Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light explained

Airdate:	16 May 2020
Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light
Exsupervisor:	Jon Ola Sand
Exproducer:	Sietse Bakker^[1]
Venue:	Studio 21, Hilversum, Netherlands
Director:	Marnix Kaart

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.^[2]

The show was broadcast live from Hilversum, Netherlands on 16 May 2020 and lasted for approximately two hours.^{[3] [4]} It was hosted by Chantal Janzen, Edsilia Rombley and Jan Smit, who had been chosen to present the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 before its cancellation.^[5]

The EBU reported that the show had an audience of 73 million viewers, based on data provided by 38 of the 45 countries that broadcast the programme.^[6] In April 2021, the show was nominated for a Rockie Award in the category Comedy & Variety.^[7]

Background

See also: COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the music industry and Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on television. As the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 could not take place due to the outbreak of COVID-19 in Europe, the EBU decided to organise Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light as an alternative programme to fill the space that was initially planned for the competition. The programme's name was inspired by the song "Love Shine a Light" by Katrina and the Waves, which won the Eurovision Song Contest 1997.

This was the fourth time that the EBU organised a special show in the Eurovision format, after the shows for the 25th, 50th and 60th anniversaries. Like the 25th and 60th anniversary shows, this was a non-competitive show.

Format

During the programme, all 41 songs that had been chosen to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 were honoured in a non-competitive format. Participants from previous editions of the contest were invited to make an appearance. Johnny Logan, the hosts and Eurovision fans who uploaded clips for the occasion sang Logan's "What's Another Year", which won the Eurovision Song Contest 1980 in The Hague.^[8] Closing the show, all artists (except Hooverphonic, representing Belgium) performed "Love Shine a Light" from their respective home countries.^{[9] [10]} The show ended with the announcement that Rotterdam would remain as the host city for the Eurovision Song Contest 2021.^[11]

Location

On 1 April 2020, Hilversum was confirmed as the host city for the event, with Studio 21 in the Hilversum Media Park as the venue of the show.^[3] It was the second time Hilversum hosted a Eurovision event, having previously hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 1958.^[12]

Presenters

The show was hosted by three presenters: actress and television host Chantal Janzen, singer and Dutch television commentator for the contest Jan Smit, and singer Edsilia Rombley, who represented the Netherlands in the 1998 and 2007 contests. They would have been the three hosts of the Eurovision Song Contest 2020. Beauty vlogger Nikkie de Jager, also known as NikkieTutorials, presented the show's online content.^[4] All four went on to host the full contest in .^[13]

Contents

Performances

The show featured performances from the following Eurovision artists:^[14]

Order	Country	Artist	Song	Language(s)	Location
01		Johnny Logan	"What's Another Year"	English	Dublin
		Chantal Janzen, Edsilia Rombley and Jan Smit			Studio 21, Hilversum
	Various countries	Eurovision Song Contest fans			Various locations
02		Måns Zelmerlöw	"Heroes"	English	London
03		Gali Atari (of Milk and Honey)	"Hallelujah"	Hebrew, English, Dutch	Jerusalem
		Finalists of Junior Songfestival 2018 and 2019			Unknown
04		Diodato	"Nel blu, dipinto di blu"	Italian
05		Marija Šerifović	"Molitva"	Serbian	Belgrade
06		Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra	"Love Shine a Light"	None (instrumental)	Various locations (Europe Shine a Landmark)
07		Michael Schulte	"Ein bißchen Frieden"	German	Peace Palace, The Hague
		Ilse DeLange (of The Common Linnets)
08			"Cuckoo"	English	Tel Aviv
09			"Someone Else"	English	Studio 21, Hilversum
10	All participating countries	Artists of Eurovision 2020	"Love Shine a Light"	English	Various locations
		Katrina Leskanich (of Katrina and the Waves)

Song Celebration

The show also showcased the artists and songs that would have competed at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, by showing short excerpts of the songs' music videos or stage performances, along with video messages from the artists themselves. These were as follows:

