Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977

Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977
Eurovision Song Contest 1977
Participating broadcaster	Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ)
Country	Ireland
Selection process	National Song Contest
Selection date	20 February 1977
Competing entry
Song	"It's Nice to Be in Love Again"
Artist	The Swarbriggs Plus Two
Songwriters	Tommy Swarbrigg Jimmy Swarbrigg
Placement
Final result	3rd, 119 points
Participation chronology
◄1976 • 1977 • 1978►

Ireland was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1977 with the song "It's Nice to Be in Love Again", written by Tommy and Jimmy Swarbrigg, and performed by themselves, along Alma Carroll and Nicola Kerr, under the stage name The Swarbriggs Plus Two. The Irish participating broadcaster, Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ), selected its entry through a national final. The Swarbriggs had previously represented Ireland in 1975.

Before Eurovision

National Song Contest

Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ) held the thirteenth edition of the National Song Contest at its studios in Dublin, hosted by Mike Murphy. Eight songs took part, with the winner chosen by voting from ten regional juries. Other participants included past and future Irish representatives Dickie Rock (1966) and Colm C. T. Wilkinson (1978), while future Eurovision winner Linda Martin (1992) performed as a member of the group Chips.

Draw	Artist	Song	Points	Place
1	Jamie Stone	"If I Give My Love"	19	2
2	Dickie Rock	"I Can't Go On Without You"	8	6
3	Sunshine	"Look Before You Leap"	0	8
4	D. J. Curtin	"You Cannot Stop the Music"	5	7
5	The Swarbriggs Plus Two	"It's Nice to Be in Love Again"	25	1
6	Denis Allen	"Da-Dum Da-Dum, I Love You So"	12	5
7	Colm C. T. Wilkinson	"There Was a Dream"	18	3
8	Chips	"Goodbye Goodbye"	13	4

At Eurovision

On the night of the final the group performed first in the running order, preceding Monaco. At the close of voting "It's Nice to Be in Love Again" had picked up 119 points, placing Ireland third of the 18 entries. ^[1] The song had gained four maximum 12s – from Israel, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The Irish jury awarded its 12 points to Finland. ^[2]

Voting

Points awarded to Ireland [2] Score Country 12 points   Israel   Norway   Sweden   United Kingdom 10 points   France   Greece 8 points   Italy   Luxembourg   Monaco    Switzerland 7 points 6 points 5 points   Austria   Germany 4 points   Spain 3 points   Belgium 2 points 1 point   Netherlands   Portugal

Points awarded by Ireland [2] Score Country 12 points   Finland 10 points   France 8 points   Italy 7 points   Israel 6 points    Switzerland 5 points   Monaco 4 points   Belgium 3 points   Netherlands 2 points   Luxembourg 1 point   Germany

References

1. "Final of London 1977". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
2. "Results of the Final of London 1977". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.