After 25 years of being the Eurovision commentator for Germany, and 10 years after he officially retired, Peter Urban decided to say goodbye to the German public, as the Contest in Liverpool is going to be the last one he will be commenting on live from the venue.

Peter Urban is a 74 year old journalist, radio and TV presenter, who first got involved with Eurovision as a commentator for Germany back in 1997. He was the German commentator every year except 2009, when due to illness he was replaced by Tim Frühling. Back in 2020, he was set to be the German commentator alongside their 2018 Eurovision entrant – Michael Schulte, before the Contest got cancelled.

Peter Urban retired back in 2013, but stayed loyal to the Contest and its viewers. 2023 is going to mark his 25th year as the German commentator, and this is when Peter decides to say goodbye to Eurovision. He stated the following:

Since 1997 I have experienced how much the Eurovision Song Contest has gained in importance, topicality, diversity and quality. I have tried to bring the change from the traditional Grand Prix to the world’s top event on the international music scene to the German viewers, sometimes more informatively and factual, sometimes more emotional and with a quieter or louder irony. I hope that even in the years with weaker German results I have helped with my comments to keep up the interest in this fascinating, unique event that is unparalleled in the world. I would like to thank you for the trust and loyalty over many years, it was an honor and a great pleasure!

Peter was never hiding his love for Eurovision:

What I love about the Eurovision Song Contest is the excitement, the competition, the drama, the surprises, diversity and tolerance, the mutual understanding of many nations, the shared experience of fun, emotions, frustration or joy, meeting fellow commentators and spending time together with our team.

NDR is going to honor Peter Urban with a 90 minute special titled “Lena, Stefan Raab and Co. – Peter Urban’s 25 legendary ESC years”, which will be broadcast on the 12th of May at 20:15 CET – one day before the Final of Eurovision 2023. NDR’s Programme Director, Mr. Frank Beckmann stated:

I am a big Peter Urban fan and I would like to thank him on behalf of the entire NDR for his outstanding commitment to the Eurovision Song Contest. He knows the competition like hardly anyone else. His comments on the entries are insightful, knowledgeable, dry, to the point – and iconic. He manages not to mince his words and at the same time to comment benevolently and respectfully. His accompaniment over a whole generation has shaped the Eurovision Song Contest. We will miss it!

Germany is the country that took part in Eurovision most times, and have selected a song for each and every Contest. The only time they missed the live show was in 1996, when Leon failed to qualify from the pre-selection radio show with the song “Planet Of Blue”. Lord of the Lost will be representing Germany at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest with “Blood And Glitter”, and you can listen to their song right here: