Eurovision - A very special edition

Hello folks and welcome to a very special edition of my Eurovision specials.

The year was 1981, the date 4th April and in Dublin the Eurovision Song Contest was taking place. Jay Aston, Cheryl Baker, Bobby G and Mike Nolan, otherwise known as Bucks Fizz were representing the UK with Making Your Mind Up. With the German entry hot on their heels on the scoreboard, Bucks Fizz won by the smallest of margins. The rest is history.

33 years later and after several million record sales, sell out tours, countless television appearances, solo careers and many other things, it is with great delight and just a little bit of giddiness that I welcome original member Cheryl Baker to this Q&A special.

D. Hi Cheryl. Many thanks for taking time out from Happy Days for this Q&A special.

C. It's a pleasure.

D. Shall we start?

C. Fire away.

D. Other than winning the contest, what were your personal highlights from Eurovision 1981?

C. My personal highlight from winning Eurovision 1981 for me  was
afterwards when we got back to the  hotel and I rang home.  At that
time I lived in a council flat in Bethnal Green, East London and had
done all my life.  My sister answered the phone and screamed when she
heard my voice.  There were masses of cheers as our tiny flat was
rammed with friends, family and neighbours.  Sheila, my sister, told me
that when we were announced as winners, the whole block of flats
erupted - with people opening their windows and cheering on the
landings.  Although at that time I had just won possibly the biggest
international prize in music, my heart was in Bethnal Green with my
family.  After speaking to everyone, I could go back down to the
celebrations in the hotel and really start to enjoy myself.

D. Were you and the rest of Bucks Fizz confident the song would win?

C. The only one in the group who was confident that we would win was
Mike Nolan.  We were in Dublin for a week before the competition and
Mike was confident right up to the actual day, 4 April. When you hear
the other songs so often in rehearsals they start to grow on you and
this is what happened with Mike.  He said our biggest competition was
Germany and Switzerland and he was right - we beat Germany into second
place by just 4 points!

D. If you could travel back to Eurovision 1981 and perform for  a  different country, which one would you choose and why? Bare in mind it has to be a country that participated in the contest.

C. The country I would have chosen to perform for other than the UK
back in 1981 would have been  Ireland.  It was a 3 girl harmony group
and, as I love singing harmony, it would have suited me fine plus they
wore gorgeous dresses and they sang in English, a definite bonus with
me as I can't speak any other language!

D. How do you think Bucks Fizz would fare if they represented the UK today with the same song?

C. I would love to say Bucks Fizz could win today if we entered the
competition but in reality I am absolutely sure we wouldn't.  We were
perfect for 1981 but music has moved on and "Making Your Mind Up" would
be far too "cheesy" for today's competition which, I believe, is very
sophisticated now. 

D. What are your thoughts on today's Eurovision?

C. I think today's Eurovision is fantastic.  You cannot compare it
to when we won in 1981 -  just have a look on YouTube and see the
difference.  Ours was done in a television studio with barely any
staging.  Nowadays, the Eurovision is held in massive arenas with
fantastic lights, special effects and stage set.  Although we haven't
done very well in the votes  in the past few years (an
understatement!), I still think the competition as a television
programme is superior.

D. Throughout the history of the contest, who has been your favourite UK entry?

C. It is hard to say who my favourite UK entry is as I am such a
Eurovision fan that I have loved them all (well almost). I loved the
New Seekers in 1972 with Beg, Steal or Borrow, Prima Donna in 1980 with
Love Enough For Two, Sweet Dreams in 1983 with I'm Never Giving Up and
Scooch in 2007 with Flying The Flag.  Funny that they are all girl/boy
groups?

D. And who do you feel was the best act ever?

C. I suppose my all time favourite Eurovision act is Abba but I also
loved Nicole, Gigliola Cinquetti, Severine, Vicky Leandros and
Anne-Marie David.

D. Personally, I would love to see Mika represent the UK in a future contest. Who would you love to see?

C. I would love a band like Girls Aloud to represent the UK, or even
better Little Mix.

D. Do you think any of today's songwriters could write a winning song for the UK and if so, who?

C. Of course, any of today's song writers could write a winning
song, probably the safest bet as he writes so prolifically would be
Gary Barlow. 

D. Now for some Bucks Fizz questions. Of all the brilliant songs the group recorded, which are in your top 3 and why?

C. It is difficult for me to choose my absolute favourite but it
would be between Now Those Days Are Gone, New Beginning and Land of
Make Believe.   NTDAG is a favourite because of the vocal harmonies,
LOMB is because it reminds me of Christmas 1981 and NB because it is
such a powerful track.  I am personally very proud of all three of
those. 

D. And your favourite album? Mine is Hand Cut.

C. My favourite album is our second, Are You Ready?

D. You're currently touring with the Happy Days musical. How is it going and will we see you in the West End?

C. I am loving Marion Cunningham in Happy Days, The Musical,
although my first love is singing with Mike and Jay.  Acting is far
more stressful for me!  There is hope that the show will go into the
West End but nothing is written in stone yet.

D. Describe your perfect day.

C. My perfect day is getting up early and walking my dogs for ages,
and then coming home to have breakfast with Steve and the girls.
Doing an Asda shop, with my daughter, Kyla, having an amazing Sunday
roast dinner and then settling in front of the TV to watch Mr Selfridge
and Call The Midwife.

D. Your Twitter profile states "Refuse to grow old gracefully". Is this still the plan?

C. I absolutely  refuse to grow old gracefully.  I will continue to
wear too much make up, bleach my hair and wear inappropriate clothes.
Age is a number  - in my heart I am still a teenager. 

