Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 1996

  • John Terra
  • Siirak Brogden
  • Daniël Ditmar
Finals performanceFinal result16th, 22 pointsBelgium in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄1995 • 1996 • 1998►

Belgium was represented by Lisa del Bo with the song "Liefde is een kaartspel" at the 1996 Eurovision Song Contest.

Before Eurovision

De gouden zeemeermin

De gouden zeemeermin (The Golden Mermaid) was the national final format developed by BRTN in order to select Belgian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 1996. 40 songs in total took part in the national final, which consisted of four semi-finals between 3 and 24 February 1996 and a final on 9 March 1996. All five shows took place at the Knokke Casino Studios in Knokke and were hosted by Michel Follet and Alexandra Potvin.

Semi-finals

Ten songs competed in each semi-final with the top three from each qualifying for the final. The results for the semi-finals were determined exclusively by a seven-member jury, who each awarded 12, 10, 8–1 points to their top ten songs, although they could give each song any mark they wished (i.e. they could award 12 points to more than one song if they chose). The results in the final were determined by the votes of five regional juries in Belgium, a press jury and an expert jury.

Semi-final 1 – 3 February 1996
Draw Artist Song Points Place
1 Dave & Steve "Geen illusie" 57 6
2 Chris "De toekomst" 60 4[a]
3 Garry Hagger "Dat ik van je hou" 60 3[a]
4 Chalina "Toon wat" 37 9
5 Scharnier "Oorlog" 44 8
6 Patrick Alessi "Een andere wereld" 71 1
7 Marleen "De kleine dingen" 50 7
8 Frank Valentino "Hey Mister Lennon" 58 5
9 Mario Caselli "Mademoiselle" 67 2
10 Rindu Rindu "Golven van verlangen" 30 10
Semi-final 1 – Detailed Jury Votes
Draw Song G. De Pré L. Demaré M. Brillouet S. De Vos M. De Schuyter N. Nys R. Burms
1 "Geen illusie" 10 5 12 8 8 7 7
2 "De toekomst" 8 12 7 10 8 8 7
3 "Dat ik van je hou" 8 5 10 12 10 5 10
4 "Toon wat" 6 4 8 4 6 4 5
5 "Oorlog" 5 10 7 4 7 5 6
6 "Een andere wereld" 10 12 10 10 12 10 7
7 "De kleine dingen" 6 7 8 6 8 7 8
8 "Hey Mister Lennon" 8 7 8 8 10 7 8
9 "Mademoiselle" 10 12 12 7 12 8 6
10 "Golven van verlangen" 5 3 4 4 6 3 5
Semi-final 2 – 10 February 1996
Draw Artist Song Points Place
1 Beau Geste "Overmoed" 50 7
2 Axel Lane "Laat me" 45 10
3 Chelsy "Kijk me aan" 66 2
4 Gunther Levi "Vandaag" 63 4
5 Angie C "Ritme van een lach" 47 9
6 William Reven "Zo voel ik vandaag" 64 3
7 Davy Gilles "Elke nacht" 48 8
8 Mieke "Op dit moment" 63 4
9 Fair Play "Laat haar niet alleen" 51 6
10 Sabien Tiels "Nooit meer alleen" 70 1
Semi-final 2 – Detailed Jury Votes
