The Netherlands was represented by

Bill van Dijk Willem Edsger "Bill" van Dijk (born 22 December 1947) is a Dutch singer and musical performer. He is best known for his rendition of the ''Wilhelmus'' (the national anthem of the Netherlands), which he performed on countless occasions in footba ...

, with the song "Jij en ik", at the

1982 Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest 1982 was the 27th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Harrogate, United Kingdom, following the country's victory at the with the song "Making Your Mind Up" by Bucks Fizz. Organised by the ...

, which took place in

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor at ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

on 24 April. The song and performer were chosen independently of each other at the Dutch national final on 24 February. Although "Jij en ik" performed poorly at Eurovision and was forgotten immediately after, "Fantasie eiland", which had finished second in the Dutch national final, was picked up by

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

record producer

Tim Friese-Greene Timothy Alan Friese-Greene is an English musician and producer. He worked with the band Talk Talk from 1983 to their breakup in 1991. He currently releases solo albums under the name "Heligoland". He is the grandson of filmmaker Claude Friese-Gre ...

, recorded in English (as "Fantasy Island") by the group

Tight Fit Tight Fit is an English pop group which had several hits in the early 1980s, including a UK No.1 for three weeks with their cover version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" in 1982. History In 1981, record producer Ken Gold came up with the idea ...

, and became a top 5 hit in the UK and also a chart success in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Before Eurovision

Nationaal Songfestival 1982

The national final was held at the Circustheater in

Scheveningen Scheveningen is one of the eight districts of The Hague, Netherlands, as well as a subdistrict (''wijk'') of that city. Scheveningen is a modern seaside resort with a long, sandy beach, an esplanade, a pier, and a lighthouse. The beach is po ...

, hosted by the 1969 Eurovision winner

Lenny Kuhr Helena Hubertina Johanna "Lenny" Kuhr (born 22 February 1950) is a Dutch singer-songwriter. Career In 1967, she started a singing career in the Netherlands, performing songs in the French chanson tradition. In 1969, she represented the Neth ...

. It consisted of three acts and three songs, with each act performing each song, giving nine performances in total. Firstly, a seven-member jury, which included former Eurovision entrants

Ben Cramer Ben Cramer (born Bernardus Kramer; 17 February 1947) is a Dutch singer who represented the Netherlands in the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest. Music career Early years Cramer was born in Amsterdam. He made his television debut in 1966 with his ...

and

Getty Kaspers Gertrude "Getty" Kaspers (born 5 March 1948) is an Austrian-born Dutch singer. She was the lead vocalist of the Dutch band Teach-In, with which she won the Eurovision Song Contest 1975 with the song "Ding-a-dong". Career Early career Kasper ...

(lead singer of

Teach-In A teach-in is similar to a general educational forum on any complicated issue, usually an issue involving current political affairs. The main difference between a teach-in and a seminar is the refusal to limit the discussion to a specific time fr ...

), each chose their favourite song; then the choice of performer was made by 12 regional juries who each had 10 points to divide between the artists.

At Eurovision

On the night of the final van Dijk performed 16th in the running order, following

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

and preceding Ireland. The performance is mainly remembered for two incongruities: a famously self-conscious and uncomfortable wink at the camera by the female drummer, and the diminutive van Dijk's routine with an extremely tall female backing singer towering over him. At the close of voting "Jij en ik" had received just 8 points, placing the Netherlands 16th of the 18 entries, ahead only of

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

and

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. The Dutch jury awarded its 12 points to

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

.ESC History - Netherlands 1982
/ref> The Dutch conductor at the contest was

Rogier van Otterloo Willem Rogier van Otterloo (11 December 1941 – 29 January 1988) was a Dutch composer and conductor. Biography Van Otterloo was the eldest son of the conductor Willem van Otterloo, in Bilthoven, Netherlands. He composed several soundtracks for ...

Voting

References

External links

Dutch Preselection 1982
{{Eurovision Song Contest 1982

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

Countries in the Eurovision Song Contest 1982

Eurovision The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...