Memorable Eurovision Moments For The UKBy Angelica Malin
After the UK lost the first position to Ukraine at the 66th edition of the Eurovision Songs contest, we thought it would be nice to bring to you some of the UK’s memorable moments at the yearly held contest since 1956.
Let’s face it, the UK has a track record at the Eurovision contest that could easily be tagged contentious, controversial, or just surprising. From Dodgy double-acts to narrow misses, questionable voting, and even coming in dead last. With that being said, however, a recent Betway Online Casino study shows that the UK have actually won the contest five times. If you are ready, here are some memorable Eurovision moments for the UK.
1968 – Cliff Richards’ “Congratulations”
It was an undoubtedly memorable night for the UK when Cliff Richards’ song “Congratulations,” co-written by Bill Martin & Phil Coulter, came in the second position behind Massiel’s “la, la, la.” It was a nail-biting one-point lead that left all of the UK’s Eurovision audience heartbroken.
Though Sandie Shaw had earlier won the event for the UK in 1967, the narrow loss made it even more devastating as they wanted to make the 1968 contest a consecutive win. While many attributed it to a mere narrow loss, politics was not far from Eurovision Contests. One of the studies on the yearly event attributed UK’s unexpected loss to an alleged vote-fixing. All thanks, but no thanks to Spanish dictator, Francisco Franco.
1976 – Brotherhood of Man’s “Save Your Kisses For Me.”
Call it compensation if you like, but we know it was a deserving one for the Uk and a memorable one at that since the UK had to wait for seven years to win the Eurovision contest again. At the time, Brotherhood of man was perhaps the biggest-selling winner. If you are a fan of the syrupy “I Love You” and the hand-holding dance routine, you’d agree this one is a relic from a great time.
1981 – Bucks Fizz’s “Making Your Mind Up”
Perhaps, the most memorable win for the UK, “Making Your Mind Up” was a performance that checked many of the boxes, giving it a more than a deserving first place win. From colourful to unexpected, it was everything we wanted in a competitive contest. The highlight of the performance was Fizz’s skirt-rip move that came in just in time to match the song’s lyrics, “if you want to see more.”
1984 – Belle & the Devotions’ “Love Games”
We hate to suggest that it’s almost a common habit for the UK to send artists who deliver below-expected performances, and 1984 was one of those years. What made it memorable (in a negative way) wasn’t the loss per se. It was the undeserved booing the performance got. Sadly, it was the behaviour of the English football team that caused the Luxembourg audience at the Eurovision to take it out on Belle & the Devotions’ performance.
1998 – Imaani’s “Where Are You”
The soulful vocals of Imaani gave life to the song, “where are you” at the 1998 Eurovision song contest. Perhaps it would have come in the first place, but Dana international was the favourite of the event. Despite Dana international being trans, it didn’t stop her from winning, while Imaani took the second position for the UK.
