“Success also leaves a brutal list of injuries”

He closes the season on a high note and the data has given him endless joy in a year that has been more than intense and from which he has barely been able to rest on all that he has achieved. Sonsoles Onega Not only has she kept the afternoon audience but she has had to combine her daily programme on Antena3 with the success of her soap opera The maid’s daughtersthe latest Planeta Award, with all that this implies in terms of promotion.

One day before his vacation we met in the meeting room of the editorial office And now Sonsoleswhere she spends many hours before facing the live broadcast. As usual, she arrives after doing several errands in that particular battle she maintains with time. To rest, to take care of her family, to run errands, to do research, to meet, to study… She doesn’t have enough hours in the day, but perhaps that natural acceleration is what we like most about her. Her rhythm and her way of telling and conversing. Deep down, we like talking to the recorder in our role as interviewer and interviewee. But someone once said that politeness doesn’t take away courage.

You could say that he is going on holiday with his homework done. What a successful season he is leaving behind.

SO: The truth is that we started off very well but you never know what can happen. When we started it was said that the afternoon was where there was more competition with so many formats, both on Telecinco and La Sexta, or with the TVE fiction which is very good… we have finished the season as we had not planned, since there is never a clear plan for success but it was clear that it was the objective.

A week with great results as absolute leader is coming to an end.

SO: I confess that I am terrible at handling the good stuff because it is more difficult to maintain it. But that is the case with life in general. It is difficult to maintain a marriage, a rigorous education, a level of book sales, getting exclusives… Staying at that level has its complex side.

How do you handle it when things don’t go so well?

SO: The good thing is that at night I forget everything and the next day I start from scratch. Obviously, the whole team is influenced by the audience figures, but I assure you that the important thing is to end up satisfied with the programme you make. If the figures are also good, then all the better, but the good thing about having a daily programme is that it allows you to correct as you go along and that is why we are very attentive to that pulse where the audience is a thermometer. We know where to go deeper, correct or be more effective when telling the stories. That is the virtue of the daily and even more so for me as I am so impatient. It is a trait of my character that I have had to learn to tame at Antena3, being a more strategic and reflective channel with a different business culture than the one I had imbibed.

From what he says, he has had to develop patience.

SO: Yes, I have learned to tame it and I admit that it is good because I am too impetuous and I am sure that I make mistakes when I make decisions too quickly. Changes require reflection and today I force myself to do it and I think it is very good, that is why I say that this year has been a master’s degree in television.

Do you remember a special moment this season?

SO: I have really enjoyed the testimonies of ordinary people and their stories that do not appear in the press and that move me. I think that every afternoon has had its something and I cannot remember a single dull afternoon that has bored me. Perhaps the most exciting thing is the communion with the people, with the audience on the set who are also protagonists of the programme like the famous Piedad. The poor girl fainted one day, she vomited without having time to evacuate and it was a horrible scare. Since then she has become someone very special for everyone, she is the resilient one, and she comes almost every day from Burgos.

Where do you feel most comfortable these days, in interviews or in the heart?

SO: I couldn’t choose. I’m very interested in current events because it’s where we can highlight the fissures in the system, what’s wrong with society and nobody pays attention to. I’m passionate about interviews because they also give me fuel for my novels and I can already tell you that the end of the next one will come from this set and the heart is super entertaining and even more so in this season when we have rescued characters that are part of the history of Spain. I assure you that I’m learning a lot because I don’t have much artistic culture and reliving those lives is great.

Do you have red lines?

SO: Yes. I don’t touch on the part of the characters’ lives that they don’t want to show, just as I don’t like to talk about money, children, or houses… they are small red lines.

Deep down, that’s why you don’t want people to talk about you either.

SO: That and we must also respect the anonymous people who are in the characters’ environment.

In recent years, you have had a tremendous growth in television. Was this what you imagined?

SO: Not at all. When I was in the Congress of Deputies as a parliamentary correspondent I was very happy. Everything in my life has been somewhat accidental but I am not an idiot and I like to take advantage of opportunities. When Paolo Vasile offered me to do It’s already noon I understood that it was an opportunity to do something different and I discovered that I loved it. It is true that I grew up in the world of television although I did some internships in radio, at La Razón de Anson, but my thing was television from CNN until today. Life has always put everything in my path because I assure you that I have not looked for anything. What I have known is how to detect opportunities. From CNN Plus when I became a court reporter to when Piqueras called me to report on Congress on T5 to the jump to entertainment programs. And one thing is clear to me: I learn quickly but I need to detect the masters. Xelo Montesinos was one. He taught me valuable things and I noticed it, before it happened to me in the News with Rosa Lerchundi. I know how to detect who is going to teach me and I stick with it and you don’t know how grateful I am.

And his father?

SO: Also. I always say that he really pushes me with the content.

Who will keep him grounded? We all know that when someone succeeds, there are many cheerleaders around.

