United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003

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Eurovision Song Contest 2003
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
National selection
Selection process A Song for Europe 2003
Selection date(s)Semi-final:
27–31 January 2003
Final:
2 March 2003
Selected entrant Jemini
Selected song"Cry Baby"
Selected songwriter(s)Martin Isherwood
Finals performance
Final result26th, 0 points
United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2002 •2003• 2004►

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.

Contents

In the final of the Eurovision Song Contest, the United Kingdom performed in position 15 and placed twenty-sixth (last) out of the 26 participating countries, failing to score any points. This was the first time the nation had placed last in the history of the competition and also the first time the nation received nul points .

Background

Prior to the 2003 contest, the United Kingdom has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest forty-five times. [1] Thus far, the United Kingdom has won the contest five times: in 1967 with the song "Puppet on a String" performed by Sandie Shaw, in 1969 with the song "Boom Bang-a-Bang" performed by Lulu, in 1976 with the song "Save Your Kisses for Me" performed by Brotherhood of Man, in 1981 with the song "Making Your Mind Up" performed by Bucks Fizz and in 1997 with the song "Love Shine a Light" performed by Katrina and the Waves. To this point, the nation is noted for having finished as the runner-up in a record fifteen contests. Up to and including 1998, the UK had only twice finished outside the top 10, in 1978 and 1987. Since 1999, the year in which the rule was abandoned that songs must be performed in one of the official languages of the country participating, the UK has had less success, thus far only finishing within the top ten once: in 2002 with the song "Come Back" performed by Jessica Garlick.

The British national broadcaster, BBC, broadcasts the event within the United Kingdom and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. BBC announced that the United Kingdom would participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 on 3 September 2002. [2] BBC has traditionally organised a national final featuring a competition among several artists and songs to choose the British entry for Eurovision. For their 2003 entry, the broadcaster announced that a national final involving a public vote would be held to select United Kingdom's entry.

Before Eurovision

A Song for Europe 2003

A Song for Europe 2003 was the national final developed by the BBC in order to select the British entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2003. Eight acts competed in the competition which consisted of a semi-final between 27 and 31 January 2003, and a televised final on 2 March 2003. The semi-final was broadcast on BBC Radio 2, while the final was broadcast on BBC One. [3]

Competing entries

On 3 September 2002, BBC announced an open submission for interested artists to submit their songs. [2] A fee was also imposed on songs being submitted to the national final, with under £20 for artists aged 17 or under and £110 for artists aged over 17. The submission period lasted until 18 October 2002. [4] [5] The 700 received submissions were reviewed and a twenty-song shortlist was compiled by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA). [6] The shortlist was then presented to a professional panel consisting of representatives of the BBC and the BASCA as well as music industry experts that ultimately selected eight semi-finalists to compete in the national final. [7] Prior to the final, Esther Hart withdrew from the national final in favour of competing in the Dutch national final (which she eventually won with the song "One More Night") and was replaced by United Colours of Sound as the performer of "Wait for the Moment". The group later withdrew from the national final as well and was replaced by Simon Chapman. The song was then rewritten and retitled as "Now and Forever". [8] [9]

Semi-final

The eight competing acts were premiered during The Ken Bruce Show and Wake Up to Wogan on BBC Radio 2 on 27 January 2003, and the public was able to vote for their favourite song through televoting and online voting until 31 January 2003, with the top four songs proceeding to the final. [10] [11] [12] [13] The public vote in the semi-final registered over 30,000 votes. [14]

Semi-final – 27–31 January 2003
DrawArtistSongSongwriter(s)Result
1Fenix"Do Anything for Your Love"
  • Morten Schjolin
  • Giacomo Barba
Eliminated
2Mimi"Ever Since That Night"
Advanced
3S.K"First Night"
  • Neville Henry
  • Jackie Rawe
  • Karen Gibbs
Eliminated
4 Esther Hart "Wait for the Moment"Danny DaviesAdvanced
5 Tricity "Cry Baby"Martin IsherwoodAdvanced
6 Emily Reed "Help Me"Simon HillAdvanced
7Gallico"Smile"
  • Ashley Dylan Best
  • Samuel John Roberts
Eliminated
8Ben Plus One"Rainy Day in Summer"
  • Alan Simpson
  • Maryanne Morgan
Eliminated

