Eurovision 1991: Rome

Italy wanted to hold the 1991 contest in Sanremo, in the theatre that is home to the festival Eurovision was modelled on. It would have been a homecoming.

The EBU said the theatre was too small and raised doubts about organisation and security. Sanremo answered with a plan to join the theatre, a square and the old flower market into one venue with temporary buildings. That was still being worked on in January.

Then the Gulf War began. By February the security worries could not be argued away, and on the 18th the contest was moved to Rome, to Stage 15 of the Cinecittà film studios.

A show put together late

It showed. Rehearsals kept starting late because the orchestra kept arriving late. On the night the lighting failed during several songs, and the sound system in the hall cut out during Sweden’s.

The presenters were Italy’s two winners, Gigliola Cinquetti and Toto Cutugno, and they began by singing their winning songs. After that they spoke Italian, and very little else. English and French, the contest’s working languages, appeared only in the voting.

The voting was the most chaotic part. Mistakes had to be corrected on air, and again and again the hosts turned to the EBU’s scrutineer, Frank Naef, to ask what the score actually was.

Who was there

The Netherlands stayed away: 4 May was once again its day of remembrance. That opened a place for Malta, which had been trying to return for years and had been kept out by the limit on numbers. It was Malta’s first contest for sixteen years, and it finished sixth.

Germany took part as one country for the first time. Every German entry until now had come from the West.

Carola, third for Sweden in 1983, was back. So was Hanne Krogh, a winner with Bobbysocks, this time in a Norwegian group.

In the postcards each act sang a snatch of a famous Italian song. The interval act was Arturo Brachetti, a quick-change artist.

146 each

When the last jury had voted, Sweden and France were level on 146 points. Israel was third, seven behind.

It was the first tie at the top since 1969, and this time there was a rule for it. The procedure written two years earlier was used for the first time.

First, count the twelves. Sweden had four. So had France.

Then count the tens. Sweden had five. France had two.

Carola and “Fångad av en stormvind” were declared the winners, and Sweden had its third victory. France’s Amina, with exactly the same number of points, was second.

The bottom of the board

Austria’s Thomas Forstner had been fifth two years earlier. This time he scored nothing.

One place above him was Yugoslavia, with a single point. The country was about to come apart, and it had one contest left.

The broadcast lasted three hours and thirteen minutes.