Once there were court shows like sand on the sea. But without a doubt, Barbara Salesch was always one of the most prominent figureheads of the genre. Now the judge returns to TV. From September she will be judging new cases on RTL.
The retro wave is rolling through German television - and in a few weeks it will bring television judge Barbara Salesch back into the living room. "Barbara Salesch – The Criminal Court" will be shown on weekdays from September 5 at 11 a.m. (also available on RTL). This was announced by RTL.
"I'm very happy that it's starting again. The audience is always interested in court," Salesch is quoted as saying by the Cologne broadcaster. The "old professionalism" will be combined with "the latest developments".
According to RTL, stories based on true events should be told in front of Salesch's judge's desk. "Modern evidence" such as smartphone videos, voice messages and chat histories also played an important role. Entertainment is offered as well as a moral compass.
Salesch's colleague Ulrich Wetzel, previously a TV judge at RTL ("Das criminal court"), should also return in front of the cameras. An exact start date for his show "Ulrich Wetzel – The Criminal Court" has not yet been given.
The first court programs ran on German TV as early as the 1960s. At the turn of the millennium, however, the genre experienced a real boom, which produced numerous formats in private broadcasters as well as in public service programming. From 1999 to 2003, for example, "Streit um Drei" ran on ZDF. In addition to "The Criminal Court" (2002-2008), "The Juvenile Court" (2001-2007) and "The Family Court" (2002-2007) joined RTL.
"Richter Barbara Salesch" (1999 - 2012) ran at the time, as did "Richter Alexander Hold" (2001 - 2013) on Sat.1. Salesch, who is now 72, studied law and before her TV career worked, among other things, as a public prosecutor and judge in Hamburg.
