Happy, grateful and proud, this is how he celebrated last February Jordi Hurtado 25 years’know and win‘. It has been a quarter of a century that it has been the head of one of the oldest competitions of Spanish television, which has managed to become a brand of which Hurtado is an indispensable part.
In an interview with presenter Efe (San Feliu de Llobregat, Barcelona, 57) acknowledges that the competition would not be the same without himbecause his energy and constant smile (his tricks to keep the audience awake during siesta, he admits) have become the hallmark of the program created by Barcelona’s Sergi Schaaff.
A quarter of a century after it started, Hurtado is happy to have succeeded in “leaving a mark” with a competition that is broadcast 365 days a year.A milestone in today’s wild audiovisual scene. To celebrate, this Thursday La 2 will air a tribute program to the flagship of the public channel at 10 PM.
Besides resisting 25 years, what do you think ‘Know and win’ has accomplished?
What it achieves above all else is to retain the audience and build a brand. It is very difficult to create permanent and present brands on television. When the program was born, I walked down the street and there were those who called me “With Numbers and Letters” or “With Pasapalabra”, now everyone knows what ‘Know and win’ is. A lot of contestants want to announce that they are in “Know and win” on social networks, and this is because we have managed to leave a mark. RTVE has a brand in this slot every day of the year and it’s tough. We also have very loyal viewers who wait and enjoy watching the show every day.
How did you manage not to get bored and not want to devote yourself to other projects in 25 years?
Believing in the project and reinventing yourself. Fortunately, there is no closed scenario in the program, everything happens spontaneously and forces you to be very fresh mentally. You have to create, invent, and that forces me to be up to date with knowledge, cinema, theater, music…
So, have you ever wanted to give up?
No, because it’s a program that has worked so well that you reach so many viewers every day, you get so much love, and you also have professional continuity. At the moment and as always, the world of audiovisual and journalism is so tough that those with business continuity are in luck. We count on them to renew our contract, and that’s how we’ve been celebrating for years. You have to earn it, and you win without letting your guard down and always putting that intention to work.
What does the word awesome mean to you (the name given to the competitors who managed to spend more time in the competition)?
I find them very special. Here comes a Chemistry graduate, but then there are questions about Literature or Art that have nothing to do with what they’ve read or prepared. Being great means they have a broad culture, they are very curious people, they have a wide variety of knowledge so they can reach that category and be on the show as the best of each year.
Would ‘know and win’ be the same without you?
No, it wouldn’t be the same because so many years have passed that you undoubtedly left that mark on your personality. My figure is closely linked to the program. I mean, it would be another program, but I think it’s one that will outlive any of us who did it.
You’ll be 65 soon… Does the word retirement ring in your head?
Nerd. You don’t think about it when you are healthy, you want to continue doing this job, you like it, you enjoy it. So this doesn’t fit at all.
There were times when you admitted that they once made you feel a little uncomfortable, but now how do you view the jokes about your eternal youth?
With lots of humor. Maybe there’s a time when things might bother you, but in general I’ve always welcomed it because I think it’s a tribute to the program, the continuity, the goodness of the program. So it’s okay for them to say and play all this because they have a brutal imagination. I’m fascinated by memes that come to me from all over, made with admirable humor and imagination. And I am the first to laugh.
Is a smile your main feature?
It’s a form of communication because I think at that time in the afternoon, before the documentaries, we need to reach the audience so as not to fall asleep, and then the look is very important and that smile makes you more sincere. Because you enter their house without permission and without permission.