France in the Eurovision Song Contest 1981

Eurovision Song Contest 1981
Country  France
National selection
Selection process Concours de la Chanson Française pour l'Eurovision 1981
Selection date(s) 8 March 1981
Selected entrant Jean Gabilou
Selected song "Humanahum"
Finals performance
Final result 3rd, 125 points
France in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄1980 • 1981 • 1983►

France was present at the Eurovision Song Contest 1981, held in Dublin, Ireland.

The French national final to select their entry, Concours de la Chanson Française pour l'Eurovision 1981, was held on 8 March at the TF1 Studios in Paris, and was hosted by television hostess Fabienne Égal.

Six songs made it to the national final after two semi-final heats. The winner was decided by a random sampling of 1,086 television viewers who were contacted by TF1 and asked which song was their favorite.

The winning entry was "Humanahum," performed by Jean Gabilou and composed by Jean-Paul Cara with lyrics by Joe Gracy. Cara and Gracy also penned the 1977 Contest winner "L'oiseau et l'enfant". Gabilou, a Tahitian singer, was the first ever to represent France from one of its overseas territories.

National final

The order of the songs presented on the night of the Contest[1] vary from other published material.[2]

DrawArtistSongInformal translationVotesPlace
1AmourUn homme s'était levéA man stood up1166th
2Evelyne GellerLes yeux fermésClosed eyes1653rd
3Jean GabilouHumanahumHumanahum2731st
4Frida BoccaraVoilà comment je t'aimeThat is how I love you1594th
5Jeff BarnelDe visage en visageFace to face1315th
6Jorge RafaelC'est un oiseau de papierIt's a paper bird2422nd

At Eurovision

Jean Gabilou performed ninth on the night of the contest, following Finland and preceding Spain. At the close of the voting the song had received 125 points, placing 3rd in a field of 20 competing countries. Despite finishing in the top three, TF1's head of entertainment programming, Pierre Bouteiller, famously opted out of the 1982 Contest, referring to Eurovision as "a monument to inanity [sometimes translated as "drivel"]."[3] France would return to the fold in 1983.

Points Awarded to France
12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points
5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 point
0 points

References

  1. ↑ Concours de la Chanson Française pour l'Eurovision 1981, pres. Fabienne Égal, 8 March 1981, TF1.
  2. ↑ French National Final 1981
  3. ↑ 1982 Eurovision source in French


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