Contest year
- Host City
- Dublin, Ireland
- Venue
- Simmonscourt Pavillion, Royal Dublin Society
- Final Date
- January 1, 1981
- Entries
- 20
- Cyprus debuted as the 20th participating country, equalling the record set in 1978, while Israel and Yugoslavia returned after absences and Morocco and Italy declined to take part.
- The event was staged under exceptionally heavy security, with armed guards, IRA-related threats to the UK delegation, and a hotel evacuation following a bomb scare.
- The United Kingdom won with Bucks Fizz, whose skirt-ripping choreography became an iconic moment, and Norway finished last again, receiving its third “nul points”.
- via Wikipedia
Presenters
Doireann Ní Bhríain
Host Country
Final Results
| Country | Artist · Song | Pos | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
 United Kingdom | Bucks Fizz Making Your Mind Up | 1 | 136 |
 Germany | Lena Valaitis Johnny Blue | 2 | 132 |
 France | Jean Gabilou Humanahum | 3 | 125 |
 Switzerland | Peter, Sue & Marc Io senza te | 4 | 121 |
 Ireland | Sheeba Horoscopes | 5 | 105 |
 Cyprus | Island Monika | 6 | 69 |
 Israel | Habibi Halaylah | 7 | 56 |
 Greece | Yiannis Dimitras Feggari kalokerino | 8 | 55 |
 Netherlands | Linda Williams Het is een wonder | 9 | 51 |
 Sweden | Björn Skifs Fångad i en dröm | 10 | 50 |
 Luxembourg | Jean-Claude Pascal C'est peut-être pas l'Amérique | 11 | 41 |
 Denmark | Debbie Cameron & Tommy Seebach Krøller eller ej | 11 | 41 |
 Belgium | Emly Starr Samson | 13 | 40 |
 Spain | Bacchelli Y sólo tú | 14 | 38 |
 Yugoslavia | Seid-Memić Vajta Lejla | 15 | 35 |
 Finland | Riki Sorsa Reggae O.K. | 16 | 27 |
 Austria | Marty Brem Wenn du da bist | 17 | 20 |
 Turkey | Modern Folk Trio & Ayşegül Dönme Dolap | 18 | 9 |
 Portugal | Carlos Paião Play-back | 18 | 9 |
 Norway | Finn Kalvik Aldri i livet | 20 | 0 |