– I am incredibly grateful to have known her, says Sølsnes to NRK.
Bech, or Ellen Åse Bech Langballe, as her real name was, was known as a journalist, editor – and not least presenter of the series “Herskapelig” on NRK.
Among other things, Toppen Bech was the presenter of the popular NRK program “Herskapelig”.
Photo: Solum, Stian Lysberg, Stian Lysberg Solum / NTB scanpix
It is the daughter Alexandra Bech Gjørv who informs about the death Aftenpostenthe newspaper where she started as a substitute journalist in 1959.
– Mum’s journalistic work ended in 2006, but she experienced that both the Herskapelig programs and her books have been popular up until today, the daughter tells the newspaper.
Still, it is probably as a presenter at NRK that the vast majority of people know her.
There, she has been the presenter of TV programs such as “Unskylð at je sør”, “Den blå timen”, “Frokost-TV” and the documentary series “Herskapelig”.
The series was about Norwegian large farms and mansions, and ran from 1997 to 2006 (see video in article).
She has also been a presenter in “Nitimen”
Toppen Bech together with his good friend Terje Sølsnes.
Photo: NTB
– A unique person
The former program host and presenter at NRK, Terje Sølnes, was a good friend of Toppen Bech. He was also her co-presenter in Frokost-TV in NRK.
Sølsnes last saw her a week and a half ago.
– She was a unique person, he says to NRK.
– “Herskapelig” was a huge success, and a cultural monument that Norway should be very proud and happy to have. She has then documented families, places that would perhaps have disappeared, disappeared for us, if she had not been there.
Here, Bech receives the King’s Medal of Merit in gold from King Harald.
Photo: NTB
– And it was everything from the large family places to a lighthouse in northern Norway. There was no difference between big and small, nice and simple. Everything was important, he says.
– Toppen Bech was an exceptional person. She was unique in many ways and she was a particularly good journalist, says Sølsnes.
– Very sad
Broadcasting manager Vibeke Fürst Haugen describes Bech as one of NRK’s great TV personalities.
– She was knowledgeable and committed and was able to convey cultural history to many people, says Haugen.
Broadcasting manager Vibeke Fürst Haugen singles out Toppen Bech as one of NRK’s great TV personalities of all time.
Photo: Anton Lier / Anton Lier / NRK
NRK’s entertainment editor Charlo Halvorsen says he was very sad when he received the news of Bech’s passing.
– Toppen will also be remembered at NRK as a good colleague with a great journalistic understanding of what sopm hit the public with, he says.
Halvorsen also remembers Bech best from “Herskapelig”.
– Here, Toppen not only added a bit of education to NRK, but also significant historical interest in magnificent Norwegian homes through the ages. Toppen led us through the program series with a distinct joy of storytelling and a deep understanding that these homes were an important part of our common cultural history.
Schjøll: – She was the one who saw me
Finn Schjøll has also worked together with Toppen Bech in NRK’s Frokost-TV in the 80s.
– I am very sorry. She saw me. She has given me a wonderful gift. I would never be me without her, he says frankly.
– It was she who saw me, he explains.
– She saw me in the flower shop, and then she got me on TV, so in a way she has given me a wonderful gift, says Schjøll, who describes Bech as a public information officer.
Top Bech together with Finn Schjøll.
Photo: NTB
Received the King’s Medal of Merit in gold
Bech has also written and published several books.
Among other things, she has written the books “Magic Kenya” and “Walks in Spain”, “Herskapelige Norge”, “A house full of dreams” and “Grandmother Grandma”.
In 2007, she was awarded the King’s Medal of Merit in gold. She received it for her role as a cultural mediator in the service of public information.
Akerø refers to Toppen Bech as a pioneer.
Photo: Daniel Eriksen / NRK
Another NRK profile, Dan Børge Akerø, refers to Toppen Bech as a pioneer.
– Here it is important to look back on a brilliant, brilliant career in the context of NRK.
– What she did was truly pioneering and different from what many of my colleagues at the time did, he says.
– As a journalist, she was interested in creating nice things that others didn’t think of, or neglected, says Akerø, and adds:
– Of course, it was always nice to be with her at work. She was absolutely brilliant. I never saw her in a bad mood, he concludes.
Toppen Bech takes us to reruns of the Herskapelig series. Today Chateau Merveilleux, Hvaler.