Margarita Rosa de Francisco Baquero also known as Margarita Rosa and La Mencha (born August 8, 1965) is a Colombian

telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...

movie actress, singer, and TV presenter.

Biography

1980s Margarita Rosa de Francisco was born in Cali, Valle Del Cauca, Colombia on August 8, 1965. She is the daughter of Gerardo de Francisco - a musician and actor - and fashion designer Mercedes Baquero. She is also the sister of TV personality Martin de Francisco. As a child, Margarita took ballet classes in the Antonio Maria Valencia Conservatory in Cali, which she had to quickly retire from due to problems in the

vertebral column The vertebral column, also known as the backbone or spine, is part of the axial skeleton. The vertebral column is the defining characteristic of a vertebrate in which the notochord (a flexible rod of uniform composition) found in all chordate ...

. She made her film debut in 1981 starring in the movie ''Tacones''. She then moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

to study English and in 1984 was selected as model of the year. Representing the “ Valle del Cauca”, she was crowned vicereine in the 1984 National Beauty Contest in Colombia, later representing Colombia in the 1985 Miss World pageant where she was not as successful. In 1986 she made her television debut in the telenovela ''Gallito Ramirez'', directed by Julio Cesar Luna. There she met Carlos Vives, and they married on August 20, 1988. Her time on the show earned her the Simon Bolivar prize for standout actress. She was later a presenter in the news broadcast ''24 Hours''. In 1988 she consolidated her acting career once again in the telenovela ''Los Pecados de Ines de Hinojosa.'' 1990s The early 1990s was a busy period for Margarita, acting in the telenovela ''Calamar'', as well as landing a role in another controversial Spanish series called ''Brigada Central''. She later returned to Colombia to star in the series ''Puerta Grande'' and finally in Cafe con Aroma de Mujer in 1994, one of the most successful telenovelas in Colombian television history. In 1996 she starred in the movie ''Ilona llega con la lluvia'' and later got the role of Antonia in the series ''Hombres'', which she eventually left to focus solely on a role in another telenovela, ''La Madre''. 2000s onwards In 2000, Margarita accepted the role of ''La Caponera'' on the telenovela of the same name, produced by

Caracol Television Caracol is a large ancient Maya archaeological site, located in what is now the Cayo District, of Belize. It is situated approximately south of Xunantunich, and the town of San Ignacio, and from the Macal River. It rests on the Vaca Platea ...

and

RTI Producciones RTI Colombia, also known as Radio Televisión Interamericana (Inter-American Radio and Television), is a Colombian television production company and former ''programadora''. It aired 14.5 hours per week of programming in 1993. In the 1990s, as a ...

. She was also selected by Caracol to host the Colombian version of “Survivor”, ''Expedicion Robinson'', for two seasons in 2001 and 2002. She later attained roles in the movies ''Fidel y Adios'' and ''Ana Elisa'' while hosting the Caracol reality show Desafio 2004, which she has continued to do with the exception of 2007 in which scheduling conflicts with the Mexican telenovela Mientras Haya Vida prevented her from hosting. She would later guest star in the movie ''Paraiso Travel'' playing the role of Raquel and a small role in the series

Capadocia Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Revo ...

. She married for a second time with businessman Daniel Castello in 2003, when he was 46 and she was 38 years old. In 2011, she played a starring role in the

RCN Television RCN may refer to: * '' Radio Cadena Nacional (disambiguation)'', a broadcast network in Colombia ** RCN Radio ** RCN TV * RCN Corporation (formerly Residential Communications Network), a cable television, telephone, and Internet service provider i ...

series ''Correo de Inocentes'' alongside Salvador del Solar Labarthe and Roberto Urbina. She later hosted the Caracol reality show " Desafio 2014: Marruecos, las mil y uno noches" and the 2015 "Desafio 2015: India, la Reencarnacion". Musical career Margarita Rosa de Francisco achieved the level of singer/songwriter having been a part of the band in the telenovela Cafe con Aroma de Mujer, which would be favoured due to the success of the show at the time. In 1997 she released an album in which the song ''Veneno y Savia'' was lauded and reached certain recognition. In 1998 she was part of the musical group in another telenovela (''La Madre''), and again in the telenovela ( Mientras Haya Vida). In 2008 “''Margarita Rosa''” was released – a collection of musical works over a variety of years. She returned to the musical scene once again in 2011, this time having composed music for the series ''Correo de inocentes'' on

and in 2012 she launched ''Bailarina'' (Ballerina), a completely different album from her previous ones in which she experimented with a variety of genres. Writing career Margarita Rosa de Francisco has had a great deal of success as a columnist in the Colombian magazine

Cromos ''Cromos'' is a Colombian varieties and photojournalism magazine, known for widely covering the Miss Colombia pageant on editions called ''Mini Cromos''. The magazine was founded in 1916 by Miguel Santiago Valencia and Abelardo Arboleda, both fro ...

