Eurovision Song Contest 1996 Explained

Eurovision Song Contest
Year:1996
Final:18 May 1996
Musdirector:Frode Thingnæs
Director:Pål Veiglum
Exsupervisor:Christine Marchal-Ortiz
Exproducer:Odd Arvid Strømstad
Host:Norwegian: [[NRK|Norsk rikskringkasting]]|i=unset (NRK)
Venue:Norwegian: [[Oslo Spektrum]]|i=unset
Oslo, Norway
Vote:Each country awarded 12, 10, 8–1 points to their ten favourite songs
Entries:23
Debut:None
Map Final:Y
Qualification Show:the qualifying round

The Eurovision Song Contest 1996 was the 41st edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, held on 18 May 1996 at the Norwegian: [[Oslo Spektrum]]|i=unset in Oslo, Norway. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Norwegian: [[NRK|Norsk rikskringkasting]]|i=unset (NRK) and presented by Ingvild Bryn and Morten Harket, the contest was held in Norway following the country's victory at the with the song "Norwegian: [[Nocturne (Secret Garden song)|Nocturne]]|i=unset" by Secret Garden.

Thirty countries submitted entries to the contest, with a non-public, audio-only qualifying round held two months before the final to reduce the number of participants from 30 to 23. The entries from,,,,,, and were subsequently eliminated, which resulted in Germany being absent from the contest for the first – and as of 2024 only – time.

The winner was with the song "The Voice", written by Brendan Graham and performed by Eimear Quinn. This gave the nation a record-extending seventh contest win, their fourth win in five years, with Graham also recording his second win as a songwriter in three years after having written the winning song at the . Norway,,, and took the remaining places in the top five, with Croatia, Estonia, and, which placed sixth, achieving their best results to date. This was the final contest where the results were determined solely by jury voting, with a trial use of televoting in the leading to widespread adoption from onwards.

Location

The 1996 contest took place in Oslo, Norway, following the country's victory at the with the song "Norwegian: [[Nocturne (Secret Garden song)|Nocturne]]|i=unset", performed by Secret Garden. It was the second time that Norway had hosted the contest, following the staged in Bergen.[1] The chosen venue was the Norwegian: [[Oslo Spektrum]]|i=unset, an indoor arena opened in 1990 and located in the Norwegian: [[Sentrum, Oslo|Sentrum]]|i=unset district of the city, which has hosted music concerts, ice hockey matches, and the annual Nobel Peace Prize Concert.[2] [3] Around 6,000 spectators were present in the venue during the contest.

Participating countries

A total of thirty countries submitted entries for the 1996 contest, however per the rules of the event only twenty-three countries would be allowed to participate. Norway, by virtue of being the host country, was guaranteed a place, with all remaining countries competing in the qualifying round in order to gain a spot in the event. Initially broadcasters from thirty-three countries expressed an interest in participating, however planned entries from,, and failed to materialise; these nations would eventually make their contest debuts in the 2000s.

Three representatives who had performed as lead artists in previous contests featured among the performers at this event. Marianna Efstratiou represented for the second time, having previously competed in the, while Elisabeth Andreassen made her fourth contest appearance, having competed for in as a member of the band Chips, as well as representing Norway twice, winning the contest in as a member of Bobbysocks! and performing with Jan Werner Danielsen in . Additionally, Georgina Abela, who had represented at the with Paul Giordimaina, returned as a backing singer for the Maltese entrant Miriam Christine.[4]

+ Entires which failed to progress from the qualifying round
CountryBroadcasterArtistSongLanguageSongwriter(s)
DR and "Danish: [[Kun med dig]]|i=unset"Danish
NDRLeon"Planet of Blue"German
MTVGjon Delhusa"Hungarian: Fortuna|i=unset"HungarianGjon Delhusa
IBAGalit Bell"Hebrew: Shalom Olam|i=unset" (Hebrew: שלום עולם)Hebrew
MRTKaliopi"Macedonian: Samo ti|i=unset" (Macedonian: Само ти)MacedonianKaliopi
TVRMonica Anghel and Sincron"Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan: Rugă pentru pacea lumii|i=unset"Romanian
RTRAndrey Kosinskiy"Russian: Ya eto ya|i=unset" (Russian: Я это я)Russian

Production

The Eurovision Song Contest 1996 was produced by the Norwegian public broadcaster Norwegian: [[NRK|Norsk rikskringkasting]]|i=unset (NRK). Odd Arvid Strømstad served as executive producer, Pål Veiglum served as director, Bjarte Ulfstein served as designer, and Frode Thingnæs served as musical director, leading the Norwegian Radio Orchestra.[7] A separate musical director could be nominated by each country to lead the orchestra during their performance, with the host musical director also available to conduct for those countries which did not nominate their own conductor.[8]

The show was presented by the Norwegian journalist and television presenter Ingvild Bryn and the Norwegian singer Morten Harket, lead vocalist of the Norwegian band a-ha.[9] [10] The contest underwent a re-brand for this edition, as NRK set out to improve the image of the competition and broaden its audience appeal.[11] The event was referred to by the hosts and through on-screen captions as Eurosong '96, the only occasion in which this contraction was officially used to refer to the event.

