Eurovision 2013 - 14/16/18 May 2013

Can't agree more there. If they had one direction on there I think we would have a good chance of winning. They are very liked all over Europe.

No, the UK need to wise up and follow the route Sweden or even Denmark does every year. We all make a big song and dance about Eurovision, so why not do something along the lines Melodifestivalen.

That way we might get an actual decent artist that could do well....Could it be a case of the BBC are just putting anyone for it now because they don't want to host it?

I could see the Wembley Arena being the perfect venue for it....

The truth is, the modern Eurovision Song Contest that we have now would be much more at home on ITV and so would the selection process. Done in partnership with a record label (as per X Factor) there would be more of a vested interest in having a relevant and therefore successful entry.

Aren't all the experts saying that the problem is that they need decent songwriters, and that the mediocre song was what did it in for us?

Take Cascada for example who represented Germany, their Record Label is Zooland but also they are signed to the UK label All Around The World.

Why can't the UK labels like AATW or Ministry of Sound or even EMI, take some initiative and pit someone forward for it.

Because the BBC have made a mockery of the contest for years and it has zip all respect within the British music industry. Wogan would often criticise political voting for our failure in the contest when really he played a huge part in why we didn't take it seriously enough to win.

If ITV and Syco came up with a format, I'm sure we could once again come out fighting and actually admit that we want to win.

The amount the BBC pays to submit an entry is about £300,000. That's about half the cost of The X Factor final, or two 30 second advertising slots. Even so, they could possibly get Syco to subsidise the fee in return for the publicity our winner would get at Eurovision.

ITV is already an EBU member although its subscription fee is smaller than the BBC's by several hundred thousand pounds. Maybe it would have to pay extra to remain in the Big 5; I'm not sure whether that's based on the EBU subscription fee or the cost to enter. Still, relative small fry for a show that could bring huge audience numbers on both the final and the selection shows.

If we won it and had to host it, ITV could bring it in at a profit, especially considering the new, slimline contest and the commercial possibilities available of which the BBC cannot take advantage.

Are you using Germany as an example of a successful approach? Because they finished below the UK.

And what would a selection show do that isn't already being done by The X Factor and The Voice? When Andrew Lloyd Webber did it, everyone moaned the singers in the finals were crap and had been turned down by The X Factor - but that's because people would rather go on The X Factor. And rightly so, because unlike much of the rest of Europe, UK acts generally don't need Eurovision as a showcase.

The UK entry has never been credible. I remember Newsround doing a report on it back in 1991 when they interviewed Gary Davies (who as a daytime Radio 1 DJ at the time was pretty credible) and he said it was a waste of tiem and our entries were always rubbish. In 1984 five of the eight songs on A Song For Europe were written by the same person, so the problems with finding an artist and having a credibility have been there for years, even when we consistently successful in it.

And it hardly seems a problem anyway. The ratings are still very good and the British public aren't demanding we take it any more seriously.

No not using them as an example, but just stating a fact that Zooland are one of the biggest labels in Germany. What harm could it do for the big UK labels to send one of their artists over and compete in it?

That's hardly the point is it. The point is the labels aren't interested.

Did they moan that? From memory we had a good entry that year that had several 12 points and came 5th overall. However the only reason the BBC opted for the credible Andrew Lloyd Webber was to give him a vehicle in 2009, when he didn't have a musical to cast, so even then it was half assed.

So the following year the entry was written by Pete Waterman

Yes - and Jade Ewen was parachuted in very unsubtly towards the end...

That's the real issue. No UK label will let any of their main acts touch it with a bargepole. Our music industry doesn't need Eurovision to promote its acts across Europe. UK acts do well without out it. They have very little to gain and lots to lose...