Böhmermann on a blue Simson was run over by a truck - ZDF receives complaints in the three-digit range

In the intro to the “ZDF Magazin Royale” broadcast on October 2nd, Jan Böhmermann straps on a white helmet, climbs onto a blue Simson and drives off. A rural area passes by, a walker walks his German Shepherd. Idyll. Grinning smugly, the satirist rides his moped through lonely streets.

But then - after about 20 seconds - a truck suddenly shoots into the picture from the right and rams the driver. The lettering “taschen Schwanz24.de” is emblazoned on the tarpaulin, along with the slogan “Gönn Dir”. However, the truck driver does not stop to help the man lying on the ground. No, he backs up again and runs over the moped driver a second time - as if he wanted to be absolutely sure that he really hit the driver.

With these scenes from the episode of October 2, 2026, Böhmermann got himself into trouble again. As ZDF announced, the program received program complaints “in the lower three-digit range” because of the show, reports the “Mitteldeutsche Zeitung”. However, the program is still available in the media library.

Because the scene is understood as an allusion to the AfD politician Ulrich Siegmund. The blue swallow is considered his trademark, with which he regularly traveled during the state election campaign in Saxony-Anhalt. The eventual election winner used the GDR moped as part of his public production to demonstrate East German authenticity and relatability.

According to ZDF, the criticism in the complaints is primarily directed against the depiction of the alleged Siegmund figure being run over by a truck.

Siegmund himself spoke of “violent fantasies of the basest kind.” From his point of view, the allusion to his person was unmistakable. "Does Mr Böhmermann wish me dead here? If so, this can no longer be dismissed as satire - it is a new low," Siegmund is quoted as saying by the "Mitteldeutsche Zeitung".

Criticism also came from FDP General Secretary Martin Hagen, who described the presentation on Platform X as “morally completely uninhibited”. You don't have to have any sympathy for the AfD "to reject it," he explained. "A right-wing TV clown amuses his audience with murderous fantasies against a left-wing politician. How long would the ÖRR feed him?"

And the media journalist Peter Welchring spoke of a “visualization of a violent fantasy”. These contradict ZDF's programming mandate and the corresponding state treaties.

However, ZDF itself does not want to see a connection between Siegmund and the Böhmermann clip. “The vehicle appeared again and again throughout the show,” the “Mitteldeutsche Zeitung” quoted a spokeswoman as saying, “without referring to specific people, including in the so-called cold opener at the beginning of the season.”

The controversy falls in the last months of “ZDF Magazin Royale”. The format is scheduled to be discontinued in December after a total of 187 issues. ZDF recently extended its collaboration with Böhmermann for another year. According to the broadcaster, however, discussions are ongoing about possible new projects with the satirist.