Eurovision Song Contest 1981
Country France
National selection
Selection processConcours de la Chanson française pour l'Eurovision 1981
Selection date(s)Semi-finals
22 February 1981
1 March 1981
Final
8 March 1981
Selected entrantJean Gabilou
Selected song"Humanahum"
Selected songwriter(s)
Finals performance
Final result3rd, 125 points
France in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄1980 • 1981 • 1983►

France was present at the Eurovision Song Contest 1981, held in Dublin, Ireland.

Before Eurovision

Concours de la Chanson Française pour l'Eurovision 1981

The final was held on 8 March 1981 at the TF1 Studios in Paris, and was hosted by television hostess Fabienne Égal. Six songs made it to the national final after two semi-final heats. The winner was decided by a random sampling of 1,086 television viewers who were contacted by TF1 and asked which song was their favorite.

The winning entry was "Humanahum", performed by Jean Gabilou and composed by Jean-Paul Cara with lyrics by Joe Gracy. Cara and Gracy also penned the 1977 Contest winner "L'oiseau et l'enfant". Gabilou, a Tahitian singer, was the first ever to represent France from one of its overseas territories.

The order of the songs presented on the night of the Contest vary from other published material.[1][2]

Final – 8 March 1981
Draw Artist Song Points Place
1 Amour "Un homme s'était levé" 116 6
2 Evelyne Geller "Les yeux fermés" 165 3
3 Jean Gabilou "Humanahum" 273 1
4 Frida Boccara "Voilà comment je t'aime" 159 4
5 Jeff Barnel "De visage en visage" 131 5
6 Jorge Rafael "C'est un oiseau de papier" 242 2

At Eurovision

Jean Gabilou performed ninth on the night of the contest, following Finland and preceding Spain. At the close of the voting the song had received 125 points, placing 3rd in a field of 20 competing countries.[3] Despite finishing in the top three, TF1's head of entertainment programming, Pierre Bouteiller, famously opted out of the 1982 Contest, referring to Eurovision as "a monument to inanity [sometimes translated as "drivel"]."[4] France would return to the fold in 1983, albeit with a different broadcaster, Antenne 2.

Voting

References

  1. ↑ French National Final 1981
  2. ↑ Concours de la Chanson Française pour l'Eurovision 1981, pres. Fabienne Égal, 8 March 1981, TF1.
  3. ↑ "Final of Dublin 1981". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  4. ↑ 1982 Eurovision source in French
  5. 1 2 "Results of the Final of Dublin 1981". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.