Order	Country	Artist	Song	Language(s)
First segment
01		Eden Alene	"Feker libi"	English, Amharic
02		Ulrikke	"Attention"	English
03		Little Big	"Uno"	English, Spanish
04		Tornike Kipiani	"Take Me as I Am"	English
05		Tom Leeb	"Mon alliée (The Best in Me)"	French, English
06		Efendi	"Cleopatra"	English
07		Elisa	"Medo de sentir"	Portuguese
08		The Roop	"On Fire"	English
09		The Mamas	"Move"	English
Second segment
10		Samanta Tīna	"Still Breathing"	English
11		Hooverphonic	"Release Me"	English
12		James Newman	"My Last Breath"	English
13		VAL	"Da vidna"	Belarusian
14		Aksel	"Looking Back"	English
15		Vasil	"You"	English
16		Gjon's Tears	"Répondez-moi"	French
17		Hurricane	"Hasta la vista"	Serbian
Third segment
18		Blas Cantó	"Universo"	Spanish
19		Arilena Ara	"Fall from the Sky"	English
20		Lesley Roy	"Story of My Life"	English
21		Ana Soklič	"Voda"	Slovene
22		Vincent Bueno	"Alive"	English
23		Victoria	"Tears Getting Sober"	English
24		Senhit	"Freaky!"	English
25		Daði og Gagnamagnið	"Think About Things"	English
Fourth segment
26		Stefania	"Supergirl"	English
27		Benny Cristo	"Kemama"	English
28		Alicja	"Empires"	English
29		Natalia Gordienko	"Prison"	English
30		Sandro	"Running"	English
31		Roxen	"Alcohol You"	English
32		Damir Kedžo	"Divlji vjetre"	Croatian
33		Ben Dolic	"Violent Thing"	English
Fifth segment
34		Destiny	"All of My Love"	English
35		Uku Suviste	"What Love Is"	English
36		Montaigne	"Don't Break Me"	English
37		Go_A	"Solovey"	Ukrainian
38		Ben & Tan	"Yes"	English
39		Diodato	"Fai rumore"	Italian
40		Athena Manoukian	"Chains on You"	English
41		Jeangu Macrooy	"Grow"	English

Appearances

• Viki Gabor
• Alexander Rybak
• Lenny Kuhr
• Sandra Kim
• Anne-Marie David
• Niamh Kavanagh
• Getty Kaspers
• Ell and Nikki
• Sergey Lazarev
• Dana
• Helena Paparizou
• Carola
• Conchita Wurst
• Björn Ulvaeus
• Graham Norton

Landmarks

Various landmarks in countries that were set to compete were illuminated as part of a segment titled Europe Shine a Landmark.^[15] The following landmarks were featured in the programme:

Order	Country	Landmark	City
01			Kyiv
02		Acropolis	Athens
03		Ivan Vazov National Theatre	Sofia
04		Rock of Cashel	Cashel
05			Copenhagen
06		Belém Tower	Lisbon
07		Archaeological Museum of North Macedonia	Skopje
08		Baku Crystal Hall (venue of the 2012 contest)	Baku
09		Sydney Opera House	Sydney
10		Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre	Vilnius
11		Harpa	Reykjavík
12		Piazza del Campidoglio	Rome
13		Atomium	Brussels
14		Oslo Opera House	Oslo
15		Skanderbeg Monument	Tirana
16		Esplora Interactive Science Centre	Kalkara
17		Stari dvor	Belgrade
18		National Library of Latvia	Riga
19		London Eye	London
20			Nicosia
21		Teatro Real (venue of the 1969 contest)	Madrid
22		Croatian National Theatre	Zagreb
23		Wiener Riesenrad	Vienna
24		Statua della Libertà and Palazzo Pubblico	San Marino
25		Eiffel Tower	Paris
26		Spasskaya Tower and Saint Basil's Cathedral	Moscow
27		Globen (venue of the 2000 and 2016 contests)	Stockholm
28		Royal Castle in Warsaw	Warsaw
29		Ljubljana Castle	Ljubljana
30		Tower of David	Jerusalem
31		Matterhorn	Zermatt
32		Piața Unirii	Bucharest
33		Yerevan TV Tower	Yerevan
34		Elbphilharmonie	Hamburg
35		National Library of Belarus	Minsk
36			Tallinn
37		Bridge of Peace	Tbilisi
38		Erasmusbrug	Rotterdam

Czech Republic, Finland and Moldova were the only countries that did not have a landmark featured.

Broadcasters and commentators

The show took place on 16 May 2020 at 21:00 CEST.^[4] The following countries broadcast the live show:

