25 Years of TVN – “Imagination is the Beginning”A special edition of “Viva!”, a biweekly, devoted to the 25th anniversary of TVN.
TVN was launched on October 3rd, 1997, at 7.00 pm. Thanks to it, Mariusz Walter’s and Jan Wejchert’s dreams came true. Today, it’s part of one of the largest media groups in the world – Warner Bros. Discovery. And for 25 years, it has offered top-quality news and entertainment to its viewers. Friday. 3 October 1997, the 276th day of the year. In Warsaw, the sun rose at 6.39 am. When it was setting at 6.10 pm, the studio of the newly created TVN station had been extremely tense for several hours. Although it seemed that everything was buttoned up, as the preparations for the day had been underway for several months, emotions ran high. At 7.00 pm, a TV station that Poland hadn’t seen before was supposed to be launched. It was the fulfillment of the dreams and visions of Mariusz Walter and his friend Jan Wejchert. The calendar card from that day shows George Bernard Shaw’s quote, which perfectly reflects what happened then: “Imagination is the beginning. You imagine what you desire. You will what you imagine, and at last, you create what you will.” Today, after 25 years, TVN isn’t just one of the best Polish TV stations. “I think what was crucial for TVN’s success was the extraordinary passion, courage, and willingness to take risks. After all, these features describe our station still today. Its founders created a completely new quality on the Polish market: the first reality show, the first daytime series, or the first news program able to compete with the public television monopoly. For 25 years, viewers have invariably found the best entertainment, news, and, above all, emotions which accompany TV shows on TVN”, Kasia Kieli, President & Managing Director Warner Bross. Discovery in Poland and CEO TVN, told “Press”, a monthly. And on “Wstajesz i wiesz” she added: “We have taken a huge step forward over the last few years. From the TV broadcaster number one, the best in Poland, we have been transformed into the media group number one”. 3, 2, 1… start! “Certainly, it didn’t rain on that day”, says Tomasz Zubilewicz, who has worked for the station since the very beginning. It was he who hosted the first program in the history of TVN. “Pogodowa ruletka”. Tomasz Zubilewicz is recalling those first hours: “I remember that during the first edition of »Fakty«, just after »Pogodowa ruletka«, I was in the control room. In spite of the fact that the “dry run” shows had been aired for several weeks, there was a really thick atmosphere. Incredibly thick. And perhaps because of the stress that all of us felt, there were minor problems. For example, regarding the production, because the program was produced from two control rooms. And the two producers couldn’t come to an agreement on when one of them should take the image over from the other. Consequently, the viewers saw more backs instead of faces.” The first live programs weren’t perfect. There were slip-ups because the crew had to get in sync. But such situations, no matter how long the crew has worked together, are part of TV life, in particular during live programs. Tomasz Jakubiak mentioned one in which he participated: “»Dzień Dobry TVN«. Mother’s Day. Together with Grześ Łapanowski we proposed that we would invite our mums. All of us put on nice clothes. We stand in the kitchen. We go on the air. Marcin Prokop starts to ask questions. I have a kitchen glove on my hand because I just took something out of the oven. And then… I put this glove on the gas cooker, which is turned on. The glove is on fire. We go live. TVN security staff and firefighters enter the studio. The program is stopped. Smoke. Everyone runs aimlessly around the studio. Fortunately, the sprinkler system wasn’t activated. On that first day, in fact, everything went fairly smoothly, and I guess the viewers didn’t suspect that it should have looked different at some points. Tomasz Zubilewicz says that they felt that they created something completely new. A TV station that would be different from those that the viewers had known until then. They knew that they needed to create programs that would keep viewers for longer. And they have succeeded in doing so for all those years. Kasia Kieli said: “Our viewers are incredible. We feel their support at every step. They also stand behind us at more difficult moments.” The Head of TVN Warner Bros. Discovery referred to 2021 when the station’s future was in limbo, and the TVN24 license was renewed just three days before the expiry of the previous one. The station had to have plan B and even C. Constellation “We are proud that we have the courage to look ahead, try to introduce new formats, are responsible for what we do, and, above all, take care of the viewers, offering them the best product”, Kieli says. And the best thing