United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004

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Eurovision Song Contest 2004
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
National selection
Selection process Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up 2004
Selection date(s)28 February 2004
Selected entrant James Fox
Selected song"Hold Onto Our Love"
Selected songwriter(s)
  • Gary Miller
  • Tim Woodcock
Finals performance
Final result16th, 29 points
United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2003 •2004• 2005►

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.

Contents

As a member of the "Big Four", the United Kingdom automatically qualified to compete in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest. Performing in position 20, the United Kingdom placed 16th out of the 24 participating countries with 29 points.

Background

Prior to the 2004 contest, the United Kingdom has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest forty-six 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. For the 2003 contest, the United Kingdom finished in twenty-sixth (last) place out of twenty-six competing entries with the song "Cry Baby" performed by Jemini.

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 2004 on 8 November 2003. [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 2004 entry, the broadcaster announced that a new primetime national final involving a public vote would be held to select United Kingdom's entry, replacing the traditional A Song for Europe show more recently aired in a Sunday afternoon timeslot on BBC One. [2]

Before Eurovision

Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up

Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up 2004 was the national final developed by the BBC in order to select the British entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2004. Six acts competed in a televised show on 28 February 2004 held at the BBC Television Centre in London and hosted by Terry Wogan and Gaby Roslin. The winner was selected entirely through a public vote. The show was broadcast on BBC One. [3] The national final was watched by 7.2 million viewers in the United Kingdom. [4]

Competing entries

The BBC collaborated with record label Sony Music UK and an independent music expert to select six finalists to compete in the national final. [2] [5] Five of the entries were provided to the BBC by music industry experts including writers and producers, and the sixth entry, "It Just Gets Better", was provided by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA) which ran a songwriting competition amongst its members. [6] The six artists were announced on 3 February 2004, while the competing songs were premiered during the BBC One television programme Top of the Pops , hosted by Tim Kash, on 13 February 2004. [7] [8] The songwriters for this year's national final were announced by the BBC as Gary Barlow, Pam Sheyne, Brian Rawling, Brian Higgins and Stuart McLennan, Bill Padley and Jem Godfrey.

Final

Six acts competed in the televised final on 28 February 2004. In addition to their performances, guest performers included previous Eurovision Song Contest winner Sertab Erener, who won the contest for Turkey in 2003 with the song "Everyway That I Can", and Emma Bunton, performing her song "Maybe" and the winning song for the United Kingdom in 1967 "Puppet on a String".

A panel of experts provided feedback regarding the songs during the show. The panel consisted of Lorraine Kelly (journalist and television presenter), Harry Hill (comedian, writer, and television presenter) and Carrie Grant (member of the 1983 British representatives Sweet Dreams, vocal coach and television presenter). A public televote selected the winner, "Hold Onto Our Love" performed by James Fox. [9] Votes submitted via landline phones were divided into seven regions in the United Kingdom and each region awarded points as follows: 2, 4, 6, 8 and 12 points. Votes submitted via mobile phones and SMS were also converted to points and awarded based on the percentage of votes each song achieved. For example, if a song gained 10% of the mobile and SMS votes, then that entry would be awarded 10 points. The public vote in the show registered 300,000 votes, with "Hold Onto Our Love" receiving 45% of the votes. [5] [10]

DrawArtistSongPointsPlace
1Enrap-ture"Weekend (Gotta Work)"374
2 James Fox "Hold Onto Our Love"1201
3Haifa"Me Without You"96
4Hyrise"Leading Me On"822
5Haydon"With You I Believe"175
6Madison Taylor"It Just Gets Better"593
Detailed Televoting Results
DrawSongTelevoting RegionsMobiles
and SMS		Total
Northern
Ireland		Northern
England		ScotlandWalesSouth West
England		MidlandsSouth East
England
1"Weekend (Gotta Work)"4444444937
2"Hold Onto Our Love"121212121281240120
3"Me Without You"2259
4"Leading Me On"888681282482
5"With You I Believe"22222717
6"It Just Gets Better"66686661559
Spokespersons
12 points
N.SongRegions giving 12 points
6"Hold Onto Our Love"Northern England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, South West England, South East England, Wales
1"Leading Me On"Midlands

At Eurovision

It was announced that the competition's format would be expanded to include a semi-final in 2004. According to the rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country, the "Big Four" (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom) and the ten highest placed finishers in the 2003 contest are required to qualify from the semi-final in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from the semi-final progress to the final. As a member of the "Big Four", the United Kingdom automatically qualified to compete in the final on 15 May 2004. In addition to their participation in the final, the United Kingdom also broadcast and voted in the semi-final on 12 May 2004. During the running order draw for the semi-final and final, the United Kingdom was placed to perform in position 20 in the final, following the entry from Poland and before the entry from Cyprus. The United Kingdom placed sixteenth in the final, scoring 29 points. [11] [12]

In the United Kingdom, the semi-final was broadcast on BBC Three with commentary by Paddy O'Connell, while the final 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.

Voting

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to the United Kingdom and awarded by the United Kingdom in the semi-final and grand final of the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to Greece in the semi-final and the final of the contest.

Points awarded to the United Kingdom

Points awarded to the United Kingdom (Final) [13]
ScoreCountry
12 points
10 points
8 pointsFlag of Ireland.svg  Ireland
7 points
6 points
5 points
4 points
3 pointsFlag of Latvia.svg  Latvia
2 points
1 point

Points awarded by the United Kingdom

Related Research Articles

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 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 2005 with the song "Touch My Fire" written by Javine Hylton, John Themis and Jonathan Shalit. The song was performed by Javine. The British entry for the 2005 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine was selected via the national final Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up 2005, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Five 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.

