Anjo Yllana | Screengrab from Ogie Diaz/YouTube
Despite openly expressing his desire to return to “Eat Bulaga,” Anjo Yllana said he is no longer expecting this to happen due to a policy among its executives that those who have resigned from the show no longer have the chance to go back again.
In a recent interview with Ogie Diaz, the former host acknowledged the people who tend to criticize him every time he talked about returning to “Eat Bulaga,” saying that they are misinterpreting his statements.
“Syempre masaya ‘yung thought. Maisip mong babalik, diba? Ang dami na naman nagbash, ‘Wag, traydor ‘yan’ Pero sa totoo lang sa ‘Bulaga’ kasi, ito, may isshare lang ako, huwag naman sana mabash ulit. Sa ‘Eat Bulaga’ kasi once wala ka na doon, tinanggal ka or nag-resign ka, wala pa akong kilala na nakabalik kahit gusto nila bumalik. Ganon ang patakaran ng Eat Bulaga,” he shared.
The actor-host remarked that he is no longer expecting that he will have the chance to return to the longest-running noontime show, but won’t stop himself from missing the time he was hosting there.
“Dreaming lang kasi masaya. Nangangarap lang ako na kunwari nandoon ka, kami pa rin ni Jimmy (Santos). Nangangarap ako na magkakasama pa rin kami nung mga nawala na rin. Kasi sila ‘yung matagal kong kasama. Nangangarap lang ‘Ang saya siguro ‘pag nandiyan pa rin kami’ Hanggang ganon na lang pero alam kong hindi na dapat ako umaasa doon. Kasi sa record wala pang bumabalik na Dabarkads,” he explained.
Without naming anyone, Yllana shared that there are also some from the original hosts who attempted to go back, but that never gained ground.
“Kaya nung sinabi sakin, ‘Gusto mo ba bumalik?’ Dati ko pang alam noong nag-resign ako, hindi na ako makakabalik. Although pwede kang mag-guest at habang buhay ka nang Dabarkads… Suspend, bumabalik ‘yon, pero ‘yung nag-resign o natanggal na, hindi na pwede.”
In August 2020, Yllana resigned from “Eat Bulaga” after 21 years of being on the show. He then accepted a hosting job on Net 25’s “Happy Time,” which also had a noon time slot.
In a previous interview, Yllana was asked if he thought there were ill feelings between him and “Eat Bulaga” hosts Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon, collectively known as TVJ, when he left the show, and his reply was: “Hindi ko naitanong. Pero siguro medyo masama yung loob nila, kasi katapat din nila yung show na tinanggap ko.”