The Netherlands was represented in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "One More Night", written by Tjeerd van Zanen and Alan Michael, performed by Esther Hart. The Dutch participating broadcaster, (NOS), selected its entry through 2003. The Netherlands was returning to the contest after a one-year absence in following relegation as one of the bottom six entrants from . 32 entries appeared in the national competition, which consisted of four semi-finals and a final. Eight entries proceeded to the final on 1 March 2003 where "One More Night", performed by Esther Hart, was selected as Eurovision entry, following a combination of votes from jury-panel and public voting.
The Eurovision Song Contest took place on 24 May 2003. Performing during the show in position 14, the Netherlands placed thirteenth out of 26 participating countries, scoring 45 points.
Background
Prior to the 2003 contest, (NTS) until 1969, and (NOS) since 1970, had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest representing the Netherlands forty-three times since the inaugural contest in . They have won the contest four times: in with the song "" performed by Corry Brokken; in with the song "" performed by Teddy Scholten; in as one of four countries to tie for first place with "" performed by Lenny Kuhr; and in with "Ding-a-dong" performed by the group Teach-In. The Dutch least successful result is last place, achieved on four occasions, most recently in the . They have received nul points on two occasions; in and .
As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, NOS organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. The Dutch broadcasters had used various methods to select the Dutch entry in the past, such as the , a live televised national final to choose the performer, song or both to compete at Eurovision. However, internal selections have also been held on occasion. Between 1998 and 2001, NOS has organised in order to select both the artist and song for the contest. The method was continued for its 2003 entry, with the national final being organised in collaboration with (TROS).
Before Eurovision 2003 2003 was the national final developed by NOS, in collaboration with TROS, to select its entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2003. Thirty-two entries competed in the competition consisting of five shows that commenced with the first of four semi-finals on 1 February 2003 and concluded with a final on 1 March 2003. All shows in the competition were broadcast on Nederland 2.
Format The format of the national final consisted of five shows: four semi-finals and a final. The semi-finals each featured eight competing entries from which two advanced from each show to complete the eight-song lineup in the finals. The results for the semi-final shows were determined by a seven-member expert jury and votes from the public. The jury selected one qualifier, while a public televote determined an additional qualifier from the remaining entries. In the final, the winner was selected by the combination of votes from public televoting and a seven-member expert jury. Viewers were able to vote via telephone and SMS.
The jury panel that voted in all shows consisted of:
Cornald Maas – journalist Corry Brokken – singer and television presenter, who won Eurovision for the as well as represented the and Seth Kamphuijs – actor and presenter Coot van Doesburg – lyricist and television critic Johan Nijenhuis – director and producer Nance Coolen – singer and television presenter Stanley Burleson – actor, choreographer, director and singer
Competing entries The Dutch broadcaster together with Conamus directly invited over 1,000 composers to submit entries. 502 submissions were received by the broadcaster at the closing of the deadline, and the thirty-two selected competing entries were announced during a press conference on 16 January 2003. The selection of the entries for the competition occurred through the decision by a selection commission consisting of Willem van Beusekom, Jerney Kaagman, Ron Stoeltie, Daniël Dekker and Daan van Rijsbergen following a live audition of 60 shortlisted entries. Among the artists was Ingrid Simons (as part of Ebonique) who represented as part of Sergio and the Ladies.