D. One final question. What is next for Cheryl Baker?

C. After Happy Days, The Musical, I will be working with Mike and
Jay doing festivals and eighties gigs up and down the country and
abroad.  Hope to see some of you there.

D. Many thanks Cheryl. It has been a pleasure talking with you today.

C. Thank you.

To find out where Cheryl, Jay and Mike will be performing this year and much more, pay a visit to their official website at

http://www.formerlyofbucksfizz.co.uk/home-1.html

To see Cheryl in the fabulous Happy Days - The Musical, check the official website for venues and dates at http://happydaysthemusical.com/home 

And that folks is my Eurovision special. A massive thank you to Cheryl and the best of luck for all her future projects. Also, many thanks to Cheryl's PA Elaine for all her help and for putting up with my constant barrage of emails.

All that remains is my top 3 acts for this years contest. Those who almost made it include Finland, F.Y.R Macedonia, Israel, Italy and San Marino. Here's hoping it's 3rd time lucky for Valentina Monetta who so deserved to be in the final for San Marino last year.
The lucky 3 this year are:


1. Conchita Wurst with "Rise Like a Phoenix (Austria)
http://youtu.be/ToqNa0rqUtY
2. Axel Hirsoux with "Mother" (Belgium)
 http://youtu.be/DV1hdkqGINU
3. Ruth Lorenzo with "Dancing in  the Rain (Spain)
 http://youtu.be/P9R96ZoWJBU


Tune in to BBC One/BBC One HD 10th May for the contest live from Copenhagen, Denmark.


Until next time, I bid thee farewell.



Guilty Pleasure - Eurovision Special: The Final Instalment

Here it is folks, my final tribute to all things Eurovision and what better way to end this spectacular special than with my favourite two acts to come out of the competition.

Consisting of Cheryl Baker, Jay Aston, Mike Nolan and Bobby G, Bucks Fizz represented the UK in the 1981 contest with Making Your Mind Up and won.

How Bucks Fizz managed to win the competition is beyond me. The singing was off key, the dancing amateurish and let's not even go there on the costumes. Despite this blot in Eurovision history, I am awfully glad they did win. If not for the competition, they would not have gone on to have a very successful career.

I turned 14 in 1981 and Bucks Fizz were without a doubt my favourite band and remained so for many years.

They released many singles, with three of them reaching number one in the UK. They were also very successful throughout Europe and even as far afield as Australia.

Of all the albums Bucks Fizz released, my favourite is Hand Cut which was released in 1983.

The artwork alone was worth the price I paid. Of all their album sleeves, this to me is the one that is the most visually stunning.

The reason I love this one the most is down to one track alone. That track is "I'd Like to Say I Love You".
It is such a beautiful song and I cannot believe the record company did not feel it worthy of a single release.
I am sure it would have proved to be a massive hit for them if they had.

Bucks Fizz are still performing, though they are now two separate groups. They have not had a hit single or album for years. Personally I think their demise from the charts was due to over exposure in the early 80's (Rihanna take heed) which resulted in the fans turning away from their music.
I was not one of those fans and continued to buy and listen to their music.

Of all the tracks Bucks Fizz recorded I have chosen my favourite three and they are:

Number 1 - I'd Like to Say I Love You
Number 2 - Tears on the Ballroom Floor
Number 3 - Golden Days

Whilst I love Bucks Fizz as a group, Cheryl Baker has always been my favourite and it was a travesty that her one attempt at a solo pop career went unnoticed. She released a fantastic version of "If Paradise is Half as Nice" and it should have been a massive hit for her.
I think I was one of the few that bought it and I still own it along with all my other Bucks Fizz albums and cd's.

I have two Bucks Fizz related dreams. One is to meet the original members of the group. The other is to write a musical based around their songs. I already have an outline for it and who knows, one day it may just happen


And so to the act who joins Bucks Fizz as my favourite to come out of Eurovision and who else could it be but the amazing Abba.
Consisting of Agnetha Faltskog, Anni-frid Lynstag, Benny Andersonn and Bjorn Ulveaus, they represented Sweden in the 1974 contest and won with Waterloo.

Abba went on to become one of the most successful acts to ever come out of Eurovision and one of the most successful bands in the world.
Selling millions of singles and albums, they were Sweden's biggest export for years.They are famous throughout the world and have influenced many of today's artists with their music.
How anyone can not like Abba is a mystery to me. Their music is ridiculously good and can be enjoyed by any age.

Of course, they have a huge gay following but I do not love Abba because I am gay. To me, ones sexual orientation does not determine who you will like music wise. That is not what music is about. Music is how it makes you feel inside. With their music, Abba have the ability to make you feel happy, sad, excited and many other feelings.

Abba split up many years ago and that alone is proof of how good they are as their music still sells by the millions.
There is always talk of a reunion and I know that if a concert were to be announced, it would sell out in an instant. One can hope that maybe one day they will make that announcement.

Choosing my favourite three Abba tracks was a difficult task. There are just so many that I love. Nevertheless I have managed it and here they are:

Number 1 - The Winner Takes it All
Number 2 - Thank You for the Music

Number 3 - Happy New Year

There is only one word to describe this song and that word is "perfection".

So there is..my favourite two acts from the many years of the contest.

I hope you have enjoyed reading my Eurovision Special. I have absolutely adored writing it and looking back at the many highlights.

If you agree or disagree with my choices, please feel free to send me a message or maybe even a comment about my blog in general. If you really like the blog then pass the link onto your friends. Whilst my specials have been for all ages, some of my earlier blogs are a little on the rude side so please be cautious if you do pass the link on.

All that is left for me to say is tune in Saturday 26th for the 2012 Eurovision Contest from Baku and wherever you are in the world, I hope you enjoy the show.

Until next time, I bid thee farewell.