TVN has, apart from the technology, ideas, and courage, is the team, including the stars that viewers can watch every day. It is them who are its strength. No wonder that the station celebrated its 25th anniversary with stars and, naturally, its viewers who gathered in the Forest Opera in Sopot, and those in front of TV sets. On the third day of this year’s Top of the Top Sopot Festival, which TVN has organized since 2005, a special concert #Zawszerazem took place. One of the artists who performed on the stage was a juror of one of the most popular entertainment programs – “Mam Talent!” – Agnieszka Chylińska. The singers included: Kayah, Mery Spolsky, Mrozu, Katarzyna Nosowska, Ralph Kamiński. TVN has given many people a chance to become celebrities loved by viewers. “When »Niania« was launched, TVN had already broadcast for six years. It was the first such a modern TV station. Even the building which I visited for rehearsals was impressive. The standards on the set were also out of this world. We had everything. The station was the first to introduce the scheduled conference attended by authors who presented their TV series and programs,” says Agnieszka Dygant, whose role in “Niania” brought her great popularity. “I used to call TVN the mother TV station”, says Joanna Brodzik, i.e. Kasia from “Kasia i Tomek” series and Poles’ beloved lawyer from “Magda M.” series. “It was a fantastic professional adventure. I gave Magda berets and polka dot fabric, and she gave me something absolutely unique – the smiles of the people I meet every day.” And it was thanks to those people, viewers, that their favorite actors from TV won a majority of prizes which are awarded in Poland Telekamera, Wiktor, Grand Press awards and various industry prizes have been awarded to TVN stars. What is also appreciated is the programs and reports prepared by journalists who aren’t on the air every day but whose professionalism is already iconic. For instance, Bertold Kittel has been nominated for the Grand Press award as many as 20 times. He has received the award seven times and once won the title of Journalist of the Year. No wonder it was he who received the 25th Anniversary Grand Press. These are ‘Fakty” In the beginning, TVN’s most important program was “Fakty” at 7.30 pm. In the first edition, the reporters covered a dramatic rescue of a sinking yacht in the Baltic Sea and interviewed candidates for the post of Prime Minister and Andrzej Gołota, who was still a prospective champion at that time. Although the program was well prepared every day, its authors had a problem. It was aired at the same time as “Wiadomości”, the public TV’s well-established news show. People had been accustomed to it for years and didn’t want to stop watching their favorite program. Even the great journalists who prepared the program at the top level couldn’t help TVN. What helped it was a change in the time it was aired. Since 2 May 1998, the most important news program has been broadcast at 7.00 pm. In 2001, TVN was already a news giant. This is due to the fact that since then, it has offered the first 24-hour news channel in Poland – TVN24. Anita Werner is recalling: “I remember my first day at TVN’s “Fakty” very well because I was so anxious to host the program for the first time that I found it difficult to control my emotions throughout the evening. It was a great honor for me, but also great stress because I was in the studio of the most respected news program, which was already a big brand for me.” On familiar terms with entertainment TVN was a station created by visionaries who also wanted to offer viewers top-class entertainment. Millions of them were attracted to the ‘Milionerzy”, made under the British license and hosted by Hubert Urbański. “That was the beginning of my adventure with TVN. It was 1999. At that time, my hair was … less grey” he’s laughing today. However, all records were broken by “Big Brother”. On 4 March 2001, one of the most controversial reality shows in TV history was launched. Ten thousand candidates wanted to take part in its first edition, out of whom 15 persons were selected to live in the Big Brother house. Paulina Krupinskaya, a host of today’s most popular breakfast TV show, “Dzień Dobry TVN,” told us that she had dreamed about getting an autograph of one of the contestants, Manuela Michalak. The program’s host was Martyna Wojciechowska, for whom “Big Brother” was the beginning. She owes everything that later happened in her professional life to “Big Brother”. During “Domówka u Dowborów” she said: “I have a feeling that I was involved in creating and inventing this modern television. (…) I don’t know if anybody would entrust such responsibility today to a person who hasn’t done any live program before. I learned everything about living organisms.” She added that her life had changed irreversibly as early as the