How long has the Eurovision Song Contest being going

A.� The Eurovision Song Contest�will be in its�46^th year, when the faithful gather in Copenhagen on 12 May.

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Q.� How did it all start

A.� The idea of an international song contest was conceived in an effort to build some cultural bridges throughout Europe, which was still recovering from the effects of the war,�still a relatively recent memory at that time. The 'Eurovision' banner encompasses those countries who's output covers the designated European outlets, which explains why countries like Israel are included, although Israel is not part of Europe.

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Q.� It must have been a logistical nightmare to try and run something on that kind of scale!

A.� When you consider that satellite broadcasting was a distant dream, and video was in its infancy, the technical difficulties in linking the contestant countries via landlines must have been daunting indeed. The Eurovision organisers continued, and the Contest grew in size and popularity.

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Q.� Why is the Contest the butt of so many jokes

A.� A number of reasons. Not least of which is the simple realisation that songs and singers who command respectable audiences in their native countries can look and sound like something rejected by a holiday camp talent contest jury to our English eyes and ears. It's just differences in culture, underlined by the rarity with which foreign pop music gets an airing on UK television and radio. Add to that the lyrical variety that just asks to be lampooned, such as 'Binge bong, binge bong', which was the chorus of the French�entry in 1961, and you can see a rich vein of humour just begging to be mined by comedians everywhere.

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In fact, lyrics are almost always in English these days, always increasing the chances of keeping the British jury's interest, since foreign lyrics can fail to appeal. Out of 23 countries, only Spain, Portugal and Israel are singing exclusively in their native languages, everyone else is opting for the cross-border simplicity that the English language offers.

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Q.� Are we, the British, entitled to such a superior attitude

A.� Probably not. Anyone who wants to mock any of the European songs should remember that Abba, who at one time were so successful that they were the second biggest economic export from Sweden after Volvo cars, began by winning Eurovision. That tends to stop the sniggering getting out of hand.

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Q.� Has Eurovision provided any other mega-stars

A.� If you cast your mind back to Switzerland's winning entry in 1988, you'll see it was provided by one Celine Dion, and it's obviously done her career no harm at all. Lulu, one of British pop's most enduring�stars sang for England in 1969, with the satire-inspiring 'Boom Bang-A-Bang', and Cliff Richard seems to have found inspiration for a six-decade pop career from treading a similar career path.

Q.� Does Eurovision's history offer any other early career facts

A.� It does. The aforementioned Lulu entry was chosen over an early song from Elton John and Bernie Taupin, although it may well be that the duo are not too distressed that their writing career didn't follow the Eurovision path. Another song-writing team who were not to be dissuaded from persevering were Andersson and Ulveus, from Abba who's Ring Ring, was rejected as a Swedish entry in 1973.

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Q.� What makes a winning song

A.� The person who can answer that can write their own cheque, and that is all part of Eurovision's appeal. When you consider that Belgium can present a song called The Drowned Men Of The River Seine and come second with it, even if it was back in 1956, it's easy to see the open-ended criteria by which winners are chosen. Someone has analysed the winners and advised that fielding a young�lady with long blonde hair, singing a song in English in the middle of the running order is in with a higher chance than anyone else. Dana International, who won for Israel in 1998, is dark, and born a man, so maybe analysis of the form is always waiting to be confounded!

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Q.� What are England's chances this year

A.� Given the size and variety of the entries, that's a tall question. This year's entry No Dream Impossible�has been co-written by ex-Argent lead singer Russ Ballard who has a heavyweight reputation as a hit songwriter, but no one will actually stake a claim to the winner's crown in advance, there have been too many upsets in the past. England has won five times, a respectable total, eclipsed by Ireland, who can claim seven victories, two of them by the same singer, Johnny Logan, so as usual, it's anyone's Contest on the night.

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The Eurovision Song Contest is broadcast on worldwide television and radio on Saturday 12 May 2001 at 8.00 p.m. British time.

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