Monaco in the Eurovision Song Contest
Monaco
Participating broadcasterTélé Monte-Carlo (TMC)
Participation summary
Appearances24 (21 finals)
First appearance1959
Last appearance2006
Highest placement1st: 1971
External links
Monaco's page at Eurovision.tv Edit this at Wikidata
For the most recent participation see
Monaco in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006

Monaco has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 24 times since its debut in 1959. The country's only win in the contest came in 1971, when Séverine performed "Un banc, un arbre, une rue". As a result, Monaco was expected to host the contest in 1972, but it ultimately declined. Monaco is the only microstate to have won the contest to date.

Monaco finished last at its first contest in 1959 before achieving three top three results in the 1960s. Two of these were achieved by François Deguelt, who finished third in 1960 and second in 1962. Romuald also finished third in 1964. Severine's victory in 1971 was the first of five top four results in eight years. The others were achieved by Romuald (who returned to place fourth in 1974), Mary Christy who was third in 1976, Michèle Torr, fourth in 1977 and Caline and Olivier Toussaint who were fourth in 1978. After participating in 1979, Monaco was absent from the contest for 25 years.

Monaco is the only country to have internally selected all of its participants. While some countries organise televised national finals, it is believed that TMC does not have enough funding to organise national finals.

Monaco returned to the contest for three years from 2004 to 2006 but failed to qualify for the final on all three occasions. The Monégasque broadcaster then withdrew from the contest, stating that regional voting patterns in the contest have effectively given Monaco no chance of qualifying for the final.[1][2]

History

Marjorie Noël performing "Va dire à l'amour" in Naples
Mary Christy performing "Toi, la musique et moi" in The Hague

Monaco participated in the contest 21 times between its debut in 1959 and 1979. Afterwards the country withdrew from the contest for financial reasons and lack of interest.[3] It only returned in 2004, 25 years after its last participation.[4] It withdrew again in 2007, after failing to qualify for the final for three consecutive years.[5]

Monaco won the contest in 1971 with the song "Un banc, un arbre, une rue", performed by Séverine.[6] The Monégasque victory is rather unique in the history of Eurovision as neither the songwriter, the singer, nor musical director were from the country they represented, something which was also the case with four of Luxembourg's five victories. Séverine furthermore declared to journalists that she had never set foot in Monaco, forgetting that the song's music video was filmed there.[7] Séverine's producer was dishonest with her and stole her prize, thus she never got paid for her victory, even after suing him.[8] Nevertheless, the singer is still a great fan of the contest.[9]

Monaco's next best placing is second place, which it has achieved once in 1962. It has placed third three times, in 1960, 1964 and 1976; and last twice, in 1959 and 1966.[10] Monaco is among the eight countries which finished last on their first participation, the others being Austria, Portugal, Malta, Turkey, Lithuania, the Czech Republic and San Marino.

Host country

Monaco is the only country that has won the contest but has never organised it. After winning in 1971, the country planned to organise the 1972 contest as an open-air show, setting the date in June rather than early spring.[11] However, due to a lack of funding, Télé Monte Carlo sought help from the French public broadcaster, ORTF, which accepted to organise the contest. Because TMC wanted the contest to be held in Monaco while ORTF wanted it in France, negotiations never came through. Because of this, Monaco deferred the decision to the EBU.[12] The EBU asked Spain and Germany, which respectively finished second and third at the 1971 contest, but both countries declined to host the 1972 contest. It was eventually organised by the BBC in Edinburgh.[11]

Absence

Monaco was absent from the contest between 1980 and 2003, before returning for three years from 2004 to 2006. During its three-year return, all the artists representing the country, Maryon (2004), Lise Darly (2005) and Séverine Ferrer (2006), failed to qualify for the final. TMC broadcast the 2007 contest, making the country eligible to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008, but TMC decided against it.[13][14]

TMC had announced that it was possible Monaco would return to the contest in 2009 after a two-year absence, following talks with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), as well as new voting measures implemented in the contest that year.[15] Despite this, Monaco did not compete in Moscow in 2009.[16] The EBU announced they would work harder to bring Monaco back into the contest in 2010 alongside other lapsed participants.

