United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978

Last updated

Eurovision Song Contest 1978
Participating broadcaster British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
National selection
Selection process A Song for Europe 1978
Selection date(s)31 March 1978
Selected artist(s) Co-Co
Selected song"The Bad Old Days"
Selected songwriter(s)
Finals performance
Final result11th, 61 points
United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄197719781979►

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1978 with the song "The Bad Old Days", written by Stephanie de Sykes and Stuart Slater, and performed by the band Co-Co. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final.

Contents

Before Eurovision

A Song for Europe 1978

The national final was held on Friday 31 March 1978 at the Royal Albert Hall, presented by Terry Wogan. The songs were backed by the Alyn Ainsworth Orchestra. [1]

Fourteen regional juries voted on the songs: Bristol, Bangor, Leeds, Norwich, Newcastle, Aberdeen, Birmingham, Manchester, Belfast, Cardiff, Plymouth, Glasgow, Southampton, and London. Each jury voted internally and ranked the songs 1–12, awarding 12 points for their highest scoring song, down to 1 point for the lowest scoring entry.

"The Bad Old Days" won the national and came 11th in the contest. Broadcast on Good Friday, a national holiday in the United Kingdom, A Song for Europe 1978 was watched by 13.7 million viewers and was the 16th-most watched programme of the week – the show's highest ever rating. [1]

A Song for Europe 1978 31 March 1978 [2]
DrawArtistSongSongwriter(s)PointsPlace
1Christian"Shine It On" Bill Martin & Phil Coulter 1143
2Brown Sugar"Oh No, Look What You've Done" Wayne Bickerton & Tony Waddington 4911
3Fruit Eating Bears"Door in My Face"Neville Crozier & Chris Crash4911
4Jacquie Sullivan"Moments"Jacquie Sullivan1066
5Sunshine"Too Much in Love"Wayne Bickerton & Tony Waddington818
6Ronnie France"Lonely Nights" Paul Curtis 689
7The Jarvis Brothers"One Glance"Paul Curtis1143
8 Co-Co "The Bad Old Days" Stephanie de Sykes & Stuart Slater1351
9Bob James"We Got It Bad"Bob James & Labi Siffre 6610
10Midnight"Don't Bother to Knock" Kenny Lynch, Steve O'Donnell & Colin Horton-Jennings1162
11Babe Rainbow"Don't Let Me Stand in Your Way" Irving Martin & Peter Morris847
12 Labi Siffre "Solid Love"Labi Siffre1105

Both groups Co-Co and Sunshine had participated in A Song for Europe 1976 , albeit with different line-ups. Co-Co would return to A Song for Europe 1980 with another line-up, under the name The Main Event. Co-Co's member Cheryl Baker would eventually win the Eurovision Song Contest 1981 with the group Bucks Fizz.

Detailed Jury Votes [2]
DrawSong
Aberdeen
Norwich
Manchester
Bangor
Southampton
Leeds
Belfast
Bristol
Glasgow
Birmingham
London
Cardiff
Newcastle
Plymouth
Total
1"Shine It On"12119105411121279354114
2"Oh No, Look What You've Done"7221322952314649
3"Door in My Face"21721733231210549
4"Moments"88117839610810639106
5"Too Much in Love"93542610795676281
6"Lonely Nights"1418451211071112168
7"One Glance"6735912611119124118114
8"The Bad Old Days"111212111011743111112812135
9"We Got It Bad"361031214181451766
10"Don't Bother to Knock"4986111085712810711116
11"Don't Let Me Stand in Your Way"55497851066592384
12"Solid Love"1010612691284428910110
Jury Spokespersons [2]
JurySpokesperson
Aberdeen Gerry Davis
Norwich Chris Denham
Manchester Mike Riddoch
Bangor Gwyn Llewelyn
Southampton Peter Macann
Leeds Brian Baines
Belfast Michael Baguley
Bristol Derek Jones
Glasgow Ken Bruce
Birmingham Tom Coyne
London Ray Moore
Cardiff Frank Lincoln
Newcastle Mike Neville
Plymouth Donald Heighway

UK Discography

  • Christian – Shine It On: Polydor 2059012.
  • Brown Sugar – Oh No, Look What You've Done: State STAT77.
  • Fruit Eating Bears – Door in My Face: DJM DJS10857.
  • Jacquie Sullivan – Moments: Air CHS2219.
  • Sunshine – Too Much in Love: State STAT76.
  • Ronnie France – Lonely Nights: Pye 7N46062.
  • The Jarvis Brothers – One Glance: EMI EMI2777.
  • Co-Co – The Bad Old Days: Ariola/Hansa AHA513.
  • Bob James – We Got It Bad: Polydor 2059016.
  • Midnight – Don't Bother to Knock: Ariola/Hansa AHA514.
  • Babe Rainbow – Don't Let Me Stand in Your Way: Mercury 6007113.
  • Labi Siffre – Solid Love: EMI EMI2750.

Only the winning song reached the UK Singles Chart.

At Eurovision

The Eurovision Song Contest 1978 was broadcast on 22 April 1978, with Terry Wogan providing the BBC Television commentary and Ray Moore providing the BBC Radio 2 commentary. The BBC appointed Colin Berry as its spokesperson to announce the British jury results.