Rehearsals in the contest venue for the competing acts began on 13 May 1996. Each country had two technical rehearsals in the week approaching the contest, with countries rehearsing in the order in which they would perform. The first rehearsals took place on 13 and 14 May, with each country allowed 40 minutes total on stage, followed by 20 minutes to review recordings with producers and to consult on suggested changes, and then a 20-minute press conference. Each country's second rehearsals took place on 15 and 16 May, with 30 minutes total on stage followed by another 20 minute press conference. A full technical rehearsal with all artists took place on the afternoon of 17 May, followed by two dress rehearsals with an audience on the evening of 17 May and the following afternoon. The competing delegations were invited to a welcome reception during the week in the build-up to the event, hosted by the Mayor of Oslo at Oslo City Hall on the evening of 13 May, as well as to events during the rehearsal week including a sailing trip on the Oslofjord and a trip to the Norwegian: [[Norwegian Museum of Cultural History|Norsk Folkemuseum]]|i=unset in Bygdøy where a special Eurovision-themed exhibition had been installed.[12] [13]

NRK introduced visual effects to the contest for the first time.[14] Computer-generated imagery (CGI) was featured as overlays during the broadcast of the competing entries, and the voting segment was conducted via chroma key technology built by Silicon Graphics; during this segment host Ingvild Bryn was situated in the "blue room", a special area to the side of the stage with a blue-coloured background, which allowed the contest scoreboard to be rendered virtually using CGI.[15] [14] The chroma key virtual display also included live footage of the artists in the green room backstage, as well as the video feeds of each country's spokespersons as they delivered their country's points.[16]

Format

Each participating broadcaster submitted one song, which was required to be no longer than three minutes in duration and performed in the language, or one of the languages, of the country which it represented.[17] [18] A maximum of six performers were allowed on stage during each country's performance, and all participants were required to have reached the age of 16 in the year of the contest.[19] Each entry could utilise all or part of the live orchestra and could use instrumental-only backing tracks, however any backing tracks used could only include the sound of instruments featured on stage being mimed by the performers.[20]

New qualification system

In 1996, a trial qualification process replaced the relegation system used from 1993 to 1995, whereby the lowest-ranked countries in each final were eliminated from the following year's contest. Under the new procedure, an audio preselection was organised for all participating countries, apart from the host country Norway, which received an automatic right to compete in the final, to be joined by an additional 22 countries. National juries in all competing countries, including Norway, listened to the submitted entries on audio tape, with juries required to listen to all songs three times before voting. Each of the eight members on each country's jury awarded their favourite song twelve points, their second-favourite ten points, their third-favourite eight points, with subsequent points being awarded consecutively down to each juror's tenth-favourite song being awarded one point, with the points awarded by all jurors being totalled to determine each country's top ten songs which were awarded points in the same manner. Jury members who voted in the qualifying round were not allowed to sit on the jury for the final.

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) required all entries to be submitted by 20March 1996. Jury voting was held on 20 and 21 March, with the qualifying countries publicly revealed on 22 March, at the same time as the running order draw for the final was conducted.[21] [22] The full results of how individual juries had voted was not intended to be revealed publicly, but the full breakdown has since become available.

Voting procedure

The results of the 1996 contest were determined using the scoring system introduced in : each country awarded twelve points to its favourite entry, followed by ten points to its second favourite, and then awarded points in decreasing value from eight to one for the remaining songs which featured in the country's top ten, with countries unable to vote for their own entry.[23] The points awarded by each country were determined by an assembled jury of sixteen individuals, which was required to be split evenly between members of the public and music professionals, between men and women, and by age. Each jury member voted in secret and awarded between one and ten votes to each participating song, excluding that from their own country and with no abstentions permitted. The votes of each member were collected following the country's performance and then tallied by the non-voting jury chairperson to determine the points to be awarded. In any cases where two or more songs in the top ten received the same number of votes, a show of hands by all jury members was used to determine the final placing. This was the last occasion that juries alone decided the result of the contest, as five nations introduced public televoting as a trial in, and almost all other countries followed suit the .

Postcards

The "postcards" were 70-second video introductions shown on television whilst the stage is being prepared for the next contestant to perform their entry; the postcards for each country at the 1996 contest was made up of three segments. In the first segment the participating country was highlighted geographically on a map of Europe, followed by video footage of that country's competing artist or artists in their home country during their day-to-day lives, which also featured each artist packing a branded backpack with important items which they would take with them to Oslo. The second segment featured footage of nature scenes in Norway as well as Norwegian people in everyday life, often accompanied by music from Norwegian electronic group Subgud. The final segment consisted of a pre-recorded good luck message from a representative of each respective country in the language of that country. The seniority of these figures varied between the different countries; among the contributors were then-President of Turkey Süleyman Demirel, who survived an assassination attempt on the day of the contest, and then-Prime Minister of Portugal António Guterres, who would later become the Secretary-General of the United Nations in 2017.[24] The individuals who provided messages for each country are shown below, alongside the position which they held at the time of the contest and the language in which they provided their message.