The former head of the Monégasque delegation Philippe Boscagli accused certain countries of geopolitical voting, alleging the existence of Eastern European, Nordic and Old European voting blocs, henceforth hindering Monaco's chances for qualification. With regards to the non-qualification of the Monégasque entry in 2006, "La Coco-Dance", he claimed that the audience voted more for the show than the song. Furthermore, TMC is now part of the TF1 Group, the leading private broadcaster in France, and is now available everywhere in France. TMC programs no longer revolve around the principality. As TF1 Group is the biggest competitor to the French public channels, it is unlikely that TMC would again broadcast the contest. When TMC did so between 2004 and 2006, its audience was much smaller than the one of the French public channel. In those years, it was the government and the municipality of Monaco who chose the contestant and funded the delegation, while it is usually the responsibility of a broadcaster or a producer.[17]

Possible return

On 22 November 2021, L'Observateur de Monaco reported that 100,000 Euros have been allocated towards "initiating the application of the Principality to the Eurovision 2023 competition" in the state budget for 2022.[18] Monaco’s potential return to the contest would have required co-operation between the Monégasque government and broadcaster TMC which is owned by France's TF1 Group,[19] however, in December 2021, the Monégasque government announced the launch of a new national public broadcaster, TVMonaco, which would be fully owned by the government, opening up a possibility of Monaco returning to the contest under the sponsorship of the Monégasque government starting in 2023.[20] However, the channel's launch was later delayed to 1 September 2023.[21][22] Upon its launch, TVMonaco became a member of Monaco Media Diffusion, the broadcasting company which represents Monaco in the EBU, meaning that the country is, starting in 2024, once again eligible to participate in Eurovision events.[23][24] However, TVMonaco decided against taking part in the 2024 contest.[25] The broadcaster's editor-in-chief, Frédéric Cauderlier, ascribed the decision to the tight deadline and to being forced to concentrate on other matters in the early stages of the launch.[26]

Participation overview

Due to the country's very small size, all Monaco's entrants came from outside the principality, although French-born Minouche Barelli, who represented the principality in 1967, shared her time between Paris and Monaco, acquired Monegasque citizenship in 2002, and died in the principality on 20 February 2004 at the age of 56.[27] The large majority of the participants were French, with also one Yugoslavian, Tereza Kesovija, and one Luxembourgish, Mary Christy (born Marie Ruggeri). Several singers selected to represent Monaco are key figures of the French scene, such as Françoise Hardy and Michèle Torr. Luxembourg, another small country, also sent a great number of French artists to the contest. At the 1967 contest, the Monegasque entry, "Boum-Badaboum", sung by Minouche Barelli, was written by Serge Gainsbourg. He had already composed the winning entry in 1965, "Poupée de cire, poupée de son", sung by France Gall for Luxembourg.[28] Jean Jacques, who represented Monaco in 1969, was the first child to take part in Eurovision. He was 12 years old, making him the first preteen to participate and the first participant to be born after the inauguration of the contest.[29]

Table key
1 First place
2 Second place
3 Third place
◁ Last place
Year Entrant Song Language Final Points Semi Points
1959 Jacques Pills "Mon ami Pierrot" French 11 ◁ 1 No semi-finals
1960 François Deguelt "Ce soir-là" French 3 15
1961 Colette Deréal "Allons, allons les enfants" French 10 6
1962 François Deguelt "Dis rien" French 2 13
1963 Françoise Hardy "L'Amour s'en va" French 5 25
1964 Romuald "Où sont-elles passées" French 3 15
1965 Marjorie Noël "Va dire à l'amour" French 9 7
1966 Téréza "Bien plus fort" French 17 ◁ 0
1967 Minouche Barelli "Boum-Badaboum" French 5 10
1968 Line and Willy "À chacun sa chanson" French 7 8
1969 Jean Jacques "Maman, Maman" French 6 11
1970 Dominique Dussault "Marlène" French[lower-alpha 1] 8 5
1971 Séverine "Un banc, un arbre, une rue" French 1 128
1972 Anne-Marie Godart and Peter MacLane "Comme on s'aime" French 16 65
1973 Marie "Un train qui part" French 8 85
1974 Romuald "Celui qui reste et celui qui s'en va" French 4 14
1975 Sophie "Une chanson c'est une lettre" French 13 22
1976 Mary Christy "Toi, la musique et moi" French 3 93
1977 Michèle Torr "Une petite française" French 4 96
1978 Caline and Olivier Toussaint "Les Jardins de Monaco" French 4 107
1979 Laurent Vaguener "Notre vie c'est la musique" French 16 12
2004 Maryon "Notre planète" French Failed to qualify 19 10
2005 Lise Darly "Tout de moi" French 24 22
2006 Séverine Ferrer "La Coco-Dance" French, Tahitian 21 14

Heads of delegation

Heads of delegation
Year Head of delegation Ref.
2005 Philippe Boscagli [30]

Conductors

Conductors
Year Conductor Ref.
1959 Franck Pourcel[lower-alpha 2] [31]
1960 Raymond Lefèvre [31]
1961 [31]
1962 [31]
1963 [31]
1964 Michel Colombier [31]
1965 Raymond Bernard [31]
1966 Alain Goraguer [31]
1967 Aimé Barelli [31]
1968 Michel Colombier [31]
1969 Hervé Roy [31]
1970 Jimmy Walter [32]
1971 Jean-Claude Petit [32]
1972 Raymond Bernard [32]
1973 Jean-Claude Vannier [32]
1974 Raymond Donnez [32]
1975 André Popp [32]
1976 Raymond Donnez [32]
1977 Yvon Rioland [32]
1978 [32]
1979 Gérard Salesses [32]

