Martin Österdahl, a senior TV executive with 2 decades of experience, was appointed Executive Supervisor for the Eurovision Song Contest and Junior Eurovision Song Contest. Almost 5 months into his new job, he reflects about the year ahead.
Martin was the Executive Producer for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013 and 2016 when the event was hosted by Swedish EBU Member SVT in Malmö and Stockholm and was a member of the Reference Group between 2012 and 2018. He relocated to Geneva – where the EBU headquarters are located – at the end of August and has just settled in.
When the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 was cancelled in March, he took to Instagram:
Earlier in September, Host Broadcasters NPO/NOS/AVROTROS presented 4 scenarios to make Eurovision 2021 happen. Martin said: “We are working on back-up scenarios to provide a healthy and safe environment for those who will travel, but also finding alternative ways for those who will not be able to travel. It is important to make contingency plans, as you can never foresee all scenarios. It is also normal to make back-up plans when you produce a live show like this one. This year particularly, it has to be more advanced than ever before.”
The Eurovision Song Contest 2021 will take place in Ahoy, Rotterdam in The Netherlands on 19, 21 and 23 May 2021. Eurofans in New Zealand can watch all three shows live on the official Eurovision YouTube channel, without commentary.
