New York, NY (Top40 Charts) With the 65th Eurovision Song Contest final fast approaching this weekend (22 May 2021), PRS for
Music has revealed a chart of the Most Played Eurovision UK Entries.
Topping the chart is 1996 entry Ooh Aah…Just a
Little Bit, performed by Gina G.
This year marks 25 years since the Australian-born singer was chosen to represent the United Kingdom, when the 90s high energy Euro-pop tune placed eighth at the 41st Eurovision Song Contest. While it missed out on victory in the grand finale, its impact across the globe highlights why, a quarter of a century on, we still can't get enough of this British guilty pleasure.
Last year, Ooh Aah…Just A
Little Bit received 478,636 seconds (or 5.5 continuous days) of UK radio and TV airtime, proving to be an enduring favourite with the British public, earning its place at the top of the PRS Most Played Eurovision UK Entries Chart.
Written by PRS for
Music members Steve Rodway and
Simon Taube, Ooh Aah…Just a
Little Bit spent 27 weeks in the UK Official Singles Chart, peaking at Number 1. International commercial success followed and across the Atlantic it spent 30 weeks on Billboard's Hot 100, earning
Gina G a GRAMMY nomination in 1997 for Best Dance Recording.
Based on data provided by PRS for Music, the organisation which represents the rights of over 155,500 songwriters, composers and music publishers, the chart lists the 20 most played United Kingdom Eurovision entries broadcast across UK radio stations and TV channels in 2020.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Eurovision Song Contest was cancelled in 2020. Embracing the Eurovision spirit however, the British public still backed singer-songwriter
James Newman's entry, My Last Breath, which places second on the PRS Most Played Eurovision UK Entries Chart. My Last Breath was written by Newman alongside acclaimed British songwriters Adam Argyle, Ed Drewett and Iain James.
James co-wrote the winning song for Azerbaijan, Running Scared performed by Ell & Nikki, at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2011. Newman is also a featured songwriter on BRIT Award-winning hit Waiting All Night, performed by
Rudimental featuring Ella Eyre.
James Newman will return this year as the United Kingdom's hopeful Eurovision entry, with his newly penned hit, Embers. The track was co-written alongside some of the UK's most sought-after songwriters and producers Samuel Brennan, Tom Hollings, Conor Manning and
Danny Shah.
Also featured in the PRS Most Played Eurovision UK Entries Chart is 1981's winning song, Making your Mind Up, composed by John Danter and Nigel Hill and performed by Bucks Fizz. Formed especially for the Eurovision Song Contest, Bucks Fizz created one of the most memorable moments in Eurovision history with that famous on-stage costume transformation.
1967 Eurovision winner Puppet on a String, performed by Sandie Shaw, and 1968 entry Congratulations, performed by Cliff Richard, also appear in the PRS Most Played Eurovision UK Entries Chart. Written by PRS for
Music member Bill Martin, who sadly passed away in 2020, both songs were co-written with Martin's longstanding writing partner, Phil Coulter.
Sixty-five years on, the Eurovision Song Content continues to divide the nation. Love it or hate it, its entertainment value and ability to mint certified pop classics can't be denied. The PRS Most Played Eurovision UK Entries Chart is testament to the brilliance of British songwriting and performance. In the contest's long history, only once has the United Kingdom had to finish with 'nul points'.
PRS Most Played Eurovision UK Entries Chart:
1 Ooh Aah... Just a
Little Bit
Gina G 1996
2 My Last Breath
James Newman 2020
3 Making Your Mind Up Bucks Fizz 1981
4 Save Your Kisses for Me Brotherhood of Man 1976
5 Love
Shine a Light Katrina and the Waves 1997
6 Beg, Steal or Borrow The
New Seekers 1972
7 Congratulations
Cliff Richard 1968
8 Love City Groove Love City Groove 1995
9 Puppet on a String Sandie Shaw 1967
10 Boom Bang-a-Bang Lulu 1969
11 Power to All Our
Friends Cliff Richard 1973
12 One Step Further Bardo 1982
13 Rock Bottom Lynsey de Paul and Mike Moran 1977
14 Flying the Flag (for You)
Scooch 2007
15 Say It Again Precious 1999
16 Are You Sure? The Allisons 1961
17 Bigger than Us Michael Rice 2019
18 Knock, Knock Who's There? Mary Hopkin 1970
19 Where Are You? Imaani 1998
20
Storm SuRie 2018
NB: Chart rank based on UK TV and radio broadcast data provided by PRS for
Music for the period 1 January 2020 - 31 December 2020