Contest overview

Qualifying round

The qualifying round took place on 20 and 21 March 1996, and the results were announced on 22 March. The table below outlines the participating countries, the order in which the juries listened to the entries, the competing artists and songs, and the results of the voting. Countries were ordered alphabetically by ISO two-letter country code.

The entries from,,,,,, and were eliminated following the qualifying round. This marked the first time that Germany was absent from the contest and remains the only occasion to date where the nation has not participated in the contest final.[25] Additionally Macedonia's first attempt to compete in the contest is not considered a debut entry by the EBU, with the nation eventually going on to make their official televised debut in .[26]

Hungary and tied on the same score for the final qualification place, however Finland qualified for the contest due to them having received the highest individual score (8 points) compared to Hungary (7 points).

+ Results of the qualifying round of the Eurovision Song Contest 1996
CountryArtistSongPointsPlace
1"Swiss German; Alemannic; Alsatian: Weil's dr guat got|i=unset"806
2"Bosnian: Za našu ljubav|i=unset"2921
3"Dutch; Flemish: [[Liefde is een kaartspel]]|i=unset"4512
4"French: Mon cœur l'aime|i=unset"678
5Constantinos"Greek, Modern (1453-);: Mono gia mas|i=unset"4215
6Leon"Planet of Blue"2424
7 and Martin Loft"Danish: Kun med dig|i=unset"2225
8 and Ivo Linna"Estonian: [[Kaelakee hääl]]|i=unset"1065
9"Spanish; Castilian: Ay, qué deseo|i=unset"4314
10Jasmine"Finnish: Niin kaunis on taivas|i=unset"2622
11 and French: l'[[Héritage des Celtes]]|i=unset"Breton: Diwanit bugale|i=unset"5511
12"Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit"1533
13"Greek, Modern (1453-);: Emis forame to himona anixiatika|i=unset"4512
14"Croatian: Sveta ljubav|i=unset"3019
15"Hungarian: Fortuna|i=unset"2623
16"The Voice"1982
17"Hebrew: Shalom Olam|i=unset"1228
18"Icelandic: Sjúbídú|i=unset"5910
19Kaliopi"Macedonian: Samo ti|i=unset"1426
20Miriam Christine"In a Woman's Heart"1384
21Maxine and Franklin Brown"Dutch; Flemish: De eerste keer|i=unset"639
22"Polish: Chcę znać swój grzech|i=unset"4215
23"Portuguese: O meu coração não tem cor|i=unset"3218
24 and Sincron"Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan: Rugă pentru pacea lumii|i=unset"1129
25"Russian: Ya eto ya|i=unset"1426
26One More Time"Swedish: [[Den vilda]]|i=unset"2271
27Regina"Slovenian: Dan najlepših sanj|i=unset"3019
28"Slovak: Kým nás máš|i=unset"3817
29"Turkish: Beşinci Mevsim|i=unset"697

Final

The contest took place on 18 May 1996 at 21:00 (CEST) and lasted 3 hours and 7 minutes. In addition to his role as host, Harket also performed the song "Heaven's Not for Saints" as the show's opening act. The interval act, entitled "Norwegian: Vardebrenning|i=unset" or "Beacon Burning", was created by Petter Skavlan. The act featured a film montage created by Nils Gaup which combined stev, jazz, and Norwegian folk music as part of a musical tour of Norway, followed by a dance number performed live in the Norwegian: Oslo Spektrum|i=unset by the Oslo Danse Ensemble, composed by Egil Monn-Iversen and choreographed by Runar Borge. The film section featured performances by Torbjørg Aamlid Paus, Bukkene Bruse, Bendik Hofseth, Håvard Gimse, Helge Kjekshus, the Brazz Brothers, Mari Boine and Terje Rypdal.[27]

The winner was, represented by the song "The Voice", written by Brendan Graham and performed by Eimear Quinn.[28] This was Ireland's seventh contest win, extending their record achieved in 1994, as well as their fourth contest win in five years following their victories in the, and 1994 contests.[29] Graham recorded his second contest win in three years as a songwriter, having written the winning song of the 1994 contest "Rock 'n' Roll Kids", and thus became one of five individuals to have won the contest more than once as an artist or songwriter up to that point in time, alongside Willy van Hemert, Yves Dessca, Johnny Logan and Rolf Løvland.[30], and achieved their highest placings to date by finishing fourth, fifth and sixth respectively, while finished in last place for the eighth time.[31] [32] [33] [34]

During the announcement of the Spanish votes, the Spanish spokesperson Belén Fernández de Henestrosa referred to the Netherlands as "Holland", which was misheard by Ingvild Bryn as "Poland" and which resulted in the Spanish six points being incorrectly attributed to the latter country. The results of the contest were amended after the event to correct this error, and the tables in this article present the corrected results as published by the EBU.

