The Kiddy Contest was a televised singing competition for children from 8 to 14 years, broadcast and organized annually by the Austrian broadcaster ORF from 1995 to 2011. It was also broadcast in Germany on ZDF, RTL and Nickelodeon. From 2012 until its final edition in 2019, the show only aired on the Austrian commercial broadcaster Puls 4. Running for 25 editions, the format was invented by the music producers Erwin Kiennast and Norman Weichselbaum.
From 1995 to 2019, ten to thirteen children from Germany, Austria and Switzerland were chosen to perform a current pop hit, for which Norman Weichselbaum had written a new German text. The audience determined the winner(s) via voting. From season 1 to 15, there were also duets.
Broadcast The Kiddy Contest 1996 took place on a Saturday morning in November 1996. During the 1995 and 1996 editions, the semifinals took place over the course of several weeks during the ORF / Confetti TiVi program Saturday Game moderated by Edith Rolles.
In 1997 there were separate Kiddy Contest semi-finals, which was also shown for five weeks on Saturdays in Confetti Tivi. It was moderated by Elmer Rossnegger. From 1998, there was no semifinals more on television, the pre-selection was made by a panel of experts. In 2015, the semi-finals were broadcast on the two Saturdays before the final. On both days, ten children each came and sang against each other in a duet. Only five of them each reached the final.
The Kiddy Contest was not only broadcast on ORF 1, but has also aired several times on German television, where it was freely available throughout Europe on the satellite Astra 1. In the years 2000 to 2002 the channel ZDF acted as a co-organizer of the program, during which the participants came from Germany and the program was shown on ZDF. In the years 2001 and 2002 it was transferred to KiKA. After 2002, ZDF decided not to participate anymore and the Kiddy Contest 2003 became a purely Austrian production.
Already in 2004, ORF again found a new partner. This time it was the German private channel Super RTL. The transmission scheme wasn't changed, but Super RTL was also forced to renounce the otherwise usual advertising interruptions during the show. The cooperation with Super RTL lasted until 2006.
The Kiddy Contest 2007 was again a single production of ORF. The previous specials in the lunch program were replaced by the series "Kiddy Contest – Das Camp", which was broadcast for several days in the afternoon program of ORF 1. The series documented the participation of the participants of the Kiddy Contest 2007 in Schloss Hof in Lower Austria.
In 2008 the Kiddy Contest was shown again on ORF 1 and Super RTL. The final took place on the 1 November 2008 at 20:15. The moderator of the show was again Mirjam Weichselbraun.
The Kiddy Contest 2009 was recorded in the Austria Center Vienna on 31 October 2009, and a week later on 7 November on ORF 1 at 4.45 pm. The show aired for the German fan base on the children's transmitter Nickelodeon in the German-speaking area a day later. The show was moderated by Benny Hörtnagl, star guests were Daniel Schuhmacher and Mandy Capristo (winner of season 7 / Monrose).
In 2010 the Kiddy Contest was broadcast live on ORF 1 with the new moderator Kati Bellowitsch. Nickelodeon showed a 60-minute summary a week later.
From 2012 to 2019, the private broadcaster Puls 4 secured the rights for the broadcast. The moderator of the show was Silvia Schneider from 2015 to 2018. From 2015 onwards, the program has also been broadcast via live stream on the Internet and in the Puls 4 app. Alamande Belfor has been responsible for the choreography since 2017. In 2019, Arabella Kiesbauer was the host of the show again.
In 2020 the Kiddy Contest was canceled due to the Corona pandemic. In view of the still uncertain COVID-19 pandemic situation in 2021, the producers announced on December 21, 2020 that the format would be discontinued and that the Kiddy Contest 2019, as the 25th anniversary show, was the last.
