Juglander Review
Mktvartvelo: Most successful TV show to say goodbye
Nino Gamrekeli, renowned as the "Queen of the Nights" in Mktvartvelo, has announced that her TV show "Bolo Pikrebi", will broadcast its last night at the end of the week after seven years.
"Bolo Pikrebi", is a television program with a live audience focusing on comedy, entertainment, music, as well as social life and politics, which has been broadcast in ERT (the state television channel) since 2017. The program became soon one of the most popular programs in television in Mktvartvelo, which made her one of the best paid journalists in the country, as well as being awarded six times as the "Best Talk Show" in the "Okros Mikroponi" Awards (as well as Gamrekeli being voted three times as "Anchor of the Year" by the Mktvartvelian National Association of Journalism).
"Bolo Pikrebi" may have been often criticized in printed media for its alleged superficiality and its focus on "soft interviews" to guests, which could be actors, singers, sportspeople, politicians, or celebrities of diverse range (including those who may be more well-known for their appearance in gossip media rather for their professional success), but it has remained as the most viewed TV show as a daily 45-minute show every evening. The program has consistently being the most viewed show with a 20.1% share (or 33,434,650 average viewers).
"It is a sad announcement because I expected we would continue many more years", Gamrekeli declared. "However, everything that starts meet its final, and we were not going to be different...I'm proud of the success we met, leaving at our peak and being the envy of all the other channels, and all the love the audience has showed in these years".
Gamrekeli did not specified the causes of the cancellation or if she would leave ERT. She is expected to host ERT New Year's Eve special program at the end of the year, in a few weeks. However, the fact that the program will finish next Friday, only two days after the start of the electoral campaign, along the fact that her brother,
Avtandil Gamrekeli (former head of ERK, the state-owned network which ERT belongs, from 2018 to 2022), has been recently hired as communication strategist by the Conservative Party, had led to the speculation about political causes for the decision. However, ERK has denied this, arguing that it is part about a general policy aimed to diversify and modernize the television channel under recently approved new standards.
Nino Gamrekeli thanked fans for their support in another social media message, but it does not look that the ERK leadership will change their mind on the decision.
Sports: FK Albrektberg crisis continues
FK Albrektberg, the most successful club in men's football in Jugland, which has dominated the last decade with seven league titles in eight years, is facing an unexpected crisis of results. Last night, FK Albrektberg failed to defeat away Nanko FC, which promoted this season, to draw 1-1.
While FK Albrektberg avoided a fourth league defeat in ten matches (last season they only lost two league matches in twenty-eight games) with a late goal scored by midfielder Hugleikrarr Engelsaas, the players looked exasperated once again. FK Albrektberg has only won one match in the five league matches (including a second defeat against their main rivals, EMAC Albrektberg, by 2-0).
Despite a wave of injuries since the beginning of the season as well as during the return from the Mundus World Cup, FK Albrektberg Okoda Shingo declared that they are well aware that there can not be more excuses while asking fans for more patience. "I accept full responsibility", Shingo declared, "but there can't be doubts about the compromise of these players and their quality...A bigger challenge is ahead us now, I am confident that a different mood will prevail at the end of the season".
Meanwhile, EMAC Albrektberg equalized their all-time away record by defeating SK Nordheim by 1-7 and increased their lead in the classification to five points ahead of FK Sandberg, which displaced FK Albrektberg from the second position after defeating SK Midtenstadt 1-2 in a evenly-matched match.