When Eurovision came to Harrogate in 1982

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Transcript

00:00It's more than 40 years since the Eurovision Song Contest came to Harrogate in 1982,

00:05when it was hosted at the newly built Harrogate International Centre.

00:10There were a couple of big names missing that year, with France and Greece both withdrawing.

00:16France declined to enter well in advance with a spokesperson,

00:18promoting the absence of talent and the mediocrity of the songs,

00:22and memorably branding the competition a monument to insanity.

00:25Greece pulled out a few weeks before the contest, with the country's culture minister

00:31reportedly claiming the chosen entry was lacking in quality.

00:39The decision to choose Harrogate did raise a few eyebrows, as it was relatively unknown outside the UK,

00:45although some people thought it was a good opportunity to shine a spotlight on a lesser known area.

00:51The size of the venue also didn't help persuade the doubters.

00:55With one person commenting on how tiny the space was for such a big event.

01:00The show opened with a map of Europe and the words,

01:02Where is Harrogate? translated by viewers around the continent,

01:05before a video outlined a town's charm to a national audience.

01:13The UK won the right to host the event after Bucks Fizz won the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest with

01:18Making Your Mind Up.

01:19One step further, performed by Bardo, consisting of Sally Ann Triplett and Stephen Fisher,

01:31failed to live up to expectations sadly, finishing in a disappointing 7th place despite receiving 12 points from Luxembourg in Austria.

01:39Germany stormed to victory for the first time, with 18-year-old Nicole receiving 161 points,

01:4761 more on second place to Israel, with her song A Little Peace, which ended up going to the top of the UK chart.

01:54Despite failing to win over Eurovision Judges, one step further did make it to number two in the UK,

02:01and Sally Ann Triplett, who is one half of Bardo, described the experience as extraordinary,

02:06and said she still has a real soft spot of Harrogate.