Behind the scenes of the controversial Eurovision year rocked by a four-way tie

12 May 2023 , 11:19

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Behind the scenes of the controversial Eurovision year rocked by a four-way tie

Ever since its very first broadcast back in 1956, the Eurovision Song Contest has provided plenty of iconic television moments, blunders, and a fair bit of juicy drama.

One year in particular divided viewers like no other before or afterward, and the contentious results still spark heated debate at Eurovision parties to this day.

In 1969, Eurovision viewers tuning into the contest in Madrid were stunned to witness a four-way tie between Spain, France, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands, with each country finishing with 18 points each.

Famed UK songstress Lulu shared a first-place spot with Spain's Salomé, France's Frida Boccara, and the Netherlands' Lenny Kuhr with her entry 'Boom Bang-a-Bang'.

Lulu represented the UK during what was to be the contest's most dramatic year (Eurovision)

Salomé represented Spain with her track 'Vivo Cantando', while French contestant Boccara sang the emotional ballad 'Un jour, un enfant'. Representing the Netherlands, folk singer Kuhr performed 'De troubadour'.

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Each of the four very different acts was well-received, but nobody in the audience could have imagined just how close things would get.

The year of 1969 year marked the very first time Spain hosted the contest, after their victory in London the previous year, with an eye-catching stage set-up designed by surrealist artist Salvador Dali.

At this time, each competing country had a jury made up of 10 members, each of whom awarded one point to the song they'd liked the best.

The contestants were left utterly baffled (Eurovision)

Footage from the memorable evening shows the bewildered presenter looking utterly baffled after the results were announced, querying what she should do next before inviting all four singers onstage.

Fortunately, there were enough medals to go around, as additional medals had been on hand to give out to a maximum of three songwriters.

The tie proved so controversial, that the four countries of Finland, Portugal, Norway, and Sweden even decided to pull out the following year in protest, while several TV stations re-considered participating altogether.

To avoid any further tension going forward, a tie-break rule was introduced to avoid a repeat performance.

Julia Banim