De Leeuw gained national fame in the late eighties and early nineties with television shows for the public broadcasting company VARA. Though satire was only a part of these shows and much of its humour was essentially harmless he came into publicity with satire about Dutch show business personalities who were often ridiculed.
Besides, many obscure musical acts were featured in his shows, many of which managed to gain national fame after they had been in De Leeuw's programme (e.g. Twarres and AIDS suffering singer Rene Klijn). VARA has since continued his shows apart from a few interruptions, often with considerable success.
In the early nineties, Paul de Leeuw also had some shows celebrating the new year. In the 1993-1994 show he ridiculed the new commercial television channel RTL 5 by announcing another new channel, "RTL 6" (RTL six, beter dan niks (at least better than nothing)). This led to a trial by the RTL company, who demanded that De Leeuw withdraw his joke.
He and his partner, Stephan Nuger, have adopted two children: son Kas (adopted in October 2001) and son Tobey (adopted in December 2002).
Paul de Leeuw has had many hit singles in The Netherlands. He is most famous for: Vlieg met me mee (#2), Ik wil niet dat je liegt / Waarheen, waarvoor (#1), and 'k Heb je lief (#3). Since the beginning of his television and singing career he released albums and singles, always becoming a big success.
In 2006, he recorded the song "Mijn Houten Hart" (My Wooden Heart) with Raffaela, which was later released as a single and peaked at #18 in the Dutch Singles Top 100, becoming one of his smallest hits.
Eurovision Song Contest 2006 incident
De Leeuw is, despite being famous for a long time in the Netherlands, best-known internationally for presenting the results of the Dutch televote in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. De Leeuw was supposed to present the televote by simply thanking the presenters, performers and fans, before giving the result but instead the openly gay De Leeuw gave his mobile number to the male presenter Sakis Rouvas live on-air, and made other comments which somewhat lengthened the Dutch results.
De Leeuw also made a reference to gay culture when he remarked that Rouvas and his female co-presenter Maria Menounos reminded him of Will & Grace. As the results were live and required for the contest to continue, De Leeuw could not be cut off until he finished giving the voting results.
De Leeuw's actions resulted in negative comments from the commentators, with the BBC's Terry Wogan calling the act "pathetic" and asking "Who selected this eejit?" during the United Kingdom coverage of the contest. Other commentators, like the Portuguese Eladio Climaco, didn't translate properly the gay remarks and said he was saying that they really look like Greeks. Parts of the dialogue were also shown on the German comedy show TV total.
The dialogue between De Leeuw and Rouvas
Rouvas: Hello Netherlands! Paul...
De Leeuw: Hello Greece, kalisperma everybody! [note that sperma means sperm in many languages, at least both in Dutch and Greek]
Rouvas: Kalispera Paul. [kalispera means 'Good evening', which was supposed to be said]
De Leeuw: You look like Will... [stops, likely due to the cheering of the crowd behind him] You look like Will & Grace, you two. So here are the votes, the Dutch votes. Let's come. [In an extremely high tempo] One, Ukreene (sic), two, Russia, Germany, three, Ireland, four, Greece, five, Lithuania, six, Finland, seven points! [resumes normal tempo]] Now the eight points. Are you ready Chaci, tzatziki, cichaci?
Rouvas: Yes, haha.
De Leeuw: Are you ready? Eight points... I like your blouse... The eight points are for Bosnia-Hoshegovina (sic). Yeah.
Rouvas: Bosnie-Herzegovine, huit points.
De Leeuw: Yes, I say. And the ten points, Zhacki, Zhicka, Chucka, are from (sic) Armenia!
Rouvas: Armenie, dix points.
De Leeuw: Ok, and Chacki, do you have my mobile number now or after twelve points?
Rouvas: Give it to me now. I bet it's 69 69 69. [In Greece, mobile numbers always begin with 69, but the rest of the 69's are a sexual innuendo, since Rouvas did not seem to like Paul's lines.]
De Leeuw: Ok, 00... [interrupted by Rouvas' remark] no no no no no... I'm not the French guy! [Probably refers that Rouvas was once interviewed for a French magazine, in which the interviewer assumed that Rouvas was gay and directed his questions accordingly.] Its 00 31 6 24 74 44 32 10 dial 1. Twelve points goes to, I'm very proud to say, Turkey! Twelve points.
Rouvas: Turquie, douze points.
