The observant viewer will not see reporter and presenter Tom van den Oetelaar appear on Omroep Brabant in the coming months. But for a very good reason: he is going to write a biography about Jos Brink.
You don’t have to explain to anyone who Jos Brink is. But Tom was sorry that he seemed to sink a little bit into people’s memories. “I find that remarkable because he has been incredibly popular. He is someone who has made a huge mark on the Netherlands and has meant a lot for the social debate. Just think of gay emancipation. He has done so much that I thought: there must be a book about being written. “
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Jos Brink was responsible for countless unforgettable television moments. He kissed Queen Juliana against all the rules, made musicals, wrote books and presented programs like ‘Bet, dat ..?’ So that could turn out to be a fist-thick biography. “It is a project of I have you there. I am then drawing what should be included and that is quite a bit. So it is a challenge”, says Tom van den Oetelaar.
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Personal connection
Besides a dose of admiration, the Omroep Brabant reporter also has a personal connection with Jos Brink. It all started when, as a young journalist, Tom met Jos’s partner Frank Sanders. “In 1996 Jos Brink asked me what my ambition actually was. I said I wanted to be on television. Then he said:” There are more people wanting that. Do you already have a pilot? ” I didn’t have that, so he came to Uden with Frank on a day off with the Mercedes and we recorded a pilot for a talk show in the studio of the local broadcaster, so in that sense I also have something personal with him. “
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Tom has a lot of work to do in the coming months. He has received boxes full of archive material, from photo albums to stuff from musicals and scrapbooks. Until mid-December, he will not be seen with his beloved broadcaster and he will fully focus on the book. We still have to wait and see when the book will be in the shops. “It’s a huge job so I’ll report when it’s finished!”
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