Eurovision Song Contest 1983

The Eurovision Song Contest 1983 was the 28th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It was held in Munich, West Germany, following the country's victory at the Template:Escyr with the song "{{#invoke:Lang|lang}}" by Nicole. Although this was Germany's first victory, 1983 was the second time Germany had hosted the contest, having previously done so in Template:Escyr. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (BR) on behalf of the ARD, the contest was held at the Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle on 23 April 1983 and was hosted by German dancer Marlene Charell.

Twenty countries took part this year, with Template:Esccnty, Template:Esccnty, and Template:Esccnty all returning this year, while Template:Esccnty decided not to participate citing industrial action at RTE.

The winner was Template:Esccnty with the song "{{#invoke:Lang|lang}}" by Corinne Hermes, which equalled the record of five victories set by Template:Esccnty. This record would in turn be beaten by Template:Esccnty. It was also the second year in a row where the winning entry was performed last on the night and the second year in a row in which Template:Esccnty won 2nd place. For the third year in a row, at least one country ended up with nul points, and in this case, it happened to be two countries, Template:Esccnty and Template:Esccnty, neither of whom were able to get off the mark.

The 1983 contest was the first to be televised in Australia, via Channel 0/28 (now SBS) in Sydney and Melbourne. The contest went on to become popular in Australia, leading to Template:Esccnty at the Template:Escyr in 2015.

Location

File:Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle 0499.JPG

Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle, Munich – host venue of the 1983 contest.

Munich is a German city and capital of the Bavarian state. Due to this, Munich houses the parliament and state government. {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} was chosen to host the contest.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> It was initially named after the president of the Bavarian State Sport Association.<ref name=":0" /> The hall opened in 1972 to host basketball events for the 1972 Summer Olympics.<ref name=":0" /> Due to staging and production necessities, the 5500 seats of the arena had to be reduced to 3,200 for the night of the final and until the Template:Escyr, this was the largest arena to host the event.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":0" /> From this number, 2000 seats were reserved for the delegations and journalists, 1200 tickets were on sale for the general public.<ref name=":8" /> The ticket prices ranged from 20 to 50 DM.<ref name=":12">Template:Cite news</ref>

Participants

Template:Further Template:Interlanguage link info Template:ESC 1983 participants Twenty countries took part in the contest, with Template:Esccnty, Template:Esccnty, and Template:Esccnty returning to the competition. On the other hand, Template:Esccnty was absent this year for the first time because RTÉ workers were in strike action at the time.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Several of the performing artists had previously competed as lead artists representing the same country in past editions: Guy Bonnet had represented Template:Esccnty; and Jahn Teigen had represented Template:Esccnty, and Template:Esccnty along Anita Skorgan. In addition, Sandra Reemer, who had represented the Template:Esccnty along with Andres Holten, Template:Esccnty, and Template:Esccnty; Anita Skorgan who represented Template:Esccnty, Template:Esccnty, in 1982 along Jahn Teigen, and provided backing vocals Template:Esccnty; and Izolda Barudžija, who represented Template:Esccnty as part of Aska; provided backing vocals for the same country in this contest.

