Special Sub-Topic: Eurovision: 1970 Click Here To Play: Eurovision: 1970

In which country was the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest held?

The Netherlands. The 1970 competition was held in the Rai Congrescentrum in Amsterdam, Netherlands. As there had been a four-way tie for first position in 1969, and the winner of the previous year hosts the next competition, the European Broadcasting Union basically had to draw straws to see who would host this event.

Which country won the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest?

Ireland. Ireland won with their entry "All Kinds of Everything", sung by Dana. The song launched Dana's career, which spanned decades; she is noted for her acting in pantomimes, and for several years she was a member of the Irish Parlaiment.

The UK's 1970 entry was a song called "Knock Knock, Who's There?". Who sang it?

Mary Hopkin. It was sung by Mary Hopkin, a Welsh folk singer best known for her hit song, "Those Were the Days". Her career started on the television show "Opportunity Knocks" - the 60s super model Twiggy saw her and contacted Beatle Paul McCartney, who signed her to the new Apple label.

Due to certain issues arising from the prior year's competition, the format of the show was changed in a way which continued for subsequent contests. What did the producers do differently which became a custom for Eurovision?

longer introduction plus "postcards" introducing each act. With only twelve nations competing, there was a significant amount of time to be filled that twelve songs just couldn't stretch out to cover. The producers compensated by creating a longer introduction segment and by showing a "postcard" for each act, showing scenes from the entrants' countries. This format continues even into the late 2000s.

The current rules stated that each country had to sing in their own official language - but there are a number of countries with more than one official language. How many entries in the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest were sung entirely in French?

five. Five of the entries were sung in French. They were Belgium - "Viens l'oublier" ("Come to Forget Him") France - "Marie-Blanche" Luxembourg - "Je suis tombé du ciel" ("I Fell from Heaven") Monaco - "Marlene" Switzerland - "Retour" ("Return")

How many countries withdrew from the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest?

four. Four countries were upset over the prior year's method of choosing a winner. Finland, Norway, Portugal and Sweden voted with their feet... they did not take part in the 1970 competition.

Another change to the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest arising from the prior year's confusion affected the rules. What aspect of the rules changed?

tie votes. A new rule was created to avoid having to draw straws in a tie vote. Should two songs receive the same number of points, each would be sung again and the juries would choose the winner by a show of hands (the tying countries' juries would not participate at this time). If this didn't resolve the tie, then the countries would share first place.

Who was the presenter at the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest?

Willy Dobbe. Willy Dobbe is actually English but was a presenter at TROS in the Netherlands. According to wikipedia, " To her, the VPRO series is back so late (Waldolala) and the smiling shaving brush of Wim T. Schippers een plantsoentje, waar veel buitenscenes zich afspeelden, het Willy Dobbeplantsoen genoemd. Schippers a plantsoentje, where many scenes are played out, the Willy Dobbe Plantsoen said." Anyone who can come up with a sensible translation of this is doing far better than I...

There's always a halftime - what was the entertainment for the halftime of the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest?

Don Lurio Dancers. Don Lurio was a dancer and choreographer born in New York, either in 1927 or 1933. His sexuality created problems in the USA so he moved to France and later Italy where he also appeared in films and on television. The other names are all characters from the ITV television series, 'Van der Valk"

Twelve countries vied for the 1970 Eurovision Song crown. That there should have been a 1st position, 2nd position, 3rd etc, all the way to 12th, right? Wrong - or is it? How many countries, if any, tied for position?

six. There were six - out of twelve contestants! Switzerland, France and Spain tied for fourth position, and Italy, Belgium and Monaco tied for eighth.