Eurovision Song Contest's Greatest Hits | |
---|---|
Dates | |
Air date | 31 March 2015 |
Host | |
Venue | Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith, London, United Kingdom |
Presenter(s) | |
Musical director | David Arch |
Directed by | |
Executive supervisor | Jon Ola Sand |
Executive producer | Guy Freeman |
Host broadcaster | British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) |
Eurovision Song Contest's Greatest Hits (also known as Eurovision's Greatest Hits) was a live television concert programme organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and produced by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Eurovision Song Contest. The concert took place on 31 March 2015 at the Eventim Apollo, in Hammersmith, London. Guy Freeman was the executive producer and Geoff Posner the director, both of whom held the same positions as the last time the BBC hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 1998. Simon Proctor was the senior producer and David Arch was the musical director for the concert. Tickets for the event went on sale at 10:15 (GMT) on 6 February 2015.
Graham Norton and Petra Mede hosted the event, which saw fifteen acts from thirteen countries performing their Eurovision entries from yesteryear. During the televised show, video montages from the Eurovision archives were shown in-between each live performance. The UK entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2015, "Still in Love with You" by Electro Velvet, was performed at the concert as the opening act, but never broadcast on the televised show. Riverdance performed a reprise of their Eurovision 1994 interval act as part of the anniversary celebrations.
Several countries confirmed that they would air the delayed broadcast of the concert on various dates that suited the broadcasters' schedules, including Australia, who first competed in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 as a wildcard entry. The host broadcaster BBC and the Irish broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) simulcast the show on Good Friday, 3 April 2015, across BBC One and RTÉ 2. In turn, several countries chose not to broadcast the event, including Luxembourg, who had an act taking part.
Confirmation came on 3 February 2015 that the concert event would take place at the Eventim Apollo, in Hammersmith, London. [1] This was the first time that London hosted a Eurovision event since the Eurovision Dance Contest 2007. [2]
It was announced on 22 October 2014 that the EBU had appointed the British broadcaster BBC to co-produce a special anniversary show to celebrate sixty years of the Eurovision Song Contest, similar to the show Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest which took place in 2005. The BBC's Entertainment department had been commissioned to host the 50th Anniversary show from the Royal Albert Hall in 2005 but this had to be declined as the BBC wouldn't commit to broadcasting the show. The details regarding the title of the show were unknown at the time the announcement was made. [3] [4]
The EBU later issued the following statement regarding the 60th anniversary: "There are various exciting proposals from member broadcasters on the table to celebrate the 60th anniversary beyond the contest in May, which are currently in the final stages of being evaluated. A decision is expected shortly, so stay tuned!". [5] Edgar Böhm, executive producer of the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest said in an interview that the BBC had been chosen to host a special anniversary show. [6] Guy Freeman was appointed as executive producer for the event, assisted by Senior Producer Simon Proctor, the script was co-written by Edward af Sillén, Daniel Réhn, Christine Rose and Simon Proctor whilst the director was Geoff Posner, who had previously directed the Eurovision Song Contest 1998 in Birmingham. [1]
On 3 February 2015, it was announced that Graham Norton and Petra Mede would co-host the concert show. [7] Norton, who co-hosted the Eurovision Dance Contest with Claudia Winkleman in 2007 and 2008, [8] is also the current Eurovision TV commentator for the United Kingdom, serving since 2009. [9] Norton would later go-on to co-host the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023. Mede was the host of Melodifestivalen 2009 (Swedish national selection show), [10] host of the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 [11] and later co-host of the 2016 [12] and 2024 contests.