Artist Song Songwriter(s) A-Teaze "Don't Cry" Aleksandar Masevski Aletia Bourne "Wanna Be the One" Martin Condon, Gareth Owen Arwin Kluft "Turiddu" Jeroen Englebert, Giancarlo Romita Astrit "Together Forever" Dick Berg, Hubert-Jan Horrocks, Hanna Riemens Barbara Lok "Als twee vrienden" Carmen Sars The Beanuts "Give It Up!" Ed van Otterdijk, Angeline van Otterdijk Bert Heerink and Manou "Blue Skies Are for Free" Ad van Olm, Eric Dikeb Blauwdruk "Hotel t'hart" Allan Eshuys, Barry Menger Boulevard "Souvenirs" Edwin Schimscheimer, Bruce R.F. Smith Brothers "Stand as One" Peter de Wijn De Helden "Omdat jij jij bent" Michiel Ooms Ebonique "Heatwave" Philip Vella, Gerard James Borg Esther Hart "One More Night" Tjeerd van Zanen, Alan Michael Georges Lotze "Footprints in the Sand" Peter de Wijn Gordon "I'll Be Your Voice" Mark Dakriet, Giorgio Tuinfort, Sandra St. Victor Jeffrey "Waar en wanneer" Edwin Schimscheimer, Spiros Chalos, Belinda Anholt Jerique Allan "All About Love" Jerry Krolis, Sven Jansen, Robbert van Ark Julia West "Talking Angels" Luca Genta, Ralph van Manen, Julia West, Phil Thompson Kathy Bloom "I'm On Fire" Dries Brouwer, Gert Polkerman, Edith Sintemaartensdijk Lewis and Simon "Let's Give It a Try" Jan Willem Verbeek, Paula Patricio Mango Nuts "Time to Party" Robbert van Ark, Sven Jansen Martin Frankena "Zoeken in de lucht" Han Kooreneef, Syb van der Ploeg, Nico Outhuijse Mary Amora "Somewhere by the River" Ernst van der Kerkhof Mazzel "Nananana" Rogier van der Ven, Ranco Mes Sandra Abbink "Beautiful Life" Marcel de Groot, Jaap Schilder Sasja Brouwers "Rauw" Jeroen Englebert, Pim Koopman Sofuja and Glenn Corneille "She Would" Glenn Corneille, Chantal Nijssen The Soullistics "We Can't Stop the Music" Johnny Sap, Joost Dirksen, Humphrey de Groot Steffen de Wolff "Jij laat me nooit meer los" Patrick Drabe, Steffen de Wolff Sonny's Inc. "Mamboleo" Huig Ouwehand, Roland Gaedtgens, Sonny Hoogwerf Suzanne "Over the Moon" Luca Genta, John O'Hare Zooom "Boogie" Peter de Wijn
Shows Semi-finals The four semi-finals took place on 1, 8, 15 and 22 February 2003 at the Hart van Holland in Nijkerk, hosted by Harm Edens. In each semi-final eight acts competed and two entries qualified to the final. A seven-member expert jury first selected one entry to advance, while an additional qualifier was selected by a public televote. Michelle (who represented the ) replaced Coot van Doesburg as a juror in the third semi-final, while Marlayne (who represented the ) replaced Johan Nijenhuis as a juror in the fourth semi-final.
+ Semi-final 1 – 1 February 2003 Artist Song Jury Televote Result Votes Rank Percentage Rank 1 Sunny's Inc. "Mamboleo" 10 7 7% 6 2 Aletia Bourne "Wanna Be the One" 49 2 4% 8 3 Martin Frankena "Zoeken in de lucht" 45 3 8% 4 4 Astrit "Together Forever" 38 4 9% 3 5 Jerique Allan "All About Love" 35 6 8% 4 6 Mary Amora "Somewhere by the River" 61 1 41% 1 Qualified 7 Blauwdruk "Hotel 't Hart" 5 8 6% 7 8 Zooom "Boogie" 37 5 17% 2 Qualified + Song Total 1 "Mamboleo" 2 1 1 1 1 2 2 10 2 "Wanna Be the One" 7 7 12 10 5 7 1 49 3 "Zoeken in de lucht" 3 12 7 7 12 1 3 45 4 "Together Forever" 5 5 5 5 3 10 5 38 5 "All About Love" 10 3 3 2 2 5 10 35 6 "Somewhere by the River" 12 10 2 12 10 3 12 61 7 "Hotel 't Hart" 2 3 5 8 "Boogie" 1 10 7 12 7 37 + Semi-final 2 – 8 February 2003 Artist Song Jury Televote Result Votes Rank Percentage Rank 1 The Beanuts "Give It Up!" 26 4 7% 6 2 Barbara Lok "Als twee vrienden" 18 6 10% 5 3 Esther Hart "One More Night" 73 1 30% 1 Qualified 4 Sofuja and Glenn Corneille "She Would" 63 2 15% 3 5 Steffen de Wolff "Jij laat me nooit meer los" 9 8 3% 8 6 Mango Nuts "Time to Party" 53 3 18% 2 Qualified 7 Suzanne "Over the Moon" 21 5 11% 4 8 Georges Lotze "Footprints in the Sand" 17 7 6% 7
