Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK) held the Melodi Grand Prix 1989 at the Forum in Stavanger, hosted by Øystein Bache. Nine songs took part in the televised final, of which three songs were selected for a "super final". The winner was decided by a five-way jury; an expert jury made up of professional musicians, a press jury, and three public juries split by age group. Other participants included Kate Gulbrandsen (who represented Norway in 1987), three-time Norwegian representative and MGP regular Jahn Teigen and Tor Endresen, who would represent Norway in 1997.[1] The evening had its controversies, as fan favorite Jahn Teigen failed to reach the super final, which was met by booing from the audience.[2]
On the night of the final Synnøve performed 8th in the running order, following the United Kingdom and preceding Portugal. Although "Venners nærhet" had been tipped as a likely top 10 contender, at the close of voting it had picked up only 30 points, placing Norway a disappointing 17th of the 22 entries.[3] The Norwegian jury awarded its 12 points to the United Kingdom.[4]