Tickets for the anniversary concert went on sale from 10:15 (GMT) on 6 February 2015 via the BBC's Eurovision website and the Eurovision Song Contest's official website. [13]
The concert was recorded live on 31 March 2015 at the Eventim Apollo, London; allowing participating broadcasters the freedom to air the programme on a date and channel that was convenient for their broadcasting schedules. [14] Fifteen artists, representing thirteen countries, took part in the sixtieth anniversary gala event. [15] The first-ever winner of the contest (in 1956), Lys Assia, appeared in the audience as a guest of honour. During the broadcast, video montages were shown prior to each entry, showing footage for that particular year's contest, ending with Eurovision Song Contest footage for the entry that was about to perform on stage. Recap montages of Eurovision entries over the last sixty years, were also broadcast in-between performances. These sometimes differed between the UK/BBC and non-UK broadcasts because of copyright clearance and were as follows: [16]
Electro Velvet performed their entry representing the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015, "Still in Love with You". This performance did not appear on the televised show, but was exclusively done for the audience members of the concert hall itself and was later uploaded on the BBC's social media pages and YouTube channel. [17] The interval act for the show was Riverdance. [18] Consisting of traditional Irish music and dance, and featuring Irish dancing champions Jean Butler and Michael Flatley, with a score composed by Limerick native Bill Whelan, it originated as an interval performance during the Eurovision Song Contest 1994. [19] [20]
Fifteen Eurovision acts from thirteen countries participated in the anniversary concert. [15] Although there were originally fourteen acts confirmed by the BBC, it was later announced on 5 March 2015 that Norway's Bobbysocks would join the line-up increasing the total to fifteen. [21] Video montages were shown prior to each entry, showing footage for that particular year's contest, ending with Eurovision Song Contest footage for the entry that was about to perform on stage. [16]
A medley of some of the Eurovision Song Contest's greatest hits were performed in English by all of the participating artists, as a reprise act at the close of the show. Anne-Marie David performed Israel's winning entry in 1979, "Hallelujah". Swedish trio Herreys sang "Nel blu dipinto di blu", which finished in third place at the 1958 contest for Italy's Domenico Modugno. Bucks Fizz's "Making Your Mind Up", the winning entry for the United Kingdom in 1981, was performed by Bobbysocks. The reprise concluded with Conchita Wurst and Dana International leading all of the remaining performers (except Loreen) back on stage to sing ABBA's 1974 winning entry for Sweden, "Waterloo". [16]
As the show was not broadcast live, the participating national broadcasters were able to broadcast the show on a date and channel that was convenient for their broadcasting schedules. Some broadcasters – such as Austria and Sweden – recorded additional links and interviews in London for their viewers and these were used as previews for the main show. [14]
The following countries, listed in order of broadcasting dates, had confirmed that they would broadcast the anniversary show. [15]
Date of broadcast | Country | Station | Commentators |
---|---|---|---|
3 April 2015 | Ireland | RTÉ2 | No commentary |
United Kingdom | BBC One | ||
4 April 2015 | Belgium | Eén | Peter Van de Veire [23] |
Iceland | RÚV | No commentary | |
Norway | NRK1 | ||
Finland | Yle Fem | Sarah Dawn Finer and Christer Björkman | |
Sweden | SVT1 and SVT World | ||
5 April 2015 | Albania | RTSH | No commentary |
Russia | C1R | Yury Aksyuta and Svetlana Zeynalova | |
San Marino | SMRTV | No commentary | |
11 April 2015 | Finland | Yle TV2 | No commentary; Finnish subtitles |
Israel | Channel 1 | No commentary | |
13 April 2015 | Bulgaria | BNT1 | |
19 April 2015 | BNT2 | ||
25 April 2015 | Latvia | LTV1 | Aigars Rozenbergs [24] |
26 April 2015 | Portugal | RTP1 | Júlio Isidro |
2 May 2015 | Slovenia | TV SLO 1 | No commentary |
4 May 2015 | United Kingdom | BBC Radio 2 | Graham Norton [25] |
12 May 2015 | Belgium | La Une | Jean-Louis Lahaye and Maureen Louys |
16 May 2015 | |||
Denmark | DR1 | Ole Tøpholm | |
Germany | NDR and MDR | Peter Urban [26] [27] | |
Greece | NERIT1 and N HD | No commentary; Greek subtitles | |
Romania | TVR1 and TVR HD [28] | No commentary | |
17 May 2015 | Austria | ORF eins [29] | Andi Knoll |
19 May 2015 | Switzerland | SRF zwei (part 1) | Sven Epiney |
20 May 2015 | France | France 2 | Virginie Guilhaume |
21 May 2015 | Switzerland | SRF zwei (part 2) | Sven Epiney |
Australia | SBS One | No commentary | |
22 May 2015 | Estonia | ETV | |
Germany | EinsFestival | Peter Urban [26] [27] | |
23 May 2015 | Serbia | RTS | No commentary |
Spain | La 1 [30] | José María Íñigo and Julia Varela [31] | |
The following countries declined to broadcast the show:
The following countries, which had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest at least once, had not announced their plans on whether to broadcast the show. [15]
The United Kingdom first participated in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest at the inaugural 2003 edition which took place in Copenhagen, Denmark. ITV, a member organisation of the United Kingdom Independent Broadcasting (UKIB) and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), was responsible for the selection process of their participation from 2003 to 2005. The United Kingdom used a national selection format, broadcasting a show entitled Junior Eurovision Song Contest: The British Final, for their participation at the contests. The first representative to participate for the nation at the 2003 contest was Tom Morley with the song "My Song For The World", which finished in third place out of sixteen participating entries, achieving a score of one hundred and eighteen points. The United Kingdom withdrew from competing after the 2005 contest, but returned to the contest in 2022 in Yerevan, Armenia, with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) replacing ITV as the country's broadcaster.
