The Eurovision Song Contest 1980 was the 25th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in The Hague, Netherlands, and was organised by host broadcaster Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) – which agreed to stage the event after Israel, having won in both 1978 and 1979, declined to host it for a second successive year – and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The contest was held at the Nederlands Congresgebouw on 19 April 1980 and was hosted by Dutch actress Marlous Fluitsma, although each song was introduced by a presenter from the participating nation.
Seán Patrick Michael Sherrard, also known professionally as Johnny Logan, is an Australian-born Irish singer, songwriter and musician. He is best known for being the first performer to win the Eurovision Song Contest as a lead singer twice.
The Netherlands has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 64 times since making its debut as one of the seven countries at the first contest in 1956. The country has missed only four contests, twice because the dates coincided with Remembrance of the Dead, and twice because of being relegated due to poor results the previous year. It has missed the final despite qualifying once, in 2024, due to the personal conduct of its entrant which led to disqualification. The Netherlands has hosted the contest five times: in Hilversum (1958), Amsterdam (1970), The Hague, and Rotterdam (2021).
"Love Shine a Light" is a song by British rock band Katrina and the Waves written by Kimberley Rew. It represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1997 held in Dublin, resulting in the country's fifth and most recent win at the contest. It was released as a single on 28 April 1997 and was later included on the band's ninth studio album, Walk on Water (1997), serving as the album's lead single.
"Ding-a-dong" is a song recorded by Dutch band Teach-In, with music composed by Dick Bakker and lyrics written by Will Luikinga and Eddy Ouwens. It represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 1975, held in Stockholm, winning the contest. It reached number 1 in both the Swiss and the Norwegian Singles Chart. Teach-In recorded the song in English, Dutch, and German.
Ireland has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 56 times since making its debut at the 1965 contest in Naples, missing only two contests since, in 1983 and 2002. The contest's final is broadcast in Ireland on RTÉ One. Ireland shares a joint record total of seven wins with Sweden, and is the only country to have won three times consecutively. Ireland has finished second four times, while Sweden has done that just once. However, all of Ireland's victories were decided by juries only, in the era before public voting became the norm in 1998.
"All Kinds of Everything" is a song recorded by Irish singer Dana written by Derry Lindsay and Jackie Smith. It represented Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1970 held in Amsterdam, resulting in the country's first ever win at the contest. The recording became an international hit.
"Hold Me Now" is a song written and recorded by Irish singer-songwriter Johnny Logan. It represented Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1987 held in Brussels, resulting in his second win at the contest, as well as the country's third victory.
"Ein bißchen Frieden" is a song recorded by German singer Nicole, with music composed by Ralph Siegel and German lyrics written by Bernd Meinunger. It represented Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 1982, held in Harrogate, resulting in the country's first ever win at the contest.
"Boom Bang-a-Bang" is a song recorded by Scottish singer Lulu, with music composed by Alan Moorhouse and lyrics by Peter Warne. It represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1969, held in Madrid, and became one of the four winning songs. It made No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart and was a major hit throughout Europe.
"Why Me?" is a 1992 song recorded by Northern-Irish singer Linda Martin written by Seán Sherrard. It represented Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1992 held in Malmö, winning the contest.
"Nocturne" is a song recorded by Irish-Norwegian duo Secret Garden –Fionnuala Sherry and Rolf Løvland– with music composed by Løvland and lyrics written by Petter Skavlan. It represented Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 1995 held in Dublin, resulting in the country's second win at the contest.
"Save Your Kisses for Me" is a song recorded by British group Brotherhood of Man, written by Tony Hiller, Lee Sheriden, and Martin Lee –the latter two being members of the band–. It represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1976 held in The Hague, winning the contest.
"Hallelujah" is a song recorded by Israeli band Milk and Honey with music composed by Kobi Oshrat and Hebrew lyrics written by Shimrit Orr. It represented Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 1979 held in Jerusalem, winning the contest.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Ik ben verliefd (Sha-la-lie)" written by Pierre Kartner. The song was performed by Sieneke. The Dutch broadcaster Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting (TROS) internally selected the song for the 2010 contest in Oslo, Norway. "Ik ben verliefd (Sha-la-lie)" was presented to the public on 18 December 2009, while the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2010 was organised in order to select the Dutch representative. Five artists competed in the national final on 7 February 2010 where Sieneke was selected by Pierre Kartner as the winner following a tie between two of the artists based on the combination of votes from a four-member jury panel and an audience vote.
"Everyway That I Can" is a song recorded by Turkish singer Sertab Erener, with music composed by herself and Demir Demirkan, lyrics written by Demirkan, and production and arrangement by Ozan Çolakoğlu. It represented Turkey in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003, held in Riga, winning the contest. It was the first entry from Turkey in the contest that did not feature any Turkish lyrics.
Israel participated in, hosted, and won the 1979 Eurovision Song Contest, which was held on 31 March 1979 at the International Convention Center's Ussishkin Auditorium in Jerusalem. Their entry, "Hallelujah," was composed by Kobi Oshrat, written by Shimrit Orr, and performed by Milk and Honey.
"Arcade" is a song by Dutch singer-songwriter Duncan Laurence. The song was released on 7 March 2019 by Spark Records. It was later included as the lead single on his debut studio album Small Town Boy, and also features on his debut EP Worlds on Fire. The song was written by Laurence, Joel Sjöö, Wouter Hardy and Will Knox.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2021 was the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Rotterdam, Netherlands, following the country's win at the 2019 contest with the song "Arcade" by Duncan Laurence. The Netherlands was set to host the 2020 contest, before it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcasters Nederlandse Publieke Omroep (NPO), Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) and AVROTROS, the contest was held at Rotterdam Ahoy, and consisted of two semi-finals on 18 and 20 May, and a final on 22 May 2021. The three live shows were presented by Dutch television presenters and singers Chantal Janzen, Edsilia Rombley and Jan Smit, and Dutch YouTuber and make-up artist Nikkie de Jager.
Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light was a live television programme, organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and produced by the Dutch broadcasters NPO, NOS and AVROTROS. It replaced the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, which was planned to be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands, but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
