The continuation after advertising
Will Samuel Etienne be still in charge of “questions for a champion” at the start of the school year? Not sure ! 24 hours after the shock announcement of France Télévisions to end the daily broadcast of the cult game adapted in France in 1988, his star animator spoke this Sunday morning. On his Twitch channel, Samuel Etienne regretted “a bad decision” of the leaders of France 3.
Ni “coller”, it “orthuma”, it “trisses”
“I agree to continue the adventure on Saturday and Sunday. I find it very shame but I tell myself that if I went, there is a little risk that the show will stop definitivelysaid the one succeeded Julien Lepers at the helm of the game in early 2016. I hope that the mobilization of viewers (…) will have enough strength for the Directorate of France Télévisions to reconsider its decision. I have hope “.
Assuring that he had neither “anger”, nor “bitterness”, nor “sadness”, Samuel Etienne even proposed a “deal” in the public service. “”If they wish to resume the daily broadcast of ‘questions for a champion’ in exchange for my head, I accept it with great pleasure (…) I don’t need television to live and bring my family to life. I do it for the game, its audience, its teams“He launched live before adding:”I have nothing personally and humanly against people who make this decision, I just think it’s a bad decision, and I have the right to say it, he insisted. The origin of the problem is not in France Télévisions (…) There are gigantic savings to do in ‘questions for a champion’ because the state gives less and less money“.
This change in programming was formalized on Saturday evening by France Télévisions and welcomed with “surprise” and “sadness” by the producer, Fremantle. “CThis decision was not easy. It is part of a particularly constrained budgetary context, which forces us to rethink our grid balances“Explained number 2 of France Télévisions, Stéphane Sitbon Gomez, in a statement sent to AFP.
On X (ex-Twitter), Bruno Fallot, the boss of Freemantle France who produces the emblematic program, posted a very long message. He indicates: “I was informed of the decision of France Télévisions to reduce the volume of broadcasting of “questions for a champion”, now limited to the editions of Saturday and Sunday. This change marks a major break with a daily historical programming, which punctuates the afternoon ends of the French and regularly remains leader in its tranche. “QPUC” is not only an iconic game. It is a heritage, popular, intelligent program, which brings together a faithful, intergenerational and any social class every day. It is also an exceptional success due to its longevity, carried by production teams committed, talented and deeply attached to their mission”.
To read also: “I will stop there”: the very strong emotion of a candidate of “questions for a champion” on France 3
And Bruno Fallot to continue: “I want to pay a tribute supported to the Fremantle teams, very high level professionals who have always been able to renew themselves without ever betraying the DNA of an emblematic program of French television, as well as Samuel Etienne who has been animating this game with talent for 9 years. At a time when France Télévisions is going through an unprecedented budget crisis, we understand the need to make financial arbitrations. However, managing to reduce such a unifying program questions the means given to public service to fulfill its mission. We remain fully mobilized so that “QPUC” continues to play the role that is his: that of a pillar of French television, in the service of knowledge, transmission and link between generations, keeping the place he deserves in the hearts of the French … and on their screen.”