Commentators and spokespersons

Commentators and spokespersons
Year Channel(s) Commentator(s) Spokesperson Ref.
1957 Radio Monte-Carlo Did not participate [33]
1958 No broadcast N/A
1959 Télé Monte-Carlo
Radio Monte-Carlo		 [34]
1960 Télé Monte-Carlo
1961 Télé Monte-Carlo
Radio Monte-Carlo		 [35]
1962 [36][lower-alpha 3]
1963 Télé Monte-Carlo Pierre Tchernia[lower-alpha 4] [37]
1964 Robert Beauvais[lower-alpha 4] [38]
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971 No spokesperson
1972
1973
1974 Sophie Hecquet [39]
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980–2003 No broadcastDid not participate N/A
2004 TMC Monte Carlo Bernard Montiel Anne Allegrini [40][41][42][43]
2005 Bernard Montiel and Genie Godula [44][45][46]
2006 Bernard Montiel and Églantine Éméyé Églantine Éméyé [47][48][49][50]
2007–2023 No broadcastDid not participate N/A

Notes

  1. ↑ Contains phrases in English and German
  2. ↑ Entry conducted by the host country's musical director
  3. ↑ Delayed broadcast of the 1962 contest on Radio Monte-Carlo on 23 March 1962 at 17:02 CET[36]
  4. 1 2 Commentary relayed by France's RTF

