Television Presenters

"Imagine what 'Bella Ciao' would be like today. It would be a Gipsy Kings compilation [...] 'One morning | I woke up | oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao, ciao, ciao.' | | One morning | I woke up and went | to Decathlon! | A T-shirt, six ninety | I'll get three, I'll get three, I'll get three, three, three, | and the avalanche backpack, | plus three ice axes and the sleeping bag!” (p. 27)"

"[...] In this country, wherever you look, there's always a conflict of interest involving relatives, isn't there? If it's not Boschi's father, it's Lupi's son; if it's not Cancellieri's son, it's Fini's brother-in-law; and if it's not Fini's brother-in-law, it's Alemanno's entire family tree. But why don't we just appoint ministers who don't have families? For Home Affairs, Remi; for Foreign Affairs, Oliver Twist; for Constitutional Reform, Bambi; I don't know, for Infrastructure, Heidi. Ah, no. Better not Heidi, in case it turns out her grandfather was vice president of Monte dei Paschi for twenty years."

"By now, the whole of Italy is a GMO country: Genetically Mouldy Organism."

"Regarding the Cirinnà bill, I said "civil unions", but in Italy, they're not called that because the law refers to them as "specific social formations". How romantic. [...] Because Catholics don't want us to say "marriage", they've changed the name. Do you want to have the ceremony? Yes, you can have the ceremony, but you have to call it an "elegant parental gathering". The cake? [...] Don't call it a cake; call it a "puppeteered layered cream creation"."

"Both in the theatre and on television, I have often drawn on Giorgio Gaber's clear and witty insights: from Il potere dei più buoni to Il conformista, Gaber has always come to my rescue. Gaber and Luporini's insight into human weaknesses is extremely sharp. Their ability to see far ahead, to write about and anticipate the thinking of many, makes them incredibly relevant today."

"Treasure Planet"

"My solidarity goes out to Silvio Berlusconi.* When have you ever seen a journalist ask the head of government disrespectful questions? A good journalist doesn't take the initiative; a good journalist writes what is dictated to them. (Referring to Silvio Berlusconi's defamation lawsuit against the newspaper 'La Repubblica', after he signed the appeal in defence of the newspaper)."

"But if Renzi did all this to Letta, who was his friend, what can he do to us Italians, who he doesn't even know?"

"But at times, Berlusconi is great. Like when he said that wonderful thing: 'Yes, it's true, I paid Ruby, but only to stop her from working as a prostitute.' I was expecting her to say, 'Yes, I gave it to him, but only to stop him going with prostitutes.' Do you get it? He paid her so she wouldn't have to work as a prostitute. It's like paying a tiler, but without getting them to fit the bathroom. (p. 13)"

"And what about Rutelli, who created the Terzo Polo? Aren't you coming to see him? But Rutelli, why did you create the Terzo Polo? 'Because one in two Italians asked me to.' Why do I always meet the other one in two Italians? (p. 7)"

"Ignazio La Russa, a man who hasn't even tried the sunbed, has gone straight for the napalm. Ignazio La Russa is one of the jewels of Italialand, isn't he? He's a mythological figure; he's not even a human being: he's half man, half intercom – he's the 'Ignaziotauro'. Since he went to war with Libya, he hasn't understood a thing; he's as happy as a clam. Badoglio also appeared to him in a dream and told him: 'Go, Ignazio, take Libya back for us.' (p. 10)"

"[...] Family Day defends the traditional family, the one that comes directly from the Holy Scriptures, [...] like the family of Abraham, Abraham's family, who wanted to sacrifice his son Isaac. No, all right, let's put Abraham's family to one side for a moment, shall we… So, um, the family… like Jacob's family. Jacob, who had four wives. No, let's put that one to one side for a moment… And… Ah, well, there's always the Joseph and Mary family. Joseph and Mary: he was seventy and she was sixteen. And do we really want to talk about how they conceived their son, huh? But you know what... off the top of my head, I can't think of that many traditional families in the Bible..."

"(About the EasyReading font that helps people with dyslexia overcome reading difficulties) [...] What amazes me is that many people didn't know about the existence of a special, highly readable font. What's more, it's an Italian invention […], a way of reading that is easier for people with dyslexia, but also much more convenient for those without dyslexia. What's more, some of the letters aren't the same, so text can be read more smoothly."

