Ramp Ahead

Dick Bakker convinces Onno Bosman to produce a stage show about the sinking of the cruise ship 'Onan' and hires Fred Haché, Barend Servet, Sjef van Oekel and Ir. Van der Pik to star.

This VPRO's ‘summer classic’ is based on an equally simple and refreshing idea that originated in 1988: When during the summer most of the channels are showing reruns, ask interesting people people to curate their ‘favorite television evening’ and let them clarify the fragments in a long-form interview/conversation. The programme was first aired in 1988. Each episode takes up an entire Sunday evening, lasting typically three hours. It consists of an in-depth studio interview with a notable Dutch, Belgian or other Dutch-speaking foreigner, interspersed with cinema or television footage selected by the guest, which is subsequently discussed. Guests include writers, scientists, television personalities, politicians or business people.

We zijn weer thuis is the last of the television series that Wim T. Schippers made for the VPRO. Written by Schippers and directed by him and Ellen Jens, the dramady series ran from 1989 to 1995.

In Cross Now, during a blazing row with his boss, strangely enough architect Michael Ponsford still gets his promotion. However, he does not get much time to enjoy it, because, in the middle of the argument, his boss suffers a heart attack. And he is not the only one to die. Ponsford is haunted by death: the woman with whom he had been flirting for too long, his wife's father, one of his competitors, they all succumb. Finally, Ponsford's young son also dies.

In order to get more customers to their rural inn, Karel and Truus have come up with a stunt. Karel will beat the record for being buried alive. After 124 days the media finally show up.

A cat who turns into a young woman helps a journalist protect their town from a factory boss with an evil plan.

Heinz is Amsterdam personified: a happy-go-lucky freeloader. However, he's in big trouble with his girlfriend Dolly. One day he is looking after their baby - the next day he finds himself on a mysterious island, and his son is missing! As he searches desperately for the boy, Heinz discovers he's been an unwitting pawn in the evil schemes of the diabolical windbag Git. During a spectacular showdown in New York, Heinz thwarts Git's attempts to eradicate mankind and rescues his son - sort of...

Sjef van Oekel escapes from prison and heads for a restaurant. Unfortunately there is nobody there to annoy. Even at the train station he is ignored by former colleagues and he ends up alone.

Dora Leenders is about to give birth. Since she was impregnated during a school reunion, she invites both men whom she had sex with that night to her flat to witness the birth.

Martha overhears Bernard and John talking about blackmail. Jacob has come up with a plan that includes a mysterious key. Brothers Bobby and Arnold, eternal rivals, both fancy Martha, but also have a soft spot for Leonie. The latter gets tasked to learn more about Jacob's plan. A dead man is discovered lying in Bernard's office late at night by somebody else searching the premises. When the main conspirators all gather at the Zevenhuis villa, John declines to cooperate...

A performance of Joseph Haydn's Hour Symphony is interrupted several times within half an hour.

An ode to multi-talented artist and radio and television producer Wim T. Schippers by absurdist Ronald Snijders. In a cheerfully disruptive manner, Snijders guides the viewer through a richly illustrated overview of Schippers' work, where they meet the man who could both seduce and intentionally bore, confuse, shock, and irritate Dutch television viewers. Many clips of Schippers became legendary, such as Queen Juliana cleaning Brussels sprouts, a naked Phil Bloom reading the newspaper, and the shows featuring Barend Servet and Sjef van Oekel. Schippers wrote the sheepdog play Going to the Dogs and has been the voice of Ernie in Sesamstraat for many years.

A nearly 30 minute long conversation in a living room party. Unlike in a regular TV play the jabber conversation can hardly be understood. Sometimes a line or two can be picked up. There's an intermezzo when Schippers alias Jacques Plafond comes to play one of his 'modern' piano pieces, to the disgust of the party's guests, whose chattering in the end isn't far removed from the piano play.

Otanes is certain that Smerdis, King of Persia is an impostor. He gathers together a group of people to stage a coup, only to face the question of which one of them will be worthy to take the throne.

A young farmer's wife brings her husband something to eat in the field during summer time.