+ Results of the Eurovision Song Contest 1996[35]
CountryArtistSongPointsPlace
1"Turkish: Beşinci Mevsim|i=unset"5712
2"Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit"778
3"Spanish; Castilian: Ay, qué deseo|i=unset"1720
4"Portuguese: O meu coração não tem cor|i=unset"926
5Constantinos"Greek, Modern (1453-);: Mono gia mas|i=unset"729
6Miriam Christine"In a Woman's Heart"6810
7"Croatian: Sveta ljubav|i=unset"984
8"Swiss German; Alemannic; Alsatian: Weil's dr guat got|i=unset"6810
9"French: Mon cœur l'aime|i=unset"2216
10"Greek, Modern (1453-);: Emis forame to himona anixiatika|i=unset"3614
11 and Ivo Linna"Estonian: [[Kaelakee hääl]]|i=unset"945
12"Norwegian: [[I evighet]]|i=unset"1142
13 and French: l'[[Héritage des Celtes]]|i=unset"Breton: Diwanit bugale|i=unset"1819
14Regina"Slovenian: Dan najlepših sanj|i=unset"1621
15Maxine and Franklin Brown"Dutch; Flemish: De eerste keer|i=unset"787
16"Dutch; Flemish: [[Liefde is een kaartspel]]|i=unset"2216
17"The Voice"1621
18Jasmine"Finnish: Niin kaunis on taivas|i=unset"923
19"Icelandic: Sjúbídú|i=unset"5113
20"Polish: Chcę znać swój grzech|i=unset"3115
21"Bosnian: Za našu ljubav|i=unset"1322
22"Slovak: Kým nás máš|i=unset"1918
23One More Time"Swedish: [[Den vilda]]|i=unset"1003

Spokespersons

Each country nominated a spokesperson who was responsible for announcing, in English or French, the votes for their respective country. As had been the case since the, the spokespersons were connected via satellite and appeared in vision during the broadcast, with the exception of the Norwegian spokesperson, Ragnhild Sælthun Fjørtoft, who appeared in person in the Norwegian: Oslo Spektrum|i=unset.[36] Spokespersons at the 1996 contest are listed below.

    1. Colin Berry
  1. Belén Fernández de Henestrosa
  2. Cristina Rocha
  3. Marios Skordis
  4. Ruth Amaira
      1. Yves Ménestrier
  5. Niki Venega
  6. Annika Talvik[37]
  7. Ragnhild Sælthun Fjørtoft
  8. Laurent Broomhead
    1. Marcha
  9. An Ploegaerts
  10. Eileen Dunne[38]
  11. Solveig Herlin
  12. Svanhildur Konráðsdóttir
  13. Jan Chojnacki
  14. Segmedina Srna
    1. Ulla Rundqvist

Detailed voting results

Jury voting was used to determine the points awarded by all countries. The announcement of the results from each country was conducted in the order in which they performed, with the spokespersons announcing their country's points in English or French in ascending order. The detailed breakdown of the points awarded by each country is listed in the tables below.

Qualifying round

+ Detailed voting results in the qualifying round
scope="col"
Austria806 1 6 1 2 5 2 12 6 3 10 12 5 2 7
Bosnia and Herzegovina292 3 3 1 6 2 12
Belgium458 4 7 4 6 2 4 6 2 2
Switzerland673 3 3 7 5 7 8 5 6 3 7 4 6
Cyprus424 2 12 5 5 4 4 6
Germany245 5 10 3 1
Denmark224 3 1 2 2 1 4 5
Estonia1065 5 4 8 8 8 1 6 5 1 10 10 5 5 3 12 7 3
Spain432 4 4 8 8 1 4 8 4
Finland266 8 5 7
France556 8 3 5 6 10 6 4 4 3
United Kingdom15310 7 10 5 7 2 7 10 1 7 8 12 3 7 8 1 10 8 12 1 5 12
Greece4512 7 7 2 5 5 7
Croatia301 7 2 1 3 1 1 8 6
Hungary261 2 1 6 2 3 3 7 1
Ireland19812 12 8 7 8 3 10 2 10 8 12 10 2 10 12 6 6 10 3 7 10 10 10 10
Israel123 4 5
Iceland595 7 5 6 7 12 6 8 3
Macedonia142 4 2 1 5
Malta1386 10 8 7 6 1 12 4 7 10 8 6 4 7 2 12 3 6 12 7
Netherlands634 3 10 2 12 3 3 7 12 5 2
Poland427 10 3 1 1 8 10 2
Portugal324 6 6 5 1 4 3 2 1
Romania114 1 6
Russia145 4 5
Sweden2278 10 12 12 1 12 12 12 12 7 8 10 12 8 8 12 12 7 12 8 10 6 8 8
Slovenia302 1 4 3 5 10 1 2 2
Slovakia382 5 6 3 12 10
Turkey698 10 10 6 4 4 4 4 7 8 1 3

12 points

The below table summarises how the maximum 12 points were awarded from one country to another in the qualifying round.