Voting

Related Research Articles

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1971 with the song "Jack in the Box", composed by John Worsley, with lyrics by David Myers, and performed by Clodagh Rodgers. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final, after having previously selected the performer internally.

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1974 with the song "Long Live Love", written by Valerie Avon and Harold Spiro, and performed by Olivia Newton-John. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final, after having previously selected the performer internally. In addition, the BBC was also the host broadcaster and staged the event at the Dome in Brighton, after the winner of the previous edition, the Compagnie Luxembourgeoise de Télédiffusion (CLT) from Luxembourg, opted not to host the event.

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1976 with the song "Save Your Kisses For Me", written by Tony Hiller, Lee Sheriden, and Martin Lee, and performed by Brotherhood of Man. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final titled A Song for Europe 1976. The entry eventually won the Eurovision Song Contest.

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1977 with the song "Rock Bottom", written and performed by Lynsey de Paul and Mike Moran. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final. In addition, the BBC was also the host broadcaster and staged the event at the Wembley Conference Centre in London, after winning the previous edition with the song "Save Your Kisses for Me" by Brotherhood of Man.

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1979 with the song "Mary Ann", written by Peter Morris, and performed by the band Black Lace. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "Cry Baby" written by Martin Isherwood. The song was performed by the duo Jemini. The British entry for the 2003 contest in Riga, Latvia was selected via the national final A Song for Europe 2003, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Eight acts competed in the national final which consisted of a semi-final and a final, during which the winner was selected entirely through a regional televote.

The 1980 "A Song For Europe" contest was held on 26 March 1980, at the BBC Television Theatre in Shepherd's Bush and was hosted by a dinner-suited Terry Wogan. The BBC Concert Orchestra under the direction of John Coleman as conductor accompanied all the songs, but all the music was pre-recorded. The theme music was "Te deum" the Eurovision theme.

The United Kingdom was represented in the Eurovision Song Contest 1983 by Sweet Dreams with the song "I'm Never Giving Up". It was chosen as the British entry through the A Song for Europe national selection process and placed sixth at Eurovision, receiving 79 points.

The United Kingdom was represented in the Eurovision Song Contest 1984 by Belle and the Devotions with the song "Love Games". It was chosen as the British entry through the A Song for Europe national selection process and placed seventh at Eurovision, receiving 63 points.

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1985 with the song "Love Is...", written by Jimmy Kaleth and Vikki Watson, and performed by Vikki herself. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986 with its entry "Runner in the Night" performed by the group Ryder. The song was chosen through the A Song for Europe national final which consisted of eight songs in 1986. At the Eurovision Song Contest 1986 held in Bergen, Norway, Ryder and the song placed seventh with 72 points.

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1991 with the song "A Message to Your Heart", written by Paul Curtis, and performed by Samantha Janus. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final.

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1992 with the song "One Step Out of Time", written by Paul Davies, Tony Ryan, and Victor Stratton, and performed by Michael Ball. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final, after having previously selected the performer internally.

For the Eurovision Song Contest 1994, the United Kingdom entered "Lonely Symphony ", performed by Frances Ruffelle. It received 63 points and 10th place.

For the 1995 Eurovision Song Contest, held in Dublin for the second consecutive year, the United Kingdom entered "Love City Groove", performed by Love City Groove. It finished in 10th place with a total of 76 points.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001 with the song "No Dream Impossible" written by Russ Ballard and Chris Winter. The song was performed by Lindsay Dracass. The British entry for the 2001 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark, was selected via the national final A Song for Europe 2001, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Eight acts competed in the national final which consisted of a semi-final and a final, during which the winner was selected entirely through a public televote.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2002 with the song "Come Back" written by Martyn Baylay. The song was performed by Jessica Garlick. The British entry for the 2002 contest in Tallinn, Estonia, was selected via the national final A Song for Europe 2002, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Eight acts competed in the national final which consisted of a semi-final and a final, during which the winner was selected entirely through a public televote.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 with the song "Even If" written by Andy Abraham, Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins. The song was performed by Andy Abraham. The British entry for the 2008 contest in Belgrade, Serbia was selected via the national final Eurovision: Your Decision, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through three rounds of voting.

Co-Co was a six-piece British band who represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978, staged at the Palais de Congrès in Paris, France, on 22 April 1978, with the song "The Bad Old Days". The song was written by the song writing team Stephanie de Sykes and Stuart Slater. It was finally placed eleventh of the 20 entries, which at the time was the worst showing ever for a UK entry. It would not be until 1987 that any British song fared worse in Eurovision. The group were originally called Mothers Pride.

References

  1. 1 2 Television's Greatest Hits, Network Books, Paul Gambaccini and Rod Taylor, 1993. ISBN   0 563 36247 2
  2. 1 2 3 Roxburgh, Gordon (2014). Songs for Europe: The United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest. Volume Two: The 1970s. Prestatyn: Telos Publishing. pp. 288–311. ISBN   978-1-84583-093-9.
  3. 1 2 "Results of the Final of Paris 1978". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.