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United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986

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Eurovision Song Contest 1986
Participating broadcasterBritish Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
Country United Kingdom
National selection
Selection processA Song for Europe 1986
Selection date(s)2 April 1986
Selected artist(s)Ryder
Selected song"Runner in the Night"
Selected songwriter(s)
Finals performance
Final result7th, 72 points
United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄1985 1986 1987►

The United Kingdom was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1986 with the song "Runner in the Night", composed by Brian Wade, with lyrics by Maureen Darbyshire, and performed by the group Ryder. The British participating broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), selected its entry through a national final.

Before Eurovision

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A Song for Europe 1986

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The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) held the national final, A Song for Europe 1986, on 2 April 1986 at Studio 1 of the BBC Television Centre in London, hosted by Terry Wogan. The BBC Concert Orchestra under the direction of Ronnie Hazlehurst as conductor accompanied all but the winning song, but despite performing live, the orchestra were off-screen, behind the set. The rule introduced for 1984 prohibiting groups or 'made for Eurovision' acts from participating was rescinded. In total, 335 entries where received, and reduced tot the final eight by a variety of music industry experts.

Lead singer of the group 'Palace' was Michael Palace, previously known as Dan Duskey. Duskey had represented Ireland in 1982 as one of 'The Duskeys' and thus became the first Eurovision artist to have taken part in the contest for another country, before attempting to represent the UK. The group 'Jump' were led by Peter Beckett and David Ian. Beckett had taken part in the previous A Song for Europe 1985 and Ian had been a member of the group 'First Division' in 1984, as David Lane. 'Jump's' song was written by perennial UK songwriter Paul Curtis, his 19th UK finalist.

The show was opened by 1985's Eurovision winners, Bobbysocks, who sang "Let It Swing", the English-language version of their winning song "La det swinge". They were joined onstage by a large number of backing dancers, choreographed by Anthony van Laast. The duo were also going to sing their brand new single "Waiting for the Morning", but the producers finally decided to cancel that part of the plan and instead, the two members of the group were interviewed by Terry Wogan during the interval.

The result was determined by 11 regional juries located in Leeds, Newcastle, Plymouth, Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Belfast, Glasgow, London, Norwich and Bristol. Each jury region awarded 15, 12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, and 5 points to the songs. The scoreboard, due to a technical issue, was incorrectly adjusted during the broadcast and the final tallies shown on screen did not correspond with the scores announced on air.

The winning entry was "Runner in the Night", performed by the sextet Ryder, composed by Brian Wade, with lyrics written by Maureen Darbyshire.

A Song for Europe 1986 – 2 April 1986[1]
Draw Artist Song Songwriter(s) Points Place
1 Vanity Fare "Dreamer" Valerie Murtagh Avon 99 3
2 Palace "Dancing with You Again" Peter Mason 91 4
3 Colin Heywood "No Easy Way to Love" Tony Hiller, Stewart James, Bradley James 80 6
4 Chad Brown "I'm Sorry" Paul Griggs 78 7
5 Kenny Charles "Tongue-Tied" Jimmy Scott 86 5
6 Ryder "Runner in the Night" Brian Wade, Maureen Darbyshire 145 1
7 Jump "Don't Hang Up on Love" Paul Curtis, Graham Sacher 137 2
8 Future "War of the Roses" Gary Osborne, Johnny Warman 76 8
Detailed Jury Votes[1]
Draw Song
Birmingham
Manchester
Bristol
Norwich
Newcastle
Cardiff
London
Leeds
Glasgow
Plymouth
Belfast
Total
1 "Dreamer" 6 12 5 6 10 12 7 9 15 10 7 99
2 "Dancing with You Again" 5 7 6 7 6 7 15 10 9 9 10 91
3 "No Easy Way to Love" 7 6 7 9 9 8 5 7 7 6 9 80
4 "I'm Sorry" 8 9 8 8 8 5 6 6 5 7 8 78
5 "Tongue-Tied" 9 8 10 10 7 6 8 8 6 8 6 86
6 "Runner in the Night" 15 15 15 15 12 10 12 12 12 15 12 145
7 "Don't Hang Up on Love" 12 10 12 12 15 15 9 15 10 12 15 137
8 "War of the Roses" 10 5 9 5 5 9 10 5 8 5 5 76
Jury Spokespersons[1]
Jury Spokesperson
Birmingham Paul Coia
Manchester John Mundy
Bristol Angela Rippon
Norwich David Clayton
Newcastle Mike Neville
Cardiff Maureen Staffer
London Colin Berry
Leeds Linda Dryburgh-Smith
Glasgow Dougie Donnelly
Plymouth Christopher Slade
Belfast Rose Neill

UK Discography

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  • Vanity Fare - Dreamer: Polydor POSP789.
  • Palace - Dancing with You Again: Roxy! TEASE1.
  • Colin Heywood - No Easy Way to Love: Spartan SP135.
  • Chad Brown - I'm Sorry: Arista/Bonaire BON2.
  • Kenny Charles - Tongue-Tied: MCA MCA1044 (7" Single)/MCAT1044 (12" Single).
  • Ryder - Runner in the Night: Virgin/10 TEN1.
  • Jump - Don't Hang Up On Love: Magnet MAG293.
  • Future - War Of The Roses: Virgin/10 TEN119.

At Eurovision

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Ryder performed fifth on the night of the Contest, following Norway and preceding Iceland. At the close of the voting the song had received 72 points, placing 7th in a field of 20 competing countries.[2]

Terry Wogan once again provided the television commentary on BBC 1. BBC Radio 2 also returned broadcasting the contest, with commentary provided by Ray Moore. The BBC appointed Colin Berry as its spokesperson to announce the result of the British jury.

The members of the UK jury included Mr. T Abraham, Mr. A Brown, Miss M Chapman, David Elder, Mrs. M Heathcote, Mr. P Jenkinson, Sue Lloyd, Mrs. T O'Shea, Quentin Smith, Gary Speirs and Miss C White.[3]

Voting

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Roxburgh, Gordon (2016). Songs for Europe: The United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest. Volume Three: The 1980s. Prestatyn: Telos Publishing. pp. 240–262. ISBN 978-1-84583-118-9.
  2. ^ "Final of Bergen 1986". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 16 April 2021. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  3. ^ Roxburgh, Gordon (2017). Songs For Europe - The United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest. Volume Three: The 1980s. UK: Telos Publishing. pp. 265–276. ISBN 978-1-84583-118-9.
  4. ^ a b "Results of the Final of Bergen 1986". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 16 April 2021. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
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