With the Eurovision finals just hours away, another performer is set to make history in the campest, most outlandish and arguably most entertaining singing competition in the world.
Australia’s own Jessica Mauboy is competing in the Eurovision final against singers from Sweden, the Netherlands, Ukraine, Denmark, Slovenia, Norway, Hungary, Serbia and Moldova in Portugal’s capital of Libson.
While viewers can expect plenty of sass, wild costumes, extravagant sets and wind machines, Starts at 60 thought it would be fun to look back at some of the weirdest, wackiest and wonderful performances from singers who have come before them.
Long before she was selling out arenas around the world and entertaining hundreds of concert-goers each night in Las Vegas, Celine Dion actually represented Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision song contest.
Even though she was born in Canada, her powerhouse vocals of French song ‘Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi’ proved a hit with voters and viewers watching all across the globe.
Two decades later in 2008, things took a rather comical turn when a puppet was chosen to represent Ireland at the song contest. Dustin the Turkey became somewhat of a cultural phenomenon and was the first puppet to ever to represent Ireland.
Dustin was a fan favourite, although he failed to secure enough votes to progress past the semi-final round. He remains one of the competition’s most memorable performances thanks to his Riverdance references and thick Irish accent.
Going back a few years, many forget iconic band ABBA have Eurovision to thank for their successful music career. The Swedish group stormed the stage with ‘Waterloo’, which went on to become one of their biggest hits. It also made them one of the biggest bands in the world.
It was the first time Sweden ever won the competition, but wasn’t the first time ABBA tried their hand at the competition. The previous year they entered the Melodifestivalen competition with ‘Ring Ring’ in an attempt to be sent to represent their country in Eurovision.
Ironically, Australian star Olivia Newton-John also competed in the 1974 Eurovision, representing the United Kingdom with ‘Long Live Love’.
One of the biggest surprises of Eurovision in recent times was the bearded lady Conchita Wurst. Representing Austria, audiences didn’t quite know what to make of Conchita, although her powerhouse vocals in ‘Rise Like a Phoenix’ were enough to win her the competition.
As camp as the competition is, Conchita is the only drag artist to ever have won the competition, with many countries actually threatening to boycott future contests and censor her performance.
Another colourful performance many remember is that of Bucks Fizz. The group from England brought some much-needed fun to the 1981 contest and actually won the competition with ‘Making Up Your Mind’.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFmU02QsmeE
Viewers were equally shocked and captivated when female members of the group had their skirts ripped off mid-performance, only to reveal even shorter skirts underneath. That became a cultural phenomenon, while the song itself sold four million copies worldwide.
While the competition is usually full of young twenty-somethings, a group of Russian grannies waved the over-60s flag high in 2012. Six ladies in the ethno-pop band Buranovskiye Babushki took the stage in Baku with a truly memorable performance.
The women came second with their hit, ‘Party For Everybody’. Controversially, the band actually consisted of eight women, but two weren’t allowed to take to the stage due to contest rules.