The British public love the Eurovision Song Contest for reasons never totally understood. The songs are usually bland, the performances mediocre and the UK often does pretty badly with three last place finishes from 2003 to 2010. But the voting is fun and somehow the naffness of it all is what makes it attractive.
Eurovision parties are common on the night and it often replaces sport on the big screens in the pubs around the country. And, in truth, the UK has been known to do well with five wins and fifteen second places over its five decades plus of history.
But which of those UK songs is the best? Here are ten contenders and there are others that just missed the list.
“All” – Patricia Bredin (1957)
This was the second year the Eurovision Song Contest had been running but this was the UK’s first entry. Coming in at just under two minutes, it is still to this day the shortest entry ever in the song contest, and that in itself must be a cause to celebrate. It didn’t do very well, finishing sixth of the ten entries.
“Puppet on a String” – Sandie Shaw (1967)
This was the UK’s first winner, a catchy little number that became a number one hit single. It was also the first entry sung in English to win the contest (in those days songs had to be in the official language of the country they represented, a rule that was later changed). There have been more than 200 cover versions of the song in thirty languages – Sandie Shaw herself did versions in French, German, Italian and Spanish. It is also listed in the ten best Eurovision Song Contest winners of all time article.
“Congratulations” – Cliff Richard (1968)
Cliff Richard was favourite to win the contest this year but could only manage second place to “La, La, La”, the Spanish entry by Massiel. It reached number one in the UK charts and was a hit across Europe. At the contest itself, it looked like winning and led during most of the voting until, rather controversially, the penultimate votes from Germany favoured the Spanish song and boosted it into the lead. The controversy continues to this day and in 2008 a Spanish documentary claimed the “La, La, La” win was due to vote rigging.
“Boom Bang-a-Bang” – Lulu (1969)
This was the UK’s second win in the contest, but not on its own. Four songs tied for first place, the other three being France’s “Un Jour, Un Enfant” by Frida Boccara, the Netherlands’ “De Troubadour” by Lenny Kuhr and Spain’s “Vivo Cantando” by Salomé. Written by Alan Moorhouse and Peter Warne, the song was to be heard again in 2010 when it became the theme tune for the BBC sitcom Him & Her.
“Long Live Love” – Olivia Newton-John (1974)
Despite the bubbly enthusiasm of Olivia Newton-John, this quirky little song could only manage fourth place but was to become the title track of her album that year. Written by Valerie Avon and Harold Spiro, it reached number two in the charts but another track from the same album – “I Honestly Love You” – became her first number one in the USA.
“Save Your Kisses For Me” – Brotherhood of Man (1976)
Written by Lee Sheriden, and later adapted by Tony Hiller and Martin Lee, it became the biggest selling Eurovision Song Contest winner and was a number one in six countries. In the USA, it reached number twenty-seven in the Billboard charts. Seven countries gave it the maximum twelve points.
“Making Your Mind Up” – Bucks Fizz (1981)
The UK’s fourth winner and a UK number one single, this was written by Andy Hill and John Danter especially for Eurovision and they then formed a band to perform it. The record sold four million copies worldwide and was number one in seven other countries.
“Better the Devil You Know” – Sonia (1993)
This was the UK’s fourth second place finish in six years. Written by Dean Collinson and Brian Teasdale, this 1960s style rock-and-roll number deserved better. It was chosen as the UK entry by a telephone vote and won easily but the voters didn’t rush out to buy the single as it could only manage fifteenth in the UK charts.
“Love Shines a Light” – Katrina and the Waves (1997)
Well it won, and it was the UK’s fifth winner of the contest. Composed by Kimberley Rew, the plan was for it to become an anthem for The Samaritans and it set a then Eurovision record of 227 points (the record was broken in 2004 but there were more entries). Ten countries gave it maximum points.
“It’s My Time” – Jade Ewen (2009)
A fifth place does not sound like much to celebrate but it was the UK’s only top ten (in fact only top fifteen) finish in seven years, so a bit of bubbly will have been poured. Written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Diane Warren, the song did badly in the charts, only reaching 27th in the UK. Webber played piano during the performance at the finals in Moscow.
The Worst UK Entry Ever
In looking at the UK entries, one has to give a mention to the 2003 entry “Cry Baby” by Jemini, which managed to pick up no points at all in the final and was last as a result. The song did perhaps deserve better and many felt that the lack of votes was due to a political protest at the UK’s involvement at the Iraq War while others pointed out that the fact it was sung out of tune did not help.
This was the UK’s worst performance in that it came 26th, though there have been two last places since but with fewer entries so the 2008 entry “Even I” by Andy Abraham was joint 23rd and thus joint last and the 2010 entry “That Sounds Good to Me” by Josh Dubovie was 25th and last.
The Best UK Entry Ever
Three other songs from the 1970s came close to making the top ten list – “Knock, Knock Who’s There” by Mary Hopkins, “Jack in the Box” by Clodagh Rodgers and “Beg, Steal or Borrow” by the New Seekers, and it is to the 1970s one has to look to find the best ever UK entry. It really is a toss up between “Congratulations” and “Long Live Love” but Olivia Newton-John wins by a whisker. Those who disagree are welcome to add their own suggestions in the comments box below.
Steve Rogerson - Steve Rogerson is a UK-based writer specialising in television, technology, sports and beer.
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