, where she disclosed parts of her personal life – notably the day of her marriage with Carlos Vives. She has also written for Colombian newspapers

El Espectador ''El Espectador'' (meaning "The Spectator") is a newspaper with national circulation within Colombia, founded by Fidel Cano Gutiérrez on 22 March 1887 in Medellín and published since 1915 in Bogotá. It changed from a daily to a weekly editio ...

and El Tiempo. Within her writings are human themes such as feeling feminine without necessarily being a feminist, political themes (although she has stated her lack of interest in politics), and themes of general interests in columns with titles such as “La Envidia” (Jealousy), “El Arte de Vivir en Paz” (The Art of Living in Peace), “Por Pura Fe” (By Pure Faith), and “Respeto” (Respect), among others. She published her first book in 2016 titled “''El Hombre del Telefono''” (The Man on the Telephone). Other notable achievements In 2000 she was named a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

Filmography

*Reefa (2020) - Jackeline * Playing with Fire (2019) - Martina Gaiani * Narcos (2017) TV Series - Carolina Álvarez *Correo de inocentes (2011) - Pilar Carrasco *Kadabra (2010) - Ana *

Of Love and Other Demons ''Of Love and Other Demons'' ( es, Del amor y otros demonios, link=no) is a novel by Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez published in 1994. In the prologue, García Márquez claims the novel is the fictional representation of a legend t ...

(2009) - Marquesa *L'homme de Chevet ( Cartagena) (2009) *

TV series (2009) - Mercedes Mejía 'Esmeraldera' *''Paraíso Travel'' (2008) * Mientras haya vida - Maria (2007) *Adiós, Ana Elisa (2006) *''

Fidel Fidel most commonly refers to: * Fidel Castro (1926–2016), Cuban communist revolutionary and politician * Fidel Ramos (1928–2022), Filipino politician and former president Fidel may also refer to: Other persons * Fidel (given name) Film * ...

'' (2002) (TV) (as Margarita d'Francisco) - Naty Revuelta *"Caponera, La" (2000) TV Series - Bernarda Cutiño 'La Caponera' *"Madre, La" (1998) TV Series = María Luisa Caicedo de Suárez-Bernal *"Hombres" (1997) TV Series - Antonia Miranda * Ilona Arrives with the Rain (Ilona llega con la lluvia, aka ''Ilona arriva con la pioggia'' in Italy) (1996) - Ilona Grabowska *"Café con aroma de mujer" - Carolina Olivares / ... (1 episode, 1994) **(Colombia: short title) – Café con aroma de mujer (1994) TV Episode - Teresa Suárez 'Gaviota'/Carolina Olivares *"Brigada central 2: La guerra blanca" (1993) (mini) TV Series - Marina Valdés *"Puerta grande" (1993) (mini) TV Series - Paloma *"Calamar" (1990) TV Series - Claramanta *"Pecados de Inés de Hinojosa, Los" (1988) (mini) TV Series - Juanita de Hinojosa *"Noticiero 24 horas" (1987) - TV News Host *"Gallito Ramírez" (1986) TV Series - Niña Mencha Lavalle *Tacones (1981)

Presenter

* Desafío 2016: ''SúperHumanos'' * Desafío 2015: ''India, la reencarnación'' * Desafío 2014: ''Marruecos, las mil y una noches'' * Desafío 2013: ''África, el origen'' * Desafío 2012: ''El fin del mundo'' * Desafío: ''La Lucha de las Regiones: La Piedra Sagrada 2011'' * Desafío 2008 * Desafío 2005 * Desafío 2004 * Expedición Robinson

Discography

Studio Albums * 2012: Bailarina * 2011: A Solas (En Vivo) * 1997: Margarita Rosa Soundtrack Albums * 2000: La Caponera * 1998: La Madre * 1995: Café, Con Aroma de Mujer In addition to the soundtrack albums she has collaborated with, de Francisco recorded in 2011 the song "Cuidao' que te quemas", which served as the opening theme of Colombian TV series Correo de Inocentes. In 2007 she also recorded "Mientras Haya Vida" as the opening theme of the Mexican telenovela of the same name.

References

External links

*
fan site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Francisco, Margarita Rosa de 1965 births Living people People from Cali 20th-century Colombian women singers Colombian telenovela actresses Miss World 1985 delegates Colombian beauty pageant winners Colombian atheists Colombian film actresses 20th-century Colombian actresses 21st-century Colombian women singers 21st-century Colombian actresses