The crazy call to the friend in live broadcast • “Could be the TV fiasco of the century”
Published: Yesterday 8.30 p.m
Updated: Less than 2 hours ago
Two-time world memory champion, finalist in “Talang” and now also a millionaire.
When Jonas von Essen competes in “Postcode Millionaire”, he blows the audience and viewers off their seats.
– That Jonas was among the sweatiest things we’ve seen in this studio, says host Rickard Sjöberg.
Jonas von Essen31, has one question left for the millionaire in TV4’s program “Postcode Millionaire”.
Out of four lifelines, he has only used one.
“Which architect designed Chandigarh, the capital of the Indian states of Punjab and Haryana, which was built in the 1950s?” is the question.
Call to a friend
Jonas von Essen chooses to use a clue and calls a friend.
– David, next Saturday. Do you have something special for you then? I’m thinking of inviting you to a little party then, says Jonas von Essen as the seconds tick down.
The friend accepts and the conversation ends.
Jonas von Essen has deliberately chosen not to ask his friend if he knows the answer to the question.
– Now you must be right, says the presenter Richard Sjöberg53.
Jonas von Essen chooses to also use the other clues just to be safe.
– It could be the TV fiasco of the century if it’s wrong now after all this, says Jonas von Essen and laughs.
The shout of joy after the million dollar question
He finally chooses to answer that it is Le Corbusier who is the architect.
– That’s the right answer, you have a million, shouts Rickard Sjöberg.
Jonas von Essen jumps up in his chair and screams with joy. His friend, two brothers and his mother who was in the audience get down on the floor to hug him.
– That Jonas was among the sweatiest we’ve seen in this studio, says Rickard Sjöberg.
Jonathan Nordin is an executive producer at TV4 and he too was impressed by Jonas von Essen’s performance.
– There were probably several of us who put the coffee down our throats when Jonas chooses to wash his lifelines on the million issue. Hats off for an incredible effort, he tells Aftonbladet.
He will do that for the money
Jonas von Essen tells Aftonbladet that the call to the friend was not planned in advance.
– When I saw the question, I was pretty sure I knew the answer. So I sat there and thought about what to do because I knew the answer but still had the lifelines. But it was still fun to call a lifeline.
It was not entirely without nerves that he carried out the cocky conversation.
– I felt that “what if I have sacrificed the million now to have a fun moment”. But then I thought that if I have it, it will also be historically, historically bad in and of itself, but still. It would have been so absurd if I was wrong, but then I would have offered it.
What are you going to do with the money?
– I’m going to buy some new colorful socks because I have so many that there are holes in them.
Should you buy colorful socks for a million?
– No. I will also be able to devote myself more to what I enjoy, teach memory technology, make more videos on Youtube and so on.
But the biggest question remains. Was there a party?
– No, but it will be removed shortly. It is planned and there will be a lot of quizzes.
This is Jonas von Essen
Jonas von Essen is a master of memory, lecturer and author. He has twice won the World Memory Championship and has also broken the European record for memorizing the most decimals of pi. Jonas von Essen managed to count 24,063 decimal places.
Finalist in “Talent”
In 2018 he competed in “Talang” and got David Batras golden buzzer. He had then memorized the first names of all 500 people in the audience.
In the final, he became one of the three who received the most votes, but was beaten by Madeleine Hilleard, who sang opera.
Jonas von Essen becomes the fourteenth person ever since the “Postcode Millionaire” started in 2005 to earn the million.