citation

CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Roxburgh" />
Country	Broadcaster	Artist	Song	Language	Songwriter(s)	Conductor
Template:Esc	ORF	Westend	"Hurricane"	German	Template:Hlist	Richard Oesterreicher
Template:Esc	BRT	Pas de Deux	lang}}"	Dutch	Template:Hlist	Template:Ill
Template:Esc	CyBC	Template:Ill and Template:Ill	lang}}" ({{#invoke:Lang|lang}})	Greek	Template:Ill	Template:Ill
Template:Esc	DR	Gry Johansen	lang}}"	Danish	Template:Hlist	Allan Botschinsky
Template:Esc	YLE	Ami Aspelund	lang}}"	Finnish	Template:Hlist	Ossi Runne
Template:Esc	lang}}	Guy Bonnet	lang}}"	French	Template:Hlist	François Rauber
Template:Esc	BRTemplate:Efn	Hoffmann and Hoffmann	lang}}"	German	Template:Hlist	Dieter Reith
Template:Esc	ERT	Christie	lang}}" ({{#invoke:Lang|lang}})	Greek	Template:Hlist	Mimis Plessas
Template:Esc	IBA	Ofra Haza	lang}}" ({{#invoke:Lang|lang}})	Hebrew	Template:Hlist	Template:Ill
Template:Esc	RAI	Riccardo Fogli	lang}}"	Italian	Template:Hlist	Maurizio Fabrizio
Template:Esc	CLT	Corinne Hermès	lang}}"	French	Template:Hlist	Michel Bernholc
Template:Esc	NOS	Bernadette	"Sing Me a Song"	Dutch	Template:Hlist	Piet Souer
Template:Esc	NRK	Jahn Teigen	"Do Re Mi"	Norwegian	Template:Hlist	Sigurd Jansen
Template:Esc	RTP	Armando Gama	lang}}"	Portuguese	Armando Gama	Mike Sergeant
Template:Esc	TVE	Remedios Amaya	lang}}"	Spanish	Template:Hlist	José Miguel Évoras
Template:Esc	SVT	Carola Häggkvist	lang}}"	Swedish	Template:Hlist	Template:Ill
Template:Esc	SRG SSR	Mariella Farré	lang}}"	Italian	Template:Hlist	Robert Weber
Template:Esc	TRT	Çetin Alp and the Short Wave	"Opera"	Turkish	Template:Hlist	Buğra Uğur
Template:Esc	BBC	Sweet Dreams	"I'm Never Giving Up"	English	Template:Hlist	John Coleman
Template:Esc	JRT	Daniel	lang}}" ({{#invoke:Lang|lang}})	Serbo-Croatian	Template:Hlist	Radovan Papović

Production

The local production of the contest started in June 1982.<ref name=":8">Template:Cite news</ref> The final was produced by Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR) on behalf of the ARD, with production costs of 1.2 million DM, further 1.5 million DM for the organisation and broadcaster, making a total of 2.7 million DM.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> With the help of donations and other contributions, Bayerischer Rundfunk was able to reduce the costs at its own expense to about 1 million DM.<ref name=":10">Template:Cite news</ref> The city of Munich had to contribute 60 000 DM to a reception for the participating delegations.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The contest was directed by Template:Ill.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite news</ref> Dieter Reith served as the general musical director of the 60-piece orchestra.<ref name=":10" /> Christian Hayer and Günther Lebram served as the executive producers.<ref name="83de" /> Other leading figures in the production included Wolf Mittler, Sylvia de Bruycker, Christof Schmid and Joachim Krausz.<ref name=":11">Template:Cite news</ref> Rehearsals started on 18 April 1983.<ref name=":2" />

Stage design

The stage was designed by Template:Ill.<ref name=":8"/> The set was an arc-shaped stage surrounding the orchestra section and had a size of 4 × 34 metres.<ref name=":7">Template:Cite news</ref> A 26 metres large and seven metres high steel construction with frames resembling giant electric heaters was used as the background.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":8"/> The 33 frames were equipped with three light panels each, at which hundreds of light bulbs were suspended.<ref name=":8"/> In total, 63 000 light bulbs, which could be controlled manually or by sound frequency, lit up and flashed in different sequences and combinations depending on the nature and rhythm of the songs.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":8"/>

Format

Various receptions and events were organised in the week leading up to the final. On 19 April 1983, a cruise on Lake Starnberg with several participants was held by the German National Tourist Board as a press event for 250 journalists.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":4">Template:Cite news</ref> The Tourist Board also organised a bus tour for several participants to Linderhof Palace and Garmisch-Partenkirchen on 20 April 1983.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":4" /> On 19 April 1983, a reception for the participants was held at the Antiquarium in the Munich Residenz, on behalf of Franz Josef Strauss, minister-president of the state of Bavaria.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Parties and receptions for the artists were also organised by the record labels Ariola, Polydor and Deutsche Grammophon.<ref name=":4" /> Ralph Siegel, composer of the winning entry for Template:Esccnty, and his own record label Template:Ill, held a party for 1000 guests, including many artists, on 21 April 1983.<ref name=":4" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