Country	Broadcaster	Channel(s)	Commentator(s)
	RTSH	RTSH 1, RTSH Muzikë	Andri Xhahu	^[16] ^[17]
	AMPTV (1TV)		David Tserunyan and Emma Hakobyan	^[18]
	SBS	SBS
	ORF	ORF 1	Andi Knoll
	İctimai Television (İTV)		Murad Arif
	BTRC	Belarus 1, Belarus 24	Evgeny Perlin	^[19]
	RTBF	La Une	Jean-Louis Lahaye and Maureen Louys	^[20]
	VRT	Eén	Peter Van de Veire	^[21]
	BNT	BNT 1, BNT 4	Elena Rosberg and Petko Kralev
	HRT	HRT 1	Duško Čurlić
	CyBC	RIK 1, RIK Sat	Andreas Iakovidis	^[22]
	ČT	ČT art	Jan Maxián	^[23] ^[24]
	DR	DR1	Ole Tøpholm	^[25]
	ERR	ETV	Marko Reikop	^[26] ^[27]
		ETV+	Yuliya Kalenda and Aleksandr Khobotov
	Yle	Yle TV2		^[28]
	France Télévisions	France 2	Stéphane Bern	^[29] ^[30]
	GPB	1TV	Demetre Ergemlidze	^[31]
	ARD/NDR	Das Erste	Michael Schulte and Peter Urban	^[32] ^[33]
	ERT	ERT1	Maria Kozakou	^[34] ^[35]
	RÚV	RÚV 1	Felix Bergsson
	RTÉ	RTÉ One	Marty Whelan
	IPBC (Kan)	Kan 11		^[36]
	RAI	Rai 1 (adapted and delayed)	Flavio Insinna and Federico Russo	^[37] ^[38]
		Rai 4, Rai Radio 2 (live)	Gino Castaldo and Ema Stokholma
	LTV	LTV1	Toms Grēviņš	^[39]
	LRT	LRT televizija	Ramūnas Zilnys	^[40]
	PBS	TVM
	TRM	Moldova 1	Daniela Crudu
	AVROTROS	NPO 1	Cornald Maas	^[41]
	MRT	MRT 1	Aleksandra Jovanovska	^[42]
	NRK	NRK1
	TVP	TVP1, TVP Polonia	Artur Orzech	^[43] ^[44]
	RTP	RTP1, RTP Internacional	Nuno Galopim	^[45]
	TVR	TVR1, TVRi	Bogdan Stănescu	^[46]
	Channel One (C1R)		Yuriy Aksyuta and Yana Churikova	^[47]
	SMRTV	San Marino RTV	Flavio Insinna and Federico Russo	^[48]
	RTS	RTS1, RTS Svet	Duška Vučinić	^[49]
	RTVSLO	TV Slovenija 1	Andrej Hofer	^[50]
	RTVE	La 1, TVE Internacional	Tony Aguilar, Eva Mora and Víctor Escudero	^[51] ^[52]
	SVT	SVT1		^[53]
	SRG SSR	SRF 1	Sven Epiney	^[54]
		RTS 1	Yoann Provenzano and Jean-Marc Richard	^[55] ^[56]
		RSI La 2	Clarissa Tami and Sebalter
	STB		Timur Miroshnychenko	^[57]
				^[58] ^[59]
		UA:Radio Promin	Oleksandra Franko and Les Myrnyi	^[60] ^[61]
	BBC	BBC One	Graham Norton	^[62]
Non-participating countries
	BHRT	BHT 1	Maja Miralem	^[63]
	Khabar Agency	Khabar TV	Nursultan Qurman and Mahabbat Esen
	RTK	colspan="2" rowspan="2"
	RTCG

See also

• Eurovision Song Contest 2020
• Der kleine Song Contest
• Eurovision 2020 – das deutsche Finale
• Free European Song Contest