SO: My sister Cristina. She is tougher than my father. She is a hard worker and has a sense of the ridiculous that I don’t have. If I think of something crazy, she tells me. I confess that I don’t have a sense of the ridiculous and deep down I don’t think it’s a bad idea to do things that come naturally. It’s another thing to be forced to do something you don’t want to do. I’m not going to dress up on a set or do anything that I’m not comfortable with.

Do you miss politics?

SO: No. It was a great success not to include politics. At first it was difficult for me because of my journalistic tradition, but now I see that they were right. Given the current situation, I don’t see it as necessary. When something important happens, it is reported, but we are not in the political debate because, in my opinion, there is no such debate at the moment. Current political events do not deserve television time in our space, and it is no longer an ingredient of the magazine. That is what I think today.

What do you miss about those years?

SO: Coverage on the street. I have experienced great moments from a motion of censure on the coronation of the King, the attacks of March 11th… the accent of the street puts you back in your place and gives you a pulse, and even though opening the window to the testimonies you have something similar on the set. In my normal life I miss being able to go out to the supermarket without getting dressed up.

What does leadership taste like?

SO: It smells like a sweaty t-shirt because there is a lot of work, sleeplessness, disappointments, tension… It also tastes like satisfaction, like the pleasure of a job well done…

He is also dying of success.

SO: It’s the worst thing that can happen to you. The bad thing is that successful models are reproduced and they all end up the same. Personalisms take their toll on teams. I’ve experienced this first hand in politics. Very personalistic formations end up dying. Not surrounding yourself with people who are better than you also takes its toll.

The year has been a success with the Planeta Prize and all the promotion. A privilege of life but also with a lot of wear and tear.

SO: When everything is going well, it seems like you have no right to complain, but success also leaves a brutal share of injuries. First with yourself and then with others because of the number of ugly things you do without meaning to and that I am now trying to solve. I can’t do everything and that worries me.

Are you aware of everything you have experienced?

SO: It’s like I haven’t processed what’s happening to me yet, and in a way it’s good for me because I’m already deep into my new book and I don’t have the pressure of success.

Winners generate a lot of envy.

SO: I know, but I assure you that I don’t care. I’m not at all envious. I enjoy the success of others. I always say that I’d rather have a friend have a boat than have one myself. It’s like success. The hard part is maintaining it. I love a phrase from a very unknown 19th century writer, Concepción Gimeno, when she says “it’s easier to defend ourselves from adversaries who criticize us than from enemies who flatter us.” That’s exactly what I discovered this year.

How many friends do you have? Do you have extra fingers on your hands?

SO: I have very good friends and we all rejoice in the good times and feel sad and cry about the bad. I am lucky to have them and I have a nose for choosing because I have only lost two throughout my life.

One image from this winter was when Queen Letizia queued up to have her book signed in a department store. Is it easy to be a journalist and a friend of a Queen?

SO: I am not a friend of a Queen, but of the journalist I met at CNN who has helped me when I needed her and who is always there. She is the person who was in line that day. Everything else is a burden. For me she is the same friend and not only has she not changed, she has improved.

What do you enjoy?

SO: With sleeping, reading and writing.

Don’t tell me you’re going to lock yourself away and write during these holidays.

SO: I’ll go to Galicia for a bit and of course I’ll write. I’m happy and I don’t need much more.

Are you no longer embarrassed to be introduced as a writer?

SO: When I release the next novel, let’s see what happens.

Are you preparing many changes for the next season? And now Sonsoles?

SO: There will be some adjustments that will be necessary, as summer is always a good time to get everything in order. Obviously there will be some new developments, some changes on the set to make things more comfortable, some new additions… a little salt and pepper and above all, strengthening ourselves by following the same structure. It is a live programme that requires new decisions every day.

Are you ready to be caught by the paparazzi on the beach this summer?

SO: They won’t catch me because I won’t go, especially if I know they’re going to look for me.

Does the audience watch it before or after breakfast?

SO: It leaves around 8:05 and I’ve usually already had my coffee before.

What makes you smile?

SO: Fact of the day (laughs) The truth is that there are many things that make me happy.

And a tear?

SO: I get emotional with the testimonies that people tell me on the set.

I have seen her get emotional when people remind her of her father, the great Fernando Ónega.

SO: I confess that I would love to sign him for the programme but he doesn’t want to. It makes me angry because I had to turn 46 to claim to be my father’s daughter.

What dream is left for you?

SO: I just want my children to grow up healthy and be good people. I don’t dare to dream.

What keeps you awake?

SO: The program.

What memories do you have of Ana Rosa?

SO: A very nice memory. They were very happy years and I always remember them with a smile because I really enjoyed being with the team, with Juan Serrano, Miguel Ángel Nicolás, Patricia Lennon, who later came to Antena 3. I have the best memories of Tele5.