Draw Song G. De Pré L. Demaré M. Brillouet S. De Vos M. De Schuyter N. Nys R. Burms
1 "Overmoed" 6 7 10 7 7 6 7
2 "Laat me" 5 5 7 7 7 6 8
3 "Kijk me aan" 6 12 8 12 10 10 8
4 "Vandaag" 10 10 8 6 10 7 12
5 "Ritme van een lach" 8 5 7 5 7 5 10
6 "Zo voel ik vandaag" 10 8 8 10 8 10 10
7 "Elke nacht" 8 5 7 6 8 7 7
8 "Op dit moment" 8 10 10 8 7 10 10
9 "Laat haar niet alleen" 7 7 8 7 8 7 7
10 "Nooit meer alleen" 10 10 12 8 10 10 10
Semi-final 3 – 17 February 1996
Draw Artist Song Points Place
1 Enzo "Mooi" 74 1
2 Hans van den Stock "Blijf steeds bij mij" 42 7
3 Chadia "Hou van mij" 40 8
4 Phil Kevin "Als ik er niet meer ben" 33 10
5 Kaye "Het nieuwe begint" 34 9
6 Rudy Meyns "Ik hou van jou" 49 6
7 Corina "Wereld van muziek" 53 5
8 Marijn Devalck "Hou me in je hart" 57 4
9 Splinter "Ik laat je nooit meer gaan" 67 3
10 Lisa del Bo "Liefde is een kaartspel" 72 2
Semi-final 3 – Detailed Jury Votes
Draw Song G. De Pré L. Demaré M. Brillouet S. De Vos M. De Schuyter N. Nys R. Burms
1 "Mooi" 10 12 12 12 12 6 10
2 "Blijf steeds bij mij" 6 6 6 6 7 5 6
3 "Hou van mij" 4 3 6 6 8 6 6
4 "Als ik er niet meer ben" 6 5 6 2 6 4 5
5 "Het nieuwe begint" 5 4 6 2 7 4 6
6 "Ik hou van jou" 6 5 8 8 8 7 7
7 "Wereld van muziek" 10 8 7 5 10 6 7
8 "Hou me in je hart" 8 7 8 6 10 8 10
9 "Ik laat je nooit meer gaan" 12 12 10 10 10 6 7
10 "Liefde is een kaartspel" 12 10 10 10 10 8 12
Semi-final 4 – 24 February 1996
Draw Artist Song Points Place
1 Cold Pizza "Vertrouwen" 55 4
2 Peter van Laet "Er is iets" 62 3
3 Onah "Neem de biezen" 43 7
4 P C Brown "Dans met mij" 40 9
5 Nadia "Morgen komt de lente" 66 1
6 Tempo "M'n liefste" 54 5
7 Pino "Onbereikbaar maar dichtbij" 43 7
8 Aperitivo "Jij" 28 10
9 Doran "Jij alleen" 64 2
10 Chrissy "Ik wil so graag bij jou zijn" 47 6
Semi-final 4 – Detailed Jury Votes
Draw Song G. De Pré L. Demaré M. Brillouet S. De Vos M. De Schuyter N. Nys R. Burms
1 "Vertrouwen" 10 8 8 7 8 7 7
2 "Er is iets" 7 12 8 8 12 7 8
3 "Neem de biezen" 6 6 6 5 8 6 6
4 "Dans met mij" 6 3 8 5 6 4 8
5 "Morgen komt de lente" 8 8 8 10 10 10 12
6 "M'n liefste" 10 6 10 7 7 7 7
7 "Onbereikbaar maar dichtbij" 7 4 8 3 8 5 8
8 "Jij" 3 3 5 4 5 3 5
9 "Jij alleen" 10 7 12 7 8 10 10
10 "Ik wil so graag bij jou zijn" 7 6 8 6 8 6 6

Final

The final took place on 9 March 1996 where the twelve entries that advanced from the preceding four semi-finals were performed. The winner was selected by a combination of votes from five regional juries in Belgium (5% each), a press jury (25%) and an expert jury (50%). "Liefde is een kaartspel" performed by Lisa del Bo was selected as the winner, having been ranked first by all but the press jury. The top three songs had all come from the third semi-final.[1]

