Duncan Laurence celebrates his win at the contest in Tel Aviv. Photo: ReuersThe Netherlands has won the 64th Eurovision Song Contest in Israel in a songfest that passed off without serious incident, despite calls by pro-Palestinian groups to boycott the event. Duncan Laurence singing Arcade beat 25 other contestants in the grand final in Tel Aviv to win the glass microphone trophy on Saturday. The 41-country singing competition featured a guest appearance by Madonna, who caused some controversy when two backing dancers briefly appeared on stage wearing costumes emblazoned with the Israeli and Palestinians flags. With its victory, the Netherlands wins the right to host next year's competition.

Source: Otago Daily Times May 18, 2019 23:26 UTC