Bild columnist Franz Josef Wagner dies at the age of 82
Franz Josef Wagner has died. The legendary 82-year-old columnist passed away on Monday at Franziskus Hospital in Berlin. With his death, Germany has lost one of the best-known journalists of recent decades. For nearly 25 years, his column «Post von Wagner» shaped German journalism.
Wagner had been chief columnist at Bild since January 2001. His daily column "Post von Wagner" appeared five times a week on page two. The characteristic structure remained the same over the years: "Dear" as a salutation, followed by an emotional letter. Each column ended with "Yours sincerely, Franz Josef Wagner". His last published column was dated 7 September 2025 and Wagner dedicated it to a canonized teenager named Carlo. "But the more important question is: do we humans need miracles?" he asked in it.
An eventful career as a journalist
Wagner was born on August 7, 1943 in Olomouc in what is now the Czech Republic. After fleeing, he grew up in Regensburg. He did not manage to complete his A-levels. Instead, he worked at Migros in Geneva.
He began his career at the Nürnberger Zeitung in the 1960s. He then moved to the Bild editorial team. As a war correspondent, he reported on the Yom Kippur War and Vietnam.
In 1988, Wagner moved to the Hubert Burda publishing house. There he became editor-in-chief of "Bunte". He returned to Springer at the end of the 1990s. He became editor-in-chief of B.Z..
They called him "Gossen-Goethe"
He lost his B.Z. post in 2000 after a controversial headline about swimmer Franziska van Almsick, which read: "Franzi van Speck - you can't win gold as a newt". Wagner found his true calling as chief columnist. His daily letters were polarizing. Colleagues called him "Gossen-Goethe". Wagner also wrote celebrity biographies for Udo Jürgens, Franz Beckenbauer and Boris Becker. He also published four novels and an autobiography. He lived in Berlin-Charlottenburg until the end.
Mourning for a unique journalist
"With his death, Axel Springer has lost one of its most creative minds," explained the publisher. Springer did not disclose the cause of death. Wagner is survived by his wife and a daughter.
His column is considered one of the most successful in the world. He wrote it every day for over 24 years. "If I can't write anymore, then I'll die," was his mantra.
