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Eurovision Song Contest 1981
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Eurovision Song Contest 1981
The Eurovision Song Contest 1981 was the 26th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, held on 4 April 1981 at the RDS Simmonscourt in Dublin, Ireland, and presented by Doireann Ní Bhriain. It was organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ), who staged the event after winning the 1980 contest for Ireland with the song "What's Another Year" performed by Johnny Logan.
Broadcasters from twenty countries participated in the contest, equalling the record of the 1978 edition. Cyprus made their debut this year, while Israel and Yugoslavia both returned to the competition, after their one-year and five-year absences, respectively. Morocco and Italy decided not to participate.
The winner was the United Kingdom with the song "Making Your Mind Up", performed by Bucks Fizz, written by Andy Hill and John Danter. Germany finished second for the second consecutive year, while France finished third. Norway again finished last, with its third 'nul points' in the contest.
Bucks Fizz's win launched the group's hugely successful international career. Their performance on the Eurovision stage included a dance routine in which at one point the two male members ripped the skirts off the two female members, only to reveal mini-skirts; this today stands as one of the most defining moments in the contest's history.
Some hours after Johnny Logan won the 1980 contest, the head of Irish broadcaster, Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ), Brian MacLochlainn announced that they would take on the responsibility of hosting the 1981 contest. This ended up taking the 1981 contest, for the second time in the event's history, to Dublin, the capital of Ireland; the first such occasion was ten years earlier in 1971.
By October 1980, it looked as though 21 countries were planning to take part, the largest number so far, but Monaco then declared that they were no longer interested. This year marked the début of Cyprus in the contest; they finished in sixth place. Israel returned to the contest; they had been absent from the previous year's event due to a clash of dates with the Yom HaZikaron holiday, which prevented them from defending their victories of 1978 and 1979. They finished seventh. Yugoslavia also returned to the competition after a five-year absence. Italy decided not to enter due to lack of interest, while Morocco declined to take part after their debut entry the year before. Morocco's king, Hassan II, "reportedly withdrew Rabat's participation from the contest the following year, saying that the country will never participate again". The draw for the running order took place on 14 November 1980, with it being confirmed that there was a total of 20 entrants.
Many previous contestants returned to the contest this year – notably Jean-Claude Pascal, who had won the contest for Luxembourg in 1961, although he could only manage 11th place this time. Peter, Sue and Marc returned for the fourth time, after representing Switzerland in 1971, 1976, and 1979. Performing again for Switzerland, they remain the only act to sing Contest entries in four different languages (French, English, German and, on this occasion, Italian). Other returnees were Marty Brem who had represented Austria in 1980 as part of Blue Danube, Tommy Seebach who had represented Denmark in 1979 –with Debbie Cameron providing him backing vocals in 1979–, and Björn Skifs who had represented Sweden in 1978. Cheryl Baker, a member of Bucks Fizz, had represented the United Kingdom in 1978 as part of Co-Co, while Maxi, a member of Sheeba, had represented Ireland in 1973 as a solo artist. In addition, Ismeta Dervoz, who had represented Yugoslavia in 1976 as part of Ambasadori, and Anita Skorgan, who had represented Norway in 1977 and 1979, provided backing vocals for the same country.
The contest took place under heavy guard at the 1,600 seat Simmonscourt Pavilion of the RDS, which was normally used for agricultural and horse shows. The set was the largest ever seen in the contest so far, being 150 feet across, 80 feet deep and 30 feet high. Over 250 armed soldiers and police were on hand to protect against any likely political demonstrations, with the British entrants being under constant guard during their time in Dublin due to threats from the IRA. This included an evacuation of the participants' hotel at one point due to a bomb scare. The security measures were reported on British news reports on the day of the contest.
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Eurovision Song Contest 1981
The Eurovision Song Contest 1981 was the 26th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, held on 4 April 1981 at the RDS Simmonscourt in Dublin, Ireland, and presented by Doireann Ní Bhriain. It was organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ), who staged the event after winning the 1980 contest for Ireland with the song "What's Another Year" performed by Johnny Logan.
Broadcasters from twenty countries participated in the contest, equalling the record of the 1978 edition. Cyprus made their debut this year, while Israel and Yugoslavia both returned to the competition, after their one-year and five-year absences, respectively. Morocco and Italy decided not to participate.
The winner was the United Kingdom with the song "Making Your Mind Up", performed by Bucks Fizz, written by Andy Hill and John Danter. Germany finished second for the second consecutive year, while France finished third. Norway again finished last, with its third 'nul points' in the contest.
Bucks Fizz's win launched the group's hugely successful international career. Their performance on the Eurovision stage included a dance routine in which at one point the two male members ripped the skirts off the two female members, only to reveal mini-skirts; this today stands as one of the most defining moments in the contest's history.
Some hours after Johnny Logan won the 1980 contest, the head of Irish broadcaster, Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ), Brian MacLochlainn announced that they would take on the responsibility of hosting the 1981 contest. This ended up taking the 1981 contest, for the second time in the event's history, to Dublin, the capital of Ireland; the first such occasion was ten years earlier in 1971.
By October 1980, it looked as though 21 countries were planning to take part, the largest number so far, but Monaco then declared that they were no longer interested. This year marked the début of Cyprus in the contest; they finished in sixth place. Israel returned to the contest; they had been absent from the previous year's event due to a clash of dates with the Yom HaZikaron holiday, which prevented them from defending their victories of 1978 and 1979. They finished seventh. Yugoslavia also returned to the competition after a five-year absence. Italy decided not to enter due to lack of interest, while Morocco declined to take part after their debut entry the year before. Morocco's king, Hassan II, "reportedly withdrew Rabat's participation from the contest the following year, saying that the country will never participate again". The draw for the running order took place on 14 November 1980, with it being confirmed that there was a total of 20 entrants.
Many previous contestants returned to the contest this year – notably Jean-Claude Pascal, who had won the contest for Luxembourg in 1961, although he could only manage 11th place this time. Peter, Sue and Marc returned for the fourth time, after representing Switzerland in 1971, 1976, and 1979. Performing again for Switzerland, they remain the only act to sing Contest entries in four different languages (French, English, German and, on this occasion, Italian). Other returnees were Marty Brem who had represented Austria in 1980 as part of Blue Danube, Tommy Seebach who had represented Denmark in 1979 –with Debbie Cameron providing him backing vocals in 1979–, and Björn Skifs who had represented Sweden in 1978. Cheryl Baker, a member of Bucks Fizz, had represented the United Kingdom in 1978 as part of Co-Co, while Maxi, a member of Sheeba, had represented Ireland in 1973 as a solo artist. In addition, Ismeta Dervoz, who had represented Yugoslavia in 1976 as part of Ambasadori, and Anita Skorgan, who had represented Norway in 1977 and 1979, provided backing vocals for the same country.
The contest took place under heavy guard at the 1,600 seat Simmonscourt Pavilion of the RDS, which was normally used for agricultural and horse shows. The set was the largest ever seen in the contest so far, being 150 feet across, 80 feet deep and 30 feet high. Over 250 armed soldiers and police were on hand to protect against any likely political demonstrations, with the British entrants being under constant guard during their time in Dublin due to threats from the IRA. This included an evacuation of the participants' hotel at one point due to a bomb scare. The security measures were reported on British news reports on the day of the contest.
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