Ireland was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "We've Got the World", written by Martin Brannigan and Keith Molloy, and performed by Mickey Harte. The Irish participating broadcaster, (RTÉ), organised the competition You're a Star in order to select its entry for the contest. The broadcaster returned to the contest after a one-year absence following their relegation in as one of the bottom six entrants in . The competition consisted of 20 shows and concluded with a final, resulting in the selection of "We've Got the World" performed by Mickey Joe Harte as the Irish Eurovision entry after facing a public televote.
Ireland competed in the Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 24 May 2003. Performing during the show in position 3, Ireland placed eleventh out of the 26 participating countries, scoring 53 points.
Background
Prior to the 2003 contest, (RÉ) until 1966, and (RTÉ) since 1967, had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest representing Ireland thirty-six times since RÉ's first entry in . They have won the contest a record seven times in total. Their first win came in , with "All Kinds of Everything" performed by Dana. Ireland holds the record for being the only country to win the contest three times in a row (in , , and ), as well as having the only three-time winner (Johnny Logan, who won in as a singer, as a singer-songwriter, and again in 1992 as a songwriter). In , "Without Your Love" performed by Gary O'Shaughnessy placed twenty-first.
As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, RTÉ organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. The broadcaster has consistently used a national final procedure to choose its entry at the contest, with several artists and songs being featured. RTÉ confirmed its intentions to participate at the 2003 contest on 2 September 2002. For the 2003 contest, the broadcaster announced alongside its participation that both the song and performer for the contest would be selected via the talent contest You're a Star.
Before Eurovision You're a Star
RTÉ selected its entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 through the first season of the music competition series You're a Star, which was developed by RTÉ and co-produced with ShinAwil Productions. The shows took place in the Mahoney Hall of the Helix in the Dublin City University (DCU), hosted by Ray D'Arcy and featured a judging panel composed of composer and musician Phil Coulter, television personality and former member of Atomic Kitten Kerry Katona, music publicist Darren Smith and music manager Louis Walsh. The competition consisted of 20 shows, which commenced on 3 November 2002 and concluded on 8 March 2003. All shows in the competition were broadcast on RTÉ One.
The competition took place over two phases. The first phase involved over 5,000 candidates attending auditions held across Ireland in Dún Laoghaire, Belfast, Dundalk, Cork, Killarney, Kilkenny, Galway, Derry, and South Dublin. The first ten shows showcased the auditions and selected a total of 13 contestants to go forward to the next stage in the competition. Nine of the contestants were selected following a public televote (one per audition city) with the remaining four selected by the judging panel (one per judge). The second phase was the ten live shows where the results of all shows were determined solely by a public televote; the judging panel participated in an advisory role only. Following the seventh show, the four contestants remaining in the competition were matched with a potential Eurovision Song Contest song selected by two of the competition judges Phil Coulter and Louis Walsh from entries received through established composers approached by RTÉ. The public televote that took place in both phases was conducted through telephone and SMS.