Final – 9 March 1996
Draw Artist Song Points Place
1 Lisa del Bo "Liefde is een kaartspel" 215 1
2 Patrick Alessi "Een andere wereld" 73 11
3 Chelsy "Kijk me aan" 128 8
4 William Reven "Zo voel ik vandaag" 119 9
5 Nadia "Morgen komt de lente" 135 7
6 Peter van Laet "Er is iets" 143 4
7 Sabine Tiels "Nooit meer alleen" 139 6
8 Doran "Jij alleen" 37 12
9 Garry Hagger "Dat ik van je hou" 141 5
10 Splinter "Ik laat je nooit meer gaan" 189 2
11 Enzo "Mooi" 151 3
12 Mario Caselli "Mademoiselle" 90 10
Detailed Jury Votes
Draw Song Regional Juries Press
Jury 		Expert
Jury 		Total
Antwerp Limburg East
Flanders 		Flemish
Brabant 		West
Flanders
1 "Liefde is een kaartspel" 12 12 12 12 12 35 120 215
2 "Een andere wereld" 2 2 5 3 1 40 20 73
3 "Kijk me aan" 8 5 6 8 6 5 90 128
4 "Zo voel ik vandaag" 1 1 3 2 2 50 60 119
5 "Morgen komt de lente" 5 6 7 7 5 25 80 135
6 "Er is iets" 10 9 9 11 9 55 40 143
7 "Nooit meer alleen" 4 11 1 5 3 15 100 139
8 "Jij alleen" 3 4 2 1 7 10 10 37
9 "Dat ik van je hou" 6 8 4 4 4 45 70 141
10 "Ik laat je nooit meer gaan" 11 10 8 10 10 30 110 189
11 "Mooi" 9 7 11 6 8 60 50 151
12 "Mademoiselle" 7 3 10 9 11 20 30 90

At Eurovision

In 1996, for the only time in Eurovision history, an audio-only qualifying round of the 29 songs entered (excluding hosts Norway who were exempt) was held in March in order for the seven lowest-scoring songs to be eliminated before the final. "Liefde is een kartspel" placed 12th, thus qualifying for the final.[2] As of 2022, this is the last time that Belgium had sung its entry in Dutch.

On the night of the final del Bo performed 16th in the running order, following the Netherlands and preceding the eventual winner Ireland. At the close of the voting "Liefde is een kaartspel" placed 16th of the 23 entries, having received 22 points.[3] The result was not good enough to prevent Belgium from being relegated from the 1997 contest on the cumulative countback rule. The Belgian jury awarded its 12 points to the United Kingdom.[4]

"Liefde is een kaartspel" later became embroiled in controversy when it was alleged that it had been plagiarised by Sweden's 2001 Eurovision entry "Listen To Your Heartbeat". This was initially denied by the writers of the Swedish song, but Belgian songwriters' association SABAM threatened legal action, and a cash settlement was agreed to forestall this.[5]

Voting

Qualifying round

Points awarded to Belgium (qualifying round)[6]
Score Country
12 points
10 points
8 points  Spain
7 points  United Kingdom
6 points
5 points
4 points
3 points
2 points
1 point
Points awarded by Belgium (qualifying round)[6]
Score Country
12 points  Sweden
10 points  Malta
8 points  Ireland
7 points  United Kingdom
6 points  Portugal
5 points  Estonia
4 points  Netherlands
3 points   Switzerland
2 points  Slovenia
1 point  Austria

Final

Points awarded to Belgium (final)[7]
Score Country
12 points  Spain
10 points
8 points
7 points
6 points
5 points  United Kingdom
4 points
3 points
2 points
1 point  Estonia
Points awarded by Belgium (final)[7]
Score Country
12 points  United Kingdom
10 points  Sweden
8 points  Norway
7 points  France
6 points  Portugal
5 points  Turkey
4 points  Croatia
3 points  Ireland
2 points   Switzerland
1 point  Netherlands

Notes

  1. ^ a b As there was a tie between third and fourth placed songs in the first semi-final, the tie for third place was broken by each judge naming their preferred song, with 5 choosing Garry Hagger against 2 choosing Chris.