Notes and References

1. Web site: Geen Songfestival, maar wel een alternatief: Europe Shine a Light . . 10 April 2020 . nl-nl . 31 March 2020.
2. Web site: 16 May 2020 . Europe shined its light . 25 May 2020 . Eurovision.tv . European Broadcasting Union (EBU).
3. Web site: Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light To Be Broadcast Live From Hilversum. Granger. Anthony. 1 April 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 1 April 2020.
4. Web site: Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light will bring audiences together on 16 May. 31 March 2020. Eurovision.tv. 31 March 2020.
5. Web site: European Broadcasting Union Announces 'Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light'. 31 March 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 31 March 2020.
6. Web site: 26 May 2020 . Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light reaches over 70 million viewers . 6 January 2023 . Eurovision.tv . EBU.
7. Web site: 2021 Nominees. Rockie Awards. https://web.archive.org/web/20210414221909/https://rockies.playbackonline.ca/nominees/?year=2021&e=113404&n=Eurovision%3A+Europe+Shine+a+Light. 2021-04-14. live.
8. Web site: Oproep: Eurovision sing-a-long met Johnny Logan's 'What's Another Year' . Songfestival.nl . 10 April 2020 . nl . 8 April 2020.
9. Web site: Muldoon . Padraig . 2020 Acts To Sing "Love Shine A Light" At Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light . . 10 April 2020 . 7 April 2020.
10. Web site: 2020-05-17. Alex Callier explains why Hooverphonic sat out of the "Love Shine a Light" segment. 2020-05-25. wiwibloggs. en-US.
11. Web site: 16 May 2020 . Rotterdam returns as Eurovision Song Contest Host City in 2021 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200517081418/https://eurovision.tv/story/eurovision-song-contest-to-return-to-rotterdam-in-2021 . 17 May 2020 . 16 May 2020 . European Broadcasting Union.
12. Web site: Hilversum 1958. Eurovision.tv.
13. Web site: 18 September 2020 . The 4 ways to make Eurovision 2021 happen . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210119071307/https://eurovision.tv/story/the-4-ways-to-make-eurovision-2021-happen . 19 January 2021 . 18 September 2020 . European Broadcasting Union.
14. Web site: Guest performers announced for "Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light". May 6, 2020.
15. Web site: Landmarks To Be Illuminated For Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light. Granger. Anthony. 26 April 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 26 April 2020.
16. Web site: "Europe Shine A Light" Më 16 maj, ora 21:00 në RTSH1- HD. April 18, 2020. RTSH. sq. April 25, 2020.
17. Web site: Eurovision 2020 special public broadcasting plans. 5 May 2020. Eurovision.tv. 8 May 2020.
18. Web site: Here's where to watch Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light. 16 April 2020. Eurovision.tv. 16 April 2020.
19. Web site: Евровидение: Europe Shine a Light. 13 April 2020. BTRC. be. 21 April 2020. 12 February 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210212212226/https://www.tvr.by/company/novosti-kompanii/evrovidenie-europe-shine-a-light/. dead.
20. Web site: La RTBF diffusera aussi "Eurovision : Europe Shine A Light" le 16 mai. Bertinchamps. Pierre. 16 April 2020. Télépro. fr. 16 April 2020.
21. Web site: Blokken-kandidaten spelen vanuit "hun kot": Eén past programmatie aan door corona. Boon. Katrien. 3 April 2020. VRT. nl. 3 April 2020.
22. Web site: Cyprus: CyBC Reveals Eurovision 2020 Week Broadcast Plans. Farren. Neil. 5 May 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 5 May 2020.
23. Web site: Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light na ČT art. Kobilík. Petr. 3 April 2020. eurocontest.cz. cs. 3 April 2020.
24. Web site: Czech Republic: Jan Maxián to Commentate on Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light. Granger. Anthony. 3 May 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 3 May 2020.
25. Web site: Først blev Eurovision aflyst. Nu kommer der alligevel et show. Madsbøll Christensen Kasper. Mejdahl Christian. 3 April 2020. DR. da. 3 April 2020.
26. Web site: Eurovisiooni finaali asendav erisaade jõuab ka ETV ekraanile. Maripuu. Victoria. 2 April 2020. ERR. et. 2 April 2020.
27. Web site: Estonia: Eurovision Stars To Recollect Their Experiences in 12 punkti! Eurovisiooni hitid. Granger. Anthony. 5 May 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 5 May 2020.
28. Web site: Euroviisuille korvaava tv-show – myös muuta viisusisältöä luvassa pitkin kevättä. Vedenpää. Ville. 1 April 2020. Yle Uutiset. fi. 1 April 2020.
29. News: France: France Télévisions Confirms Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light Broadcast. Granger. Anthony. 1 April 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 1 April 2020.