A press centre with television monitors, typewriters, telephones and paper notebooks was installed for the 600 journalists covering the event.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":9">Template:Cite news</ref>

German Bundespost installed a post office from 18 to 23 April at the Rudi-Sedlmayr-Halle and stamped letters from there with a special Eurovision Song Contest postmark.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Presentation format

Instead of pre-filmed "postcards", the production team for this edition chose not to produce the postcards for technical reasons. During the change of the stage elements, the name of the next country was shown on screen accompanied by music from the orchestra, followed by a presentation of the upcoming entry by Marlene Charell.<ref name="83de">Template:Cite AV media</ref>

After the first rehearsals, the Austrian and British commentators complained that, since there were no postcards, they felt that there was not enough time to introduce the upcoming entry to their viewers, and subsequently threatened to withdrawn from the contest.<ref name=":5" /> As a reaction, for the live show and latter rehearsals, the name of the upcoming country was shown on screen for a certain time so that commentators had enough time.<ref name=":12" />

For the introduction of each entry, Charell stood in front of individual flower arrangements with flowers in the colours of the corresponding entry’s national flag.<ref name=":0" /> The floral arrangements were provided by the International Garden Expo 83 organization, as the event was also scheduled to start five days after the contest.<ref name=":8"/> Hostess Marlene Charell made all of her announcements in German before translating a repetition in both French and English.<ref name=":11" /> In all three languages, Charell named the country, song title, performing artist, author, composer and conductor. The decision not to use postcards apparently left Marlene lost during the event, as she would have to use three languages to introduce each of the participants.

Due to host Charell's use of three, the voting went on for nearly an hour, stretching the Eurovision contest past three hours for the second time ever, the first after 1979.<ref name="language">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In addition, Charell made 13 language mistakes throughout the night,<ref name="language"/> some as innocuous as mixing up the words for "points" between the three languages, some as major as nearly awarding points to "Schweden" (Template:Esccnty) that were meant for "Schweiz" (Template:Esccnty).

The language problems also occurred during the contest introductions, as Charell mispronounced the Finnish singer Ami Aspelund's surname as "Aspesund" and Spanish singer Remedios Amaya's name as "Ramedios", furthermore she introduced the Norwegian conductor Sigurd Jansen as "...Johannes...Skorgan...",<ref name="boombangabang">Boom-Bang-a-Bang: Eurovision's Funniest Moments, BBC-TV, hosted by Terry Wogan</ref> having been forced to make up a name on the spot after forgetting the conductor's name.

Contest overview

The contest took place on 23 April 1983, beginning at 21:00 CEST (19:00 UTC).<ref name=":1">Template:Cite news</ref> At the start of the broadcast, a 7-minutes-film with views of various sights of Germany and of the host city Munich was shown.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As part of introduction,a parade of nations was called by the presenter Marlene Charell.<ref name="83de" /> The interval act was a dance number set to a medley of German songs which had become internationally famous, including "Strangers in the Night". The host, Marlene Charell was the lead dancer accompanied by her ballet with 20 dancers from her company.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Considered the big favorite of the night by the press, the Luxembourgish entry did not enjoy the same prestige among the local public who considered it a bad joke,and this was reflected in a series of hostilities from the public in Munich, reaching the point of the show director Template:Ill and Roger Kreischer,their counterpart at the Luxembourgish broadcaster RTL, openly criticized the mocking tone of the local media and the public present at the venue towards the luxembourgish entry.<ref name=":5">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":6" /> It was famously seen during the broadcast that a good part of the public present at the contest site voluntarily left during the performance of Corine Hèrmes, which according to the draw was the last of the 20 participating songs. Other embarrassing reactions towards the Luxembourgish participant were recorded during the voting. Each time the name Luxembourg was announced by the jury spokespeople from each country, laughters and some joking words were heard and when high scores appeared, boos and another low slangs were ensued.<ref name=":5" /> When Corinne Hermès performed her reprise, a great part of the audience was already leaving.<ref name=":5" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

