Top 10 Best German Celebrities

Last week, I posted about the worst German celebrities, in my opinion. Today it’s the turn of the best German celebrities. But before I go ahead with the list, here’s some Hinweis (cue) for all of you reading this post: there are some celebrities on this list who aren’t German but are considered to be celebrities in Germany. Also, some of the celebrities are actually a bunch or team (hint, hint). With that out of the way, let’s all dive in!

Günther Jauch

My girlfriend is fond of saying – don’t ask me why – that Günther Jauch is the perfect son-in-law for every German mother-in-law. Perhaps it’s something her mum always says. Günther has hosted a whole truckload of German TV shows and is the current host of Wer wird Millionär

Günther Jauch

which is the German version of the Millionaire show. He has a really affable personality and gets along splendidly with guests on the show. He actually reminds me of the Indian actor Amitabh Bachan who hosted the Indian version of that show; albeit less louder. Unsurprisingly, Jauch is invited to a lot of German talk shows and celebrity quiz shows as a guest where he always brings along his typical charm.

Moritz Bleibtreu

Moritz Bleibtreu is one of my favorite German actors. His parents are actually Austrian and his mother was the famous German language actress Monica Bleibtreu. Over the years Moritz has shown his ability for being a versatile actor through his roles in movies such as

Moritz Bleibtreu

Im Juli (In July), Das Experiment (The Experiment), Lammbock and Der Baader Meinhof Komplex (The Baader Meinhof Complex). He has also starred in minor roles in some Hollywood movies. Moritz still has some way to go in becoming a star celebrity, but I think if he keeps acting this way, he will get there for sure.

Nena

Nena (real name Gabriele Susanne Kerner) is a German singer who shot to fame in 1983 for her hit single 99 Luftballons (99 Balloons). This song carried a message of an anti-nuclear protest and turned Nena into an instant sensation in Germany,

Nena

the rest of Europe, and later the world. An English version was released as well. But Nena is more than this one song. Her music did have a dip in the 1990s but recovered in the 2000s and now she’s one of the coaches of the show The Voice of Germany which brings new German singing talent to the fore. More than thirty years after 99 Luftballons Nina’s career and her music are on the rise again.

Peter Fox

While we’re on the subject of music, let’s not forget Peter Fox. Peter is a German reggae and hip hop singer and is really good. He has many songs, singles and albums under his belt both as a part of Seeed (one of my favorite German bands) and solo.

Peter Fox

Peter has enjoyed great success since his 2008 album Stadtaffen (Urban Apes) and his star has climbed ever since. Since 2001 he has suffered from facial nerve paralysis to the right side of his face. This could have been an impairment for some artists but Peter has sort of turned it into his signature and is now known for it. If his music isn’t enough for you, you can admire him for this act.

Heidi Klum

No list of famous Germans would be complete without the beautiful Heidi Klum. Heidi Klum started out as a model in an obscure modeling contest in 1992 called Model 92, where she – understandably – won.

Heidi Klum

That caught the eye of Thomas Gottschalk (whom you may remember from here) and the rest is history. She currently hosts the show Germany’s Next Top Model (read about it here). As you might have gathered, I’m a fan of pretty ladies and Heidi Klum is definitely on that list. She currently lives in the US and has dual German and US citizenship.

Michael Schumacher

Even if you are not an F1 fan, you will know Michael Schumacher aka Schumi. Schumacher made his F1 debut at the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix. In the ensuing years, he went on to win seven Formula One World Championships and is widely regarded as one of the best F1 drivers of all time. His first retirement came in 2006,

Michael Schumacher

but the adrenaline rush could not make Schumacher stay away from the sport for too long. He made a comeback in 2010 but was never the same as before and retired again in 2012. Schumacher is known for being reckless and living on the edge. In December 2013, he was involved in a skiing accident and is currently recovering from it. It’s unknown what his current condition is, but I hope he gets back on his feet soon.

Sylvie Meis

Sylvie Meis (formerly Sylive van der Vaart) hails from the Netherlands but is also a German television personality.

Sylvie Meis

Suffice it to say that she’s not famous enough to be on other peoples’ celebrity radar, specially not on the non-Germans’. But I find her to be quite the hottie. She mostly hosts German TV shows. She has also been a judge on the German show Das Supertalent which is a German “Got Talent” show.

Bernd das Brot

He’s grumpy, depressed, surly and bad-tempered. He’s a loaf of bread. He’s got a deep, almost baritone voice. He’s Bernd das Brot (Bernd the Bread)! Bernd was created by Thomas Krappweis and is a mascot for the children’s TV channel KiKa. He’s so famous now that he has a cult following. He pulls all nighters on KiKa

Bernd das Brot

when the children are sleep but the station has to put something on. He is also on TV during day time. Even though he is on TV a lot, Bernd actually detests TV and would like to actually be off it. One of his favorite expressions is Mist! which means crap in English. Bernd has a permanent scowl on his face and sometimes hangs out with other characters on his show as well. All in all, Bernd is the perfect ranter.

The Cast of Dinner For One

Every New Year’s Eve (Silvester in German), Germans sit down in front of televisions and watch Dinner For One. It’s a slapstick skit written in the 1920s by an obscure British writer and was recorded in 1963 by German television station NDR. Since then, it has aired every New Year’s Eve in English on German TV. It is also popular in many other European countries as well and is the most frequently running TV program ever. The cast includes just two British actors: May Warden and Freddie Frinton. The catchphrase “The same procedure as every year…” is known to all Germans regardless of their age and whether they speak English or not.

Over the years, many versions of the skit were made – there’s one with Bernd das Brot as well – but the classical one is still the most famous.

The 2014 German Football Team

The last, but certainly not the least in terms of both fame and number, is the 2014 German football team. This team has many claims to fame. The most obvious one is being the winners of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Besides that, Miroslav Klose scored 16 goals in the 2014 World Cup overtaking Brazil’s Ronaldo as the highest goal scorer in any FIFA World Cup and the German team scored 223 goals in all World Cups combined surpassing Brazil. But, perhaps the best records are related to Germany’s 7-1 thrashing of Brazil in the Semi-Final. This game broke Brazil’s 62-match unbeaten victories on home ground since 1975, was the largest defeat for Brazil since losing 6-0 to Uruguay in 1920 and was Germany’s first win in Brazil against home side. Additionally, the World Cup’s best goalkeeper was German heart throb Manuel Neuer who won the Golden Glove. I hope Die Mannschaft outperforms itself in the 2018 FIFA World Cup and brings home the trophy again.

The German National Footbal Team for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.