As Vienna prepares to host next month’s Eurovision Song Contest, the EBU is hoping to solve a decades-old mystery. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the multi-national extravaganza, which has been a fixture on screens across the continent every year since its launch in 1956, with the notable exception of 2020 when the music was silenced by the Covid pandemic.
Ahead of the event, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) is hoping to close a gap in its otherwise extensive inventory. Somehow, no complete recordings exist of the inaugural Contest, held in 1956 in Lugano, or the 1964 edition from Copenhagen. Audio of the Contests is known to exist, along with fragments of video recordings, but neither of the two host broadcasters, respectively Switzerland’s SRG SSR and DR in Denmark have them in their archives.
The hunt is on. The EBU has launched a global search to unearth full recordings of the missing shows. Thanks to the work of Yle in Finland, missing footage of the 1964 winning performance by Italy’s Gigliola Cinquetti has been found, and it is believed more may be out there. The EBU is appealing for help in finding partial footage, home recordings, photographic or film material or even full recordings that could be held in private collections, broadcaster vaults or lying forgotten in a dusty attic. Even the smallest clip could help bring these broadcasts back to life, said the organisation.
As part of the anniversary celebrations, the EBU is working with Member broadcasters, archivists and restoration specialists to identify, restore and preserve material in the official Eurovision archive, helping to ensure the Eurovision story, of global cultural significance, is complete.
Martin Green CBE, director of the Eurovision Song Contest, said, “As we celebrate 70 years of the Eurovision Song Contest, we’re looking back at an incredible history – but we know there are still some chapters missing. The idea that somewhere in the world there could be unseen footage from 1956 or 1964 is genuinely exciting. It’s a bit like a global treasure hunt.
“The Eurovision Song Contest has always been about people coming together, and this is a chance for fans to play a part in preserving that shared history. We’ve already seen, thanks to Yle in Finland, that lost moments can be found. Now we’re hoping the Eurovision community will help us uncover even more – and maybe, just maybe, complete the story.”
Anyone who believes they have relevant material is asked to contact the EBU via [email protected] , providing as much detail as possible.
