Part 9: 1979 (Turkey bows to pressure).
Continues tomorrow.
THE BIGGEST
CONTROVERSIES
Of the
EUROVISION
SONG CONTEST
(1956
- 2019)
From
its inaugural year, the Eurovision Song Contest has had more than its fair
share of controversial moments. This is a special look back on 30 significant upsets
in chronological order.
1979
Turkey
Bows To Pressure.
In 1978, the Israeli entry “A-Ba-Ni-Bi” won the Eurovision Song
Contest. The victory meant that Israel would host the ERSC in the following
year. Jerusalem was selected as the venue, the first location outside of Europe
to host Eurovision.
Of the 20 countries that competed in 1978, all returned to
participate in Israel; with one exception. Turkey had initially agreed to send
an entry, but after pressure from other Arab nations, decided to withdraw.
“Hallelujah”, the Israeli entry, emerged victorious in 1979,
giving Israel its second consecutive win at Eurovision. The victors had the
option of hosting the Contest again in 1980, but Israeli TV declined.
With The Hague in The Netherlands selected as the venue, Turkey
returned to the ESC in 1980. It is worth noting that when Jerusalem hosted
Eurovision again in 1999 (following a third victory the previous year), Turkey
did participate. The most recent time a Turkish entry competed in the ESC was
in 2012, therefore Turkey did not participate in Tel Aviv in 2019 following yet
another Israeli win the year before.
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