Overview
- His death occurred on 3 March 2026 and was first reported publicly by the Facebook fan page Kofferradio before his son Enrico Amft confirmed the news to the Münchner Merkur on 1 October 2026.
- Thilo sang the original Benjamin Blümchen title song that opened the series' early episodes, a recording used from 1977 to 1987 and still prized by many fans despite being replaced after a rights sale in the 1980s.
- Born Michael Tilo Amft in Dresden on 22 September 1944, he made his first radio recording in 1969 for the DDR label Amiga and later continued a varied music career after remaining in the West in the 1970s.
- According to his son, Thilo performed until about 2009, spent his later years living quietly in Guttenberg in Oberfranken, and regarded the Benjamin Blümchen song as only a small part of his broader work.
- Recent coverage has been largely commemorative and may renew interest in Thilo's wider catalogue and in archival efforts to preserve early Hörspiel recordings that shaped many listeners' childhoods.