+Competing songsSongSongwriter(s)"A Better Plan"Brian McFadden"I Couldn't Love You More"Ronan Keating, Callum MacColl, Brian Kennedy"I'll Still Be Right Here"Louise Wallace"We've Got the World"Martin Brannigan, Keith Molloy Results summary Colour key – Contestant received the most public votes – Contestant received the fewest public votes and was eliminated Contestant Show 1 Show 2 Show 3 Show 4 Show 5 Show 6 Show 7 Show 8 Show 9 Show 10(Final)Mickey Harte 3rd2nd2nd2nd1st2nd1st1st1stSimon Casey 2nd1st1st1st2nd1st2nd2nd2ndMichael Leonard3rd 6th4th3rd5th4th3rd3rdEliminated(Show 9)Lisa Bresnan1st 4th3rd4th3rd3rd4thEliminated(Show 8)Brian Ormond 1st3rd5th6th4th5th/6thEliminated(Show 7)Shauna and Caoimhe McElhinney2nd 7th8th5th6th5th/6thEliminated(Show 7)Sarah Brophy4th 9th7th7th7thEliminated(Show 6)Susan McFadden 4th5th6th8thEliminated(Show 5)Joanne Fahy 5th8th9thEliminated(Show 4)Azi Jegbefume6th 10th/11thEliminated(Show 3)Catherine Yore5th 10th/11thEliminated(Show 3)Susan McGowan 6thEliminated(Show 2)Catriona McGinty7thEliminated(Show 1)
Audition shows + Audition Show 1: South Dublin – 3 November 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Roisin Cooper 18 Bailieboro, County Cavan "More Than a Woman" 2 Rosemarie Farrell 17 Dunboyne, County Meath "Angel" 3 Azi Jegbefume 18 Tallaght, Dublin 24 "My Love is Your Love" Advanced 4 Niall Whelehan 17 Newbridge, County Kildare "In My Place" 5 Alan Foran 20 Dundalk, County Louth "Escape" 6 Dee Daly 21 Donnycarney, Dublin 5 "A Woman's Worth" 7 Joe Kiernan 22 Gorey, County Wexford "True Companion" 8 Brian Pemberton 18 Tallaght, Dublin 24 "Wonderful Tonight" + Audition Show 2: Belfast – 10 November 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Rachel Hogg 19 Letterkenny, County Donegal "It Must Have Been Love" 2 Michelle Howard 16 Coleraine, County Londonderry "What Can I Do" 3 Paul Lau 17 Cushendall, County Antrim "All I Want Is You" 4 Chris Woods 19 Portrush, County Antrim "Desperado" 5 Jill & Dawn Petticrew Both 25 Belfast "Take a Chance on Me" 6 Marion Kelly 18 Moyross, County Limerick "Wind Beneath My Wings" 7 Michael Leonard 22 Belcoo, County Fermanagh "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" Advanced 8 Terry Keeley 16 Belfast "When You Say Nothing at All" + Audition Show 3: Dundalk – 17 November 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Nicola Cassidy 19 Drogheda, County Louth "River Deep, Mountain High" 2 Siobhan McDonnell 16 Dundalk, County Louth "Songbird" 3 Aoife Blake Bray, County Wicklow "Son of a Preacher Man" 4 Sharon O'Hanlon 25 Finglas, County Dublin "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" 5 Emma Jenkinson 17 Tandragee, County Armagh "Walking in Memphis" 6 Heather Lynas 16 Dundonald, County Down "Show Me Heaven" 7 Catherine Yore 17 Kells, County Meath "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" Advanced 8 Julie Cunnane 17 Dundalk, County Louth "Like a Prayer" + Audition Show 4: Cork – 24 November 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Serena Lee 16 County Cork "I Turn to You" 2 Colin Melsop 20 Carrigaline, County Cork "I Can't Make You Love Me" 3 Sarah Brophy 18 Bandon, County Cork "I Say a Little Prayer" Advanced 4 Leonne Mulryan 17 Cork, County Cork "Fields of Gold" 5 Greg Ryan 18 Prospect, County Limerick "Flying Without Wings" 6 Donna Keohan 18 County Waterford "How Do I Live" 7 Rebecca O'Connor 27 Cobh, County Cork "Ain't No Sunshine" 8 Karl Fradgley 25 Douglas Street, County Cork "I Can't Make You Love Me" + Audition Show 5: Kilkenny – 1 December 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Natasha Croghan 16 County Roscommon "Get Here" 2 Jason Paul Ryan 24 Liverpool "American Pie" 3 Trevor O'Neill 23 County Kilkenny "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" 4 Ellen Cosgrove 17 Donnybrook, Dublin "Ain't No Sunshine" 5 Sharon Malloy 28 Castlecomer, County Kilkenny "Over the Rainbow" 6 Chris Doran 22 Waterford, County Waterford "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" 7 Shauna and Caoimhe McElhinney Both 16 County Cork "I Know Him So Well" Advanced 8 Katrina Lee 16 Belfast "When I Fall in Love" + Audition