France has participated in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest seven times, debuting in Lillehammer, Norway, at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2004. France Télévisions, a member organisation of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), is responsible for the selection process of their participation. The first representative to participate for the nation was Thomas Pontier with the song "Si on voulait bien", which finished in sixth place out of eighteen participating entries, achieving a score of seventy-eight points. France did not participate after 2004, and made its return to the contest in 2018, 14 years later. France has won the contest on three occasions: in 2020, with Valentina and the song "J'imagine", in 2022, with Lissandro and the song "Oh Maman!", and in 2023, with Zoé Clauzure and the song "Cœur".
The United Kingdom has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 66 times. Its first participation was at the second contest, in 1957, and it has entered every year since 1959. The country has won the contest five times: in 1967, with Sandie Shaw and the song "Puppet on a String"; in 1969, with Lulu and the song "Boom Bang-a-Bang"; in 1976, with Brotherhood of Man and the song "Save Your Kisses for Me"; in 1981, with Bucks Fizz and the song "Making Your Mind Up"; and in 1997, with Katrina and the Waves and the song "Love Shine a Light". The UK has also achieved a record sixteen second-place finishes, the first in 1959 and the most recent in 2022.
Petra Maria Mede is a Swedish comedian, dancer, actress and television presenter. Mede is known for her several roles in comic shows and as a television presenter, and is best known outside of Sweden for hosting the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013, 2016 and 2024, as well as co-hosting Eurovision Song Contest's Greatest Hits in 2015.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2016 was the 61st edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Stockholm, Sweden, following the country's victory at the 2015 contest with the song "Heroes" by Måns Zelmerlöw. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Sveriges Television (SVT), the contest was held at the Globe Arena and consisted of two semi-finals on 10 and 12 May, and a final on 14 May 2016. The three live shows were presented by Petra Mede and the previous year's winner Måns Zelmerlöw.
The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "I Can" written by Duncan James, Lee Ryan, Ciaron Bell, Ben Collier, Ian Hope, Liam Keenan and StarSign. The song was performed by the group Blue, which was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. Blue was announced as the British entrant on 29 January 2011, while the song "I Can" was presented to the public on 11 March 2011.
Australia has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest nine times since its debut in 2015, the second country outside of the Eurasia region to take part in the contest after Morocco in 1980. The country has been in the top ten five times, with their best result being a second-place finish for Dami Im in 2016, followed by Guy Sebastian finishing fifth in 2015 and Isaiah, Kate Miller-Heidke and Voyager finishing ninth in 2017, 2019, and 2023 respectively.
Switzerland participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "The Last of Our Kind" written by Christina Maria Rieder, Mike James, Jeff Dawson and Warne Livesey. The song was performed by Rykka, which is the artistic name of singer Christina Maria Rieder. The Swiss entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden was selected through the national final ESC 2016 – die Entscheidungsshow, organised by the Swiss German speaking broadcaster Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen (SRF) in collaboration with the other broadcasters part of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation. Artists that were interested in entering the Swiss national final had the opportunity to apply to one of three open selections with defined submission periods organised by SRF together with the Swiss-Romansh broadcaster Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha (RTR), the Swiss-French broadcaster Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS) and/or the Swiss-Italian broadcaster Radiotelevisione svizzera (RSI). A total of 19 entries were selected to advance to an "Expert Check" round; ten entries were selected from the SRF/RTR selection, six entries were selected from the RTS selection and three entries were selected from the RSI selection. The "Expert Check" was held on 6 December 2015 and involved four experts evaluating the live performances of the 19 entries and selecting six entries to advance to the televised national final—three artists and songs from the SRF/RTR candidates, two from the RTS candidates and one from the RSI candidates. The six finalists performed during the national final on 13 February 2016 where a combination of jury voting and public voting ultimately selected "The Last of Our Kind" performed by Rykka as the winner.
