The Norwegian broadcaster NRK revealed today that they will pick their song and artist for Eurovision 2016 on Saturday 27th February. The national final will be held at Oslo’s Spektrum whereas the artists participating are to be announced at a later stage.
NRK has announced today through its official account on Twitter the date for next year’s Melodi Grand Prix, their national final for Eurovision. The 2016 Norwegian national final will be hosted by SiLyA and Kåre Magnus Bergh and will be held on Saturday, February 27, at the Oslo Spektrum. The broadcaster has also revealed that a total of ten acts will compete to represent Norway in Stockholm and that their names will be revealed in January. Tickets for the show will go on sale online on December 4th.
Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest
Norway has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 54 times since making its debut in 1960 and has only been absent twice since then. In 1970, the country boycotted the contest over disagreements about the voting structure, and, in 2002, they were relegated. Norway has won the contest three times (1985, 1995 and 2009).
Norway’s first entrant in 1960 was Nora Brockstedt, who finished fourth. Åse Kleveland subsequently finished third in 1966. These would remain Norway’s only top five results until 1985, when Bobbysocks gave the country its first victory with the song La det swinge (Let It Swing). The country achieved two more top five results over the next ten years: in 1988 and in 1993. Norway’s second victory came in 1995 with Secret Garden’s predominantly instrumental, Nocturne. In 1996, Elisabeth Andreassen, who had won the contest as one half of Bobbyscocks in 1985, ranked second. In 2003, Jostein Hasselgård was fourth. Norway won for the third time in 2009 with Alexander Rybak’s Fairytale, his winning score of 387 points being the highest ever winning total (the entry also achieved the biggest ever margin of victory).
Norway also has two other notable Eurovision records: of having finished last in a Eurovision final more than any other country and of having achieved the most “nul points” in the contest. The country has finished last eleven times and has failed to score a single point four times (in 1963, 1978, 1981 and 1997).
Since the introduction of the semi-final round in 2004, Norway has finished in the top ten six times. Wig Wam finished ninth in 2005, Maria Haukaas Storeng was fifth in 2008, Alexander Rybak won in 2009 as mentioned previously, Margaret Berger was fourth in 2013, Carl Espen finished eighth in 2014. In 2015 in Vienna, Mørland & Debrah Scarlett finished eighth with A Monster Like Me, giving the country their third top ten finish in a row. Norway has a total of 11 top five and 22 top ten results in the contest.
Below you can watch Mørland & Debrah Scarlett performing their song at the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest.
