France In The Eurovision Song Contest
France is one of the most successful countries in the Eurovision Song Contest and has entered the competition fifty-four times since their debut at the very first contest in 1956. France is one of only seven countries to be present at the very first contest, and has only been absent from two contests in its history, missing the 1974 and 1982 contests. Despite appearing in the Contest for over 50 years, France has never taken last place, although they ended up placing second to last five times.
France has gone through a number of broadcasters that presented Eurovision to the French. From 1956 to 1964 Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française (RTF) was the French broadcaster. ORTF (Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française) took over from RTF in 1965, and showed Eurovision until 1973. TF1 took over from ORTF from 1975 to 1981, when they withdrew. Antenne 2 took over from TF1 in 1983 and its current incarnation, France Télévisions, is the current French broadcaster from 1992.
With the introduction of the semi-final in 2004, France 4 (part of France Télévisions) from the 2005 presents the Eurovision Song Contest semi-final, with France 3 continuing to organise a selection for the participant song and present the Eurovision Song Contest final.
Read more about France In The Eurovision Song Contest: Contest History, Contestants, Voting History (1975-2012), Hostings, Marcel Bezençon Awards, Commentators and Spokespersons
Famous quotes containing the words france, song and/or contest:
“The bugle-call to arms again sounded in my war-trained ear, the bayonets gleamed, the sabres clashed, and the Prussian helmets and the eagles of France stood face to face on the borders of the Rhine.... I remembered our own armies, my own war-stricken country and its dead, its widows and orphans, and it nerved me to action for which the physical strength had long ceased to exist, and on the borrowed force of love and memory, I strove with might and main.”
—Clara Barton (1821–1912)
“Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame.”
—Bible: Hebrew Song of Solomon 8:6.
“By his mere quiet power, on the minds of the now contestants, He could have either saved or destroyed the Union without a human contest. Yet the contest began. And having begun He could give the final victory to either side any day. Yet the contest proceeds.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)