Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 1973
Encyclopedia
Belgium was represented by Nicole & Hugo
, with the song '"Baby, Baby", at the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest, which took place in Luxembourg City on 7 April. "Baby, Baby" was the winner of the Belgian national final for the contest, held at the Amerikaans Theater in Brussels
on 25 February. Nicole & Hugo had won the 1971 Belgian preselection
with the song "Goeiemorgen, morgen
", but days before the contest Nicole had fallen ill and was unable to travel to host city Dublin, so Jacques Raymond and Lily Castel
had been drafted in as last-minute replacements.
and preceding Portugal
. Among the backing singers was Claude Lombard
, Belgium's 1968 Eurovision
entrant. At the close of the voting "Baby, Baby" had received 58 points, placing Belgium last of the 17 entries, the fourth time the country had finished at the foot of the Eurovision scoreboard. Notwithstanding the bad result however, the couple's outrageously camp
styling and performance have ensured that "Baby, Baby" has over the years gained cult status amongst Eurovision fans. Several clips from the performance were shown during Eurovision's 50th anniversary TV gala Congratulations
in 2005, culminating in a live appearance by the pair, wearing their infamous purple 1973 outfits and performing an abridged version of the song. "Baby, Baby" remains an iconic Eurovision performance, far better remembered than hundreds of songs which finished much higher up the scoreboard.
Nicole & Hugo
Nicole & Hugo are a singing duet from BelgiumNicole Josy and Hugo Sigal met in 1970. They become romantically involved and formed a singing duet. In 1971, they entered into the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest...
, with the song '"Baby, Baby", at the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest, which took place in Luxembourg City on 7 April. "Baby, Baby" was the winner of the Belgian national final for the contest, held at the Amerikaans Theater in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
on 25 February. Nicole & Hugo had won the 1971 Belgian preselection
Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 1971
Belgium was represented by Jacques Raymond and Lily Castel, with the song '"Goeiemorgen, morgen", at the 1971 Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on 3 April in Dublin. Raymond and Castel had not taken part in the original Belgian final, which was won with Nicole & Hugo performing the song...
with the song "Goeiemorgen, morgen
Goeiemorgen, Morgen
"Goeiemorgen, morgen" was the Belgian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1971, performed in Dutch by Jacques Raymond and Lily Castel....
", but days before the contest Nicole had fallen ill and was unable to travel to host city Dublin, so Jacques Raymond and Lily Castel
Lily Castel
Lily Castel is a Belgian singer, best known for her participation with Jacques Raymond in the 1971 Eurovision Song Contest.- Early career :...
had been drafted in as last-minute replacements.
Final
The 1973 national final took place on 25 February, with five acts performing two songs apiece. The winner was chosen by seven expert jurors who each named their favourite song, and "Baby, Baby" was the choice of four of them.| Draw | Artist | Song | Points | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nicole & Hugo Nicole & Hugo Nicole & Hugo are a singing duet from BelgiumNicole Josy and Hugo Sigal met in 1970. They become romantically involved and formed a singing duet. In 1971, they entered into the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest... |
"Baby, Baby" | 4 | 1 |
| 2 | Nicole & Hugo | "Jij en ik en wij" | 0 | 4= |
| 3 | Liliane Dorekens | "Kus, kiss, kuss" | 0 | 4= |
| 4 | Liliane Dorekens | "Morgen" | 0 | 4= |
| 5 | Rita Deneve | "Ga met me mee" | 0 | 4= |
| 6 | Rita Deneve | "Vrede voor iedereen" | 2 | 2 |
| 7 | Ann Christy Ann Christy (singer) Ann Christy was a Belgian singer who enjoyed success in her native country and is best known internationally for her participation in the 1975 Eurovision Song Contest.... |
"Bye Bye" | 1 | 3 |
| 8 | Ann Christy | "Meeuwen" | 0 | 4= |
| 9 | Kalinka | "Home Sweet Home" | 0 | 4= |
| 10 | Kalinka | "Nooit ga ik van je heen" | 0 | 4= |
At Eurovision
On the night of the final Nicole & Hugo performed second in the running order, following FinlandFinland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and preceding Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
. Among the backing singers was Claude Lombard
Claude Lombard
Claude Lombard is a Belgian singer, best known internationally for her participation in the 1968 Eurovision Song Contest.- Early career :Lombard studied at INSAS, a college of film, theatre and television studies in Brussels...
, Belgium's 1968 Eurovision
Eurovision Song Contest 1968
The Eurovision Song Contest 1968 was the 13th Eurovision Song Contest. The contest was won by the Spanish song "La, la, la", performed by Massiel....
entrant. At the close of the voting "Baby, Baby" had received 58 points, placing Belgium last of the 17 entries, the fourth time the country had finished at the foot of the Eurovision scoreboard. Notwithstanding the bad result however, the couple's outrageously camp
Camp (style)
Camp is an aesthetic sensibility that regards something as appealing because of its taste and ironic value. The concept is closely related to kitsch, and things with camp appeal may also be described as being "cheesy"...
styling and performance have ensured that "Baby, Baby" has over the years gained cult status amongst Eurovision fans. Several clips from the performance were shown during Eurovision's 50th anniversary TV gala Congratulations
Congratulations (Eurovision)
Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest was a television programme organised by the European Broadcasting Union to commemorate the Eurovision Song Contest's fiftieth anniversary and to determine the Contest's most popular entrant of its fifty years. It took place at Forum,...
in 2005, culminating in a live appearance by the pair, wearing their infamous purple 1973 outfits and performing an abridged version of the song. "Baby, Baby" remains an iconic Eurovision performance, far better remembered than hundreds of songs which finished much higher up the scoreboard.