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.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Flying the Flag " written by Russ Spencer, Morten Schjolin, Andrew Hill and Paul Tarry. The song was performed by the group Scooch. The British entry for the 2007 contest in Helsinki, Finland was selected via the national final Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up 2007, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through two rounds of public televoting.

Cyprus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Stronger Every Minute" performed by Lisa Andreas. The song was written by Mike Connaris, who had twice written a runner up in Eurovision selection process for the United Kingdom.

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.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with the song "It's My Time" written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Diane Warren. The song was performed by Jade Ewen. The British entry for the 2009 contest in Moscow, Russia was selected via the national final Eurovision: Your Country Needs You, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final which consisted of two heats, 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 2010 with the song "That Sounds Good to Me" written by Pete Waterman, Mike Stock and Steve Crosby. The song was performed by Josh Dubovie. The British entry for the 2010 contest in Oslo, Norway was selected via the national final Eurovision: Your Country Needs You 2010, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through two rounds of voting.

Iceland participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Heaven" written by Sveinn Rúnar Sigurðsson and Magnús Þór Sigmundsson. The song was performed by Jónsi, who was internally selected by the Icelandic broadcaster Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV) in February 2004 to represent Iceland at the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey. The Icelandic song, "Heaven", was presented to the public on 20 March 2004 during the television programme Laugardagskvöld með Gísla Marteini.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "I Can" written by Duncan James, Lee Ryan, Ciaron Bell, Ben Collier, Ian Hope, Liam Keenan and StarSign. The song was performed by the group Blue, which was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. Blue was announced as the British entrant on 29 January 2011, while the song "I Can" was presented to the public on 11 March 2011.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 with the song "Love Will Set You Free" written by Martin Terefe and Sacha Skarbek. The song was performed by Engelbert Humperdinck, who was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2012 contest in Baku, Azerbaijan. Humperdinck was announced as the British entrant on 1 March 2012, while the song "Love Will Set You Free" was presented to the public on 19 March 2012.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song "Believe in Me" written by Desmond Child, Lauren Christy and Christopher Braide. The song was performed by Bonnie Tyler, who was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2013 contest in Malmö, Sweden. Tyler and the song "Believe in Me" were announced as the British entry on 7 March 2013.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 with the song "Children of the Universe" written by Molly Smitten-Downes and Anders Hansson. The song was performed by Molly, who was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2014 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark. Molly and "Children of the Universe" was announced as the British entry in a special presentation show titled The UK Launch broadcast on the BBC Red Button service in March 2014.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Still in Love with You" written by David Mindel and Adrian Bax White. The song was performed by the duo Electro Velvet, which was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria. Electro Velvet and "Still in Love with You" was announced as the British entry in a special presentation show titled Our Song for Eurovision 2015 broadcast on the BBC Red Button service in March 2015.

Lithuania participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "What's Happened to Your Love?" written by Michalis Antoniou, Linas Adomaitis and Camden-MS. The song was performed by Linas and Simona. The Lithuanian broadcaster Lithuanian National Radio and Television (LRT) returned to the Eurovision Song Contest after a one-year absence following their relegation from 2003 as one of the bottom five countries in the 2002 contest. LRT organised the national final "Eurovizijos" dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka in order to select the Lithuanian entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey. The national final took place over seven weeks and involved 52 competing entries. In the final, eighteen entries remained and "What's Happened to Your Love?" performed by Linas and Simona was selected as the winner by the combination of votes from a jury panel and a public vote.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "You're Not Alone" written by Matt Schwartz, Justin J. Benson and S. Kanes. The song was performed by Joe and Jake. The British entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden was selected via the national final Eurovision: You Decide, 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 2017 with the song "Never Give Up on You" written by Daniel Salcedo, Emmelie de Forest and Lawrie Martin. The song was performed by Lucie Jones. Songwriter Emmelie de Forest represented Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song "Only Teardrops" where she won the competition. The British entry for the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine was selected via the national final Eurovision: You Decide, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through the combination of a public vote and the votes of an eight-member professional jury.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Bigger than Us" written by Laurell Barker, Anna-Klara Folin, John Lundvik and Jonas Thander. The song was performed by Michael Rice. Songwriter John Lundvik represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest the same year with the song "Too Late for Love". The British entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel was selected via the national final Eurovision: You Decide, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through two rounds of voting.

References

  1. ↑ "United Kingdom | Country profile | Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 Bakker, Sietse (8 November 2003). "British 2004 entry to be selected in 'sexy' show". Esctoday. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  3. ↑ "Press Office - Making Your Mind Up - BBC". bbc.co.uk. 4 February 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  4. ↑ "Press Office - Eurovision accreditation 2004 - BBC". bbc.co.uk. 12 March 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  5. 1 2 "Press Office - Eurovision Making Your Mind Up winner - BBC". bbc.co.uk. 28 February 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  6. ↑ Shahin, Kemal (31 December 2004). "BASCA sends 5 songs from 530 to BBC". Esctoday. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  7. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (3 February 2004). "Six names for British selection revealed". Esctoday.
  8. ↑ "The Television & Radio Database - Top of the Pops". tvrdb.com. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  9. ↑ "UK NATIONAL FINAL 2004". natfinals.50webs.com.
  10. ↑ "Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up 2005". bbc.co.uk. 4 February 2005. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  11. ↑ "Grand Final of Istanbul 2004". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  12. ↑ "Britain's Eurovision Song Contest entries: where are they now?". The Telegraph. 2 May 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
  13. 1 2 "Results of the Grand Final of Istanbul 2004". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  14. ↑ "Results of the Semi-Final of Istanbul 2004". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
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