+ Song Total 1 "Give It Up!" 3 3 7 2 3 5 3 50 2 "Als twee vrienden" 1 10 3 1 1 1 1 18 3 "One More Night" 12 5 12 12 12 10 10 73 4 "She Would" 10 7 10 5 7 12 12 63 5 "Jij laat me nooit meer los" 2 3 2 2 9 6 "Time to Party" 7 12 10 10 7 7 53 7 "Over the Moon" 5 1 5 2 3 5 21 8 "Footprints in the Sand" 2 2 1 7 5 17 + Semi-final 3 – 15 February 2003 Artist Song Jury Televote Result Votes Rank Percentage Rank 1 The Soullistics "We Can't Stop the Music" 21 5 9% 5 2 Julia West "Talking Angels" 49 3 6% 6 3 Mazzel "Nananana" 12 6 19% 2 4 Brothers "Stand as One" 10 7 3% 8 5 Sandra Abbink "Beautiful Life" 61 2 18% 3 6 Jeffrey "Waar en wanneer" 5 8 4% 7 7 Arwin Kluft "Turiddu" 47 4 24% 1 Qualified 8 Ebonique "Heatwave" 75 1 17% 4 Qualified + Song Total 1 "We Can't Stop the Music" 3 5 1 5 2 3 2 21 2 "Talking Angels" 7 3 7 10 5 10 7 49 3 "Nananana" 1 1 3 2 3 1 1 12 4 "Stand as One" 2 2 1 5 10 5 "Beautiful Life" 12 7 10 3 12 7 10 61 6 "Waar en wanneer" 2 1 2 5 7 "Turiddu" 5 12 5 7 10 5 3 47 8 "Heatwave" 10 10 12 12 7 12 12 75
+ Semi-final 4 – 22 February 2003 Artist Song Jury Televote Result Votes Rank Percentage Rank 1 Kathy Bloom "I'm On Fire" 46 3 4% 7 2 Boulevard "Souvenirs" 20 6 6% 4 3 Lewis and Simon "Let's Give It a Try" 58 2 5% 6 4 Sasja Brouwers "Rauw" 4 8 6% 4 5 Gordon "I'll Be Your Voice" 82 1 36% 1 Qualified 6 Bert Heerink and Manou "Blue Skies Are for Free" 11 7 23% 2 Qualified 7 De Helden "Omdat jij jij bent" 23 5 4% 7 8 A-Teaze "Don't Cry" 36 4 16% 3 + Song Total 1 "I'm On Fire" 7 10 7 10 2 3 7 46 2 "Souvenirs" 3 3 5 3 1 5 20 3 "Let's Give It a Try" 10 7 10 7 7 7 10 58 4 "Rauw" 1 3 4 5 "I'll Be Your Voice" 12 12 12 12 12 10 12 82 6 "Blue Skies Are for Free" 2 2 2 1 1 2 1 11 7 "Omdat jij jij bent" 3 1 1 10 5 3 23 8 "Don't Cry" 5 5 5 2 5 12 2 36
Final The final took place on 1 March 2003 at the Rotterdam Ahoy in Rotterdam, hosted by Loes Luca where the eight entries that qualified from the preceding four semi-finals competed. The winner, "One More Night" performed by Esther Hart, was selected by the 50/50 combination of a public televote and the votes of a seven-member expert jury. Edsilia Rombley, who represented the , replaced Nance Coolen as a juror in the final. The viewers and the juries each had a total of 280 points to award. Each juror distributed their points as follows: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10 and 12 points. The viewer vote was based on the percentage of votes each song achieved through the following voting methods: telephone and SMS voting. For example, if a song gained 10% of the vote, then that entry would be awarded 10% of 280 points rounded to the nearest integer: 28 points. 55,000 votes were cast by the public during the final. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, the show featured performances by Loes Luca as Nénette together with Les Zézettes and the Metropole Orchestra.
On the day after the contest, a technical problem came to light whereby the 30,000 SMS votes could not be counted on time. A revision of the results revealed that Bert Heerink and Manou would have placed fifth, with Mango Nuts and Mary Amora correspondingly dropping a place.
+ Final – 1 March 2003 Artist Song Jury Televote Total Place 1 Mango Nuts "Time to Party" 22 9 31 5 2 Mary Amora "Somewhere by the River" 20 8 28 6 3 Bert Heerink and Manou "Blue Skies Are for Free" 4 21 25 7 4 Gordon "I'll Be Your Voice" 68 56 124 2 5 Esther Hart "One More Night" 78 92 170 1 6 Ebonique "Heatwave" 40 27 67 4 7 Arwin Kluft "Turiddu" 38 64 102 3 8 Zooom "Boogie" 10 3 13 8 + Song Total 1 "Time to Party" 2 2 1 5 7 2 3 22 2 "Somewhere by the River" 3 3 3 3 3 5 20 3 "Blue Skies Are for Free" 1 2 1 4 4 "I'll Be Your Voice" 7 7 12 10 10 10 12 68 5 "One More Night" 12 10 10 12 12 12 10 78 6 "Heatwave" 5 5 7 7 2 7 7 40 7 "Turiddu" 10 12 3 1 5 5 2 38 8 "Boogie" 1 5 2 1 1 10
Ratings + Viewing figures by showShowDateViewers Final 1 March 2003 1,300,000