Michelle Yvonne Hunziker (born January 24, 1977) is a Swiss television hostess, actress, model and singer known to Italian, German and Swiss audiences. After having hosted the Swiss show Cinderella, Hunziker was discovered by German TV producers. In 1998, she presented the awarding of the Goldene Kamera with Thomas Gottschalk (a very well-known presenter in Germany). A year later, she co-hosted the show Michael Jackson & Friends (ZDF) in Munich. After having attended different talk shows, she presented her first show in Germany: Erstes Glück (SWR/Das Erste).
She co-hosted the show with Thomas Elstner and interviewed prominent people about their first love. The show was not very popular though, and was finally suspended. When she got back to Italy, she presented the shows Donna sotto le stelle and Piazza di Spagna (Canale 5) with Gerry Scotti and Tacchi a spillo (Italia 1) with Claudio Lippi. In 2002–2004 she presented with Carsten Spengemann the first and second season of Deutschland sucht den Superstar, the German version of the British TV show Pop Idol.
Hunziker joined ZDF's Wetten, dass..?, Germany's most popular TV show in October 2009. Wetten Dass..? is also being syndicated live on the Austrian ORF and SF1 in her native Switzerland.
In 2006 she released a music album in English, Lole, that was available only in German-speaking countries; the only single off the album was From Noon till Midnight. In it she covered 3 songs of Ira Losco, a Maltese singer. The 3 songs are 'Get Out', 'Someone Else' and 'Love me or Hate me'.
Hunziker co-hosted the Italian comedy shows Zelig (Italia 1) and Scherzi a parte (Canale 5) in 2001. Zelig is one of the most famous Italian TV shows. Later that year, she got the Italian TV Oscar in the category Discovery of the year. Besides, she co-hosted the famous Italian open air music show Festivalbar with Daniele Bossari and Alessia Marcuzzi.
She has also starred in the musicals directed by Saverio Marconi The Sound of Music (playing the role of Maria von Trapp) and Cabaret (playing the role of Sally Bowles); both had great success in Italy.
In 2007, Michelle Hunziker co-hosted with Pippo Baudo the worldiwide popular Italian song contest, the Festival di Sanremo on Rai Uno.
Later, Hunziker co-hosted again Striscia la Notizia with Ezio Greggio and Paperissima with Gerry Scotti.
