Broadcasters from eleven countries participated in the contest, withMonaco making its first appearance and theUnited Kingdom returning after its absence the previous year.Luxembourg, however, decided not to participate after competing in all former editions.
The winner was theNetherlands with the song "Een beetje", performed byTeddy Scholten, composed by Dick Schallies and written byWilly van Hemert. This was the Netherlands' second victory in the contest, having also won in1957, and also marked the first time a country had won the contest more than once. Van Hemert also became the first individual to win twice, having also written the first Dutch winning song from 1957, "Net als toen". TheUnited Kingdom placed second, marking the first of a record sixteen times that the country would go on to finish as contest runners-up, whileFrance placed third.
This marked the second occasion in which the previous year's winning country organised the event, and the first time in which the winning country was given first choice at hosting the following year's event, as the rights to host the 1958 contest were only awarded to the Netherlands after all other countries declined.[5]
A garden space with plants from Southern France was installed in front of the building for the contest, and the flags of the participating nations were raised on the roof.[6] The audience comprised 1,500 invited guests.[7]
Additional events during the contest week included a supper for the participating delegations on behalf of the city of Cannes held on the evening following the contest in theSalon des Ambassadeurs of the city'sCasino municipal [fr].[6]
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Eurovision Song Contest 1959 – Participation summaries by country
A total of eleven countries competed in the contest, withMonaco making its first appearance and theUnited Kingdom returning after a one year absence.[8] The United Kingdom's absence from the 1958 contest is generally reported to have been due to the country's poor result in1957, but its return coincided with the international success of "Nel blu, dipinto di blu", the Italian entry from the previous year's contest, and the appointment ofEric Maschwitz as Head of Light Entertainment at theBBC.[9][10] Beginning with this event the United Kingdom holds the record for the longest string of consecutive appearances in the Eurovision Song Contest, appearing in every subsequent contest final as of 2025[update].[11][12]Luxembourg was absent from the event, having participated in all previous contests, with management at the Luxembourgish broadcasterCompagnie Luxembourgeoise de Télédiffusion (CLT) rejecting the proposed entry and leaving no sufficient time to find a replacement.[13] This decision appears to have occurred late in the preparations for the contest as the country was listed among the participants in several radio and television listings.[1][2][14]
The contest was organised and broadcast by the French public broadcasterRadiodiffusion-Télévision Française (RTF), withMarcel Cravenne [fr] serving as producer and director, Gérard Dubois serving as designer, andFranck Pourcel serving asmusical director and leading theOrchestre national de la RTF.[1][8][20][21] Each participating delegation was allowed to nominate its own musical director to lead the orchestra during the performance of its country's entry, with the host musical director alsoconducting for those countries which did not nominate their own conductor.[18]
As in the 1957 and 1958 contests, each country, participating through a single EBU member broadcaster, was represented by one song performed by up to two people on stage. The results of the event were determined through jury voting, with each country's jury containing ten individuals who each gave one vote to their favourite song, with no abstentions allowed and with jurors unable to vote for their own country.[8][22] One rule change implemented for this contest specified that individuals employed in the music industry were no longer allowed to be included among the national juries.[8]
Dubois' stage design was inspired by the era ofLouis XIV.[20][23] The stage featured three revolving platforms, each of which was segmented into four, similar to arevolving door, to include various backdrops.[24] These backdrops were specific to each of the participating countries and featured scenery or objects associated with that country.[20][25]
The draw to determine the running order took place on 9 March 1959.[20] A few days prior to the contest, hotel and shop owners in Cannes complained that the contest was covered and advertised too sparsely by RTF and subsequently feared that too few tourists would come to Cannes.[7][26] In contrast, the CannesComité des Fêtes, which was involved in the organisation of the contest, believed that the broadcast of images from Cannes to many European households would have a significant impact on tourism in the weeks to follow.[26]
The contest was held on 11 March 1959 at 21:00 (CET) and lasted 1 hour and 12 minutes.[1][18] The event was hosted by French television presenterJacqueline Joubert.[8][18]
The winner was theNetherlands represented by the song "Een beetje", composed byDick Schallies [nl], written byWilly van Hemert and performed byTeddy Scholten.[28] The Netherlands became the first country to achieve two victories in the event, and Van Hemert became the first individual to win the contest twice, after previously providing lyrics for the Netherlands' winner in 1957, "Net als toen".[8][24] The United Kingdom's result was the first of sixteen British entries to finish in second place, a contest record as of 2025[update].[11][24]
Alongside the traditionalreprise performance of the winning song, the second- and third-placed songs were also performed again, for the first and only time at the contest.[8][22] The prize awarded to the winning songwriters, taking the form of an engraved medallion, was to be handed over during the delegations' supper following the event, but instead was presented by RTF's director of programmingJean d'Arcy [fr] to Teddy Scholten at the end of the show.[23][26]
Results of the Eurovision Song Contest 1959[18][29]
Each participating broadcaster appointed a spokesperson who was responsible for announcing the votes for its respective country via telephone.[30] Known spokespersons at the 1959 contest are listed below.
Each participating broadcaster was required to relay the contest via its television network. No official accounts of the viewing figures are known to exist. An estimate given in the press was at least 20 million viewers.[7]
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. Twelve commentator boxes were installed on the balconies of the auditorium.[6] Known details on the broadcasts in each country, including the specific broadcasting stations and commentators are shown in the table below.
Broadcasters and commentators in participating countries
^abcMontaigne, Pierre (11 March 1959). "Onze vedettes, onze refrains, onze nations sont engagés dans le Grand Prix Eurovision 1959 de la chanson européenne" [Eleven stars, eleven refrains, eleven nations are entered into the 1959 Eurovision Grand Prix of European song].L'Espoir de Nice et du Sud-Est (in French).Nice, France. p. 4.ISSN1166-9012.
^abcdMontaigne, Pierre (11 March 1959). "Le Grand Prix 1959 de la chanson européenne" [The 1959 Grand Prix for European song].Nice-Matin (in French).Nice, France. p. 2.ISSN0224-5477.
^abMontaigne, Pierre (12 March 1959). "Les Pays-Bas remportent le Grand Prix Eurovision de la Chanson européenne" [The Netherlands wins the Eurovision Grand Prix for European Song].L'Espoir de Nice et du Sud-Est (in French).Nice, France. p. 4.ISSN1166-9012.
^abcMédecin, Jacques (8 March 1959). "Les hôteliers cannois à la T. V. : 'Faites-donc de la publicité !'" [Cannes hoteliers on TV: 'Let's advertise!'].Télé Magazine (in French).Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. pp. 38–39.ISSN0040-2443.
^"Le coin des amateurs de T.S.F." [The place for fans of wireless transmission].Feuille d'avis de Vevey (in French).Vevey, Switzerland. 11 March 1959. p. 4. Retrieved6 January 2024 – viaScriptorium.
Roxburgh, Gordon (2012).Songs for Europe: The United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest. Vol. One: The 1950s and 1960s.Prestatyn, United Kingdom:Telos Publishing.ISBN978-1-84583-065-6.
Thorsson, Leif; Verhage, Martin (2006).Melodifestivalen genom tiderna : de svenska uttagningarna och internationella finalerna [Melodifestivalen through the ages: the Swedish selections and international finals] (in Swedish).Stockholm, Sweden: Premium Publishing.ISBN91-89136-29-2.
