Vocal duo Electro Velvet open up about their experience on the show more than 10 years ago.
Performing at Eurovision for the UK is often described as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, opening you up to a global audience of millions on one of the world’s most spectacular stages. But with the hopes of a nation resting on your shoulders, that spotlight can come with intense pressure.
Few understand that better than vocal duo Electro Velvet. When Alex Larke and Bianca Nicholas were selected to represent the UK at the 2015 contest with their song Still in Love with You, they instantly divided fans and critics.
And that negativity only intensified when their performance in Vienna for the live final saw them score just five points, finishing 24th out of 27 acts.
But more than a decade on, speaking candidly about the experience to our online casino team, the pair offer their advice to future participants, dish on the juicy backstage secrets, and reveal the bitter parting words they received from commentator Graham Norton after their disappointing result.
How did you land the Eurovision gig?
Alex: It all stems back to Bianca.
Bianca: My management at the time knew the songwriter, David Mendel, who wrote the song, and I’d recorded a demo vocal on it almost as a favour. David then said he wanted to submit my version to Eurovision. The BBC really liked it, and we made the shortlist. They didn’t keep the original male singer, and Alex was then brought on. Then we were picked to be the actual entry. It was surreal as I certainly never set out to be in Eurovision. It just sort of happened.
Do you have any funny moments from the performance?
Alex: I had these LED lights in the seam of my trousers, and they told me they’d break if I bent my legs too much. So I had to try to climb up these stairs for the performance, keeping my legs as straight as possible.
Bianca: I had six-inch heels, which were really scary!
Are there any strange rules you have to follow?
Alex: They made us delete all our social media apps from our phones in the run-up. They didn’t want us to see any of the negative comments because they worried it would put us off. I think they do that with every contestant because even positive comments can be distracting, as you can get an inflated ego and think you’re a shoo-in to win.
Your song Still in Love with You appeared to divide people right away. How was it dealing with the criticism in the run-up to the contest?
Alex: I don’t think we were prepared for it. I was quite unaware, as I wasn’t a big Eurovision fan beforehand. It was a lot. We were being written about and had people sending us really harsh messages on social media. You don’t expect appearing on a show like Eurovision to cause people to leave death threats in your inbox. It was really harsh.
Bianca: I previously considered Eurovision to be all about fun; I didn’t realise how seriously some people would take it. You don’t expect death threats over a cheesy little song.
Do you feel UK fans judge acts more harshly than other countries?
Bianca: We did a tour around Europe prior to the competition, and every other country, even Ireland, had such support for their acts. They always get behind them. It felt like some people were rooting for us to fail. It’s strange and quite sad. I don’t know why we’re like that.
You only received five points and finished 24th out of 27 acts. How did you feel after the show?
Bianca: I was in tears. I was speaking to one of the PR team recently, who reminded me that he found me in the dressing room. I was insisting I wanted to change because I wanted to disappear. I felt my career was ruined. I was so scared of the backlash after our result.
How much did the show impact your confidence?
Bianca: I just went into total shutdown and wanted to hide until I hoped everyone had forgotten about me. Alex seemed to bounce back much quicker.
Alex: Yeah but I think it hit me all later. Eurovision is an event with lots of incredible, fun parts to it. But then there’s this darker element that runs through it. A lot of the UK entrants have disappeared from the spotlight. It’s almost as if you’re not given another shot.
You say the criticism in the build-up was bad. Did either of you consider pulling out of the performance?
Bianca: I definitely had moments where I thought, ‘I don’t want to do this anymore,’ but I’d never have been brave enough to pull out. There were so many other people involved, and I wouldn’t want to spoil it for them. Alex and I were like chalk and cheese throughout, as I was actually pretty terrified, whereas he stayed very positive. That said, there were some amazing experiences along the way, and we had a lot of fun.
What was the atmosphere like backstage? Were people very competitive?
Alex: No, most people were really nice. Lots of hugs.
Bianca: The rest of Europe takes the contest very seriously, and we got asked loads of questions about why the UK audiences could be so harsh.
Did you get to see Graham Norton?
Alex: Yeah, so we actually spent a lot of time with Graham in the build-up and even performed on his chat show. One memory that really sticks with me is Graham giving me a parting comment at the hotel bar after the show had finished. He asked what our plans were next, and I said we were thinking of releasing another song. He just said, ‘Nah, I wouldn’t bother, it’s over for you.’ I remember thinking, ‘Cool… thanks, Graham.’
How do you feel about Eurovision over a decade later?
Alex: We’ve always kept in touch and done a few Eurovision events. But when the ten-year anniversary came up last year, we decided to do a song for it and performed at a big Eurovision party in London. That seemed to flip things on its head because people were responding to us with a lot of love. I guess the weight of expectation for the competition wasn’t on us anymore, and people were allowed to just enjoy our performance. It did feel healing.
Bianca: It really did, actually. That was a turning point. We’ve almost become like a cult classic now. People have grown to like us and our entry, and they’re much kinder about it. I’m now in a better place than I used to be. The tenth anniversary performance finally helped me look back on it in a more positive light and blame myself less. I blamed myself and hated myself. Now I’m kinder to myself.
What advice would you give to someone who is set to represent the UK at Eurovision?
Alex: Enjoy yourself, but go into it with your eyes wide open. If it doesn’t go well for you, you need to have a backup plan. We didn’t. The BBC were really keen that we didn’t have management, but we probably should have done. You need to be well represented.
Bianca: It is a blast. I’m worried I’ve made it sound all doom and gloom. There were really hard times, but the experience can be amazing too.