30. Web site: Confinement : Stéphane Bern détaille la soirée qui remplacera l'Eurovision sur France 2. Guadalupe. Florian. 26 April 2020. PureMédias. fr-FR. 26 April 2020.
31. Web site: 2020 წლის ევროვიზიის ნაცვლად დაგეგმილი შოუ - "ევროპა აანთე შუქი" - პირველი არხის ეთერში 16 მაისს, 23:00 საათზე დაიწყება. ka. GPB. 15 May 2020. 10 July 2020.
32. Web site: Thomas Schreiber übt scharfe Kritik an ESC-Entscheidungen. Lückerath. Thomas. 31 March 2020. DWDL.de. de. 1 April 2020.
33. Web site: Germany: Organises Two Shows To Determine The Nations Eurovision 2020 Winner. Granger. Anthony. 26 April 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 26 April 2020.
34. Web site: ΕΛΛΑΔΑ: Η ΕΡΤ θα μεταδώσει το "Europe shine a light"! . Pappas . Konstantinos . 16 April 2020 . OGAE Greece . el . 16 April 2020.
35. Web site: EUROVISION 2020: Το "Europe Shine a Light" στην ΕΡΤ στις 16 Μαΐου! . Pappas . Konstantinos . 7 May 2020 . OGAE Greece . el . 7 May 2020.
36. Web site: Israel: KAN unveils its Eurovision schedule for May. 7 May 2020. esctoday. en. 7 May 2020.
37. Web site: Eurovision, Europe Shine a Light: il 16 maggio alle 20.35 su Rai1, Radio2 e RaiPlay. Scarpone. Cristian. 10 April 2020. Eurofestival News. it. 10 April 2020.
38. Web site: Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light, anche su Rai 4 con il commento di Ema Stokholma e Gino Castaldo. Trasatti. Ruben. 4 May 2020. Eurofestival News. it-IT. 4 May 2020.
39. Web site: Eurovision songs will still be heard in Latvia. 6 May 2020. lsm.lv. en. 7 May 2020.
40. Web site: Lithuania: LRT Reveals Eurovision Broadcast Plans Including The Roop Concert. Granger. Anthony. 5 May 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 5 May 2020.
41. Web site: AVROTROS presenteert compleet Songfestivalprogramma in mei. Tomas. Irma. 1 April 2020. Televizier. nl. 1 April 2020.
42. Web site: North Macedonia: Vasil Reveals How "You" Would Have Been Presented in Rotterdam. Granger. Anthony. 12 May 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 12 May 2020.
43. Web site: Poland: TVP Confirms Broadcast of Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light. Granger. Anthony. 15 April 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 15 April 2020.
44. Web site: TVP1 wyemituje koncert "Eurowizja: Światło dla Europy". Rozrywka. Tele. 16 April 2020. TELE Rozrywka. pl-PL. 25 April 2020.
45. News: Kanas. André. RTP confirma transmissão de "Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light". 13 April 2020. Quinto Canal. 19 April 2020. pt-PT.
46. Web site: Program TV. 16 May 2020. 4 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200504101911/http://www.tvr.ro/program.html?day=2020-05-16&timeZoneSelectionValue=2&channel_1=tvr1&channel_2=tvri&channel_3=tvrmd. 4 May 2020. ro-RO.
47. News: Arefyev . Egor . Финал "Евровидения-2020" пройдет онлайн и в сжатом формате . Kp.ru - . 15 May 2020 . ru . 14 May 2020.
48. Web site: Eurovision, Europe Shine a Light: San Marino RTV trasmetterà lo show di Rai1. Scarpone. Cristian. 14 May 2020. Eurofestival News. it. 14 May 2020.
49. News: Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light. Serbia. RTS, Radio-televizija Srbije, Radio Television of. 11 May 2020. sr.
50. Web site: Slovenia: RTVSLO Reveals Alternative Eurovision Broadcast Plans. Granger. Anthony. 11 April 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 11 April 2020.
51. Web site: Blas Cantó participará en el homenaje a Eurovisión 2020: "Eurovisión: Europa Shine a Light". 1 April 2020. RTVE.es. es-ES. 1 April 2020.
52. Web site: Tony Aguilar y Eva Mora comentarán el programa especial de Eurovisión, 'Europe shine a light'. 8 May 2020. RTVE.es. es-ES. 8 May 2020.
53. Web site: Klart för Eurovision-vecka i SVT. Dahlander. Gustav. 3 April 2020. Melodifestivalen: Expertbloggen. SVT. sv. 3 April 2020.
54. Web site: Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light. medien.srf.ch. de-DE. 25 April 2020.
55. Web site: TV-Programm 16.5.2020. Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen. de-CH. 25 April 2020.
56. Web site: Switzerland: Jean-Marc Richard & Yoann Provenzano to Commentate on Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light. Granger. Anthony. 3 May 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 3 May 2020.
57. Web site: Як Go_A готуються до онлайн-концерту Євробачення. 4 May 2020. stb.ua. uk.
58. Web site: Ukraine: UA:Pershyi To Broadcast Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light. Granger. Anthony. 1 April 2020. Eurovoix. en-GB. 1 April 2020.
59. Web site: Онлайн-концерт Євробачення покажуть ще більше країн. 17 April 2020. Suspilne. uk. 5 May 2020.
60. Web site: Суспільне планує трансляцію концерту Євробачення. 7 April 2020. Suspilne. uk. 13 April 2020.
61. Web site: Трансляція . Українське радіо . . 15 May 2020 . uk.
62. Web site: May means Eurovision on the BBC. 1 May 2020. bbc.co.uk. 5 May 2020.
63. Web site: Europe Shine a Light, show program: Uživo. BHT1. 2023-06-17.