Wie Oh Wie
Paul de Leeuw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ook deze nacht heeft zijn tijd gehad
Uit met de pret, ze willen naar bed
En wij ook, laat ons gaan
We kunnen nu beslissen
Naar huis toe gaan of doorzakken in de stad
Hee barman, geef toe, al ben je zo moe
Op 1 been kan dus echt niemand staan
Ik wil nog wat drinken
Wie oh wie
Geeft er nog een laatste rondje
Voor mij zo'n schuimend blondje
Doe me 'n plezier en breng wat bier, hier
Wie oh wie gaat er nog een rondje halen
En wie zal dat betalen
Ik heb geen geld, heb al besteld
Dus wie, wie oh wie
Ik wil nog niet de deur uit nu ik jou ken
Dat zou toch zonde zijn
Jij bent wie ik zoek
Zit leuk in de broek
En hier joh; een en al spier
Je kan ook blijven slapen
Je hoeft straks echt niet met de trein
Ik voel me zo goed, nu ik jou heb ontmoet
Dat vieren we: nou nog even snel twee bier
Ik wil nog wat drinken
Wie oh wie
Geeft er nog een laatste rondje
Voor mij zo'n schuimend blondje, doe me 'n plezier
En breng wat bier, hier
Wie oh wie gaat er nog een rondje halen
En wie zal dat betalen
Ik heb geen geld, heb al besteld
Dus wie, wie oh wie
Hee barman, geen zorgen
Betalen doen we morgen
Wie oh wie
Geeft er nog een laatste rondje
Voor mij zo'n schuimend blondje, het wordt al licht
De tent gaat dicht, dus wie
Wie oh wie, gaat er nog een rondje halen
En wie zal dat betalen
Ja, zoete lieve Gerritje, nee
Wie oh wie
Geeft er nog een laatste rondje
Voor mij zo'n schuimend blondje
Het wordt al licht
De tent gaat dicht
Dus wie, wie oh wie
The lyrics of Paul de Leeuw's song "Wie Oh Wie" describe the end of a night out with friends and the desire to keep the fun going. The first verse acknowledges that everything comes to an end, and it's time to decide whether to go home or continue partying. The singer turns to the barman, acknowledging his exhaustion but still requesting another round. The chorus is a call for someone to buy the final round, with the singer requesting a "schuimend blondje," or a beer with foam on top. The second verse introduces a romantic interest, with the singer expressing a desire to stay out longer and get to know them better. The chorus repeats, with the singer still hoping for one more round of drinks.
Overall, the song captures the feeling of not wanting the night to end and the excitement of meeting new people. The chorus is catchy and reinforces the idea of camaraderie and generosity, with the expectation that someone will step up and buy the final round.
Line by Line Meaning
Aan alles komt een einde
Everything comes to an end
Ook deze nacht heeft zijn tijd gehad
This night has come to an end
Uit met de pret, ze willen naar bed
The fun is over, they want to go to bed
En wij ook, laat ons gaan
And so do we, let's go
We kunnen nu beslissen
We can decide now
Naar huis toe gaan of doorzakken in de stad
Whether to go home or continue partying in the city
Hee barman, geef toe, al ben je zo moe
Hey bartender, admit it, even though you're tired
Op 1 been kan dus echt niemand staan
No one can stand on one leg
Ik wil nog wat drinken
I still want to drink
Wie oh wie
Who oh who
Geeft er nog een laatste rondje
Will give us one last round
Voor mij zo'n schuimend blondje
A foaming blonde for me
Doe me 'n plezier en breng wat bier, hier
Do me a favor and bring some beer here
Wie oh wie gaat er nog een rondje halen
Who oh who will get another round
En wie zal dat betalen
And who will pay for it
Ik heb geen geld, heb al besteld
I have no money, I already ordered
Dus wie, wie oh wie
So who, who oh who
Ik wil nog niet de deur uit nu ik jou ken
I don't want to leave now that I've met you
Dat zou toch zonde zijn
That would be a waste
Jij bent wie ik zoek
You are who I'm looking for
Zit leuk in de broek
You look good in those pants
En hier joh; een en al spier
And look; all muscle
Je kan ook blijven slapen
You can also stay and sleep
Je hoeft straks echt niet met de trein
You don't have to take the train later
Ik voel me zo goed, nu ik jou heb ontmoet
I feel so good now that I met you
Dat vieren we: nou nog even snel twee bier
Let's celebrate with two more quick beers
Hee barman, geen zorgen
Hey bartender, no worries
Betalen doen we morgen
We'll pay tomorrow
Het wordt al licht
It's already getting light
De tent gaat dicht
The bar is closing
Ja, zoete lieve Gerritje, nee
Yes, sweet dear Gerritje, no
Wie oh wie
Who oh who
Geeft er nog een laatste rondje
Will give us one last round
Voor mij zo'n schuimend blondje
A foaming blonde for me
Het wordt al licht
It's already getting light
De tent gaat dicht
The bar is closing
Dus wie, wie oh wie
So who, who oh who
Contributed by Wyatt F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.