"(About Mara Venier) Her way of hosting, of running a salon. You can't learn the kind of chemistry she has. You either have it or you don't. She is a great professional and a great woman. She has given so much of herself in so many battles. What's more, Renzo always speaks very highly of her. And I knew she was a wonderful person, even though I’d never met her. But standing in front of her and seeing how, even while sitting, she can fill the studio and make it a part of herself was a great lesson."

"(The letters of the alphabet: a stumbling block for people with dyslexia) They're difficult because they only have meaning in that particular position."

"Interviewer: What memories do you have of your time at school as a pupil? Delogu: I felt like I was in a kind of trance, as if I were in a suspended world. I couldn't understand why my classmates understood and learned concepts so quickly, while I had to struggle with them."

"What pisses me off the most is that it seems like if I wear a miniskirt or a revealing dress – because maybe I like myself like that at the moment – then what I say carries less weight, as if to talk about serious things I have to dress the way people expect me to dress to talk about certain topics."

"Support for people with dyslexia cannot be left to personal sensitivity and goodwill. What is needed is specific teacher training. And here in Italy, we're behind on this."

"The strange thing? For me, as someone who is dyslexic, an 'A' can twist in a thousand different ways and become a shape, not necessarily a fixed symbol. The letters kind of fly around because my mind is processing them. This used to make me suffer a bit: the rules of writing come in forcefully, and you have to deal with them."

"(About Adriano Celentano) [...] He has the right to say what he wants, and I would have defended him even if he had said that gay people should be sent to concentration camps."

"Lucio Dalla's funeral is one of the most striking examples of what it means to be homosexual in Italy: you go to church, they let you have a funeral, and they bury you with a Catholic service, as long as you don't say you're gay. It's a symbol of who we are: there's permissiveness, as long as you look the other way."

"This idea that, if you're a beautiful woman, you shouldn't show it is absurd."

"[...] (Abou the Italian Family Day) I took part because I believe the family is a part of humanity's heritage that deserves protection: the family is neither right-wing nor left-wing; it belongs to universal values."

"If I thought my apprenticeship was over, I would be the first to be done for. It's a stimulus that you need all the time, otherwise you risk feeling like you've got nothing left to learn."

"You don't need to know if a relationship will work. It needs to start."

"I'm 40, not 20, when your hormones are going crazy, your head is full of dreams, and your future is in your hands. I'm 40, not 60. You've worked out who you are, you've won your battles, and you've given up on the ones that weren't right for you anymore. Your 40s are the stage of self-awareness. It's a middle-earth, like the one in The Lord of the Rings. You have to start getting to know yourself again. You look in the mirror and only see flaws, because they teach you to stop time, not to accept it, which is the biggest challenge. Accepting change […] by giving yourself centre stage."

"Interviewer: She realised she wanted to do TV when she was a teenager, in Rimini... Delogu: I was 14. We were at an event where everyone was waiting for Cristina D'Avena, who was late."

"I have no taboos about my body. That's just the way I am. I joke that I dress for your decency, not mine."

"[When asked what a dyslexic person lacks] Automatism. When you learn to drive, you have to think carefully about pulling the clutch, engaging the gear, and starting the car. These are all things that you gradually learn to do in the right order, but once you've done it five, six, seven, a thousand times, it becomes automatic. That automaticity that people with dyslexia lack."

"[About dyslexia, a condition he suffers from] The mind of a dyslexic person is more 'artistic' and relies heavily on interpretation. So, drawing is easier for them, partly because of the colours. I'm a black belt at puzzles. When I was little, I was one of the few girls who could solve those tiny house puzzles with the coloured holes on top. [...] I block them with complete peace of mind now. I've got the fastest finger in the West."

"Indeed, the Protocols have served many dictatorships, and they continue to cause harm to this day. Those pages make it clear what intellectual poisoning actually consists of: the idea that the world is not a collective creation, but merely a canvas woven by the Few and the Powerful. This concept denies the role of individual human agency in shaping history; therefore, it also denies any principle of transparency and trust, without which there can be no human community."

"Interviewer: What aspect of "Emilia Romagna has stayed with you? Delogu: Determination. "Don't despair, there's a solution" is the phrase I heard most often."