Show 6: Galway – 8 December 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Frank Naughton 30 Galway City, County Galway "This Is the Moment" 2 Chris Farragher 22 County Mayo "Just Looking" 3 Sandi McCash 23 Galway, County Galway "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" 4 Adrian Kenny 23 Mayfield, County Cork "Unchained Melody" 5 Susan McGowan 19 Athlone, County Westmeath "Hot Stuff" Advanced 6 Susan Sheahan 18 Mallow, County Cork "I Hope You Dance" 7 Lisa Bresnan 22 Limerick, Co. Limerick "Thank U" 8 David Moore 16 Dublin "Dancing in the Moonlight" + Audition Show 7: Derry – 15 December 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Marie-Threse Martin 17 Derry City, County Londonderry "I Hope That I Don't Fall in Love with You" 2 Gavin Quinn 21 Cookstown, County Tyrone "The River" 3 Leonna Lees 24 Magherafelt, County Londonderry "Black Is the Colour" 4 4D (Paul Donaghy, Andrew Donaghy, Aidan Donaghy & Martin Delaney) Dungannon, County Tyrone "Full Force Gale" 5 Eoin O'Callaghan 23 Derry City, County Londonderry "Let It Be" 6 Justin McGurk 28 Cookstown, County Tyrone "Superman (It's Not Easy)" 7 Catriona McGinty 26 Strabane, County Tyrone "Heartache Tonight" 8 Mickey Harte 29 Lifford, County Donegal "I Won't Back Down" Advanced + Audition Show 8: Kilarney – 22 December 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Una O'Riordan 21 Kanturk, County Cork "Love, Me" 2 Rosaleen Herlihy 25 Cork, County Cork "Secret Love" 3 Derek McMahon 26 Sixmilebridge, County Clare "Endless Love" 4 Catraoine Hickey 16 Cork, County Cork "Fallin'" 5 Kelly Hunter 18 County Cork "Any Man of Mine" 6 Fiona O'Neill 18 County Kerry "You Raise Me Up" 7 Joanne Fahy 20 Croom, County Limerick "Breathless" Advanced 8 Steve Martyn 31 Navan, County Meath "All Rise" + Audition Show 9: North Dublin – 29 December 2002 Artist Age From Song Result 1 Sarah Corcoran 17 Galway, County Galway "Sunny Afternoon" 2 Cara McDowell 28 County Dublin "Baby Now That I've Found You" 3 Brenda Dunican 23 County Offaly "No Frontiers" 4 V10 (Marc O'Neill and Shane Butler) "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" 5 Sinead Hand 18 County Dublin "Mama Said" 6 Simon Casey 23 County Offaly "Right Here Waiting" Advanced 7 Brian Ormond 23 Clondalkin, County Dublin "Mandy" 8 Susan McFadden 19 Dublin "Flashdance... What a Feeling" + The Story So Far – 5 January 2003 Judge Choice Darren Smith Lisa Bresnan Phil Coulter Catriona McGinty Louis Walsh Brian Ormond Kerry McFadden Susan McFadden
Live shows The ten live shows took place between 5 January and 8 March 2003. The first seven shows featured various themes: free choice for the first three shows, Irish rock songs for the fourth show, Irish folk/traditional songs for the fifth show, love songs for the sixth show and American songs for the seventh show. Either one or two contestants were eliminated in each of the seven shows. The four remaining contestants each performed their candidate Eurovision songs starting from the eighth show and one contestant was eliminated during each of the eighth and ninth shows. "We've Got the World" performed by Mickey Harte was selected as the winner following the final show and announced the day after on 9 March 2003. 1.3 million televotes were cast during the final show.
+ Show 1 – 12 January 2003 Artist Song Place Result 1 Shauna and Caoimhe McElhinney "I Know Him So Well" 2Advanced 2 Sarah Brophy"I Say a Little Prayer" 4Advanced 3 Azi Jegbefume"My Love is Your Love" 6Advanced 4 Lisa Bresnan "Thank U" 1Advanced 5 Michael Leonard"Knockin' on Heaven's Door" 3Advanced 6 Catherine Yore"Natural Woman" 5Advanced 7 Catriona McGinty"Heartache Tonight" 7
+ Show 2 – 19 January 2003 Artist Song Place Result 1 Simon Casey "Right Here Waiting" 2 Advanced 2 Joanne Fahy "Talking in Your Sleep" 5 Advanced 3 Brian Ormond "Mandy" 1 Advanced 4 Susan McGowan "Hot Stuff" 6 5 Mickey Harte "I Won't Back Down" 3 Advanced 6 Susan McFadden "Flashdance... What a Feeling" 4 Advanced