The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Never Give Up on You" written by Daniel Salcedo, Emmelie de Forest and Lawrie Martin. The song was performed by Lucie Jones. Songwriter Emmelie de Forest represented Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song "Only Teardrops" where she won the competition. The British entry for the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine was selected via the national final Eurovision: You Decide, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through the combination of a public vote and the votes of an eight-member professional jury.
Bulgaria participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Beautiful Mess" written by Borislav Milanov, Sebastian Arman, Joacim Bo Persson, Alex Omar and Alexander V. Blay. The song was performed by Kristian Kostov. On 13 March 2017, the Bulgarian broadcaster Bulgarian National Television (BNT) announced that Kristian Kostov had been selected to compete at the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine. The song that Kostov competed with, "Beautiful Mess", was also internally selected and was presented to the public on the same day.
The Czech Republic participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "My Turn" written by DWB and Kyler Niko. The song was performed by Martina Bárta, who was internally selected by the Czech broadcaster Česká televize (ČT) to represent the nation at the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine. Bárta was announced as the Czech representative on 15 February 2017, while the song "My Turn" was presented to the public on 7 March 2017.
Georgia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Keep the Faith" written by Anri Jokhadze and Tamara Gachechiladze. The song was performed by Tamara Gachechiladze, who was due to represent Georgia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 as part of Stephane and 3G with the song "We Don't Wanna Put In" before the nation's withdrawal in protest of the Russo-Georgian War. Songwriter Anri Jokhadze represented Georgia in the 2012 contest where he failed to qualify to the final with the song "I'm a Joker". The Georgian broadcaster Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB) held a national final in order to select the Georgian entry for the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine. An open call for submissions was held which resulted in the submission of twenty-five entries that were presented to the public during a televised production on 20 January 2017. The results of a public televote combined with the votes of an international jury resulted in the selection of "Keep the Faith" performed by Tamara Gachechiladze as the Georgian entry.
France participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "Mercy" written by Émilie Satt and Jean-Karl Lucas. The song is performed by the French duo Madame Monsieur. The French entry for the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal was selected through the national selection Destination Eurovision, organised by the French broadcaster France Télévisions in collaboration with the television channel France 2. The selection consisted of two semi-finals and a final. Madame Monsieur became the winner, placing third with the international juries but winning a landslide share of the vote from the French public, amassing enough points to win the competition. This was the first time France used a national final since 2014.
The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "Storm" written by Nicole Blair, Gil Lewis and Sean Hargreaves. The song was performed by SuRie. The British entry for the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal was selected via the national final Eurovision: You Decide, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through the combination of a public vote and the votes of an eight-member professional jury.
The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Bigger than Us" written by Laurell Barker, Anna-Klara Folin, John Lundvik and Jonas Thander. The song was performed by Michael Rice. Songwriter John Lundvik represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest the same year with the song "Too Late for Love". The British entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel was selected via the national final Eurovision: You Decide, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through two rounds of voting.
Montenegro participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Heaven" written by Dejan Božović and Adis Eminić. The song was performed by the group D mol. The Montenegrin broadcaster Radio i televizija Crne Gore (RTCG) organised the national final Montevizija 2019 in order to select the Montenegrin entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel. Five entries competed in the national final on 9 February 2019 where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. In the first round, the top two entries advanced to the superfinal following the combination of the votes of an international jury, a Montenegrin jury, a radio jury and public televoting. In the superfinal, "Heaven" performed by D-moll was selected as the winner entirely by a public televote, gaining 62% of the votes. The group was later renamed as D mol for the Eurovision Song Contest.
The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy. British singer-songwriter Sam Ryder represented the country with his song "Space Man", which he co-wrote with Max Wolfgang and Amy Wadge. He was selected as the 2022 UK entrant by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in collaboration with record label TaP Music and their management company.
Montenegro participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy with the song "Breathe" written by Vladana Vučinić and Darko Dimitrov. The song was performed by Vučinić, who was internally selected by the Montenegrin broadcaster Radio i televizija Crne Gore (RTCG) to represent the nation at the 2022 contest. Vučinić was announced as the Montenegrin representative on 4 January 2022, while her song was presented to the public on 4 March 2022.
The United Kingdom participated in and hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool. British singer Mae Muller represented the country with her song "I Wrote a Song", which she co-wrote with Lewis Thompson and Karen Poole. Muller was internally selected as the 2023 UK entrant by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in collaboration with record label TaP Music and their management company.
When will the show be broadcast in the UK / my country?