4 months ago

Date: 4 April 1981 - Host Venue: RDS Simmonscourt - Ballsbridge, Dublin, Ireland
Presenter: Doireann Ní Bhriain
Musical director: Noel Kelehan
Directed by Ian McGarry
Executive supervisor: Frank Naef
Executive producer: Noel D Greene
Host broadcaster: Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ)
Interval act: "Timedance" performed by Planxty featuring dance performance by the 'Dublin City Ballet'

This iconic edition of the ESC is subtitled. It's never been easier to understand all the lyrics. Simply click the subtitles button in the video.

For this edition of the 1981 ESC you have the choice between these 5 commentary variations:

1. English commentary by Terry Wogan (BBC):

https://youtu.be/ZHO0CGWdSTM

2. English commentary by Pat Kenny (RTE):

https://youtu.be/Ae3vd83zyUs

3. German commentary by Ado Schlier (ARD):

https://youtu.be/Rrh0I3cZdlo

4. Spanish commentary by Miguel de los Santos (TVE):

https://youtu.be/K-gHHiSjHBM

5. Swedish commentary by Ulf Elfving (SVT):

https://youtu.be/eKWLBs2kJeg

The Eurovision Song Contest 1981 was the 26th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Dublin, Ireland, following Johnny Logan's win at the 1980 contest in The Hague, Netherlands with the song "What's Another Year". It was the second time the contest took place in Ireland, after 1971. The contest was held at the RDS Simmonscourt on Saturday 4 April 1981, and was hosted by Doireann Ní Bhriain.

Twenty countries participated in the contest, equalling the record of the 1978 edition. Cyprus made their début this year, while Israel, and Yugoslavia both returned, after their one-year and five-year absence, respectively. Morocco and Italy, which had both participated the year prior, decided not to enter.

The winner was the United Kingdom with the song "Making Your Mind Up", performed by Bucks Fizz, written by Andy Hill and John Danter. This was the United Kingdom's fourth victory in the contest, following their wins in 1967, 1969 , and 1976. Germany finished second for the second consecutive year, while France finished third. Norway finished last, with its third nul points.

Bucks Fizz's performance on the Eurovision stage included a dance-routine where the two male members ripped the skirts off the two female members only to reveal mini-skirts, and today stands as one of the defining moments in the contest's history.

Harald Tusberg, head of light entertainment for Norwegian television was upbeat about Norway's 'nul points' result as he claimed that their entry would be remembered above many others; "Who remembers who came second or third – people will remember us!". Finn Kalvik himself conceded graciously saying that he had enjoyed the week's holiday.

Germany, who had never won the contest up to this point, were becoming increasingly frustrated with their second placings in this and the previous year's contest and made a concerted effort for the following year. This was to pay off, as in 1982 they finally clinched their first victory which was achieved in an overwhelming manner.

Results
Draw Country Artist Song Language Place Points
01 Austria Marty Brem "Wenn du da bist" German 17 20
02 Turkey Modern Folk Üçlüsü & Ayşegül "Dönme Dolap" Turkish 18 9
03 Germany Lena Valaitis "Johnny Blue" German 2 132
04 Luxembourg Jean-Claude Pascal "C'est peut-être pas l'Amérique" French 11 41
05 Israel Hakol Over Habibi "Halayla" Hebrew 7 56
06 Denmark Tommy Seebach & Debbie Cameron "Krøller eller ej" Danish 11 41
07 Yugoslavia Seid Memić Vajta "Lejla" Serbo-Croatian 15 35
08 Finland Riki Sorsa "Reggae OK" Finnish 16 27
09 France Jean Gabilou "Humanahum" French 3 125
10 Spain Bacchelli "Y sólo tú" Spanish 14 38
11 Netherlands Linda Williams "Het is een wonder" Dutch 9 51
12 Ireland Sheeba "Horoscopes" English 5 105
13 Norway Finn Kalvik "Aldri i livet" Norwegian 20 0
14 United Kingdom Bucks Fizz "Making Your Mind Up" English 1 136
15 Portugal Carlos Paião "Playback" Portuguese 18 9
16 Belgium Emly Starr "Samson" Dutch 13 40
17 Greece Yiannis Dimitras "Feggari kalokerino" Greek 8 55
18 Cyprus Island "Monika" Greek 6 69
19 Switzerland Peter, Sue and Marc "Io senza te" Italian 4 121
20 Sweden Björn Skifs "Fångad i en dröm" Swedish 10 50

Timeline:

0:00 - Eurovision Theme
0:39 - Opening Ceremony
5:13 - Welcome to Dublin!
8:21- 1. Austria
12:50 - 2. Turkey
16:51 - 3. Germany
21:22 - 4. Luxembourg
25:25 - 5. Israel
29:48 - 6. Denmark
33:53 - 7. Yugoslavia
38:01 - 8. Finland
42:11 - 9. France
46:33 - 10. Spain
50:53 - 11. Netherlands
55:07 - 12. Ireland
59:26 - 13. Norway
1:03:47 - 14. United Kingdom
1:07:45 - 15. Portugal
1:12:08 - 16. Belgium
1:16:23 - 17. Greece
1:20:50 - 18. Cyprus
1:25:08 - 19. Switzerland
1:29:22 - 20. Sweden
1:35:06 - Interval Act
1:42:05 - Voting
2:24:40 - Prize Award
2:26:18 - Winning Song Reprise
2:29:27 - Goodbye!
2:31:38 - Eurovision Theme