After veterans Bonnie Tyler and Englebert Humperdinck scored a measly 35 points between them in the last two Eurovision Song Contests, the UK is putting its faith in 27-year-old Molly Smitten-Downes for this year’s Eurovision Song Contest final (BBC1, Saturday, May 10).
The Leicestershire singer, who will be flying the flag in Copenhagen on Saturday with her own song, Children of the Universe, was a relative unknown until she was scouted by the BBC to represent the UK.
Can she become our first winner since Katrina and the Waves in 1997? TV&Satellite Week magazine asked her about her chances…
I’ve been involved in the music industry for years… I started out doing dance music, but now I’m focusing on the music I want to be making. The downside of that is I still have to pay the bills, so I was working in Topshop until February.
I had massive reservations about Eurovision… At first I didn’t think it was for me, but it became obvious they wanted this year’s entry to be something new. They didn’t want it to be a household name, but to be a platform for an undiscovered act. It’s then that I thought, ‘I’ve got to do this.’
I watched Eurovision all the time as a child… I remember learning the Gina G moves in the playground with my friends. Since I’ve said I’m doing it, the most unlikely people have come out as Eurovision fans. I think it’s a guilty pleasure for a lot of people.
I’d be gutted to get nul points… I’m not under the illusion that everybody will like the song, but as an artist you have to believe in what you’re doing, then you can take all the criticism.
I loved going on The Graham Norton Show… Hugh Jackman, Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy were on it, too, which was so surreal. It was my first big live TV show so I was quite nervous and they made me feel really comfortable. My boyfriend was a bit jealous, though. He had to stay at home and watch on TV.
I have an album coming out this year… Eurovision is a platform for me to be seen, but everything isn’t resting on me winning. I’m just looking forward to making more music and hopefully people will want to hear it.