+ Distribution of 12 points awarded at the qualifying round
N.ContestantNation(s) giving 12 points
10,,,,,,,,,
4,,,
3,,
,,
2,
,
1

Final

+ Detailed voting results in the final[39] [40]
scope="col"
Turkey57 6 8 10 1 6 4 7 5 5 5
United Kingdom77 3 12 1 6 7 3 4 2 8 12 3 4 6 6
Spain17 2 5 4 6
Portugal92 5 2 12 10 1 10 5 12 5 6 6 3 10 1 4
Cyprus72 12 7 3 2 8 2 5 12 2 1 6 10 2
Malta68 10 10 12 8 1 4 6 12 5
Croatia98 8 4 5 10 8 7 1 1 6 7 3 5 4 6 5 2 10 5 1
Austria68 4 5 12 2 7 12 1 8 8 6 3
Switzerland22 3 2 4 2 4 4 3
Greece36 7 10 1 2 3 1 1 8 3
Estonia94 10 4 7 5 8 1 8 3 2 12 12 10 12
Norway114 2 8 2 3 5 8 7 5 7 10 10 8 7 7 8 4 3 10
France18 1 1 3 4 7 2
Slovenia16 1 6 1 8
Netherlands78 1 6 7 5 12 3 4 10 5 1 5 2 7 2 8
Belgium22 5 12 2 1 2
Ireland162 12 8 6 4 7 12 10 12 10 6 12 12 3 10 12 12 7 7
Finland9 2 7
Iceland51 3 6 6 3 8 5 6 10 3 1
Poland31 7 4 4 7 7 2
Bosnia and Herzegovina13 6 3 3 1
Slovakia19 2 8 4 5
Sweden100 4 10 8 10 6 3 7 8 10 12 8 6 4 4

12 points

The below table summarises how the maximum 12 points were awarded from one country to another in the final. The winning country is shown in bold.

+ Distribution of 12 points awarded at the final
N.ContestantNation(s) giving 12 points
7 ,,,,,,
3,,
2,
,
,
,
,
1

Broadcasts

Each participating broadcaster was required to relay the contest via its networks. Non-participating EBU member broadcasters were also able to relay the contest as "passive participants". Broadcasters were able to send commentators to provide coverage of the contest in their own native language and to relay information about the artists and songs to their television viewers. Known details on the broadcasts in each country, including the specific broadcasting stations and commentators are shown in the tables below.

+ Broadcasters and commentators in non-participating countries
CountryBroadcasterChannel(s)Commentator(s)
SBSSBS TV[74]
DRDR TVJørgen de Mylius[75]
DR P3Katrine Nyland Sørensen, Martin Loft and Marianne Dinesen
KNRKNRJørgen de Mylius[76]
SVF[77]
MDRMDR Fernsehen[78] [79]
NDR/RBN3
WDRWDR Fernsehen
MTVMTV 2István Vágó[80]
IBAChannel 1[81]
JRTVJTV2[82]
LRTLTV[83]
TVRTVR 1Doina Caramzulescu and Costin Grigore[84]
YugoslaviaRTSRTS 2[85]