Series overview SeasonPremiere dateWinner(s)Runner-up(s)2nd Runner-up(s)Other contestantsNumber of contestants1 Christina Kramer Heike Holler Katrin Senn & Lisa Huber Christoph Neubauer, Thomas Breuer, Tanja Danzer, Hendrik Steiner, Nina Tatzber & Peter Fischer, Irene Hadjieva & Werner Göber, Simone Kopmajer 132 Marina Schweinberger Niki Kracher Jennifer Erlbacher Bettina Ebner & Miky Biton, Samuel Royer & Sara Kepplinger, Elisabeth Frankhauser, Hanna Kopenetz, Florian Gepp, Sonja Cresnik, Hannes Arnold & Nesrin Ünal 133 Manuela Mayer Sabrina Rasztovits Ramona Curin Lisa Katrin Hofer & Michael Senft, Stefanie Glawogger, Paul Pfleger, Manuel Stocker & Sabrina Vandrovec, Bianca Turker, Tanja Steinlechner, Daniela Koral 124 Alexandra Pötzelsberger Nadja Vogel Katrin Wurzer & Thomas Havlik Anna Sophie Kostal & Lisa Tatzber, Lisa-Marie Falzberger, Thomas Zimmermann, Viktoria Prieling, Julia Platzer, Contanze Slamanig & Richard Peter, Stephanie Markovits 135 Bernhard Arko & Daniel Pirker Sabine & Susanne Sedlmayer Paloma Seger / Tanja Petrasek Marie Tatiana Lamreiner-Ngoda & Stefan Mosonyi, Nadine Nathalie Eisl, Tanja Brankovic, Jean Novljan, Maria Aschenwald, Vera Böhnisch 136 Daniela Vogel & Marco Klemmer Sandra Stolp Sophia Pund Christoph Erlach, Hanna Kastner, Eva Böhnisch, Wendy Dindic, Wilke Brinkmann, Michéle Luttenberger, Orry Bandara Athurugiri 117 Mandy Capristo Anna Lena Breunig Simone Renner Christian Wimmer & Laura Elssel, Viktoria Schöffl, Jakob Semotan, Jimonique Schüler, Salka Weber, Frank Kühnlein, Simon Panstingl & Tina Pechmann 128 Laura KästelLisa Grubner & Manuel Hartweger / Verena Doublier Sebastian Killinger, Christina Pöckl, Sebastian Killinger, Esther Dierkes & Julian Weber, Manuel Millonig, Ira-Sofie Graf, Annabel Hernandez, Anna-Verena Ruth 129 Nicki FreibergerEva Huss / Katharina Bergant Lissi Rieß & Sammy Pohn, Janine Blumauer, Julia Andrä, Julian Heidrich, Nathanaele Koll, Nina Kremsmair, Stephanie Laggner 1110 Lisa Aberer Manuel Gutleb & Natália Kelly Elin Skrzipczyk Saskia Zikeli, Sandy Ontl, Alexander Gutmaier, Pino Severino-Geysen, Christina Klein, Kristina Wurm, Kimberly Rydel 1111 Kim Steiner Andrea Wilhelmer & Joachim Goller Vera Luttenberger Todor Manojlovic, Carolina Grigorov, Lisa König, Sebastian Berger, Viktoria Kulmer, Nicole Dyane Corvinus, Selina Shirin Müller 1112 Tanja Kreutmayer Fariba Buchheim Lisa WissertEva Vanessa Brunmayr, Melissa Perilli, Nicolas Geisler, Paul Kunz, Ron Mizrahi & Vanessa Veraldi, Stephanie Zwanzer, Teresa Strobl 1113 Caroline Hat Meggie Jacobs Julia Hübner Daniel Eisele & Magdalena Kaiblinger, Jo Marie Dominiak, Kiara Hollatko, Leonie Adam, Marco Schrotter, Sebastian Schmidt, Zoë Straub 1114 Mira Sophia Ulz Thilo Berndt Chiara Aufegger Aleksandar Abazoski, Carmeline Turki, Iris Rachel Voskov, Leonie Holz, Magda Ruck, Sophia Hopfer & Stefan Schößwendter, Vanessa Scheffenacker 1115 Lara Krause & Roman Lochmann Dominik Gassner Sarah HagerAnna Rott, Diana-Maria Krieger, Jasmin Walchshofer, Klara Jovanovic, Mely Pagger, Philip Oezelt, Vivien Barman 1116 Dominik Schrittesser Asja Ahatovic Laura Kamhuber Alicja Wojcik, Celina Baudisch, Jessika Brei, Laurin Greiter, Marcello Delpino, Paulina Vereti, Tamara Badegruber 1017 Celina Müllner Mathias Rodler Katrin Kogler Anna Prütz, Andrea Lienbacher, Else Mack, India Callender, Karyna Verba, Michael Samek, Sarah Bednarz 1018 Michelle Idlhammer Julia Rosenmayr Laura Heily Alex Baumgartner, Elena Spörl, Elisabeth Preiss, Ewa-Maria Zorn, Joli Francisco, Lukas Rumpold, Saskia Bisanz 1019 Lisa Mikolaschek Vanessa Dollinger Olivia Goga Amelie Gabryszak, Carina Seebacher, Jakob Silye, Marcel Bodner, Ronja Harsch, Siri Kotschnig, Viola Dillinger 1020 Lena Tirler Nina Hafner Kilian Scheyer Estelle Lath, Hanna Harkamp, Jason Schwickerath, Jessy Schiessl, Juliane Hotter, Marie Lang, Sarah Kaiser 1021 Alinah Hofstätter Paul Aschenwald