelming and the recasting of Jan and Julia got mixed reviews as well. "Verbotene Liebe" continued to lose in ratings and by 2014, the soap opera performed well under the market share of Das Erste.
Verbotene Liebe
27009#121
While "Gute Zeiten, schlechte Zeiten", "Unter uns" and "Alles was zählt" are currently the only daily soaps on the air after "Verbotene Liebe" has been cancelled and aired its last episode in June, 2015 due to low ratings, the telenovelas "Sturm der Liebe" and "Rote Rosen" are considered soaps by the press as well, thanks to the changing protagonists every season.
Soap opera