Friendship becomes a podcast: Anke Engelke and Riccardo Simonetti talk together about dreams, goals and crazy anecdotes from show business. And BRIGITTE spoke to both of them about their connection.
Both are so likeable that you really want to be friends with them: Anke Engelke and Riccardo Simonetti. So it’s no wonder that they met on the TV set and fell in love with each other almost immediately. This friendship has now become a joint podcast: “Quality Time” (everywhere there are podcasts). We spoke to the TV jacks of all trades about quality time and their special relationship.
Anke Engelke and Riccardo Simonetti in an interview
BRIGITTE: “Life is a stage” says Anke in the first episode, but how much quality time does your prominent life still allow?
Anke Engelke: A lot, don’t worry: I not only enjoy the time with my family, my travels, a good book and an even better sandwich with jam, but also my work. Main prize, so to speak!
Riccardo Simonetti: I’m always trying to create windows in which this is possible. It may not be the same as it used to be – but that’s why quality time may be even more important in life today!
Your schedule is full. Let’s assume you have five free hours for quality time: What are you doing, where and with whom?
Anke: It really depends on my condition: When I’m exhausted after a day of shooting, I consider a lot of sleep to be quality time, when I’m on vacation with my family I can play board games for hours, stare at the mountains or the sea and flip I’m bursting with happiness inside, and with my best friend Kristian Thees, even a 5-hour evening at the opera can be quality time – anything is possible, the main thing is that I can fully engage with what’s happening.
Riccardo: I think quality time is simply time after which you feel better than before. This can sometimes be time with your partner, but sometimes it can also be just an hour of exercise alone. The main thing is that you spend this hour consciously doing an activity that feels right.
What quality would you like to have in the other person and why?
Anke: Riccardo’s politeness is admirable: recently we were interviewed a lot for the promotion of our podcast, among others by a very excitable young reporter, who with his question-singing sounded like a very successful parody of an over-committed fashion show commentator. I was about to answer in a deliberately matter-of-fact manner when Riccardo took over and showered the reporter with kindness. Both of them beamed even more afterwards, only I stood there like a stupid August and realized: Nobody doesn’t deserve politeness!
Riccardo: I would love to have so much from Anke. Her comedic timing, for example, but also her direct way of conveying things factually and understandably. And I find their radicalism in terms of the environment admirable! Anke is simply my absolute role model in so many ways.
What is a special talent of the other person that you don’t know from TV – but that everyone should know about?
Anke: Riccardo is very good at drawing, his style is a mixture of hyperrealism and caricature, and the sketch he recently drew in a guest book in no time at all is probably already worth millions.
Riccardo: Anke is incredibly good at baking. Your vegan cookies have given me so many happy moments! They really come with love in a preserving jar straight from the Engelke kitchen… (laughs).
Before you fell in love with each other on the set of Steal My Show, did you have certain prejudices about the other person?
Anke: I had already seen Riccardo on TV and found him very interesting, I was really curious about him. That he was a social media star, I couldn’t do that much with the info, because I had prejudices and thought that these were people who were paid to hold products in the camera and smile at the maximum of happiness. Now I know: Riccardo likes to influence people and he may have held something in front of cameras, but his influence is always related to enlightenment and what he holds up to the camera is not only a beautiful face, but also an extremely intelligent, reflective one Head!
Riccardo: I’ve always been a huge admirer of Anke’s talent, who isn’t? On the set, however, I fell in love with Anke, who I experienced when the cameras were still off and we were standing around doing the wiring, for example. How she treats people, how funny she is off-camera and how much warmth she exudes is truly captivating. She observes, is attentive, also questions, but does not judge without reason. She is also always an inspiration off the stage.
You also talk about dreams, but you have achieved everything: What personal milestones are you still dreaming of, what are you manifesting at the moment?
Anke: For 45 years, I’ve been taking it easy: I combine interesting challenges that come my way with my talent and my discipline. It has worked and I am incredibly happy that I am constantly being offered new projects. My dream would be that I can continue to try so many different things and that it will stop that Riccardo has to be five times as convincing as unvarnished straight men.
Riccardo: My list is still very long (laughs). Well, on the one hand I would like to do a lot more professionally – shoot a horror film, for example. I wouldn’t mind being on the cover of Vogue either, though, when they’re ready for a man made up. I thought Anke’s cover was great! Even in my private life, I don’t want to stop working on myself to be the best version of myself that I can be.
Radicality – whether with a tree trunk or with empathy – is also an issue for you. You said in which areas you are radical. In which areas do you wish yourselves to be even more radical and where does it fail?
Anke: Oh, I would like to handle the radicalism with care, and neither on principle nor arbitrarily. Be radically honest, radically tolerant. Now “radical” sounds too brutal for me, but it’s all about reliability and integrity: I just like it when you can rely on me.
Riccardo: I would like to be a little less emotionally biased by what people write about me on the internet. It’s a very selfish thing, but I think if I could do it my life would be so much better. I really try to make a difference every day of my life – in my private life, on a small scale, but also in public. Being criticized again and again and never being able to please everyone, that gnaws at me on bad days. And I would like to detach myself from that and concentrate on the good. To the people who see that I try.