"I just live, without that anxiety that used to take everything away from me, the anxiety of having to answer society's questions. [...] When are you going to have a child? When are you going to do a more important programme? So, when are you going to grow up? But I've realised that growing up isn't compulsory – only maturing is. Interviewer: What's the difference? Delogu: Growing up is associated with a certain idea of becoming an adult, which means being a serious, calm and predictable person. But that's not who I am, and that's not who I want to be. [...] Between the ages of 30 and 38, like many people, I had become complacent about who I was. I used to say to myself: this is who I am, this is my life, this is what I've chosen. For so many years, I wore a mask – the mask of a reassuring person, someone who would be good at starting a family. I had put myself in a position where I had to answer other people's questions. My divorce was precisely the opportunity for me to change. I looked in the mirror and said to myself: 'What do I do now?' Do I die, or do I rebuild myself?'"

"My secret is that I can't sit still – I always need to find something new. I have an attention deficit disorder, and it gives me so much: I have to channel all my energy into a relatively short period of time, and I try to do it as best I can. I think it's one of my strengths, and I'm happy that people like it."

"Interviewer: [...] Is it true that you have rediscovered the Gospel? Delogu: Yes [...]. As a child, I received a Christian upbringing, but catechism had been somewhat imposed on me, with a harsh, not very inclusive approach. At the tender age of 38, I picked up the Gospel again – I had felt a bit put off by it before – and I rediscovered it: in some ways, I also felt a bit deceived, because what I had in my hands was a very inclusive text, one of love and understanding for others. I realise these might seem like trivial observations, but for me, a new path has opened up."

"Because I do so many different things, the people who appreciate me and follow me sometimes come to me from different backgrounds, from different places. Perhaps what people like about me is that I always engage on an equal footing with those who follow me and appreciate my work: I speak directly, and if something goes wrong, I'll argue [laughs, ed.] and then make up."

"In my life, my revolutionary nature has shown itself in the fact that I haven't changed according to what I've been asked to do. I've never 'changed my tune' because of someone else's decision, but only when it was the right time for me, when I felt I wanted to reinvent myself. I've sometimes been asked to be less feisty or, during my first auditions, less approachable and to adopt a more detached style of presenting...I haven't given in."

"Interviewer: [...] you revealed that you have dyslexia. What did this discovery mean to you?'}}"

"[...] It seems that only if you become a mother are you a grown-up and have done your duty in the world."

"I realised that [film making] is truly a team effort, much more so than TV. When you present a programme, you're at the forefront and you have the opportunity to set the pace and provide a unifying theme for the production. A film, on the other hand, is a montage of lots of scenes, most of which you're not in. On set, everyone is on an equal footing, and you put yourself in the director's hands."

"Interviewer: In your work, is luck more important than determination? Delogu: Luck is the variable; determination is the daily kick-start: without it, I would have given up years ago. Those who win are the ones who grit their teeth, who know their limits but still set themselves ambitious goals."

"I was 19 when I registered for VAT, thanks to Gialappa's. We were a group of dancers in miniskirts and boots who made fun of the phenomenon of 'letterine' and 'veline'. Every now and then, people bring up that experience thinking they can discredit me, but it was actually thanks to Gialappa's Band and Mago Forest that, even though I was doing a job on the fringes of the industry, I came to understand TV and how it works."

"Arbore, Frassica and Giusti are artists I work well with because they haven't imposed any rules or judgements on me. Success came three years ago, and so did professionalism. But I know that my distinctive way of presenting is down to my dyslexia: I don't follow what the writers have written; instead, I make the concept of the programme my own and internalise it."

"Interviewer: What does body positivity mean to you? Delogu: It definitely means being at peace with yourself, but it also means not pissing other people off. If other people's opinions can help me develop and grow, I welcome them with open arms. On the other hand, if it's expressed solely to assert oneself at the expense of my peace of mind, then no. I'd be tempted to say: 'Who actually believes you?'"

"I've learnt a few little tricks that have put me on a par with the others. It's as if I'd made my own glasses, and now I can see perfectly."

"[...] We European women need to start a real discussion about what immigration is bringing to our countries; about the hardship, and about the very real threats to our physical safety that we experience on the streets, on buses, and in our city neighbourhoods."

"Sometimes, when I'm tired, my words get mixed up: I'm fond of them, and my husband always laughs at that."

"Pope Benedict XVI is an excellent theologian and an outstanding pastor."

"I remain an atheist and a Marxist, but I have the utmost appreciation for Catholic culture."

"I'm dyslexic in an Italy that doesn't even know how to pronounce the name of this disorder [...]. From a young age, I had to build a shield around myself so I wouldn't let all those people who called me stupid get to me. If I'm not intimidated by criticism today, it's only because I grew up in a very tough environment, like a minefield."