Final

Four acts competed in the televised final on 2 March 2003 held at the BBC Television Centre in London and hosted by Terry Wogan. A regional televote selected the winner, "Cry Baby" performed by Jemini. [15] The spokespersons for the regional televoting of Southern England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Midlands, Northern England and Scotland were, accordingly: Esther Rantzen, Jessica Garlick, Joe Mace, Mel and Sue, Matt Baker and Nicholas Parsons. The public televote in the final registered over 100,000 votes, with Emily Reed reported to have received the most overall votes. [16] [17]

Final – 2 March 2003
DrawArtistSongTelevoting regionsTotalPlace
Southern
England		WalesNorthern
Ireland		MidlandsNorthern
England		Scotland
1 Jemini [lower-alpha 1] "Cry Baby"101212101212681
2Simon Chapman"Now and Forever"04
3Mimi"Ever Since That Night"999999543
4 Emily Reed "Help Me"121010121010642
12 points
N.SongRegions giving 12 points
4"Cry Baby"Northern England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales
2"Help Me"Midlands, Southern England

At Eurovision

As a member of the "Big Four", the United Kingdom automatically qualified to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 on 24 May 2003. During the running order draw on 1 December 2002, the United Kingdom was placed to perform in position 15, following the entry from Netherlands and before the entry from Ukraine. [18] The United Kingdom placed twenty-sixth (last) in the final, failing to score any points. This was the first time the United Kingdom finished in last place and also the first time the nation received nul points . [19]

In the United Kingdom, the show was televised on BBC One with commentary by Terry Wogan and broadcast on BBC Radio 2 with commentary by Ken Bruce. The British spokesperson, who announced the British votes during the final, was Lorraine Kelly.

The United Kingdom's last-place finish was greeted with much consternation in the British media. Terry Wogan, long-time commentator on the contest for the BBC, said that the UK was suffering from "post-Iraq backlash". [20] Chris Cromby from Jemini said, in reference to the group's off-key vocals, "The monitors were off. Maybe it was sabotage, but we couldn't hear anything... we used the floor monitors, the others used their own." [21]

Voting

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to the United Kingdom and awarded by the United Kingdom in the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to Ireland in the contest. It was later revealed that Turkey would have been awarded with 12 points from the nation had a backup jury be used.

Points awarded to the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom did not receive any points at the 2003 Eurovision Song Contest. [22]

Points awarded by the United Kingdom

Notes

  1. ↑ The participants were known in the semi-final as Tricity, but participated in the final as Jemini. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eurovision Song Contest 2003</span> International song competition

The Eurovision Song Contest 2003 was the 48th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Riga, Latvia, following the country's victory at the 2002 contest with the song "I Wanna" by Marie N. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Latvijas Televīzija (LTV), the contest was held at the Skonto Hall on 24 May 2003. The contest was presented by last year's winner Marie N and former contestant Renārs Kaupers.

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 2004 with the song "Hold Onto Our Love" written by Gary Miller and Tim Woodcock. The song was performed by James Fox. The British entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey was selected via the national final Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up 2004, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected entirely through a public vote.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "Teenage Life" written by Daz Sampson and John Matthews. The song was performed by Daz Sampson. The British entry for the 2006 contest in Athens, Greece was selected via the national final Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up 2006, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected entirely through a public vote.

Cyprus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "Why Angels Cry" written by Peter Yiannakis and performed by Annet Artani. The Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC) organised the national final A Song for Europe to select the Cypriot entry for the 2006 contest, which took place in Athens, Greece. The selection event saw 20 candidate entries compete over two semi-finals, leading to a 10-participant final round on 22 February 2006. Despite the event experiencing controversy due to a perceived lack of transparency, the results were upheld.

Iceland participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "Congratulations" written by Þorvaldur Bjarni Þorvaldsson, Ágústa Eva Erlendsdóttir and Gaukur Úlfarsson. The song was performed by Silvía Night. The Icelandic entry for the 2006 contest in Athens, Greece was selected through the national final Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2006, organised by the Icelandic broadcaster Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV). The selection consisted of three semi-finals and a final, held on 21 January, 28 January, 4 February and 18 February 2006, respectively. Eight songs competed in each semi-final with the top four as selected by a public televote alongside two jury wildcards advancing to the final. In the final, "Til hamingju Ísland" performed by Silvía Nótt emerged as the winner exclusively through public televoting. The song was later translated from Icelandic to English for the Eurovision Song Contest and was titled "Congratulations", while her stage name was changed to Silvía Night.