Notes and references

Bibliography

Notes and References

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  19. Web site: The Rules of the Contest . 31 October 2018 . European Broadcasting Union . 8 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221004011300/https://eurovision.tv/about/rules . 4 October 2022 . live.
  20. Web site: Escudero . Victor M. . #EurovisionAgain travels back to Dublin 1997 . European Broadcasting Union . 8 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220523190024/https://eurovision.tv/story/eurovisionagain-dublin-1997 . 23 May 2022 . 18 April 2020 . live.
  21. News: Israel og Tyskland ute av Grand Prix . Israel and Germany out of Eurovision . 16 November 2022 . . 23 March 1996 . Haugesund, Norway . no . 9 . . 6 January 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230106132321/https://www.nb.no/items/f84c2d453aedaf9b5fc6348cb02bc742?page=8 . live .
  22. News: Suomen Jasmine mukaan euroviisuihin . Finland's Jasmine joins the Eurovision Song Contest . subscription . 14 November 2022 . . 23 May 1996 . fi . 14 November 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221114121853/https://www.hs.fi/kulttuuri/art-2000003518286.html . live .
  23. Web site: In a Nutshell – Eurovision Song Contest . European Broadcasting Union . 8 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220626052301/https://eurovision.tv/history/in-a-nutshell . 26 June 2022 . 31 March 2017 .
  24. News: Demirel'e suikast girişiminde bulunan eczacı öldü . Pharmacist who attempted to assassinate Demirel dies . . 25 September 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190715182838/http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/demirele-suikast-girisiminde-bulunan-eczaci-oldu-24782367 . 15 July 2019 . tr . live.
  25. Web site: Germany – Participation history . European Broadcasting Union . 9 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220921190255/https://eurovision.tv/country/germany . 21 September 2022 . live.
  26. Web site: North Macedonia – Participation history . European Broadcasting Union . 9 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220922035113/https://eurovision.tv/country/fyr-macedonia . 22 September 2022 . live.
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  28. Web site: Ireland – Oslo 1996 . European Broadcasting Union . 21 September 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180512233231/https://eurovision.tv/participant/eimear-quinn . 12 May 2018 . live.
  29. Web site: Ireland – Participation history . . 9 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220621202349/https://eurovision.tv/country/ireland . 21 June 2022 . live.
  30. News: Wouter Hardy met Zwitserland op weg naar nieuw songfestivalsucces . Wouter Hardy on the way to new Eurovision success with Switzerland . 25 October 2022 . Ditjes en Datjes . 20 May 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221025110024/https://www.ditjesendatjes.nl/wouter-hardy-met-zwitserland-op-weg-naar-nieuw-songfestivalsucces/ . 25 October 2022 . nl . live.
  31. Web site: Croatia – Participation history . . 9 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220621202310/https://eurovision.tv/country/croatia . 21 June 2022 . live.
  32. Web site: Estonia – Participation history . . 9 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220621202240/https://eurovision.tv/country/estonia . 21 June 2022 . live.
  33. Web site: Portugal – Participation history . . 9 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220621202327/https://eurovision.tv/country/portugal . 21 June 2022 . live.
  34. Web site: Finland – Participation history . . 9 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220621202218/https://eurovision.tv/country/finland . 21 June 2022 . live.
  35. Web site: Final of Oslo 1996 – Eurovision Song Contest . European Broadcasting Union . 14 April 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210414125200/https://eurovision.tv/event/oslo-1996/final . 14 April 2021 . live.
  36. Web site: Dublin 1994 – Eurovision Song Contest . European Broadcasting Union . 24 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220530101326/https://eurovision.tv/event/dublin-1994 . 30 May 2022 . live.
  37. Web site: Eesti žürii punktid edastab Eurovisioonil Tanel Padar . The points of the Estonian jury will be announced by Tanel Padar at Eurovision . Muusika Planeet . 25 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220519134430/https://muusikaplaneet.ee/2022/05/14/eurovisioon22-20/ . 19 May 2022 . et . 14 May 2022 . live.
  38. Web site: O'Loughlin . Mikie . RTE Eileen Dunne's marriage to soap star Macdara O'Fatharta, their wedding day and grown up son Cormac . RSVP Live . . 25 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210608223329/https://www.rsvplive.ie/news/celebs/rte-eileen-dunnes-marriage-soap-24277308 . 8 June 2021 . 8 June 2021 . live.
  39. Web site: Results of the Final of Oslo 1996 . European Broadcasting Union . 14 April 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210414161750/https://eurovision.tv/event/oslo-1996/final/results . 14 April 2021 . live.
  40. Web site: Eurovision Song Contest 1996 – Scoreboard . European Broadcasting Union . 26 October 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924043427/http://www.eurovision.tv/page/history/by-year/contest?event=311#Scoreboard . 24 September 2015 .
  41. News: Halbhuber . Axel . Ein virtueller Disput der ESC-Kommentatoren . A virtual dispute between the ESC commentators . 8 July 2022 . . 22 May 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150523031620/http://kurier.at/kultur/song-contest/ein-virtueller-disput-der-esc-kommentatoren/131.875.853 . 23 May 2015 . de . live.
