United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1959
The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 1959. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) organised a national final to select the United Kingdom's entry for the contest. The song selected was "Sing, Little Birdie", performed by Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson. The song placed second in the contest, at the time the United Kingdom's best result in the competition, and remained so until their first victory in 1967.
| Eurovision Song Contest 1959 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country |  United Kingdom | |||
| National selection | ||||
| Selection process | Eurovision Song Contest British Final | |||
| Selection date(s) | Semi-finals 2 February 1959 5 February 1959 Final 7 February 1959 | |||
| Selected entrant | Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson | |||
| Selected song | "Sing, Little Birdie" | |||
| Selected songwriter(s) |
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| Finals performance | ||||
| Final result | 2nd, 16 points | |||
| United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest | ||||
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Before Eurovision
Prior to the 1959 contest, the United Kingdom had participated in the contest once, in 1957, represented by Patricia Bredin with the song "All". The song placed 7th in a field of 10 entries.[1] The country declined to take part in the inaugural contest in 1956, as the BBC had created their own contest, the Festival of British Popular Songs, aspects of which influenced the 1957 contest. The BBC initially intended to participate in 1958, but ultimately withdrew.[2]
Eurovision Song Contest British Final
The Eurovision Song Contest British Final was a national final organised by the BBC to select the United Kingdom's entry for the contest. The selection consisted of two semi-finals held on 2 February and 5 February 1959, and a final held on 7 February 1959, broadcast on BBC Television and presented by Pete Murray.[3]
The songs were scored by seven 14-member regional juries representing the South of England, the Midlands, Northern England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and the West of England.
Competing entries
Twelve entries were shortlisted by the BBC for the contest. "I'll Be With You" was originally scheduled to be performed by Alma Cogan, but was replaced by Marion Keene.
| Artist | Song | Songwriter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Don Rennie | "How Could I Know" | Tommy Sampson, Barbara Nelson |
| Glen Mason | "Suddenly" | Michael Pratt |
| John Hanson | "Success" | Ralph Ruvin, Harold Irving, Dick James |
| Lester Ferguson | "This I Will Tell My Son" | Terry & Irene Roper |
| Lita Roza | "This Is My Town" | John S Rossiter, Harold Cornelius, Dominic John, Bob Halfin |
| Marion Keene | "I'll Be With You" | Lee Lennox |
| Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson | "Sing Little Birdie" | Stan Butcher, Syd Cordell |
| Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson | "That's It, That's Love" | Sam Johnson |
| Rosemary Squires | "Cha Cha Chocola" | Max Francis, Bill Craig |
| Sheila Buxton | "Love Me, Love Me" | Norman Percival |
| Steve Martin | "One Lonely Heart" | Peter Callander, Dick James |
| Valerie Shane | "Oh, Oh, Reckon I Must Be In Love" | Michael Pratt |
Semi-final 1
Semi-final 1 was held on 2 February 1959. The highlighted songs qualified for the final.[3]
| Semi-final 1 – 2 February 1959 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Result |
| 1 | Sheila Buxton | "Love Me, Love Me" | Eliminated |
| 2 | Steve Martin | "One Lonely Heart" | Advanced |
| 3 | Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson | "Sing, Little Birdie" | Advanced |
| 4 | Don Rennie | "How Could I Know" | Eliminated |
| 5 | Glen Mason | "Suddenly" | Advanced |
| 6 | Marion Keene | "I'll Be With You" | Eliminated |
Semi-final 2
Semi-final 2 was held on 5 February 1959. The highlighted songs qualified for the final.[3]
| Semi-final 2 – 5 February 1959 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Result |
| 1 | Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson | "That's It, That's Love" | Eliminated |
| 2 | John Hanson | "Success" | Advanced |
| 3 | Rosemary Squires | "Cha Cha Chocola" | Eliminated |
| 4 | Lester Ferguson | "This I Will Tell My Son" | Eliminated |
| 5 | Valerie Shane | "Oh, Oh, Reckon I Must Be In Love" | Advanced |
| 6 | Lita Roza | "This Is My Town" | Advanced |
Final
The final was held on 7 February 1959 at 19:30 GMT.[3]
| Final – 7 February 1959 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Place |
| 1 | Valerie Shane | "Oh, Oh, Reckon I Must Be In Love" | — |
| 2 | Steve Martin | "One Lonely Heart" | 4 |
| 3 | Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson | "Sing Little Birdie" | 1 |
| 4 | John Hanson | "Success" | — |
| 5 | Glen Mason | "Suddenly" | 3 |
| 6 | Lita Roza | "This Is My Town" | 2 |
At Eurovision
In the final, Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson performed tenth in the running order, following Austria and preceding Belgium. At the close of the voting "Sing Little Birdie" had received 16 points, placing United Kingdom 2nd in a field of 11 entries. The British jury awarded 5 of its 10 points to Switzerland.[4]
Points awarded to the United Kingdom
| 10 points | 9 points | 8 points | 7 points | 6 points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 points | 4 points | 3 points | 2 points | 1 point |
Points awarded by the United Kingdom
| 10 points | |
| 9 points | |
| 8 points | |
| 7 points | |
| 6 points | |
| 5 points |  Switzerland |
| 4 points | |
| 3 points | |
| 2 points | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Belgium Denmark |
| 1 point |  Netherlands |
References
- "Final of Frankfurt 1957 - Eurovision Song Contest". eurovision.tv. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- "Shining a light on the United Kingdom: 60 Years at Eurovision". eurovision.tv. 11 January 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- "Eurovision Song Contest of 1959: British Final". songs4europe.com. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- ESC History - United Kingdom 1959
- "Results of the Final of Cannes 1959 - Eurovision Song Contest". eurovision.tv. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
External links
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Note: Entries scored out are when the United Kingdom did not compete | |||||||||||||||||||||