After the show, a reception for 1600 guests on behalf of the city of Munich took place in a tent of the International Garden Expo 83.<ref name=":6">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

citation

CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Template:Abbr	Country	Artist	Song	Points	Place
1	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	56	8
2	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	"Do Re Mi"	53	9
3	Template:Esc	Sweet Dreams	"I'm Never Giving Up"	79	6
4	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	126	3
5	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	41	11
6	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname and the Short Wave	"Opera"	0	19
7	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	0	19
8	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	28	15
9	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	41	11
10	Template:Esc	Christie	lang}}"	32	14
11	Template:Esc	Bernadette	"Sing Me a Song"	66	7
12	Template:Esc	Daniel	lang}}"	125	4
13	Template:Esc	Stavros and Constantina	lang}}"	26	16
14	Template:Esc	Hoffmann and Hoffmann	lang}}"	94	5
15	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	16	17
16	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	136	2
17	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	33	13
18	Template:Esc	Westend	"Hurricane"	53	9
19	Template:Esc	Pas de Deux	lang}}"	13	18
20	Template:Esc	Template:Sortname	lang}}"	142	1

Spokespersons

Each participating broadcaster appointed a spokesperson who was responsible for announcing the votes for its respective country via telephone. Known spokespersons at the 1983 contest are listed below.

• Template:FlaguTemplate:SndBent Evold<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Template:FlaguTemplate:SndSolveig Herlin<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• Template:FlaguTemplate:SndFlip van der Schalie<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• Template:FlaguTemplate:SndRosa Campano<ref name="Pueblo" />
• Template:FlaguTemplate:SndAgneta Bolme Börjefors<ref name="Melfest">Template:Cite book</ref>
• Template:FlaguTemplate:SndColin Berry<ref name="Roxburgh" />

Detailed voting results

Each participating broadcaster assembled a jury consisting of 11 non-professional jurors who awarded 12, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 point(s) to their top ten songs.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

citation

CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
		scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header	scope="col" Template:Vert header
rowspan="20" Template:Vert header	France	56		3			10			10	6	7	2	3	4	4		1	3			3
Norway	53			5	3		6					8			1	8	4	6	3	7	2
United Kingdom	79	5	5		12	2	5		8		5	5		6	3	5		2	10		6
Sweden	126	6	12	8		8	7	2	5	10	10	3	1	7	12	10	8	4	8	5
Italy	41	7			2		4	3		1	2		8	1			6	7
Turkey	0
Spain	0
Switzerland	28		1			7		1					7						6	1	5
Finland	41	1	2	6			3		4		8				7		7		2		1
Greece	32	3						12		5				12
Netherlands	66	2	7	1	6	4	2		12	3			5	5	2	4	3		4	2	4
Yugoslavia	125		8	12		1	12	10		12	6	7		8	6	12	10		1	12	8
Cyprus	26		4						1				6		5	1	5			4
Germany	94	10	10	7	8	6			2	4	1	10				3		8	7	6	12
Denmark	16			2	7		1	4						2
Israel	136	8	6	10	5	3		6	7	7	3	12	10		10	7		10	12	10	10
Portugal	33	4			1			5	6	2		6	2								7
Austria	53			3	4	5	10				4	4	4	3		6	2	5		3
Belgium	13			4				8										1
Luxembourg	142	12			10	12	8	7	3	8	12	1	12	10	8	2	12	12	5	8

12 points

Below is a summary of all 12 points in the final:

N.	Contestant	Nation(s) giving 12 points
6	Template:Esc	Template:Esc, Template:Esc, Template:Esc, Template:Esc, Template:Esc, Template:Esc
5	Template:Esc	Template:Esc, Template:Esc, Template:Esc, Template:Esc, Template:Esc
2	Template:Esc	Template:Esc, Template:Esc
	Template:Esc	Template:Esc, Template:Esc
	Template:Esc	Template:Esc, Template:Esc
1	Template:Esc	Template:Esc
	Template:Esc	Template:Esc
	Template:Esc	Template:Esc

