2024-09-08 04:56:14
For more than 40 years she was the woman at Thomas Gottschalk’s side, posing with him in the spotlight. But then they separated – and Thea disappeared.
The sparks flew at a medical ball. At the beginning of the 1970s, Thomas Gottschalk fell in love with his Thea. He was 22 years old at the time and dressed as a farmhand, she was four years older and wore a silk bathrobe with a flower arrangement in her hair. They became a couple and four years later they said “I do”. The two married on November 11, 1976.
In the same year, Thomas Gottschalk made the leap from radio to television. Since then, the 74-year-old has been an integral part of show business. And the former “Wetten, dass..?” presenter is also a welcome guest at events. Every now and then he was accompanied onto the red carpet by his then wife. As was the case at the Richard Wagner Festival in 2018.
That summer, Thea and Thomas Gottschalk visited the Bayreuth Festival together. He wore a black suit, she wore a gold dress. Thea Gottschalk added a touch of color with her hair, which she had dyed blue. At that time, the media did not yet know that it would be their last joint appearance as a couple.
Eight months later, the marriage ended completely unexpectedly. Thea and Thomas Gottschalk announced their separation through a lawyer. After the failed marriage, the presenter carried on happily. Shortly afterwards, he presented the anniversary show “50 Years of ZDF Hit Parade”, and shortly after that he made headlines with his appearance in the “Germany’s Next Top Model” finale.
After “Herbstblond” he also published another book: “Herbstbunt”. And in between, the entertainer introduced his new girlfriend. Two months after announcing the separation, Thomas Gottschalk appeared with Karina Mroß for the first time at an event in Europa-Park Rust. Once again, the presenter dominated the headlines.
Meanwhile, Thea Gottschalk disappeared into obscurity. The 78-year-old withdrew, no longer appeared in public without her ex-husband, and instead lived a life far away from the cameras. In the 1990s, she emigrated to Malibu, California. She stayed there after the separation. Thomas Gottschalk moved back to Germany – to his Karina.
His ex-wife was facing a new phase in her life, without the man she had loved for more than four decades. “It wasn’t easy for her to cope with it,” her son Roman said in an interview with “Bunte” in 2023. “But now my mother has come to terms with it and is living her life.”
A few months after the interview, Thea Gottschalk suddenly appeared on the scene again – almost five years after the marriage ended. Her son had posted a photo of them together on Instagram. The comments section quickly became full of compliments. “She looks stunning,” wrote one person, for example. “I could look at the photo over and over again. It’s so nice to see Thea. More of that please!” demanded another.
Also read: “Thea, we miss you so much.” Words that the 78-year-old has clearly taken to heart. Because four months later, Thea Gottschalk created a profile for herself on Instagram. She has been active on the social media platform since February 2024, letting her 5,000 followers share in her life. Sometimes she posts pictures of herself, sometimes snapshots of her cats.
She also gave interviews again and spoke to “Bunte” about her move into social networks. “It’s Elke Heidenreich’s fault that I started using Instagram now,” she told the magazine in April. “I saw her on a talk show where she said that she posts on Instagram. So I thought to myself, I’ll try it now too.” And so Thea Gottschalk suddenly returned to the limelight.