Malta participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "I Do" written by Aldo Spiteri and Fabrizio Faniello. The song was performed by Fabrizio Faniello, who had previously represented Malta at the Eurovision Song Contest in the 2001 edition where he achieved ninth place with the song "Another Summer Night". The Maltese entry for the 2006 contest in Athens, Greece was selected through the national final Malta Song for Europe 2006, organised by the Maltese broadcaster Public Broadcasting Services (PBS). The competition consisted of two phases: Opportunity 2 and Malta Song for Europe 2006. In the final of Malta Song for Europe 2006, held on 4 February 2006, "I Do" performed by Fabrizio Faniello emerged as the winning entry after gaining the most votes from a public televote with 7,729 votes.

The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 with the song "My Impossible Dream" written by Robert D. Fisher and Bruce Smith. The song was performed by Glennis Grace. The Dutch broadcaster Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) organised the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2005 in collaboration with broadcaster Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting (TROS) in order to select the Dutch entry for the 2005 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine. 24 entries competed in the national final which consisted of five shows: four semi-finals and a final. Six entries competed in each semi-final with three advancing: two entries selected based on a public vote and one entry selected by a three-member jury panel. Twelve entries qualified from to compete in the final on 13 February 2005 where "My Impossible Dream" performed by Glennis Grace was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from three jury panels and a public vote.

Greece competed in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004, held at the Abdi İpekçi Arena in Istanbul, Turkey. The Greek broadcaster Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT) internally selected Sakis Rouvas with the song "Shake It", written by Nikos Terzis and Nektarios Tyrakis, to represent the nation. Prior to Rouvas' selection, the broadcaster had organised a public selection process entitled Eurostar, consisting of live semi-final heats, leading to a three-participant national final to select their entrant. While the event did take place and Apostolos Psichramis was selected as the Greek entrant, the song selection portion did not materialize after the Rouvas announcement and Psichramis instead joined Rouvas as a backing vocalist.

Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "1 Life" written by Dirk Paelinck and Marc Paelinck. The song was performed by Xandee. The Belgian entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey was selected through the national final Eurosong '04, organised by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT). The competition featured twenty-eight competing entries and consisted of five shows. In the final on 15 February 2004, "1 Life" performed by Xandee was selected as the winner via the votes of five voting groups.

The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Without You" written by Ed van Otterdijk and Angeline van Otterdijk. The song was performed by the duo Re-union. The Dutch broadcaster Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) organised the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2004 in collaboration with broadcaster Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting (TROS) in order to select the Dutch entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey. 24 entries competed in the national final which consisted of six shows: four semi-finals, a wildcard round and a final. Ten entries qualified from to compete in the final on 22 February 2004 where "Without You" performed by Re-union was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a five-member jury panel and a public vote.

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Spain participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Para llenarme de ti" written by Kike Santander. The song was performed by Ramón. The Spanish entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey was selected through the third series of the reality television music competition Operación Triunfo, organised by the Spanish broadcaster Televisión Española (TVE). Four artists and songs ultimately qualified to compete in the final of the competition's Eurovision selection show where a public televote exclusively selected "Para llenarme de ti" performed by Ramón as the winner, receiving 38.8% of the votes.

Slovenia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "Nanana" written by Martin Štibernik and Karmen Stavec. The song was performed by Karmen, which is the artistic name of singer Karmen Stavec. Slovenian broadcaster Radiotelevizija Slovenija organised the national final EMA 2003 in order to select the Slovenian entry for the 2003 contest in Riga, Latvia. Sixteen entries competed in the national final where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. In the first round, the top three entries were selected following the combination of votes from a five-member jury panel and a public televote. In the second round, "Lep poletni dan" performed by Karmen Stavec was selected as the winner entirely by a public televote. The song was later translated from Slovene to English for the Eurovision Song Contest and was titled "Nanana".

Slovenia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Stay Forever" written by Diana Lečnik and Simon Gomilšek. The song was performed by the duo Platin, which consists of Lečnik and Gomilšek. Slovenian broadcaster Radiotelevizija Slovenija organised the national final EMA 2004 in order to select the Slovenian entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey. 32 entries competed in the national final which consisted of five shows: four semi-finals and a final. Entries were selected to advance from the semi-finals based on a public televote and a four-member jury panel. Sixteen entries qualified to compete in the final where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. In the first round, the top three entries were selected following the combination of votes from a five-member jury panel and a public televote. In the second round, "Stay Forever" performed by Platin was selected as the winner entirely by a public televote.

