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Eurovision Song Contest 1981
Country Germany
National selection
Selection processEin Lied für Dublin
Selection date(s)28 February 1981
Selected entrantLena Valaitis
Selected song"Johnny Blue"
Selected songwriter(s)
Finals performance
Final result2nd, 132 points
Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄1980 • 1981 • 1982►

Germany was represented by Lena Valaitis, with the song "Johnny Blue", at the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on 4 April in Dublin. "Johnny Blue" was the winner of the German national final, held on 28 February. Valaitis had previously taken part in the German final in 1976.

Before Eurovision

Ein Lied für Dublin

The final was held at the Bayerischer Rundfunk TV studios in Munich, hosted by the previous year's German representative Katja Ebstein. 12 songs took part and the winner was chosen by a panel of approximately 500 people who had been selected as providing a representative cross-section of the German public.[1]

Draw Artist Song Songwriters Votes Place
1 Janz "Steine" Paul Janz, Michael Kunze 2355 10
2 Nina Martin "Männer" Nina Martinique 2292 11
3 Taco "Träume brauchen Zeit" Janine Terlohian, Kathrin Brigl 2269 12
4 Lenz Hauser "Moment" Harald Stümpfl, Lenz Hauser 2856 8
5 Thomas Fuchsberger "Josephine" Thomas Fuchsberger, Joachim Fuchsberger 2956 7
6 Rudolf Rock and Die Schocker "Mein Transistorradio" Michael Cretu, Michael Kunze 2735 9
7 Lena Valaitis "Johnny Blue" Ralph Siegel, Bernd Meinunger 5023 1
8 Martin Mann "Boogie Woogie" Rudi Bauer, Gerd Thumser 4039 3
9 Jürgen Renfordt "Barfuß durch ein Feuer" Walter Gerke, Mick Hannes 3963 4
10 Leinemann "Das Ungeheuer von Loch Ness" Ulf Krüger, Jörn-Christoph Seelenmeyer 3921 5
11 The Hornettes "Mannequin" Ralph Siegel, Bernd Meinunger 4304 2
12 Peter Cornelius "Träumer, Tramps und Clowns" Michael Cretu, Michael Kunze 3769 6

At Eurovision

On the night of the final Valaitis performed 3rd in the running order, following Turkey and preceding Luxembourg. The 1981 contest is noted for providing one of the closest and most exciting voting sequences in Eurovision history, with the lead changing hands regularly between France, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. With two countries left to vote there was a three-way tie between Germany, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, all on 120 points. Switzerland was the next to vote, and turned out to be the only country which failed to award any points at all to "Johnny Blue", while giving 8 points to the United Kingdom. A maximum 12 points to Germany from the final jury in Sweden was not to be enough, as the Swedish jury also awarded 8 points to the United Kingdom, making Bucks Fizz the contest winners by 4 points. Germany finished runners-up for the second year in succession.[2] The German jury awarded its 12 points to France.[3]

The show was watched by 10.14 million viewers in Germany.[4]

Voting

References

  1. ^ ESC National Finals database 1981
  2. ^ "Final of Dublin 1981". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  3. ^ ESC History - Germany 1981
  4. ^ Quotenmeter; AGF; GfK. "TV-Reichweite des Eurovision Song Contests in den Jahren 1976 bis 2023 nach der Anzahl der Zuschauer". Statista. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Results of the Final of Dublin 1981". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
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