Eurovision: 1974 Trivia Quiz

Answer: England

It should have been held in Luxembourg. They won the 1973 contest - and the 1972. Two years in a row was just too expensive for such a small country, so they came to an agreement with the BBC and it was staged at The Dome in Brighton.

Answer: Sweden

Probably the most famous song to come out of the contests, 1974's winner was "Waterloo" by a group called ABBA out of Sweden. ABBA was comprised of Anni-Frid Lyngstad (A), Benny Andersson (B), Bjorn Ulvaeus (B) and Agnetha Faltskog (A). They went on to become superstars in the world of rock/pop music.

It was Sweden's first win, but not the first time their song had been sung in English.

Answer: Olivia Newton-John

While many people associate Olivia Newton-John with Australia, she was actually born in Cambridge, England. Her father was involved with the deciphering of the Enigma machine in WWII. In addition to her musical career, Olivia is an activist for environmental and breast-cancer awareness.

Answer: Portugal

John Kennedy O'Connor so described the song which allegedly was used as a signal to begin the Carnation Revolution (April 1974), the overthrow of the military dictatorship to bring democracy to Portugal.

Answer: 7

They were:

UK - "Long Live Love"
Sweden - "Waterloo"
Finland - "Keep Me Warm"
Norway - "The First Day of Love"
Luxembourg - "Bye Bye I Love You" (okay, it was sung in English and French)
Netherlands - "I See a Star"
Ireland - "Cross Your Heart"

Answer: France - death of President Pompidou

The funeral for French President Georges Pompidou was held on the same day as the contest, 6th April 1974, so it was deemed unsuitable for the country to compete. Had they done so, Dani would have sung "La vie à vignt-cinq ans". For the same reason, the French singer who had won the prior year for Luxembourg was unable to attend to present the prize.

Answer: Greece

Greece premiered with the song "Krasi, Thalasa Ke T' Agori Mu" (which translates to "Wine, Sea and My Boyfriend" - no wonder it didn't do well!). Malta withdrew from the contest for this year, with no reason given.

Answer: Katie Boyle and Nick Ingman

Helga Guitton covered the 1973 contest, Dobbe did 1970, Shearer and Mackay did 1972. Morecambe and Wise were a comedy duo in Britain from 1941 to 1984, when Morecambe died. Katie Boyle is known in the UK for her appearances on "What's My Line" - but she started off as the Italian-born daughter of the Marchese Demetrio Imperiali di Francavilla. Nick Ingman is a composer/conductor of easy-listening music.

Answer: The Wombles

The Wombles were a group of session musicians, dressed as characters from the Wombles books and television show. Led by Mike Batt, the group had a number of very successful hits and albums in 1973-1975. Wombles are furry creatures living on Wimbledon Common, picking up trash and making good use of what they find.

Invented by Elisabeth Beresford in the late 1960s, they were probably the first famous group of environmentalists in the UK!

Answer: Norway, Switzerland, Germany, Portugal

Norway's "The First Day of Love", Germany's "Die Sommermelodie" ("The Melody of Summer"), Switzerland's "Mein Ruf nach dir" ("My Cry for You") and Portugal's "E depoisdo adeus" ("After the Goodbye") all racked up a grand total of 3 votes out of a possible 160. Each country had ten jurors, each with one vote - and each country was excluded from voting for its own entry.

The winner, ABBA's "Waterloo", won with a total of 24 points.