following day: “I went to a store to buy bread rolls and understood that nothing would be the same anymore.” The final episode of the first series, in which the main prize was PLN 500,000, was watched by nine million viewers! Today, that TVN record still holds. Accidentally, it turned out that the program wasn’t pure entertainment. It became a widely discussed socio-cultural phenomenon that has changed the lives of many people, including the participants and hosts. Likewise, nothing was the same for Małgorzata Rozenek after she made her debut in “Perfekcyjna Pani Domu” in 2012. “The then head of TVN Style appeared on the set. She stormed into the studio, and arranged everything. It really helped me, because I was nervous, and completely didn’t know what I was doing. I wasn’t aware of the scale of that undertaking. What was equally challenging emotionally for me was my recent debut as a host of “Dzień Dobry TVN”. It’s crazy What has enjoyed enduring popularity among viewers for years is “Kuchenne rewolucje”. Magda Gessler, the star of the program and a cooking show “MasterChef” juror, won the Wiktor award as the Personality of the Year in 2011 and a Telekamera a year later. During the photo session, she told us: “For nearly 13 years, we’ve done more than 360 episodes. Five years of work day after day, without any break. It’s crazy”. Similar calculations were made by Marcin Tyszka. A photographer and “Top Model” juror says that he has worked for TVN twice. “For the first time, when I did an advertising campaign for the launch of the station. And later, when TVN launched “Top Model”, about 13 years ago. I’ve counted the days I spent on the set. It seems it was two years at a stretch. Olivier Janiak, who has been the host of “Co za tydzień” since 2001, has made about 1,100 episodes over that period, and conducted more than 10,000 interviews. He’s recalling: “I’m one of the screen veterans. It’s an honor and privilege. Only “Fakty” has been aired by TVN longer than “Co za tydzień”, but it’s, of course, a different league.” Jan Kliment, a “My Talent!” juror, says that thanks to the program he has opened a new chapter in his life. “My life has changed. I no longer need to dance every day. But I’m also pleased that, thanks to my participation in it, I have an influence on other people’s future”. Fate has steered Daria Ładocha’s professional life at TVN in such a direction that she started as a girl from the kitchen and ended up as the host of one of the big entertainment programs, “Azja Express”. “I remember the day that changed my life. Dorota Gardias was filming material on children’s nutrition. With me and in my kitchen. Later, I received an invitation to the studio to say everything again. And I stayed. Thanks to my work at TVN, I’m constantly improving my craft, getting to know new people and places, and most importantly, I’m not standing still. I’m developing, even if sometimes it’s an uphill struggle. We will be stronger When Mariusz Walter said on the first day: “Our station has been launched. It’s actually your station, not ours “, he hoped that his words would be reflected in reality and that TVN would become a viewers’ station. “TVN shows people the part of life we should dream about, which makes our secret dreams come true. If it disappears, people will stop dreaming. Only dullness will remain“, Magda Gessler says. Olivier Janiak believes that thanks to the quality of journalism and top-class content, TVN has lots of great years ahead: “Despite the quarter of the century on the market and great experience, I can see that we still want to develop, teach new things and carefully address viewers’ needs.” Marcin Prokop, a host of “Dzień Dobry TVN”, “Lego Masters” and “Mam Talent!””, in his style, with a great sense of humor for which viewers love him, says: “It’s a combination of circus, parrot training, and trade in various emotions. I wouldn’t call it work. Rather fun. It seems to me that thanks to it, viewers also enjoy watching the programs I host.” The Head of TVN Warner Bros. Discovery, Kasia Kieli, is convinced that TVN’s position in Poland will strengthen. In “Press” she said: “We participate in changes and learn from our experience in other markets. That’s why for more than two years, we have been consistently transforming TVN from a TV broadcaster into a modern media group operating on all platforms and offering viewers the best programs where they want to watch them. As a result of the merger, the Warner Bros. Discovery group has been formed, which offers huge opportunities for our station. There is no other media group in the Polish market with such strong brands as TVN, TVN24, HBO, CNN, Eurosport, Discovery, Player, or HBO Max. And it’s just the beginning of our road, and there’s a lot ahead of us. But one thing is certain: we are starting a new quarter of a century stronger than ever”. |