  42. Web site: Song Contest mit Stermann & Grissemann . Eurovision with Stermann & Grissemann . . 21 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211221153357/https://wien.orf.at/v2/news/stories/2531177/ . 21 December 2021 . de . 1 May 2012 . live.
  43. News: VRT schuift 'professor Eurosong' André Vermeulen opzij . VRT pushes 'Professor Eurosong' André Vermeulen aside . 8 July 2022 . . 9 April 2014 . nl . 8 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230608111924/https://www.demorgen.be/nieuws/vrt-schuift-professor-eurosong-andre-vermeulen-opzij~b44a24f1/ . live .
  44. News: Jaaroverzicht 1996 . Annual Review 1996 . 13 September 2022 . Belgische Radio- en Televisieomroep Nederlandstalige Uitzendingen (BRTN) . 30 January 1996 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220708143255/https://www.vrt.be/content/dam/vrtbe/aanbod/historiek/historische-jaarverslagen/1996-1.pdf . 8 July 2022 . 35 . nl . live.
  45. News: Legrand . Dominique . Comment exister, après ? . How to exist afterwards? . 15 November 2022 . . 22 May 1996 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221115143449/https://www.lesoir.be/art/d-19960522-W35328 . 15 November 2022 . fr . live . subscription.
  46. Web site: Francophone Belgian Commentator Passes Away . European Broadcasting Union . 8 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180513025226/https://eurovision.tv/story/francophone-belgian-commentator-passes-away . 13 May 2018 . 15 October 2012 . live.
  47. News: Program HRT – Subota, 18. svibnja . Program HRT – Saturday, 18 May . 8 June 2024 . Glas Podravine . 17 May 1996 . 16 . hr . Koprivnica, Croatia.
  48. News: Prijenos iz Osla: Eurosong 96 . Broadcast from Oslo: Eurosong 96 . 25 May 2023 . . 16 May 1996 . hr . Split, Croatia . 25 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230525115752/https://arhiv.slobodnadalmacija.hr/pvpages/pvpages/viewPage/?pv_page_id=727570 . live . subscription.
  49. News: 41ος Διαγωνισμός Τραγουδιού Γιουροβίζιον '96 . 41st Eurovision Song Contest '96 . 5 March 2024 . Greek, Modern (1453-);: Charavgi|i=unset . 18 May 1996 . Nicosia, Cyprus . 10 . el . .
  50. News: Televisioon . Television . 8 July 2022 . Post . 18 May 1996 . Tallinn, Estonia . 8 . et . . 8 December 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221208201156/https://dea.digar.ee/?a=d&d=postrahvatoelinehaal19960518 . live .
  51. News: Width . Terhi . Norjalaiset haluavat euroviisuille uutta ilmettä Euroviisuissa tutut suosikit: Iso-Britannia, Irlanti ja Ruotsi . Norwegians want a new look for Eurovision, the familiar favorites in Eurovision: Great Britain, Ireland and Sweden . 8 July 2022 . . 18 May 1996 . fi . Selostuksesta vastaavat Sanna Kojo ja Erkki Pohjanheimo Oslossa ja Minna Pentti Pasilassa. . Commentary is provided by Sanna Kojo and Erkki Pohjanheimo in Oslo and Minna Pentti in Pasila. . subscription . 8 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220708164125/https://www.hs.fi/kulttuuri/art-2000003531773.html . live .
  52. News: Televisio & Radio . Television & Radio . 23 December 2022 . Helsingin Sanomat . 18 May 1996 . D15–D16 . fi . subscription . 4 November 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221104163801/https://nakoislehti.hs.fi/0ad12eb0-8f73-4f50-abf4-467dc76b61d5/62 . live .
  53. News: Radio-télévision – Samedi 18 mai . Radio-television – Saturday 18 May . 18 June 2024 . . 18 May 1996 . Paris, France . 27 . Internet Archive.
  54. Web site: Introducing Hosts: Carla, Élodie Gossuin and Olivier Minne . European Broadcasting Union . 10 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211219084212/https://junioreurovision.tv/story/introducing-our-hosts . 19 December 2021 . 18 December 2021 . Olivier is no stranger to the Eurovision family, too, having presented the French votes in 1992 and 1993, as well as providing broadcast commentary from 1995 through 1997. . live.
  55. News: Dagskrá Sjónvarpið – laugurdagur 18. maí . TV program – Saturday 18 May . 8 July 2022 . Dagur . 16 May 1996 . Reykjavík, Iceland . is . 15 . Timarit.is.
  56. News: Saturday: Television and Radio . 19 December 2022 . . 18 May 1996 . 6 . subscription.
  57. News: Sweeney . Ken . Larry Gogan loses his Eurovision ticket . 23 June 2022 . . 18 April 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220623083933/https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/tv-radio/larry-gogan-loses-his-eurovision-ticket-26844188.html . 23 June 2022 . live.
  58. News: 1996 Eurovision Song Contest . . 18 May 1996 . 29.
  59. News: Radio & Televisie Zaterdag . Radio & Television Saturday . 8 July 2022 . . nl . 18 May 1996 . 8 . 17 November 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221117151342/https://leiden.courant.nu/issue/LD/1996-05-18/edition/0/page/8 . live .
  60. News: Radio- og TV-Programmene – Lørdag 18. mai 1996 . Radio and TV Programs – Saturday 18 May 1996 . 8 July 2022 . . 18 May 1996 . Moss, Norway . no . 38–39 . . 8 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220708122630/https://www.nb.no/items/eb4d5504c518426401a7cde6d727ec74?page=37 . live .
  61. News: Grand Prix-los fra nord . Eurovision pilots from the north . 8 July 2022 . . no . 18 May 1996 . Tromsø, Norway . 42–43 . . 8 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220708122628/https://www.nb.no/items/a46adfb3109bfb59b5fb60eee93b1b7b?page=41 . live .
  62. Web site: Norgeskanalen NRK P1 – Kjøreplan lørdag 18. mai 1996 . The Norwegian channel NRK P1 – Schedule Saturday 18 May 1996 . . 8 July 2022 . 14–15 . no . 18 May 1996 . National Library of Norway.
