At the first "Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten" appearance, her role Katrin Flemming directly seduced series legend Jo Gerner (Wolfgang Bahro), now actress Ulrike Frank is celebrating her 20th anniversary in the RTL series.

Such an era was not planned when her role first appeared on December 30, 2002. "At the time, the producer wanted Gerner to have an opponent who would meet him on an equal footing. Actually, Katrin Flemming was only supposed to cause trouble as an affair for four months," remembers Ulrike Frank in the dpa interview.

The actress stayed - and witnessed how the series developed "from a classic teen soap to a series for the whole family". "The roles and stories have a different depth than they did 20 or 30 years ago and have become more complex and credible."

A development that is also personally important for Frank: "The image of men and women has also changed at 'GZSZ'." When it comes to gender roles, a process is taking place in these years. "And you can see that with us too: we have a lot of strong women in the series," says Frank. "GZSZ" often takes up current issues and is therefore also an opportunity for people to "get a different view of social issues" through the series.

This also applies to Frank's own role. "Katrin Flemming doesn't just rumble, she also has good arguments," says the 53-year-old about the often success-oriented businesswoman, who has gained new facets over the years. In the meantime, Katrin Flemming also allows weaknesses, "and that's exactly why she's a strong woman".