For 15 years, they have been there, faithful to the post. They exchange. They debate. They laugh. They persist, too. Above all, they have a place of their own, warm, in the living room of Quebec sports enthusiasts…
“They” is all the members of the Antechamber team, at RDS, who will celebrate the 3000th episode next Monday. No need to rub your eyes, you read that right.
Three thousand. It’s a lot.
” I can not believe it ! “says François Gagnon with a smile, live from Florida. The colorful columnist was among the panelists from the very first episode of what has become, over the years, a daily meeting for many Quebecers. He was 34 years old. Fifteen years later, he is still there.
“We got a ring after five years. I was like, wow, it’s been a long time. There, when I sat down to record the special with Alain [Crête] and Luc [Bellemare], I said to myself: wow, there! I get up in the morning and I see white hair, but there, you plunge back into memories that are very distant. »
It was in 2008 that this late-night sports talk show project was born. At the time, the idea was to compete with the very popular debate show 110%, on TQS, “but by doing something completely different”, explains Alain Crête, host during the first year of the Antechamber.
Over the years, the show has firmly anchored itself in Quebec popular culture. She has become “the benchmark” for sports talk shows, according to Crête. “We never thought it would last this long,” he said. […] When you talk about the Antechamber, everyone knows what it is. »
The famous panelist armchairs, like the post-match headlines, are indeed not unknown to any sports fan.
François Gagnon, Michel Bergeron, Gaston Therrien, Jacques Demers, Vincent Damphousse, Denis Gauthier, Mario Tremblay, P.J. Stock… So many debaters with different backgrounds have worked, or still work, on set. So many guests, too, so many public figures, so many athletes.
“That a show like this has stood the test of time, that the majority of the world that’s there has been there for so long too, it shows how well-crafted, how well-built it is, and how right it still is. today,” says François Gagnon.
Alain Crête, François Gagnon and Luc Bellemare all talk to us about L’Antichambre with passion, a smile in their voices.
Bellemare has been at the helm of the show since 2018. He took over from Stéphan Langdeau, who hosted it for nine years before him, sharing the work with occasional hosts like Pierre Houde and Chantal Machabée.
Bellemare, who had been at RDS for almost 20 years, first filled in. During the summer of 2018, the general manager of RDS, Charles Perreault, called him to offer him the full-time position.
“I was outside, pacing my yard while I was talking to him. It was a possibility, but when he offered it to me, it changed my rhythm of life. »
He jumped into the void and never looked back. “I don’t feel like I’m working. I have a lot of fun every day. »
“When you walk into people’s living rooms, it’s unassuming,” he adds. It’s very friendly. It’s laid back. It’s to make a late night date. »
Bellemare praises the work of all the people around him, recalling that the Antichambre is what it is today thanks to all those who came before him and who “built this show”.
Over time, L’Antichambre has managed to keep its loyal audience despite the appearance of other talk shows.
Memories, the panelists and animators of the Antichambre have hundreds, even thousands. François Gagnon tells us about the passage of Bobby Hull, the capsules of François Pérusse, the delivery of a case of Coca-Cola on the set… and the “estifi de jukebox”, which has long been in the background!
“If you knew how many times I’ve tried to think of how I could possibly bring this back to my home office!” he says, laughing. [Today] he’s somewhere on RDS! They didn’t give it to me, it’s a big regret! »
Crête tells us about the thematic shows of the very first season, tailgates in the RDS parking lot. “It was very busted! he exclaims.
Bellemare recalls the evening when Guy Lafleur came to present his whisky. “I had, next to me, Guy Lafleur, Mario [Tremblay] and Carbo [Guy Carbonneau]. I was around 43 years old. That evening, we raised our glass with Guy. It was special. »
RDS will mark the 3000th episode of L’Antichambre in style as part of a special 90-minute broadcast on Monday at 9:30 p.m. Luc Bellemare will be hosting, accompanied by Pierre Houde and Andrée-Anne Barbeau. On the menu: the beginnings of the Antechamber, memorable moments and the presence of many personalities.
