United Kingdom: BBC joins forces with BMG for Eurovision 2020
The British national broadcaster, BBC, has confirmed its presence in the forthcoming Eurovision Song Contest next May at Rotterdam in The Netherlands.
BBC as ESCToday is reporting will be joining the party in the next edition of Eurovision in Rotterdam and revealed that it will be joining forces with company BMG in order to determine the next Eurovision act and entry.
Rotterdam 2020 🇳🇱Today we are pleased to announce our collaboration with record company BMG for next year’s @Eurovision! Find out more here 👉https://t.co/HXsFBNSe8Y 🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/Wh4I5de5f1
— BBC Eurovision🇬🇧 (@bbceurovision) 16 Σεπτεμβρίου 2019
Kate Phillips (Controller Entertainment Commissioning for the BBC) says:
Our commitment to finding the right song has never been higher and this collaboration with BMG, who have access to world class songwriters, is a genuinely exciting prospect and I am certain that together we can find the best song and artist possible for 2020.
On the other hand the President, Repertoire & Marketing UK for BMG , Alistair Norbury ,stated on the new colloboration with BBC on the Eurovision project:
Eurovision is the biggest television showcase for music in the world and it’s an honour to be selected to help choose the UK’s entry at Rotterdam 2020. Eurovision plays to our strength as the only fully-integrated publishing company and record label. We can’t wait to get started working with the BBC to give it the best possible shot we can.
THE STORY SO FAR
The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest for the first time in 1957 and has been crowned winner five times (1967, 1969, 1975, 1981, 1997). The UK holds the record of finishing in the 2nd place the most times than every other country in the contest, specifically 15 times. Although big names of the music scene have represented the country in the past ( Sandie Shaw, Olivia Newton John, Lulu, Buckz Fizz, Brotherhod of Man, Cliff Richard, Sonia, Gina G, Bonny Tyler and many more) in the latest years its results are rather disappointing for a country with such a big share in the international music industry.
In the latest years, UK followed the same formula of national selection in 2016 to select Joe and Jake who finished 24th. In 2017 through the same process Lucie Jones was decided to represent the UK ending in the final 15th while last year Eurovision You Decide 2018 winner, SuRie finished in the 24th place in the grand final.
This year Michael Rice won the national selection Eurovision You Decide 2019 and represented the British colours in Tel Aviv with his entry Bigger than Us, but scored another disappointing result for the Uk as he finished last in the Grand final.
