Police probe death at 56 of TV host Stefanie Tücking

Crime police are investigating the death of renowned German TV and radio presenter Stefanie Tücking after the broadcaster died unexpectedly at the weekend, although there were no signs of foul play. She was 56 years old.

"The alarm rang without stopping. Her girlfriend went to her, shook her, and when she didn't respond, she called emergency services," Tücking's father Manfred told the Bild daily. He said they had gone to the Christmas market together in the southern city of Baden-Baden the evening before and that his daughter had seemed fine.

Tücking was remembered by her boss at the SWR3 radio station as "cool…powerful, unpretentious, with no attraction to stardom."

A huge music fan and a musician in her own right, Tücking became famous in Germany in 1986 when she took over Formel Eins, the main music show for ARD, the country's largest public broadcaster.

At only 24 years old she won the Golden Camera, one of Germany's premier film and television awards.

Fans across the country have taken to SWR's online condolence book to share their memories of Tücking and thank her for her years of bringing new music and bands to a broader audience.

SWR wrote that they were "speechless and endlessly sad" at her passing.

es/jm (EPD, dpa)

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