Brittany is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period of Roman occupation. It became an independent kingdom and then a duchy before being united with the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province governed as a separate nation under the crown.
The Eurovision Song Contest 1959 was the fourth edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest, held on Wednesday 11 March 1959 at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France, and hosted by French television presenter Jacqueline Joubert. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française (RTF), the contest, originally known as the Grand Prix Eurovision de la Chanson Européenne 1959, was held in France following the country's victory at the 1958 contest with the song "Dors, mon amour", performed by André Claveau.
The Eurovision Song Contest 1961 was the 6th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. Once again, the contest was held in the French seaside city of Cannes, having also hosted the 1959 edition. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française (RTF), the contest was again held at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès on Saturday 18 March 1961, becoming the first contest to take place on a Saturday evening, a tradition that has continued ever since. The show was directed by Marcel Cravenne and again hosted by Jacqueline Joubert, who had also hosted in 1959.
Ys, also spelled Is or Kêr-Is in Breton, and Ville d'Ys in French, is a mythical city on the coast of Brittany that was swallowed up by the ocean. Most versions of the legend place the city in the Baie de Douarnenez.
France has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 65 times since its debut at the first contest in 1956. France is one of only seven countries to be present at the first contest, and has been absent from only two contests in its history, missing the 1974 and 1982 contests. Along with Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom, France is one of the "Big Five" countries that are automatically prequalified for the final, due to being the largest financial contributors to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). France has won the contest five times.
"L'Oiseau et l'Enfant" was the winning song in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977 performed in French by Marie Myriam, who represented France. The song was composed by Jean-Paul Cara and written by Joe Gracy. This is currently the last song to have won for France.
France participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with the song "Et s'il fallait le faire" written by Fred Blondin and Anse Lazio. The song was performed by Patricia Kaas. The French broadcaster France Télévisions in collaboration with the television channel France 3 internally selected the French entry for the 2009 contest in Moscow, Russia. Patricia Kaas was officially announced by France 3 as the French entrant on 28 January 2009 and later the song was presented to the public as the contest entry on 1 February 2009.
Jean Philippe Gargantiel was a French singer who represented France at the Eurovision Song Contest 1959. He returned to the contest in 1962 representing Switzerland. He was the first artist to compete for two countries at Eurovision.
France participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 with the song "Moustache" written by Pierre Beyres, Kim N'Guyen, Lorent Idir and François Ardouvin. The song was performed by the band Twin Twin. The French broadcaster France Télévisions in collaboration with the television channel France 3 organised a national final in order to select the French entry for the 2014 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark. Three songs competed in the national final which took place during the France 3 programme Les chansons d'abord. On 2 March 2014, "Moustache" performed by Twin Twin was officially announced by France 3 as the winner following the combination of votes from a jury panel and a public vote.
Laurent Amir Khlifa Khedider Haddad, better known as Amir Haddad or simply as Amir, is a French-Israeli singer and songwriter. He took part in 2006 in the Israeli music competition Kokhav Nolad, released his album Vayehi in 2011 and was a finalist in French competition The Voice: la plus belle voix as part of Team Jenifer finishing third in the competition. He represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "J'ai cherché", which finished in sixth place.
"Loin d'ici" is a French language song performed by Austrian singer, songwriter, and actress Zoë. The song was released as a digital download on 5 February 2016 through Global Rockstar Music, and was written by Zoë and Christof Straub. The song represented Austria in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016.
Elina Nechayeva is an Estonian soprano. She represented Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 in Lisbon, Portugal, with the song "La forza".
Bilal Hassani is a French singer-songwriter and YouTuber. She represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Roi", finishing in 16th place.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2022 was the 66th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Turin, Italy, following the country's victory at the 2021 contest with the song "Zitti e buoni" by Måneskin. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Radiotelevisione italiana (RAI), the contest was held at the PalaOlimpico, and consisted of two semi-finals on 10 and 12 May, and a final on 14 May 2022. The three live shows were presented by Italian television presenter Alessandro Cattelan, Italian singer Laura Pausini and Lebanese-born British singer Mika.
Barbara Piévic, known professionally as Barbara Pravi, is a French singer and songwriter. After signing with Capitol Music France in 2015, she released five extended plays with the label. She represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with the song "Voilà", securing second place, the best result for France since 1991. Her debut album On n'enferme pas les oiseaux was released on 27 August 2021.
"Voilà" is a song by French singer Barbara Pravi. It was released for digital download and to streaming platforms on 6 November 2020 and is co-composed by Barbara Pravi, Igit and Lili Poe. The song represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, placing second, after winning the pre-selection competition Eurovision France, c'est vous qui décidez! The single was certified Platinum (Global) in August 2021 and Gold (France) in April 2022. The song tells a personal story of Pravi's about self-acceptance.
France participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, with "Fulenn" performed by Alvan and Ahez. The French broadcaster France Télévisions organised the national final Eurovision France, c'est vous qui décidez ! in order to select the French entry for the 2022 contest. Twelve songs competed in the national final on 5 March 2022, where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting.
Ahez is a French vocal group from Carhaix, Brittany, consisting of Marine Lavigne, Sterenn Diridollou and Sterenn Le Guillou. The trio represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 together with Alvan with the song "Fulenn".
"Fulenn" is a song by French musician Alvan and the vocal group Ahez. It represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, after winning Eurovision France, c'est vous qui décidez !, the French national final. It is the second time that France has selected a song sung in Breton, a Celtic language spoken in the region of Brittany, to represent the country at Eurovision, the first having occurred in 1996.
France participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool, United Kingdom, with the song "Évidemment", written by Fatima Zahra Hafdi, Ahmed Saghir, Yannick Rastogi and Zacharie Raymond. The song was performed by La Zarra. The French broadcaster France Télévisions internally selected the French entry for the contest, delegated by the television channel France 2. La Zarra was officially announced by France 2 as the French entrant on 12 January 2023, and the song was presented to the public as the French entry on 19 February 2023, during the France 2 programme 20h30 le dimanche.
