They created a duo that Poles loved. Many years later, their secret came to light

He was a renowned traveler and journalist, she was just beginning to discover the world. The story of Elżbieta Dzikowska and Tony Halik is a ready-made script for a film. Before they met, she watched him perform on TV. – I thought, “What a funny guy.” And I turned off the TV – she said in one of the episodes of the “Notacje” program (available on ). At that time, it never even occurred to her that this would be the love of her life. Shortly thereafter, in 1974, she flew to Mexico to interview him as part of the “Six Continents Club.”

After their first meeting, they couldn’t live without each other. They spent 24 years together

In just a few moments, Halik made a stunning impression on her. He talked about his travels with passion and, in addition, he had enormous knowledge, which impressed her very much. – He wasn’t particularly handsome, but he had incredible charm and a sense of humor. Also intelligence and incredible organizational talent – ​​. The feeling was so strong that Dzikowska decided to leave after 17 years and returned to Poland with her new lover. They quickly became partners not only in life, but also on screen. Viewers loved them in the program “Pepper and Vanilla”, in which they talked about traveling to the most exotic corners of the world, boasting about the artifacts they brought. They did not treat work as an obligation, it was a pleasure for them.

During 24 years of their life together, they enthusiastically made nearly 300 documentaries, gaining more and more sympathy and recognition from the audience. They were watched by millions, but few knew that the episodes were created with their own funds in the basement of their home, not professionally. – Tony joked that he robbed stagecoaches and I was a brothel madam – Dzikowska said with a laugh. – The truth was that Tony, as an American journalist, had a good salary, and then a good pension, and traveling became our way of life – she explained.

They were the most famous married couple on Polish television. Years later, it turned out that they were not married

Even though everyone knew and loved them, Dzikowska was aware that Halik was not a transparent character. He was known in the media for what he created, while concealing many inconvenient facts and events, such as the fact that he was a secret collaborator. He also did not want to talk about the disease he was struggling with. However, he had many more secrets.

Dzikowska and Halik were considered harmonious and happy for decades. The rest of them called each other “wife” and “husband”. Only many years after the death of her beloved, which took place on May 23, 1998, the traveler finally revealed the truth. It turned out that they had never actually gotten married.

I never talked about it because it would make Tony upset… We weren’t married. He kept saying everywhere that we were married, and I didn’t deny it. In an interview he even told us where we were getting married and what was on the wedding table. Tony was very embarrassed that we were in an informal relationship

– she said in the book “I was here. Tony Halik” by Mirosław Wlekły. So why did they never decide to get married? The decision was not dictated by beliefs or reluctance, but by the fact that the traveler was the husband of a French nurse, Pierrette Andrée Courtin, who gave him shelter during World War II. Together they had a son, Ozan, and it was because of him that he did not file for a divorce, although their relationship existed only on paper.