Eurovision Song Contest / Editor / 13 May 2009 / Leave a comment

In preparation for Betfair's Abba World Record on 14th May, we discuss what makes Eurovision one of the biggest and best spectacles of the year...

Everything you need to know about Eurovision

Switzerland hosted the first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956.

This year there are 42 contestants, singing in 16 languages - some entries such as "There must be another way" from Israel being sung in Hebrew, Arabic and English.

Some 105 million people watch the Eurovision Song Contest which is about the same number as watch the Superbowl Final (watched by nine million Brits last year).

8.8 million people voted last year by phone or SMS.

The Youngest ever winner was Belgian Sandra Kin who was 13 when she won in 1986 singing J'ai quinze answhich means I am 15 !?

Six different systems were used over the past decades to pick the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest

UK and Ireland facts

The United Kingdom wanted to compete in the first song contest in 1956, but they were too late. By the time they finished their national final, the candidate should have been in Lugano already
Lulu kicked off her career by winning in 1969 with Boom Bang a Bang.

Austria have given the UK the most points in the competitions history

The UK has won five times but has come second an amazing 15 times, come last twice (2003 and 2008).

The United Kingdom boasts the most-successful Eurovision song: the 1997 entry Love Shine a Light scored 227 points out of a possible total of 288, including maximum 12 points from 10 countries. This is a record scoring percentage still held to this day.

UK has only ever scored nil points once

Terry Wogan, who hosted the show between 1980 and 2008, has now been replaced by Graham Norton.

The 1988 UK entry Go, performed by Scott Fitzgerald, was written by Bruce Forsyth's daughter. It came second by a single point on the final vote to Celine Dion, who was representing Switzerland.

In 1968 UK accused Spain of not voting for Cliff Richard's "Congratulations" in order to make it lose.

Cliff Richard has competed not once, but twice, finishing in second and third place in the 1968 and 1973 contests.

Most winning songs were performed in English - songs (mostly) in English won 22 times. French is also popular, with 14 victories.

Ireland have won the contest seven times including four out of five years 1992-1996 (coming second in 1997!).

Other nations info

Italy boycotted the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest saying it was too old fashioned.

France decided not to participate in 1974 due to the death of President Pompidou. They boycotted the 1982 Final saying costs were too high and in 1989 entered an 11- year-old-boy.

German songwriter and composer Ralph Siegel took part 18 times, often together with Bernd Meinunger.

Norway, in 1978, became the first country not to receive a single vote for Mile after Mile. They entered a song about the construction of a hydro-electric power station in 1980 and have scored nul points three times.

Finland wrote a song about a nuclear power station in 1982 = no points

Sweden entered Waterloo in 1974 - arguably most famous song to have come out of the Eurovision Song Contest.

Finnish death metal group Lordi grunted their way through Hard Rock Hallelujah in monster masks to win the 2006 contest. They broke the point scoring record with 292 votes.

Spain's cleverly titled La La La contained no fewer than 138 la's! In 1970 crooner Julio Iglesias represented Spain with 'Gwendolyn' (Losing to Dana's "All Kind of Everything"). 1983 entrant "Opera" consisted entirely of the word opera repeated over and over!

Greek icon Nana Mouskouri represented Luxembourg in 1963 whilst Celine Dion represented Switzerland in 1988.

Greece and Cyprus have given each other top points more than any other neighbouring countries.

Most interesting names for songs:

Boom Bang-a-Bang UK 1969
A ba ni Ba Israel 1978
Bana Bana Turkey 1989