Ireland was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1987 with the song "Hold Me Now", written and performed by Johnny Logan. The Irish participating broadcaster, (RTÉ), selected its entry through a national final. The entry eventually won the Eurovision Song Contest.
Before Eurovision
Eurosong '87 (RTÉ) held the national final on 8 March 1987, at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin, hosted by Marty Whelan and former Irish Eurovision participant Maxi. Nine songs competed, and the winner was chosen by an "expert" jury, which included Linda Martin, who represented Ireland in 1984 and would do so again in 1992.
Artist Song Points Place 1Rosie Hunter"I'm in a Tizzy" 64 7 2Jody McStravick"Louise" 60 8 3Charlie McGettigan "Are You Shy" 75 3 4Valerie Armstrong "" 71 4 5Spyder Sympson"All My Life" 69 5 6Loudest Whisper"Whisper, Whisper" 51 9 7 Paul Duffy"Every Single Move She Makes" 95 2 8Jenni Stanley"You're Not Around" 68 6 9 Johnny Logan "Hold Me Now" 114 1 + Detailed Jury Votes Song scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" scope="col" Total 1 "I'm in a Tizzy"64436666566664 2 "Louise"54646555655460 3 "Are You Shy"75858558675675 4 ""67647776754571 5 "All My Life"65646667775469 6 "Whisper, Whisper"54325564473351 7 "Every Single Move She Makes"88868979988795 8 "You're Not Around"65546666576668 9 "Hold Me Now"91010810101010109108114
At Eurovision The Eurovision Song Contest 1987 was held at the Palais du Centenaire, Eeuwfeestpaleis in Brussels, Belgium.
"Hold Me Now" was performed twentieth in the running order on the evening of the contest, following and preceding , which meant that Logan performed third last, as he had done seven years earlier. The song went on to win the contest with 172 points, a substantial thirty-one-point margin over .
Although many former winners have returned to perform at the contest, Logan was the only singer to have won the Eurovision Song Contest twice until Loreen in .
The contest was broadcast on RTÉ 1 (with commentary by Marty Whelan) and on radio station RTÉ FM3 (with commentary by Larry Gogan).
Voting
+ Points awarded to Ireland Score Country 12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points 5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 point
+ Points awarded by Ireland Score Country 12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points 5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 point
Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest
"Hold Me Now" was one of fourteen Eurovision songs chosen by fans to participate in the Congratulations 50th anniversary special in 2005. It was one of two Irish entries, both by Logan, to feature in the show (the other being "What's Another Year").
"Hold Me Now" was drawn to appear twelfth, following "Ne partez pas sans moi" by Celine Dion (the winner after Logan) and preceding "Save Your Kisses for Me" by Brotherhood of Man. Like the majority of performances that evening, it was largely played out with a dance troupe appearing alongside footage of Logan's 1987 performance. Near the end of the performance, Logan appeared and lip-synced the last chorus. At the end of the first round, "Hold Me Now" was announced as one of the songs proceeding to the second round. It was later revealed that "Hold Me Now" finished third, with 182 points.
In the final round, "Hold Me Now" held its third place, with an improved score of 262 points. In both the first and second round, Ireland was able to award themselves twelve points, a practice usually not allowed in standard Eurovision editions.
Voting
+ Points awarded to "Hold Me Now" (Round 1) Score Country 12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points 5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 point
+ Points awarded to "Hold Me Now" (Round 2) Score Country 12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points
References