Still the current favourite to win the contest this year according to bookies, The Netherlands are already prepating for success. As first rehursals creep closer, the broadcaster has announced that the Grand Final will be screened in over 20 cinemas across the country. Note that Duncan Laurence still must qualify for the Grand Final from the second-semi final on May 16.
Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS has announced the 21 cinemas that will be screening the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest this year. This, we can assume, is in anticipation of a victory for Duncan Laurence’s “Arcade”. The song topped the odds following its reveal and has remained there ever since. According to Eurovision World, the song has a 27% chance of winning based on betting trends.
Here is the list of the cinemas that will be screening the Grand Final live on Saturday 18 May:
| Almere (Kinepolis) | Hoofddorp (Kinepolis) |
| Amsterdam (Pathé De Munt) | Kerkrade (VUE) |
| Breda (Kinepolis en Pathé) | Maastricht (Pathé) |
| Den Bosch (Kinepolis en VUE) | Nijmegen (Pathé) |
| Den Haag (Pathé Buitenhof) | Utrecht (Kinepolis Jaarsbeurs en Pathé Leidsche Rijn) |
| Eindhoven (Pathé en VUE) | Rotterdam (Pathé) |
| Enschede (Kinepolis) | Tilburg (Pathé) |
| Groningen (Kinepolis en Pathé) | Zaandam (Pathé) |
Tickets for the screenings are only available to AVROTROS members and can be purchased here.
Who is Duncan Laurence?
24-year-old singer-songwriter Duncan Laurence graduated from the Fontys Rock Academy in Tilburg last year. He studied there as a singer, songwriter and producer and, during his studies, he also gained experience in London and Stockholm.
Duncan participated in The Voice of Holland back in 2014. He was in Ilse DeLange’s team and was eliminated just before the final. Ilse was also the one who told AVROTROS about the song they have chosen to represent the country in 2019. She Common Linnets star will join Duncan in Tel Aviv, having acted as a mentor throughout his career thus far.
In recent years The Netherlands have sent well-known artists to Eurovision. Duncan Laurence hasn’t release any music yet, making Eurovision his big break-through.
The past few years, the Netherlands have sent A-listed artists, those with big names. I’m not a big name, but that’s a good thing. There are many young musical talents here. My participation proves that you could get the chance to perform on such a big stage to show what you’re worth. I’m very proud that I’m going to represent The Netherlands and will give it my all.
Duncan Laurence
The Netherlands at the Eurovision Song Contest
The Netherlands debuted at Eurovision at the first edition of the contest in 1956 in Lugano. Since its debut, it has only missed four contests: 1985, 1991, 1995 and 2002). The Dutch have won the competition four times: 1957, 1959, 1969 and 1975. They also hosted the 1980 contest after 1979 champions Israel declined to host for the second year in a row.
Following the introduction of the semi-final system in 2004, the Netherlands began a rough patch in their participation history. They failed to qualify for every grand final between 2005 and 2012, placing last for the first time ever in 2011.
However, in 2013, a fresh approach brought the Dutch delegation a much-needed boost in momentum. They retired their long running national selection, Nationaal Songfestival, and instead internally-selected alt-folk chanteuse Anouk. Her entry, “Birds”, placed 9th and has remained a fan favourite since.
Since 2013, the Dutch have qualified for 4/5 contests. With this success in mind, they took a risk by selecting an unknown name, which has paid off so far. Could this risk bring them their first Eurovision win since 1975? Time will tell.
Do you think Arcade will end up claiming a long-awaited fifth victory for The Netherlands? Will you be attending one of these screenings? Let us know! Be sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter, @escxtra on Instagram and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates! We’ll also be posting plenty of content on our YouTube in the run up to Tel Aviv!