Norway participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "High" written by Thomas Thörnholm, Lars Andersson and Danne Attlerud. The song was performed by Knut Anders Sørum. The Norwegian broadcaster Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK) organised the national final Melodi Grand Prix 2004 in order to select the Norwegian entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey. Twelve entries competed in a show that took place on 6 March 2004 and the winner was determined over two rounds of public televoting. The top four entries in the first round of voting advanced to the competition's second round—the Gold Final. In the second round of public televoting, "High" performed by Knut Anders Sørum was selected as the winner with 82,427 votes.

Cyprus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Life Looks Better in Spring" written by Nasos Lambrianides and Melis Konstantinou. The song was performed by Jon Lilygreen and the Islanders. The Cypriot broadcaster Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC) organised the national final Eurovision 2010: Epilogi tis kypriakis symmetochis in order to select the Cypriot entry for the 2010 contest in Oslo, Norway. The national final featured nine entries, resulting in the selection of Lilygreen and the Islanders with "Life Looks Better in Spring" at the final in February 2010.

The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "One More Night" written by Tjeerd van Zanen and Alan Michael. The song was performed by Esther Hart. The Dutch broadcaster Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) returned to the Eurovision Song Contest after a one-year absence following their withdrawal in 2002 as one of the bottom six countries in the 2001 contest. NOS organised the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2003 in collaboration with broadcaster Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting (TROS) in order to select the Dutch entry for the 2003 contest in Riga, Latvia. 32 entries competed in the national final which consisted of five shows: four semi-finals and a final. Eight entries qualified from to compete in the final on 1 March 2003 where "One More Night" performed by Esther Hart was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a seven-member jury panel and a public vote.

References

  1. ↑ "United Kingdom | Country profile | Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Song For Europe". britishacademy.com. Archived from the original on 3 September 2002. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  3. ↑ Walsh, David (27 January 2003). "Song for Europe songs available now!". Esctoday. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  4. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (27 November 2002). "BBC wants something else". ESCToday. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
  5. ↑ Grech, Deb (29 October 2003). "Nikki French interested to represent UK again". ESCToday. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
  6. ↑ Raeven, Rianne (2 November 2002). "BBC received 700 Song for Europe entries". Esctoday. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  7. ↑ Raeven, Rianne (2 November 2002). "BBC received 700 Song for Europe entries". ESCToday. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
  8. 1 2 Bakker, Sietse (17 February 2003). "Esther Hart replaced by the United Colours of Sound". ESCToday. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
  9. ↑ Walsh, David (27 February 2003). "UK: A further change in the line-up". ESCToday. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
  10. ↑ "Eight finalists announced for the UK entry in The Eurovision Song Contest 2003". BBC. 10 January 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  11. ↑ "Press Office - A Song for Europe 2003 finalists - BBC". bbc.co.uk. 31 January 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  12. ↑ "A Song for Europe 2003 • semi-final". 4lyrics.
  13. ↑ "Song for Europe 2003". songs4europe.com. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  14. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (31 January 2003). "British final four selected, 30,000 people voted". ESCToday. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
  15. ↑ Walsh, David (2 March 2003). "United Kingdom: Jemini to Riga". Esctoday. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  16. ↑ "Press Office - Eurovision 2003 - BBC". bbc.co.uk. 2 March 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  17. ↑ "Top 5 'What Ifs' of Eurovision". escYOUnited. 31 January 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  18. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (28 November 2002). "Draw to be made public Friday 17:00 CET". ESCToday.com. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
  19. ↑ "Final of Riga 2003". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 7 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  20. ↑ "Turkish delight at Eurovision win". BBC News . BBC News. 24 May 2003. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
  21. ↑ "Eurovision flops blame equipment". BBC News . 26 May 2003. Archived from the original on 29 November 2020. Retrieved 26 March 2008.
  22. 1 2 "Results of the Final of Riga 2003". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 7 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  23. ↑ Barak, Itamar (29 May 2003). "BBC: Russia indeed failed to score in the UK". ESCToday. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  24. ↑ "BBC release details of UK vote". doteurovision.com. 5 June 2003. Archived from the original on 5 June 2003. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
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