Round birthday "Tatort" forensic scientist Jan Josef Liefers turns 60 years old

Jan Josef Liefers captures an audience of millions with the Münster "Tatort" as the snooty forensic scientist. Now the actor is 60 years old.

His plan has worked. At least at the very beginning, as actor Jan Josef Liefers tells the MDR talk show "Riverboat" in 2022.

For his role as snooty forensic scientist Professor Karl-Friedrich Boerne in the popular "Tatort" series from Münster, he came up with a beard, glasses and a suit as his dress code in order to have some peace and quiet in his private life. And indeed: initially, "Tatort"-loving sales clerks in the grocery store in Berlin would not have recognized him.

That may have changed in the meantime. Liefers is one of Germany's best-known actors. On August 8, the Dresden-born actor, who likes to show off his distinctive glasses, turns 60.

Speaker at a demonstration shortly before the fall of the Wall

Liefers enjoys cult status as a popular pain in the neck in "Tatort". He also plays prominent roles in many cinema and television films and is active as a musician with his band "Radio Doria". The actor, who grew up in the GDR and lives in Berlin, also takes a stand on social and political issues.

On November 4, 1989 - shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall - he was just 25 when he appeared as a speaker at the legendary Alexanderplatz demonstration, where hundreds of thousands protested against violence and oppression in the Stasi system.

During the pandemic, Liefers repeatedly spoke out about coronavirus policy and at times came under heavy criticism for doing so. In April 2021, he took part in the controversial #allesdichtmachen video campaign. At the time, people from the film and television scene criticized the handling of the coronavirus with satirical videos on the internet, which provoked controversial reactions. Liefers later visited an intensive care unit in a hospital and worked there.

Breakthrough in 1997

He came into contact with acting at an early age: his parents worked in the theater in Dresden and his grandfather was also an actor. In the 1980s, he graduated from the renowned Ernst Busch drama school in Berlin.

Liefers then made his breakthrough in 1997 with two box office hits: Helmut Dietl's social satire "Rossini oder die mörderische Frage, wer mit wem schlief" and the road movie "Knockin' on Heaven's Door". Highlights also include the leading role as surgeon Richard Hoffmann in the bestselling film adaptation of Uwe Tellkamp's novel "The Tower" (2012).

Cycling and homemade pesto

Liefers has been married to actress Anna Loos for around 20 years. They no longer want to say anything about their private relationship, as the two emphasized in the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" in March. "We have decided not to talk about private matters any more."

Nevertheless, the actor's Instagram profile does offer a few glimpses into his private life. For example, Liefers can be seen on his bike wearing a helmet and shorts or posting homemade wild garlic pesto. In another post, he expresses his gratitude for the ratings of the 45th episode of the Münster "Tatort", which was watched by an average of 12.73 million people in March.

When asked how much longer he wanted to continue playing his role as Professor Boerne, Liefers said on "Kölner Treff" in the spring: "You always think to yourself: you have to stop and pull the plug when it's at its best. But when is the best time?" That's hard to say. Fellow actor Axel Prahl and he have been appearing in the Münster "Tatort" since 2002 - and from his point of view, that can continue, as he said. "As long as it's still beautiful, it can always get a bit more beautiful."

SDA