Who is The Netherlands 2019 Eurovision entrant Duncan Laurence?

Can Duncan Laurence bring the Netherlands their fifth Eurovision win? (Picture: Paul Bellaart/Eurovision.tv)

Eurovision betting this year has been dominated by The Netherlands as they hoped to land their first song contest win since 1975.

That dream cam true last night when they won Eurovision 2019 thanks to huge support from the public vote, finishing with a total of 492 points.

And the man who managed to steer them to that coveted victory at the annual songfest in Tel Aviv is Duncan Laurence, who had already won a lot of love for his anthemic ballad Arcade.

So just who is Duncan, what is his song – and could he secure us a Dutch-hosted Eurovision in 2020?

Here’s what you need to know…

Who is The Netherlands Eurovision representative Duncan Laurence?

Duncan – whose real name is Duncan de Moor, Laurence being his stage name – was born on 11 April 1994, making him 25 years old.

He is a graduate of the Rock Academy in Tilberg and first found fame in his native country in The Voice Of Holland – reaching the semi-finals in the 2014 series.

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And that’s not the only connection that series has with the song contest – as Duncan’s mentor was Ilse de Lange, one half of the Common Linnets, who finished second at the 2014 contest in Copenhagen – while eventual winners O’G3NE represented the Netherlands at Eurovision 2017.

What is Arcade about?

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Duncan has explained that the song is ‘inspired by the story of someone I loved deeply, who died at a young age’ – but added that it took on a wider scope as it went on.

Duncan has said that Arcade is a song about hope (Picture: Paul Bellaart/Eurovision.tv)

‘It changed from a very personal story to a story that everyone can connect to. Arcade is a song about longing…longing for something that seems out of reach.

‘My career thus far has mainly been behind the scenes writing for other artists and defining my own sound. It feels good to now step into the light and share my story. I want to reach out to people with my music, possibly even help them.

‘Arcade is a word of advice to myself and who knows – maybe it helps someone, somewhere. I truly hope so.’

How many times have Netherlands won Eurovision?

Netherlands are one of the contest’s longest serving competitors, having taken part in the very first Eurovision back in 1956.

They’ve actually won it four times – in 1957, 1959, 1969 (as one of four tied winners alongside UK, France and Spain) and again in 1975 with Teach-In’s Ding A Dong.

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Their fortunes have been more mixed of late, with the country failing to qualify from the semi-finals between 2005 and 2012.

They finally broke their duck in 2013 with Anouk’s Birds, finishing ninth that year – and took the runner-up spot in 2014 with The Common Linnets, losing out to Austria’s Conchita Wurst in the final.

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Since then they’ve only missed out on a spot in the final once, in 2015.

The 2018 contest saw The Common Linnets’ Waylon return, finishing 18th in the final in Lisbon.

Duncan Laurence will perform Arcade in the second Eurovision semi-final in his bid to win a place in the grand final.

The second semi-final airs on BBC Four on Thursday night at 8pm, with UK viewers able to vote in this semi-final. The grand final is on BBC One on Saturday night from 8pm.