References

  1. ^ ESC National Finals database 1996
  2. ^ Roxburgh, Gordon (2020). Songs for Europe: The United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest. Volume Four: The 1990s. Prestatyn: Telos Publishing. pp. 255–261. ISBN 978-1-84583-163-9.
  3. ^ "Final of Oslo 1996". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  4. ^ ESC History - Eurovision - Belgium 1996
  5. ^ "Sweden's entry 2001 now officially plagiarism" ESCToday.com, 9 August 2003
  6. ^ a b Roxburgh, Gordon (2020). Songs for Europe: The United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest. Volume Four: The 1990s. Prestatyn: Telos Publishing. p. 259. ISBN 978-1-84583-163-9.
  7. ^ a b "Results of the Final of Oslo 1996". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 15 April 2021.

External links

  • Belgian Preselection 1996
  • v
  • t
  • e
ParticipationArtistsSongs
  • "1 Life"
  • "À la folie ou pas du tout"
  • "Als het weer lente is"
  • "L'Amour ça fait chanter la vie"
  • "Avanti la vie"
  • "Baby, Baby"
  • "Because of You"
  • "Before the Party's Over"
  • "City Lights"
  • "Copycat"
  • "Dis oui"
  • "Door de wind"
  • "Envie de vivre"
  • "Euro-Vision"
  • "Fleur de liberté"
  • "Geef het op"
  • "Gelukkig zijn"
  • "Goeiemorgen, morgen"
  • "Le Grand soir"
  • "Hey Nana"
  • "Hou toch van mij"
  • "Iemand als jij"
  • "Ik heb zorgen"
  • "J'aime la vie"
  • "Je t'adore"
  • "Jennifer Jennings"
  • "Judy et Cie"
  • "Laat me nu gaan"
  • "Laissez briller le soleil"
  • "Liefde is een kaartspel"
  • "Like the Wind"
  • "Love Kills"
  • "Love Power"
  • "Ma petite chatte"
  • "Macédomienne"
  • "A Matter of Time"
  • "Me and My Guitar"
  • "Messieurs les noyés de la Seine"
  • "A Million in One, Two, Three"
  • "Miss You"
  • "Mon amour pour toi"
  • "Mother"
  • "Nous, on veut des violons"
  • "O Julissi"
  • "Un peu de poivre, un peu de sel"
  • "Le Plus beau jour de ma vie"
  • "Près de ma rivière"
  • "Quand tu reviendras"
  • "Release Me"
  • "Rendez-vous"
  • "Rhythm Inside"
  • "Samson"
  • "Sanomi"
  • "September, gouden roos"
  • "Si tu aimes ma musique"
  • "Sister"
  • "Soldiers of Love"
  • "Straatdeuntje"
  • "Ton nom"
  • "Viens l'oublier"
  • "La Voix est libre"
  • "Waarom?"
  • "Wake Up"
  • "What's the Pressure"
  • "With Love Baby"
  • "Would You?"
  • "The Wrong Place"
  • Note: Entries scored out signify where Belgium did not compete
  • v
  • t
  • e
Countries
Final
Qualification
Artists
Final
Qualification
Songs
Final
  • "¡Ay, qué deseo!"
  • "Beşinci Mevsim"
  • "Chcę znać swój grzech..."
  • "Dan najlepših sanj"
  • "Diwanit bugale"
  • "De eerste keer"
  • "Emis forame to himona anixiatika"
  • "I evighet"
  • "In a Woman's Heart"
  • "Kaelakee hääl"
  • "Kým nás máš"
  • "Liefde is een kaartspel"
  • "O meu coração não tem cor"
  • "Mon cœur l'aime"
  • "Mono gia mas"
  • "Niin kaunis on taivas"
  • "Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit"
  • "Sjúbídú"
  • "Sveta ljubav"
  • "Den vilda"
  • "The Voice"
  • "Weil's dr guat got"
  • "Za našu ljubav"
Qualification
  • "Fortuna"
  • "Kun med dig"
  • "Planet of Blue"
  • "Rugă pentru pacea lumii"
  • "Samo ti"
  • "Shalom Olam"
  • "Ya eto ya"