  63. Web site: Artur Orzech – Eurowizja, żona, dzieci, wiek, wzrost, komentarze . Artur Orzech – Eurovision, wife, children, age, height, comments . . 8 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210617194356/https://www.eska.pl/news/artur-orzech-eurowizja-zona-dzieci-wiek-wzrost-komentarze-aa-ZTAx-o4SH-yU1E.html . 17 June 2021 . pl . 18 May 2021 . live.
  64. News: Programa da televisão . Television programme . 29 November 2022 . A Comarca de Arganil . 16 May 1996 . Arganil, Portugal . 8 . pt . 29 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220529012038/https://www.acomarcadearganil.cm-arganil.pt/a-comarca-de-arganil-10422/ . live .
  65. News: Programmes TV – Samedi 18 mai . TV programmes – Saturday 18 May . 8 July 2022 . TV8 . . 16 May 1996 . Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Switzerland . 22–27 . fr . . 8 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220708122627/https://scriptorium.bcu-lausanne.ch/zoom/321664/view?page=12&p=verso&tool=info&view=0,0,5143,3618 . live .
  66. News: Panorama – sobota, 18. maja 1996 . Panorama – Saturday 18 May 1996 . 23 July 2022 . Gorenjski glas . 17 May 1996 . Kranj, Slovenia . https://web.archive.org/web/20220723105731/https://arhiv.gorenjskiglas.si/digitar/16298754_1996_39_L.pdf . 23 July 2022 . 20 . sl . live.
  67. News: Televizija+Radio – Sobota . Television+Radio – Saturday . 4 June 2024 . . 18 May 1996 . Ljubljana, Slovenia . 26 . sl.
  68. News: Televisión . Television . 29 November 2022 . . 18 May 1996 . 6 . es . subscription . 29 November 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221129130500/https://hemeroteca.lavanguardia.com/preview/1996/05/18/pagina-6/33927118/pdf.html . live.
  69. News: Radio / TV Samstag . Radio / TV Saturday . 8 July 2022 . Freiburger Nachrichten . 10 . 18 May 1996 . Fribourg, Switzerland . de . E-newspaperarchives.ch.
  70. News: La télé aujourd'hui . TV today . 8 July 2022 . . Tamedia Publications . 18 May 1996 . Lausanne, Switzerland . 27 . fr . . 8 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220708122627/https://scriptorium.bcu-lausanne.ch/zoom/86088/view?page=27&p=separate&tool=info&view=0,0,3539,1878 . live .
  71. News: TV Programları . TV programmes . 21 December 2022 . . 18 May 1996 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221221091220/https://egazete.cumhuriyet.com.tr/Archive/CUMHURIYET/GAZETE_ARSIVI/1996/5/18/607AF6EE-27C2-4E92-9B12-010A995CC52B_3212819_16.jpeg . 21 December 2022 . 16 . tr . live.
  72. News: Eurovision Song Contest – BBC One . 8 July 2022 . . 16 May 1996 . . 4 February 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230204112845/https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/87a1c5d01f964eca8a139a3ef1512b82 . live .
  73. News: Eurovision Song Contest – BBC Radio 2 . 8 July 2022 . . 16 May 1996 . . 8 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220708122624/https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/2d376756ed8244dd826631fad417189a . live .
  74. News: À la télé sur S.B.S. . On TV on SBS . 15 December 2022 . . 10 May 1996 . . 16 . fr . . 15 December 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221215090930/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/24940077 . live .
  75. Web site: Alle tiders programoversigter – Lørdag den 18. maj 1996 . All-time programme overviews – Saturday 18th May 1996 . . 2 April 2024 . 9 April 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240409192056/https://www.dr.dk/alletidersprogramoversigter/?date=1996-05-18 . live .
  76. News: KNR Aallakaatitassat – Arfininngorneq Lørdag 18. maj . KNR Programmes – Saturday 18th May . 15 July 2024 . . 16 May 1996 . Nuuk, Greenland . kl, da . 13 . Timarit.is.
  77. News: Sjónvarp – Sjónvarpsskráin – 17. mai - 23. mai . Television – TV Schedule – 17 May - 23 May . 15 July 2024 . . 17 May 1996 . Hoyvik, Faroe Islands . fo, da . 13 . .
  78. 15 May 1996 . Samstag 18. Mai Samedi 15 mai . Saturday 15 May . 14 June 2024 . French: [[Revue (magazine)|Télé-Revue]]|i=unset . 10–15 . de, fr, lb.
  79. News: 1996 bringt ESC-Neuanfang für Deutschland . 1996 brought a new Eurovision beginning for Germany . 1 May 2023 . . 4 August 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160805231123/http://www.eurovision.de/feddersens_kommentar/1996-bringt-ESC-Neuanfang-fuer-Deutschland,rueckblick354.html . 5 August 2016 . de . live.
  80. News: Televízió – szombat május 18. . Television – Saturday 18 May . 23 July 2022 . Rádió és TeleVízió újság . 13 May 1996 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220723104124/https://archivum.mtva.hu/news_archive/item/NEWS-aFo2cVRrYUU3OXI5NXNhcFNGR1I5SjBQTHBEaEoxbHFFdWRXZGxEb0hGRT0 . 23 July 2022 . 42–43 . hu . live . MTVA Archívum.
  81. News: السبت ١٨\٥\٩٦ – التلفزيون الإسرائيلي – القناة الأولى . Saturday 18/05/96 – Israeli TV – Channel One . 22 May 2023 . . 17 May 1996 . Haifa, Israel . ar . 7 . National Library of Israel.
  82. News: Jordan Television – Programme Two . 11 June 2024 . . 18 May 1996 . . 2 . Internet Archive.
  83. News: TV – sobota, 18 maja . TV – Saturday 18 May . 28 October 2022 . . 18 May 1996 . Vilnius, Lithuania . 7 . pl . Polonijna Biblioteka Cyfrowa . 28 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221028160855/http://www.pbc.uw.edu.pl/14829/1/96%20(12879)%20Kurier%20Wile%C5%84ski.%20Dziennik%20Niezale%C5%BCny%20sobota%2018%20maja%201996.pdf . live .
  84. Televiziune – sâmbătă 18 mai 1996 . Television – Saturday 18 May 1996 . Panoramic Radio-TV . 20 . ro.
  85. News: ТВ Субота – ТВ 2 Београд . TV Saturday – TV 2 Belgrade . 25 May 2024 . . 18–19 May 1996 . . 31 . Serbian . Pretraživa digitalna biblioteka . live .