Broadcasts

Each participating broadcaster was required to relay the contest via its networks. Non-participating EBU member broadcasters were also able to relay the contest as "passive participants". Broadcasters were able to send commentators to provide coverage of the contest in their own native language and to relay information about the artists and songs to their television viewers.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Host broadcaster BR provided 30 commentator boxes for this purpose.<ref name=":8"/>

The contest was reportedly broadcast in 30 countries, including the Eastern Bloc countries, Jordan and Hong Kong.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> No official accounts of the global viewing figures are known to exist, with estimates given in the press at the time ranging from 300 to 600 million viewers.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Known details on the broadcasts in each country, including the specific broadcasting stations and commentators are shown in the tables below.

Broadcasters and commentators in participating countries

Country	Broadcaster	Channel(s)	Commentator(s)	Template:Refh
Template:Flagu	ORF	FS2	Ernst Grissemann	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	BRT	TV1	Luc Appermont	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
		BRT 2	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
	RTBF	lang}}, RTBF Radio 1	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	CyBC	RIK	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	DR	DR TV	Jørgen de Mylius	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Template:Flagu	YLE	TV1	Erkki Pohjanheimo	<ref name="HS">Template:Cite news</ref>
		lang}}	Template:Ill
Template:Flagu	{{#invoke:Lang|lang}}		Léon Zitrone	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
	RFO	lang}}Template:Efn	Template:N/A	<ref name="Martinique">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	ARD	lang}}	Template:Ill	<ref name=":11" /><ref name=":1" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
	BR	Bayern 1		<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name="Bild+Funk">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
	HR	Frankfurt 1
	NDR	Template:Ill		<ref name=":5" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
	RIAS	RIAS 1		<ref name=":5" /><ref name="Bild+Funk" />
Template:Flagu	ERT	ERT1, {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	IBA	Israeli Television, Template:Ill	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	RAI	lang}}Template:Efn	Template:Ill	<ref name="Radiocorriere">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Template:Flagu	CLT	lang}}	Template:N/A	<ref name="Revue">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Template:Flagu	NOS	lang}}	Willem Duys	<ref name="AD">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	NRK	lang}}	Template:Ill	<ref name="Norsk">Template:Cite news</ref>
		NRKTemplate:Efn	Template:Ill
Template:Flagu	RTP	RTP1	Eládio Clímaco	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	RDP	lang}}	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	TVE	TVE 1	José-Miguel Ullán	<ref name="Pueblo">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	SVT	TV1	Ulf Elfving	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Ill	SR P3	Kent Finell	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	SRG SSR	TV DRS	Template:Ill	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
		TSRTemplate:Efn	Template:Ill	<ref name="Je vois tout">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
		TSITemplate:Efn	Giovanni Bertini	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Template:Flagu	TRT	lang}}	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	BBC	BBC1	Terry Wogan	<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
	BFBS	BFBS Radio	Richard Nankivell	<ref name="Roxburgh">Template:Cite book</ref>
Template:Flagu	JRT	lang}}, Template:Ill, Template:Ill, TV Zagreb 1	Oliver Mlakar	<ref name="Politika">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
		TV Ljubljana 1	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Broadcasters and commentators in non-participating countries

Country	Broadcaster	Channel(s)	Commentator(s)	Template:Refh
Template:Flagu	SBS	Channel 0/28Template:Efn	Terry Wogan	<ref name="Roxburgh" /><ref name="Sydney">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	ČST	ČST2Template:Efn	Template:N/A	<ref name="Czechoslovakia">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	SvFTemplate:Efn		Template:N/A	<ref name="Faroe">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	KNR	KNRTemplate:Efn	Template:N/A	<ref name="Greenland">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	RÚV	lang}}	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	RTÉ	RTÉ 1	Terry Wogan	<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
		RTÉ Radio 1	Brendan Balfe	<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Template:Flagu	TP	TP1Template:Efn	Template:N/A	<ref name="Poland">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	TVR	lang}}Template:Efn	Template:N/A	<ref name="Romania">Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Flagu	SABC	Radio 5	Template:N/A	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

External links

• Template:Official website