Intro Post

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Introduction

We’ve reached the tenth Eurovision Song Contest, and the first of three Eurovisions hosted in Italy! Each one was hosted in a different Italian city, and this was in Naples. For the first time ever, this contest was broadcast outside the European Broadcasting Union: in Czechoslovakia,* Poland, Hungary, East Germany, and the Soviet Union.** This time, I watched it with English commentary, which should be a nice breather from all this Dutch.

Sweden returned after skipping last year, and Ireland entered the contest for the first time, making for 18 countries total. You probably already know Ireland was a highly successful participant in the 80’s and 90’s. They’re the only country to win three years in a row (1992-1994), they’re the first country to win six and seven times (1994, 1996), and they had the most wins of any Eurovision country from 1994 to 2022. However, Sweden has caught up since then, and since 2023, their win record is tied with Ireland. It’s generally accepted that since the language rule was lifted, Ireland and the UK lost their advantage and struggled to shine (with a few lucky exceptions).

The winner of this contest is a fun one: “Poupée de cire, poupée de son” from Luxembourg, probably the most famous Eurovision song of the 60’s. I first heard a portion of it when watching a compilation of all Eurovision winners around April 2022, and it was the first to wow me. I’ve already heard the song in full, but I expect it to be the highlight of this contest anyway.

* Amusingly, I know someone who talks about Czechoslovakia as though it still exists.

** Referred to by David Jacobs, the British commentator, as “Russia”. Now that I think of it, it’s analogous to calling the United Kingdom “England”.