Death of Thierry Ardisson: "A profound being, capable of anything, who did not correspond at all to what we thought," confides Franz-Olivier Giesbert

"We could argue with him, but it didn't last long. It didn't matter; that was also his strength," the journalist and columnist reacted Monday on France Info. Host and producer Thierry Ardisson has died at the age of 76, his family announced Monday morning.

Thierry Ardisson was someone "anxious, melancholic, who was considered arrogant but who wasn't at all," journalist and columnist Franz-Olivier Giesbert declared on franceinfo on Monday, July 14, following the announcement of the death of the presenter and producer at the age of 76 .

"He was a profound being who did not correspond at all to what we thought," underlines the journalist, who recalls that Thierry Ardisson "started in advertising, in shows for night owls: he was a night owl." The journalist, who, "over time" , ended up "appreciating and loving Thierry Ardisson" , affirms that "he was someone you could not not love deeply because he had values, he was tortured, tormented: he was a beautiful person, very endearing." "You could argue with him but it didn't last, it wasn't important, that was also his strength," he adds.

Beyond the presenter's human qualities, Franz-Olivier Giesbert praises his professional abilities. Thierry Ardisson was "capable of anything, he had no limits" , even though, the editorialist points out, he was "someone who had a lot of stage fright" , even though "he had been in television for a long time".

In an interview, Franz-Olivier Giesbert acknowledges that the host of Tout le monde en parle and Salut les Terriens! was "deeply destabilizing, but not necessarily the most 'dangerous' ." An interview with Thierry Ardisson was "no more complicated than an interview with [France Inter and Antenne 2 journalist] Jacques Chancel, who was kind, honeyed, and that's how he made you say stupid things. With Thierry, we expected anything and our defenses were ready, we didn't let ourselves go," concludes Franz-Olivier Giesbert.