Eurovision Song Contest 1982
The Eurovision Song Contest 1982 was the 27th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom, following the country's victory at the 1981 contest with the song "Making Your Mind Up" by Bucks Fizz. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the contest was held at the Harrogate International Centre on Saturday 24 April 1982 and was hosted by Jan Leeming.
The winner was Germany with the song "Ein bißchen Frieden" by Nicole. This was the first time that Germany had won the contest. They had competed every year since the contest's inception. Germany received 1.61 times as many points as runner-up Israel, which was a record under the current scoring system until 2009, when Norway received 1.78 times as many points as Iceland. The song also cemented Ralph Siegel and Bernd Meinunger, the song's composers, into German Eurovision tradition, writing 18 Eurovision songs between them before and after "Ein bißchen Frieden", 13 of which were for Germany.
Harrogate is a spa town in North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor attractions include its spa waters and RHS Harlow Carr gardens. Nearby is the Yorkshire Dales national park and the Nidderdale AONB. Harrogate grew out of two smaller settlements, High Harrogate and Low Harrogate, in the 17th century. The town became known as 'The English Spa' in the Georgian Era, after its waters were discovered in the 16th century. In the 17th and 18th centuries its 'chalybeate' waters (containing iron) were a popular health treatment, and the influx of wealthy but sickly visitors contributed significantly to the wealth of the town.
The Harrogate International Centre was chosen as the host venue for the contest. The grand convention and exhibition centre opened short time prior to the contest, and was the first big event held in the main 2000-seat auditorium.
The opening of the contest showed a map of Europe, with the translation "Where is Harrogate?" popping up on-screen from the languages of the various countries. The question was always in the language in which the respective country's song was performed, with the exception of Ireland. The Irish entry was sung in English, but the translation of the question in the map was in Irish. Then the map zoomed into Harrogate's location in Yorkshire, followed by an introduction video spotlighting the town.
The tradition of previous year's winners handing over the prize to current winners was not followed by Bucks Fizz, winners in 1981.