Markus Manzl Anna Hölzl, Emelie Missiuk, Laura Reder, Selina Gerstmayer, Simon Stabauer, Sophia Joham, Uljana Schmal 1022 Christian Steger Tamia Edwards Madita Killinger Anupam Sharma, Daria Tayel, Driola Haspel, Flora Turhani, Karina Michel, Saphira Essmann, Theresa Tschiggerl 1023 Ina Hofer Livia Ernst Lena Balogh Helena Manoussakis, Isabella Schmid, Lisa-Marie König, Max Lehner, Michael Heidemann, Niklas Lichtenegger, Susan Oseloff 1024 Josef Fankhauser Martina Szymanek Selina Pichler Hannah Hruska, Madeleine Tosun, Mara Walter, Mary Schönbauer, Nils Vandeven, Raschel Fischmann, Viviana Renzl 1025 Katharina Felzmann Helena Strasser Luca Sommerauer Alisa Berkovitch, Boti Stelczer, Daniel Slavinski, Ina Bahr, Lara Voicu, Teodora Vio, Vanessa Deimbacher 10
Contestants
Season 1, 1995 Name Start number Place0610Thomas Breuer099Tanja Danzer018Hendrik Steiner027Nina Tatzber 076Peter FischerIrene Hadjieva10 5Werner GöberSimone Kopmajer 054Katrin Senn 043Lisa HuberHeike Holler032Christina Kramer081
Season 2, 1996 Name Start number PlaceBettina Ebner 0410Miky BitonSamuel Royer 019Sara KepplingerElisabeth Frankhauser 038Hanna Kopenetz077Florian Gepp 096Sonja Cresnik065Hannes Arnold 104Nesrin Ünal083Niki Kracher022Marina Schweinberger051
Season 3, 1997 NameStart numberPlaceLisa Katrin Hofer 0210Michael SenftStefanie Glawogger069Paul Pfleger058Manuel Stocker087Sabrina VandrovecBianca Turker046Tanja Steinlechner015Daniela Koral074Ramona Curin093Sabrina Rasztovits022Manuela Mayer101
Season 4, 1998 NameStart numberPlaceAnna Sophie Kostal 0110Lisa TatzberLisa-Marie Falzberger099Thomas Zimmermann038Viktoria Prieling067Julia Platzer026Constanze Slamanig 105Richard PeterStephanie Markovits084Katrin Wurzer 053Thomas HavlikNadja Vogel072Alexandra Pötzelsberger041
Season 5, 1999 NameStart numberPlaceMarie Tatiana Lamreiner-Ngoda 0710Stefan MosonyiNadine Nathalie Eisl069Tanja Brankovic048Jean Novljan027Maria Aschenwald016Vera Böhnisch035Tanja Petrasek083-4Paloma Seger09Sabine Sedlmayer 052Susanne SedlmayerBernhard Arko 101Daniel Pirker
Season 6, 2000 NameStart numberPlaceChristoph Erlach0810Hanna Kastner049Eva Böhnisch068Wendy Dindic077Wilke Brinkmann036Michéle Luttenberger025Orry Bandara Athurugiri014Sophia Pund093Sandra Stolp052Daniela Vogel101Marco Klemmer
Season 7, 2001 NameStart numberPlaceChristian Wimmer 0410Laura ElsselViktoria Schöffl089Jakob Semotan038Jimonique Schüler107Salka Weber026Frank Kühnlein075Simon Panstingl 094Tina PechmannSimone Renner063Anna Lena Breunig052Mandy Capristo011
Season 8, 2002 NameStart numberPlaceSebastian Killinger0110Christina Pöckl029Esther Dierkes048Julian WeberManuel Millonig077Ira-Sofie Graf056Annabel Hernandez065Anna-Verena Ruth034Verena Doublier082-3Lisa Grubner 09Manuel HartwegerLaura Kästel101
Season 9, 2003 NameStart numberPlaceJulia Andrä024Nathanaele Koll03Nina Kremsmair04Lissi Rieß05Sammy PohnJulian Heidrich07Stephanie Laggner08Janine Blumauer09Eva Huss012-3Katharina Bergnant10Nicki Freiberger061
Season 10, 2004 NameStart numberPlaceSaskia Zikeli0210Sandy Ontl059Alexander Gutmaier088Pino Severino-Geysen037Christina Klein046Kristina Wurm095Kimberly Rydel014Elin Skrzipczyk063Manuel Gutleb072Natália KellyLisa Aberer101
Season 11, 2005 NameStart numberPlaceTodor Manojlovic0810Carolina Grigorov099Lisa König018Sebastian Berger037Viktoria Kulmer046Nicole Dyane Corvinus 025Selina Shirin Müller054Vera Luttenberger073Andrea Wilhelmer062Joachim Goller Kim Steiner101
Season 12, 2006 NameStart numberPlaceEva Vanessa Brunmayr 014Teresa Strobl02Nicolas Geisler03Ron Mizrahi 05Vanessa VeraldiMelissa Perilli07Paul Kunz08Stephanie Zwanzer09Lisa Wissert063102Tanja Kreutmayer041
Season 13, 2007 NameStart numberPlaceJo Marie Dominiak 014Marco Schrotter02Kiara Hollatko04Zoë Straub05Daniel Eisele 07Magdalena KaiblingerSebastian Schmidt 08Leonie Adam10Julia Hübner093Meggie Jacobs062Caroline Hat031
Season 14, 2008