References

  1. ↑ Kasapoglou, Yiorgos (12 December 2006). "Monaco withdraws". ESCToday. Retrieved 12 December 2006.
  2. ↑ Viniker, Barry (14 December 2006). "Monaco - it's not the money!". ESCToday. Retrieved 14 December 2006.
  3. ↑ Roxburgh, Gordon (2016). Songs for Europe: The United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest. Volume Three: The 1980s. Prestatyn: Telos Publishing. pp. 86–103. ISBN 978-1-84583-118-9.
  4. ↑ "Eurovision Song Contest 1980 | Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. 19 April 1980. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  5. ↑ "Eurovision Song Contest 2007 Semi-Final | Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. 10 May 2007. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  6. ↑ "Eurovision Song Contest 1971 | Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. 3 April 1971. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  7. ↑ John Kennedy O'Connor (2005). The Eurovision Song Contest. 50 Years. The Official History. London: Carlton Books Limited. p. 47.
  8. ↑ Jean-Pierre Hautier (2010). La folie de l'Eurovision. Brussels: Éditions de l’Arbre. p. 37.
  9. ↑ Jan Feddersen and Ivor Lyttle (2005). Congratulations. 50 Years of The Eurovision Song Contest. The Official DVD. 1956-1980. Copenhagen: CMC Entertainment. p. 7.
  10. ↑ "Monaco | Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  11. 1 2 "Seeking out more about the 1972 contest? | News | Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. 25 March 2014. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  12. ↑ John Kennedy O'Connor (2005). The Eurovision Song Contest. 50 Years. The Official History. London: Carlton Books Limited. p. 48.
  13. ↑ Kuipers, Michael (26 December 2006). "Monaco to show Eurovision 2007". ESCToday. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  14. ↑ Floras, Stella (6 December 2007). "Monaco will not return in 2008". ESCToday. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  15. ↑ Kuipers, Michael (19 November 2008). "Monaco back in Moscow?". ESCToday. Retrieved 19 November 2008.
  16. ↑ Konstantopoulos, Fotis (27 November 2008). "San Marino & Monaco out?". Oikotimes. Retrieved 27 November 2008.
  17. ↑ Paredes, Adrien (18 May 2011). "Eurovision?: Monaco, 40 ans plus tard" [Eurovision? Monaco, 40 years later]. Monaco Hebdo (in French). Archived from the original on 14 July 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  18. ↑ Bonarrigo, Sabrina (22 November 2021). "Monaco: Returning to the Eurovision Song Contest in 2023?". L'observateur de Monaco. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
  19. ↑ Granger, Anthony (22 November 2021). "Monaco: Returning to the Eurovision Song Contest in 2023?". Eurovoix. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
  20. ↑ Granger, Anthony (10 December 2021). "Monaco: Launching New Public Service Broadcaster Monte-Carlo Riviera". Eurovoix. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  21. ↑ Tang, Isabella (25 April 2022). "Launch of Monaco's Monte-Carlo Riviera TV delayed until 2023". ESCXTRA. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  22. ↑ "La future chaîne de télévision s'appellera finalement TVMONACO" (in French). Monaco Matin. 23 March 2023. Retrieved 15 April 2023.
  23. ↑ "Radios/TV". Monaco Media Diffusion (in French). Retrieved 5 September 2023.
  24. ↑ Granger, Anthony (5 September 2023). "Monaco: Eligible to Compete in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024". Eurovoix. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  25. ↑ Jiandani, Sanjay (15 September 2023). "Monaco: MMD-TVMONACO will not compete at Eurovision 2024". ESCToday. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  26. ↑ Granger, Anthony (11 October 2023). "Monaco: TVMonaco Editor-in-Chief Explains Eurovision 2024 Non-Participation". Eurovoix. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
  27. ↑ "Minouche Barelli, chanteuse", Le Monde 27. February 2004.
  28. ↑ Jan Feddersen and Ivor Lyttle (2005). Congratulations. 50 Years of The Eurovision Song Contest. The Official DVD. 1956-1980. Copenhagen: CMC Entertainment. p. 12.
  29. ↑ John Kennedy O'Connor (2005). The Eurovision Song Contest. 50 Years. The Official History. London: Carlton Books Limited. p. 37.
  30. ↑ "Monaco decides on participation next week". ESCToday. 18 September 2004. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  31. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 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. ISBN 978-1-84583-065-6.
  32. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Roxburgh, Gordon (2014). Songs for Europe: The United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest. Vol. Two: The 1970s. Prestatyn, United Kingdom: Telos Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84583-093-9.
  33. ↑ "Programmes des Émissions Suisses et Étrangères". Radio – Je vois tout (in French). Lausanne, Switzerland: Héliographia SA. 28 February 1957. p. 22. Retrieved 2 June 2022 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
  34. ↑ "Programmes des Émissions Suisses et Étrangères". Radio Je vois tout – télévision (in French). Lausanne, Switzerland: Héliographia SA. 11 March 1959. p. 40. Retrieved 11 June 2022 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
  35. ↑ "Programmes des Émissions Suisses et Étrangères". Radio TV - Je vois tout (in French). Lausanne, Switzerland: Héliographia SA. 9 March 1961. p. 36. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
  36. 1 2 "Programmes radiophoniques – vendredi 23 mars". Radio TV - Je vois tout (in French). Lausanne, Switzerland: Héliographia SA. 15 March 1962. p. 59. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  37. ↑ 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. pp. 322–327. ISBN 978-1-84583-065-6.
  38. ↑ Brincourt, André (23 March 1964). "La Télévision par Andŕe Brincourt: Le Grand Prix Eurovision de la chanson à Gigliola Cinquetti (Italie)". Le Figaro (in French). p. 21. ISSN 0182-5852. OCLC 1367314267.
  39. ↑ "Facets of Eurovision's Song Contest '75". Times of Malta. 31 March 1975. p. 7.
  40. ↑ "Mercredi 12 mai – TMC". TV8 (in French). Zofingen, Switzerland: Ringier. 6 May 2004. p. 54. Retrieved 16 January 2023 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
  41. ↑ "Samedi 15 mai – TMC". TV8 (in French). Zofingen, Switzerland: Ringier. 13 May 2004. p. 20. Retrieved 16 January 2023 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
  42. ↑ Delpiroux, Dominique (2 April 2004). "Bernard Montiel persiste et signe". La Dépêche du Midi (in French). Archived from the original on 24 January 2010. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  43. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (14 May 2004). "And here are the votes from… the spokespersons". ESCToday. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  44. ↑ "Jeudi 19 mai – TMC". TV8 (in French). Zofingen, Switzerland: Ringier. 12 May 2005. p. 66. Retrieved 28 January 2023 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
  45. ↑ "Samedi 21 mai – TMC". TV8 (in French). Zofingen, Switzerland: Ringier. 19 May 2005. p. 24. Retrieved 28 January 2023 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
  46. ↑ Philips, Roel (17 May 2005). "The 39 spokespersons!". ESCToday. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  47. ↑ "Jeudi 18 mai – TMC". TV8 (in French). Zofingen, Switzerland: Ringier. 11 May 2006. p. 66. Retrieved 2 February 2023 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
  48. ↑ "Samedi 20 mai – TMC". TV8 (in French). Zofingen, Switzerland: Ringier. 18 May 2006. p. 26. Retrieved 2 February 2023 – via Scriptorium Digital Library.
  49. ↑ Dias, Sébastien (22 May 2006). "L'Eurovision 2006 bat des records d'audience et d'horreur..." (in French). Toute La Télé. Archived from the original on 31 December 2006. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  50. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (20 May 2006). "Meet the spokespersons for tonight's voting!". ESCToday. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
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